The villainous young master just wants to live a Buddhist-like life.

　This incredibly intense duel immediately captivated a large audience. But just as the "Giant Tree Fortress" rose from the ground, and the spectators were eagerly anticipating what would happen next, the match abruptly ended!

　Patricia Pauline ultimately failed to achieve her goal.

　The duel was not actually dragged into the next round.

　Such miscalculations are actually quite common in duels. However, the imposing presence of the "Giant Tree Fortress" gave too many viewers the illusion that she still had a trump card up her sleeve.

　In reality, Patricia Pollin has been completely defeated.

　Whether it was luck or skill, she had already suffered defeat in this duel.

　"I was hoping to win a game before he really matured, to leave a good memory for the future, but it seems that's not going to happen..."

　Patricia Pollin's brow immediately relaxed, and after the referee announced the winner, she said, "I didn't expect to lose after all. If I had known this would happen, I should have participated in the Easter Duel Festival last semester."

　Her tone was full of regret.

　Dak felt somewhat ashamed upon hearing this.

　Patricia Polly continued, "In consideration of my crushing defeat, could you invite me to lunch?"

　Upon hearing this, Dark frowned and asked, "Is there something you need?"

　On this highly anticipated duel stage, he certainly couldn't accept any invitation to "have lunch together."

　But at that moment, a gray flame ignited in Patricia Pollin's eyes.

　The flames danced wildly, exuding an evil aura.

　Dark's eyes narrowed, and he lowered his voice, saying, "Let's talk about it downstairs."

　He then quickly recalled the Magic Spirit, neatly stacked the used Magic Cards and deck, and prepared to leave the stage.

　On the other side, Patricia Bolin smiled slightly, packed up her deck, and quickly left the stage.

　Neither of them spoke further on the contestant's stage, and they each left the stage.

　……

　After stepping off the contestant's platform and into the contestant's tunnel, the two reunited.

　“This is the third time we’ve met.” Patricia Pollin waved to Dark and gave him a sweet smile.

　Dark quickly caught up: "Is there anything you want to say?"

　Patricia Polly put a finger to her lips, shushed him, and said, "Aren't you going to treat me to something?"

　"Let's get down to business," Dark said matter-of-factly.

　Then he turned his head slightly and said, "My clubroom is on the top of the clock tower."

　“The Fantastic Beasts Society, right?” Patricia Polly nodded. “Then let’s go there.”

　The two then walked out side by side toward the spiral clock tower.

　Upon finally reaching the tenth floor of the spiral clock tower, Patricia Polly said with extreme disappointment, "I didn't catch anything..."

　"What?" Dark asked, a look of confusion in his eyes.

　“Let’s go into the classroom first,” Patricia Pollin said, pointing to the classroom door.

　As soon as Dak opened the door, the little guhuo birds and cat grass that had been chasing each other in the living room stopped instantly. Upon seeing that it was Dak, they all turned around and pounced on him.

　While dealing with the little cuties, Dak said to the big milk tank guarding the side, "Make some tea and snacks."

　"Moo!" Big Milk Pot patted the little apron on its body and turned to leave.

　After a while, a pot of fragrant black tea was placed on the guest table.

　The big milk tanker also brought over a plate of cookies.

　Dark poured Patricia some black tea, then cut to the chase, asking, "Where did you get your 'Netherworld Fire'?"

　Patricia Polly looked up at him and asked, "And yours?"

　Dark smiled and decided to show his sincerity: "Angus Jeffrey, you should know him, right?"

　Patricia Pollin asked with slight surprise, "The former president of the Noble Research Society?"

　Dark nodded slightly and said, "Yes, I had a duel with him during my vacation."

　Patricia Polly suddenly realized: "I see, you won the dueling ritual."

　Dark said calmly, "Since you even know about dueling rituals, I don't need to elaborate on the danger of this 'Netherworld Fire.' Tell me, how did you obtain it?"

　Patricia Bolin picked up the cookie, took a small bite, and then said, "My experience is somewhat similar to yours, but also different."

　"Hmm?" Dark asked curiously, "What do you mean?"

　Patricia Pollyne said, "During my vacation, I witnessed the execution ceremony of the Demon King held by the Holy Church, and afterwards I received a 'Netherworld Flame'... I never imagined we'd share the same name."

　Dark remained noncommittal: "After all, it leaked from the 'Gateway to the Underworld'."

　Patricia Pollyne said, "Although I don't know how that person found me, the day after the execution ceremony, someone who also obtained the 'Netherworld Flame' came to my door, and then... I obtained a second 'Netherworld Flame'!"

　……

　Good morning. That's all I can write for today, I'm done.

　My fingers have been hurting more and more lately.

　I haven't dared to open the diamond and pearl replica for 48 hours.

　I've started striving for my dreams, but things don't seem to be going very smoothly.

Chapter 661 [Seeking Monthly Tickets] The Resurrection of the Gods

　"The next day?" Dark asked, somewhat surprised.

　Patricia Bolin nodded slightly and said, "After being possessed by the Netherworld Fire, one will emit a unique aura that only the holder can perceive. Although I couldn't sense this at all on you, it was definitely the case at the time. As soon as that person approached, we sensed each other and developed a fervent desire to duel him."

　After understanding, Dark calmly said, "I see. And I wasn't possessed."

　Patricia Bolin looked surprised: "But you're not?"

　Dark stretched out his hand, and gray flames burst forth from his palm, burning fiercely.

　Dark changed the subject, asking, "And what about you? How did you conceal your Netherworld Fire? Since you knew of its existence, you wouldn't have allowed it to emanate, would you?"

　Patricia Bolin sighed, and gray flames suddenly emanated from the corner of her eye, fluttering like eyeshadow.

　She said, "I was lucky; I had a wise man by my side when I was in the capital."

　Patricia Bolin immediately sensed the unique aura of this Netherworld Fire. But she was even more astonished and asked, "How did you do that?"

　Dark smiled slightly, and with a snap of his fingers, he took the Netherworld Fire into his palm: "Just make it submit."

　Patricia Bolin:

　Dark sighed, "If one can perfectly control the Netherfire, it is indeed a useful tool. We can even regard it as a special spell."

　Patricia Bolin nodded and said, "The fires of the underworld only stimulate a person's desire to duel, and do not devour a person's ego. Even if one loses in a dueling ritual, one will only be stripped of the memories associated with it, as well as a small portion of the abilities related to the duel. This punishment is simply not enough in the face of those truly vicious curses."

　Dark nodded and said, "That's certainly true on the surface."

　“A sage?” Dark suddenly asked. “You’re also from Sainz?”

　“Hmm,” Patricia Pollin smiled. “Yes, the City of Knowledge, Saines, is my birthplace. During the holidays, I hitched a ride with the Sages. Thanks to them, I wasn’t affected by the Netherworld Fire. Now, we’re in a relatively stable symbiotic state. The Sages say it’s not a bad thing.”

　Sainz is truly a breeding ground for wise men!

　Although the form of expression is the same, the overall understanding is subtly different from that of Patricia Bolin.

　However, when he deduced the situation using Patricia Pollin's way of thinking, and combined it with his discoveries so far, he suddenly realized some problems.

　His tone gradually became serious: "You mean there is a dominant consciousness guiding the gathering of these Netherworld Fires? Their final aggregation will awaken this dominant consciousness?"

　Patricia Pollin then solemnly stated, "It seems you've also noticed. The sages unanimously agree that the true danger of Netherfire lies not in its apparent effects. To use my personal experience as an example, if all wielders of Netherfire could sense each other and devour each other's Netherfire after a duel, then it could be understood that Netherfire inherently possesses a tendency towards unification. If left unchecked, it will leverage this property to eventually merge from scattered individuals into a massive aggregate. And this aggregate is the true source of danger!"

　Upon hearing this, Dak frowned slightly.

　What he was worried about before was actually the nature of the Netherworld Fire as a breeding ground for evil spirits, and the social chaos it would cause.

　“The God of the Underworld?” Dark said. “Humanity has just struggled out of a long war with the demons, but now it has to face the threat of the God of the Underworld. The world is truly in turmoil.”

　Patricia Bolin sipped her black tea and sighed, "When I look through history, Ragnarok seems to be just around the corner. But what I see now is that the gods seem to be restless, and I don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing."

　Dark said, “History teaches us that whenever one god shows signs of resurgence, a second will follow. Then a third. This is the natural order, beyond human control.”

　Patricia Bolin looked up at him, and after a moment said, "The sages believe that the opening of the gates of the underworld ultimately caused all of this. A powerful consciousness wandering in the underworld attempted to use this method to sneak into the human world, thereby completing the reversal from death to life. And beings capable of doing this are usually called gods!"

　Dark's eyes flickered: "What should we call a god who has returned from the underworld?"

　Patricia Bolin said, "We usually refer to this type of god as the god of the underworld."

　Dark hesitated for a moment, then said, "In that case, the strategy of actively collecting Netherworld Fire becomes less feasible."

　Patricia Bolin said, "Possessing a small amount of Netherworld Fire is not a bad thing. If you are lucky in the future, you may be able to become the human representative of the God of the Underworld—I mean, if the God of the Underworld shows goodwill. But if you possess a large amount and unfortunately become the vessel for the God of the Underworld's resurrection, then I'm afraid there is no hope at all."

　Dark nodded and said, "That's true. So, why did you deliberately reveal the aura of Netherworld Fire when you came here?"

　Patricia Bolin said, "The sages share the same idea as you; they began preparations months ago."

　But Dark changed the subject and asked, "Then, have the sages considered how to prevent the resurrection of this first god of the underworld?"

　Patricia Bolin said with a hint of helplessness, "Of course we've thought about that. On the surface, the simplest way is to stop the fusion of these Netherworld Fires. But in reality, we don't know how much Netherworld Fire this god needs to revive. One-third? One-half? Or one hundred percent? We don't even know how much of the Netherworld God's Fire has escaped."

　Dark asked curiously, "I didn't summon Netherworld Fire at the masquerade ball. But I did use the Netherworld Soul Ring in the previous duel, so why didn't you react?"

　Patricia Bolin shook her head and said, "It's too far."

　“I see.” Dark nodded, accepting the explanation.

　Patricia Bolin's gaze sharpened, and she said in a low voice, "In fact, I sensed some traces of Netherworld Fire during the costume party on Halloween Eve! But the aura vanished in an instant, and I still can't pinpoint it."

　Dark said, "So, besides you and me, there are other wielders of the Netherworld Flame within the academy?"

　Patricia Bolin said, "If the scent I'm smelling isn't coming from your Netherfire."

　Assuming there is a third person within St. Marian Academy who possesses the Netherworld Flame, and this third person has not yet been discovered, they must also have a corresponding method to conceal their presence.

　Dak and Patricia Bolin continued chatting for a long time, not parting until lunchtime.

　The Netherworld Soul Ring is, after all, a product of the power of the Netherworld Fire being refined a second time, rather than the Netherworld Fire itself.

　Moreover, even the Netherworld Fire itself must have a sensing range.

　If it's too far away, or if it's obscured by something, you won't be able to perceive it.

　Today's events have likely alerted Patricia Pollin, making it even more difficult to find the third person.

　But he wasn't actually very enthusiastic about "finding this third person".

　Compared to that, he was more concerned about the process of the gods' resurrection.

　Although Dark did invite Patricia Bolin to lunch, the latter stated that it was a joke, adding, "I don't want my perfectly good college life to turn into hell."

　They left so cleanly and decisively.

　After she left, Dak began to think alone.

　First came the revival of the Moon Goddess, then the revival of the Underworld God, and finally the Heart of God within the underground city!

　"No, there seems to be more!"

　Dak suddenly remembered what Sunamontirfali had mentioned about the temple dedicated to the sun god and the moon god.

　His in-depth conversations with Patricia Bolin further solidified his belief in his interpretation of Eudora's prophecy.

　"Perhaps this process will be faster than we imagine."

　Upon careful examination, he discovered that he had encountered three related incidents in just over a year.

　"And the world is so vast, how many similar incidents are happening in places I don't even know about?"

　Dak frowned.

　In the original game, the event of the gods' resurrection did not occur until the end of the game.

　In addition, the murals in the Golden Kingdom are also very likely related to gods.

　"If you count them all, there are already five locations!"

　"I alone have been involved in five related incidents."

　Dark went straight to the pavilion in the middle of the lake and entered the Traveler's Street through the teleportation hub.