Tonight, Alice joins the hunt.

I am the winner.

Alice's mind stirred, and an invisible force field pulled her from a supine position to a standing one. She felt quite pleased that her heartbeat was now exactly the same frequency as the sleeping person's—although a possessive soul does not need a heart, her will and skill could easily reverse that.

The winner will be responsible for preparing breakfast.

She stepped across the shattered floor, layered with crystals—residual energy, a polymer of curses, the source of power bestowed upon Patchouli by Shinki—originating from the original world of Dark Souls, a magical system that uses souls as raw materials to create crystals for various spells. Its name is Crystal Magic, and its potential and cost are equally immense—Alice did feel a slight unease when she first saw it. But since Patchouli had chosen to accept it, she had nothing more to say.

Crystallization magic, which uses the soul as the raw material for creation, does indeed have the potential to reach the extraordinary level in a short time. No wonder Patchouli isn't in a hurry at all... I thought she would continue down the path of information magic. Hmm... perhaps it's just a sideline?

"Forget it, it doesn't matter. Besides, witches who only practice one type of magic are relatively rare anyway. Didn't I myself switch my advancement path from information magic to obsessive soul magic? And... right now, the power of information magic is gradually becoming unable to keep up with the level of our war. The upper limit of the Apocalypse is ultimately only equivalent to a transcendent strike at the initial limit of the fourth tier, something I can do without casting a spell now. Although I could try to make some moves from that diverse array of human fortune..."

[However, it's better not to die like that. I can see the aura of humanity, there's no reason why those powerful figures in other fields can't. And if there's no defense against the aura of humanity... tsk, I don't even believe that in my dreams.]

She walked through the corridor, letting Shanghai and Penglai, who appeared from the shadows, dress her and fix her hair. By the time she reached the kitchen, she was dressed normally again. Then she surveyed the kitchen counter and began to think about what kind of breakfast she should make.

"Hmm... I'll pass on anything too ordinary. Today is a memorable day, so I should make something special. But what should I make...? Tying myself up with a ribbon and sending myself over is a good idea, but it feels a bit out of place..." She pursed her lips, lost in thought. One plan after another quietly surfaced in her mind, only to be rejected by her. Finally, a slightly creative idea lightly leaped into her thoughts.

She glanced at Shanghai, and then the little doll obediently floated out of Patchouli's personal space, carrying out her command. Not long after, she heard the notification of the reward points being paid out by the main god in fulfilling the transaction. Accompanied by this solemn voice, the doll, flapping its two small wings, slowly returned from outside, dragging the item she needed.

It was a roughly processed crystal lizard. Originating from the world of Dark Souls, it grew by devouring ores from ley lines. The inferior waste became its sustenance, while the precious essence within the ores was accumulated by the lizard, eventually forming refined gemstone material on its body. Over time, they gradually acquired magical properties, and these magical energies had a subtle connection to the spells of the crystal.

The crystal lizard Alice chose was six meters long and weighed 1.4 tons. As food for ordinary people, it would probably be enough to feed a football team for a month—if they could even finish it—but for the witch, that amount was clearly not a problem.

“Then let’s make this.” Alice nodded, extremely pleased with herself for her cleverness. Since Patchouli intended to conduct research in the field of crystal magic, objects related to crystallization were undoubtedly excellent choices for celebratory food at this time. And this lizard…

Well, while she wasn't particularly confident in her cooking skills, she was quite confident in her enchanted seasoning techniques. After all, cooking techniques are ultimately just about fine-tuning the five senses. For beings at their level, as long as energy is plentiful, adjusting flavors is actually quite easy.

So first of all...

With a flick of her fingertips, hundreds of puppet strings were drawn, and the crystallized lizard, already processed by the main god, was cut and split into hundreds or even thousands of uniformly sized pieces. The flesh, veins, and internal energy were distributed extremely evenly among each individual piece. Penglai, who had already prepared the bowls and plates, then precisely arranged these lizard pieces into suitable shapes.

Since it's food, and the flavor can be adjusted at will, there's no need to waste time adding extra ingredients. With the flavor issue resolved satisfactorily, the next step is to refine the texture and color.

The issue of color is simple. All you need to do is prepare suitable pigments, and then adjust the molecular structure of those pigments to be edible... Hmm, Patchouli probably won't care whether those pigments are edible or not, and molecular-level decomposition shouldn't be a problem for her either. So all you need to do is make the pigments taste delicious, and then coat them on the outside of the food...

[Wouldn't it be better to use a part of the lizard directly as paint?]

The girl thought to herself, "No sooner said than done." With a slight thought, a precisely adjusted high-energy shockwave accurately struck the lizard pieces that Penglai had specially taken out and placed in a small bowl. The bowl of meat immediately disintegrated and reconstructed, and when it revealed its complete shape again, it had become visually striking clumps of paint. Alice then further adjusted their molecular structure, making their colors even more vibrant and rich.

Great, the color issue is resolved.

Now let's discuss the issue of smell and taste.

"The essence of aroma is the dispersion of food particles, so all we need to do is control the diffusion range of the molecules, ensuring that the pre-prepared food molecules accurately reach the olfactory mucosa. Hmm... for meat, emphasizing savory aroma is enough, right? Should we also mix in some natural floral and herbal fragrances?"

Alice pondered for a moment, then shook her head. Even she felt that putting flowers and lizard meat together was inappropriate. Although she could prepare lizard meat in various ways, meat was meat, and if the original molecular structure was deviated too much, it would be better to use flowers and herbs as ingredients from the beginning.

“…Never mind, just a little embellishment will do; the main focus should be on the freshness.” She murmured to herself, preparing the lizard meat into the desired arrangement—she arranged the cut pieces into various delicate shapes, using a directional, high-energy impact to denature the proteins into evenly layered cooked food. Then, she bound the aroma molecules inside each piece of food with a small sealing array made of cooked tendons and meat fibers, and painted them with an enticing color using pre-mixed pigments.

“It feels good.” Alice nodded, took a small piece of lizard meat decorated like a lotus flower from the plate, and stuffed it into her mouth. As the food entered her mouth, a stream of crystalline magic burst forth, and she precisely analyzed and dissected the various mixed flavors, forming a complete feedback in her mind.

The flavor combination... is not ideal. But the aroma and color are fine.

The problem then becomes much simpler. Although one issue exists, at least the other two have been properly addressed. The remaining challenge, the flavor issue, will simply require multiple adjustments and combinations to arrive at the perfect solution. And now…

She quickly calculated the time; good, it hadn't taken long. Although it seemed like she had done a lot, less than five minutes had actually passed since she woke up. And based on her understanding of Patchouli, Patchouli's natural awakening would take about fifteen minutes. Therefore, this long period was enough time for her to make hundreds, even thousands, of attempts in different directions.

So... let's start with the basics.

Since the problem lies in the taste, the solution is to select the one thousand most delicious flavors ever recorded and then blend them into the right proportions. This is a very simple, repetitive task that can be easily solved using basic brute force. And for Alice at this moment, the last thing she lacks is the patience and time required for repetitive work.

Thus, Alice's cooking entered the next stage.

....................................

When Patchouli awoke, she found herself dressed, her hair and skin thoroughly washed and groomed. She looked around; the reading room, which had been in disarray due to certain… special circumstances, had been restored to its original state. Then, turning her gaze, she saw a sumptuous feast neatly laid out on a long table.

It wasn't some random medley; it was a truly lavish feast. Delicacies from land and sea, flowers, birds, insects, and fish—all sorts of exotic foods, both familiar and unfamiliar, were arranged in exquisite patterns and placed in their proper positions. Each dish exuded a captivating, sweet aroma, and their vibrant sheen was incredibly enticing, making her mouth water.

“I put a lot of effort into making this, Patchouli. Come and try it.” Alice sat across the long table with a smile, resting her chin on her hand. She carried the subtle scent of someone who had recently done a lot of hard work—though Patchouli knew very well that this was probably intentionally done by someone she loved, she was still very touched.

I was deeply moved.

Then she raised her hand and fired a crystal magic cannon, slamming Alice directly against the wall.

"Why, why?!" Alice screamed as she was slammed against the wall. "I did it with all my might!"

“You might have forgotten something, Alice,” she said slowly. “I’m not actually picky about food, but that doesn’t mean I enjoy this kind of unknown, vaguely recognizable hybrid made with some kind of lizard as a base. Of course, if that were all, it wouldn’t matter… after all, as you said, you worked hard to make it. I’d gladly drink poison even if it were something you worked so hard to make. But…”

She leisurely walked over to Alice, who was slammed against the wall, and then slammed her to the ground with a throw.

"Thanks to your excessive energy yesterday, every organ in my body, from my trachea to my stomach, is in a constant state of destruction and rebuilding. It's one thing that you didn't prepare any easily digestible porridge, soup, or medicinal food for me—you had the time to help me wash and dress, but you completely failed to notice that I'm completely unable to eat right now..."

She took a deep breath, and then exhaled a powerful, high-energy, crystalline blue breath from her throat—enough to instantly turn solid stone slabs into crystalline fragments. Her lips then moved toward the person who was serving as a makeshift rug.

"You idiot! Why don't you focus your attention on something else!"

"Wait, wait a minute! Patchouli, I was wrong!"

"Grit your teeth! You bastard!"

................................................

About five minutes later, the hall was restored to its original state, and the two sat down on opposite sides of the dining table as if nothing had happened. The only difference from before was that the lavish feast on the table had been replaced by easy-to-eat soup and porridge made with the spirit of God, along with many common breakfast pastries.

Alice's culinary skills... as always, received no recognition. Patchouli and Shinki, in different ways, brought her worthless and meaningless desire to cook to an end.

After that, the witches began to discuss other topics.

Section Six: Unable to come up with a title

About half a day later...

"In short, this is my current situation." Patchouli held a small, rice-grain-sized, octahedral, azure crystal suspended between her fingertips. It slowly rotated, expanding and shrinking according to the witch's gaze. Within the crystal lay a raging energy powerful enough to completely reduce an entire football field to dust, yet it lay dormant within Patchouli's will, like a tamed hunting dog.

She has fully mastered the power of crystal magic, and in terms of theoretical attainment alone, she may even surpass the creator of this magical system, the scaleless white dragon, Hiss. Regardless of how much of this was due to the exclusive advanced training arranged for her by Shinki, her own talent and accumulated knowledge are also crucial reasons for her reaching this level.

She had mastered this power, which granted her near-inexhaustible energy and lifespan. Whenever she wished, she could draw energy from any region imbued with a soul, instantly transforming her body into azure crystals—the result of a soul's metamorphosis—and then reshaping it as she pleased. This meant that the integrity of her body was no longer a concern for her.

This is good.

Long ago, the witches deduced the elements needed to become a transcendent being. These were inexhaustible energy, an immortal soul, an uncorrupted mind, and an indestructible body. Patchouli had already successfully obtained the energy and the body, and since she had taken two of the four steps in total, it was only a matter of time before she took the remaining two.

After all, everything is difficult at the beginning. But once you get past the beginning, the accumulation process in between is often relatively simple. If we convert combat power, then Patchouli at this moment clearly already possesses more than the limit of unlocking the third stage of the gene lock, equivalent to Zheng Zha's full combat power when he opened the Star River Squad world. And if we take into account those miscellaneous secret techniques and trump cards, then it wouldn't be unreasonable to consider her as a fourth-stage fighter with slightly weaker direct combat ability.

And that means...

"Although it's still a bit of a stretch, I'm actually on the same level as you now, Alice." Patchouli's fingers gently closed, and the tiny crystal containing immense energy quietly dissipated like mist under the sunlight. All the dissipated energy was precisely manipulated and channeled, silently returning to Patchouli's body.

There was a tiny dwarf star inside her, which Alice could see very clearly.

"So, Alice, the problem you were worried about not only never existed in the first place, but it also no longer has the foundation to manifest. Can you be completely relieved now, or do you need more evidence?" She tilted her head and looked at Alice, a subtle smile playing on her lips.

“I beg for mercy.” Alice raised her hands in surrender. “I get a splitting headache and feel so embarrassed I can barely breathe just thinking about what happened. So, can we just let these little details slide, as if they never existed in the first place, just like my pointless problem that never even existed in the first place?”

Patchouli simply gave her a look, the meaning of which was simple—'We'll see how you do'.

"..." Alice's lips twitched slightly, and after a long while, she managed to squeeze out a few words.

"...Next time we go to war, I'll let you attack first."

“At least three times.” Patchouli made a 'three' gesture.

"Don't go too far!"

"If they don't want to, that's fine, I don't really care."

Alice gritted her teeth. She took a deep breath, then slowly exhaled, and then took another breath.

"Three times...just three times." She muttered to herself, "The outcome won't change anyway, so what if I let you have it three times?" But on the surface, she still looked like she had crossed a line, her hair standing on end, looking furious after being hit where it hurt.

She wasn't sure if she could keep this from Patchouli, but she felt she should be able to hide it well. At least Patchouli didn't seem to intend to spend any more time on the topic, so she naturally took the opportunity to change the subject.

“Patch, what are your plans for your future development?” Alice snapped her fingers, and the diligent automatons flapped their wings and transformed the reading room where the two were sitting. The unfinished breakfast on the long table was removed and replaced with two elegant morning teas. Naturally, Alice had no say in the arrangement of the teas, and although this displeased her, she rationally suppressed these minor grievances in the current situation.

Alice would never give up cooking. She was absolutely certain she could eat all the food she made without any problems. And since she could eat it, there was no reason Patchouli couldn't accept her carefully prepared dishes—even though her food often failed to reach Patchouli's stomach completely for various reasons. But those were probably just accidents, and simple accidents couldn't defeat her.

—Of course, not now.

“Alice, you should already know my power path very well.” Patchouli glanced at her partner with a slightly conflicted look, a sense of powerlessness quietly welling up from the bottom of her heart. But she quickly suppressed this unpleasant feeling, because it was actually completely unnecessary—she had long since given up on some of Alice’s habits, or more accurately, she had long since adapted to them.

She tried hard to shake these distracting thoughts out of her head.

“Crystal magic is powerful, but my foundation is still information magic. So I’ve been thinking about it, and if I want to achieve the Heart of Immortality and the Soul of Immortality, perhaps I should focus on that.” Patchouli raised a hand and then lightly flicked her thumb and middle fingernail. With her movement, several crystals of different colors silently appeared around her, then, like her previous magic spell 'Philosopher’s Stone', they differentiated into crystals of different colors and attributes.

“Did you see that, Alice?” Patchouli said softly. “Although the original crystal magic only has the attribute of ‘soul,’ I have discovered that it can still serve as a carrier of information. I can define these crystals as seven celestial bodies belonging to the seven planets, and they can then wield my power like the true Philosopher’s Stone.”

"You should remember clearly, Alice. When the Supreme God evaluated my enhancement system, he labeled it 'Information Mage - Star.' And indeed, I need to be able to directly access the radiance of stars to maximize my power. However, unfortunately, due to insufficient knowledge reserves in the external world, I can only define the seven luminaries in the solar system and draw power from them... In the previous worlds, the stars I could touch were unrelated to the seven luminaries."

The Seven Luminaries actually refer to the seven celestial bodies in the solar system: the Sun, the Moon, Venus, Jupiter, Mercury, Mars, and Saturn. While outsiders and information magicians were locked in a bloody battle on this small planet Earth, drawing power from these concepts was the limit of what information magic could achieve at that time. However, while this so-called limit might have been useful hundreds of years ago, once outside that relatively small world, it immediately seemed somewhat inadequate.

In worlds like Ju-on and Gods and Demons, where little effort is required, it's one thing. In the world of Final Destination, the Grand Library is far more effective than the power of the stars. And in another battle, in the world of Starship Troopers, the solar system is at least half a galaxy away from Corendar, the battlefield. Trying to apply related concepts across such a vast distance is obviously absurd. It is precisely because of this that Patchouli had to abandon many of her most proficient spells and instead focus her main efforts on controlling nanite swarms and the Grand Library as mobile artillery platforms. While this still allowed her to utilize her talents, she still felt…very uncomfortable.

However, those days are over.

She waved her outstretched hand, and the seven crystals floating around her burst forth with dazzling light. The light then combined with each other to form various spells with different effects.

“Look,” Patchouli said softly. “Now I can define the seven crystals as the ‘Seven Luminaries’ before I even go to the world of reincarnation. Then I can use the spells associated with them in any world. Whether it’s Earth or not, whether it has the stars of the solar system or not, my abilities will not be limited in any way.”

"In other words, starting from our next cycle of reincarnation, I will be revealing a different form for battle. Alice, are you ready?"

"...Do I need to prepare?" A sense of foreboding crept into Alice's heart. "Just do what you want, there's no need to ask for my permission or anything like that...Why should I prepare?"

“No, of course you need it.” Patchouli shook her head, and with a gentle clap of her hands, the table, chairs, floor, ceiling, and even everything else in the entire Great Library vanished from Alice’s sight. In their place stood a vast, boundless platform.

Then, Patchouli's voice rang in her ear: "Because I'm not ready yet."

"...Gah?"

“So I need you to help me prepare.” Patchouli tilted her head and looked at Alice seriously, saying, “Give it your all.”

Section 7 - Happy New Year

The outcome of that battle remains unknown; the only information that has surfaced is that the atmosphere between the two witches was noticeably abnormal when they gathered the next day. Even standing beside them, Zhao Yingkong, with her keen senses, felt as if she were in the midst of a brutal ancient battlefield. And a transcendent being who has reached the fourth tier is incapable of hallucinations.

Thus, the impromptu operational meeting originally scheduled for the next day was hastily adjourned. After that, the team members had free time for their own activities. Zheng Zha originally planned to organize a seven-day trip to a peaceful world to relax the team members, but after reviewing the available worlds, he had no choice but to give up.

The world of Ju-on is closed for unknown reasons.

Death came to the world, but for known reasons, he could not go.

In the world of Gensokyo, you can't go twice within a single rest period.

Even if he went to the world of gods and demons... it wouldn't be of any use, since he has no way to revive Saito Hajime now.