"Speaking of which, it seems we haven't heard the will of God for a long time..."
Luciano suddenly said.
The other two remained silent.
It was a fact.
In the past, they were the Three Emperors of Taiyi, leaders of the Taiyi Organization. Taiyi was the main operational unit under ZONE, and most of the work was scheduled and arranged by them, so they had always been at the absolute core.
But now that they thought about it, how long had it been since they received a divine oracle?
It seemed, perhaps, probably... it began when that one new emperor appeared?
An eerie silence filled the space, and the atmosphere became somewhat tense.
No one took the lead in speaking, but all three began to harbor doubts in their hearts.
Were they... already abandoned?
Upon further thought, it didn't seem entirely without reason.
Their failures and being completely overshadowed by this new emperor's power meant it was only natural for God to entrust more work to those who were capable.
The best evidence was that, although God had developed a new power for the Machine Emperor series, it had not been entrusted to them, the original holders of the Machine Emperor, but to this new Taiyi Emperor.
What more convincing proof could there be than this?
In this strange silence, cracks appeared in space, and someone who had just finished adjusting the Nordic Three Gods walked leisurely into this realm.
"What are you three doing here daydreaming instead of working?"
The three: "..."
Yugen walked in and looked down.
Below them, in this cosmic-curtain-like Void Space, countless light pathways grew from the void like nerve networks drawn by an invisible hand. These light paths were sometimes as straight as swords, sometimes as winding as snakes, interweaving into a breathing three-dimensional network in absolute darkness. Each light pathway was formed by flowing Star Dust, with cross nodes continuously bursting into rainbow-colored data sparks, illuminating the whole space like a shattered mirror maze.
Three spiral main roads wound around each other, branching off into countless fractal sublines, and each branch then developed into more intricate secondary loops. The entire system seemed to be alive, continuously expanding, with areas occasionally dimming, then reigniting in a new geometric form, like a cosmos repeatedly calculating some ultimate formula with a pen of light.
Loop.
This was the loop ZONE was drawing to summon the "Arc Cradle" to arrive. WRGP was held precisely for this purpose, and all dueling Duelists were fighting with all their might, with their released energy becoming nourishment for the loop.
"Wow, so many appeared all at once today," Yugen said with a smile, "Was it because of the duel just now?"
Machine Emperor VS Star Realm Triumvirate, indeed a heavyweight match; there really weren't many duels of this level in the entire WRGP. The loops manifesting from this single duel exceeded the total number of loops from the competition so far.
"Indeed," Jose said in a deep voice, "your intervention was effective, and the loop's progress was greatly accelerated. In this case, the 'Divine Residence City' should soon descend."
Divine Residence City was their subordinate personnel's name for the Arc Cradle.
Luciano crossed his arms, pouting, "Well, then there will be even less need for us."
Yugen gave him a weird look, "No need for you? Who says that?"
The three exchanged glances.
Eventually, Luciano pouted and said, "Otherwise? Machine Emperor Dragon Triskelion, there was even such a thing... I hadn't even heard of it."
Placido, always silent, let out a low noise, "Perhaps God also thought that your insignificant power was insufficient to control such a monster after all. Machine Emperor Dragon is evidently a higher existence than our respective Machine Emperors."
Yugen seemed to understand something, chuckling, "Oh? You think your God abandoned you, so he gave the new power of the Machine Emperor to me?"
The three were silent.
"Then you've really wronged him," Yugen smiled, "I think, upon seeing the Machine Emperor Dragon at today's match, your God was probably no less surprised than you three."
"Eh?"
The three looked up together, somewhat surprised.
Jose said, "Machine Emperor Dragon... wasn't that card bestowed upon you by God?"
"Of course not, this card was completed just yesterday. I personally supervised the work," Yugen said casually, "It's my research, or at least my idea.
This monster's development, even ZONE probably didn't know about it."
The three's expressions instantly changed.
The joyful part was, perhaps they hadn't been abandoned by God. Because the Machine Emperor Dragon wasn't given by God at all; the guy in front of them tinkered it up himself.
However, it also warned them of another matter. This person not only played cards better than them but could even conduct research and develop on his own, having created something like the Machine Emperor Dragon shortly after starting at Taiyi.
Doesn't that mean their gap with this person has grown even wider?
"The plan hasn't changed; you three continue to form the 'New World Team,' participate in WRGP, and take down Yusei Fudo and his 5DS team."
Yugen said seriously.
"You have your tasks, I have mine. God has his considerations, and you have always believed as such, haven't you?
I believe to him, you're not just tools to reach a goal, not something to be discarded at will.
You're his irreplaceable companions, or at least the continuation of his companions. If anything, I'm the tool of the greatest practical use at this stage, something that can be replaced at any time if it loses its usefulness.
In the end, I'm just a collaborator with common interests. But you are his companions."
The trio exchanged looks, expressions complicated.
They truly didn't expect that this Fujiki Yugen, who replaced them and had been so unlikable since taking office, would say such things to them.
So perhaps... just perhaps...
This person may not be as bothersome as he seems?
"Oh right, speaking of which..."
Yugen tilted his head, pondering.
"You should start feeling a slight sense of urgency."
Jose: "What?"
"Yusei Fudo seems to have gained some inspiration recently, investigating the secrets of 'Accelerated Synchro,'"
Yugen said with a smile.
"Jack Atlas too. He went looking for the ruins of the legendary Earth-bound God Red Lotus Demon a few days ago, and he probably discovered something by now."
"Dragon Sealers are each evolving in their own ways, so you better be careful when you encounter them at WRGP."
"Hmph, let them evolve all they want, then come at us,"
Placido regained his usual pride.
"Then these foolish bugs will be crushed to pieces by the power of my intellect!"