Chapter 751: Be Careful of the Traitor Dragon on Both Sides
Lightning sprayed out from the mouth of Slifer the Sky Dragon, pouring onto the earth. Because they were right beside Dark Yugi and knew when the attack would arrive, Seto and Shada quickly ordered their Stone Tablet Monsters to move aside.
However, those demons that were previously blocked by several monsters and couldn't advance an inch weren't so clever. The demons, whose heads were full of the idea of charging forward, collided with the attack spit out by Slifer the Sky Dragon and were immediately annihilated completely.
However, just as Dark Yugi had predicted, even though they had been annihilated to the point where not even bone fragments remained, under the effect of the strange dark aura entwining the demons, those annihilated demons surprisingly began to self-repair little by little.
Looking at this scene, Seto's eyebrows furrowed tightly. Just now, because the battle situation was intense and the dark aura somewhat obstructed his line of sight, he hadn't paid too much attention to the appearance features of these demons before his eyes. Looking again now, these demons seemed somewhat vaguely familiar...
"Surprisingly, they can still self-repair under a Divine-Beast's attack? What exactly is the origin of these demons?" Compared to Seto, Shada wasn't deeply impressed by the demons before his eyes; he was more concerned with their immortality. "If this continues, it will fundamentally be endless!"
But Dark Yugi smiled and said to Priest Shada, "Composure, Priest Shada, this situation is also within my prediction. That's why I specially summoned Slifer the Sky Dragon."
"Continuously regenerating and reviving, this is an unforgivable crime that will anger Osiris the Underworld King. Send down your Divine Punishment, Slifer the Sky Dragon!"
Dark Yugi extended his hand and pointed at a demon that was about to complete its self-repair, "Thunder Force!"
Different from the "Superconductive Wave-Thunder Force" used in one go to break through multiple demons just now, Slifer the Sky Dragon opened its upper mouth, and a spherical lightning was spit out by it, hitting the body of the demon that had completed its regeneration!
"Boom!"
The demon that had just completed its revival was instantly destroyed by "Thunder Force", and the dark aura entwined on its body was also struck and dispersed together. Although it wasn't completely dispersed, when it gathered again, its density was visibly thinned out.
This was not an isolated case. Slifer the Sky Dragon successively spit out several "Thunder Force" attacks, bestowing one upon each of the demons before its eyes, equally upon each of them. The "Thunder Force" falling from the sky like raindrops successively crushed the demons. Even if they revived again, Slifer the Sky Dragon would immediately add another "Thunder Force" to strike and extinguish them again.
"So strong, is this the power of Slifer the Sky Dragon, the second Divine-Beast guarding the Pharaoh!" Shada looked with a shocked expression at the demon group that had almost made them fall into a hard battle before. At this moment, they were completely under the suppression of Slifer the Sky Dragon's power alone. "Truly worthy of being the Pharaoh, you easily did what we couldn't. I truly admire you so much!"
However, flattering is flattering. Looking at the demons reviving again and again, Shada also reminded Dark Yugi, "But Pharaoh, these demons are fundamentally like they are undying. Even a Divine-Beast's attack cannot destroy them."
"On the surface, it seems that way, but Shada, you didn't notice one thing."
Seto, for the time being, brushed aside that subtle sense of déjà vu in his heart. Looking at the demons being destroyed again and again by Slifer the Sky Dragon, he said to Shada, "Being annihilated again and again, the speed of these demons' regeneration has already started to become slower and slower. Even if they can revive no matter how many times, in the end, they are not immortal beings."
Just as Seto said, along with being annihilated again and again by "Thunder Force", the demons that originally revived within just a few seconds now needed nearly a minute of time to complete their revival. It seemed that as the dark aura on their bodies became paler and paler, their immortality was also gradually wearing away.
As for Dark Yugi, for Slifer the Sky Dragon "Thunder Force" was almost instinct, and there was fundamentally no consumption whatsoever. If not for not having a shield readily available that could completely absorb attacks, Dark Yugi even wanted to shout, "I can spend a whole day with you!"
Seeing this, Dark Yugi couldn't help but smile. Feeling that he, having summoned Slifer the Sky Dragon, already seemed unstoppable, he subconsciously said, "I feel like I can do it!"
Dark Yugi felt like it could work, but someone who had planned this attack didn't feel it was working well. If this continued, wouldn't all his effort be wasted? Before the situation completely turned in a favorable direction for Dark Yugi, someone who had been hiding all along immediately jumped out.
"Just for my sake, use Spiral Wave against the Pharaoh, Diabound!"
Just as Slifer the Sky Dragon was happily spraying "Thunder Force", suddenly a spiral impact shot out from the demon group and attacked towards it, blowing up a "Thunder Force" that had just been spit out and hadn't flown far, right in front of Slifer the Sky Dragon's face, embarrassing Slifer the Sky Dragon.
"Aoo aoo aoo!" Slifer the Sky Dragon immediately got angry. It's rare that I get to come out and show off by bullying weaklings, and surprisingly someone dares to counter me, who possesses "Thunder Force"?
An insignificant skill dares to show off before an expert, utterly ignorant, fundamentally not putting me in their eyes!
With a roar, Slifer the Sky Dragon didn't even need Dark Yugi to give a command. Following the direction the attack had come from just now, it spit out a "Superconductive Wave-Thunder Force", hitting a huge demon that was in a stealth state and forcing it out.
"Bakura, and Diabound!" Dark Yugi looked with vigilance at the person and beast who had revealed their forms, and shouted, "You guy, as expected, you didn't die by Mahad's hand!"
"Hehe, Nameless Pharaoh, I've returned from Hell!" Hearing Dark Yugi's words, Bakura subconsciously touched the burn injury on his body. Even though he had rested, it still ached faintly there.
This was all thanks to Mahad, and this wrath was now being vented out by Bakura towards Dark Yugi. "As for you, even if I injected a large amount of malice, these things still couldn't kill you."
"As expected, you were behind all these demons here!" Dark Yugi said, furrowing his eyebrows. At the same time, Slifer the Sky Dragon slightly descended a certain height from the sky, guarding Dark Yugi's side, facing off against Diabound beside Bakura from a distance.
Because of Slifer the Sky Dragon's attack just now, although he had Diabound's close protection, Bakura still got embarrassed from the blast. Slifer the Sky Dragon could also be considered to have avenged its embarrassment. Wiping his face with his sleeve, Bakura said with a grin, "Hehe, what I can tell you is that the plan to annihilate the Pharaoh was formulated by me."
"You weren't the only one who discovered that something had dropped from the [Millennium Puzzle] in the sky. I predicted that you definitely wouldn't be able to resist your curiosity and would leave the Royal Palace, so I specially set up an ambush here." Glancing at the demons slowly regenerating around him, Bakura had a face of disgust. "That old man's Stone Tablet Monsters are indeed quite a lot in quantity, but they're a bit too lame."
"That old man is just useless, and you guys are useless too!"
"Old man? Could it be Priest Aknadin?!" Hearing this, the sense of déjà vu in Seto's head was linked together. He finally remembered exactly when he had seen these demons before his eyes.
In the process of struggling little by little from the bottom and striving for his present priest status, Priest Aknadin was like a teacher to him. During the period of learning knowledge from him, Aknadin had also trained Seto on the use of Stone Tablet Monsters. For this, Seto was also able to visit Priest Aknadin's rich Stone Tablet Monster collection.
These demons before his eyes, entwined and corrupted by dark aura, Seto had all seen them in Priest Aknadin's collection!
"You guy, who is even more hatred-inducing than a hippopotamus, what exactly did you do to Priest Aknadin!"
In legend, Egypt's first Pharaoh died from a hippopotamus. At the same time, the hippopotamus is also the symbol of the Wicked God, the mortal enemy of kindness and light. Furthermore, the War to Expel the Hyksos, in which two Pharaohs died during the last dynasty, was also instigated by hippopotami. But at this moment, because he heard the news that something seemed to have happened to Aknadin, Seto's hatred towards Bakura had reached a degree even greater than towards a hippopotamus.
Priest Seto got angry!
"Heh, hearing that old man Aknadin had something happen to him makes you so excited? Rest assured, Priest Seto, I didn't do anything to him. I merely stole the many Stone Tablet Monsters he had collected from him. His valued collection was injected with a large amount of malice contained within the [Millennium Ring] right in front of his face. That old guy almost fainted."
"I am a kind-hearted person, I cannot bear to see him in such pain. Of course, I used the power of the [Millennium Ring] to trigger the dark power within his [Millennium Eye] again."
Bakura seemed like he didn't notice Seto's murderous gaze at all, or perhaps he simply just didn't put the possibility of the threat Seto could pose to him in his eyes. He arrogantly continued, "Last time, consider him lucky. This time, I'm afraid that old man won't have the opportunity to wake up again. Anyway, he doesn't have many years left to live. His remaining life will all be spent in darkness, hehe hahahahaha!"
"You, you guy!" Seto's fist was clenched tightly, his fingernails were almost embedded into his flesh. He was about to impulsively command his Stone Tablet Monsters to go forward and fight desperately with Bakura, but Shada beside him held him back tightly. Because of the battle before, Seto's "Soul" was not at full value. Letting him mindlessly attack like this was fundamentally seeking death.
And Dark Yugi, hearing Seto's words, even if he didn't have as deep affection for Aknadin as Seto did, he had always seen Aknadin's performance during this period of time. That highly prestigious old Priest, who even towards criminals harbors a moment of mercy, surprisingly successively fainted twice because of this guy Bakura, twice stepping into a life-or-death crisis.
Unforgivable, Bakura!
"This time, I won't let you escape again, Bakura!" Dark Yugi said angrily. He extended his hand and pointed at Bakura, shouting, "Face the power of Slifer the Sky Dragon! Do it again! Superconductive Wave-Thunder Force!"
The lightning blast sprayed out again. Diabound also immediately released a Spiral Wave to counter. However, the beam struggle that clearly hadn't been a stalemate before now presented a one-sided trend. Under Dark Yugi's wrathful order, the lightning spit out by Slifer the Sky Dragon defeated Diabound's Spiral Wave like breaking bamboo, hitting it until it repeatedly retreated!
"No, impossible?! I became weaker, is it because of Mahad?" A shocked expression appeared on Bakura's face. He looked towards Dark Yugi, who had a face of wrath, and then denied, "No, is it because you became stronger due to wrath, Pharaoh!"
"Killing you won't change anything, I know this point. But even so, the pain you've brought is already enough!" Dark Yugi said with a serious expression. "As the Pharaoh, I will purge you, Bakura!"
"Do it again, Slifer the Sky Dragon!"
"Superconductive Wave-Thunder Force!"
Lightning emerged again and swept towards Bakura. Bakura suddenly had an expression of unwillingness. "Damn, if this happens, I can only use this move!"
Diabound blocked in front of Bakura. Then this guy surprisingly climbed onto a revived demon beside him, and riding it, suddenly turned around and escaped, "Let's run away!"
"This move again? But the same move is ineffective against a Duelist, don't think about escaping!"
Dark Yugi watched as Diabound, after being knocked down by Slifer the Sky Dragon, climbed up safely. Knowing that entangling with this monster was just wasted time, he immediately spurred his horse and began pursuit of Bakura. "Bakura, I'll make sure you come and don't return!"
Seto and Shada's reaction was slightly slower by a beat, but they also immediately rushed out together with Dark Yugi, pursuing the escaping Bakura. But it was just this instant of time difference that slightly created a little distance between them and Dark Yugi. And what Dark Yugi didn't notice is that at the instant he chased out, Bakura didn't show a sinister smile towards him.
However, he didn't expose himself. Looking at Dark Yugi chasing towards him, he also revealed an expression of unwillingness and cursed, "The Pharaoh is still chasing me, tmd!"
At the same time, in the Stone Tablet Temple near the Royal Palace, corresponding to the [Millennium Rod] held by the Pharaoh, because he had the right to manage Stone Tablet Monsters, although the guarding Soldiers felt that something seemed somewhat abnormal, Priest Aknadin, whose expression was somewhat off, still successfully entered here.
Standing on the Altar, he approached the three tablets symbolizing the Divine-Beasts guarding the Pharaoh, stored in the uppermost part of the Stone Tablet Temple. The corner of Aknadin's mouth hooked up, revealing an evil smile that others had never thought would appear on his face.
"Aha, Aknadin, look at how cowardly you are, so cowardly that you dare not demand." As he walked, the evil smiling Aknadin drew out a hidden long sword from his robe. "What should have belonged to us, belonged to Seto's line, is now held by others."
"Yet you dare not even scold him once?"
Raising the long sword in his hand, he aimed it at the tablet among them that symbolized Slifer the Sky Dragon. Aknadin tilted his head, and the extent of his grin became even more exaggerated. "It's okay, I will help you. Just a gentle push, and then leave the rest to Destiny."
"Just like, this!"
Golden light emitted from Priest Aknadin's left [Millennium Eye], but it only gave people an ominous feeling. Pitch-black evil energy was also entwined on the sharp long sword, which easily stabbed into Slifer the Sky Dragon's tablet!
Outside the Royal City, Bakura, who had a look of desperate escape, suddenly turned around and ordered Diabound to attack: "It's now, Spiral Wave!"
"Useless, Slifer the Sky Dragon!" Dark Yugi actually also defended against Bakura's counter, and also commanded Slifer the Sky Dragon, "Superconductive Wave-Thunder Force!"
Synchronizing with Diabound's attack, Slifer the Sky Dragon also opened its mouth, planning to counter. Lightning had just started to gather in its mouth, but at this instant, Slifer the Sky Dragon suddenly misfired, and the gathered attack also suddenly dispersed. Facing Diabound's attack, it just froze there, unable to move at all!
Chapter 752: The Sky Pit Dragon Died
"Slifer the Sky Dragon!?"
Dark Yugi looked at Slifer the Sky Dragon, who had suddenly stopped moving, with a confused expression. Bakura's Diabound was about to attack, what are you doing!?
Move, Slifer the Sky Dragon, why aren't you moving!
Why are you just watching Diabound declare attack!
Could it be, could it be you were already a Traitor Dragon three thousand years ago!
Slifer the Sky Dragon did not respond to Dark Yugi, as if it were merely a Statue, completely still. But Diabound's attack was already complete, and the spiraling vortex of impact carried energy extremely similar to Obelisk the Tormentor's attack "Soul Energy MAX", striking Slifer the Sky Dragon in an instant!
Because of the distance between Dark Yugi and Seto and the others, even if Seto and Shada had wanted to rescue it at this moment, it was already too late, they simply couldn't reach the attacked Slifer the Sky Dragon!
In an instant, most of Slifer the Sky Dragon's body was directly engulfed in the vortex after being struck by Diabound's "Spiral Wave". When the impact's aftermath dispersed, the upper half of Slifer the Sky Dragon that appeared before Dark Yugi's eyes had directly vanished, and the remaining lower half of its body weakly crashed onto the ground, shattering and exploding!
"Boom!"
"Ugh!"
Because Slifer the Sky Dragon was killed directly, Dark Yugi, who had summoned it, also suffered damage. The "Soul" on the Duel Disk worn on his wrist suddenly dropped by more than half its length, and Dark Yugi was also drained of his strength from the pain he felt, nearly falling from his horse.
Seeing this, Bakura, who had just been awkwardly escaping, knew his scheme had succeeded, and arrogantly stopped in place, turning the offensive, and said to Dark Yugi: "Heh hahahaha, you fell for it, Yugi, this is my offensive strategy! When it comes to strategy, you still can't compare to me, Bakura!"
"Did you think I broke into the Royal Palace just to seize a few Small Fry level Stone Tablet Monsters? You underestimate me too much! As a lesson learned, I already tampered with the Tablets of the 'Three Egyptian Gods' you use while I was at it!"
Bakura naturally wouldn't tell Dark Yugi and the others exactly what he did to Aknadin last night. After all, the deeper this hidden move was hidden, the more it could maximize its use. So until now, he had only taken responsibility for everything that seemed off, clearing Aknadin of all suspicion.
After hearing Bakura's words, Dark Yugi managed to straighten his back, looking at the swaggering Diabound.
After defeating Slifer the Sky Dragon, this terrifying monster, which seemed capable of infinite evolution, once again stole the power belonging to a deity. In addition to the patterns of Obelisk the Tormentor on its shoulders, the markings of Slifer the Sky Dragon were also added to its white snake-like lower body.
Just now, although Slifer the Sky Dragon had strangely stopped moving and offered no resistance to Diabound's attack, logically speaking, as one of the "Three Egyptian Gods", Slifer the Sky Dragon shouldn't have been killed so easily even if it was struck by Diabound's attack.
However, if the issue wasn't with the spirits of the "Three Egyptian Gods" themselves, but with the tablets they resided in, then Dark Yugi understood why Slifer the Sky Dragon's body was so fragile, practically worse than floor tiles.
At least in some places, floor tiles wouldn't be damaged in the slightest, even if some ultimate world-destruction power was engaging in a beam struggle on them.
Seto and Shada also finally caught up to Dark Yugi at this moment. Seeing that the powerful "Divine-Beast" summoned by the Pharaoh was actually defeated by Bakura's Diabound, the two who didn't understand the reason were thrown into shock.
Especially Seto, such a thought uncontrollably emerged from the bottom of his heart: 'An evil power that even the Pharaoh's Divine-Beast cannot contend with, even the Pharaoh's power has a limit. In that case, to defeat these evil enemies, one must obtain power even greater than a Divine-Beast!'
Shada's thoughts were much simpler. Looking at Slifer the Sky Dragon, whose body had completely dispersed, and Dark Yugi, who had a poor expression, he immediately had the Ankh Kuriboh beside him use its power once again, healing Dark Yugi.
At the same time, because of Slifer the Sky Dragon's death, Shada was exceptionally filled with wrath.
As the current Priest holding the Millennium Key, although Shada had complete loyalty to the Pharaoh, he also had his personal faith. Because of the education he received and the knowledge related to the Millennium Key, the deity he held in the highest reverence was the Underworld God Osiris.
And coincidentally, the name of the Underworld God Osiris existed within Slifer the Sky Dragon's true name. Witnessing Slifer the Sky Dragon's death was no less torment for Shada than putting pineapple on a perfect Margherita pizza in front of an Italian!
Releasing his last power towards Dark Yugi, the power of Ankh Kuriboh, which had continuously provided support to the battlefield for a long time, was finally exhausted. Unable to continue supporting, it returned to Shada's body. Shada also turned pale from overusing the power of the spirit connected to his body and heart, but because of the wrath in his heart, he cheered Dark Yugi on:
"Pharaoh, your subordinate pleads here, please display your glory to us and annihilate this villain! Please, please accept this, this is my, Shada Sin's, last power!"
Seto, who was beside him, also reacted, reaching out to support Shada, preventing him from falling directly off his horse onto the ground.
Because of the Battlefield's Transfer, the group had now moved some distance away from the Residential Area outside the City Gate. The soft Sandy Ground beneath their feet had also turned into hard Rocky Ground. If Shada were to fall now, there was a chance he might get injured.
Having accepted the healing provided by Shada's Ankh Kuriboh, Dark Yugi felt his body recover to a relaxed state. His 'Soul', which had originally dropped to less than half, actually quickly filled back up at a visible speed, allowing him to recover to the state he was in before being tricked by Bakura, and fight fairly with him again.
Looking at Shada's dispirited gaze, Dark Yugi nodded solemnly: "I heard your wish."
"Let's start the second battle, Bakura!"
Raising his arm and pointing at Bakura, behind Dark Yugi, the Blue Giant God quickly turned from nothingness into physical form, and fiercely swung its iron fist towards Bakura's Diabound.
"Ora!"
Dark Yugi's unsportsmanlike sneak attack caught Bakura off guard. Diabound, who was as arrogant as its User, was hit in the face by a punch, its body tilting back as if it was about to be defeated.
Shada was angry because of Slifer the Sky Dragon's death, but Dark Yugi was just as filled with wrath.
Although he only held Slifer the Sky Dragon for a short duel after the Battle City Top 4, and also kept Slifer the Sky Dragon for a period after Hayato disappeared due to the Pyramid of Light Incident, he inexplicably felt that among the Three Egyptian Gods, Slifer the Sky Dragon was the one he used most easily, and he had already developed feelings for it.
Although he wasn't sure if the 'Three Egyptian Gods' he called in this Memory World were the same ones as in Reality, the emotions were the same. Now, Dark Yugi had to vent properly with a barrage of full power consecutive attacks.
And in this aspect, there was no more suitable existence than the "Avatar of the God of Destruction" - Obelisk the Tormentor.
After hitting Diabound with a punch, Dark Yugi didn't feel it was enough, and was about to order Obelisk the Tormentor to use consecutive normal punch attacks.
But what was somewhat surprising to him was that, looking at Diabound being hit by Obelisk the Tormentor without any defense, Bakura's face showed no worry at all, instead revealing a contemptuous smile, and he sneered: "Now it's time to return that phrase to you, Yugi. The same move doesn't have any use against the Pharaoh? Then it's the same for me!"
"The same Duel Monsters are useless against Diabound, even a Divine-Beast is the same, Muda Muda Muda!"
Pointing a hand at Obelisk the Tormentor, Bakura sneered, "Now, counter!"
Just as Bakura said, taking advantage of the instant Obelisk the Tormentor withdrew one fist to charge up, Diabound's body, which should have been knocked back, suddenly twisted against the laws of physics. Its entire body, which was a snake in its lower half, indeed twisted like a snake, turning Obelisk the Tormentor's impact from just now into nothingness, and similarly raised a fist, charging up like Obelisk the Tormentor.
Then, both monsters threw punches simultaneously, their fists crossing and slamming into each other's bodies!
Just like just now, Diabound fundamentally didn't take damage from Obelisk the Tormentor's attack. After a slight pause, it immediately threw another punch, but Obelisk the Tormentor had no immunity to Diabound's attack. Obelisk the Tormentor, who usually crushed everything, was actually being forced back repeatedly!?
Not only that, in the gap between the consecutive punches, Dark Yugi even saw the snake head on Diabound's lower body open its mouth and actually spit out Slifer the Sky Dragon's Special Ability 'Thunder Force', continuously weakening Obelisk the Tormentor's power!
What kind of unfair strategy is this?
"Heh hahahaha, see, Pharaoh, Diabound is an invincible existence, your 'Divine-Beast' is no longer his opponent, just obediently go die!"
Hearing Bakura being so arrogant, Dark Yugi also made a decision in his heart.
If this continued, Obelisk the Tormentor would only be destroyed by Diabound again. In that case, the 'Soul' that Shada helped me recover with great difficulty would be wasted. Rather than that, it would be better to utilize the 'Soul' that is currently at full value, and use the power of that monster!
Thinking this, Dark Yugi immediately spread his arms and made a gesture of praising the sun, facing the sky and closing his eyes, uttering the Ancient Egyptian Hieratic Text from his memory.
When he first heard what Dark Yugi was chanting, Bakura didn't understand a single character, but gradually he suddenly remembered where he had heard such text before, and knew what Dark Yugi was about to do.
But Dark Yugi's chanting speed was very fast, Bakura fundamentally didn't have time to stop him. Only to see Obelisk the Tormentor suddenly disperse after exerting great power and repelling Diabound a little distance. What replaced it, however, was a sun disc descending within the dark clouds brought by Slifer the Sky Dragon before!
"Spirit sing praises, the great power governs all things, its life, its soul, even its corpse." Opening his eyes, looking at the sun disc descending from the air, Dark Yugi called out the name of the last and strongest of the 'Three Egyptian Gods', "Descend, The Winged Dragon of Ra!"
The giant golden sphere transformed, unfolding its body. The Winged Dragon of Ra, which had completely driven away the dark clouds, overlooked the Earth like a second sun in the sky. Diabound, which had no adaptability to it, merely being shone upon by its radiance, had to painfully curl up its body to reduce the area being burned by the radiance.
"You summoned the third 'Divine-Beast', Pharaoh!" Bakura's eyes narrowed slightly, restraining the corners of his mouth from curving up, and he said excitedly, "Do you want to kill me that much? If you use The Winged Dragon of Ra's power, it will mill your 'Soul' to its minimum limit, right!"
Dark Yugi had a serious expression, and raised his Duel Disk: "This is merely the necessary sacrifice for using the Sun God's power. Take my 'Soul', The Winged Dragon of Ra, and then go all out for me, and defeat Bakura here!"
"God Blaze Cannon!"
The 'Soul' on Dark Yugi's Duel Disk, which had finally been filled back up thanks to the use of Shada's Ankh Kuriboh, rapidly dropped until only a sliver remained. The rest was completely absorbed by The Winged Dragon of Ra in the sky. Accompanying this, the golden flames around the Divine Bird of the Sun's body suddenly expanded, completely enveloping its entire body, transforming into a giant fire bird that swooped straight down from the sky.
The starlight taken from Drytron, the lightning plundered from the Sky Dragon, the 'Transparent' stripped from Shadow Ghoul, and even the pure power of Obelisk the Tormentor - even if Bakura had Diabound collect the power of numerous powerful monsters as much as possible during this time, in front of the Sun's fire, these many powers were fundamentally useless effort. Even while adapting with full power to The Winged Dragon of Ra's divine power, Diabound's body was rapidly dissolving!
Even an undying monster, at the instant its body and soul are completely annihilated, no matter how powerful its immortality, it will no longer have any use!
(End of Chapter)
Chapter 753: Sky Pit Dragon Died Again
Perhaps it was a long time, or perhaps just an instant. In short, within the Sun's Fire, time seemed to lose all meaning. By the time Diabound seemed to have finally finished adapting to a part of The Winged Dragon of Ra's power, it had already been completely annihilated and disappeared.
Subsequently, The Winged Dragon of Ra, in its Immortal Phoenix Stance, directly crashed into Bakura, the flames engulfing him entirely!
Dark Yugi clearly saw that Bakura had been swallowed by the fire, his body rapidly turning into ash and disappearing. Due to the sudden drop in his Soul, he relaxed and weakly fell from his horse.
That's great, I finally took down Bakura! Dark Yugi thought.
However, was this the end?
————
"Y-Yada ze!"
Overlooking the Chessboard, Bakura, sitting in his chair, laughed quite exaggeratedly, "I finally waited for this moment, the moment when Diabound, this Game Piece, grows to its strongest state! The power of the Three Egyptian Gods is completely useless against it now!"
"And now, it's finally time to use the GM Item I possess!"
Picking up an item that looked like an hourglass from beside him, Bakura flipped it over. The sand that should have flowed downwards began to flow backwards!
Looking at the Game Pieces on the Chessboard, Bakura narrowed his eyes and put down the hourglass: "If you don't use it when you should, it loses its meaning. Exert your final effort, Thief King Bakura."
————
*'N-No way, am I really going to end in a place like this?'*
*'H-How can this be! I haven't killed the Pharaoh yet, I haven't completed my revenge! How can I fall here!'*
After being hit by The Winged Dragon of Ra's attack, Bakura's thoughts sank into darkness. The unwillingness and resentment in his heart did not disperse with death; instead, they grew even stronger.
Enveloped by death, he fell into despair. And when despair reached its peak, Bakura heard the sound of something being set down beside his ear.
"Gakada~"
Subsequently, light reappeared in Bakura's eyes!
All things bizarrely began to reverse at this moment. Bakura's body recovered out of thin air, the destroyed Diabound also began regenerating, while The Winged Dragon of Ra left the location where Bakura was, changed back from its Immortal Phoenix Stance to Sphere Mode, and rose back into the sky.
Dark Yugi, who had fallen from his horse, returned to his horse. And as all things flowed backwards, The Winged Dragon of Ra's symbol on the Duel Arena also disappeared, replaced by Obelisk the Tormentor, and then changed to Slifer the Sky Dragon. However, the Soul on his Duel Arena was still in the state of having only a sliver left after summoning The Winged Dragon of Ra!
Time, reversed!
Under the premise that their positions did not change, both Dark Yugi and Bakura had now recovered to the state they were in about ten minutes before, following the time reversal. Even Slifer the Sky Dragon, which should have been killed, returned to Dark Yugi's front!
However, his Soul did not recover even a single bit, which meant---
"Hehe, hehe, he hahahaha!" Covering his face with one hand, the Revived Bakura laughed wildly, laughing like a Pokémon player who would load a save if they couldn't win. "It seems like my End Point isn't here, Pharaoh."
"Since you couldn't kill me at this very instant, the situation will now completely reverse. You are defeated!"
Beside Bakura, the Revived Diabound raised its arms. Although time had reversed, it still retained the sliver of The Winged Dragon of Ra's power it had stolen before being killed. The detail of The Winged Dragon of Ra's markings appeared on its arms, and it unleashed a Spiral Wave towards Slifer the Sky Dragon, enhanced with a bit of fire power!
Although time had reversed, it was clearly only the part beneficial to Bakura that was reversed by time. Everything else that was unfavorable to him was left in a Future that would not be reached again!
And now, Slifer the Sky Dragon was still in that state of being unable to move because Bakura had tampered with the tablet. It was easily destroyed again by Diabound's attack!
"Ugh!"
Before, to unleash The Winged Dragon of Ra's power, Dark Yugi had only a sliver of Soul left. Now, under Bakura's Diabound's attack, Slifer the Sky Dragon died again, causing a large amount of damage to Dark Yugi again and clearing this last sliver of Soul!
Dark Yugi's eyes lost focus, his hands drooped weakly, and he was about to fall from his horse just like before. Seeing this, Bakura laughed wildly and shouted, "He hahaha, my despair, forced into a desperate situation, reached the heavens and summoned the miracle of time reversal! This time, you are the one who dies, Pharaoh!"
"As retaliation, I will also make you shatter into pieces and die without a complete body! This is the last attack!"
"Spiral Wave!"
Dark Yugi, who was falling from his horse, didn't even have the strength to summon other Stone Tablet Monsters to block the damage. He could only watch as the Spiral Wave unleashed by Diabound rapidly approached him.
In the desperate situation of being near death, Dark Yugi's eyes seemed to see an illusion. He actually saw Aibo's face, which should not possibly appear in this era, floating before his eyes, and heard his voice in his ear.
"Pull yourself together, The Other Me!"
Even the touch of his palm came from his shoulder, and he was caught and held in his arms by Aibo.
No, this... it seems like, it wasn't an illusion?
Perhaps because Yugi appeared before his eyes, Dark Yugi suddenly recovered as if experiencing a final burst of energy, and reacted sharply. What was before his eyes was not an illusion at all, but the real Aibo!?
At the same time, before Diabound's Spiral Wave, a figure jumped out and directly threw a card from their hand: "I've made my decision, come out, Sphere Mode!"
Not relying on the Duel Arena, nor summoning from a tablet, a giant Sphere Mode manifested, with the same effect as when Dark Yugi chanted a long passage before, completely blocking Diabound's attack!
"Nice job, Hayato!" Joey Wheeler, who arrived half a step later, shouted excitedly upon seeing this.
The one who summoned The Winged Dragon of Ra - Sphere Mode was none other than Hayato! Hayato, who had set off with Yugi and the others upon discovering the anomaly Outside the City, finally arrived at the destination at the last moment!
"Now the second turn begins, Bakura! Your opponent is me now!" Even without wearing a Duel Arena and unable to maximize the power of the spirits in his hand, Hayato bluffed Bakura.
Chapter 754: Invincibility is a Debuff
"Ha-ya-to Ko-ba-ya-shi!"
Bakura gnashed his teeth, looking hatefully at the troublesome Hayato. It wasn't just because of Hayato's body in this World, "Meriamun". How many times had this happened now? The opponent, again and again, always interfered whenever he was carrying out his plan!
Also, Mutou Yuugi, Tristan Taylor, Katsuya Jounouchi, and Téa Mazaki, how did these guys show up here too!?
Last time, being forced to reveal one of his cheat items by Mahad was already humiliating enough. This time, he had calculated everything perfectly, utilized all the circumstances, and even put another one of his cheat items on the line. He was just about to kill the Pharaoh, but this group of guys popped up and ruined everything!
The angry Bakura glared at Hayato, but saw that Hayato wasn't wearing the Duel Arena used for summoning Stone Tablet Monsters and boosting Spirit Power. Furthermore, after blocking *Diabound Kernel*'s Spiral Wave just now, The Winged Dragon of Ra - Sphere Mode that Hayato had brought out didn't persist either, but disappeared.
Right, this guy doesn't have a Duel Arena. In that case, he fundamentally can't continuously summon Spirit Materializations like before. He *does* have an opportunity to win!
"Heh, originally I was thinking of defeating you and the Nameless Pharaoh separately. Are you in such a hurry to die, letting me settle the score between us, Hayato Kobayashi?"
Having figured this out, Bakura's expression also calmed down slightly. He looked at Hayato with disdain, "What is your reliance? Is it Drytron? Unfortunately, Hayato, the power of your spirits has already been completely adapted to by my *Diabound Kernel*. Everything that doesn't kill *Diabound Kernel* will only make *Diabound Kernel* stronger."
He paused, then Bakura glanced at Dark Yugi, who was shielded by Hayato, and continued, his voice full of contempt and pride, "Or perhaps, it's The Winged Dragon of Ra? As the most powerful existence among the Three Egyptian Gods, it indeed has the qualification to be given special trust and affection by you."
"However, thanks to the Nameless Pharaoh using The Winged Dragon of Ra to attack me just now, even the power of this strongest God has been intercepted by me. My *Diabound Kernel* is now invincible!"
"Do you dare defy me, who possesses *Diabound Kernel*!?"
But upon hearing Bakura's words, Hayato replied with an equally contemptuous sneer: "There's a limit to arrogance, Bakura. Did you get puffed up just because your power got stronger? You actually dare to give yourself an 'Invincible' Debuff."
"Then let me see if what you said is indeed true!"
With that, Hayato waved his hand forward. Without a Duel Arena, there wasn't even a need to chant Hieratic Text. The Winged Dragon of Ra came when called, reappeared before Hayato, and unleashed blazing flames towards *Diabound Kernel*.
"Hit it back, *Diabound Kernel*, Spiral Wave!"
Bakura didn't take The Winged Dragon of Ra's attack seriously. Without any fear, he ordered *Diabound Kernel* to counterattack.
What he didn't expect was that when the attacks unleashed by both sides collided, there was fundamentally no stalemate. The blazing flames unleashed by The Winged Dragon of Ra, summoned by Hayato, actually pierced directly through *Diabound Kernel*'s attack, and the flames burned on *Diabound Kernel*'s body!
"How is that possible!?"
"Heh, there are differences between one sun and another. Do you think you can withstand the midday sun's fire just by facing the evening sunshine, idiot!" Hayato said without batting an eye, "My power is above yours. This kind of thing is as natural as exhaling after inhaling!"
Bakura furrowed his brow: "Tsk, what are you being proud about? You've only gained a slight advantage. Don't forget what I said just now, your attack has been completely adapted to by my *Diabound Kernel*. It fundamentally won't inflict damage!"
As Bakura's voice fell, *Diabound Kernel*, which was enveloped by The Winged Dragon of Ra's flames, shook the wings on its back. The firelight wrapped around its body was violently dispelled, falling onto the surrounding rocks. The scorching sun's fire easily burned through the solid rocks, but *Diabound Kernel*, which had just been completely enveloped by flames, was completely unharmed.
If *Diabound Kernel*'s ability were recorded as a monster effect on a card, it would probably be: If this card is destroyed, special summon it back to the Field, and make the same effect permanently negated against it.
Unless it is completely killed in one go as Bakura said, just like Dark Yugi had The Winged Dragon of Ra do before Time Reversal, otherwise, *Diabound Kernel* is fundamentally an undying existence.
Even though The Winged Dragon of Ra, operated by Hayato at this moment, seems like it exerted more powerful strength than The Winged Dragon of Ra summoned by Dark Yugi, it still couldn't break through *Diabound Kernel*'s resistance defense!
"You've already attacked, haven't you? Then it's my turn now, Hayato!" Bakura said with an evil smile, pointing a hand at Hayato, "Get revenge on that transformation of the sun, *Diabound Kernel*. There's no need for defense, go all out Spiral Wave!"
*Diabound Kernel* received the order, gathered the power throughout its body, and was about to attack The Winged Dragon of Ra. Although it wasn't a Stone Tablet Monster summoned using the power of a Duel Arena, because it was a spirit directly called by Hayato from a card, if The Winged Dragon of Ra were injured, the impact on Hayato would only be greater than if he were wearing a Duel Arena.
And if The Winged Dragon of Ra were killed by *Diabound Kernel*, Hayato's situation would only be even worse than if the Duel Arena's "soul" went completely zero!
---Of course, everything was an if.
Just as Bakura gave the order for *Diabound Kernel* not to make any defense, in the very next instant, suddenly a phantom leaped out from the flames that The Winged Dragon of Ra had dispelled, charging straight towards Bakura. In just the blink of an eye, the attack closed in to within less than ten meters of Bakura!
That was Hayato's Psychic Armorhead. He had simultaneously called it forth at the same time he summoned The Winged Dragon of Ra, and had it hide within The Winged Dragon of Ra's flames to conceal its existence. Now, it charged directly at Bakura.
Although Bakura immediately had *Diabound Kernel* change the direction of its attack, the impact of "Spiral Wave" passed directly through Psychic Armorhead's body, completely unable to influence it. And at this moment, the distance between it and Bakura was already less than five meters!
"Tsk, is that the spirit you awakened from your inner thoughts, from that old man's memory? A spirit awakened using a card stolen from my hand, its ability's annoying level is perfectly matched with you." Seeing this, Bakura wasn't flustered at all. "However, I was prepared long ago. I already guessed how could a guy like you possibly be someone who fights fair and square head-on with others!"
"With the 'Transparency' Effect obtained from Mahad's Shadow Ghoul, boosted by the Millennium Ring, you likewise shouldn't even think about touching me!"
The Millennium Ring on his chest suddenly radiated light. The next instant, the ethereal state Psychic Armorhead touched Bakura's transparent body.
Then, under Bakura's shocked gaze, the Millennium Ring lost its radiance in an instant. His transparency was instantly dispelled just as it was completed. Psychic Armorhead, whose face was identical to Hayato's, revealed a mocking smile. It grabbed the Millennium Ring in one go, and then kicked Bakura right in the center of his chest!
End of Chapter
Chapter 755: The Millennium Ring Likes Me, Hayato Kobayashi!
"Bang!"
Bakura, who had just been incredibly arrogant, was kicked in the chest and sent flying backward, crashing into the rock wall.
Although Hayato's [Psychic Ectoplasm] was just jokingly called a "Substitute" by him, the nature of the two did indeed have many similarities. Just the characteristic of "only Hayato can attack others, and others cannot attack the [Psychic Ectoplasm]" was enough for him to pull off various tricks.
Even someone as strong as [Diabound], who had gained the power to resist or even suppress a "Divine-Beast," still couldn't touch the [Psychic Ectoplasm] and could only watch as it freely approached Bakura and successfully attacked.
The only slight regret was that the [Psychic Ectoplasm] itself wasn't a Monster Card but a Spirit awakened from a Spell Card. Its ATK limit was the same as Hayato's own power limit, and being able to beat up Bakura was already its ultimate capability.
If this were the [Psychic Ectoplasm] awakened by Tristan or Joey Wheeler , it would be a sure kill. Forget about hitting Bakura with three pages of fancy [Ora Ora Ora] combos, even punching straight through his chest wouldn't be impossible. Unfortunately, it couldn't be swapped.
But, it didn't matter. He had already achieved his goal.
The [Psychic Ectoplasm] returned to Hayato's side and handed the [Millennium Ring], snatched from Bakura's chest, into Hayato's hand. Looking at the golden disk in his hand, Hayato showed a satisfied smile.
However, while Hayato was satisfied, Bakura, whose proud ability was inexplicably broken through and who had also been kicked, was not satisfied at all.
Getting back up, the first thing he did was make [Diabound] return to his side to avoid being hit by a sneak attack again like before. At the same time, he looked at Hayato, who was receiving the [Millennium Ring] from the [Psychic Ectoplasm]'s hand.
"What in the world is going on!"
Bakura's voice was filled with confusion and unwillingness.
Hayato weighed the [Millennium Ring] in his hand and said with a relaxed expression, "This is a Spirit I awakened from the [Psychic Ectoplasm]. He is the transformation of my soul. External attacks cannot interfere with him in the slightest, but I can let him attack others with freedom."
"I've already heard about that ridiculously double-standard ability, but did anyone ask you about that!" Bakura suppressed his angry feelings and glared at the [Millennium Ring] in Hayato's hand. "Just now, I clearly used the Transparency Power! Why was that power suddenly dispelled? What did you do to my [Millennium Ring], Hayato Kobayashi!"
But facing Bakura's fury, Hayato said unhurriedly, "What nonsense are you talking about? What 'your' [Millennium Ring]? Isn't this clearly *my* [Millennium Ring]? Nonsense, I cannot understand."
As he spoke, Hayato tied a knot in the rope that had just been broken and put the [Millennium Ring] around his neck, saying, "Just now, the [Millennium Ring] felt the bonds of destiny and connection between us, so it rejected being used by you."
"The [Millennium Ring] likes me, Hayato Kobayashi!"
Imitating a certain man who lost because of a gust of wind, Hayato gave Bakura a thumbs-down gesture. "Now then, enjoy your trip to Hell."
"How could such nonsense exist!" Bakura said angrily, completely disbelieving the reason Hayato gave.
The [Millennium Ring] likes Hayato Kobayashi so it rejected being used by me? That kind of thing...
"I cannot accept this!"
Along with Bakura's angry shout, [Diabound] beside him also attacked again to vent its User's wrath. A spiral wave spread out, but The Winged Dragon of Ra beside Hayato immediately countered by spitting out blazing flames.
And at the same time, from Hayato, who had put on the [Millennium Ring], a power that Bakura was extremely familiar with spread out!
In just an instant, as a domain encompassing dozens of meters around Hayato was opened from his starting point, both [Diabound] and The Winged Dragon of Ra, which were covered by it, completely disappeared before everyone's eyes.
"This is... Mahad's move!?" Bakura recognized this technique. This was the move Mahad had planned to use against Bakura in the Underground Magician Training Ground back then, but Bakura had learned it himself after obtaining the [Millennium Ring]. It could be said to be an ultimate technique that pushed the [Millennium Ring]'s power to its ultimate limit through development.
But how could this guy, Hayato Kobayashi, learn it the moment he put it on? Could it really be true, as he said, that the [Millennium Ring] likes him?
"I didn't expect the [Millennium Ring] to have a move like this! Although it was a little difficult, it was still quite simple for me, who possesses divine talent, to learn!" Hayato said proudly. "Without [Diabound], Bakura, you're just an ordinary person."
"There's only one person on the other side, let's go together!"
As the [Millennium Ring]'s power spread, the spirits around were all dispelled, leaving Bakura to face the crowd glaring at him all by himself. Among them were agile fighters like Priest Seto, and guys like Tristan and Joey Wheeler , who were flexing their limbs and clearly looked ready to fight.
A cold sweat couldn't help but trickle down Bakura's forehead.
C-crap, I clearly had the advantage just now, and I wasn't even messing around, so how come in the blink of an eye I feel like I'm about to be defeated again?
Damn it, close combat with these brutes is fundamentally not my strong suit. Last time, it was thanks to the Time Stop Item that I managed to take down Mahad, but even if I had another Time Stop now, I couldn't take down this many people here!
No, I absolutely cannot stop here. As long as I don't stop moving, I still have a Future. Although this scheme resulted in losing both the wife and the soldiers, where there's life, there's hope!
"Hmph, Hayato Kobayashi, consider yourself lucky this time. You won't have such good fortune next time!" Seeing Seto and Joey Wheeler and the others approaching him, although he had already decided to escape, Bakura still spoke toughly. "You got away with your life!"
Then, Bakura actually turned and ran away without looking back. As arrogant as he was when speaking tough, his escape was just as pathetic.
Joey Wheeler and the others were about to chase after him, but just then, the moment Bakura disappeared from his line of sight, Hayato let out a sigh of relief and sat directly on the ground, gasping for air.
From Just now, that confidence appearance had been completely faked by Hayato. Don't forget that he was using the power of The Winged Dragon of Ra without a Duel Arena. Even if The Winged Dragon of Ra itself didn't mind being used by Hayato, the burden of that power was an unavoidable existence. It could be said that merely summoning The Winged Dragon of Ra and engaging in a Beam Struggle with [Diabound] had already greatly exhausted Hayato's energy.
But Hayato had to appear as if he still had plenty of energy, and he also had to multitask his operations at the same time, sending the [Psychic Ectoplasm] to sneak attack Bakura and snatch steal the [Millennium Ring]. Only by doing this would Bakura truly believe that Hayato genuinely had remaining strength beyond controlling The Winged Dragon of Ra.
As for the nonsense like "The [Millennium Ring] likes Hayato," that was purely Hayato talking nonsense. The reason Bakura's Transparency Ability suddenly disappeared was that Hayato already knew that The Winged Dragon of Ra had a passive ability to negate the power of "Transparency". He had read the script, after all.
It's not possible that the [Millennium Ring] actually likes him, right?
Hayato, wearing the [Millennium Ring], didn't notice. A flash of gold light flickered on the [Millennium Ring] on his chest. At the same time, the [Psychic Ectoplasm], which hadn't returned to his body, also blinked.