As An Antique Shop Owner, It's Only Reasonable That I Know A Bit Of Magic - Chapter 45

In the depths of hell, Annie, dressed in a white gown, was the only flicker of beauty amidst the darkness and despair.

Yet, this pure white flower was held in the grasp of a demon.

“It’s him!”

Megan would never forget that horrifying, burned face. When Freddy suddenly emerged from her skirt, it nearly scared her into fainting on the spot.

The few still-conscious normal people around turned pale at the sight of the ugly, evil spirit.

Even from a distance, they could feel the intense aura of evil and overwhelming pressure emanating from him…

But Su Fan frowned.

Too weak.

The current Freddy was indeed terrifying, far stronger than Mary Shaw.

But this level of power was hardly worthy of the title “Nightmare King.”

A sense of dissonance flashed through his mind once again.

“You’re faster than I expected. It seems our knight is eager to meet the princess,” Freddy teased, pointing his bladed glove at Su Fan with a loud, mocking laugh.

“The women around you aren’t bad either. Why not consider them?”

“Will you crawl out on your own, or do I have to drag you out?”

Engaging with an enemy’s taunts was foolish, especially when dealing with a dream demon like Freddy, who thrived on playing with people’s minds.

Freddy seemed to share Su Fan’s reluctance to banter. Without a word, he merely grinned and brushed the back of his bladed glove against Annie’s unconscious cheek.

“This—!”

Megan and the script supervisor turned deathly pale.

They remembered that the talismans were supposed to protect them from demonic attacks.

But now, Freddy seemed able to do whatever he wanted to Annie—her throat was moments away from being slit by those steel claws!

Just then, Freddy suddenly froze, his expression shifting to one of stark surprise as he stared at Su Fan.

“Well, this is… unexpected.”

The hand he had used to threaten Annie had been severed at some point. The bladed glove clattered to the ground, revealing clearly visible bone and muscle tissue in the stump.

[You simulated wind control through dream manipulation, using invisible blades of wind to injure your enemy. Dream Control proficiency +4!]

[Your Dream Control technique has matured, reaching a superhuman level!]

[You have gained new insights into the nature of dreams.]

Su Fan ignored the prompt echoing in his mind—he had no time to dwell on it.

Freddy’s severed hand suddenly levitated and shot toward Su Fan at incredible speed.

But before it could reach him, it was instantly shredded by a barrier of high-speed air currents!

Freddy showed no concern over his shattered hand.

The moment he raised his arm, the bones and muscles in his wrist regenerated in the blink of an eye.

“You want to challenge me in the realm of dreams? Hahahahaha!!”

Freddy laughed maniacally, his sunken eyes fixed intently on Su Fan. Then, with a sudden swipe of his claws—

The iron bars separating the two were ripped from the ground, hurled toward Su Fan by an invisible telekinetic force at blinding speed!

The people behind Su Fan turned pale, certain they were about to witness his body being impaled.

But the bars halted abruptly in front of him, hovering mid-air for a second before being flung aside!

At that moment, countless faces of the dead emerged from the ground—men, women, young and old, all wearing expressions of utter terror.

They let out unified, deafening howls, visible sound waves rippling through the air. Yet, with a wave of his hand, Su Fan shattered the sonic assault!

Though unharmed, the others were terrified by the nightmarish spectacle and instinctively stepped back.

But as they moved, the ground vanished beneath their feet, revealing a pitch-black abyss below!

Freddy was resorting to old tricks, but this time, Su Fan was fully prepared.

As time passed, it wasn’t just Freddy growing stronger in the dream—Su Fan was, too!

With a lift of his hand, an invisible force lifted everyone into the air, suspending them safely.

Su Fan himself rose effortlessly, hovering mid-air as he commanded the wind.

Freddy, enraged after multiple failed attacks, finally unleashed his fury.

His jaw unhinged, dropping to his chest, and he let out an inhuman roar. Flames erupted everywhere, and the hellscape materialized once again!

Terrifying demons, shadowy specters, and suffering sinners writhed and wailed in a sea of fire!

Even knowing this was all a dream crafted by Freddy, the horrifying scene chilled everyone to the bone.

Sharp stone pillars, thick as ancient trees, burst from the ground—countless and everywhere, threatening to impale Su Fan and the others, leaving no room to escape.

The air around Su Fan and the others suddenly grew turbulent. In the span of a single breath, thousands of wind blades shredded the stone pillars, reducing them to dust!

From the abyss, a colossal black serpent surged upward, spewing toxic fumes from its gaping maw.

Its crimson eyes burning with bloodlust, it lunged at the people below like ants, ready to devour them whole!

A low rumble echoed as a stone giant emerged from the remaining earth, standing nearly a hundred meters tall!

The mere motion of its rise stirred cyclones that swept everything aside. It seized the serpent’s jaws and, with immense force, ripped the creature in half!

[You engaged in a dream confrontation with the Nightmare King Freddy using Dream Control. Proficiency +5!]

[You countered Freddy’s moves with Dream Control. Proficiency +5!]

[Dream Control proficiency +5! Dream Control proficiency +5!…]

[Dream Control proficiency +5! Dream Control proficiency +5!]

[Dream Control technique mastered!]

[You have overwhelmed your enemy in the dream world. Through repeated practice, you have touched the boundary between dreams and reality!]

[Congratulations! You have acquired the divine power—Dream Manipulation!]

[Zhuang Zhou dreamed of a butterfly, the butterfly dreamed of Zhuang Zhou—dreams can be brought into reality, and reality can be merged into dreams!]

The prompts that had been appearing intermittently now flooded his mind like a malfunctioning computer, popping up incessantly!

Su Fan’s aura surged exponentially!

“You think you’re the only one who can reshape the world and create marvels?”

[Dream Control: Through self-suggestion, construct a world in dreams as one desires…]

[So this, too, is possible!]

In dreams, Freddy could commit killings impossible in reality through his abilities.

But Su Fan was also unbound by the rules of the physical world. Here, he didn’t need to worry about the limits of his energy or the scarcity of his techniques.

A single thought could alter heaven and earth!

Su Fan took a step forward, and suddenly, lotuses bloomed from the ground. In that instant, everyone found themselves standing on an endless expanse of water!

Looking down, they could see their reflections clearly.

A massive full moon rose behind Su Fan, casting a serene, silvery light that made him seem like an immortal descended from the heavens, ethereal and untouchable.

Witnessing this, everyone was awestruck.

The most magical movie they’d ever seen might have been Harry Potter, but watching a film couldn’t compare to experiencing such wonders firsthand!

At this moment, surrounded by these marvels, they felt the vastness of the universe and the insignificance of humanity before divine and demonic power—like ants before giants!

Especially Su Fan at the forefront—his presence alone made their legs weak, compelling them to kneel!

The scattered petals of the lotuses transformed into countless ethereal swords!

One became two, two became three…

The illusory swords began to vibrate, emitting low hums that resonated in harmony!

Freddy roared, seemingly making one last desperate struggle.

But his hellish illusion had been completely suppressed by Su Fan’s marvel, barely able to manifest within a one-meter radius around him.

“No! This is impossible! You—!”

Freddy’s voice was cut off. The resonance of ten thousand swords—without even moving—shredded him into nothingness with sheer sword intent alone!