Chapter 831: Chapter 804: Second Chance
"Roarrrrr!"
Merlot growled in frustration, sounding almost inhuman. The cannonfire from the Flame Cannon was bombarding his entire field wildly, a series of skyward blasts that seemed to blast his soul right out from its shell.
This was not an exaggerated description, but a literal scene. The continuous bombardment blasted a white figure out from Merlot’s body, genuinely resembling a soul leaving its corporeal form.
After being bombed out of the body, the white entity issued an even more frenzied roar, its size expanding to several times its original form. At first, it looked only about half the size of Merlot, but with the mad roaring, it ballooned to be as tall as two people within mere seconds.
On its face, originally as plain as a white sheet, abstract features appeared, resembling eyes filled with violent anger, and a mouth spitting Hurricanes.
Light of Destruction.
Yugen knew from the start that the essence of the one confronting him was this thing. It clung to the human body like a parasite, using the host as a medium to exert its power.
From the depiction in the animation, Light of Destruction might be a form of symbiosis. The Light of Destruction in the animation had possessed D.D., the thief who stole Blood Demon D., possessed Saio, possessed cards of Blood Demon D., and even attached itself to Yubel, causing her to evolve into two new forms she originally did not have.
Light of Destruction can possess both Elves and humans, can manipulate the host and significantly enhance existing capabilities, even develop new abilities based on the original. But it’s likely unable to act independently; losing its host would mean losing most of its battle strength.
Just like now.
The entity roared and growled, baring its claws and teeth to show a ferocious appearance. But Yugen could see that beneath this bluffing vigor, it was already at the end of its strength.
Just as the light attempted to charge forward, an iron cage clanged down from the sky.
Light of Destruction froze.
Its rushing movement stalled for two seconds, then slowly lifted its head.
Only to see the red-hot iron cage, like scorched iron, suddenly covering it, with Tamashi, the Lava Demon God, overhead, the burning giant was outside the cage, lowering its head and tilting its neck, crossing eyes with it.
The two sides awkwardly confronted each other for a few seconds.
Then the iron giant slowly extended its hand, spreading five fingers and pressing them on the top of the cage.
Endless lava steamed, smoking white while pouring down, akin to being drenched with filth, directly pouring onto the trapped Light of Destruction in the cage.
Light of Destruction let out a shrill howl, struggling desperately in the cage. It tried to get out, but upon touching the cage, the whole cage appeared to ignite, burning red-hot. It screamed more piercingly and hurriedly retreated, its massive form shrinking rapidly under the inundating lava, looking like a flame in the wind, about to be extinguished at any moment.
"No!"
Merlot, who had just wilted on the ground, suddenly leaped up to charge towards the cage against the heat wave.
But as his hands barely grabbed the iron cage, he immediately let out an equally sharp scream, writhing on the ground. Just a moment of contact, his hands had been severely burned bloody.
Light of Destruction screamed miserably in the cage, reaching laboriously towards the outside, as if calling to Merlot.
Merlot lay on the ground, painfully stretching out his bloody hand, reaching towards the Light of Destruction in the cage.
One inside the cage, one outside, their stretching hands separated by only an arm’s length but isolated by this lava cage, as if across a chasm.
Yugen: "..."
Do you have to act like a tragic couple, why make it seem like I’m the villain separating you forever...
Well, having finally blasted Light of Destruction out from the host body, Yugen certainly wouldn’t let them have a chance to reunite.
So Yugen stepped forward, nonchalantly stepping on Merlot’s hand that was struggling towards the cage.
Merlot let out a scream ten times more tragic than before, desperately trying to withdraw his arm but couldn’t, merely convulsing helplessly.
"You’re not being controlled by the Light of Destruction, are you?"
Yugen looked down at him, asking calmly.
"Or at least not completely."
Yugen was not dealing with this cosmic power for the first time, previously encountering numerous people infected by the Evil light, who, regained freedom and sanity under his righteous influence. These people, once free from Light of Destruction’s control, would obviously quickly regain clarity, restoring their original personalities, significantly changing from before.
But not Merlot.
Yugen was certain that he should have already freed from control, Light of Destruction was indeed blasted out of his body. Yet he still stubbornly obsessing over the cosmic sinister parasite, barely regaining freedom, but desperately wanting to rebind.
Merlot angrily raised his head, glaring at Yugen.
"What do you know!?"
He roared.
"Even if I’m controlled, so what?"
"I know it brainwashed me, used me, but what of it? Before meeting it, I was just a failure, I was nothing!"
"Really?"
Yugen looked down at him, spoke.
"Even if its goal is to destroy this world?"
"This world originally never cared about me, destroy it then. At least before that, I won’t be so meaningless." Merlot said coldly, gritting his teeth looking at Yugen.
"How would someone like you understand?"
"Someone like you, endowed with extraordinary talents, naturally capable of becoming a King, destined to live a life admired by all. How could someone like you understand the pain of a failure?"
Yugen looked at him, still expressionless.
"Whether you believe it or not, I understand." Yugen said blandly, "I never felt I was particularly special."
This was his true thought.
In his previous life, he always led an unremarkable, uneventful life, without any outstanding moments. Like the most unknown NPC around everyone’s life, without any special skill.
Even the only thing he was somewhat proficient at, Yu-Gi-Oh!, was just an ordinary hobbyist. He enjoyed studying the historical environment of Yu-Gi-Oh!, analyzing old card decks, obscure tricks, sometimes making videos, upload them online for a modest amount of clicks. But he admitted his card-playing was mediocre, at least never achieving convincing results in competitions.
But he felt incredibly lucky.
Because he got a second chance, in a world like this, the only place where his strengths are put to use.
Yet he didn’t feel special, because everything he achieved was standing on the shoulders of predecessors, borrowed experiences from them. He believed many card players could do much better than him if in his position.
Yugen took Merlot’s card deck, turned to walk towards the door, gesturing without looking back.
"Finish it."
The Lava Demon God obeyed the command, its flames burning even more fiercely, a blast of "City Flame" filling the entire iron cage directly.
"No——"
Merlot cried out desperately, but the exploding flames surged out in the impact from the cage, that struggling Light of Destruction finally completely extinguished amidst the flames, vanished altogether.
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