Marine Era 1491, Grand Line.
In the Calm Belt at the border between the narrow sea known as the New World and the West Blue, three burning meteors tore across the heavens.
Golden, crimson, and indigo trails ripped through the clouds, carrying divine might as they crashed toward a certain isolated island.
When the last trace of radiance faded, the northern hill had become a hundred-meter-wide crater. Amid the heat waves rising from the scorched earth, three small figures slowly emerged.
The red and blue figures lay curled at the bottom of the crater, their brows tightly furrowed as though resisting some dreadful nightmare. The golden one in the center had trembling eyelids, looking as though he was about to awaken.
Sure enough, the very next second...
His eyes opened, revealing crimson pupils that instantly took in the vast blue sky. There was no way to tell whether that unobstructed sky was familiar or strange, but this was clearly an outdoor environment.
The girl lying on her back had loose hair that flowed with a gleam like liquid sunlight, casting scattered flecks of light across her bare skin.
"An unfamiliar sky... Urgh, not a ceiling." The instant those ethereal childish words slipped out, the blonde girl froze.
His fingertips brushed his throat. The sensation was like touching the warm sun of early winter, strangely unreal.
"Why is my voice..."
It was a tone completely unlike the voice he remembered having.
Of course, due to differences in how sound was transmitted, he had never truly known what his original voice sounded like. Still, it was definitely worlds apart from this one.
It was ethereal yet somewhat childish, irresistibly calling to mind hymns sung in praise by elves, as though it could cleanse a soul rusted by reality and turn it into flawless crystal.
That was secondary, though. The crucial point was that it was a distinctly feminine voice—and a child's voice at that.
A strand of golden hair caught from the corner of his eye further confirmed it.
This was not his body. Or rather, this was not the body of the male human named You Ling.
Moreover, the golden figure soon discovered a second anomaly.
There was no panic, no trembling. The girl was terrifyingly calm, as though this tiny shell imprisoned an ancient, eternal rationality.
Faced with an unfamiliar environment, an unfamiliar voice, and perhaps even an unfamiliar world, the consciousness within this body did not produce the slightest negative emotion. That was undoubtedly another piece of less-than-good news.
It feels like my emotions have been suppressed, and my sensitivity has faded along with them. It seems more than just my appearance has changed. So he thought.
He moved his arms and felt neither stiffness nor resistance. They truly moved as naturally as his own limbs.
After confirming that there was nothing wrong with his bodily functions, the golden figure closed his eyes and began sorting through his current situation.
The environment has changed. This is very likely what they call transmigration. I just don't know whether I traveled through time or space, or whether this is still Earth.
My body has changed. Either I was reincarnated, or I took possession of another body. But I can't sense any other soul in this body, nor have I inherited any unfamiliar memories, so it's hard to say for now.
My personality seems to have changed too, but my memories haven't. My self-recognition as You Ling hasn't changed either. That's a good thing.
Thinking this, the golden figure finally found an "anchor," and his brows relaxed slightly.
It could not be helped. Unlike other transmigrators, who either immediately knew which world they had entered with their physical bodies, inherited the previous owner's memories after possessing someone, or simply received some so-called system as a guide.
His transmigration had left him completely in the dark. Everything was unfamiliar; both his exterior and interior had changed. He could only use the memories that unquestionably belonged to You Ling as his starting point.
After briefly sorting out his own circumstances, the golden figure noticed the two small red and blue figures still unconscious on the ground.
When his gaze fell upon the unconscious pair, the strange resonance rising from the depths of his soul told him that these two were also You Ling.
How incredible.
Seeing two other versions of himself was a peculiar feeling.
Looking at the familiar red-and-blue color scheme of those two little ones, he lifted a strand of his brilliant golden hair with his fingers and examined it closely.
Neither its texture nor its feel resembled ordinary hair. It was warm and delicate, like flowing gold.
Gold, red, blue.
Those three highly suggestive colors made him think of a term almost immediately, especially when combined with what he had been doing before his transmigration...
No. I need to verify it further.
He released his hair, letting it fall back over his body. The overly complete sensation made him unconsciously lower his head, where he saw his completely naked body.
Without embarrassment or any other emotional reaction, he instinctively began directing the unfamiliar power within him.
Golden divine power transformed into a white gown traced with golden patterns. Behind his left ear, a wing-shaped golden hair ornament formed and gathered his hair. It all felt utterly natural.
Once he had finished, the golden figure bent down, grabbed the other two little ones one in each hand, and lightly leapt out of the impact crater. He then looked around as though searching for something.
After fixing his gaze on a huge, smooth rock nearby, he gently set down the two little ones he was holding and placed a hand against the rock.
Then, with a thought, a thread of golden flame appeared from thin air and sliced horizontally through the enormous boulder.
The rock had already been smooth in texture, but the high-temperature cut made its cross-section mirror-like, reflecting his current appearance.
As expected. At least I can now confirm the matter of this body.
Reflected in the stone mirror was a face You Ling knew very well—the humanoid version of The Winged Dragon of Ra that he had personally sculpted.
And compared to the inherent shortcomings in the details of a figurine, this face was absolutely flawless from every angle.
However, compared to the original figurine's appearance of seventeen or eighteen years old, this face was clearly much younger now, perhaps only around ten.
Has my appearance become younger because my soul was split apart?
Feeling his noticeably smaller body, the girl suddenly recalled the sensation of his soul being torn apart before he lost consciousness. Combined with the two You Lings now lying at his feet, he understood everything almost instantly.
The golden figure glanced once more at the other two little ones he had placed beside the rock. As expected, they felt extremely "familiar," and they looked even younger, probably only eight or nine years old.
"Yu-Gi-Oh," transmigration, a soul torn apart, split into three, the Three Phantom Gods, figurines...
"The man named You Ling transmigrated while playing Yu-Gi-Oh. His soul split into three, each part merging with the power of one of the Three Phantom Gods, and his body was reshaped from figurines into forms compatible with the souls.
"Then I inherited the one-third that possessed the power of The Winged Dragon of Ra." The golden You Ling arrived at that conclusion.
It was undoubtedly the correct answer. A perfect body reshaped to contain the power of a god naturally possessed the mind and talent to match.
After inspecting himself in place, he found no strange wings or tail growing from his body, nor any tattoo-like energy bands. His entire body was perfectly clean, which left him somewhat satisfied.
After all, while the original figurines You Ling had made were primarily humanoid, they still retained certain characteristics from the card artwork.
For example, this body of The Winged Dragon of Ra had wings, a tail, and a divine halo.
While those unfamiliar "attachments" looked stunning, they would be somewhat difficult for him to adapt to after more than twenty years in an ordinary humanoid form.
Say, if this body can continue growing, will those things grow out too? Or can I control them freely?
If I can control them, will I be able to completely "transform into a Phantom God" and become The Winged Dragon of Ra's original form someday...?
Having resolved one major question, the little figure could not help feeling somewhat relieved, only to immediately sink into increasingly strange thoughts.
Meanwhile, the other two even smaller figures slowly began to stir. Before long, both jolted awake.
"Sky Dragon, did you betray us again?! Ribbit! No, don't shoot me!"
"Mm↑ Obelisk! I didn't mean to use you as a sacrifice!"
The red and blue little ones practically launched themselves upright, both suddenly sitting up with a start as they rubbed their chests in lingering terror.