The sea of fire churned.
The air was filled with the scent of scorching and burning.
The entire dueling arena seemed to have been engulfed by the fierce flames. Yet, even so, the young Albus Dumbledore remained unharmed, steadily advancing toward Ian.
No matter how Ian manipulated the flames to dance, as they approached this exceptional young man, the flames veered off course as if disrupted by some interference.
"Are you an Obscurial who has successfully escaped fate?" As if fearing Ian couldn't hear clearly amid the commotion, the young Albus Dumbledore asked again.
His voice carried a familiar sense of intensity.
"I'm afraid you will be disappointed. My magic power is innate; I have never been an Obscurial." Ian was somewhat astonished by the words of the young Albus Dumbledore.
Indeed.
It was that initial line that seemed to have penetrated his origins. Although slightly mistaken, it was evident the young Albus Dumbledore had discerned Ian did not belong to this time.
"Is that so..."
Upon hearing Ian's response.
The young Albus Dumbledore's eyes dimmed slightly. Nevertheless, he maintained his pace, inching closer to Ian.
Regardless of how fierce the sea of fire was.
He continued to traverse it with ease.
"Did you see some trace of it in my magic?" Ian recalled the words Teacher Morgan had once stated, and he dared not refer to the young Albus Dumbledore as "you." After all, this encounter today might linger in the mind of the older version of Albus Dumbledore in the future.
Of course, considering the rules of time Ian had understood, it was possible that the old headmaster always remembered, which was a slightly unnerving thought.
"Yes, traces, it seems your understanding of magic is very profound. It's hard to imagine I would meet a younger person as remarkable as you at my age."
"Perhaps, this can also serve as some motivation for me." Amid the blazing flames, the young Albus Dumbledore appeared exceptionally prominent.
He continued to approach Ian.
This was clearly not without reason.
Feeling a certain crisis, Ian immediately waved his magic wand again.
"Resist Fire Ring!"
As a wizard, one must certainly have some means to prevent others from getting too close. With Ian's magic power surging, a ring of fire suddenly rose up, centered around Ian.
It was like a ring encircling Ian, and with Ian's will guiding it, it began to expand rapidly, surging outward in all directions as if to overturn everything around.
"You have quite a few self-created spells, but... they don't hold much meaning." Facing the fiercely approaching ring of fire, the young Albus Dumbledore continued to use mysterious magic to interfere with the flames.
However.
This time, just as the flames were deflected, he suddenly waved his wand. In an instant, he took control of this not-so-vast flame.
In this dashing young man's wand, the flame transitioned in the blink of an eye, transforming from a flat flame into a whip-like chain.
"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh~"
Dumbledore manipulated the fiery chain as if commanding an invisible army.
With a gentle wave of his wand, the chain traced a graceful arc in the air, soaring toward Ian amidst the roaring sound and fiery waves, with great momentum.
"This technique seems familiar." Ian noted, a hint of surprise in his eyes, but he didn't retreat; instead, he quickly raised his wand to prepare for the counterattack.
However, the speed of the fiery chain was beyond imagination. It instantly wrapped around Ian's body, binding him tightly. The flames burned fiercely, as if to devour everything, but surprisingly, they didn't harm Ian's skin; they only singed his clothes, emitting a "sizzling" sound.
Ian's clothes quickly turned charred black.
Constantly falling off.
The little wizard's wand dropped directly to the ground.
"Hiss, my clothes are almost gone. Do you have a pedophilia issue?" He could only scream at the top of his lungs, and oddly enough, the effect of his shout was indeed more instantaneous than magic.
"Galloping!"
Perhaps those three words might not get an ex-husband to willingly leave with nothing like on a viral platform, but they certainly stopped the fiery chain controlled by the young Albus Dumbledore in its tracks.
The chain, the fire, although still present, they no longer burned the little wizard's robes immediately. The young Albus Dumbledore even raised his hand to repair the parts of Ian's clothes that had been burned.
"..."
The expression on his face was incredibly speechless.
"I won."
Exhaling a sigh, the younger version of Albus Dumbledore said softly.
"Really? I don't believe it."
Wrapped like a cocoon, the little wizard seemed to stubbornly insist. He squeezed his tightly bound hand, and the Elder Wand that had fallen flew back into his hand.
Surging magic power began to flow once more.
Only.
This time, the young Albus Dumbledore chose to ignore it.
"Letting me get here means I've won." He directly plunged his wand into the ground, and the next moment, the ground began to tremble violently, as if stirred by an invisible force.