Is this the poker world?Ada thief!

Chapter 1788 Yao Sheng Steals the Center Position

【约翰·安德森：4000LP，手牌6→5→3→2】

【Ultimate Jewel God - Rainbow Dragon】【ATK4000】

【Thunder Emperor - Hamon】【DEF4000】

【Ultimate Gem Beast - Rainbow Dragon】(Resurrected in Another Dimension)【ATK3000】

【Jade Beast - Jade Turtle】【DEF2000】

Backcourt: [Bridge of the Heart] [Jewel Beast - Amber Mammoth]

Location: [Rainbow Ancient City - Rainbow Ruins]

John's hand resources were quickly depleted, and in their place came several powerful monsters that were Special Summoned to his field in succession. Apart from the filler monster, "Jade Turtle," all the other monsters had an ATK of over 3000.

John now only has the "Golden Jade Bar" and one other card of unknown meaning left in his hand.

"If it were someone else's deck with more [Crystal Beast] cards, the next step would be to activate [Golden Jade Stick] to Special Summon [Crystal Beast - Jade Pegasus], but John, your deck only has one of each [Crystal Beast]."

Hayato paused for a moment before stating his conclusion, "In other words, now that you only have one [Crystal Beast] left in your deck, [Crystal Beast - Ruby Beast], you are unable to activate [Golden Jade Stick], which allows you to place two [Crystal Beasts] from your deck into the Spell & Trap Zone."

"Although I don't know what 'other people's [Jewel Beast] constructions' means, since [Jewel Beasts] are my unique family. But, Hayato-sensei, you're right, I can't use [Golden Jade Strips] right now."

John said, showing a card in his hand, "Then I'll use this card to create the conditions to activate [Golden Jade]."

“【Superior Draw】is a Spell Card that can only be activated by Tributing a Level 8 or higher monster on my field. I Tribute 【Ultimate Gem Beast - Rainbow Dragon】 to activate this card's effect. At the same time, 【Dimensional Resurrection】 is also sent to the Graveyard.” After playing the Spell Card from his hand, John draws two cards from his deck. “Under the effect of this card, I draw two cards from my deck.”

"And one of the cards I drew was—this [Pot of Greed]! It returns five monsters from my Graveyard—[Sapphire Beast Pegasus], [Sapphire Beast Topaz Tiger], [Sapphire Beast Amethyst Cat], [Sapphire Beast Cobalt Spinel], and [Ultimate Sapphire Beast Rainbow Dragon]—to the Deck for shuffling, and then I draw two more cards from the Deck!"

John Anderson: 4000LP, hand 2→3→4

"Now, I can activate the Equip Spell Card [Golden Jade] - I select two [Crystal Beast] monsters from my Deck and place them face-up in my Spell & Trap Zone as Continuous Spell Cards, and then Special Summon one [Crystal Beast] from my hand or Graveyard and equip it to this card."

"I place [Jade Tiger] and [Jade Pegasus] from my deck in the Spell & Trap Zone, and Special Summon [Jade Spinel Eagle] from my hand to my field and equip it with [Golden Jade Bars]."

【Jade Beast - Cobalt Spinel Eagle】(Golden Jade Bar) 【DEF800】

"Finally, I get to make my grand entrance! Woohoo!" It was a rare opportunity for [Jewel Beast - Cobalt Spinel Eagle] to finally appear on screen instead of standing in the background as a gem. "So, what do you want me to do next, Johnny?"

"Well, I might have to disappoint you, Cobalt," John said somewhat embarrassedly, looking at his family's excited expressions.

The empty magic trap area was filled up again. This time, John didn't have a second [Thunder King - Hamon] to solve the problem, but the [Jade Beast - Cobalt Spinel Eagle] that he specially summoned could solve this problem.

"Once per turn, you can target one of my Crystal Beast cards to activate the effect of Crystal Beast - Cobalt Spinel Eagle. Return the targeted card to the top of my deck. I choose Crystal Beast - Cobalt Spinel Eagle itself."

Hearing John's words, [Jade Beast - Cobalt Spinel Eagle] wasn't too disappointed: "Alright, I'm satisfied that I was able to show my face."

After retrieving the card [Jewel Beast - Cobalt Spinel Eagle], John comforted Cobalt, saying, "I'll let you have your fill next time, Cobalt. As for now—since [Jewel Beast - Cobalt Spinel Eagle] is gone, [Golden Jade Strip] will also leave my back row."

"Therefore, I can activate this card—the Quick-Play Spell Card [Ultimate Jewel God Awakening]—to reveal a [Ultimate Jewel God] monster in my hand to my opponent, activate one of this card's effects, or activate one or two effects if [Ultimate Jewel God] is on my field. I want both effects."

"Choose one 'Bridge' card or 'Rainbow Bridge' from my Deck and add it to my hand or send it to the Graveyard. Also, Special Summon one 'Crystal Beast' monster from my hand, Graveyard, Deck, or Spell & Trap Zone."

"I add [Rainbow Bridge] to my hand and Special Summon [Crystal Beast - Ruby Beast] from my Deck in Defense Position."

"Ruby~" John called out, and the [Crimson Beast] ran out of John's deck, jumped onto his shoulder, and then leaped onto the field.

(Note: This is still the animated version)
【Jade Beast - Red Jade Beast】【DEF300】

John Anderson: 4000LP, hand 4→2→2

"When Ruby is successfully Special Summoned, I can Special Summon as many Crystal Beast monsters as possible from my Spell & Trap Zone. However, since I only have one slot left in my Monster Zone, I Special Summon Crystal Beast Pegasus."

The blue jade shattered and transformed back into a pure white Pegasus, which came to John's field to indicate its defensive position. At the same time, a purple crystal filled the vacancy where it had left.

"The effect of 【Crystal Beast - Jade Pegasus】 is not limited to once per turn, so I can activate its effect again when it is Special Summoned, and place 【Crystal Beast - Amethyst Cat】 face-up from my deck as a Continuous Spell Card in my Spell & Trap Zone."

"It's not over yet. Next up is the effect of [Rainbow Bridge]. This card allows me to add a [Gemstone] Spell/Trap Card from my Deck to my hand. I chose [Gemstone Miracle]."

After completing the search, John inserted the last two cards into the slot and said, "Finally, I'll set two cards face down. End of turn."

John Anderson: 4000LP, hand 4→2→0

【Thunder Emperor - Hamon】【DEF4000】

【Ultimate Gem God - Rainbow Dragon】【ATK4000】 【Gem Beast - Ruby Beast】【DEF1600】

【Jade Beast - Jade Turtle】【DEF2000】

【Jade Beast - Jade Pegasus】【DEF1200】

Back row: [Bridge of the Heart] [Jewel Beast - Amber Mammoth] [Jewel Beast - Topaz Tiger] [Face Card] x2
Location: [Rainbow Ancient City - Rainbow Ruins]

Despite the name "team duel," John filled his entire front and back rows with cards in a single turn, not even sparing the field area. A total of eleven cards filled the entire area of ​​his duel board, leaving no usable space for Caesar.

Caesar didn't say anything about John regarding this point. After all, even Jade's Hero has some solo capabilities, but John's Crystal Beast is truly the type that's like a lone wolf in a street fight; without teamwork, it can't do anything. To withstand Hayato's attacks and survive until his next turn, even a full field of monsters might not be enough.

The fact that he didn't leave a single empty slot is somewhat questionable. If it weren't for Caesar's personality, he would have asked John, "Hey, where did you lay out all your cards in one turn? Are you playing cards alone in this duel?"

(Background music plays: Carrying all the hardships of yesterday~)

"Although quite a few cards were played, without resistance or interference, the quality of the board setup is still not very good." Hayato commented on John's final words. "But there's nothing we can do about it. This is the limit for a mid-tier deck like [Crystal Beast]. The strength of the deck itself is what it is, so we can't ask for too much."

"However, your deck does deserve my praise, as it matches my [Radiant Saint] deck very well." Hayato placed his finger on the deck and drew a card. "My turn, draw!"

"Then I activate the Spell Card [Destruction of Divinity - Attack -], and as a result of the effect of this Continuous Spell Card being activated, I can add one [Unsullied - Medius] from my Deck to my hand."

As Hayato played his card, a huge, glowing red mechanical claw appeared on his field, about to land and, as the effect stated, bring Hayato the card "Immaculate One - Medius" from his deck. Seeing this, John immediately played his own card, saying, "Although I don't know what the 'Radiant Saint' deck is, and the card you played so far doesn't sound like it has the words 'Radiant Saint' in it, I'll just negate that card with the search effect first, right?"

"Trap Card [Miracle of the Jewel] activated!"

On John's field, [Jade Beast - Emerald Turtle] retracted into its shell and spun at high speed, crashing straight into the steel claw falling from the sky above Hayato's field, shattering it to pieces, and also breaking apart and entering John's graveyard.

"When a monster's effect, spell card, or trap card is activated, you can activate [Crystal Miracle]: Target one [Crystal Beast] card on my field and destroy it, negating its activation and destroying it!"

"—However, since my Spell & Trap Zone is already full of cards, the destroyed [Jade Turtle] can only go to my Graveyard and cannot remain on the field."

This is another example of John's "Crystal Beast" deck going against its own logic—Field Spell Cards need as many "Crystal Beast" cards as possible in the back row to be effective, but the more "Crystal Beast" cards there are in the back row, the fewer other cards John can use. Now John's back row is full of cards, so "Crystal Beast - Emerald Turtle" can't even use its effect to stay on the field.

Hayato's initial move was interrupted, but he wasn't annoyed. He just looked at the "Miracle of the Jewel" that John had sent to the cemetery and said, "You handed over your only distraction so early? You really can't hold your temper."

"So, if I play a spinning top next, how will you block it?" Hayato said, playing a card from his hand. "The center position can't be left empty, so I'll Special Summon this card from my hand by its own effect!"

"Conquering the hunting and underworld, the goddess of moonlight and oak trees who rules over heaven, earth, and the underworld—[Radiant Saint Bosh-Tina]!"

Ancient oak trees grew in this Roman-style amphitheater, supporting a blue-haired girl who seemed to be the embodiment of moonlight and oak. Oak branches coiled and intertwined around her palms, from which long incantations composed of runes continuously emerged.

Judging from her name "Tina," the prototype of this girl is most likely Diana, the most famous of the many moon goddesses in ancient Roman mythology, who is the counterpart to Artemis in Greek mythology.

—During the expansion of ancient Rome, the gods in Roman mythology constantly absorbed similar foreign gods. Hecate, the Greek goddess of the underworld; Artemis, the goddess of plants, hunting, and wild animals; and Ceresta, the Carthaginian goddess of the sky, were all absorbed by Diana, who absorbed their power and made them goddesses representing the heavens, earth, and the underworld, and consequently, symbols of virginity. The English expression "to be a Diana" signifies remaining unmarried for life.

【Radiant Saint's Wave - Tina】【6☆/Water】

[Mage Race/Effect]

[2400/1800]

"A level 6 monster with 2400 attack power appeared so easily?" Caesar looked at the monster Hayato summoned. Although he didn't know what its effects were, as long as it wasn't negative, it couldn't be too weak. Just the stats and its special summoning effect that didn't require activation were already very strong. His friend Tenjouin Fubuki's [Red-Eyes Black Dragon] was already easy enough to summon, but this monster was even more outrageous.

"To be precise, it was Special Summoned from the center of my Monster Zone." Hayato pointed out that he placed the card in the very center of his five Monster Zones. "The effect of [Radiant Wave Tina] is that this card can be Special Summoned from my hand to my central Monster Zone. This Special Summon of this card's name and its effect can only be performed once per turn."

"And all Level 6 monsters with the [Radiant Saint] effect have this effect, which means that only one can debut as the 'center'. After all, a monster zone can usually only hold one monster card. Of course, if you just stack all your monster cards together and get tired, then never mind what I said."

Skillfully ignoring the parts of Hayato's speech that they couldn't understand, and knowing that the [Radiant Saint] monster wasn't the type that could be summoned at will, Caesar and John breathed a slight sigh of relief. However, they still watched [Radiant Saint Bosh-Tina] warily. Both of them had a wide range of knowledge and could roughly guess that the prototype of [Radiant Saint Bosh-Tina] was the ancient Roman goddess Diana, especially John, who used the [Jewel Beast] deck made from gemstone tablets left over from the ancient Roman Empire.

Since it can be named after a god, the effects of [Radiant Wave Poem - Tina] might be very strong?

"Just in case, I'll use these effects first. Chain with the appearance of [Radiant Saint Bosch - Tina] to activate the effect of [Ultimate Jewel God - Rainbow Dragon]!"

"And this card in my back row—the trap card [Counter Gem]!"

After activating two effects in succession, John first raised the Duel Disk to demonstrate the effect of [Ultimate Gem God - Rainbow Dragon], saying, "Although the effect of [Ultimate Gem God - Rainbow Dragon] cannot be used during the turn it enters the battlefield, its first effect can be activated during the opponent's turn."

"This effect requires sending all face-up [Crystal Beast] cards on my field to the Graveyard to activate, whether from the Monster Zone in the front row or the Spell & Trap Zone in the back row. Under this effect, for each card sent to the Graveyard, [Ultimate Crystal God Rainbow Dragon] gains 1000 ATK."

Unlike the physical card version, which only sends monsters to the Graveyard, John's "Ultimate Gem God - Rainbow Dragon" can send backrow cards to the Graveyard as well. In terms of attack power boost, the latter is undoubtedly stronger. However, considering the strong need for backrow Gem Monster cards in the Gem Monster expansion, it's difficult to determine which version is actually more powerful.

The four cards, 【Jade Beast - Ruby Beast】, 【Jade Beast - Pegasus】, 【Jade Beast - Topaz Tiger】, and 【Jade Beast - Amber Mammoth】, all went into John's graveyard. Then, four of the seven gems on 【Ultimate Gem God - Rainbow Dragon】 lit up.

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