Chapter 73: A Knockoff Divine Fist Shattering Blow
Like a mountain, the colossal Grandsoil the Elemental Lord lifted its hand, as massive as a great castle, and swept it forward. From the azure sky simulated by the Shadow Game's domain, a thick bolt of lightning descended, striking the earth.
As this bolt of lightning struck the earth, the sturdy ground was torn open. And from the rift, Gaia The Fierce Knight charged forth on his warhorse.
"To think you Summoned two high-Level Monsters at once!" Bakura's expression was grim. "But so what? You lowered the Attack of my Goblin Zombie, but because of Joint Struggle's Effect, you still can't declare a Direct Attack against me!"
[Bakura: 4000LP]
[Goblin Zombie][ATK500]
[Grandsoil the Elemental Lord][ATK2800]
[Gaia The Fierce Knight][ATK2300]
Hayato had previously activated Joint Struggle to send an Earth Star Swordsman from his Hand to the Graveyard. The card's original intent was for a monster in the hand to unite with a monster on the field for a combined fight, but Hayato had leveraged it to decrease the Attack of Bakura's Goblin Zombie. Even so, he still suffered Joint Struggle's side effect: he could not declare a Direct Attack that turn.
Now, although Hayato had Summoned two monsters whose combined Attack Points were certainly enough to wipe out Bakura's Life Points, he could only attack with one of them, as Bakura only controlled one monster on his Field. And no matter which one he chose, neither of their Attack Points was high enough to deal lethal damage to Bakura.
"If a powerful attack can't solve the problem, it just means the attack isn't powerful enough. In that case, I just need to make the attack even stronger." Under Bakura's horrified gaze, Hayato played the final card from his hand. "I activate my last card, the Spell Card Power of Succession!"
Because it had been Special Summoned by the effect of Grandsoil the Elemental Lord, Gaia The Fierce Knight's body erupted in white flames the moment Hayato activated Power of Succession, as if it were burning its very soul. Grandsoil the Elemental Lord then extended its massive hand, holding it over the Duel Field and gathering all the flames burning on Gaia The Fierce Knight into its palm.
"Power of Succession? Oh no! Don't tell me!" Bakura was aghast. "You bastard, you're going to...!"
"I seek nothing less than victory, and to seize that victory, I'm willing to sacrifice my very Soul. Offer up your Soul, Gaia The Fierce Knight!" Hayato's right fist clenched, his motion uncannily synchronized with Grandsoil the Elemental Lord behind him. "Power of Succession allows the power of Gaia The Fierce Knight to be inherited by another monster. I Tribute all of Gaia The Fierce Knight's power—"
[Grandsoil the Elemental Lord][ATK2800→5100]
"Grandsoil the Elemental Lord, let's go! Divine Fist Shattering Blow!"
Hayato thrust his right fist forcefully toward Ryo Bakura. Grandsoil the Elemental Lord moved in perfect sync with him, its giant fist, now infused with all of Gaia The Fierce Knight's power, crashing down toward Bakura like a falling meteor!
"Impossible! My ambitions are not yet realized! Impossible!" Bakura's Back Row and Hand were completely empty. As the meteoric fist descended, he desperately searched for a countermeasure, only to realize with desperate despair that he had no way to stop the impending catastrophe. "I will not die!"
*BOOM!*
Facing the cataclysmic punch, the Goblin Zombie raised its knife above its head, but its resistance didn't even last a second before it was instantly crushed. The aftershock of the attack continued with almost no reduction in force, shattering the deathly mist that had covered Bakura's Back Row, and directly impacting Bakura himself!
"Arrrggghhhh!!!"
[Ryo Bakura: 4000LP → 0]
The impact sent Bakura's body flying. The dark spirit that had possessed Ryo Bakura's body was knocked out the instant the fist of Grandsoil the Elemental Lord made contact. As both their souls had been wagered in the Shadow Game, the very moment Bakura's Life Points hit zero, a black hole with terrifying suction power appeared above the Duel Field, instantly swallowing the dark spirit whole.
Hayato could hear the spirit's final, resentful threat as it vanished: "I will not die! Hayato, I will come back for you!!!"
"Hmph, bring it on. I'll be waiting," Hayato said, sounding quite relaxed, but then he slumped onto the ground, his forehead drenched in a cold sweat. The Shadow Game's barrier had dissipated at some point. The towering Grandsoil the Elemental Lord behind him vanished as the Duel Disk deactivated. In the distance, Ryo Bakura's body lay quietly on the ground.
During the Shadow Game, Hayato hadn't taken a single point of damage, but he hadn't expected the immense strain that summoning Grandsoil the Elemental Lord would place on his body. The sensation of summoning Grandsoil the Elemental Lord and then releasing it was akin to the difference between peacefully sleeping in bed and running a marathon at high altitude while wearing a mask.
Especially after using Power of Succession. As Grandsoil the Elemental Lord absorbed Gaia The Fierce Knight's power, its own power surged, and Hayato's burden grew heavier with each passing second, to the point where he felt he was about to collapse. If that last blow hadn't defeated Bakura, Hayato might have ended up like Joey, losing the Duel due to unconsciousness.
But, thankfully, he won.
Temporarily ignoring the flood of notifications suddenly popping up from his System, Hayato picked up a long, broken tree branch from the grassy edge of the forest path, using it to support himself as he stood up and walked over to the unconscious Bakura. The white-haired boy no longer wore the ferocious expression he had during the duel; he lay peacefully on the ground. Judging by his deep, steady breathing, he was sound asleep.
Looking at the sleeping Bakura, Hayato showed no concern for potentially waking him. He reached directly into Bakura's pants pocket, immediately finding two heavy star chips, which he casually slotted into the grooves of the Duel Disk on his left arm.
Then, muttering to himself, Hayato bent down and picked up Bakura's scattered cards. "You know, you tried to steal my Gaia The Fierce Knight earlier. So it's fine if I take just a *few* of your cards, right? If you don't say anything, I'll take that as a yes."
A pile of cards including Goblin Zombie, Newt, Morphing Jar, and even Change of Heart were added to Hayato's collection. To his slight disappointment, however, several good cards like Destiny Board and Dark Doll had mysteriously vanished from Bakura's Deck.
After placing the "Deck," which had been picked clean down to about a dozen N-Rank cards, back into Bakura's pocket, Hayato noticed the golden disk on Bakura's chest—one of the seven Millennium Items, the Millennium Ring. He "casually" untied its cord and took it.
"Although I doubt a single Shadow Game could finish him off, I wonder if this thing is clean now? Better not let it possess me later." Hayato considered throwing the Millennium Ring away, but after opening the System to check the detailed abilities of his Mind Barrier, he decided to trust it. Gritting his teeth, he hung the Millennium Ring around his own neck.
(end of chapter)