Chapter 377: A Card Enthusiast's Exchange
Chapter 377: A Card Enthusiast's Exchange
"Oh, so something like this happened in Clearwater Town?" Keihei murmured.
"Yes, some ancient creature has resurrected and is now gathering nutrients from its surroundings," You Xuan replied.
"What ancient creature is it this time?" Keihei rubbed his temples.
"Again?" You Xuan picked up on the fact that this didn't seem to be an isolated incident.
"Yes," Keihei sighed, "With the advancement of Duel Monster excavations in recent years, not only have there been more and more stone tablet ruins discovered worldwide, but all sorts of ancient beasts and demons have also emerged. Just two months ago, the Greek branch reported digging up some self-proclaimed god named Hades, claiming to govern the underworld or something. It seems he also possessed a local official and formed a faction."
"The Underworld's Demon King, Hades?" You Xuan asked.
"Well, it's probably similar. Do you know him?" Keihei asked.
"No," You Xuan replied with a complicated expression.
It wasn't a matter of familiarity; Hades was also a 'Yu-Gi-Oh!' card.
A six-star Demon-Type with 2450 ATK, its effect nullified the abilities of any Demon-Type monsters it destroyed in battle. He even found this card a bit of a dud.
"What happened after that?" You Xuan asked.
Keihei shrugged, "Nothing out of the ordinary. Kaiba Corporation's Duel Motor Squad sprang into action and wiped out that organization. However, I heard that the monster called Hades was quite a handful, and it took two squad members to barely defeat it in a duel."
You Xuan was surprised that even that six-star dud could cause such a stir.
Although he hadn't seen its spirit form and couldn't gauge its strength, he doubted that even in his own spirit squad, 'The Underworld's Demon King Hades' would be good for much more than bringing up the rear.
"Didn't you find Joey?" Keihei asked.
You Xuan shook his head, "I think he might have been there, but he was gone by the time I arrived."
"I see. Well, thank you for your efforts. We're aware of the situation now, so you don't need to worry about the rest. We'll take care of it from here," Keihei assured him.
You Xuan didn't press the issue further, but he assumed that his alter ego in Clearwater Town had taken care of the crayfish. The remaining mess might be substantial, but it would only require some extra effort, which shouldn't be a problem for Kaiba Corporation's resources.
"However, be cautious about that monster," You Xuan advised, "I don't think this is just any ordinary Dark Spirit. This one might be beyond the capabilities of an average duelist."
Keihei smiled, "Don't worry. The members of the Motor Squad are all elite duelists with professional-level skills."
"Professional level," You Xuan mused.
He found this statement a bit awkward, as the so-called professional duelists in his eyes were now almost on par with jonin-level ninjas from the neighboring Ninja Village. They could serve as a decent backdrop in conversation, but he wouldn't want to rely on them in actual combat.
"What's wrong? Do you disagree?" Keihei noticed his unusual expression.
"Well, I'm not saying it's impossible, but I think this monster might be beyond the capabilities of anyone in the Kaiba Corporation except for Seto Kaiba himself," You Xuan stated seriously.
"That powerful?" Keihei exclaimed in surprise.
You Xuan nodded earnestly.
He wasn't exaggerating.
Trudge's strength was unknown, as he had been plot-armored by the High Priest, Matthias, in the final arc of 'GX'. Before that, he had displayed overwhelming power that far surpassed any other character in the story, but he had never faced off against a legendary duelist, so his true strength was a mystery.
The ultimate antagonist of Duel Monsters, the Great Evil God Zork, used the body of the sole survivor of Crealer Village, the future King of Thieves, as his vessel. As a child, the King of Thieves witnessed the slaughter of his villagers, and an intense darkness grew within him.
The GX manga provides additional context, revealing that the King of Thieves was not the only survivor of Crealer Village.
Within the Egyptian palace, there was also a fortune-teller who served the Pharaoh, and he, too, was secretly a villager of Crealer. Because he was away from the village, serving in the palace, he escaped the massacre. However, upon learning the truth of what had happened to his fellow villagers, he fell into deep despair, and from that darkness, a terrifying monster like Tragodia was born.
This explains why Tragodia wields power strong enough to confront the Millennium Items directly.
"I understand. If even You Xuan is saying this..."
Keihei nodded solemnly.
"I'll inform the investigation team to be careful, and I'll let my brother know as well. Thank you."
As they spoke, the two had already walked through the lobby of the Kaiba Corporation and reached the entrance.
"The tournament will resume today, and at this rate, I think we'll have our top eight decided by the end of the day," Keihei said.
"Oh? How many are there now?" You Xuan asked.
Before the suspension, You Xuan had already collected the Puzzle Cards and secured his spot in the next round. Aside from him and Kaiba Seto, who was expected to advance, the only other competitor to have smoothly progressed was the so-called world's strongest user of the Hero Deck, Hibiki Akaba.
"We already have five," Keihei replied with a smile. "Speaking of which, your good friend has also advanced. As expected of someone recommended by You Xuan, I was quite surprised at first when I heard he was a student of Osiris Red, but he turned out to be unexpectedly strong."
"Judai?" You Xuan asked, not entirely surprised.
After all, Judai had accompanied him to grind at the New Domino club, and they were only missing two cards back then.
"Oh, speaking of the gathering place for the advancing competitors, something interesting seems to be happening there right now, and it involves your good friend. Are you interested in taking a look?" Keihei suggested.
"What?" You Xuan was taken aback.
However, when they arrived at the gathering point, You Xuan immediately understood the situation.
On the city's waterfront, two figures stood apart from each other, engaged in a Duel.
On one side was a young man with a jellyfish haircut, wearing the classic Osiris Red uniform—clearly Judai.
And on the other side...
"Hibiki Akaba?" You Xuan was surprised.
Had his classmate already faced off against the world champion?
"But they've both already advanced, right?" You Xuan asked Keihei.
"Yes," Keihei shrugged and smiled wryly. "But your classmate enthusiastically acknowledged Hibiki as his idol as soon as they met, and they got so caught up in their passionate conversation that they apparently couldn't wait for the tournament. So, they decided to duel right then and there."
You Xuan: "."
Some kind of card enthusiast exchange?
(End of Chapter)
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