Yu - Gi - Oh ! - Episode 172 Joey and Valon ' s Duel continues after Valon counters Joey ' s finishing blow , while Yami Yugi and the others continue to search for him . Joey and Valon congratulate each other as worthy opponents as the Duel of Armor reaches its conclusion . Summary . Yami Yugi , Téa and Tristan are still trying to navigate the city , and the map says Joey should be nearby . Yami is lost in thought , remembering that his " Timaeus " card had glowed when Joey used " Hermos " , but it stopped reacting some time ago . They consider what that might mean about his condition , and he insists that they must find him soon . At that moment , Joey and Valon are both bruised and gasping for breath , down to only a handful of Life Points each . Joey remarks that he thought he ' d had Valon beat with his most recent attack . Valon replies by complimenting Joey as the most tenacious opponent he ' s ever faced . Mai listens to this , wondering how such a fierce Duel could still have both of them insistent to keep going . Her desire to fight returns , and the Seal appears on her forehead before she winces , suppressing it . Joey pays half his Life Points to maintain the " Aura Armor " , and he places two face - down cards to finish his turn . With Valon ' s turn , he draws " Phoenix Gravitation " , which lets him Summon a new suit of Armor monsters from his Graveyard . All at once , he is armed with his strongest weapons . He compliments Joey on getting so far , but it ' s because of this strength that he must fight back with all his power . Joey agrees , but clarifies that Valon will be the one defeated . He uses both his Face - Downs to put into play a chosen card from Valon ' s Graveyard and a random one from his own . The one he chooses from Valon is " Big Bang Blow " , and for his own , he closes his eyes in preparation to Draw . Both Duelists have one card in mind , and after a silent wish , Joey picks and holds the card high . This card is " the Claw of Hermos " , to Joey ' s elation and Valon ' s amazement . Joey immediately fuses his two new cards to create " Big Bang Dragon Blow " , commenting that this time , he will be the one using Valon ' s weapon . Valon laughs , affirming that this is the Duel he ' s wanted , one to push him to the limits . The time has come for the last attack , which Joey confirms . Both Duelists lunge at each other , fists colliding precisely in an explosion so strong the shockwave knocks Mai off her feet . From several blocks away , Téa stops running , signaling the others to look . A spiraling white column of light is blasting up to the sky , and Yami sees Timaeus glow once again . At the very center of the energy storm , Joey and Valon struggle for for the upper hand . Both are happy even as they fight , and outside , Mai gets back to her feet and says the duel it look a draw . All of a sudden , Joey gets the advantage by activating the effect of " Big Bang Dragon Blow " : by sacrificing his " Red - Eyes Black Dragon " , he is able to Destroy all of Valon ' s monsters and then inflict damage to Valon equal to the total ATK of those Monsters . The power of Joey ' s Attack gathers , and with one final yell , Joey sends Valon flying back , all of Valon ' s armor breaking apart even as he brakes himself to a standing stop . The rest of his Life Points drop to zero , and he admits defeat , dropping to one knee . He turns to Mai , who is very shaken by the outcome , and he tells her not to look like that . No matter who she ' s thinking of , he believes they ' ll come back together in the end . Even though she saw the awful side of him and he still lost , he has no regrets . She moves closer to him , stepping within inches of the border . Valon then turns to Jounouchi and leaves Mai in his care . Just after Joey nods to this , Valon slumps to his side , and Mai calls out his name . But he ' s already unconscious , and the Seal closes in on him , beaming to the sky before leaving his body . Within Dartz ' s temple , a new tablet appears with the image of Valon , crouching and quiescent . He announces that Mai is next , sounding sure of it so he can revive the Great Leviathan . He challenges her to show him her heart ' s darkness . Mai bends down and hugs Valon ' s body , crying and whispering his name . She remembers him telling her how he was like her , unable to live without winning . But then he found someone he could share his victories with - her . Her eyes clear up , and she regains her breath , setting him down as Joey calls her name . She calls him stupid for talking about Duels like they can be shared , when they ' re really for oneself . But when she grins and adds that that ' s why Valon lost , Joey insists that Valon gave his best for that fight . Mai notes his emotion and turns to him , the Seal glowing briefly on her forehead as she asks , " Isn ' t Valon an enemy ? " Joey confirms it , but says he respects people who fight with all they have . She only smirks at him , and he challenges her to a Duel . He realizes that ' s the only way to reach her feelings , and he encourages her to Duel with no holding back from either of them . With Valon ' s body set aside , the two prepare their Duel . Yami and the others continue in Joey ' s direction , guided by Yami ' s intuition from " Timaeus " . Kaiba and Mokuba remark that there ' s no one around them , and Kaiba ' s hunch that Doma is responsible is confirmed when ranks of Orichalcos Soldiers appear before them . Mai begins the Duel , and Joey struggles in his response , still feeling the injuries from the previous Duel . His turn is a simple one , which Mai thinks about and realizes is unlike him . But he assures her he ' s not holding back . He now understands that , in his Duel with Valon , they talked a lot , and not just with words . In doing so , Joey sensed Valon ' s heart , and that ' s why he also wants a serious Duel with her . He hopes that she ' ll understand him by the end of it , and he wants to understand her , too . Speechless for a moment , she laughs at the idea he could understand her , who keeps Dueling just to win . He answers that he doesn ' t understand that at first , but even so , he ' s doesn ' t want to give up . Her response is to keep going , and their Duel becomes a fight to keep a monster in play . Joey gains the upper hand with a high - level monster " Cyber - Tech Alligator " , but when Mai plays " The Seal of Orichalcos " , it affirms the drive to win in her heart and puts her monsters back in the lead . As a final defense , Joey uses " Scapegoat " , but Mai is fully prepared for this move with her " Nightmare Tri - Mirror " trap , flooding her field with high - powered " Harpies " . Joey is still hardly closer to reaching through the feelings in her heart , and he has only one turn to prepare for the attack she is still eager to unleash . Featured Duels . Featured Duel # 1 : Joey Wheeler vs . Valon - Part 4 . " Duel continues from previous episode . " Joey has 200 Life Points remaining and controls " Player Token " ( 200 / 200 ) and " Red - Eyes Black Dragon " ( 2400 / 2000 ) in Attack Position . Valon has 900 Life Points remaining and controls " The Seal of Orichalcos " . Turn 15 : Joey Joey ' s " Red - Eyes Black Dragon " and " Player Token " have been summoned from the Graveyard to his side of the field via Valon ' s " Extinction Fist " . Since " Player Token " of " Aura Armor " was Special Summon ed , Joey must pay half his Life Points ( Joey 200 → 100 ) . Joey Sets two Cards . Turn 16 : Valon Valon draws " Phoenix Gravitation " . On Valon ' s Standby Phase , he activates the second effect of " Psychic Armor Head " to Special Summon the latter ( 0 → 500 / 500 ) from the Graveyard in Attack Position . Valon then activates " Phoenix Gravitation " to Special Summon " Burning Knuckle " ( 0 → 500 / 1000 ) , " Jet Gauntlet " ( 0 → 500 / 1500 ) , " Over Boost " ( 0 → 500 / 1000 ) , and " Active Guard " ( 0 → 500 / 2500 ) from his Graveyard in Attack Position . Due to the effect of " Burning Knuckle " , it gains 200 ATK for each face - up Armor monster Valon controls . There are currently five ( " Burning Knuckle " : 500 → 1500 / 1000 ) . Joey activates his face - down " Graverobber " to steal " Big Bang Blow " from Valon ' s Graveyard and Special Summon it to his side of the field ( 0 / 0 ) in Attack Position . Joey then activates his face - down " Take One Chance " to select one random card from his Graveyard and Special Summon / Activate that card immediately . The card randomly selected from his Graveyard is " The Claw of Hermos " . As per the effect of " Take One Chance " , Joey activates " Claw of Hermos " to merge the latter card with " Big Bang Blow " and form " Big Bang Dragon Blow " , which Joey equips to " Player Token " . " Burning Knuckle " attacks Joey ' s " Player Token " , but Joey activates the effect of " Big Bang Dragon Blow " to destroy Valon ' s Monsters and inflict damage to Valon equal to the combined ATK of his destroyed monsters ( Valon ' s " Active Guard " is thereby destroyed " before " damage is dealt , and thus can ' t be used as Damage prevention ) by sacrificing his " Red - Eyes Black Dragon " , ( Valon 900 → 0 ) . Featured Duel # 2 : Mai Valentine vs . Joey Wheeler - Part 1 . Turn 1 : Mai Mai draws " Cyber Harpie " and subsequently Normal Summons it ( 1800 / 1300 ) in Attack Position . Turn 2 : Joey Joey draws " Gilford the Lightning " . Aside from " Gilford the Lightning " , Joey ' s hand contains " Blue Flame Swordsman " , " Scapegoat " , " Swordsman of Landstar " , " Vow of Tribe " , and " Dark Dragon Ritual " . Joey then Normal Summons " Blue Flame Swordsman " ( 1800 / 1600 ) in Attack Position . Turn 3 : Mai Mai draws another " Cyber Harpie " and subsequently Normal Summons it ( 1800 / 1300 ) in Attack Position . Mai ' s hand contains " Cyber Harpie Lady " , " Aero Nail " , " Monster Reborn " , " Amazoness Spellcaster " , and " Nighmare Tri - Mirror " . Mai then activates " Aero Nail " , equipping it to one of her " Cyber Harpie Ladies " and increasing its ATK by 300 ( " Cyber Harpie Lady " : 1800 → 2100 / 1300 ) . The " Cyber Harpie " equipped with " Aero Nail " attacks & destroys Joey ' s " Blue Flame Swordsman " ( Joey 4000 → 3700 ) . Since " Blue Flame Swordsman " was destroyed and sent to the Graveyard , Joey activates its second effect to Special Summon " Flame Swordsman " ( 1800 / 1600 ) in Attack Position ( NOTE : in the anime , " Flame Swordsman " is not a Fusion Monster ) . Mai Sets a Card . Turn 4 : Joey Joey draws " Cyber - Tech Alligator " . He then Tributes " Flame Swordsman " in order to Tribute Summon " Cyber - Tech Alligator " ( 2500 / 1600 ) in Attack Position . " Cyber - Tech Alligator " attacks & destroys the " Cyber Harpie " equipped with " Aero Nail " ( Mai 4000 → 3600 ) . Since " Aero Nail " is about to be sent from the field to the Graveyard , Mai activates the second effect of " Aero Nail " to equip the latter card to her other " Cyber Harpie " instead of sending it to the Graveyard ( " Cyber Harpie " : 1800 → 2100 / 1300 ) . Joey then Sets a Card . Turn 5 : Mai Mai draws " The Seal of Orichalcos " and subsequently activates it . From now on , all of Mai ' s Monsters will receive a 500 ATK boost and the loser of this Duel will lose his / her soul ( " Cyber Harpie " : 2100 → 2600 / 1300 ) . Mai then Normal Summons another " Cyber Harpie " ( 1800 → 2300 / 1300 ) in Attack Position . The " Cyber Harpie " equipped with " Aero Nail " attacks & destroys Joey ' s " Cyber - Tech Alligator " ( Joey 3700 → 3600 ) . The second " Cyber Harpie " attacks directly , but Joey activates his face - down " Scapegoat " to Special Summon four " Sheep Tokens " ( 0 / 0 for each ) in Defense Position . Mai then activates her face - down " Nighmare Tri - Mirror " to select " Cyber Harpie " and Special Summon four " Copy Token s " ( as Joey Special Summoned four monsters ) that have the same stats and effects as " Cyber Harpie " to her side of the Field ( 1800 → 2300 / 1300 for all ) in Attack Position . These Tokens cannot attack this turn . A replay occurs and Mai uses her second " Cyber Harpie " to attack & destroy one of Joey ' s " Sheep Token s " . " Duel concludes next episode . " Errors . Even though Joey ' s " Cyber - Tech Alligator " destroyed one of Mai ' s Cyber Harpie Ladies , after Joey tells Mai to give him her best shot , her duel disk still has the destroyed " Cyber Harpie " . When Mai activates " Nightmare Tri - Mirror " , her belly button disappears . Featured cards . The following cards appeared in this episode . Cards in italics debuted here .