https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-256-This-Isn-t-a-Dark-Duel-Right-/12557339/
Chapter 257: Do You Know Mr. Malik?
Chapter 257: Do You Know Mr. Malik?
Amelda looked up, his expression a little dazed.
After waiting for a couple of seconds and realizing that he was still alive and his soul was intact, he finally realized—
—Oh, this wasn't a Shadow Duel.
Back in the day, Amelda and the other two Doma knights had obtained their Shadow powers through Orichalcos' realm. But after their redemption and Dazzler's downfall, they had lost the power of the realm.
However, Amelda's experience in Doma had unlocked his innate talent for Shadow Games, and he had learned to utilize Shadow Duels even without relying on the realm. In the years since, he had established this league of Shadow Duelists, using the power of Shadow Duels to punish the wicked and help the virtuous, in a way making up for his past mistakes as a Doma knight.
So, he had played quite a few life-or-death duels in recent years and hadn't slackened in his training.
He was so used to those life-or-death duels that he didn't realize this wasn't one of them until his Life Points reached zero, and his initial instinct was that he was about to kick the bucket.
It was only then that he realized he hadn't activated a Shadow Game this time. The reason it felt dark was simply because there was something a little shady about his opponent's dueling style.
They say your dueling style reflects your soul, so as Amelda took his third Lava Golem to the face, his mind filled with the image of the golem's dopey grin, and he couldn't help but wonder if his opponent's soul was a little shady, too.
"Amazing, You Xuan! Even Amelda isn't a match for you." Kei stepped forward and patted You Xuan on the back, smiling. "It looks like you might be able to give my brother a run for his money now."
The semester was already more than halfway through, and the six-month agreement with Kaiba was drawing to a close. By the end of this semester, the new Duel City tournament would likely be starting, and that would probably be You Xuan's main focus during the upcoming holiday break.
A duel with Kaiba, huh?
You Xuan glanced at Kaiba and found that Kaiba was looking at him, too. In that moment when their eyes met, Kaiba's lips curved up slightly, revealing an expression of keen interest.
Strangely, in that single glance, You Xuan could almost hear a voice in his mind.
You↑ Xuan↓, the moment has finally come. Full☆Speed☆Ahead☆Duuuuel!
". . ."
"You Xuan's quite the duelist, huh?" Kei said to Amelda with a smile.
In fact, Kei got along better with Amelda than with Kaiba. Back then, Amelda had seen the shadow of his deceased little brother in Kei, and he had even given Kei his little brother's most important keepsake. After that, it had mostly been Kei who maintained contact with Amelda.
"Yeah, he's pretty good. He duels quite well."
Amelda said so, but his expression as he looked at You Xuan was a little strange.
It was as if he didn't quite believe what he was saying, as if he wanted to say something but was holding back.
He couldn't say You Xuan wasn't skilled, since he hadn't dueled him himself.
But to say that You Xuan dueled beautifully... well, as the victim of said dueling, Amelda just couldn't bring himself to say it.
"By the way," Amelda said, remembering something, "aren't you in Ra Yellow Dorm at the Duel Academy, You Xuan?"
"Yes," You Xuan admitted.
"Oh ho, so an excellent student like you is only in the Yellow Dorm? Duel Academy really doesn't know how to recognize talent," Amelda said with a dry laugh.
So, all the elites are supposed to be in Blue Dorm, huh?
I'm guessing the teachers and principal would be hard-pressed to take on a weirdo like you even if they teamed up, huh?
"Oh, no, the Yellow Dorm is great," You Xuan said with a smile. "I quite like the Yellow Dorm myself."
Amelda pondered this.
Speaking of Ra Yellow...
It was only natural that he thought of a certain Crispy Chicken from the Egyptian God Cards, and then he thought of the master of that Crispy Chicken from the Duel City tournament back in the day.
And then he thought of the Lava Golem that had trampled all over him in this duel, eating his monsters left and right.
"If you'll pardon my curiosity, You Xuan," Amelda asked, "do you know Malik Ishtar?"
Amelda forced a laugh, sounding rather dry. "Well, I've never seen him in person either, but I imagine that Mr. Malik and Mr. You Xuan would have a lot in common and might get along quite well, ahaha."
You Xuan raised an eyebrow.
What do you mean? Are you implying that my dueling style is shady?
". . ."
Well, it was hard to argue with that, especially when faced with someone who had just taken three Lava Golems and then been punched out by the same.
But Mr. Malik had once possessed the so-called ultimate shady Illusion God, the Winged Dragon of Ra.
If only he could get his hands on an animated Illusion God like that; then he would truly be worthy of the title of Yellow-Clad King.
You Xuan shook his head, dismissing the thought. That was too far-fetched and not worth dwelling on.
As everyone knew, the three Illusion Gods in the anime were not just cards; they were true "gods" who chose their own users.
In DM, it was explained that even Pegasus had only managed to design the Illusion God cards with the help of the Millennium Eye. All other card designers who tried to take on the Illusion God project faced divine punishment, either dying or going insane.
Though no specific reason was given, perhaps those three gods simply disliked the designers' artistic interpretations of themselves. Anyway, the three original Illusion God cards created by Pegasus had disappeared along with the Millennium Items, accompanying the Pharaoh to the underworld. Only someone like Kaiba, with his cutting-edge technology and usage license, could briefly experience the power of the Illusion Gods with his "floor-drawing" technique.
Speaking of which, You Xuan vaguely recalled that someone in the second year of GX had also successfully replicated the Winged Dragon of Ra.
International Illusion Inc. hadn't given up on replicating the three Illusion Gods after the Pharaoh's departure—after all, they were the strongest cards at the pinnacle of Duel Monsters, and it would be foolish to simply let them go.
However, attempting to replicate the cards was dangerous enough, and trying to summon them in a duel was even more so. If an Illusion God deemed the holder unworthy, they might call down divine lightning and strike the person down, turning them into a vegetable, just like what happened to Malik's servant, Rishid, in DM.
But in the anime, a genius designer from International Illusion Inc. had created a field spell card called "Binding God's Tomb," which could help one avoid divine punishment and forcibly control an Illusion God. Still, this was akin to playing with fire, and it wouldn't be surprising if things went awry.
Nevertheless, it proved that International Illusion Inc. had never given up on replicating the Illusion Gods and had even been trying to develop more complementary derivative cards.
To be honest, You Xuan felt that as an ordinary person, his chances of earning the recognition of an Illusion God were slim. But if he had to choose from the derivative cards, the one he liked the most was the "Sun God's Winged Dragon of Ra - Sphere Form" that had been physicalized.
It was the golden spherical form, a smooth, golden sphere, commonly known as the Bird Egg, that Marik's Winged Dragon of Ra had assumed after being defeated by Mai Valentine's Harpie Lady Sisters in the Battle City arc.
With an attack and defense of 0, this card could be used to tribute the opponent's three monsters as a release condition for a Normal Summon. And after one turn, it would bounce back to its owner's field, recreating the iconic animation scene and paying homage to the classic.
It was truly befitting of an Illusion God; its effect was extraordinary. While Iron Knight only consumed two monsters, the Bird Egg devoured three at once. And while the Lava Golem had respectable stats comparable to the Blue-Eyes White Dragon, the Bird Egg had an attack and defense of 0, making it seemingly useless on the opponent's field aside from being annoying. But the annoyance didn't end there, as it would return to its owner's field the next turn and could even transform into other forms of the Winged Dragon of Ra.
It was clearly a card designed for fun.
You Xuan thought that when he had the time, he would pay a visit to the Tenma brothers at International Illusion Inc. to gather some information. If he couldn't get his hands on a genuine Illusion God, he might as well try to obtain the Bird Egg; that would still be pretty cool.
(End of Chapter)
Chapter end
Report
