Teacher Dade Temple's corpse.
But Yugen looked at the mummified body in the coffin with no expression on his face.
Because he was already mentally prepared.
This corpse was indeed Dade Temple himself. Yet a bit of thought reveals that Dade Temple had only been missing for a few days, but the corpse had already become mummified, indicating it had been dead for a long time.
So it was this shell that died, not Dade Temple himself.
As previously mentioned, Dade Temple had been terminally ill long ago and delved deeply into alchemy in search of immortality. The body before him was his original body, whereas his own soul had long since transferred into an artificial new body.
Perhaps from the time Yugen and Judai first met Dade Temple, he was already an Artificial Human.
Yugen gazed at the mummy in silence for a moment before suddenly turning slowly around. At the entrance behind him, a figure had appeared at some unknown time.
The person wore a peculiar wide robe and a hood that completely concealed their face behind a mask, making their features unclear. But on their hand was a Duel Disc, and their figure was quite tall. Underneath the hood, a pair of cold eyes looked at Yugen.
The strongest of the Seven-Star Officers. Of course, Yugen also realized that this was the missing Dade Temple himself.
"Since you have discovered this place."
The person's eyes flashed with a cold light.
"You need not leave anymore."
"Is that so."
Yugen, however, was not concerned and simply smiled slightly.
He stepped forward slowly, facing the person with only the open space of the Alchemy Laboratory between them. The person's tall figure barred the entrance, clearly signaling that a duel was the only way to pass.
"A Dark Duel?" Yugen asked.
"Naturally." The voice from under the hood was thick and distorted as if modified by a voice changer, "Defeat me, and you may leave alive. Or die here, and your discovered secret will be buried with you."
Yugen sighed.
"Must we really act this out, Teacher Dade Temple?"
Hooded figure: "......"
The person hesitated for several seconds.
It seemed as if they were hesitant but eventually reached up, and with a sudden motion, removed the hood and mask, revealing the face underneath.
"Oh my, is it that obvious?"
Under the mask was indeed Dade Temple. But unlike the usual harmless face, his face was now bulging with veins, his eyes still squinted, yet one could faintly see that they no longer looked human, instead revealing a strange crimson glow.
Clearly, he had completely shed the guise of the timid teacher and now possessed the bearing of a boss.
But Yugen, seeing his fierce and partly menacing face, understood something.
"I see, so that's the reason for your recent disappearance." Yugen remarked, "How much longer can your body hold on, Teacher?"
Dade Temple: "..."
Another few seconds of silence followed by a dry laugh.
"You really can't hide anything from you, Yugen... or perhaps I should now refer to you as the Duel King."
He said, coughing a few times, then wiping his mouth.
"I could never quite understand you. So when did you start noticing my secret? From the beginning?"
But Yugen didn't answer this question: "So, must we really continue like this, Teacher?"
Dade Temple let out two laughs.
"Of course. As you can see, I am a member of the Seven Stars, loyal to that master, here to unlock the key to the Phantom Demon seal. From the start, I was here at Duel Academy for that purpose."
He said as he unfolded his Duel Disc, sternly declaring.
"I had anticipated a battle with you; I just planned to seize the other keys first before facing you last.
But since you've already discovered it, it doesn't matter if it's a bit earlier."
His face grew cold, and he shouted.
"Then let's begin!"
"Let the teacher see the caliber of a Duel King!"
"I guess we still have to fight."
Yugen shrugged, unfolding his Duel Disc as well, indicating he was ready to accompany.
He knew that Dade Temple was already dying. The duel now was partly Dade Temple's way to test Yugen's skills as an alchemist and as the only student he'd personally taught for so long. It was also Dade Temple's self-assessment.
Even if Dade Temple lost the duel, he would probably not take Yugen's life but perhaps imprison him within the Alchemy Scripture for a few days until all the students he wanted to test were thoroughly examined.
Of course, Yugen didn't plan on losing, either.
"Duel!" x2
[Yugen, LP 4000]
[Dade Temple, LP 4000]
"I'll go first, draw." Dade Temple said, "Activate Continuous Magic 'Alchemy Cauldron - Chaos Refinement'!" (Original Card)
As he spoke, a massive alchemical device roared onto his field, boiling liquid churning incessantly within.
"As expected of the alchemy teacher." Yugen commented, "An Alchemy Card Deck?"
"That's right, alchemy must have alchemical equipment. This is what I've taught you." Dade Temple smiled, "The effect of the Alchemy Cauldron is that all cards sent to the graveyard are removed from play."
A one-sided Great Cosmos effect for himself, but it's also one of the core operations of Dade Temple's own deck. His alchemy relies solely on banishment for combat, with no need for a graveyard.
"Then I activate the Magic Card 'Lead Compass.'" Dade Temple continued, "This card can only be activated if 'Alchemy Cauldron - Chaos Refinement' is on the field.
Special Summon an 'Alchemy Beast - Lead Lion' from the hand or deck!" (Original Card)
The Alchemy Cauldron emitted a low hum, and a lion seemingly composed of lead elements roared as it leaped out of the cauldron and landed on the field.
[Alchemy Beast - Lead Lion, Attack Power 500]
"Set two cards, and the turn ends." Dade Temple said lightly, "Alright, your turn.
Come on, let me witness the Duel King's duel."
"I'm just your student. But since the teacher wants to test my achievements, I shall give it my all."
Yugen replied humbly.
"My turn, draw.
I summon 'Survivor from Another Dimension.'"
[Survivor from Another Dimension, Attack Power 1800]
"Oh? A monster with resistance to banishment, capable of returning to the field even when removed from play." Dade Temple chuckled, "Truly, my most understanding student.
Is it a deck designed to counter my 'Great Cosmos' strategy?"
"After all, if I were to pit a graveyard-reliant deck against you, wouldn't that mean half the battle would be lost before it even started?" Yugen smiled.
"Then let's begin, be careful, Teacher.
Battle. Survivor from Another Dimension attacks 'Alchemy Beast - Lead Lion.'"
The lion with a mere five hundred attack points stood no chance against the Warrior's attack. But Dade Temple immediately raised his voice.
"Too naive! Activate Cover Card!
Continuous Trap 'Element Absorber'!"