Chapter 682: Spell Cards

Sando's sense of hunger today lasted longer than ever before, but as their queen, she knew how to prioritize—always securing the squirrel's viewpoint before teleporting the food.

“Jun, this peach seems like a fruit from the divine realm—if you plant the seed, you’ll be able to eat it every day,” Sando said.

These aren’t the point; the real issue is there are too many absurdities and too much information.

The walls were embedded with control panels, their blueprints displaying the blurred, encrypted forms and annotations of each individual, all of which were now being rapidly processed and inferred by Aya and the central hive mainframe—too much to even skim.

“What the hell?”

Is that man whose meme elements have come to life the Heavenly Emperor? Does the Heavenly Emperor watch SpongeBob on the children’s channel at 9:30 p.m.? How is Kaguya Houraisan even connected to the Moon Goddess?

“What exactly is this Gensokyo made of?”

I must’ve woken up too suddenly—I just saw Erlang Shen chasing after Sanae Kotiya in Gensokyo.

He was too drained to comment, and the summoned counterparts were equally clueless; many things simply didn’t add up.

Then again, there are similarities—like—

The famed tengu journalist Sanae Kotiya, snapping photos with excitement, recording the news: [SHOCKING! A bizarre parallel Gensokyo hides unknown secrets: it turns out that the married Emiya Shirou is having an affair with his adoptive sister Illya, and an unknown Heavenly Emperor is secretly meeting Taiyin Kyouko to discuss marriage—only to be caught red-handed by Erlang Shen, who flies into a rage. To find out what happens next…]

If left unchecked, this news would spread across the entire Macroverse News Weekly by tomorrow morning—even Ice’s parents, having breakfast in the divine realm, would read it as their morning gossip.

“You’ve always been this bold?”

Chen Jun, one of the victims, had more than once entertained thoughts of silencing her—so when he saw Su Lin, “furious with shame,” threaten to send the other Sanae to the deepest hell, he actually understood her and even silently gave a like.

“A true journalist dares to report the truth!”

Even across different timelines, certain underlying logic codes remain unchanged—especially when it comes to artistic embellishment of real reports.

“Everything you see here is top secret! Take her down, get her to sign the confidentiality agreement.”

When making contact with another Gensokyo, certain things must still be avoided—like using “tabloid journalism” as an abstract cause for war.

“Your Majesty, we have a new discovery,” Tavil projected several images of the Three Pure Ones and the Three Pure Ones enshrined in the Hakurei Shrine; the graying “Meng Qi” appeared within a constantly shifting crystal polyhedron: “After comparison, this individual exhibits anomalies.”

“Oh, I already know his identity,” Chen Jun said.

“As expected of Your Majesty.”

“.”

Does this even require judgment?

Chen Jun glanced at the footage: purple qi rising from the east, Laozi riding his ox toward the east, reciting the Tao Te Ching, vanishing into the sky.

Even Laozi riding his ox? Anyone with roots on Earth could recognize that.

At this point, it could still be seen as a high-energy world where myths never vanished—having gods throwing a banquet here isn’t that strange, and Hakurei Reimu’s output level being stronger is normal too.

Provided you ignore all the inconsistencies and oddities within.

“Does that Emiya Shirou seem like he’s been possessed?”

“Only this one thing.”

Crystal Mother Kirino Sakura raised her hand: “Even though his appearance and attire differ slightly, I can confirm that this ‘Emiya Shirou’ shares the same core essence as the senior I know.”

“The things they discussed about Kiritsugu are events I experienced as a child,” the Shadow City Emiya Shirou said.

The so-called “Supreme Sword Sect” is the original—so Emiya Shirou’s hidden lolicon tendencies must be real too.

It’s not a possession scenario—so the problem is even bigger. Could the original Type-Moon universe also be like this Gensokyo?

“Arjun, I think we should try to establish formal contact with the fantasy realm of this void dimension and these ‘Hilong Empire’ people as soon as possible,” Shandora wiped her mouth.

Establishing communication with the void dimension beyond the Macroverse is indeed important, and I understand the logic—but isn’t your other motive too obvious?

“Yukari Yakumo of Zero Gensokyo won’t budge; using overly forceful methods might provoke conflict and cause unnecessary losses to both sides.”

It’s labeled “Zero” because all known Gensokyos are subject to Yukari’s influence—even if you attempt to reach other numbered Gensokyos, the Boundary Power will reject or perceive you as a threat.

However, the database now includes new information on Emiya Shirou, suspected to originate from the Empire’s recovered universe.

“Didn’t Emiya Shirou say he was going to hold his wedding at the Hakurei Shrine?”

Bubble said: “Weddings require inviting relatives and friends—wouldn’t it be normal for us to bring our own to give gifts?”

Budebushuo ， Paopaodenaohuiluyoushiheqianqianyiyangshenqi 。

[Detected surge in negative entropy flow; temporal instability continues to increase.] This is a common phenomenon; based on past data, stability and order will soon be restored under the intervention of that eccentric youkai.

The other Gensokyo exists in a world where negative entropy surges cannot be resolved by conventional physics; the entry of any outsider from beyond the world only intensifies these phenomena.

The original plan was to invite them to relocate, as with Empire’s No. 1 Gensokyo, leaving the world empty for Empire’s development and research—but Yukari is extremely wary.

“No decay.”

“What?”

“This time, there’s no decay.”

The fluctuations are minimal, but it has never returned to baseline.

“Hmm,” Sando stared at the screen, pondered, then picked up the remote again—just as everyone on-screen returned to their normal demeanor and walked into the Hakurei Shrine, the squirrel leapt off Song Shuhang’s shoulder and ran toward the table where the Creation Pillar cake was placed.

Open a portal and face-to-face with the gap while inhaling the cake-cutting frenzy!

“Too obvious! I’ll go buy you some pastries from Belavera later!” Chen Jun quickly warned.

“I’m full today,” Shandora said calmly. “And this time, I didn’t borrow your void creature traits—I just teleported plainly.”

As she spoke, a hand reached out from the gap, grabbed the squirrel by the nape of its neck, and hurled it out.

At that moment, Song Shuhang appeared again.

“That scheming youkai Yukari!” Sando sneered coldly: “Sorry, I didn’t mean you.”

“No need to apologize,” the Shadow City Yukari opened her fan with an awkward smile.

“She shows no resistance to our probing—that means one thing,” Sando shoved a bite of cake into her mouth.

“Mmmgrrl… it means she doesn’t really trust these people either—perhaps due to certain reasons, she’s deliberately increasing contact with us.”

“Balancing,” Chen Jun realized: “She wants to use us as a backup counterweight against these gods, and simultaneously let these unknown gods balance us.”

“Exactly. She has a need—so we can now strengthen ties,” Sando said to the Shadow City Yukari and the Gensokyo group:

“Let’s pry open that boundary youkai’s mouth—I have a feeling this investigation will yield major breakthroughs!”

“Jun, aren’t you eating?”

Chen Jun’s lip twitched as he muttered: “Didn’t you just say you were full?”

“Oh right—then I’ll save it for tonight’s midnight snack.” Sando stored a large chunk of nebula cake in her personal space and split another portion for Tavil to study: “You all should join me for some snacks?”

The squirrel’s footage continued—the cake, delicious beyond the limits of taste, left everyone spellbound, except—

Two Emiya Shirous knelt prostrate on the ground, muttering things like “totally defeated” and “the gap.”

Gulp, gulp.

Reimu placed her wooden ladle back into the water vat and wiped her mouth: “Almost died of thirst.”

The group gathered inside the shrine, staring oddly at the crucifix and the Three Pure Ones enshrined there, waiting for Reimu to explain the rules and creation process of the Fuka system.

The banquet wasn’t over, but after hearing Meng Qi’s Tao Te Ching and seeing the crimson killer shatter the stars with Yin-Yang Orbs, anyone not completely drunk was now wide awake.

“Since you all plan to stay in Gensokyo permanently, make your Fuka cards now—before you cause damage to the environment.”

The Fuka system is a duel-based simulation combat rule.

Gensokyo has too many beings with immense destructive power—yokai sometimes attack humans, humans try to subdue yokai, and some bored individuals crave spectacle.

Thus, to ensure fairness, to give yokai a chance to defeat Hakurei Reimu, and to guarantee human safety in the wild, the Fuka system was created.

Once a side wins, they gain the authority to make subsequent decisions.

Of course, while the Fuka system is widely promoted, whether or not people follow the rules is entirely up to them—unless Reimu catches them.

Everyone glanced at the tea in Yan Sen’s hand—the Water Mirror Technique reflected a blood-soaked youkai named “Tian Mo” burning in hellfire.

The red-haired cat-eared girl tossed it onto a cat cart, finally dumping it into a sea of fire where a golden crow slept.

“Because of your lie, a beautiful girl suffers—don’t you feel any guilt?” Lu Mingfei asked.

“Gensokyo, which accepts everything, is cruel,” Su Lin said gravely. “Welcome to the adult Gensokyo.”

She’s one of the top youkai—should be fine, maybe like Ku Jing, she’ll just respawn or get dragged out for another beating in a couple days.

“In short, the Fuka system denies raw power—it’s a duel rule based on competition and aesthetic expression,” Hakurei Reimu sipped tea and pulled out a Fuka card:

“Making one is actually simple—you can design your own, or turn your techniques, abilities, or treasures into Fuka cards.”

“You need a signature technique with a name, and you must declare it when using it.”

Xiao Yan immediately perked up: “So I have a chance to defeat Su Lin?”

Su Lin: “?”

Was it my imagination?

It felt like, after Xiao Yan said that, a dozen scorching gazes fixed on me.

“Fair duel?”

Ye Fan stroked his chin thoughtfully: “Don’t worry—we’re all friends. We won’t take advantage of your weakened state. Fuka gives everyone a fair chance to duel.”

Thanks a lot.

“Let’s spar later,” Shi Hao pointed outside.

You too?

Su Lin frowned: “Aren’t I always dueling you fairly?”

I only used the Divine Light Avatar once—and even then, I was outnumbered four-to-one, and I was only at Foundation Establishment.

Shi Hao was at a higher level back then—what’s wrong with borrowing a bit of heavenly will to balance things?

When was any of my duels unfair? The tractor one? The movie one?

Su Lin felt someone tugging his clothes—he turned around: “What?”

“If you lose, you have to call me sister,” Xing grinned mischievously.

Su Lin laughed bitterly with rage: “You’ll learn what it means to be the Duel King.”

Even so,

Outside the Hakurei Shrine, Su Lin, who had been logging and designing spell cards, turned to look at certain individuals rolling their sleeves and wearing “friendly” smiles: “.”

“Are you ready?” Lu Mingfei waved his hand while bouncing up and down.

“Take your time, no rush,” Xiao Yan nodded slightly with his hands behind his back, secretly activating the recording function on his phone.

As for what?

At this moment, Zhao Shuang handed a pill to Himeyuri, who then infused it with Eternal Power.

There was no choice—aside from the Fallen Medal’s Ultimate Evolution summon, which might not be usable until some unknown time, only the Invincible War Dragon was worth using.

To refine previous spells and techniques into spell cards, he needed to briefly restore his power.

“Time to test your speed,” Su Lin swallowed the pill.

In an instant, Gensokyo was swallowed by darkness; when the vast light burst through the heavens and the world returned to normal, Su Lin, who had forcibly disbanded his power at the last moment, propped himself up with one hand to avoid being burned into unconsciousness.

A thick stack of spell cards appeared in his hand.

[Artifact: Celestial River Battle Robe]

[Buddhist Card: Only I Am Supreme]

[Daoist Card: Swallow the Sun, Devour the Yin]

[Divine Card: Light of the Primordial]

[Divine Technique: Let There Be Light]

[Divine Entity: The Loving Star Deity Family]

“I’ll fight you with these cards,” Su Lin wiped his sweat and smiled confidently: “I’ll give you Hell difficulty right away.”

[Oh! I thought who was tapping into the Path’s power—it’s the Bishop, isn’t it?~ You scared Aha to death~~~]

One spell card suddenly detached, darting up and down in midair: [Wait, Aha’s coming to you right now! Family, today’s team-building event!]

The card split open a crack but did not tear; a chilling laugh echoed as a dice-embedded mask struggled to squeeze itself out.

[You humorless family over there, look here—there’s abundant prey outside! Yes, aim rockets at Aha!] The mask twisted and writhed: [Bishop, just wait a moment~ This path is too narrow. Aha will see you soon, very soon~ Aha! Why are you holding a baseball bat?]

Su Lin raised the golden baseball bat without expression, wrapping it in the power of Nine Dragons, and swung hard.

Thud!

Thud!

Thud!

Three consecutive blows—he finally stomped the card onto the ground and shoved the mask back in like unclogging a toilet, then smashed it several more times.

“Ha… ha…” Su Lin panted, tidied his hair, raised the card, and turned to Xiao Yan, who stood stunned: “Minor hiccup. Let’s continue.”

“.” Xiao Yan stared blankly at him, slowly raised his hand, and pointed to another of Su Lin’s spell cards.

Though nestled among several other cards, it was clearly different—phantom pure white wings continuously grew until a solemn, sacred vertical pupil slowly opened its eye.

“Coming to life?” Su Lin crushed the card and extracted all its energy: “Alright, let’s continue—the other cards won’t be a problem.”

“.”

Do you swear?