Chapter 1327: The Three Musketeers

"Uwaaaaah—"

The combined strike of Trishula, Dragon of the Ice Barrier and Infernity Doom Dragon—a freezing cold current that could freeze all things, coupled with a destructive chaotic impact. The chaotic vortex and the long ice spear bombarded him in turns, sweeping across Raphion's body and seemingly his very soul, making him feel as if his body were being torn into shreds.

At the final moment, Raphion's eyes widened, the seal of the Orichalcos hexagram flashing in his pupils, but it quickly began to dissipate, as if washed away by the chaos and the cold current.

As the Orichalcos seal vanished, images surfaced before Raphion's eyes once more.

It is said that at the moment of death, one sees a lantern show, seeing the scenes of one's life flash before one's eyes. But honestly, in truth, there was basically only his childhood.

Perhaps it was because ever since that shipwreck, his life seemed to have nothing left worth remembering.

He remembered the distant past. He remembered his younger sister's teddy bear, his mother's baking, his father's stern words, and the times they all sat at the dining table together in the early morning.

Those memories looked so fresh, so fresh that it was as if they had happened yesterday, as if the life he had experienced since then was all a nightmare, and once the dream woke, his mother would still be calling him to the table for breakfast with a face full of love.

There is no going back; it is already impossible to go back.

"Lord Dartz... Dartz!!!"

Raphion snapped his eyes open, his eyes blood-red, roaring toward the sky like a wounded beast.

Was what that person said really true? Was it really Dartz who manipulated his destiny? Was Dartz the murderer of his family?

Was his own life... just a joke?

He also thought of Valon, thought of Alister, thought of the tragedies of their respective lives.

If his own destiny was a tragedy manipulated by others, would they also...?

Raphion did not know; he felt that he probably wouldn't have the chance to know either.

He watched his own body hang limply, like a puppet with its strings cut. He knew this was his soul being extracted, watching his physical body collapse to the ground. Anyone who activated the Orichalcos Barrier deserved no other fate.

Deep down, he had actually known this day would come, sooner or later.

His soul ascended along the trajectory of that green light. At the final moment, he used his remaining strength to speak: "Fujiki Youxuan, you look like an extraordinary duelist. If what you just said is all true, if you are right, then do me a favor—"

He closed his eyes.

"Finish off Dartz... and that evil thought that has wandered for ten thousand years. Help us put an end to our destiny."

Youxuan watched that light being sucked into the vortex in the sky, the barrier dissipating, leaving only the soulless, muscular blond man lying on the ground.

Youxuan shrugged and said, "If there's a chance, maybe."

He actually had no intention of actively seeking out Dartz or causing trouble for Xin Xin Duoma. That was a matter for this dimension, a problem for Yugi and the others in this world.

The reason he was here was still for that guy suspected to be Zorc.

Youxuan looked down at his Duel Disk again and checked the scanner.

It was still the same as before; ever since arriving in this dimension, the energy suspected to be Zorc had been so dense it was uncomfortable, no matter where he went. But ever since he flew to the United States and arrived in this city, the energy reaction seemed to have grown stronger.

The next time was just now, the moment the Orichalcos Barrier was activated, that energy reaction showed signs of upgrading again.

This convinced Youxuan that the source of that energy reaction probably came from nearby, perhaps related to Dartz and his Orichalcos. The reason Youxuan had just suggested helping to deal with Raphion and letting Yugi go to the Xin Xin Duoma headquarters to find Dartz first was also because, for Youxuan, his primary concern was lifting the barrier, and his interest in Dartz was relatively less significant.

But come to think of it, in the original work, after Dark Yugi defeated Raphion, this Xin Xin Duoma swordsman seemed to have overcome the darkness in his heart with good intentions, walked out of the shadows of the first half of his life, and gotten rid of the Orichalcos Barrier, right?

It always feels like after dueling with him, he seems to have sunk even deeper...

Youxuan thought about it and felt that this probably shouldn't be his fault.

It's all Dartz's fault; the old thing is too evil.

Youxuan thought as he walked toward the direction of the Xin Xin Duoma headquarters. At this time, the barrier pillar where he was had already disappeared along with Raphion's collapse. He looked into the distance and saw that on the other side of the city, another pillar of light reaching the sky had also vanished into nothingness; he didn't know if that was Kaiba or Joey who had succeeded.

But this was nothing to be surprised about.

Kaiba was likely facing Alister, and Joey should be facing Valon. These were their respective opponents in the original work; even if the process might be a bit of a struggle, it shouldn't be difficult for Kaiba or Joey to complete their respective tasks.

So what remained was the boss, Dartz; this part would depend on Yugi.

Although the boss fight with Dartz in the original work was quite arduous—Dark Yugi and Kaiba fought two-on-one, and Kaiba still fell, and Dark Yugi almost flipped the car at the end—that was, after all, a duel under the premise that Dartz had physically banned the three Egyptian Gods beforehand.

The three Egyptian Gods were still at the peak of their prestige in DM; it is no exaggeration to call them the ceiling of the Duel Monster Realm. Except for Yugi Muto successfully conquering the three Egyptian Gods head-on during the Ceremonial Battle, in the common sense of this world, it was basically impossible to have a chance of winning while facing the three Egyptian Gods simultaneously.

Youxuan felt that with the Egyptian Gods in hand, even if facing Dartz, there shouldn't be much of a problem on Yugi's side.

Youxuan thought to himself, and after taking a few more steps, he suddenly perceived something else. He turned his head and looked, only to see that in the other direction, that last green pillar of light reaching the sky was also gradually dissipating.

All three pillars of light dissipated, and the hexagram in the sky finally couldn't hold on, decomposing into green light spots all over the sky. The entire inverted barrier was like shattered glass, scattering with a clatter between heaven and earth.

The last pillar of light was also lifted; it seemed the Xin Xin Duoma Three Musketeers had been completely wiped out.

And at this very moment, at the Xin Xin Duoma headquarters, inside the temple.

Dartz closed his eyes slightly, looking as if he were resting with his eyes closed. The fire in the great hall flickered, casting his shadow onto the pillars and walls of the hall, making him look like a giant.

Three green lights flew across the sky like meteors, falling from the sky and landing precisely in this temple.

Only then did Dartz slowly open his eyes and look at the wall in front of him. On that wall were countless dense squares, like a cage for thousands of souls, each square being a prison cell. Some already had people living in them, while others were still empty.

Dartz looked up.

Three more souls appeared in three of the squares, three specific prison cells, prison cells that had been prepared for the three of them from the very beginning.

The Xin Xin Duoma Three Musketeers, his three most powerful and loyal subordinates.

But seeing these three souls emerge, Dartz only showed a hint of a smile on his face.

"Very good," he said.

Just as planned.

What he valued had never been just the abilities of the Three Musketeers. He also valued their souls, the darkness within their hearts itself.

Yes, the darkness in their hearts. So sooner or later, these three people were destined to come here, enter this temple, and become nourishment for the evil god.

However, after only half a second, Dartz's expression changed abruptly; his smile faded, and he frowned, asking coldly, "Who goes there?"