Chapter 307: Facing the God Card Head-On
"Because of the effect of Card of Safe Return, I draw three cards from my Deck," drawing three cards, including the God Card, under Yugi's wary gaze. At this moment, he held a total of seven cards in his Hand. "Then, I Tribute the Metal Reflect Slime on my Field!"
"A Trap Card was used as a Tribute!?" Having not experienced the Duel against Rishid, Yugi and the others were quite unfamiliar with the existence of Trap Monsters.
Seeing the surprise on Yugi's face, Marik said smugly, "Although it's a Trap Card, Metal Reflect Slime can be used as a Monster."
"The Monster I am about to Summon, besides Fusion Summoning, can be Special Summoned by Tributing one Aqua-Type Level 10 Monster with 0 ATK. The Monster that descends here is the supreme being among Slimes, which is, Egyptian God Slime!!!"
Within the vortex that suddenly appeared on Marik's Field, the metallic silver Metal Reflect Slime was shredded by the endlessly spinning vortex. Its colors were invaded and permeated by the murky vortex like dye poured into clear water. The Monster that finally appeared on Marik's Field was a pool of still, stagnant water.
Just as Yugi thought that shallow, pale silver puddle was the Egyptian God Slime Marik spoke of, the liquid suddenly began to boil. From the liquid, the image of a Monster quite familiar to Kaiba slowly rose.
With massive wings that spread out to cover the sky and stirred up gusts of wind, ferocious fangs, a majestic gaze, powerful limbs, and a slender body, what else could it be but Blue-Eyes White Dragon, the Ace Monster Kaiba was so proud of?
Aside from being entirely composed of translucent metallic liquid, Marik's Egyptian God Slime looked exactly like Kaiba's Blue-Eyes White Dragon. What annoyed Kaiba even more were the stats of Egyptian God Slime, which seemed deliberately provocative.
Egyptian God Slime [Level 10/Water]
[Aqua-Type/Fusion/Effect]
[3000/3000]
Both its ATK and DEF were equal to Blue-Eyes White Dragon's standard 3000 ATK. Even Yugi frowned.
If one ignored the fact that it couldn't roar because it was made of liquid, and its color, Egyptian God Slime felt exactly like Kaiba's Blue-Eyes White Dragon to Yugi.
However, Yugi wouldn't be afraid if it was just the power of Blue-Eyes White Dragon; he had defeated Blue-Eyes White Dragon countless times.
"Egyptian God Slime is a Monster with no fixed shape, although it can transform into any form. But since I'm facing you, using Seto Kaiba's Blue-Eyes White Dragon's image seems appropriate, doesn't it?" Marik said, raising a card from his Hand.
Yugi saw the card's red border. It wasn't the reddish-brown of a Trap Card, but a vibrant red. 'Is that Slifer the Sky Dragon? But Marik only has two Monsters on his Field.'
"Watch closely, nameless Pharaoh! At this very moment, my ultimate Combo is about to be completed!" Marik's face was filled with excitement. As he raised Slifer the Sky Dragon above his head, even though he hadn't activated a Field Spell Card, thunder roared in the sky, as if the Airship had entered a thunderstorm.
"Egyptian God Slime can be treated as 3 Tributes when used as a Tribute for a Tribute Summon! I Tribute Egyptian God Slime to Tribute Summon the God!" Marik slammed the card onto his Duel Disk. "When the heavens thunder in chaos, the ancient magic books are bound in chains, possessing infinite and boundless power!"
"Descend, Slifer the Sky Dragon!"
From the thundercloud flashing with lightning, a long red dragon swam and coiled around the outside of the Airship. Its exaggerated size reminded Yugi of Jörmungandr, the serpent from Norse mythology whose body could encircle the world.
The red dragon, with two giant mouths, one above and one below, poked its head out from behind Marik. Although it was still somewhat bothered by Marik using it as a Tribute during his Duel with Hayato last time, bound by the rules of Duel Monsters, Slifer the Sky Dragon let out a roar at Yugi, proving that it wasn't slacking off.
Slifer the Sky Dragon [Level 10/Divine]
[Divine-Beast Type/Effect]
[X000/X000]
"Slifer the Sky Dragon..." As Marik finally Summoned the third Egyptian God Card that had been slow to appear, Kaiba's lips couldn't help but curl up. After the towering giant Obelisk the Tormentor and The Winged Dragon of Ra that streaked across the sky like the sun, now it was the giant dragon Slifer the Sky Dragon.
Obelisk the Tormentor's ATK could soar to infinity, and The Winged Dragon of Ra could use the power of Tributes. Although Slifer the Sky Dragon's ATK/DEF currently displayed a rather strange [X000/X000], Kaiba believed that as one of the Three Egyptian God Cards, its power would definitely not disappoint.
Rather, the stronger the power displayed by the other Egyptian God Cards, the happier he was, because he was confident that he would win continuously in the upcoming Duels, and the Three Egyptian God Cards were already considered within his grasp.
"Unlike the fixed value of Obelisk the Tormentor, and The Winged Dragon of Ra, which is determined by the power of life, the source of Slifer the Sky Dragon's power is the Cards in my Hand," Marik said, showing his Hand size.
Because Card of Safe Return had been continuously active, Marik now had a total of six cards in his Hand.
"Each card in my Hand increases Slifer the Sky Dragon's ATK/DEF by 1000 points! That means, right now, Slifer the Sky Dragon's ATK is a staggering 6000 points!" Pointing towards the two Attack Position Monsters on Yugi's Field, Marik continued,
"That Dark Magician seems to be a very important card to you, nameless Pharaoh? Then let him be swallowed by divine punishment and pass on with it!"
"Slifer the Sky Dragon, Attack Dark Magician!"
"Superconductive Wave-Thunder Force!"
Slifer the Sky Dragon [ATK 6000]
Dark Magician [ATK 2500]
In the previous Turn, Yugi had Summoned two Monsters in Attack Position on the Field in order to greatly reduce Marik's Life Points. He originally thought that with the ATK of Dark Magician and Dark Magician Girl, even if a Monster of Blue-Eyes White Dragon's caliber appeared, it could only inflict a maximum of 1000 points of Damage to Yugi.
What Yugi didn't expect was that Marik could quickly gather the Tributes to Summon a God, draw the God Card in one Turn, and that the effect of Slifer the Sky Dragon he used was precisely suited for Marik, who held a large Hand, as it increased its power based on the number of cards in his Hand.
Lightning gathered into a Ball in Slifer the Sky Dragon's lower mouth. With its breath, the unruly lightning, constrained by Divine Power, struck towards Dark Magician as a cylindrical beam, hitting it in the blink of an eye.
The white flash and deafening thunder were like a high-grade flashbang, robbing everyone of their ability to see the situation on the Field. Joey anxiously shouted towards the Duel Field, "Yugi!!!"
Slifer the Sky Dragon's 6000 ATK, even after destroying Dark Magician, would still inflict a massive 3500 points of Battle Damage. For Yugi, who only had 2300 Life Points remaining, this was an utterly unbearable amount of Damage.
Could it be that Yugi had lost?
Not just Joey, but Tristan , Téa, and the others in the Infirmary within the Airship cabin also watched the broadcast screen with worried expressions.
"Hmph hmph, just drown in the Underworld, nameless Pharaoh." Marik crossed his arms confidently. Although the result hadn't been determined yet, he didn't think Yugi had any way to Survive the attack he just unleashed. "Do you dare defy me, who possesses Slifer the Sky Dragon?"
He even turned his head to look towards the Audience Seats, at Seto Kaiba, and Kobayashi Hayato. They would be next.
Just as Marik looked towards the Audience Seats, Yugi's confident laugh echoed from the lightning-shrouded Field: "Hmph, is that so?"
"Nani?!" Marik turned his head back in shock, only to find Yugi standing on his Field completely unharmed. Although Dark Magician had been Destroyed and sent to the Graveyard, his Life Points hadn't taken any Damage at all!?
"At the instant Slifer the Sky Dragon attacked, I Activated the effect of Kuriboh from my Hand," Showing the card in his Hand, Yugi said, "By Discarding Kuriboh from my Hand, the Damage I take during this Damage Calculation is reduced to 0."
"Kuri kuri~"
Slifer the Sky Dragon's attack had instantly shattered Dark Magician. Even the most top-tier Spellcaster ultimately couldn't resist Divine Power. However, just as the aftermath of Slifer the Sky Dragon's attack was about to hit Yugi, the Kuriboh in his Hand jumped out and blocked the attack for him.
Sending the Kuriboh card to the Graveyard, Yugi's gaze was very gentle: "Thank you, Kuriboh. You saved my life."
"I won't forget your Sacrifice."
Watching Yugi, Marik on the Duel Field and Kaiba in the Audience Seats both quietly clicked their tongues in unison:
"Tsk, that Weak Monster."
Marik was annoyed because his sure-win final blow was blocked, while Kaiba was annoyed by the repeated appearance of the Kuriboh card.
In his understanding, Duel Monsters should definitely be as powerful as possible. Yet, the two Duelists he could barely acknowledge—Yugi and Hayato—both liked to include some weak Monsters in their Decks. The most representative ones were Kuriboh and Rainbow Kuriboh.
Kaiba even had a strange feeling: 'Do strong Duelists like using Kuriboh? Should I look for other Kuribohs that I can use when I get back?'
(End of Chapter)