Chapter 35: AI Gone Rogue
Chapter 35: AI Gone Rogue
At the Kaiba Corporation amusement park, the White Dragon Festival was in full swing.
The sun shone through the colorful rides, casting a kaleidoscope of light and shadow on the ground. The vast park was packed with revelers, buzzing with festive cheer.
Here, you could spot Blue-Eyes White Dragons diving along the thrilling roller coaster tracks, swirling around the spinning chair ride, and even lying quietly atop the Ferris wheel like vigilant guardians. They were everywhere.
You Xuan once again marveled at the legendary Kaiba Corporation's influence and resources, as it had even granted Blue-Eyes a dedicated festival called "White Dragon Festival." This festival was so significant that it was declared a public holiday, and custom dictated that everyone should spend the day enjoying themselves at the Kaiba amusement park.
The Duelist Guild had also organized an event to celebrate the occasion, bringing its students to the city's Kaiba Land for a team-building activity. Even the legendary excavation team, including Master Takeuchi, had made an appearance.
"Kage-ryu!"
"Kazuya!"
The two men greeted each other with a hearty bear hug.
"You nearly worried me to death!" The man pounded Master Takeuchi's back.
You Xuan sized up the newcomer.
He wore a flashy plaid shirt, his bald head shone like a mirror, and his face bore the marks of a life well lived, all complemented by a pair of dark glasses. He looked less like a duelist and more like a veteran programmer who had evolved after decades in the field.
His eyes were almost squinted shut, and his bald head gleamed, combining the legendary attributes of "squinty eyes" and "baldness" into one. In any other setting, he would have been a formidable boss-level character, but not here.
In this world, you were already at a disadvantage if you didn't have a flashy hairstyle.
"Why have you been away for so long?" Master Takeuchi complained. "I thought you'd forgotten about your old friends."
"Ah, work's been keeping me busy. By the way, let me tell you about this amazing resource I found. I've got both projection and VR versions, and the female lead is not just big, she's also—"
"Stop! Stop!" Master Takeuchi quickly signaled, "The students are all here."
The man finally realized his mistake. "Oh, right. Okay, we can talk about it later then."
The students: ". "
We're actually more interested in what you usually talk about when you're alone, Master.
"Let me introduce you to Saito Kazuya," Master Takeuchi said. "He used to be a duelist at our guild, so he's practically family."
The man, Saito, nodded slightly. "Indeed. The previous Master once told me that I had an extraordinary talent for dueling and that with a little more effort, I would surpass Takeuchi."
Master Takeuchi narrowed his eyes. "I've never heard of this. If that were true, why would the Master expel you from the guild?"
"Hahaha, my dear brother, there's a lot you don't know." Saito laughed heartily. "The Master favored me greatly, but his daughter favored me even more. When he found out, he flew into a rage."
Master Takeuchi was shocked. "Is that true? Why have you never mentioned this before?"
"It was a foolish mistake from my youth. No need to bring up old memories."
Saito Kazuya waved his hand dismissively, assuming a nostalgic air.
The students: ". "
"Ahem, let's talk about the ruins instead."
Master Takeuchi quickly interrupted. He had a feeling that if he let this man continue, more inappropriate content would surface, which wouldn't be good for the students' mental health or their dueling careers.
"Oh, the ruins, of course." Saito smiled. "This time, the ruins are quite interesting."
As soon as he finished speaking, there was a loud "snap," and all the lights in the giant dragon duel arena went out.
This was immediately followed by the sound of rolling shutters closing, as all the doors were sealed shut within a second, and the windows were likewise sealed. All sources of light disappeared, plunging the duel arena into darkness.
The crowd in the arena erupted in confusion.
"What's going on?"
"System malfunction?"
"Refund our RNM!"
". "
Saito Kazuya looked around, puzzled. "Strange. This shouldn't be happening. Even in the event of a power outage, the duel arenas in the amusement park have backup generators. What's going on?"
You Xuan remained silent, but this turn of events brought a familiar scent to his mind.
It reminded him of a similar incident in the manga, back when the Kaiba Land was first built. The system had been hacked, the duel arenas sealed, and the story quickly escalated to a duel against the AI controlling the arena, with freedom as the prize.
In the original story, the mastermind behind the incident was Zigfried von Schroeder, Kaiba Seto's business rival. However, he should have been dealt with by Kaiba eight years ago.
Could this really be a system malfunction?
Soon, light returned to the arena. The only source of light was concentrated in the center, where an arrogant figure stood with his arms crossed, his brown hair and blue eyes illuminated by the light circle beneath him. He wore a white coat, exuding an air of confidence.
"What's going on? Why is Seto Kaiba here in person?"
"Is this some kind of surprise event?"
Kazuya Saito immediately realized something was amiss. "Wait, that's not Seto Kaiba, it's the latest Duel AI in this arena!"
The crowd: "!"
"The Kaiba Corporation's Duel program includes AI models of the most renowned duelists, perfectly replicating their tactics, strategies, and even their personalities. Combined with today's hyper-realistic virtual imaging technology, it offers visitors a truly immersive dueling experience against the world's top duelists!" Saito explained.
Kaiba's obsession with AI duels was no secret. Ever since Yugi went to the afterlife, Kaiba had become obsessed with AI duels, pouring all his efforts into research and upgrading his AI creations. If anyone could access his research archives, they would likely find countless versions of Yugi's AI.
In the opening of Pyramid of Light, Kaiba even dueled Yugi's AI and lost, after which he frantically sought a strategy to defeat it. However, in The Dark Side of Dimensions, Kaiba dueled Yugi's AI again and won, only to angrily dismiss the victory as meaningless against a phantom from the past.
"So now..."
"Someone has hacked into the arena's system and set the AI to resemble Seto Kaiba," Kazuya said in a low voice, "I fear the arena's system might be connected to the AI. Strange, I thought these entertainment facilities didn't have AI of this caliber. Usually, legendary duelists' AIs like Yugi Mutou and Seto Kaiba are used for internal testing by their companies, and they are considered the most advanced Duel AIs today. They shouldn't be accessible to the public."
Indeed, as soon as he finished speaking, the AI Kaiba let out a characteristic three-stage laugh and then unfolded a Duel Disk: "If you want to get out of here, you must first defeat me with the Deck in my hand!"
You Xuan was not surprised.
Of course, it had to be a Duel.
The crowd in the arena stirred with excitement.
"What? We have to beat Seto Kaiba? How is that possible?"
"But this is just an AI. Aside from that, it can't possibly have a Blue-Eyes White Dragon, right?"
"You don't know that? Precisely because it's a Duel AI, the Deck it uses is purely data. With the data of various powerful duelists inputted, it can have any card!"
"What? Does that mean it even has the legendary Blue-Eyes White Dragon? How are we supposed to fight that?"
The arena descended into chaos.
The people trapped inside the arena were merely amateur visitors. In their eyes, this AI didn't just replicate Seto Kaiba's personality and tactical thinking but also had access to the complete data of his Deck—it was almost indistinguishable from the real deal.
Seto Kaiba stood at the pinnacle of dueling, wielding the most powerful Deck recognized in the dueling world. How could anyone hope to win against him? Only Yugi Mutou might stand a chance.
You Xuan, however, remained calm.
Being locked in for a while wouldn't significantly impact these tourists. The Kaiba Corporation was undoubtedly working to fix the malfunction, and the lockdown should be lifted soon. If all else failed, they could always break down the doors physically. For the tourists, it would be an inconvenience and perhaps an opportunity to receive compensation from the Kaiba Corporation.
However, for the Kaiba Corporation, it was a disastrous incident. Their competitors would undoubtedly make a big deal out of it, and with such a rare opportunity, no one would let it slide.
But that was a problem for the Kaiba Corporation to deal with.
Master Takeuchi leaned closer to You Xuan and whispered, "This is your chance to duel with the legendary Seto Kaiba's Deck. Do you want to give it a try?"
You Xuan shrugged, not feeling that it was anything special.
Even if it replicated his personality and Deck, it was still an AI. How could it replicate his legendary luck?
Kazuya Saito, however, whispered, "From what I know of Seto Kaiba, if someone manages to defeat this AI and unlock the system before the intrusion is resolved, saving the corporation from further losses, he might offer a substantial reward, perhaps in money or rare cards."
"No need to say more," You Xuan waved his hand and strode towards the dueling area, leaving a cool silhouette in his wake.
Money and cards were all worldly possessions, and he didn't care much for them.
But as a duelist, he couldn't pass up this opportunity to challenge a legend.
Let the games begin.
You Xuan stood opposite the AI Kaiba, a holographic projection.
"I'll be your opponent."
(End of Chapter)
Chapter end
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