A pillar of fire shot into the sky. Within the green barrier, a golden Phoenix spread its wings as flames gathered and reformed the divine bird.
"And then Phoenix God's next Effect Activation! When it revives by its own effect, all Spells and Trap Cards on the field are Destroy!" Shell laughed. "With the combination of King of the End and Phoenix God, each turn King of the End clears the field, and the next turn Phoenix God rises again and sweeps away all Back Row! Against this, any set defense is meaningless. You have no path but destruction."
"I activate my set card!" Judai Yuki cut him off. "Trap Card 'Lost'! I banish one card from your Graveyard from this Yugi Muto!"
Shell's eyes widened. Was he really digging into his Graveyard now?
"Therefore, I banish your 'Sacred Phoenix of Nephthys' from the Graveyard!" Judai Yuki declared. "When 'Nephthys's Phoenix God' resolves, it is no longer in the Graveyard, so it cannot be Special Summon. Instead, it is banished from this Yugi Muto."
The flames in midair formed the shape of Phoenix God, but it turned transparent. At the same time, the mark of Orichalcos on its forehead cracked, and the faint figure burned quietly as it looked down at Shell.
Shell slowly lifted his head.
"Phoenix God…"
For a brief moment, he seemed to hear a distant voice, weak and far away, as if crossing countless barriers.
"Sorry…"
The image of the Phoenix burned away completely and vanished.
Shell stood there without speaking for several seconds.
"You see? The bond between you and the Spirit was never broken," Judai Yuki said softly. "It was only covered by dark power. There must have been more to what happened back then."
"My Turn! continues. Main Phase." Shell interrupted coldly.
"Shell?" Judai Yuki frowned.
"No matter what you say, it changes nothing. I am no longer the successor of Phoenix God. I am one of the Three Swords of Shin Doma. That is the only path left to me."
He raised his head, his eyes hard.
"I will defeat you here, and then I will move forward."
"Right now I am Shell of the Three Swords of Shin Doma. That is my only identity," Shell said coldly. "That alone is enough."
"From my hand, I activate the Spell Card Monster Reborn! Revive the monster sleeping in the Graveyard! Bring judgment of the end to this filthy world once more. Return, King of the End Demise, King of the End!"
The ground burned as blue flames spread across the field again. Demise, King of the End Demise slowly rose, returning from the Underworld, and it felt as if the world had entered the final countdown once more. The power around it surged as its ATK climbed from 2400 to 2900.
"Now King of the End Demise, King of the End activates its effect again!" Shell shouted. "I pay 2000 Life Points and Destroy all cards on the field! In the end, only absolute power matters. Doomsday!"
His Life Points dropped from 6000 to 4000. The drain left Shell pale and unsteady, as if the life had been pulled straight out of him. That life force flowed into the giant axe of Demise, King of the End, and the destructive wave crashed down again.
Judai Yuki's Elemental HERO Bubbleman and Elemental HERO Sparkman were both swallowed by the blue flames and shattered. But before Elemental HERO Bubbleman was Destroy, Judai Yuki called out to chain his move. "I activate the Quick-Play Spell Bubble Illusion! This card can only be used while Elemental HERO Elemental HERO Bubbleman is on the field. This turn, I can activate one Trap Card from my hand!"
The flames swept everything away, and both of Judai Yuki's Elemental HERO monsters left the field. Shell frowned as he realized another hand trap had been prepared.
"Lately I watched a lot of Yugen's Duel, and I thought his use of traps was pretty interesting," Judai Yuki said with a grin, scratching his head as he looked at Yugen. "So I figured I would try it too."
Yugen raised an eyebrow but said nothing. Shell let out a low snort.
"So you learned from that sly brat as well. The set card on your field was just bait, and the real trap was in your hand. Do you think I cannot deal with that?"
He drew two cards and set them on the field. Then he revealed another card from his hand. "I activate the Spell Card Card Destruction! Both players discard their hands and draw the same number!"
Judai Yuki blinked. "The same Spell as Yugen!"
Hands were discarded to the Graveyard, and Shell used Card Draw from his Deck. He smirked at Judai Yuki.
"Discard your hand. Any trap you were hiding goes with it."
Judai Yuki glanced at the Divine Shield Mirror Force Unit-02 in his hand and reluctantly placed it onto his Duel Disk, watching it slide into the Graveyard. But when he drew again, his eyes shifted slightly at the sight of his new card.
From across the field, Shell narrowed his eyes and caught a glimpse of the trap sent to the Graveyard. Even at this distance, he recognized the outline. It was another Divine Shield Mirror Force.
"So it was your second Divine Shield Mirror Force. That was close," Shell sneered. "If I had attacked blindly, I would have walked straight into it. But my Duel is stronger. One of the cards I discarded was the Spell Card Card of Compensation. When it is discarded from the hand to the Graveyard, I draw two more cards."
He used Card Draw again and swept his arm forward. "Battle Phase. King of the End Demise, King of the End, attack directly!"
The massive axe rose again, locking onto Judai Yuki. Calmly, Judai Yuki revealed another card from his hand.
"Thanks to Bubble Illusion, I can activate one Trap Card from my hand this turn. I activate Trap Card Divine Shield Mirror Force!"
Even Yugen glanced sideways in surprise. Shell nearly choked at the sight.
"Mirror Force destroys all Attack Position monsters when an opponent declares an attack!"
The axe slammed into a transparent reflective barrier. Light burst outward and the reflected force surged back across the field toward Shell. The six pointed sigil on his forehead spun as blue fire burned in his eyes.
"I activate the Quick-Play Spell My Body as a Shield! I pay 1500 Life Points to negate an Effect Activation that would Destroy a monster on the field, and then Destroy that card!"
His Life Points fell from 4000 to 2500. The energy shield formed around Demise, King of the End, shattering the barrier of Mirror Force like glass. The axe continued forward, and the flames swept across Judai Yuki's side of the field.
Judai Yuki's Life Points dropped from 4000 to 1100. He staggered as black smoke rose from his body, clutching his chest and falling to one knee.
"This is the pain of Shadow Duel," Shell said. "This is what a true Duel is. A ritual where both sides stake their lives and souls. If you cannot endure it, you can surrender now."
"Come on, this is my first time in such an intense Duel," Judai Yuki replied.
He stood back up despite the smoke still rising from him, brushing off the dust with a grin. "How could I quit halfway? A Duel is about going until the last card and the last breath. It is only fun if you never give up until the very end."