Mars said, "My Field Spell Card, Sanctuary of the Salamangreats, does indeed have that effect. But I don't want to use it just yet."
"After its reincarnation, Sunlight Wolf awakened its second effect. I activate that effect to recover the Quick-Play Spell Salamangreat Roar from my Graveyard to my hand."
Seeing Mars proudly pull off his "Reincarnation Link Summon," Li You rubbed his chin without much reaction.
Honestly, this so-called "Reincarnation Link Summon" seemed to him a bit like overengineering for a simple task...
[Yi Fei Chong Tian]: "Huh? All that for just that effect? I thought it'd be something way more impressive."
[Si Ze Yun Suan]: "That effect can be done by plenty of monsters without needing a 'reincarnation.' It's a bit overhyped."
[Illness Named Love] was clearly upset at their criticism but had no real comeback, since even he had occasionally grumbled to himself about Mars's deck mechanics.
In the pre-transmigration world, the Extra Deck was limited to 15 monsters. But Salamangreats needed to include multiple copies of the same monster in the Extra Deck to activate their "reincarnation" effects.
This greatly restricted deck building, forcing players to cut powerful generic options, thus reducing the deck's flexibility.
However...
In the Sacred Star Realm, the Extra Deck has no card limit—if you own the cards, you can summon them freely.
This allowed many previously impractical strategies due to Extra Deck limits to shine in full force here.
Likewise, Mars could now play without constraint.
Mars maintained a calm expression as he continued: "I'm not done yet. I activate the effect of Falco Jaguar in my Graveyard—by returning Mirage Stallion from my Graveyard to the Extra Deck, I Special Summon Falco Jaguar to a zone Sunlight Wolf points to.
"Also, when a monster is Special Summoned to a zone Sunlight Wolf points to, it triggers Sunlight Wolf's first effect—I recover Salamangreat Gazelle from my Graveyard to my hand. However, I cannot use it again this turn."
Mars – Hand: 6
Mars opened his third Link Gate—
"Appear now, the circuit of burning soul!
"Arrow confirmation—Left, Right, Down!
"Summon condition—2 or more Effect Monsters.
"I set Sunlight Wolf and Falco Jaguar into the Link Markers. Circuit combine!!
"Hell's fiery mistress, command the blaze and summon the end through your grand firework waltz!
"Link Summon—Descend, Salamangreat Pyro Phoenix!"
Salamangreat Pyro Phoenix – Link-3, ATK/2700
A volcanic eruption—
Two obsidian-bodied fire dragons danced wildly, swirling around a dazzling demoness with fire-red hair and an icy expression.
The demon queen of the underworld said not a word, but her arms burned with hellfire as she emanated a chilling bloodlust.
[Love and Courage]: "Wow! What a beautiful monster!"
Li You muttered, "Even this card's here… So the reason he didn't use the Field Spell was to call a stronger Link Monster."
Mars smugly smiled: "Correct. I activate Pyro Phoenix's second effect—to revive a FIRE monster from my Graveyard. I choose Sunlight Wolf."
"Zarc, witness my ultimate monster—
"Appear now, circuit of burning soul!
"Arrow confirmation—Up, Down, Left, Right!
"Summon condition—2 or more FIRE Effect Monsters.
"I set Sunlight Wolf and Pyro Phoenix into the Link Markers. Circuit combine!!
"King of blazing flames, use my soul as fuel and unleash your grand finale!
"Link Summon—Descend, Salamangreat Heatleo Phoenix Mode!!"
Salamangreat Heatleo Phoenix Mode – Link-4, ATK/2800!
Mars's sacred fire altar ignited fiercely. A firebird soared skyward with a sharp screech before diving like a meteor to ignite a blazing explosion.
In a burst of brilliant light, a warrior clad in a flaming avian suit descended, exuding intense pressure with his fiery wings.
[Yi Fei Chong Tian]: "Link-4, is this his ace monster?"
[Just Because You're Beautiful]: "But it only has 2800 ATK…"
[Illness Named Love]: "Told you—stop judging monsters by such shallow stats!"
Mars pulled out another copy of the same card from his Extra Deck: "My Salamangreats gain true power only through reincarnation...
"Now, I activate the Field Spell Sanctuary of the Salamangreats's first effect. Using Heatleo Phoenix Mode as the sole material, I reincarnation Link Summon it again!
"This is my ultimate technique—Reincarnation Link Summon!!"
The sacrificial fire at the altar burned golden-hot. Heatleo Phoenix Mode burned itself away—fiery feathers fell one by one, its body reduced to ashes and then vapor.
The monster bore the agony in silence.
When the flames died down, only golden ash remained.
But just when everyone thought it was over, a brilliant flame erupted from the ash. The king of the undead was reborn from the underworld—
Mars chanted, "Descend once more—Link-4, Salamangreat Heatleo Phoenix Mode!!"
Watching Mars's ace return reborn, Li You gently clapped: "Impressive… So what's the effect it gains after reincarnation?"
Mars hesitated: "Heatleo Phoenix Mode's reincarnation effect activates—I add one 'Salamangreat' card from my Deck to my hand."
That's it… A humble search effect.
Everyone was stunned. Had they misheard?
[Love and Courage]: "No way. That's the ace of a Link-4 monster? Just for searching?"
[Shut Up, Bro]: "Hard to believe. Isn't that usually a task for low-level monsters?"
Even [Illness Named Love] fell silent in embarrassment.
Indeed, in modern Yu-Gi-Oh, with spin-heavy, overpowered duels everywhere, the best way to buff an old archetype was to give it a strong new starter card—a "spinner" that could combo off a single summon.
Yet here…
Imagine a gang's strongest thug who tells you his job is to drive the underlings around.
That's the tragedy of Salamangreats.
Their only truly capable low-level monster, Gazelle, could only send to the Graveyard. So the boss had to do the searching.
Mars coughed to change the topic.
"Er… I set three cards face-down and end my turn."
Mars – Hand: 4
~# Keep the chapters coming — Support with Power Stones!