Chapter 284: Valley of the Guardians
Chapter 284: Valley of the Guardians
What transpired seemed to occur in the blink of an eye.
An extravagant anomaly between heaven and earth occurred, and then the sun split into three, hanging scorchingly in the sky. A solitary ruin stood beneath the blazing sun, covered in the dust of ages and mottled with lichen.
By the time they came to their senses, they found themselves in the center of the ruins, surrounded by a large group of ancient-clad soldiers who knew not whence they came.
Teacher Da De Si led the way, raising his hands and shouting, "What's going on meow?!"
"Weren't you the one who brought us here, Teacher?" Marufuji Sho cried, covering his head. "Shouldn't you be explaining the situation to us at a time like this?"
"I don't know meow!"
Of course, it was all an act. Da De Si naturally knew that they had arrived in the Sprite World, the resting place of the Royal Family, guarded by the "Tomb Guardian" Duel Monster Sprites. And as uninvited intruders, their fate was to be mummified and forever confined to this resting place.
Coming here had always been part of his plan.
However, according to his original script, his cat should have accidentally triggered the mechanism buried under the ruins, causing a dimensional distortion and bringing them to this Sprite realm. But he never expected that You Xuan would seize the opportunity first.
While feigning panic, Da De Si stole glances at You Xuan out of the corner of his eye.
From their initial encounter, he had sensed something amiss about this student. And as time went on, instead of fading, this feeling only became more pronounced.
At times, he truly felt as if there was something about this student that eluded his understanding.
Clearly, he himself was a behind-the-scenes boss, a formidable figure with a multitude of secrets, yet occasionally, he felt that this student knew just as much as he did.
No, sometimes he even felt that this student might also be putting on an act, and that he was possibly an even bigger boss than himself.
Of course, these were just occasional thoughts. But whenever such notions crossed his mind, even Da De Si found them too absurd and quickly dismissed them.
"Intruders in the royal forbidden grounds, once again," a voice declared.
A squad of soldiers surrounded them with spears at the ready, while the speaker approached from behind the soldiers.
You Xuan immediately recognized him as the leader of this cemetery, the Duel Monster Sprite "Guardian of the Tomb," the very same one who had dueled with Judai in the anime.
A slight upward curve formed at the corners of You Xuan's mouth.
He had found his target.
"What's this about?" Judai frowned. "You don't look like someone from the Duel Academy, mister."
"Big brother, it's pretty obvious, isn't it?" Marufuji said, his face full of despair.
The Guardian of the Tomb coldly scanned the group and seemed disinclined to say more. With a grand wave of his hand, he ordered, "Take them away and turn them into mummies to be buried."
"Eh?!" Marufuji was about to pee his pants in fear. "Why are you doing this?"
Da De Si also put on a desperate act, crying, "Save me, I don't want to die yet, meow!"
The Guardian of the Tomb ordered his subordinates to carry out the sentence and turned to leave. But You Xuan interrupted with a smile, "That's not very fair, is it? The chieftain of the Tomb Guardians, the Duel Monster Sprite 'Guardian of the Tomb.'"
The chieftain paused in his tracks and turned around with a look of mild surprise.
"You know where you are," he said, narrowing his eyes.
"Indeed," replied You Xuan. "It seems the Chieftain has forgotten, though."
"Oh?"
"The honorable Tomb Guardians would never deny a warrior the chance to fight for himself," You Xuan said, gesturing to the Duel Disk.
The Guardian of the Tomb looked astonished. "You know the rules of the sacred ritual?"
Intruders in the guarded tomb domain were meant to face death, but there was an exception. Over the years, countless people had stumbled into this place—innocent trespassers, curious explorers, and greedy thieves seeking advantages.
Most of them were executed and buried in the royal resting place, except for one—Tenjoin Fubuki, Asuka's brother. He had dueled and defeated the Guardian of the Tomb, earning his freedom from this place.
"You wish to gamble for your life through the ritual of combat?" The Guardian of the Tomb asked in a deep voice. "Hmph, interesting. Of all the people who have trespassed here, you are the first to dare to challenge me to a ritual duel."
"Then let's set the rules and stakes of the duel," said You Xuan.
"The rules?" The Guardian of the Tomb replied. "If you can defeat me, you will be allowed to leave this place alive.
And the stake you're offering doesn't seem quite equivalent."
"Are you questioning the rules of the Valley of the Guardians?"
The Guardian of the Tomb frowned. He took a step forward, as if to make a move, but suddenly he felt an extraordinary pressure emanating from the young man before him.
For a moment, he thought he saw the shadow of a warrior flash behind the boy. A warrior of an even higher realm than himself, holding a cold and fierce blade, staring at him coldly from the distant void.
The Guardian's pupils constricted, and he unconsciously took half a step back.
"You?"
"I think the rules here are a bit overbearing," You Xuan continued. "They need to be changed."
Guardian of the Tomb: "..."
He had been about to say, "Your lives are in my hands. With just a crook of my finger, my soldiers will swarm and take your lives. The ritual of combat is an act of mercy from the Royal Valley, giving you a chance to fight. Who are you to haggle with me?"
But before he could speak, the sight of that shadowy figure made him reflect, and he suddenly realized that he might have been speaking a little too loudly.
Not only that, but he had completely ignored the group surrounded by the soldiers' spears. Now, as he looked at them again, he felt that they were also quite extraordinary.
The bespectacled man clutching a fat cat and crying, "I'm gonna die, I'm gonna die," seemed like a complete coward at first glance.
But now, upon closer inspection, there seemed to be a special fluctuation within him as well. It was subtle, but perhaps he was intentionally suppressing it, and in reality, he might not be so easy to deal with.
Looking at the red-haired man with a jellyfish hairstyle beside him, he also seemed to have something special about him. At first glance, he seemed ordinary, but there was some potential within him that had yet to be discovered, and if it erupted, they might not be able to suppress him either.
As for the blue-clothed, golden-haired girl, though not as remarkable as the others, she also had a faint aura of power. As a sprite, the Guardian could sense that her deck likely contained the power of certain sprites.
Even the chubby boy who resembled a koala seemed to have a faint aura of protection from sprites. In the anime, Hayato later discovered that he, too, had a talent for sprite affinity, and his "Death Koala" card was also a sprite. However, his sprite affinity talent was weaker, and he could only hear the voices of sprites without seeing them.
Could it be that everyone in this group had exceptional skills? The Guardian of the Tomb finally gave them his full attention, his gaze shifting warily to Marufuji Sho, sizing him up.
Hmm, he seemed ordinary and useless.
For a moment, the Guardian was perplexed.
Your teammates all have something special about them. How did you manage to tag along with them?
"Very well, then. What do you propose as a stake?" the Guardian of the Tomb asked in a deep voice. "If you think it's unfair, I'll even put my soul on the line if you wish."
You Xuan shook his head. "That's not necessary. I'm not a bloodthirsty person, and taking the lives of others brings me no joy or benefit.
How about this: if I win, not only will you let me go, but from now on, we'll be friends. When I need your power, you'll lend it to me. Is that acceptable?"
Each member of the Guardian clan bore the mission of guarding the Royal Valley. To the sprites, abandoning this sacred land to follow another master might seem like a fate worse than death.
Thus, You Xuan didn't want to enslave this group of sprites. All he desired was their deck of cards.
If it was just the cards, to the sprites, it would be like lending a part of themselves. They would remain here, guarding the sacred land, but their power would be lent to the duelist in the form of cards.
"Making friends, huh? That's interesting."
The Guardian of the Tomb chuckled softly.
"Then it all depends on whether you can prove that you're worthy of this opportunity."
He turned and gestured for the soldiers to lower their spears.
"Follow me," the Guardian of the Tomb said. "To the sacred field of combat."
(End of Chapter)
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