Duels should be played with a smile.

"If you take damage that reduces your base score to below 500, you can draw 2 cards!"

"This is the first half of the entertainment duel!"

"I wonder if the audience is satisfied?"

Chapter 162 No Need for Eternity, Only a Moment! 5K

Why don't you... come to my place?

"Ok?"

Leyou's high spirits were interrupted by Darz's cryptic remark. He stared at Darz, who had merged with the serpent god, as if he were a fool.

"What do you mean?"

"The literal meaning," Dartz said calmly.

"Even if everything you're doing now is in vain, I have indeed sensed your strength, and your... 'soul'."

“You… are very interesting. If you are willing, become my subordinate and help me rebuild this world.”

"After I have reshaped the world, I will reward you handsomely."

His expression seemed genuine; on a whim, he appeared to genuinely want to recruit Leyou.

"You... are quite interesting too." Le You smiled slightly. "May I ask, what can you offer me?"

"I am the Duel King, after all. They can't just dismiss me like that, can they?"

The interaction with the opponent is also a form of entertainment, and Leyou is also very curious about what promise Darz can make—a rare card? Or directly a deck, Orichalcos? Or something like worldly wealth, a beautiful woman, or a position second only to the emperor?

“Not bad courage. There aren’t many people in this world who are worth continuing to exist in the new world.” He paused, as if recalling his past. “Humans are far too foolish. Compared to those three good-for-nothings, you are indeed worth my personal promise to recruit.”

Darz looked at Leyou carefully once again. He didn't know much about Leyou, and the generous reward he had just mentioned was just a casual remark. He didn't expect Leyou to actually ask about it.

He was thinking about what he should give if he really had to.

"How about..." Darz suddenly pointed to the sky, and a rumbling sound was heard. The temple beneath their feet began to shake, as if it were rising.

About ten seconds later, Darz snapped his fingers again, and the previously sealed top of the temple opened directly, filling the top of the temple with a huge eye.

“You are not an ordinary person, but you have no power now. You will still be born, grow old, get sick and die just like ordinary people.”

"Therefore, I will bestow upon you a reward..."

“Named, Eternal.”

The enormous snake eyes are a partial manifestation of the power of the god Orichalcos, and Dartz, who is one with the snake god, can manipulate this power at will.

"By becoming my subordinate, you will become an eternal being, just like me, free from the troubles of birth, aging, sickness, and death. Even after tens of millions of years, you will still exist in the world."

In this world of card games, Dartz unusually made no promises related to card games, but the word "eternity" still shocked everyone.

It seems that people who have lived for only a hundred years or so have been pursuing eternity since ancient times.

Even as a short-lived species, they simply cannot imagine or understand the meaning of eternity.

"Eternity...it's truly captivating."

A sense of helplessness welled up inside me, an indescribable emotion, as if I instinctively wanted to laugh at the ugly guy opposite me.

Will you grant me eternity?

"And then become an empty, meaningless remnant, just like you?"

Leyou sneered and mocked.

He cast a disdainful glance at Daz.

"You are merely a human being who has existed for only ten thousand years; you are not qualified to discuss eternity with me."

With an incredibly clear mind, Leyou felt as if her body and mind had undergone a transformation in that instant—the word "eternity" seemed to have touched something.

Fragments of memories surfaced in his mind, and snippets of those memories echoed in his ears.

He vaguely recalled that before he became what he is now, he seemed to have existed for a very, very long time, as long as eternity.

He seemed to have experienced many stories, but his intuition told him that they were not his own.

But some of the people and words in those stories have stayed with him.

He couldn't recall exactly what kind of person he was, but as he was now, being an ordinary person wasn't so bad.

"Dartz! The word 'eternity' isn't as easy to say as you make it sound!"

Those words echoed in my ears.

"For an ordinary person, there is no need for eternity; a mere moment is enough!"

Eternity is far too long; in the long course of time, one might forget that they are just an ordinary person.

Even more terrifying is that the eternity that short-lived species gain will only be an eternity of loneliness.

That's not good.

Leyou is just an ordinary person.

"For an ordinary person, a duelist, eternity doesn't mean much. If you can't live a brilliant life, even eternity is not as good as a moment! Rather than losing yourself in the long passage of time, it's better to shine brightly in your short life!"

Isn't a duel the same?

The clash between cards, the battle between thoughts, and the collision between minds.

From outside the duel to inside the duel, from the initial planning to the twists and turns of the journey, it all culminates in a moment that can stir the very soul.

This is the most brilliant moment of a duelist's soul.

"A fleeting brilliance! A momentary burst of glory! If there is any eternity I seek, it is this—an eternity that you, this dregs who have lingered on for millennia yet remain like walking corpses, cannot give me!"

"Dartz! Enough talk. Let me show you what true eternity is through this duel!"

"The second half of this duel has begun!"

The long-awaited Dark Steel Dragon couldn't wait to show its power.

"The effect of [Dark Steel Dragon] negates the effect of Special Summoning Trickster from the Graveyard while it guards the board!"

"There are two Level 4 monsters on the field! Watch out, Dartz!"

"I'll stack the magic clown and the dark dragon!"

A massive vortex of supermassive energy appeared, even pushing aside the serpent's eye that was blocking the top of the temple.

Within that vortex, the Fang of Rebellion descended once more.

"Xyz Summon! Rank 4! Dark Rebel Xyz Dragon!"

The moment Dark Rebellion descended, the Ferocious Venom and Illusion Wing on the field also roared impatiently. They were waiting for Odd-Eye, which had just returned to the Extra Deck, to merge with it, complete the integration, and return to their most powerful form.

However... it seems that now is not the time for the Tyrannosaurus Rex to descend.

Before the Tyrannosaurus Rex arrived, Leyou had already revealed another card containing immense power.

Dartz looked at the card whose effect text was obscured by a mysterious force with amusement, and commented, "Hmm? It seems your monster is a bit special... Are you going to demonstrate a Triad Summon this time?"

It is not a pendulum, nor is it fusion, harmony, oversuppression, linking, or ritual.

It's just a simple effect monster, nothing special—and when the monster's effect text is obscured for various reasons, it can't function at all.

Dartz remained calm and unperturbed, even after being rejected.

With the Serpent God charging right at us, we can't lose. With unlimited resistance and attack power, how can we possibly lose against a bunch of rabble?

"It can be called a superior summoning, but a more accurate term is 'liberation summoning'."

A golden dragon appeared as a phantom behind Leyou, but it looked somewhat stiff because there were no elves present.

"Dartz! Remember this monster! I will use it to bring you your destined death!"

The Dark Rebel, the Ferocious Hunger Poison, and the Illusory Wing on the field all lowered their heads. They understood that they would be sacrificed to summon the arrival of that being.

Tyrannosaurus Rex can rule over the four dimensions, but it cannot rule over all Duel Monsters like that one.

"I will sacrifice the Ferocious Venom Fusion Dragon! Phantom Wing Synchro Dragon! Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon!"

"Call of Liberation!"

"Ruler of the rules who controls victory! Eternal gold that devours existence! With three of the four heavenly dragons as sacrifice! I call upon you to descend!"

"Engrave it in the annals! Pledge victory!"

"【Victory Dragon】!"

Endless golden light shone down, and a giant golden dragon emerged from the void dimension. It appeared unremarkable, simply standing quietly on the field, and then made no further move.

[Dark 8★ Dragon 2400 Attack Power]

Dartz was confused.

That's it?

He didn't understand why Leyou would replace three seemingly powerful monsters with this one that was meaningless, had low attack power, and no visible effects.

Could it be because I just mentioned eternity, which touched something in him and made him act a little strange?

"You don't need to show your curiosity; it will be satisfied soon."

"Before that, please witness the final Pendulum Summon of this duel!"

"What? Isn't Pendulum Summoning only once per turn?"

"Normal Summoning is also once per turn, but there is a card called Double Summoning, so it makes sense that Pendulum Summoning would have a card called Extra Pendulum, right?"

Starlight shines down, and the seven-colored arc is lit up again.

"I activate the Spell Card [Extra Pendulum]. This turn, in addition to my normal Pendulum Summon, I can Pendulum Summon monsters from my Extra Deck once during my Main Phase."

"Swing once more, Eternal Pendulum!"

"Let your brilliant soul shine in this moment!"

"I'm Pendulum Summoning [Entertainment Partner Pendulum Magician], [Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon], and [Entertainment Partner Sky Magician] from my Extra Deck!"

The last of the Four Heavenly Dragons returned to the battlefield with its original master and, in a sense, its master's father, the Magician Father. The atmosphere between the two and the dragon was somewhat subtle.

But they quickly fell silent; even the Sky Magician could only remain silent before the Victory Dragon.