Super Polymerization.
The highest power of Fusion.
Of course, what the strongest "Fusion Deck" truly looked like was still debatable. After all, even Tearlaments was actually a hybrid deck mixing Synchro, Xyz, and various other powerful cards.
But the strongest "Fusion card" was, without question, Super Polymerization.
Although Super Polymerization couldn't fuse monsters directly from the Deck like those Deck-Fusion cards, although it required discarding a hand card to activate, although it couldn't even fuse through full-immunity monsters, Super Polymerization remained a milestone card in Yu-Gi-Oh! history.
Before it, cards like "Soul Exchange" and "Lava Golem" that used the opponent's monsters existed, but they hadn't changed how players thought.
After Super Polymerization's birth, any summoning method that used the opponent's monsters as materials was prefixed with "Super," such as Super Synchro, Super Xyz, and so on.
Without question, Super Polymerization wasn't just an unmatched story card. In reality, it was a card that changed the "linguistic logic" of Yu-Gi-Oh! duelists.
The only card comparable was "Erratum." After that concept appeared, all cards that had their effects modified and returned from the banlist were called "Erratum'd," showing just how transformative these two cards were for duelists.
They were cards capable of changing what Hikaru considered "reality"!
And in this world, this card that appeared at Hikaru's side, changed his Deck, and restricted him to using only "Fusion," also symbolized the pinnacle of a certain power in this world.
The pinnacle of "Fusion."
But even now, Hikaru still hadn't fully unlocked all of this card's abilities. Every time his mastery grew stronger and he could modify some of its restrictions on him, he would discover that Super Polymerization still had no "limit."
Or rather, every time Hikaru thought he had reached the peak, Super Polymerization would tell him no, he had merely arrived at another small hill.
If before, when Hikaru spoke of Fusion's pinnacle, he simply meant "Tearlaments," now, the pinnacle he wanted to see was purely this "power's" pinnacle.
Hikaru prepared considerable equipment for Jaden.
Summoning the "Supreme King" from within Jaden wasn't simple.
After all, regardless of what concept the Supreme King was, he was ultimately a "deceased."
If he didn't want to come out, conventional methods couldn't summon his consciousness.
Just like how Seto Kaiba tried everything in the movie to summon the Pharaoh with no success, yet the Pharaoh appeared instantly when Yugi was truly in danger.
Roughly the same logic, though Jaden and the Supreme King's relationship was closer.
Hikaru's own alchemy didn't include relevant knowledge, so he could only construct some "soul-awakening" alchemical arrays. But fortunately, during this time, Hikaru had learned many other small skills.
Spirit Studies, the Roleplay Method, Demon Ritual Arts. The abilities taught by the various professors finally showed their optimal use.
Hikaru sat sideways at the Fusion Division's front desk, watching Jaden don thick "Supreme King" armor. These were temporary cardboard suits Hikaru had crafted based on Jaden's recovered memories and his own impression of the Supreme King. Durability aside, speed was the priority.
Jaden wobbled to the center of the dueling field. Around him, countless bonfires mixed with dark power began burning.
Fortunately, Hikaru had just collected some of Mr. T's cards. The dark power from these cards could serve as the "intention" of the Supreme King's inner darkness, attempting to facilitate his descent.
Of course, even with all this preparation, Hikaru didn't know if it would work.
Normally, even with these preparations, if the Supreme King didn't want to emerge, the ritual and imitation would fail.
However...
Hikaru drew out Super Polymerization.
He silently raised the card, channeling its power.
As Super Polymerization's power activated, the entire Fusion Division was gradually engulfed in black fog. Countless golden lightning bolts began exploding.
In that instant, Hikaru felt the Fusion Division somehow becoming "isolated" from the outside, as though it had separated from Duel Academy entirely!
"Ugh... ahhh..." As this sensation intensified, black smoke began rising from Jaden's body. His eyes changed color. His body instinctively hunched over, and bestial sounds escaped his mouth.
This looked quite frightening, but Hikaru didn't stop. Jaden had made him promise: until Jaden called it off or the Supreme King appeared, he must not stop because of Jaden's pain.
This was something Jaden had to do. He didn't want Hikaru going soft out of concern.
Hikaru's expression was grave. Beside him, Tierra had unusually pulled out a small notebook and pen, recording something.
Even for her, Jaden was an exceptionally special "life form." Having the chance to observe this transformation process and record it for Hikaru's research was also useful for constructing her other bodies.
"AAAAAHHHHH!"
As the dark power intensified, terrifying black shockwaves erupted from Jaden's body. The cardboard armor was instantly shredded. After the black gale, waves of darkness surged outward like ocean waves, even affecting Hikaru's footing.
Inside the Fusion Division, countless pieces of equipment were blown away by the aftershocks. Some expensive instruments, hit by forces they weren't built to withstand, exploded on the spot.
The "Solid Vision equipment" that Leo Corporation had invested heavily in for Hikaru's studies simply detonated with a boom, then was reduced to powder by the black shockwaves.
Just as Hikaru was preparing to increase the "dosage," a voice both familiar and unfamiliar spoke.
"Enough."
Hikaru raised an eyebrow.
He stopped.
The dark shockwaves began flowing inward from outside. Black power frantically condensed onto Jaden's body. Finally, the darkness began solidifying.
At last...
Genuine armor clad Jaden's body.
He turned to face Hikaru. Golden eyes seemed to glow as he spoke in Jaden's voice, cold and detached: "That will do."
Hearing this, Hikaru frowned deeply.
Had it failed?
Hikaru pinched the bridge of his nose.
The Supreme King...
From the results, it seemed he had indeed successfully awakened the Supreme King's consciousness. But this situation wasn't the outcome he and Jaden had wanted.
The logic was simple. What Jaden wanted was to properly duel the Supreme King, connect heart to heart, understand himself, and then become one.
So what he hoped to achieve was maintaining consciousness while bringing the Supreme King into this world. That was the key point of the Demon Ritual Art.
But.
The Supreme King had directly replaced Jaden's will. That wasn't what Hikaru wanted.
As though reading Hikaru's thoughts, the Supreme King glanced at him and spoke calmly. "That's impossible."
?
The Supreme King looked at Hikaru steadily. "Your guesses, hypotheses, and calculations are all correct."
"His self-understanding is also correct."
"We have never been separate individuals. We are the same entity."
He glanced around, then continued. "Consciousness, soul, essence, power. These external manifestations are all identical.
But..."
He suddenly raised his hand and pointed to his own forehead.
"Our memories are different."
Hikaru blinked, then slowly widened his eyes.
Ah...
So that was it.
Even if Jaden and the Supreme King were completely one, they couldn't just crudely attempt to merge.
Because their "lifespans" and "memories" were actually different!
Although the Supreme King's outward appearance was identical to Jaden's, that didn't mean they were the same age.
The Supreme King's experiences, the time he had lived, his memories, all vastly exceeded Jaden's. Possibly by several times, even ten times or more.
If the Supreme King's species had a lifespan far longer than humans, that ratio would be even greater!
If they forcibly merged, then Jaden's memories would be overwhelmed by the Supreme King's. His own memories would be just a tiny fragment. At that point, would this be "Jaden" or the "Supreme King"?
Perhaps his personality would still be Jaden's, still Hikaru's friend, still using the same Deck. But his style and conduct would definitely skew toward the Supreme King's!
"I see." Hikaru nodded.
Then, looking at the Supreme King, he fell into a dilemma.
Following this logic, Jaden actually just needed to grow naturally over time. He was already slowly absorbing the Supreme King's memories. Whether it was the Yubel situation or other Supreme King matters, Jaden was gradually absorbing them. Given enough time, fully absorbing all the memories wouldn't be difficult.
When that time came, he would perfectly inherit all of the Supreme King's power without any risk.
But the problem was...
There wasn't enough time!
In the original story, Darkness didn't move against the human world until the third year. But here, it had come a full year early. Jaden simply didn't have time for gradual absorption.
Hikaru began thinking of solutions.
Meanwhile, the Supreme King slowly began walking through the Fusion Division.
As a "specter" of the past, although he could "see" the outside world like Jaden, it was far too ethereal. For him, everything in this human world was unfamiliar.
But some things weren't unfamiliar.
"Super Polymerization."
He spoke suddenly.
Hikaru stopped thinking and looked at the Supreme King.
"If you urgently want my power, the easiest, simplest method is to use Super Polymerization's power." The Supreme King casually raised his right hand, palm open, slowly closing it before Hikaru.
"The ultimate, invincible, strongest power: Super Polymerization.
You have it too. That power."
He looked at Hikaru's hand.
As though wind rose from flat ground, as though thunder struck from clear skies.
Hikaru felt his heart seem to stop beating.
Beside him, Tierra was genuinely shocked for the first time.
This seemed to mean the Supreme King also possessed this "power."
Hikaru thought for a moment, then slowly nodded. "Indeed... I have it. So you mean I should use Super Polymerization to forcibly merge you two into one?"
"Using Super Polymerization's power, our two consciousnesses would be forcibly unified." The Supreme King spoke calmly.
He had long since stopped caring about "himself." Slumbering within Jaden was simply because he was an indestructible, eternal consciousness. If Jaden ever couldn't hold on, he could help clear away things Jaden didn't want to see.
"But you cannot do this."
"I can't?"
Honestly, Hikaru was quite experienced by now. With all his patching, Tierra was nearly complete. Something like this should be manageable as long as he knew the method.
The Supreme King looked at Hikaru and said, "Your Super Polymerization and mine are... different."
?
He could even tell that.
The Supreme King closed his eyes in thought for a while, seemingly deliberating and hesitating.
Even in death, some secrets he seemed reluctant to share. But his hesitation didn't last long. He slowly opened his eyes and said, "Super Polymerization is the pinnacle of Fusion. The ultimate, invincible power. The power to rule all things."
Tierra, hearing this, unusually felt no urge to argue.
Having traveled and adventured with Hikaru for so long, she had long realized that Super Polymerization wasn't a card ordinary humans, or even common gods and demons, could touch.
Whether the Supreme King could truly rule dimensions, she didn't know. But she was certain Super Polymerization absolutely had the power to rule countless dimensions.
"It is the ultimate power that only a true child of Fusion can obtain."
Tierra nodded repeatedly.
Correct. Hikaru was that "child of Fusion."
Then she reconsidered.
Wait...
There were too many children of Fusion.
Logically, one should be enough, right?
So...
She suddenly understood.
Was it about inclination?
The Supreme King gazed into the distance and spoke leisurely. "High-level spirits can create multiple copies of their own cards. Like the Dragon God, who can create three copies of itself on its own.
Fusion is acceptance, consumption, domination, creation... it is infinite."
So...
Super Polymerization could also exist in multiples?
Hikaru stood frozen as though struck by lightning.
He finally understood what he had been missing in his mastery of Super Polymerization.
The Supreme King's "Super Polymerization" was the power to dominate others and subjugate everything. Yuri's Super Polymerization was likely the power to consume everything.
And his own Super Polymerization, which endlessly generated various Fusion Spells and Traps for him, had "creation" at its core.
Creating new possibilities. Creating future possibilities!
And to master Super Polymerization's power, whether for himself or Jaden, what was needed was personal willpower or individual ability to unseal the Super Polymerization within one's own heart.
So what Hikaru should truly pursue wasn't manufacturing a Philosopher's Stone like his master, nor creating the strongest Fusion Monster. It was...
Creating a second Super Polymerization!
Using his own understanding to create a second Super Polymerization!
"Looks like you've figured it out." The Supreme King remarked casually. Then he flicked his left hand. The wrist blade on his arm guard began spinning, clicking into place, transforming into a blade-like Duel Disk.
If Hikaru had figured it out, that meant Hikaru was now a stumbling block on his "path of Fusion"!
Because the being who obtained all of Super Polymerization's power, who possessed the true, absolutely invincible strength, could only be one.
From the primordial origin of all things to the infinite end of the future, ultimately, there would be only that decisive one.
That was Super Polymerization's true child!
No. That was Super Polymerization's true wielder!
Therefore, Hikaru was his enemy!
Hikaru snapped back to attention and activated his left-hand Duel Disk. His purple Duel Disk, like the Supreme King's wrist blade, began spinning, then assembled into a Duel Disk.
"His will can still observe everything here. He already has enough drive and determination. But he's missing the final key." The Supreme King spoke as though granting mercy. "So watch carefully.
How the ultimate power born from the darkness within one's heart tears everything apart! Dominates everything!!"
He studied Hikaru intently.
He too wanted to duel this new era's "child" and see what happened.
Hikaru took a deep breath.
A Super Polymerization civil war!
A smile spread across his face.
"Let's go!"
"You'll die." The Supreme King said flatly.
"No. Jaden and I will prove we can create an entirely new Fusion!"
"Fine." The Supreme King offered no further comment.
"DUEL!" x2.
After both shouted, the Supreme King raised his right hand. With a boom, a beam of pitch-black energy struck the Fusion Division's main screen. Black and gold current crackled across it. Amid the buzzing, the unpowered screen forcibly activated.
A coin appeared on screen. As it spun, a pattern finally appeared...
A Blue-Eyes White Dragon design.
Heads!
"Then I'll go first." The Supreme King spoke.
Hikaru grinned, unsurprised. "Go ahead!"
The Ultimate Darkness That Rules All, Child of Fusion, the Supreme King, LP: 4000.
The Absolute Light That Creates Infinity, Child of Fusion, Hikaru, LP: 4000.