Is this the poker world?Ada thief!

Chapter 1904 The Overlord and the Tenth Generation

As is customary, Jaden did not explain to Jim what the effects of the monster he had just fused and summoned, 【E-hero Wild Cyclone】, were. He probably will only speak when its effects take effect.

But Jim made a connection to the [E-hero] monsters that had appeared before and had corresponding prototypes—

【E-hero Poison Bubble】retains the ability of 【E-hero Bubble Man】to jump from the hand to the field and gain two cards upon entering the field; 【E-hero Prism Man】, which is based on 【E-hero Prism Man】, can also be used to fill the graveyard and become a substitute Fusion Material; 【E-hero Golden Dark Star】, like 【E-hero Golden Captain】, can be discarded from the hand to search for specific cards; and 【E-hero Ominous Necromancer】 is an upgraded version of the effect of 【E-hero Necromancer Dark Man】.
The same applies to Fusion Monsters. [E-hero Flame Wingman - Flame Strike] has a search effect corresponding to [E-hero Infernal Wingman - Hellfire], which also appears and activates. So, can we infer from this that [E-hero Wild Cyclone], whose prototype is [E-hero Wild Wingman], will also have the ability to destroy Spell & Trap Cards?
Gazing at the [E-hero Wild Cyclone], whose exposed body area was larger than the original but which did not appear as unrestrained as the original—after all, the green of its feathers had become less vibrant and much darker—Jim concentrated and squeezed the "Orichalcum Eye" of his right eye one last time.

Perhaps it was the ability of this "prosthetic eye" to "see special things" that came into play, or perhaps Jim's eyesight was actually good enough, or perhaps Jim's focused will summoned the miracle he needed at the crucial moment. In any case, at this moment, something incredible happened!

As if the narration of "Heroes of the Mask RX" were playing, Jim's gaze pierced through the fog and he saw the effect of [E-hero Wild Cyclone]!

"【Ancient Gear】A monster-like ability that prevents your opponent from activating Spell & Trap Cards until the end of the Damage Step when attacking! And an effect that destroys all Set Spell & Trap Cards on your opponent's field when you inflict battle damage on an opponent's monster!"

Jim exclaimed in surprise at the power of [E-hero Wild Cyclone], realizing how targeted the card Jaden had just pulled out was, precisely to prevent his back row from having offensive debuffs like [Explosive Armor].

By first using [E-hero Wild Cyclone] to launch an attack and then deal damage, you can not only prevent Jim from activating his face-down cards, but also activate the second effect to destroy all face-down Spell & Trap Cards during the damage step when Jim cannot activate Spell & Trap Cards. This clears the way for other monsters' attacks and paves the way for them!
If it weren't for the fact that [E-hero Wild Cyclone] is based on the prototype monster [E-hero Wild Winged Man], Jim would have suspected that Jaden was just randomly printing cards and filling them with whatever effects he wanted, since the ability of [E-hero Wild Cyclone] is just too coincidental.

Even [Straight-through Disconnect] cannot affect [E-hero Wild Cyclone] which is in the same column, because the effect of [E-hero Wild Cyclone] that seals magic traps is a permanent effect that does not require activation. It can be triggered as long as an attack is made, and there is no chain to intervene. The second effect that can be chained happens to be activated when combat damage is dealt to the opponent, which happens to be within the "magic trap sealing period" of the [E-hero Wild Cyclone] effect during the damage step.

The only problem for Tyrant X is probably how to deal combat damage with E-hero Wild Cyclone when only Paleozoic Fossil Dragon - Skeleton Demon Slayer exists on the field.

Because of the effect of [Paleozoic Fossil Dragon - Skull Slayer Dragon], even using cards that increase monster ATK like [Inherited Power] is useless, because [Paleozoic Fossil Dragon - Skull Slayer Dragon] can exchange the ATK and DEF of the monster it battles with at any time before the damage calculation begins—[E-hero Wild Cyclone] only seals the activation of Spell & Trap Cards and cannot prevent Jim from activating monster effects.

This effect is not limited to once per turn, and even if you try to use other monsters to bait it, you can't fool this effect. Moreover, with Jaden's current base score, it can't withstand even 100 points of battle damage.

Unless Jaden has a card that increases a monster's ATK during damage calculation, rather than before.

Jim's gaze fell on the card [King's Castle], which only had the effect of "removing the restriction that [E-hero] monsters can only be summoned by the effect of [Dark Fusion]". This field spell card seemed to allow King Jaden, who had already used all three [Dark Fusion] cards, to still be able to set up his combo. However, having seen the cards [Dark Divine Summon] and [Super Fusion], Jim realized that perhaps even without this card, King Jaden could still set up his combo normally.

Therefore, the existence of this card is questionable, especially since the most frequently appearing Field Spell Card in Jaden's original [E-hero] deck was [Skyscraper]. Could it be that [Overlord Castle] also has an attack-boosting effect similar to [Skyscraper], like the correspondence between [E-hero] and [E·hero]?
But regardless, Jim had already pressed the button to activate the card.

"As expected, even in this state, Jaden, your dueling ability has not diminished in the slightest. After I showed that I had a Trap Card that seemed to be lurking in the back row and activated an attack declaration, you quickly pulled out [E-hero Wild Cyclone], which has the attack effect of an attack declaration Trap Card."

“This talent is like that of a legendary alchemist, using the omnipotent ‘Philosopher’s Stone’ to concoct the most suitable tools for different situations.” After a pause, Jim said to the cards he had flipped over in the back row, “But Jaden! No matter how fast you advance, if you take the wrong path, blindly moving forward will only make you stray further from the right path!”

"My first calculation was to bluff and pretend that I didn't have any face-down cards. You easily saw through this and guessed that one of the three face-down cards in my back row was likely a trap card activated by an attack declaration, thus summoning [E-hero Wild Cyclone] which has special attack power in that area. But this is my second calculation."

"But bringing out a monster that can't clear my back row cards immediately only forces me to activate this card prematurely!"

"Trap Card [Stone Attack]! This card, which I set face-down last turn, will bring this duel to an end!"

As Jim revealed the cards in his back row, a giant catapult appeared behind him, taking a card from his deck and sending it to the graveyard.

"As the cost of activation, [Stone Attack] requires sending one Rock-Type monster from my Deck to the Graveyard. Then, the effect of this card is to inflict 500 effect damage to your opponent and shuffle my Deck."

Jim made a great decision to activate this card, and the way he took it out was somewhat unnatural.

Once this card is activated, Jaden, who only has 100 Life Points, will inevitably be unable to withstand the damage. In this world, the outcome of a duel is directly related to life; for the loser, having zero Life Points means death.

However, the situation has reached a point where Jim must activate his face-down cards. If Jaden uses the effect of [King's Castle] to make [E-hero Wild Cyclone] truly capable of dealing battle damage to him, then none of his three face-down cards in the back row will be left. The only opportunity to activate [Stone Attack] is now!
"The last 500 points of damage—Jim actually saved this up until now!" O'Brien thought that Jim was barely holding on under Jaden's attacks, but when he saw the appearance of this [Stone Throw Attack], he realized that Jim had been holding on to the will to "awaken Jaden" until now, which shocked him greatly.

Honestly, he felt that if it were him, he would never have been able to endure as long as Jim had.

“Friend, I never imagined this day would come, but I can no longer let you go. The Jaden who loves [Hero] would never want to become this 'tyrant' who takes lives at will!” Jim said solemnly. “Rather than let you continue to degenerate in this twisted state, I would rather bear the pain of having to take the lives of my comrades with my own hands!”

"Go, [Warm Warrior], take my memories with you, Jaden!"

Even in the final, desperate strike, Jim didn't forget to pour his heart into it. Even the moment after killing Judai, he still wanted Judai to wake up from his "Conqueror Judai" persona.

[Weathered Warrior] was discarded from Jim's deck, and with the addition of a Rock-Type monster, a giant boulder appeared on [Stone Throw] and was hurled into the air. Gliding over the numerous monsters on the field, the boulder crashed directly into the back of [E-heroes], where nothing could protect the Supreme King Jaden!
"boom!"

The rock formed from the "Weathered Warrior" thrown by the "Stone Throwing Attack" shattered upon hitting something, indicating that the "Stone Throwing Attack" was successfully activated and caused real damage, without being invalidated, its effect nullified, or its damage reduced to 0.

However, before Jim and O'Brien could even process their grief, the voice of Jaden, the Supreme King, echoed through the smoke and dust, showing no signs of weakness and remaining full of energy. Furthermore, the fact that the [E-heroes] hadn't disappeared from the field meant that the duel hadn't ended at all with Jim playing that card!

"【Stone Throwing Attack】? Neither the speed nor the power is up to par; what a weak counterattack. You think you can defeat me with that level of damage? Weakling!"

"What!?"

Under Jim's astonished gaze, the Supreme King Judai appeared unharmed from the smoke and dust, casually brushing the dust off his armor. The [Stone Throwing Attack] had indeed hit him, but he seemed completely unharmed, even though his base score was only 100 points—

"That card, [Mysterious Chinese Pot]?!" O'Brien noticed that Jaden had lost one card, along with Jim's [Earth Giant - Gaia Plate], which had been stolen earlier. "After [Stone Attack] was activated, he chained that card to turn [Earth Giant - Gaia Plate] into his own Life Points!?"

"【Mysterious Chinese Pot】can choose to Tribute a monster on my field and restore one of its ATK or DEF to my Life Points by the same amount," Jaden said calmly. "What I restore, of course, is the Life Points equal to the ATK of 【Earth Giant - Gaia Plate】." 【Jaden: 100→2900→2400LP, Hand: 3→2】

"It's the [Mysterious Chinese Pot]! Did I activate this card too late, causing you to draw this life-or-death card from your deck during the previous draw?" Jim couldn't help but wonder if Jaden had managed to draw this quick-play spell card during those consecutive draws, so that his own face-down card could only reduce the opponent's life points slightly.

But Jim quickly gave a negative assessment, because his intuition as a duelist told him that Jaden had already drawn the "Mysterious Chinese Pot" card in the previous round, and the reason he hadn't activated it until now was probably simply because it was "unnecessary".

—Yes, it's unnecessary. The level of life points and the life or death of monsters, which had greatly influenced Jaden's aesthetic sense in previous duels, have made him feel that elements closely related to "coolness" have become unnecessary, unimportant, or even irrelevant in the mind of the current Jaden.

Through the "Orichalcos Eyes," even though Jaden was mired in the darkness of his heart and refused to communicate with the outside world, Jim still managed to glimpse some of his thoughts at that moment.

Power, more power
Dominate, then win!
In the heart of "Overlord," there is no longer heroism or anything else related to it; there is only the pure pursuit of his own goals. He seems to have become the complete opposite of the Jaden that Jim knew before, yet he also reveals a striking similarity.

Jim wasn't even the first to realize this. Not only Hayato and Jonouchi, but also teachers like Daitokuji and Koji Sato at school, and even Professor Cobra, who had only known Jaden for less than a month, all saw through Jaden's true behavioral logic and values.

Jaden appears kind and warm-hearted on ordinary days because he loves Duel Monsters. Duel Monsters can help others and save the world. Jaden, who likes and admires "heroes", naturally does what he thinks "heroes" would do, namely, help others and save the world.

But in essence, this is no different from the logic of Jaden's actions in front of Jim—Jaden duels to satisfy his yearning for heroes, and Jaden slaughters for power; both are acting for their own purposes.

The only difference lies in the fact that Judai's goals and methods conform to the public's values, while the Overlord's methods and goals do not. This difference creates two extremes, but for Judai himself, the nature of the difference is probably no different.

If Judai himself had some self-awareness about this, it would be fine. But the problem is that Judai himself thought he was actually a good person and was completely unaware of his true, underlying behavioral logic. In reality, he was outwardly warm but inwardly cold, and he mistakenly thought he was a very kind-hearted person.

The final result is—

“For the sake of power, you easily abandoned the gentleness and kindness in heroism, Judai.” Jim gave a bitter smile. “I only just figured out what ‘Overlord’ really is. It’s not the corruption of external forces, nor is it even another personality of yours, Judai.”

"From the very beginning, you have been the king, Judai."

Or rather, the Jaden of the past was bound by heroism and wanted to become a "hero." However, after suffering repeated blows in this spirit world and falling into self-doubt, Jaden, who even gave up on the idea of ​​becoming a "hero," revealed his true inner self after losing the shackles of "hero" and no longer adhering to heroism. This is the existence of "Jade the Tyrant."

Therefore, no matter how strong the feelings were, they could not reach his heart. Jim, who was just saying that Judai had gone down the wrong path, now realized that his words were not for Judai but for himself. He had chosen the wrong way to "awaken Judai" from the beginning, because Judai was not "shrouded in darkness," but rather "the darkness in his heart was released"!
—If I had realized this from the very beginning, I might have been able to successfully awaken Jaden, but now that the duel has progressed this far, it's too late.

Not only have he exhausted all his means, but his fundamental strength has also reached its limit. His will is on the verge of collapse, his body has reached its limit, and even the power within his right eye's "Orichalcum Eye" is almost depleted.
"Entering my battle phase, use [E-hero Wild Cyclone] to attack [Paleozoic Fossil Dragon - Skull Demon Slayer]!" After blocking the [Stone Throw Attack], Jaden looked at Jim, whose eyes were slightly dazed from the mental shock, and mercilessly issued his attack declaration, "Spirit Blade Helmet Slash!"

The raging winds of the wilderness transformed into air blades, blowing towards Jim's field. The [E-hero Wild Cyclone], with an attack power of only 1900, actively provoked the [Paleozoic Fossil Dragon - Skull Demon Slayer], which had an attack power of 3500. However, even though Jaden had raised his life points back to 2400, it was impossible for him to withstand the 3200 combat damage that was about to be doubled by the effect of [Paleozoic Fossil Dragon - Skull Demon Slayer].

There is only one reason why the Supreme Ruler did that—

"Once per turn, during damage calculation when a Fiend-Type Fusion Monster on my field battles an opponent's monster, I can send one [E-hero] monster from my Deck or Extra Deck to the Graveyard to activate this effect!" Jim didn't activate the effect of [Paleozoic Fossil Dragon - Skull Demon Slayer] before the damage calculation, and Jaden just glanced at him before proceeding. "The card I sent to the Graveyard was [E-hero Neo-Supreme King], which was previously recycled."

"【E-hero Neo-Overlord】is a Level 10☆ monster. Therefore, under the power of 【Overlord Castle】, the attack power of 【E-hero Wild Cyclone】 increases by the level of 【E-hero Neo-Overlord】 multiplied by 200 points until the end of the turn, which is 2000 points!"

【E-hero Wild Cyclone】【ATK1900→3900】

Just moments ago, it was a "weakling" with an attack power of less than 2000 points, but in the blink of an eye, under the control of [Overlord City], [E-hero Wild Cyclone] was infused with a large amount of dark magic power, and even the air blades it blew out turned pitch black. In an instant, it possessed an attack power that surpassed the "legendary [Blue-Eyes White Dragon]" and was almost comparable to the "legendary [Obelisk the Tormentor]"!
The effect of [Paleozoic Fossil Dragon - Skull Demon Slayer] can only be activated "before damage calculation", but now the process has reached "damage calculation", so Jim cannot activate its effect at all.

It could even be said that it was fortunate that it didn't activate that effect when it could have, otherwise the attack power of [E-hero Wild Cyclone] would have been first exchanged for a higher 2300 defense points and then still increased by 2000 attack points, becoming a powerful monster that truly surpassed the 4300 attack power of the "legendary [Obelisk the Tormentor]"!

Faced with this powerful storm, the Paleozoic fossil dragon - Skull Demon Slayer was instantly severed from its body, cut in two. Its lower body remained standing, while its upper body slid to the ground, lying face up. Ultimately, 3500 attack power was no match for 3900 attack power, and it was instantly killed.

Lying on the ground with its mouth open, it seemed to be saying something like, "I'm sorry I couldn't satisfy Lord Wild Cyclone." At that moment, Jim also suffered 400 points of combat damage—thankfully, the effect of [Paleozoic Fossil Dragon - Skull Demon Slayer] is one-sided; its combat damage is doubled against Tyrannosaurus Rex, but not against Jim.

Jim Crocodile Cook: 1800→1400LP, Hand: 0

"Ugh!" Jim, despite the pain, was not completely defeated by the injury. Instead, he regained his senses after the stab and managed to concentrate his will again.

It was after this "damage calculation" that the fallen [Paleozoic Fossil Dragon - Skeleton Demon Slayer] weathered away and was sent to Jim's graveyard.

"Because my Fossil Fusion Monster on the field was destroyed by battle, the second effect of my Fossil Fusion in the Graveyard is activated!" Jim said, taking a card from the Graveyard. "Although E-hero Wild Cyclone sealed my activation of Spell & Trap Cards during the Damage Step, the activation of cards in the Graveyard is not a 'card activation' but an 'effect activation'!"

"If a Fossil Fusion Monster in my Graveyard or on my field is destroyed by battle or card effect, I can add a Fossil Fusion Monster from my Graveyard to my hand!"

Previously, the Paleozoic Fossil Motor Vehicle - Skull Truck was sent to the Graveyard as Fusion Material instead of being destroyed. Therefore, until now, Jim has the opportunity to activate the "hidden effect" of Fossil Fusion, retrieve this card from the Graveyard, and use it to Fusion Summon a new monster in the next turn - if he has a next turn.

Jaden is a rather unique protagonist. His outwardly warm but inwardly cold personality is rare even among all anime series to date. In the original work, John and others repeatedly expressed Jaden's cold personality (even before he became the Overlord).
In alchemy, the four steps of gold refining are blackening, whitening, yellowing, and reddening. In my opinion, the Jade Emperor is equivalent to the initial blackening, which symbolizes chaos and death.
Albinism, representing the purification of the soul, corresponds to the Jaden breaking free from the Overlord state.

The yellowing, which has a fermenting connotation, corresponds to Jaden reconciling with his own power and starting anew, using the power of the Supreme King.
The final transformation into crimson symbolizes rebirth and perfection, representing spiritual sublimation and the release of creativity. It corresponds to the super fusion of Yubel's soul and Jaden's body, leading to the birth of Twentieth Generation.
The culmination of all this was Jaden's use of the "Neo-Sage" in his duel with Darkness, signifying that he had completed his growth and become the "Philosopher's Stone" itself.

Conversely, it all started with the birth of the Jade Emperor.

Unupdated: 4/9
Just asking for votes every day~