Chapter 935: Character Breakdown

“Kill intent.”

Jack and Cro both froze.

Kill intent is abstract—invisible, intangible, felt only by instinct. Only those directly in the duel could possibly sense it.

Though they were also participants, until just now they had been fully absorbed in the duel, paying no mind to extraneous details. Only now, with You Xing’s hint, did they recall: Gothem had never shown strong kill intent throughout this entire duel.

That was not the aura of someone seeking life or death through a Dark Duel.

Of course, this was merely intuition—not concrete evidence. Such feelings alone were too vague to draw firm conclusions. You Xing had merely raised a suspicion; further judgment depended entirely on his own trust in “Gothem.”

Outside the arena, Long Ya and Long Ke were still too young to think deeply. But Xiang Qiu, upon hearing You Xing’s words, was startled.

In truth, she had always doubted Gothem’s sudden outburst—his claims about opening the Underworld Gate, using them as Dragon Seal bearers, and so on. So when You Xing pointed it out, she wasn’t surprised; she merely thought, So You Xing thinks the same.

What surprised her was that You Xing claimed this man was not Gothem.

Why? Then who could he be?

“You’re not Gothem—you’re someone who’s been posing as Gothem, right? From the very beginning, hasn’t it been like this?”

You Xing said.

You Xuan smiled: “Oh? What’s your basis?”

“There’s no concrete proof,” You Xing shook his head. “But you carry too many mysteries. We know little about you. So I asked some contacts to investigate you—or more accurately, ‘Gothem.’”

You Xing took a deep breath and said.

“The arm with the Dragon Seal you just revealed—it’s actually the arm of Ludreg, the Dark Seal bearer we defeated, isn’t it? He was the original Dragon Seal bearer. Later, he asked his younger brother—the real Gothem you’ve impersonated—to gather Dragon Seal bearers, to make us fight the Dark Seal bearers and oppose the opening of the Underworld Gate.”

You Xuan: “Huh? You dug up all that? So what does that have to do with me?”

“Because of your duel with Ludreg,” You Xing said. “At the time, I didn’t know Rex Gothem and the Dark Seal leader Ludreg were related. I didn’t know Ludreg had asked his brother to gather Dragon Seal bearers.”

But now that I know these details, recalling that duel feels strange.

A duel is a process of mutual heart-to-heart exchange. No matter who you are, some truth always surfaces through combat. Yet in that duel, right to the end, I never saw Ludreg show any feeling toward his younger brother—the one he entrusted with such a weighty task.

It was as if he treated you like a stranger—or even an enemy.”

You Xuan: “.”

“Moreover, though I never knew the real Gothem, later I asked friends in the Peacekeeping Bureau and Jack. After recalling, they all said that around the time I met you, ‘Officer Gothem’s’ behavior and habits changed subtly.”

But since ‘Officer Gothem’ was always mysterious, no one thought much of it. Yet when combined with all these other inconsistencies… you’re not Gothem, are you?”

Everyone: “!!!”

All eyes turned in shock toward “Gothem” on the altar, filled with doubt.

“But no matter who you are, I still choose to believe—you’re our comrade!”

You Xing slammed his fist against his chest, his voice resolute.

“From the moment we met, you guided us all, brought us together, cleared our confusion, and showed us the path.”

Even this duel up until now has been the same.”

You told us it was all a scheme to use us, that you wanted to open the Underworld Gate and summon the Demon God—but I don’t believe it!

Because until just now, you’ve kept guiding us to grow, kept giving us chances to surpass ourselves—haven’t you?”

You Xuan: “.”

The entire arena fell silent. All eyes fixed on “Officer Gothem.” No one spoke.

Qiu held her breath, eyes wide, staring straight at “Gothem.”

If You Xing was right, then from the day they met—the day she first knew this man—he had never been “Officer Gothem” at all?

Then who was he…?

You Xuan gazed lazily at the sky.

Sorry, Zone—I really didn’t want to stop playing along.

But my character… broke.

They don’t believe me. What can I do?

You Xuan gently closed his eyes and smiled faintly.

“Fudo You Xing, they say you’re the most meticulous Duel King in history. Indeed, your reputation is well-deserved… Fine, if you’ve figured it out, then you’ve figured it out. Yes, I’m not Rex Gothem.”

Since his character was already broken, You Xuan didn’t care—he simply tore off the “Gothem” mask, revealing his true face.

This was the first time he appeared before the entire 5Ds team as himself.

“Eh? Eh? Eh? Eh?!” Long Ya gasped, his young mind reeling. “This guy can change his face!”

Cro frowned: “He looks about our age.”

Since the Gothem You Xuan impersonated had seemed older than them, no one had imagined “Officer Gothem” was actually their peer.

And he was kind of cute…

With such a sunny look—he clearly couldn’t be evil.

“My name is Wu Teng You Xuan,” You Xuan declared openly. “I come from another dimension—the Duel King of another world.”

Jack’s eyelid twitched at the word “King,” as if triggered by a key term.

“The Duel King of another world?”

“Correct,” You Xuan replied calmly. “I came here for my own reasons, but as You Xing said, I have no ill intent toward you.”

He paused, then smiled.

“So? The world-ending threat is a lie. This duel isn’t about life or death. Now that you’ve realized that—do you still have the resolve to fight to the death?”

You Xing smiled back. “No. Now that we’re here, if we don’t give everything we have, how could we possibly honor everything the Duel King senior has done for us?”

“‘Duel King senior’? That sounds weird. I’m no senior,” You Xuan laughed. “Just call me You Xuan.”

“Then come on, Fudo You Xing—show me your potential again!”

(End of Chapter)