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Chapter 601 The Path of Radiance
Valon swung his right hand towards Joey Wheeler, and radiance bloomed on his Trap Burst Armor.
Meeting Valon's fist, Joey Wheeler also swung his fist back, and black flames burned on his dragon-claw-like armor.
This was not a battle of "justice" and "evil," nor a clash of ideals. The two men exchanging blows with their bodies were simply dueling, a duel between men.
Under the gaze of the sole audience member, Mai Valentine, Valon's fist landed on Joey Wheeler's face, and Joey Wheeler's fist likewise struck Valon's face. Even with the obstruction of the armor, both were sent flying back several steps.
However, due to the effect of Trap Burst Armor, although its ATK was only a mere 500 points even with the support of the Seal of Orichalcos, Valon did not suffer any counter damage.
[Valon: 3600 → 3600 LP]
Meanwhile, a crack appeared on the armor covering Joey Wheeler's cheek.
"The opponent's monster attacked by Trap Burst Armor is destroyed after damage calculation, inflicting 500 points of damage to you, Joey Wheeler!" Raising his right hand towards Joey Wheeler, Valon's Trap Burst Armor was also full of cracks, but he still raised his thumb and said, "This is the final blow, Joey Wheeler!"
Saying this, he completed the motion of pressing his thumb down.
"Click~"
"Boom!"
Following Valon's action, the armor on Joey Wheeler's body suddenly burst, and the firelight swallowed Joey Wheeler whole!
"Joey Wheeler!" Off-field, Mai Valentine anxiously pounded on the domain before her, but the Seal of Orichalcos was so sturdy that she couldn't get close to the two of them. She could only watch helplessly as Joey Wheeler was swallowed by the flames.
But the next second, under the gaze of both Valon and Mai Valentine, the flames enveloping Joey Wheeler suddenly began to retract, revealing Joey Wheeler himself completely unharmed!?
However, the Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword on him had already dispersed, replaced by a set card in his Spell/Trap Zone being flipped face-up.
"Quick-Play Spell Card Mystical Wok. Rather than letting you destroy Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword and inflict damage to me, I might as well stir-fry it and eat it beforehand." Joey Wheeler had a proud expression. "I'm not that easy to defeat, Valon. Also, I'm actually a little happy that you're so worried about me, Mai."
Saying this, Joey Wheeler even gave a peace sign to Mai Valentine off-field.
"Who's worried about you!"
Seeing that Joey Wheeler was fine, Mai Valentine was also happy and said with a slight tsundere tone. But Valon, who was Joey Wheeler's opponent, smiled even more happily than Mai Valentine.
"Hahaha, I knew it wouldn't be that easy to defeat you, Joey Wheeler. Mystical Wok, huh? I have to say, Hayato Kobayashi's strategy is sometimes really useful."
[Joey Wheeler: 400 → 2800 LP]
Because of the effect of Mystical Wok, Joey Wheeler tributed Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword before it was destroyed, recovering life points equal to its high ATK value, while also avoiding the effect damage from Trap Burst Armor.
Not only that, after Joey Wheeler's life points absorbed the surrounding flames and recovered, a stray line of fire even scattered and struck Valon's left hand Dark Hole Armor and leg Beyond the Speed Armor, shattering them to pieces.
"Whether it's me or you, Valon, when either player activates a spell, trap, or monster effect, Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword's effect can activate. It can choose one monster card to destroy, and this effect is before Mystical Wok."
"Furthermore, although the Armor monsters placed in the Spell & Trap Zone surpass the usual quantity restriction, they also have the flaw of being treated as spell/trap cards. Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword can chain to Trap Burst Armor's effect and also destroy one spell/trap card. And this effect is not the same as the previous effect; it can appear in the same chain."
Valon moved his left hand and leg, which were somewhat hot from the burning. A pair of spare armguards were equipped onto his left and right hands again: "You really don't want to suffer any loss. Even after entering the Graveyard, you still want to destroy my cards."
"Dueling you, Joey Wheeler, is so exhilarating. I'm starting to get addicted to this feeling."
Looking at the Trap Burst Armor with 0 ATK in attack position on his Front Row, Valon, just in case, moved it to the Spell/Trap Zone. Although Joey Wheeler wasn't that kind of duelist, it would be bad if he first found a way to take down his front row monster, destroy Trap Burst Armor, and then throw out a Mirror Force.
It was safer to keep it in the Spell/Trap Zone.
"Due to the effect of Seal of Orichalcos, I will move the Trap Burst Armor from the Front Row to the Spell/Trap Zone. Then, my turn ends."
[Valon: 3600 LP, Hand 3]
[Armor] X7 (omitted)
Field: Seal of Orichalcos
Unlike the Armor Gravitation used before, which summoned a fixed number of monsters, Full Armor Gravitation, although it required flipping the top of the deck to test luck and reducing ten cards at once was already a considerable side effect, its biggest advantage was that the special summoned monsters would not be destroyed at the end phase, allowing the total of seven Armor monsters on Valon's field to remain.
But Joey Wheeler wasn't going to be scared by this level. He also smiled and responded to Valon: "Same here, Valon, it really gets my whole body excited. This is 'dueling'!"
"My turn, the counterattack begins! Draw a card!"
"Next is the spell card Pot of Greed. Draw two cards from the deck."
After drawing the cards, Joey Wheeler took out one of them and activated it: "Activate the spell card Monster Reborn. Select one monster from either player's Graveyard and special summon it. My will is immortal!"
"Revive, Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword!"
Instead of specifically choosing powerful monsters with higher ATK like Fiend Dragon - Dark Black Dragon or Meteor Black Dragon that were sent to Graveyard in the previous battle, Joey Wheeler's choice was Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword, whose battle style was close to Valon's Armor deck.
This was not going easy, or some kind of obsession. It was simply Joey Wheeler also acknowledging the surging duelist spirit in Valon, and thus responding in this way.
Under the power of Monster Reborn, the pitch-black armor of Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword was once again equipped onto Joey Wheeler's body. The fully armored Joey Wheeler and the fully armored Valon looked at each other, both with smiles on their faces, making Mai Valentine off-field suddenly feel like she was redundant.
[Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword] [ATK 2400]
However, there was another reason why Joey Wheeler wanted to summon Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword, and that was—
"With Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword on the field, I activate the set card in my Spell/Trap Zone, Jar of Greed. Choose five cards from my Graveyard and return them to the deck, then draw one card. But before its effect takes effect, chain the effect of Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword!"
Joey Wheeler pointed a finger at the Armor among all of Valon's Armor that posed the biggest threat to him. "Although I don't know the specific effect, in short, I will destroy the Double Cross Armor on you, Valon!"
Among all the Armor monsters, the rest were mainly blue-toned and mostly Level 4 or lower monsters. Only Double Cross Armor was not only red but also a Level 6 higher-level monster, naturally attracting Joey Wheeler's attention at first glance.
The black dragon flames were thrown out by Joey Wheeler, shattering the armor on Valon. The remaining Armor monsters numbered six, and Joey Wheeler also chose five cards from the Graveyard to return to the deck and shuffle, then drew one card.
Unfortunately, the card he drew at this moment, like the other card in his hand, was a trap card that couldn't be used temporarily.
"Destroyed the most threatening Double Cross Armor at first glance, huh? Amazing intuition, Joey Wheeler." Valon sent another Armor monster to the Graveyard. Watching Joey Wheeler put away the two cards in his hand, he assumed an attack stance. "But you haven't forgotten, have you? Just destroying my Armor monsters one by one like this is useless. It won't work without a more intense battle."
"You only have one monster on your field. Even if you attack, I can still transfer its attack!"
"Heh heh, Is that so, Valon?"
However, Valon's reminder only received a confident response from Joey Wheeler. Putting away the two cards in his hand, Joey Wheeler assumed a battle stance and said with a laugh: "Enter my battle phase! Then I will attack the Mental Headgear on your field!"
Saying this, Joey Wheeler repeated the previous method, leaping into the air and assuming a flying kick posture.
Although he was boiling with fighting spirit from dueling Joey Wheeler, Valon was not someone who would go easy because of it. On the contrary, he put in even more full power:
"In that case, I will transfer the attack—"
While speaking, Valon wanted to move his limbs and use other parts of his Armor to substitute for Mental Headgear to take the attack and perform a defense block, but it was only at this moment that he was surprised to discover something, "No, I can't transfer it!?"
"Not only that, I can't move right now!"
"Red Kick!"
Accompanied by the flames, Joey Wheeler, wearing Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword, kicked the immobile Valon with a flying kick. The powerful kick directly shattered the helmet that took the attack and kicked him out, slamming him against the Seal of Orichalcos!
"Uwah!"
[Valon: 3600 → 1700 LP]
The field spell card Seal of Orichalcos increased the original attack of Mental Headgear, which was 0, by 500 points. But after being hit by Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword, a high 1900 points of battle damage was still inflicted upon Valon.
Getting up from the ground, watching Joey Wheeler stand back in place, Valon glanced at his duel disk before belatedly realizing what had just happened.
Because of the effect of Seal of Orichalcos, when Valon used Full Armor Gravitation earlier, he special summoned a total of nine monsters at once, occupying all ten zones in his Front Row and Spell/Trap Zone.
And because Seal of Orichalcos, while having the ability to actively move monsters from the Monster Zone to the Spell & Trap Zone, cannot actively move monsters from the Spell & Trap Zone to the Monster Zone, even though Valon lost three Armor monsters last turn, freeing up space in the Front Row, he could only move Trap Burst Armor to the Spell/Trap Zone.
And Joey Wheeler noticed this, realizing that Valon's Spell/Trap Zone was still full, but in the Front Row, there were only Mental Headgear and Double Cross Armor left. He thus came up with this battle strategy.
He had learned from Grimo's duel with Yugi that the characteristic of Seal of Orichalcos meant he couldn't attack the monsters in the Spell/Trap Zone unless he destroyed all the monsters in Valon's Front Row. This was a powerful effect, but at the same time, Joey Wheeler also seized upon a vulnerability.
Armor monsters could freely transfer the attack target of Joey Wheeler's monsters, but the premise was that the target had to be attackable. This meant that when Valon's Front Row only had Mental Headgear left, Valon couldn't transfer the attack target to the other Armor monsters "protected" in the Spell/Trap Zone.
Specifically reviving Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword instead of other more powerful Red-Eyes monsters was precisely because of this strategy that had to be kept secret until the end.
"Set two cards from my hand. My turn ends."
Setting the two trap cards from his hand, Joey Wheeler ended his turn, looking at Valon.
[Joey Wheeler: 2800 LP, Hand 0]
[Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword] [ATK 2400]
[Set Card] X2
Another turn passed, and Joey Wheeler successfully caused Valon's life points, which hadn't moved for a long time, to decrease again. With just one more attack like the one just now, he could achieve victory!
Valon also wiped the corner of his mouth slightly, removing the crimson, his fighting spirit becoming even more intense: "That's it, Joey Wheeler. Not just reckless attacks driven by hot blood, but a carefully calculated strategy full of planning. Your purity as a duelist is truly high!"
"In that case, I must also bring out commensurate power!"
With his finger on the only two cards remaining in his deck, Valon showed a confident smile.
"My turn, draw!"
"Then, enter battle phase!"
Not only did he not activate the effect of Mental Headgear in the Graveyard during the standby phase to special summon it to the field, Valon didn't even activate any cards during main phase 1, but instead directly entered battle phase!?
This wasn't Valon being impatient to battle Joey Wheeler to the point of losing his head. On the contrary, he knew it would be foolish to continue summoning monsters to the Front Row.
Using the effect of Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword, Joey Wheeler could continuously destroy the small number of Armor monsters in his Front Row, keeping their number at one, and then in the next turn, he could once again attack with Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword with an untransferable attack target, reducing his life points.
However, if the number was not one or more, but 0, then even Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword would have no monster to destroy. In the next turn, even if he attacked, he could only attack the Armors in the Spell/Trap Zone, at which point Valon could freely transfer the attack target again.
Furthermore, even if he were to set up his field and summon monsters, wouldn't it be better to wait until the troublesome monster Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword was dealt with before setting up? It would save him from having his monsters destroyed repeatedly.
Hearing Valon directly enter battle phase, Joey Wheeler, who was originally planning to observe, immediately pressed the activate set card button: "At the moment of entering battle phase, I activate my set card Red-Eyes Spirit! Special summon Red-Eyes Black Dragon in attack position from the Graveyard!"
"Then, chain the effect of Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword! Destroy the Trap Burst Armor in your Spell/Trap Zone!"
"Finally, come forth, Red-Eyes Black Dragon!"
The flames of the black dragon armor surged up, striking the Trap Burst Armor on Valon. Although it was an effect triggered by the trap card Red-Eyes Spirit, it was ultimately the power of Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword. Trap Burst Armor, which had absolute resistance to trap cards, was thus sent to Graveyard by a trap card.
But seeing this, Valon instead smiled: "I see. If I'm not mistaken, Joey Wheeler, your other set card should also be a trap card, right? You're planning to chain it to my attack declaration, aren't you? Is it Magic Cylinder or Mirror Force?"
"For that, the existence of Trap Burst Armor had to be resolved. But it doesn't matter if it's destroyed, because you fell for it!"
The moment Trap Burst Armor was destroyed, Valon slapped a card from his hand onto the blank space above his duel disk. "During the battle phase, I can freely activate quick-play spell cards from my hand! This is my true path to claiming victory!"
"What?!" Joey Wheeler was startled.
To some extent, Valon guessed correctly. One of his set cards was indeed a trap card that could only be activated at a specific timing, and he did relax when he saw Valon skip main phase 1. He was just thinking he couldn't waste the effect of Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword and randomly destroyed a card.
He thought Valon was on the first floor and he himself was on the second, but he didn't expect that Valon was actually on the third floor!
"Quick-Play Spell Card Forbidden Dress! Decrease Jet Gauntlet's ATK by 600 points, making it unaffected by card effects and preventing it from being destroyed by card effects!"
"This way, no matter what card you have in your Spell/Trap Zone, it cannot affect this card. Not even the effect of Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword can destroy it or prevent this attack!"
[Jet Gauntlet] [ATK 500 → 0]
The boost from Seal of Orichalcos was blocked by the donned sacred garment, returning the ATK of the Jet Gauntlet on his right arm to its original 0. Valon raised his right hand: "Here I come, Joey Wheeler! I will use Jet Gauntlet to attack your Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword!"
"Jet Machine Gun!"
A large amount of airflow sprayed from the armguard, accelerating Valon's punch. A fleeting blue phantom flashed by, and Valon's heavy punch fiercely slammed towards Joey Wheeler's chest area!
Joey Wheeler naturally wouldn't suffer a loss and also swung his fist to intercept.
Their iron fists collided and were locked in a stalemate. The aftermath of the punch alone easily crushed the surrounding ground, sending shattered stones flying!
However, neither Valon nor Joey Wheeler felt damage during the punch.
This was natural, after all, Jet Gauntlet's ATK was only 0.
But in the next moment, Joey Wheeler saw that the Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword armor on his body and Jet Gauntlet were cracking simultaneously!?
"When Jet Gauntlet battles an opponent's monster, its effect activates! It directly destroys Jet Gauntlet and that opponent's monster together! This way, your Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword leaves the field again, Joey Wheeler!"
Maintaining the posture of fists colliding, Valon faced Joey Wheeler and said proudly: "As long as the most troublesome Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword is dealt with, this duel is still my victory!"
"Dueling you is truly exhilarating, Joey Wheeler! This is simply the best duel!"
"Me too, Valon!" Looking at the pleased Valon, Joey Wheeler couldn't help but laugh heartily. "This feeling, even I can't help but become immersed in it!"
"But, it's finally coming to an end, even for us!" X2
As their words fell, the armor on both of them exploded simultaneously, sending both of them flying out and onto the ground!
At the point where their fists met, flames soared into the sky.
The first to get up was Valon, still protected by Armor. Through the smoke, he saw that the Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword on Joey Wheeler had dispersed and laughed: "Finally, did I take it down, that Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword?"
"Ah, you took down Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword," replied Joey Wheeler, who also got up, but a smile appeared on his lips. "So, this duel is over, Valon!"
"What?!"
Suddenly, Valon noticed something—on Joey Wheeler's duel disk, not only was Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword destroyed and sent to Graveyard, but even the Red-Eyes Black Dragon that was just special summoned was gone?
Where did it go, that Red-Eyes?
Wait, could it be!
Seeing Valon look towards the soaring firelight, Joey Wheeler smiled proudly: "Chaining to the effect of Jet Gauntlet, Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword activated its final effect, destroying one monster on the field!"
"But what it destroyed was not your Armor monster, but the Red-Eyes Black Dragon on my field that was special summoned by Red-Eyes Spirit!"
"Roar!!"
As Joey Wheeler's words fell, the firelight violently shook, dispelling the surrounding smoke and revealing the cracked Red-Eyes Black Dragon!
Pitch-black flames wrapped around Red-Eyes Black Dragon. It was clear that Red-Eyes Black Dragon would be destroyed soon even if left alone, but at this moment, its aura was stronger than ever before!
"This is!?" Valon looked up at Red-Eyes Black Dragon, not understanding what was happening before him, but he found the answer on the trap card that was flipped face-up in Joey Wheeler's Spell/Trap Zone. "Is it because of that trap card?!"
Joey Wheeler stood up and said loudly: "Valon, just as you said before, I'm not dueling alone! Whether it's Yugi, Mai, or Red-Eyes, there are too many people fighting alongside me."
"Our match is hard to call a winner, but this duel is my victory with the aid of Red-Eyes!"
"Red-Eyes Burn! It can only be activated when a Red-Eyes monster is destroyed by battle or effect! Both players take damage equal to that destroyed monster's original attack value!"
As Joey Wheeler pointed his hand towards the sky, Red-Eyes Black Dragon roared, and suddenly exploded with countless rays of radiance!
"The power of Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword is completely liberated here! Bring me a miracle, Red-Eyes!"
"Boom!"
The pitch-black flames swept across the entire Seal of Orichalcos. Joey Wheeler and Valon were instantly swallowed. The effect damage of 2400 points, the original attack value of Red-Eyes Black Dragon, fell upon both of them, their life points plummeting!
But Joey Wheeler, swallowed by the flames, didn't feel too hot, even feeling somewhat cold.
After a few breaths, the power of Red-Eyes Burn began to fade. Joey Wheeler suddenly discovered that the coldness on his body was actually Valon's Armor that had somehow nested itself onto him!?
"This is!?" Turning his head sharply to look at Valon's position, Joey Wheeler saw Valon pointing towards him, seemingly directing the armor on his body to come here to protect Joey Wheeler before being swallowed by the flames, leaving himself with not even a single piece of defense. "Valon!!"
"Cough, a perfect strategy, Joey Wheeler." His life points value plummeted beside him, Valon's expression was visibly pale, but he forced himself to show a proud smile. "I have to admit, you're stronger right now."
[Joey Wheeler: 2800 → 400 LP]
[Valon: 1700 LP → 0]
As his life points were reduced to zero, Valon stumbled, almost falling down, but still stood stubbornly.
"Valon..." Joey Wheeler wanted to step forward, but after the Armor on his body dispersed, the suppressed pain surged through his body. He directly knelt down on one knee, unable to move, and could only watch Valon gasping for breath.
"Hey, hey, don't look at me like that, Joey Wheeler. Don't forget we're opponents," Valon said with a smile, looking at Joey Wheeler. At the same time, the Seal of Orichalcos that had expanded earlier began to shrink.
Valon knew this was the Seal of Orichalcos beginning to recycle the souls of the defeated. The "Orichalcos Fragment" on his finger flashed with radiance, causing the domain's shrinking speed to pause for a moment. While supporting the domain, Valon took off his duel disk and took a deck from his body, throwing it towards Joey Wheeler.
"Hey, Joey Wheeler, catch."
Joey Wheeler subconsciously reached out his hand and barely caught the duel disk and deck Valon threw. However, he didn't understand what Valon was doing this for.
"As the winner, it wouldn't do to have no prize. Unfortunately, these are all I can offer." After throwing the duel disk, Valon's body stiffened, and the domain, which had slowed its shrinking speed earlier, began to accelerate its retraction again. "Although you might not think much of it, it's my feelings. Feel free to use them."
As he spoke, the domain had already swept past Joey Wheeler's feet, enveloping only Valon. Mai Valentine, who had been waiting for a long time, also rushed to Joey Wheeler's side anxiously: "Joey Wheeler!"
Seeing Mai Valentine come to Joey Wheeler's side without hesitation, Valon couldn't help but show a regretful smile. It wasn't about being heartbroken or anything. Through the duel just now, he had somewhat come to terms with his own heart. While it wasn't to say he no longer had affection for Mai Valentine, Valon no longer saw Mai Valentine as a substitute for that nun.
"Thinking about it carefully, before this, I seemed to never know why I was fighting. But thanks to dueling you, I think I've found the direction to move forward."
"So, I am filled with gratitude towards you, Joey Wheeler. Therefore, move forward with your head held high, looking at that path of radiance, the path of radiance you should be moving towards."
A verdant light enveloped Valon's feet, illuminating the thumbs-up he gave Joey Wheeler and the smile on his face.
From the duel disk in Joey Wheeler's hand, the Field Zone expanded, and a card fell out.
One of the Doma Three Swordsmen, Valon, defeated.
----Epilogue----
"Is this, Valon's soul?" At the Doma Headquarters, Dartz watched a green light fly from the horizon and fall into the altar dedicated to the "Orichalcos God". At the same time, a blank space on the wall in front of him appeared out of thin air with a new mural, forming Valon's likeness.
Although the Seal of Orichalcos card itself had the ability to seal the souls of duelists, when a duelist's soul reached a certain strength, a simple card couldn't seal it. In that situation, the "Orichalcos God" would directly remotely extract that power from the card and absorb it.
Even though doing so would consume a portion of the recovered power, overall, the benefits outweighed the drawbacks, and it was more convenient.
Not putting too much thought into Valon's soul being sealed, Dartz walked away from the altar casually.
On that wall, the souls of many duelists were sealed—The Bandit Keith Howard, the Paradox Brothers, the Father of Duel Monsters Pegasus J. Crawford, and so on. Their likenesses were also carved onto the wall, signifying that they had become offerings to the "Orichalcos God".
And the moment Dartz turned around, among the hundreds and thousands of souls, several light and shadow forms of different colors faintly flickered, like flashing neon lights.
Subconsciously, Dartz turned back and looked at the wall again, but there was no change on the wall, making him feel as if he had just experienced an illusion.
Valon swung his right hand towards Joey Wheeler, and radiance bloomed on his Trap Burst Armor.
Meeting Valon's fist, Joey Wheeler also swung his fist back, and black flames burned on his dragon-claw-like armor.
This was not a battle of "justice" and "evil," nor a clash of ideals. The two men exchanging blows with their bodies were simply dueling, a duel between men.
Under the gaze of the sole audience member, Mai Valentine, Valon's fist landed on Joey Wheeler's face, and Joey Wheeler's fist likewise struck Valon's face. Even with the obstruction of the armor, both were sent flying back several steps.
However, due to the effect of Trap Burst Armor, although its ATK was only a mere 500 points even with the support of the Seal of Orichalcos, Valon did not suffer any counter damage.
[Valon: 3600 → 3600 LP]
Meanwhile, a crack appeared on the armor covering Joey Wheeler's cheek.
"The opponent's monster attacked by Trap Burst Armor is destroyed after damage calculation, inflicting 500 points of damage to you, Joey Wheeler!" Raising his right hand towards Joey Wheeler, Valon's Trap Burst Armor was also full of cracks, but he still raised his thumb and said, "This is the final blow, Joey Wheeler!"
Saying this, he completed the motion of pressing his thumb down.
"Click~"
"Boom!"
Following Valon's action, the armor on Joey Wheeler's body suddenly burst, and the firelight swallowed Joey Wheeler whole!
"Joey Wheeler!" Off-field, Mai Valentine anxiously pounded on the domain before her, but the Seal of Orichalcos was so sturdy that she couldn't get close to the two of them. She could only watch helplessly as Joey Wheeler was swallowed by the flames.
But the next second, under the gaze of both Valon and Mai Valentine, the flames enveloping Joey Wheeler suddenly began to retract, revealing Joey Wheeler himself completely unharmed!?
However, the Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword on him had already dispersed, replaced by a set card in his Spell/Trap Zone being flipped face-up.
"Quick-Play Spell Card Mystical Wok. Rather than letting you destroy Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword and inflict damage to me, I might as well stir-fry it and eat it beforehand." Joey Wheeler had a proud expression. "I'm not that easy to defeat, Valon. Also, I'm actually a little happy that you're so worried about me, Mai."
Saying this, Joey Wheeler even gave a peace sign to Mai Valentine off-field.
"Who's worried about you!"
Seeing that Joey Wheeler was fine, Mai Valentine was also happy and said with a slight tsundere tone. But Valon, who was Joey Wheeler's opponent, smiled even more happily than Mai Valentine.
"Hahaha, I knew it wouldn't be that easy to defeat you, Joey Wheeler. Mystical Wok, huh? I have to say, Hayato Kobayashi's strategy is sometimes really useful."
[Joey Wheeler: 400 → 2800 LP]
Because of the effect of Mystical Wok, Joey Wheeler tributed Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword before it was destroyed, recovering life points equal to its high ATK value, while also avoiding the effect damage from Trap Burst Armor.
Not only that, after Joey Wheeler's life points absorbed the surrounding flames and recovered, a stray line of fire even scattered and struck Valon's left hand Dark Hole Armor and leg Beyond the Speed Armor, shattering them to pieces.
"Whether it's me or you, Valon, when either player activates a spell, trap, or monster effect, Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword's effect can activate. It can choose one monster card to destroy, and this effect is before Mystical Wok."
"Furthermore, although the Armor monsters placed in the Spell & Trap Zone surpass the usual quantity restriction, they also have the flaw of being treated as spell/trap cards. Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword can chain to Trap Burst Armor's effect and also destroy one spell/trap card. And this effect is not the same as the previous effect; it can appear in the same chain."
Valon moved his left hand and leg, which were somewhat hot from the burning. A pair of spare armguards were equipped onto his left and right hands again: "You really don't want to suffer any loss. Even after entering the Graveyard, you still want to destroy my cards."
"Dueling you, Joey Wheeler, is so exhilarating. I'm starting to get addicted to this feeling."
Looking at the Trap Burst Armor with 0 ATK in attack position on his Front Row, Valon, just in case, moved it to the Spell/Trap Zone. Although Joey Wheeler wasn't that kind of duelist, it would be bad if he first found a way to take down his front row monster, destroy Trap Burst Armor, and then throw out a Mirror Force.
It was safer to keep it in the Spell/Trap Zone.
"Due to the effect of Seal of Orichalcos, I will move the Trap Burst Armor from the Front Row to the Spell/Trap Zone. Then, my turn ends."
[Valon: 3600 LP, Hand 3]
[Armor] X7 (omitted)
Field: Seal of Orichalcos
Unlike the Armor Gravitation used before, which summoned a fixed number of monsters, Full Armor Gravitation, although it required flipping the top of the deck to test luck and reducing ten cards at once was already a considerable side effect, its biggest advantage was that the special summoned monsters would not be destroyed at the end phase, allowing the total of seven Armor monsters on Valon's field to remain.
But Joey Wheeler wasn't going to be scared by this level. He also smiled and responded to Valon: "Same here, Valon, it really gets my whole body excited. This is 'dueling'!"
"My turn, the counterattack begins! Draw a card!"
"Next is the spell card Pot of Greed. Draw two cards from the deck."
After drawing the cards, Joey Wheeler took out one of them and activated it: "Activate the spell card Monster Reborn. Select one monster from either player's Graveyard and special summon it. My will is immortal!"
"Revive, Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword!"
Instead of specifically choosing powerful monsters with higher ATK like Fiend Dragon - Dark Black Dragon or Meteor Black Dragon that were sent to Graveyard in the previous battle, Joey Wheeler's choice was Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword, whose battle style was close to Valon's Armor deck.
This was not going easy, or some kind of obsession. It was simply Joey Wheeler also acknowledging the surging duelist spirit in Valon, and thus responding in this way.
Under the power of Monster Reborn, the pitch-black armor of Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword was once again equipped onto Joey Wheeler's body. The fully armored Joey Wheeler and the fully armored Valon looked at each other, both with smiles on their faces, making Mai Valentine off-field suddenly feel like she was redundant.
[Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword] [ATK 2400]
However, there was another reason why Joey Wheeler wanted to summon Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword, and that was—
"With Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword on the field, I activate the set card in my Spell/Trap Zone, Jar of Greed. Choose five cards from my Graveyard and return them to the deck, then draw one card. But before its effect takes effect, chain the effect of Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword!"
Joey Wheeler pointed a finger at the Armor among all of Valon's Armor that posed the biggest threat to him. "Although I don't know the specific effect, in short, I will destroy the Double Cross Armor on you, Valon!"
Among all the Armor monsters, the rest were mainly blue-toned and mostly Level 4 or lower monsters. Only Double Cross Armor was not only red but also a Level 6 higher-level monster, naturally attracting Joey Wheeler's attention at first glance.
The black dragon flames were thrown out by Joey Wheeler, shattering the armor on Valon. The remaining Armor monsters numbered six, and Joey Wheeler also chose five cards from the Graveyard to return to the deck and shuffle, then drew one card.
Unfortunately, the card he drew at this moment, like the other card in his hand, was a trap card that couldn't be used temporarily.
"Destroyed the most threatening Double Cross Armor at first glance, huh? Amazing intuition, Joey Wheeler." Valon sent another Armor monster to the Graveyard. Watching Joey Wheeler put away the two cards in his hand, he assumed an attack stance. "But you haven't forgotten, have you? Just destroying my Armor monsters one by one like this is useless. It won't work without a more intense battle."
"You only have one monster on your field. Even if you attack, I can still transfer its attack!"
"Heh heh, Is that so, Valon?"
However, Valon's reminder only received a confident response from Joey Wheeler. Putting away the two cards in his hand, Joey Wheeler assumed a battle stance and said with a laugh: "Enter my battle phase! Then I will attack the Mental Headgear on your field!"
Saying this, Joey Wheeler repeated the previous method, leaping into the air and assuming a flying kick posture.
Although he was boiling with fighting spirit from dueling Joey Wheeler, Valon was not someone who would go easy because of it. On the contrary, he put in even more full power:
"In that case, I will transfer the attack—"
While speaking, Valon wanted to move his limbs and use other parts of his Armor to substitute for Mental Headgear to take the attack and perform a defense block, but it was only at this moment that he was surprised to discover something, "No, I can't transfer it!?"
"Not only that, I can't move right now!"
"Red Kick!"
Accompanied by the flames, Joey Wheeler, wearing Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword, kicked the immobile Valon with a flying kick. The powerful kick directly shattered the helmet that took the attack and kicked him out, slamming him against the Seal of Orichalcos!
"Uwah!"
[Valon: 3600 → 1700 LP]
The field spell card Seal of Orichalcos increased the original attack of Mental Headgear, which was 0, by 500 points. But after being hit by Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword, a high 1900 points of battle damage was still inflicted upon Valon.
Getting up from the ground, watching Joey Wheeler stand back in place, Valon glanced at his duel disk before belatedly realizing what had just happened.
Because of the effect of Seal of Orichalcos, when Valon used Full Armor Gravitation earlier, he special summoned a total of nine monsters at once, occupying all ten zones in his Front Row and Spell/Trap Zone.
And because Seal of Orichalcos, while having the ability to actively move monsters from the Monster Zone to the Spell & Trap Zone, cannot actively move monsters from the Spell & Trap Zone to the Monster Zone, even though Valon lost three Armor monsters last turn, freeing up space in the Front Row, he could only move Trap Burst Armor to the Spell/Trap Zone.
And Joey Wheeler noticed this, realizing that Valon's Spell/Trap Zone was still full, but in the Front Row, there were only Mental Headgear and Double Cross Armor left. He thus came up with this battle strategy.
He had learned from Grimo's duel with Yugi that the characteristic of Seal of Orichalcos meant he couldn't attack the monsters in the Spell/Trap Zone unless he destroyed all the monsters in Valon's Front Row. This was a powerful effect, but at the same time, Joey Wheeler also seized upon a vulnerability.
Armor monsters could freely transfer the attack target of Joey Wheeler's monsters, but the premise was that the target had to be attackable. This meant that when Valon's Front Row only had Mental Headgear left, Valon couldn't transfer the attack target to the other Armor monsters "protected" in the Spell/Trap Zone.
Specifically reviving Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword instead of other more powerful Red-Eyes monsters was precisely because of this strategy that had to be kept secret until the end.
"Set two cards from my hand. My turn ends."
Setting the two trap cards from his hand, Joey Wheeler ended his turn, looking at Valon.
[Joey Wheeler: 2800 LP, Hand 0]
[Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword] [ATK 2400]
[Set Card] X2
Another turn passed, and Joey Wheeler successfully caused Valon's life points, which hadn't moved for a long time, to decrease again. With just one more attack like the one just now, he could achieve victory!
Valon also wiped the corner of his mouth slightly, removing the crimson, his fighting spirit becoming even more intense: "That's it, Joey Wheeler. Not just reckless attacks driven by hot blood, but a carefully calculated strategy full of planning. Your purity as a duelist is truly high!"
"In that case, I must also bring out commensurate power!"
With his finger on the only two cards remaining in his deck, Valon showed a confident smile.
"My turn, draw!"
"Then, enter battle phase!"
Not only did he not activate the effect of Mental Headgear in the Graveyard during the standby phase to special summon it to the field, Valon didn't even activate any cards during main phase 1, but instead directly entered battle phase!?
This wasn't Valon being impatient to battle Joey Wheeler to the point of losing his head. On the contrary, he knew it would be foolish to continue summoning monsters to the Front Row.
Using the effect of Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword, Joey Wheeler could continuously destroy the small number of Armor monsters in his Front Row, keeping their number at one, and then in the next turn, he could once again attack with Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword with an untransferable attack target, reducing his life points.
However, if the number was not one or more, but 0, then even Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword would have no monster to destroy. In the next turn, even if he attacked, he could only attack the Armors in the Spell/Trap Zone, at which point Valon could freely transfer the attack target again.
Furthermore, even if he were to set up his field and summon monsters, wouldn't it be better to wait until the troublesome monster Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword was dealt with before setting up? It would save him from having his monsters destroyed repeatedly.
Hearing Valon directly enter battle phase, Joey Wheeler, who was originally planning to observe, immediately pressed the activate set card button: "At the moment of entering battle phase, I activate my set card Red-Eyes Spirit! Special summon Red-Eyes Black Dragon in attack position from the Graveyard!"
"Then, chain the effect of Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword! Destroy the Trap Burst Armor in your Spell/Trap Zone!"
"Finally, come forth, Red-Eyes Black Dragon!"
The flames of the black dragon armor surged up, striking the Trap Burst Armor on Valon. Although it was an effect triggered by the trap card Red-Eyes Spirit, it was ultimately the power of Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword. Trap Burst Armor, which had absolute resistance to trap cards, was thus sent to Graveyard by a trap card.
But seeing this, Valon instead smiled: "I see. If I'm not mistaken, Joey Wheeler, your other set card should also be a trap card, right? You're planning to chain it to my attack declaration, aren't you? Is it Magic Cylinder or Mirror Force?"
"For that, the existence of Trap Burst Armor had to be resolved. But it doesn't matter if it's destroyed, because you fell for it!"
The moment Trap Burst Armor was destroyed, Valon slapped a card from his hand onto the blank space above his duel disk. "During the battle phase, I can freely activate quick-play spell cards from my hand! This is my true path to claiming victory!"
"What?!" Joey Wheeler was startled.
To some extent, Valon guessed correctly. One of his set cards was indeed a trap card that could only be activated at a specific timing, and he did relax when he saw Valon skip main phase 1. He was just thinking he couldn't waste the effect of Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword and randomly destroyed a card.
He thought Valon was on the first floor and he himself was on the second, but he didn't expect that Valon was actually on the third floor!
"Quick-Play Spell Card Forbidden Dress! Decrease Jet Gauntlet's ATK by 600 points, making it unaffected by card effects and preventing it from being destroyed by card effects!"
"This way, no matter what card you have in your Spell/Trap Zone, it cannot affect this card. Not even the effect of Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword can destroy it or prevent this attack!"
[Jet Gauntlet] [ATK 500 → 0]
The boost from Seal of Orichalcos was blocked by the donned sacred garment, returning the ATK of the Jet Gauntlet on his right arm to its original 0. Valon raised his right hand: "Here I come, Joey Wheeler! I will use Jet Gauntlet to attack your Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword!"
"Jet Machine Gun!"
A large amount of airflow sprayed from the armguard, accelerating Valon's punch. A fleeting blue phantom flashed by, and Valon's heavy punch fiercely slammed towards Joey Wheeler's chest area!
Joey Wheeler naturally wouldn't suffer a loss and also swung his fist to intercept.
Their iron fists collided and were locked in a stalemate. The aftermath of the punch alone easily crushed the surrounding ground, sending shattered stones flying!
However, neither Valon nor Joey Wheeler felt damage during the punch.
This was natural, after all, Jet Gauntlet's ATK was only 0.
But in the next moment, Joey Wheeler saw that the Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword armor on his body and Jet Gauntlet were cracking simultaneously!?
"When Jet Gauntlet battles an opponent's monster, its effect activates! It directly destroys Jet Gauntlet and that opponent's monster together! This way, your Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword leaves the field again, Joey Wheeler!"
Maintaining the posture of fists colliding, Valon faced Joey Wheeler and said proudly: "As long as the most troublesome Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword is dealt with, this duel is still my victory!"
"Dueling you is truly exhilarating, Joey Wheeler! This is simply the best duel!"
"Me too, Valon!" Looking at the pleased Valon, Joey Wheeler couldn't help but laugh heartily. "This feeling, even I can't help but become immersed in it!"
"But, it's finally coming to an end, even for us!" X2
As their words fell, the armor on both of them exploded simultaneously, sending both of them flying out and onto the ground!
At the point where their fists met, flames soared into the sky.
The first to get up was Valon, still protected by Armor. Through the smoke, he saw that the Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword on Joey Wheeler had dispersed and laughed: "Finally, did I take it down, that Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword?"
"Ah, you took down Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword," replied Joey Wheeler, who also got up, but a smile appeared on his lips. "So, this duel is over, Valon!"
"What?!"
Suddenly, Valon noticed something—on Joey Wheeler's duel disk, not only was Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword destroyed and sent to Graveyard, but even the Red-Eyes Black Dragon that was just special summoned was gone?
Where did it go, that Red-Eyes?
Wait, could it be!
Seeing Valon look towards the soaring firelight, Joey Wheeler smiled proudly: "Chaining to the effect of Jet Gauntlet, Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword activated its final effect, destroying one monster on the field!"
"But what it destroyed was not your Armor monster, but the Red-Eyes Black Dragon on my field that was special summoned by Red-Eyes Spirit!"
"Roar!!"
As Joey Wheeler's words fell, the firelight violently shook, dispelling the surrounding smoke and revealing the cracked Red-Eyes Black Dragon!
Pitch-black flames wrapped around Red-Eyes Black Dragon. It was clear that Red-Eyes Black Dragon would be destroyed soon even if left alone, but at this moment, its aura was stronger than ever before!
"This is!?" Valon looked up at Red-Eyes Black Dragon, not understanding what was happening before him, but he found the answer on the trap card that was flipped face-up in Joey Wheeler's Spell/Trap Zone. "Is it because of that trap card?!"
Joey Wheeler stood up and said loudly: "Valon, just as you said before, I'm not dueling alone! Whether it's Yugi, Mai, or Red-Eyes, there are too many people fighting alongside me."
"Our match is hard to call a winner, but this duel is my victory with the aid of Red-Eyes!"
"Red-Eyes Burn! It can only be activated when a Red-Eyes monster is destroyed by battle or effect! Both players take damage equal to that destroyed monster's original attack value!"
As Joey Wheeler pointed his hand towards the sky, Red-Eyes Black Dragon roared, and suddenly exploded with countless rays of radiance!
"The power of Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword is completely liberated here! Bring me a miracle, Red-Eyes!"
"Boom!"
The pitch-black flames swept across the entire Seal of Orichalcos. Joey Wheeler and Valon were instantly swallowed. The effect damage of 2400 points, the original attack value of Red-Eyes Black Dragon, fell upon both of them, their life points plummeting!
But Joey Wheeler, swallowed by the flames, didn't feel too hot, even feeling somewhat cold.
After a few breaths, the power of Red-Eyes Burn began to fade. Joey Wheeler suddenly discovered that the coldness on his body was actually Valon's Armor that had somehow nested itself onto him!?
"This is!?" Turning his head sharply to look at Valon's position, Joey Wheeler saw Valon pointing towards him, seemingly directing the armor on his body to come here to protect Joey Wheeler before being swallowed by the flames, leaving himself with not even a single piece of defense. "Valon!!"
"Cough, a perfect strategy, Joey Wheeler." His life points value plummeted beside him, Valon's expression was visibly pale, but he forced himself to show a proud smile. "I have to admit, you're stronger right now."
[Joey Wheeler: 2800 → 400 LP]
[Valon: 1700 LP → 0]
As his life points were reduced to zero, Valon stumbled, almost falling down, but still stood stubbornly.
"Valon..." Joey Wheeler wanted to step forward, but after the Armor on his body dispersed, the suppressed pain surged through his body. He directly knelt down on one knee, unable to move, and could only watch Valon gasping for breath.
"Hey, hey, don't look at me like that, Joey Wheeler. Don't forget we're opponents," Valon said with a smile, looking at Joey Wheeler. At the same time, the Seal of Orichalcos that had expanded earlier began to shrink.
Valon knew this was the Seal of Orichalcos beginning to recycle the souls of the defeated. The "Orichalcos Fragment" on his finger flashed with radiance, causing the domain's shrinking speed to pause for a moment. While supporting the domain, Valon took off his duel disk and took a deck from his body, throwing it towards Joey Wheeler.
"Hey, Joey Wheeler, catch."
Joey Wheeler subconsciously reached out his hand and barely caught the duel disk and deck Valon threw. However, he didn't understand what Valon was doing this for.
"As the winner, it wouldn't do to have no prize. Unfortunately, these are all I can offer." After throwing the duel disk, Valon's body stiffened, and the domain, which had slowed its shrinking speed earlier, began to accelerate its retraction again. "Although you might not think much of it, it's my feelings. Feel free to use them."
As he spoke, the domain had already swept past Joey Wheeler's feet, enveloping only Valon. Mai Valentine, who had been waiting for a long time, also rushed to Joey Wheeler's side anxiously: "Joey Wheeler!"
Seeing Mai Valentine come to Joey Wheeler's side without hesitation, Valon couldn't help but show a regretful smile. It wasn't about being heartbroken or anything. Through the duel just now, he had somewhat come to terms with his own heart. While it wasn't to say he no longer had affection for Mai Valentine, Valon no longer saw Mai Valentine as a substitute for that nun.
"Thinking about it carefully, before this, I seemed to never know why I was fighting. But thanks to dueling you, I think I've found the direction to move forward."
"So, I am filled with gratitude towards you, Joey Wheeler. Therefore, move forward with your head held high, looking at that path of radiance, the path of radiance you should be moving towards."
A verdant light enveloped Valon's feet, illuminating the thumbs-up he gave Joey Wheeler and the smile on his face.
From the duel disk in Joey Wheeler's hand, the Field Zone expanded, and a card fell out.
One of the Doma Three Swordsmen, Valon, defeated.
----Epilogue----
"Is this, Valon's soul?" At the Doma Headquarters, Dartz watched a green light fly from the horizon and fall into the altar dedicated to the "Orichalcos God". At the same time, a blank space on the wall in front of him appeared out of thin air with a new mural, forming Valon's likeness.
Although the Seal of Orichalcos card itself had the ability to seal the souls of duelists, when a duelist's soul reached a certain strength, a simple card couldn't seal it. In that situation, the "Orichalcos God" would directly remotely extract that power from the card and absorb it.
Even though doing so would consume a portion of the recovered power, overall, the benefits outweighed the drawbacks, and it was more convenient.
Not putting too much thought into Valon's soul being sealed, Dartz walked away from the altar casually.
On that wall, the souls of many duelists were sealed—The Bandit Keith Howard, the Paradox Brothers, the Father of Duel Monsters Pegasus J. Crawford, and so on. Their likenesses were also carved onto the wall, signifying that they had become offerings to the "Orichalcos God".
And the moment Dartz turned around, among the hundreds and thousands of souls, several light and shadow forms of different colors faintly flickered, like flashing neon lights.
Subconsciously, Dartz turned back and looked at the wall again, but there was no change on the wall, making him feel as if he had just experienced an illusion.
