Chapter 534

"Hello, I'm the one who made a reservation earlier."

Tiancheng Guang and Tierra arrived at the main hall of the Witchcraft Alley Guild, where crowds of visitors flowed incessantly around the alley.

This was Witchcraft Alley, the famed "Equipment Crafting Alley," which had already gained modest renown in the Spirit World before the split of the Spirit Dimension, and after the split, its unique properties made it a central dimension akin to the Magic Clan Village.

Unlike the Magic Clan Village, where mages exchanged techniques, or the Grand Magic Academy, a massive training institution, Witchcraft Alley was a simple, straightforward alley.

Pay money, then buy or commission robes, weapons, or dolls made by witches, and strive toward a certain direction.

To an ordinary observer, seeing spirit factions selling weapons and accessories might seem puzzling—why would spirits, who don't need weapons, have such an odd faction?

But thinking that way is far too simplistic.

Spirits are peculiar beings; with sufficient effort through certain means, they can transform into other spirits.

Naturally, this includes their "appearance."

For example, Wan Wan Zhangmu's XYZ Dragon Cannon and XYZ Ultra-Dragon Cannon look identical at first glance—both have cannons, dragon heads, and tracks—but the Ultra-Dragon Cannon's design is far more modern and cutting-edge.

Similarly, the Flame Swordsman and Ultra-Flame Swordsman follow the same principle.

Larger armor, broader swords, and stronger flames.

These are all ways spirits evolve.

Witchcraft Alley offers similar accessories, and moreover, it sells a specific kind of "accessory" that allows buyers to "lock" their state and prevent themselves from evolving in a certain direction.

For instance, some Warrior-type spirits have accumulated enough experience and seem ready to evolve, but don't wish to become other Warrior-type monsters—they can commission items here to lock their evolution path and prevent themselves from evolving into Warrior-type spirits.

This is why Witchcraft Alley is famous in the Spirit World.

Precisely because of this, there are many travelers from other dimensions here.

Not just Tiancheng Guang—there are countless other dimensional travelers here too, though they are all spirits, while Tiancheng Guang is human.

The front desk clerk was a witch from the Black Forest; she checked the records, glanced at Tiancheng Guang, let out two quiet gasps, then hesitated.

"Let me handle this—"

Just as she struggled to speak, a female spirit interrupted her hesitation and stepped forward.

Tiancheng Guang looked and immediately knew: "I've found the right person."

The spirit wore a black fitted leather bodysuit and skirt, with high-heeled leather boots extending nearly to her waist, strikingly beautiful, with faint blue highlights in her hair—she was the Witchcraft Alley's "seamstress"—the Witchcraft Artisan: Seamstress Witch.

She was also the "acting master" of Witchcraft Alley.

Her appearance meant Tiancheng Guang's visit was at least not in vain.

"I sincerely apologize, Master Hikari," the witch first bowed slightly toward Tiancheng Guang, then said with a hint of helplessness, "We had agreed to introduce you to Master Sandryon today, but... I'm sorry, though it has returned, we haven't seen it—actually, we're currently searching for it ourselves."

"You may wait here for a while; we will definitely find it for you today."

Hmm...

Not surprising, really.

Tiancheng Guang had absolutely no surprise at this outcome.

No wonder the front desk witch today was from the Black Forest—previously, it was always Witchcraft Alley members handling reception; clearly, she'd been temporarily called in to help.

Tiancheng Guang didn't mind waiting—he'd waited this long, a few more minutes didn't matter—but he had clearly overestimated Sandryon's sense of duty. He waited a full hour, until Tierra grew impatient and wanted to help the Witchcraft Alley members drag out the "Witchcraft Master" themselves, when finally, a witch dressed in a lavish purple gown approached Tiancheng Guang and told him they had found Sandryon.

They could now prepare his Trial Duel.

Upon hearing that a "Trial Duel" was about to begin—specifically, a duel personally conducted by Sandryon, one of the elite "mages" of Witchcraft Alley who had never appeared before—the spirits strolling through Witchcraft Alley immediately perked up and gathered at the Crystal Plaza.

It was a pure white dueling arena, surrounded entirely by transparent crystal. Several witches were speaking rapidly to a drowsy-looking "little girl," complaining that she was neglecting her duties while they were overwhelmed with work, and she was still sleeping.

The "little girl" nodded occasionally as she listened, then suddenly collapsed forward, startled awake, flipped over midair, and yawned: "Oh my, Master is very busy! Lately there's been so much to do, and I just got home—this is how you welcome me?"

"What are you busy with?!"

"Exactly!"

"Tell us then!"

Three high-level spirits muttered bitterly beside her.

"Um... is that Master Sandryon?"

"One of the founders of the Magic Clan Village? One of the Three Sages? Looks completely ordinary."

"Has absolutely no fighting spirit."

The curious spirits observed but sensed no remarkable dueling energy, and grew puzzled.

Sandryon yawned, ignoring the other spirits, and spoke: "So many come seeking entry to the Mage Realm—why make it so serious?"

"Besides, didn't I already hand all this over to you?"

"Master Sandryon, this is different!" the seamstress countered.

Tiancheng Guang is different!

"What's different?" Sandryon yawned again, glancing at Tiancheng Guang and Tierra beside him. "Midrash... well, that's indeed quite impressive."

She lightly raised her hand, and several transparent crystals suddenly flew out from the surrounding crystals, landing before her, then shattered with a snap, forming a dueling field.

With her fingers, she gently traced patterns in the air—cards materialized at her fingertips, eventually forming her deck.

"Regardless, just duel—" Sandryon looked at Tiancheng Guang. "So, let's duel. If you win, I'll grant you the Three Sages' certification—giving you the chance to visit the Mage Realm."

Tiancheng Guang nodded, thanked her, and the dueling field activated automatically.

Witchcraft Master: Glass Witch, LP: 4000.

Tiancheng Guang, LP: 4000.

Sandryon had the first turn; she casually tapped the dueling field, and a card automatically flew from her deck.

"Eh—who's dueling with Master Sandryon?"

"He looks familiar... I feel like I've seen him somewhere before."

"Strange—I've rarely seen humans. Why does this one seem familiar?"

A few passing spirits couldn't help murmuring.

To them, humans mostly looked alike—but if someone left an impression, they could distinguish them.

They seemed to vaguely remember Tiancheng Guang, yet strangely, they didn't recall ever having met him.

That was odd.

"My turn." Sandryon casually placed a magic card onto the dueling field. "Activate Magic Card: Creation of Witchcraft. Add one Witchcraft monster from your deck to your hand."

As the duel began, a row of Witchcraft Alley members had already gathered behind Sandryon. Besides the seamstress they'd met earlier, numerous other Witchcraft members were present—by a rough count, nearly all the spirits except the seamstress had duplicates.

Even the high-level spirit "Gem Artisan" had two copies.

"Add Small Forge to my hand."

Witchcraft Artisan: Forge Witch—a vibrant red-haired witch carrying a massive mechanical "wrench."

"Normal Summon: Forge Witch. Activate its effect: During either player's Main Phase, you can banish this card to activate; discard one magic card from your hand to Special Summon one Witchcraft monster from your deck, other than Forge Witch."

She snapped her fingers, shattering a transparent crystal before her, and spoke softly.

"Special Summon myself."

In the sky, a white transparent sofa slowly materialized. She leaned back on it, watching calmly ahead.

Witchcraft Master: Glass Witch, Level 8, Light Attribute, Spellcaster Type, DEF 2800.

"Effect of Small Forge in the graveyard: Banish it to activate. Send one Witchcraft card from your deck, other than Forge, to the graveyard. I send Small Gem to the graveyard~"

Behind her, the two Gem Witches wore embarrassed expressions.

Clearly, as a high-level mage spirit, she still felt some shame hearing such a childish term.

"Activate Continuous Magic Card: Witchcraft Alley~"

The surrounding transparent crystals shifted colors, soon reflecting the alley's outside scenery—reproducing the buildings with exquisite detail and even the pedestrians with lifelike motion.

"This card allows Witchcraft monsters to be unaffected by battle or effects once per turn." She explained her effect openly.

"This card allows a Witchcraft monster to be unaffected by battle or effects once per turn," it explained generously about its effect.

"That's it?"

Several spirits were surprised.

They expected some astonishing duel, but she'd simply summoned one Spellcaster and ended her turn.

It wasn't that the upper-level monster wasn't strong—it just didn't seem to match the reputation of the "Three Sages."

But soon, they realized it was far from simple.

"At the end of the turn, the effect of the magic card in the graveyard activates. The effect of Small Forge discarded: while these cards remain in the graveyard and you control a Witchcraft monster, activate during your End Phase. This card returns to your hand—but unfortunately, you can only activate one of its two effects per turn, so Creation cannot be recovered."

"At the end of the turn, the effect of a magic card in the graveyard activates. This synergizes with the discarded Witchcraft effect—when these cards exist in the graveyard and you control a Witchcraft monster, their effect activates during your End Phase. This card goes to your hand—but unfortunately, they can only activate one of their two effects per turn, so Creation cannot be recovered."

A card made of crystal slowly reformed and flew back into the Glass Witch's hand.

A card made of crystal slowly reformed, then flew once more into the Witch of Glass's hand.

So, Sandryon could repeat this exact sequence every two turns?

In that case, it was practically a zero-cost Special Summon!

Perhaps even Witchcraft Alley itself operated this way.

No wonder she was one of the supreme mages—her mastery of "magic" was extraordinary.

No wonder he is one of the supreme magicians—his mastery of "Magic" is astonishing.

It was Tiancheng Guang's turn.

Tiancheng Guang glanced at his hand, then at his opponent.

Sandryon was still yawning—she truly looked exhausted, as Tierra had said.

This spirit, Sandryon, the Glass Witch, wasn't merely slacking off; upon analyzing her soul, she was genuinely weary—almost exhausted.

This slightly differed from the "original text"—the true "Sandryon" was a master of slacking off, whose ideal was to find a place and nap forever.

This is actually slightly different from the "Original Text"; the true "Sandryon" is someone extremely skilled at slacking off, whose ideal is to find a place and stay there forever doing nothing.

But regardless, the opponent had indeed been slightly distracted.

"Activate the Spell Card: Toy Toy Mending."

"Add one 【Sharp Imp】 and one Fusion from your deck to your hand."

"I add 【Fusion】 and Sharp Imp Scissors to my hand."

"Toy Toy Mending?" Sandryon heard the card's name, lifted his head slightly, and muttered under his breath, "That's the spirit dimension that invaded the Xyz human world…?"

Hikari Tenjo caught these words precisely and was momentarily startled.

He even knows this?

"Then, I activate the Spell Card in my hand, Fusion, and fuse the Sharp Imp Scissors in my hand with the Fuzzy Animal Penguin in my hand."

"Fusion Summon! Level 6, Toy Monster·Scissor Tiger!"

A plush tiger's midsection burst forth with a sharp blade; a pair of scissors split the monster in two as it roared onto the field.

Toy Monster·Scissor Tiger, Level 6, Dark Attribute, Demon Type, ATK 1900.

"When Scissor Tiger is Fusion Summoned, target up to as many cards on the field as there were Fusion materials used for this card's Summon. Destroy those cards."

"Also, when the Penguin is sent to the graveyard as a Toy Monster Fusion material, draw two cards from your deck, then discard one."

Hikari Tenjo pointed at Sandryon himself: "I target your own card on the field for destruction."

"Fusion destruction of a monster?"

"It's starting to feel familiar."

The surrounding spirits whispered among themselves, growing increasingly certain they recognized Hikari Tenjo.

"Hah…" Sandryon, seeing this, finally took it seriously, picking up a card from his hand. "Activate my own effect: during my opponent's turn, discard one Spell Card from my hand to negate the effects of all face-up monsters on the opponent's field until the end of the turn!"

"Discard Witchcraft Cooperation."

With a slight motion of his hand, countless panes of glass surrounded the Scissor Tiger, turning it into a museum doll—sealed away.

"Whoa!?"

"So… so strong—"

"It can't be destroyed by battle or effects, can discard a Spell Card to negate all monsters on the field, has 2800 DEF, and recovers all Spell Cards from the graveyard each turn?"

"Ssshh—No wonder he's a member of the Supreme Magicians, the Three Sages."

Undeniably, his effect was extremely powerful, and when combined with his own ability to boost ATK, it became even stronger.

At least in this world, he alone could handle the vast majority of field situations.

But only the "vast majority."

Hikari Tenjo drew two cards from his deck, glanced at them, and sent one 【Armored Fusion】 to the graveyard: "Activate the effect of 【Armored Fusion】 in the graveyard: return it to the deck, shuffle, then draw one card."

"Another Fusion?" Sandryon tilted his head, intrigued. "Just how many Fusions are you going to use…?"

"How many? The answer is: 【All】."

?

Sandryon paused, then felt a sudden headache coming on.

He vaguely felt Hikari Tenjo's words had been said to him before, but he'd been too busy lately to recall such details.

While he struggled to remember, the watching spirits finally connected the dots—though not an official title, the phrase instantly triggered recognition.

"Aaaahhh—it's him! That one!"

"It's Xikalige, the Absolute Fusionist, the human warrior who pursues ultimate fusion!"

"The GX champion from the F-dimension human world!"

"The one who seeks infinite fusion—"

The spirits erupted, babbling about Hikari Tenjo.

Unlike those in the S-dimension who didn't know Hikari Tenjo,

these spirits, though they'd never seen him in person, had seen his duels widely circulated throughout the Spirit World—many had heard of him, knew his deeds.

Only now did Sandryon fully awaken to the truth.

It's the one Crowly asked me to meet—

He turned to the tailor, who stood tall and proud, expression saying: "I told you this guest was different—you wouldn't listen!"

He shook his head.

He couldn't blame the tailor now—he'd been the one who didn't listen, assuming this was just another overconfident warrior.

He hadn't expected such a "celebrity."

He'd been too occupied with something vital to the Spirit World to keep up with popular magic videos; clearly, he was falling behind.

Interesting.

So many spirits—even the little tailor—admired this duelist. It sparked Sandryon's own curiosity in Hikari Tenjo.

"The Absolute Fusionist—fascinating. Let me see what your fusion looks like." He regarded Hikari Tenjo with keen interest.

He was still confident.

"Then, I activate the Spell Card, Fusion Recovery: return 【Fusion】 and the Penguin from the graveyard to my hand."

"Then—" he glanced at his Extra Deck.

Perfect timing—this was the chance to test the card deciphered by the Magician Scientists studying the power of "Light of Annihilation."

"Activate the Spell Card, Fusion!"

"Fusion Condition: One monster Special Summoned from the Extra Deck, and one monster in the hand."

Such a high requirement—

Nearly every spirit present inwardly gasped.

"Fuse the Toy Monster·Scissor Tiger on the field with the Sharp Imp·Chain in my hand—"

Hikari Tenjo raised his right hand; a purple vortex formed in his palm, then light flooded the entire dimension's sky.

Hikari Tenjo felt as if he stood within the stars and cosmos.

"Unite! Unite!"

"Advance further into fusion!"

"Fusion Summon!"

"Level 8!"

"Supporting Magician Magnum!"

Zzzzz—

A piercing screech echoed. Before Hikari Tenjo appeared a demon whose movements mirrored his own. The demon gathered the surrounding fusion energy into a vortex, syncing with the one in the sky—its entire form became a living embodiment of "Fusion."

Hikari Tenjo seemed to see a colossal, light-formed "Demon Bull," lowering its head, crimson eyes confusedly fixed on him.

Success!

Supporting Magician Magnum, Level 8, Light Attribute, Demon Type, ATK 2800.

5k5k, Chapter One, Chapter One—I spent a long time refining some details, so today's update is late.

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(End of Chapter)