Yu-Gi-Oh!: This is the real duel!

Standing on the plane, the survivors gazed at this scene with deep emotion.

They knew that those fluorescent lights were the imprisoned souls.

After a full night of fierce fighting, the polar night that brought deep fear to the world is no more.

The spirits who had been scattered all over the world returned to the spirit world in different ways, and the spirits that had been mutated by the dark energy gradually returned to normal.

Everyone leaned back in their chairs, exhausted.

This is the awakening from a nightmare, and also the first light of dawn.

Chapter 258 Haitao

The fiery red sun slowly rose from the sea not far away, spreading golden light across the beach. The survivors, having escaped the disaster, began to laugh and chatter in remembrance of the past. But soon, the joyful atmosphere came to an abrupt end.

Hearing the faint gasps and gazing at the giant god covered in wounds, everyone realized that although the imprisoned souls had been freed, the dead elves would never return.

"Yo...yo yo..."

This is now just a meaningless groan.

Another Youyou couldn't hold on any longer and lay quietly in the palm of the Sleeping Giant Gudu, gradually turning into a cold white block of wood.

Sitting amidst hundreds of slumbering corpses, the Sleeping Giant, Gudu, hunched over with its head drooping, struggled to keep its eyes open for long due to an old wound from ten thousand years ago. Yet, it gazed intently at the departed spirits, its eyes filled with endless self-reproach. With its back to the sunlight and embracing the shadows, it resembled a great bear immersed in sorrow.

Everyone watched this scene in silence.

The astringency was particularly noticeable when the lever was turned.

After the battle with the Serpent God, he lost not only Youyou, but also the frogs who had been with him since the Duel Kingdom.

Gudu acknowledged him because of his desire to protect the weak elves, but in the end, as the messenger of the God of Mortal Bones, he couldn't even save the elves around him...

The Sleeping Giant felt very guilty, as did Yu Che.

As the sun rose higher and higher, the wounds on the Sleeping Giant Gudu became more clearly visible. The wound on his severed arm had not yet fully healed, and the six sword wounds on his face exuded an aura of decay. This giant god, who once possessed extraordinary fighting power, was now scarred and destitute.

"Gurgle...thump..."

As the last creature leisurely departed from its side, tears welled in the eyes of Sleeping Giant Gudu. It sobbed as it rose from the beach, and after glancing at the dimensional gate leading to the Elf Realm on the horizon, the already exhausted creature stepped into the sea, preparing to bid farewell to this place.

"Gudong, are you leaving?" You Che's voice was a little hoarse. He stepped forward and asked. The waves that Gudong stepped out of quickly soaked his trouser legs.

The Sleeping Giant Gudu slowly turned around, as if letting out a weary sigh. It barely opened its eyes and looked at the tiny human messenger. After a long while, it slowly squatted down from the sea. Amidst the rising and falling tides, Gudu stretched out its only arm and slowly clenched its right hand into a fist, stopping in front of Youche.

Seeing this scene, everyone was deeply moved.

"Gudong, are you trying to say goodbye to Youche by bumping fists?"

"This is a ritual only between partners. Perhaps, in Gudong's heart, Youche has never been a messenger that obeys it, but a friend who helps each other."

"What a pity, we didn't even have the chance to properly thank Gudu... We don't even know how to thank it..."

The fist, larger than a tank, stopped in front of You Che. Looking at the scars on it, and recalling everything they had gone through together, he felt an indescribable pang of sorrow. He smiled, looked up at the tall, unassuming giant, and said:

"Get some rest, Gudu."

"You were never a god, just a mountain spirit born from the elven realm."

"You were not obliged to endure those battles, those pains..."

"Now that all the strife is over, find a place where you won't be disturbed and get a good night's sleep."

Upon hearing this, Sleeping Giant Gudu grinned, mimicking a human laugh. The clear sunlight reflected off its face through the sea, slightly concealing some of its scars.

"Boom..."

You Che held back his tears and gently bumped his fist against Gu Dong.

After bidding farewell to his human friend, Sleeping Giant Gudu rose again from the sea and slowly walked towards the distant horizon.

It was too tired; it hadn't rested in a long time.

Everyone knew this, but looking at that huge, swaying figure, they still felt a little reluctant to part with him.

You Che clenched his fist, still feeling a bit relieved. He shouted loudly into the distance:

"Gulp! You'll come back, right?!"

"I am just an ordinary duelist. Even if I obtain your power, I am still just a mortal at best!!"

"I don't know how long a day in the Elf Realm is equivalent to in this world..."

"But perhaps, when you wake up, you'll come back here, right?!"

"After all, I, a mere mortal, cannot protect all the elves with my own strength!"

"Gudong, I'll wait for you, until you've fully recovered. We'll definitely meet again!!!"

However, the massive sleeping giant, as large as a mountain, stopped and gently shook its head.

Disappointment flickered in You Che's eyes, but it quickly turned into astonishment.

The Sleeping Giant, Gudu, glanced at the fallen elves on the beach, then raised his arm and gestured towards the sky.

Immediately afterwards, the energy of countless elf remains flew from all over the world into its palm. When the last fallen elf landed in its palm, Sleeping Giant Gudu tossed it into the sky like scattering dandelions.

Instantly, countless cards, carrying a faint glow, fell to all corners of the world, and the clouds in the sky were momentarily tinged with a hazy blue.

Among them, several cards fell into the hands of the group. When everyone gathered around to take a look, they found that they were several identical monster cards, which were the incarnations of Sleeping Giant Gudu.

You Che stared blankly at this scene.

Ever since he encountered Sleeping Giant Gudu, he often thought of this big guy that appeared in the Yu-Gi-Oh! 5Ds series. In that anime, Sleeping Giant Gudu was the most common monster card, with almost every duelist having one. However, because the summoning conditions were too demanding, no one would put it in their deck.

Youche is always curious whether his appearance has changed the timeline of this world, so that when everything develops to 5Ds, there won't be a situation where everyone has a Sleeping Giant, Gudu.

But now, everything has come to an end.

Exhausted, the Sleeping Giant Gudu was no longer able to protect the world personally, so it transformed its remaining energy into cards as a final gift to the world.

"Gurgle...thump..."

The azure light slowly dissipated, and the Sleeping Giant Gudu glanced at everyone one last time before taking slow, large strides toward the magnificent horizon. This time, it never looked back.

"Whoosh—"

"Whoosh—whoosh—"

The waves lapped against the beach until the figure of Sleeping Giant Gudu completely disappeared, at which point Youche raised his arm to wipe away the tears on his face.

At this moment, KC Group's rescue helicopter had been waiting nearby for quite some time.

Once Yuzuru had finally come to his senses, the silent Kaiba Seto turned around and walked towards the plane.

After a series of twists and turns, the group finally returned to the city aboard a KC Group plane. Fortunately, everything ended relatively quickly, and the evil elves were not targeting buildings, so the damage to most cities was not too severe. However, the number of human casualties was not so optimistic.

With the help of Kaiba Keihei, the group found temporary accommodation, which was an exceptionally luxurious villa.

When everyone arrived, various meals and entertainment facilities had already been prepared inside.

Perhaps it was the relief of finally being able to relax, or perhaps it was a way of putting on a brave face to avoid feeling so sad, but everyone enjoyed themselves to the fullest, and for a time, laughter filled the living room and dining room.

"What?! This villa is actually owned by Isono?!"

"Huh? Isono? Who's that?"

"Jonnouchi, how come you don't even know this? Isono is the referee of the Duel City Tournament!"

"Huh?! A referee can be this rich?!"

"How could that be? Isono is just a referee on the side. He is also Kaiba's butler and assistant. He has never betrayed Kaiba in Duel Kingdom and in this incident. He has even been by Kaiba's side through thick and thin. With such a loyal subordinate, no amount of money is too much for Kaiba to give him, right?"

"Haha~" At this moment, Isono walked over with a tray he had taken out of the oven, laughing. He looked a little shy, as if he were the guest and everyone else were the hosts. "You flatter me! The roast chicken is ready, everyone come and eat it while it's hot!"

"Finally!! I'm starving!!"

"Me too!!"

"Honda! Jonouchi! Can't you two behave yourselves?! Iso, as the host, hasn't even started the game yet!!"

"It's alright, everyone please enjoy!"

"Thank you!!!" Jonouchi and Honda exclaimed in unison, each tearing off a chicken leg and devouring it.

Inside the lively restaurant, laughter and banter filled the air.

The ever-domineering Mai grabbed Jonouchi by the neck, laughing heartily while teasing him with the chicken leg she'd just snatched; Ryuji Otogi seemed to have overheard some earth-shattering secret from Honda—it was the first time he'd realized this seemingly reckless guy with the pompadour was actually a wealthy young master. Honda, on the other hand, feigned seriousness, trying to threaten Ryuji into not competing with him for Shizuka; Keihei Kaiba, holding his phone, happily told his brother about the situation. He really hoped his brother could attend the party, but Seto Kaiba had too many things to do, and ultimately he could only hang up the phone somewhat disappointed…

At the lively dining table, Rebecca and Anzu subconsciously looked for their sweethearts, but they weren't in the dining room. After searching around, their gazes finally fell on the figure standing in front of the living room window.

At this moment, the boy with the thousand-year-old building block hanging around his neck was talking to You Che about something.

“You Che, actually, you’re not from this world either, right?” Wang Yang smiled easily, but You Che was greatly shocked.

Recalling certain details of the past few days, You Che finally shook his head, smiled, and sighed: "Please keep this a secret for me, Your Majesty."

“King? That’s a rather unfamiliar title.” King took a sip of his drink and continued to laugh. “Later, I heard from Jonouchi and the others that when you were dueling with Antidote, you said you were the younger of the two brothers, but the younger brother in Antidote’s story is already dead.”

"And during the final battle with Daz, even though no one had ever seen those Orichalcos cards before, you were able to clearly know the effects of those cards."

"You Che, where exactly do you come from? What kind of person are you?"

You Che thought for a moment, unsure how to bring it up, so he asked half-jokingly, "If I told you that I had already seen some of the things happening in this world in the anime of my original world, would you believe me?"

Wang Yang paused for a moment, then smiled and nodded: "I believe you, but if you also know about my past, I hope you won't tell me now."

You Che replied, "I understand that regaining your memories is a very important thing for you. If it were me, I would also prefer not to rely on others."

But to everyone's surprise, Wang Yang shook his head, looking at his reflection in the glass: "No, I just want to put everything aside and spend some time with my partner."

You Che was stunned for a moment.

Wang Yang smiled gently and looked at the Millennium Stone on his chest: "The Orichalcos incident is over, the Egyptian God cards and the Millennium Stone have been unsealed, and it won't be long before I embark on the path to regain my memories."

"But before that, I want to create one last unforgettable memory with my partner."

"Kaiba said that he would soon launch a dueling tournament."

"I want to treat this match as my last memory with my partner, and in order not to be disturbed or affected, I want to put the past aside for the time being."

Duel Tournament...

Yu Che then remembered that the KC Grand Prix, hosted by Seto Kaiba, was just around the corner.

Following the Pyramid of Light and the Orichalco incident, KC Corporation's stock price experienced an unprecedented slump. In an effort to boost the KC Group, Seto Kaiba used this tournament as a means to publicly promote KC's new amusement park, Hakuryu Land.