[Masked Sorcerer, LP 0]
With his LP reduced to zero, and the magical storm dissipated, Yugen couldn't see the Sorcerer's spirit anymore.
It seemed that Silent Magician's final attack had directly disintegrated him, leaving no trace behind.
After finishing the job, Yugen dusted his hands and calmly turned to face the remaining Goblin minions. Silent Magician didn't disappear with the end of the duel; she stood by his side, staff in hand, coldly eyeing the surrounding Goblins.
The Goblins watching from the sidelines were petrified.
The final scene of the duel was still vivid in their minds: an attack with over 5000 ATK, its terrifying momentum, and their boss's desperate scream as he was crushed into dust—all left an indelible mark on their minds.
This duelist was truly terrifying!
The whole group of Goblins stood rigidly, not daring to move. They watched Yugen collect his duel disk and turn to walk away, feeling as if they were watching the God of Death approaching step by step.
Finally, a Goblin from the back gritted his teeth: "I suddenly remembered my wife is about to give birth, brothers, I'm taking my leave!"
With that, he turned and scurried away.
With one person leading, the entire group instantly scattered. Another Goblin slapped his forehead: "That's right, my wife is also about to give birth, I'm taking my leave."
"Me too! My wife is too!"
"Oh, I remember, my father died last year and wasn't buried yet, I need to go quickly—"
Boom!
A magic energy blast exploded in front of the fastest-running group of Goblins, blasting a huge crater in the ground and sending the small monsters flying. The one who ran first couldn't stop in time and charged headfirst into the magic energy sphere, instantly disintegrating into flesh and bone fragments, not even leaving a corpse to collect.
The remaining Goblins were even more terrified, instantly frozen in place, not daring to make the slightest move.
"Don't be nervous, I'm not a devil."
Yugen smiled, speaking as he walked to the spot where the Masked Sorcerer had turned to dust.
Then, from what appeared to be a pile of ashes, he picked up the deck that had fallen to the ground and skillfully put it in his pocket.
This scene made the Goblins lower their heads even further, none daring to look up, thinking to themselves, "Indeed, you are too humble; the devil should be kneeling before you."
"I didn't mean to come here, nor did I mean to interfere with your battle. I just happened to pass by. All I need is for you to tell me how to leave this place—"
Before he could finish, he suddenly felt Silent Magician tugging at his clothes from behind.
Turning around, the young female Spellcaster pointed behind her, signaling something.
Yugen then noticed that people seemed to be appearing on the empty town streets.
Or, to be precise, spirits.
A few small spirits, hidden in the shadows of surrounding buildings or behind window cracks, carefully peeked out. They seemed to have been drawn by the commotion of the duel and were secretly observing.
A blonde, blue-skinned female spirit bravely emerged from the shadows and walked towards their position.
Although he didn't recognize most of the spirits here, he happened to recognize this one. Her name was "Mystical Elf," a four-star monster with 800 ATK and 2000 DEF. Yugi had summoned her in the anime, so he had an impression.
"Brave one, you have finally appeared."
Yugen: "?"
Brave one?
That title made him think of a typical transmigration to another world story: a brave hero defeating a great demon lord and saving the princess.
"Since the catastrophe struck, a legend has circulated here. One day, a brave hero from another world will come here to defeat the Evil God and bring hope."
Well, well, there's even an Evil God. It sounds like the difficulty is even higher than a Demon Lord.
At this moment, more spirits also bravely emerged. Although Yugen didn't recognize any of them, by their appearance, he guessed most were one-star or two-star normal spirits.
"Follow me," Mystical Elf said. "I will tell you how to leave this place."
The spirits bound and detained the remaining dark Goblins. Under a certain person's intimidation, the minions all bowed their heads, not daring to utter a sound.
"We don't know when, but this world began to be invaded. The Evil God's claws ran rampant through every town, capturing spirits, sealing them into slabs, and absorbing their life and power to nourish the evil god's recovery."
"Does that Evil God have a name?"
Yugen speculated that this Evil God might also be a card he recognized from his past life.
Mystical Elf shook her head: "No, no one has ever seen it. We are a peace-loving race of spirits, almost defenseless against the Evil God's claws. We've been hiding everywhere for years.
But recently, they seem to have suddenly become unsatisfied with slowly capturing spirits. All of a sudden, they decided they wanted all of us."
Mystical Elf led him to the outskirts of the urban area, raising her slender blue arm and pointing to the sky.
Yugen followed her gaze. He saw that the sky there was dramatically torn open, like a horrifying crack. The shattered space formed a black vortex, like a greedy, blood-filled maw.
"What is that...?"
"That leads to the Evil God's abode," Mystical Elf said with a worried expression. "Every day that hole continues to expand, further devouring our world.
When it opens wide enough, our world may cease to exist."
"I sympathize deeply with your plight," Yugen said. "But I don't think I can be of much help."
Mystical Elf smiled.
"For so long, we have been hiding from the Evil God's claws everywhere, while awaiting the arrival of the legendary brave one. A Spellcaster spirit prophesied that the brave one would descend from another world, use the power of cards to defeat the Evil God's claws, and awaken the sleeping warrior."
"Sleeping warrior?"
"Yes, a legendary warrior with unparalleled strength, who stood up and used his sword to fight the Evil God's power," Mystical Elf said. "He was incredibly strong, even driving back the evil forces once.
But ultimately, the Evil God acted. With terrifying power, a single blow defeated that warrior, the only protector of this world. Afterward, the warrior's power was sealed. Legend says only when the brave one arrives, and uses his 'power,' can the warrior be reawakened, creating a miracle."
In the Yu-Gi-Oh world, spirits and duelists have a mutually supportive relationship. Just as powerful spirits bring stronger destiny draws to duelists, spirits can only unleash their full potential in the hands of powerful duelists.
Even the three strongest Egyptian God Cards, at the pinnacle of Duel Monsters, were only in their strongest state in the hands of the undefeated Pharaoh.
"And the warrior is there, right here."
As she spoke, Mystical Elf had already led Yugen to a huge rock.
On the side of the mountain, the image of a warrior was clearly carved, just like the carvings on ancient Egyptian slabs. He wore armor, sword planted in the ground, kneeling on one knee. Even through the slab, one could feel the unyielding spirit in his eyes.
Sure enough, as he expected, what was carved here was Black Luster Soldier.
This was why the ruins were connected to this part of the Spirit World.
"The only way for you to leave this place and return to where you came from is this method. The legendary warrior possesses the power to create space. It was that power that called you here, and likewise, only that power can bring you back."
Mystical Elf spoke softly.
"But you said I need to help you defeat the Evil God?" Yugen asked. "What if I just go back...?"
"The Evil God's main body is not here. These are all its claws. No matter how many are driven back, more will come; it's pointless."
Mystical Elf shook her head.
"The Evil God's true form is in the brave one's world. They are attacking the Spirit World, enslaving a large number of spirits to absorb their power as weapons, and simultaneously plotting against another world. Both of our worlds are under its threat."
Yugen frowned.
In his own world? Could it be a duelist with dark powers?
Well, even if he didn't know which character this "Evil God" was, he thought it wouldn't be easy for it to cause trouble in his world.
After all, there were quite a few powerful figures there...
He exchanged glances with Silent Magician, who subtly nodded.
Perhaps due to the connection between a duelist and their spirit, Yugen could sometimes understand her meaning without words. She was telling him that the seal here indeed had magic similar to the slab they encountered in the ruins, and he should be able to return from here.
But just as he was about to step forward and touch the slab, a loud bang suddenly echoed beside him.
It sounded like a cannon firing. Before he could react, Silent Magician had already stepped forward, sweeping her staff. A cannonball was deflected by the magic she stirred, redirecting it elsewhere, exploding into a smoke-filled crater on the plain.
Yugen turned to look and saw a person had appeared on the hillside.
His hands were in his pockets, he had blonde hair, wore sunglasses, and had a star-spangled bandana wrapped around his head.
"My apologies."
The man had a nonchalant smile on his face.
"But I'm afraid I can't let you leave so easily."