Is this the world of card dealers? Yada thieves!

"Whoa! You scared me!" Napoleon was so startled that he jumped up, almost as high as Professor Chronos. "Could it be... could this not be an illusion?!"

"Ouch—that hurts!" Professor Chronos gasped in pain as he shoved away Coach Napoleon's hand, which was pinching his thigh. "Why are you pinching me, Coach Gene?!"

"It really wasn't a dream!" Napoleon exclaimed, looking utterly shaken. "But why are we here?"

"I don't even know where the end of the universe is, how could I possibly know the answer?" Professor Chronos complained, rubbing his thigh. "And why did you pinch my thigh just now?!"

"That's not the point, Professor Chronos. The point is, what exactly happened just now?" Standing in front of the school's main entrance, looking at the thick layer of sand covering the ground where the entire school had been moved, Instructor Napoleon changed the subject. "Could this also be Professor Klaus's doing? But how did he manage that?"

"The topic shift was so abrupt, huh!" Despite his teasing, Professor Chronos also took a closer look at the sand on the ground and found it quite strange. "Is this really sand? It's different from what I've seen before, huh? It's actually a bit bluish-green?"

"Could it be the lighting?" Napoleon said, looking up at the sky. "Even the color of the sky looks strange. Is it just my imagination? There are three not-at-all bright suns hanging in the sky?"

"Hmm? Three suns?" This keyword caught Professor Chronos's attention because he remembered that just two years ago, when Jaden and his classmates first enrolled, they had reported that they had stumbled into a world of card spirits with three suns within the school. Although that report was submitted to Principal Hayato, it was ultimately handled by Professor Chronos, so he had a certain recollection of it.

If he remembered correctly, several years ago, before Tenjouin Fubuki disappeared, she had submitted the same report. Could it be that this time it was his turn to travel through the world with Coach Napoleon?!

Just then, Professor Chronos suddenly saw a black dot in the distant sky that looked like a helicopter approaching the academy.

Chapter 1755 Hayato: New Humans, if they're not turned off, then they're on?

"Ptooey, ptooey!" Hayato spat twice, waved his hand to disperse the dust in front of him, then brushed the sand off his body and looked around.

"Holy crap, where did Odin come from? Is this still the Elven realm?"

Just twenty minutes ago, he borrowed the Floo Network from Odin, the Holy Emperor of the Astral Plane... I mean the "Rainbow Bridge." Odin said that it could take him to many places, and was much more flexible than the uncontrolled, fixed-location spatial tunnel that Nephthys's Linker took Hayato to.

Naturally, Hayato wanted to make a request. Hayato had already been to the Great Forest of Birds and Beasts. Although the strongest being, [Black Feather], also possessed the power of Synchro, its mastery of Synchro was still too shallow, and it hadn't awakened beings like [Black Feather Dragon]. Hayato had played cards with them once, which was enough; there was no need to go again.

However, in the future, after [Yubel] possessed John, he used the power of [Ultimate Jewel God - Rainbow Dragon], which is comparable to [Odin]'s "Rainbow Bridge," to fight monster transformations and "build bridges" between multiple worlds, allowing several worlds to be mixed and combined into a new great world.

(Even though he's the warrior Raz, there are always people in the comments who make up nonsense and say he's a captain who charges into battle.)

In the new world, besides the Great Forest of Birds and Beasts that Jaden and the others arrived at when they first traveled through time, there are also the worlds of the warrior race's [Wandering Hero - Freed], [Warrior - Raz], and other human civilians who previously only existed in the background of Katu, as well as the world where Tania, whose true form is a tiger, originally lived, and even a special small world that seals [Exodia].

But what people remember most clearly is the world ruled by the Dark Realm army under the tyrant's command.

Although the Dark World initially claimed to be a legion under the "Overlord's" command, when they first appeared before Jaden and his companions, Jaden had not yet experienced the death of the Wandering Hero - Freed, let alone the subsequent "sacrifice" of his companions caused by the Evil Heart Cult incident—although they were actually just sent to other worlds.

Even the term "Overlord" was first mentioned by the "Bird People" in the Bird and Beast World, back when Jaden and his friends hadn't even left the Bird and Beast World to go to the next connected area.

Based on the information Hayato learned from the Great Forest of Birds and Beasts, "Overlord" is less a specific person and more an abstract concept existing in prophecy. The prophecy assumes that there will be a being who will dominate the world and rule everything in the future, and then many prophecies related to "Overlord" are expanded based on this background.

—Just from what Hayato heard in the Great Forest of Birds and Beasts, there were stories like, "When the King was a child, he talked to his father first, which caused his mother's connection to break and she died," "When the King was a child, there was a log bridge on his way to school, and as he was walking, someone would jump down from the sky and kick him off the bridge," and "When the King was a child, he needed to go to the toilet, but he found that the door could not be opened from this side."

The Dark World isn't truly ruled by "Overlord." They're more like a religious army from the human world, acting in accordance with the legend of "Overlord," who is merely a concept rather than a real person. Before the appearance of the Tenth Generation, their loyalty to "Overlord" was nothing more than a prayer before meals, at most a phrase like "For Overlord" or "In the name of Overlord." They never seemed to have ever imagined that "Overlord" would actually appear.

This can be seen in the attitude of the elves who were originally the supreme commanders towards him after Jaden truly became a "tyrant" and took command of the Dark World. Although they were respectful on the surface, they had no loyalty to him at all, and were simply subservient to his status as a "tyrant" and his superb martial prowess.

These guys were just using the title of "Overlord" to trick their underlings into serving them, not because they actually believed in the existence of an "Overlord." They were just trying to make money for themselves. But then a real "Overlord" actually appeared, and he was just as strong as the prophecy said!

For the "Four Heavenly Kings" under the "Overlord", it was like the archbishops of several denominations, Protestantism, Puritanism and Orthodoxy, were fighting for the right to define and interpret the classics. As a result, the events in the Bible really happened, and what appeared was not an angel or Christ that could be defeated and killed, but Yahweh, the Lord of Hosts in the Old Testament who single-handedly defeated the myths of the whole world.

Hayato was very curious—although Jaden was indeed a prince of the spirit world in his previous life, and was burdened with dark power and destined to become a tyrant, destiny is not something that cannot be changed. If Jaden could become a "tyrant," why couldn't Hayato Kobayashi? If he went to the world of the Dark Realm before Jaden and the others, defeated all the forces of the Dark Realm, and forcibly became a "tyrant," wouldn't the future become very interesting?

—In particular, Hayato felt that he had always been good at "infiltrating villainous organizations," and even better at "working his way up to the top three years after three years."

Coincidentally, the Supreme Holy Emperor Odin also stated that He possessed the coordinates of a world where monsters from the Dark Realm existed. However, the Dark Realm in that world was not the "overlord" Dark Realm army that Hayato described as ravaging the world. Instead, it was a guardian that maintained the order of that demon world, which seemed to be somewhat different from what Hayato had expected.

Considering the later cases of other worlds being stitched together, Hayato speculates that the Dark World that Odin found might be the normal Dark World—the world of the Dark World elves in the Katu story, who appear ugly and fierce but are actually righteous. However, part of their world was later stitched together by Yubel, and naturally, a portion of the Dark World's army was also transferred along with it.

While the lower ranks of the "Overlord Army" are all Dark Realm elves, the middle ranks only possess "Gold, Silver, and Bronze" combat power. The "Four Heavenly Kings" who rule the entire army are even non-Dark Realm monsters like the Chaos Warlock. Perhaps it is because the stronger Dark Realm was not transferred here that the Four Heavenly Kings of the "Overlord Army" were able to use the legend of the "Overlord" that already existed in the Dark Realm to bewitch and win over the Dark Realm to their own side.

Hayato's thoughts wandered, and he even felt that the transformation of the originally righteous "Dark World" into the "Overlord Army" might be due to the interference of two villains designated by the "Dark World"—the "Mad King of the Dark World - Braum" and the "Dragon God of the Dark World - Grafah"—who knows what tricks they might have played.

After all, the Dark Realm, having fought several wars with the Lightsworn of the "Just World" due to ideological differences, naturally possesses the same technology as the Lightsworn to travel to other worlds. The sealed Dragon God of the Dark Realm, Grafa, who was released from the Dark Realm's Gate by the Mad King of the Dark Realm, in the card story, might have done something to make the Dark Realm a member of the "Overlord Army".

This made Hayato even more interested in going to the Dark World. After the Holy Emperor Odin opened the Rainbow Bridge, he set off immediately without hesitation, ready to go to the Dark World to see what was going on.

Alternatively, even if he couldn't infiltrate the Dark World and become a "tyrant," Hayato was still quite interested in the Light Path and the Twilight Path, and would like to go and see what was going on there. Besides, the Light Path also had the power of Synchro Summoning, so maybe—

However, at that moment, Hayato, who had been launched from inside a sphere after entering the "Rainbow Bridge," suddenly saw that a gap had opened in the space tunnel directly in front of him. A space bubble containing what appeared to be a Duel Academy building forcefully squeezed into the space tunnel he was using and collided with him!

In this situation, what else could Hayato say?

"Man! What can I say?"

Not only did the sphere deviate from its original trajectory, but the space bubble where Hayato was located was also hit hard by an elbow strike in this "car accident" and was knocked off course, crashing into the barrier of the space tunnel along with "Duel Academy" and crashing halfway!

With nothing left to do, Hayato sighed helplessly at the last moment before leaving the Rainbow Bridge space tunnel: "Hayato Out!"

Then, this is what Hayato, looking slightly disheveled after completing the transfer, sees.

"An endless, strangely colored desert, seemingly devoid of any life..." Hayato said with a serious expression. "I see. So, I've arrived in Hueco Mundo? Anyway, let's see what my Zanpakuto is. As long as it's not a mid-tier silver-class weapon like the Black Rope Heavenly Punishment Myōō..."

"What does Hueco Mundo mean, Annie?" Others might not remember it well, but how could Disruption Yellow, who had just been betrayed by his two plastic brothers and almost killed by the Harpy Sisters as bait, not remember where he was? "We've clearly returned to the Harpy's hunting grounds, haven't we?"

"[Yellow] Shut up, don't ruin my plans." Hayato drew his sword from thin air with a serious expression, then showed a frustrated look. "Damn it, no Zanpakuto, no Resurrection Blade, and no Fullbring. Am I destined to be nothing more than a mechanical Quincy?"

“I already told you this is the Elf World, Master.” [Summoner - Aleister] touched the crater Hayato had made in the sand after landing. The inside of the crater was covered with ancient Norse script, seemingly unique traces left by the “Rainbow Bridge” teleportation. “But that ‘Quinist’ thing sounds kind of interesting?”

"Do you also want to dance? It's a pity, I have no interest and you have no talent." Hayato shook his finger, ending the topic, and looked at [Temple's Water Sprite] who had also revealed himself, "But I was supposed to go to the [Dark World], how did I end up back at the starting point 'Going Home Often' just like 'Digging for a Rise'?"

"To be precise, it should be caused by the space bubble that collided with you, Lord Hayato, during the previous space transfer." [Sanctuary's Mizuki] gave his conjecture, "The world it originally wanted to go to was not this one, but it happened to collide with you, Lord Hayato, who was also going to a different world during the transfer, so the destinations of both of them were deviated."

"It was just a coincidence that I returned to this world. If the angle had been any higher, it wouldn't have been impossible for me to have been knocked back into the 'Astral Plane'," [Summoner - Aleister] concluded.

"So, what about that 'hit-and-run' thing? I only glanced at it a few times, but I'm pretty sure that's my Duel Academy." Hayato recalled what he had just seen and asked, "Where was it teleported to?"

“Although theoretically we’ve been deflected to the same world, the distance within the space tunnel could be vastly different from the exit location.” [Alai] shrugged helplessly. “At least with our sight, we haven’t seen any traces around us. All directions—front, back, left, and right—are exactly the same desert.”

"The Harpies' territory is just the edge of the forest and a desert, and they even have conflicts with the Phantom Griffins over territorial disputes. But in this area, I didn't find any aura belonging to either of those two groups." Black Feather - Shadow of Karma, who had just been sent out by Hayato to scout the surroundings, returned and said helplessly, "It seems we've arrived in a rather remote place."

"Does Lord Hayato need a vehicle for transportation? You know how to use it." [Temple's Water Spy] casually pulled out a [Riding Dragon - Carrying Dragon] card. "However, it's best to confirm the correct direction first."

(Judging from the card effect, it makes sense that the Holy Sword can regenerate, but it's also very durable that a vehicle can regenerate after being sent to the grave. It's almost like Zhou Cang next to Guan Yu.)

Hayato casually summoned a mount using a card, and just as he mounted [Riding Dragon - Carrying Dragon], he suddenly sensed something—his "New-Type" ability activated.

"This feeling is... could it be?" Although Hayato used a question, his intuition told him that his feeling was correct, and there was no need to use the [Millennium Wisdom Wheel] to confirm it again. Almost without hesitation, Hayato spurred his [Dragon Rider - Dragon Carrier] to gallop across the sand.

As a means of transportation, most people might think that the [Dragon Rider/Dragon Carrier] is faster than the [Iron Nargacuga/Narcophagus] that Hayato used when he was with the [Harpies]. However, once you see the speed at which the [Dragon Rider/Dragon Carrier] runs, such a misconception will be immediately refuted.

Even though its feet seem to be adapted to flat ground, they still increase the contact area by attaching magic to the sand, thereby reducing pressure and increasing friction, which greatly improves the speed of running. The forelimbs, which are similar to those of flying dragons, have not degenerated. They occasionally use the undulating sand dunes to run and glide in the air, gliding from the top of one sand dune to another to shorten the most strenuous and inefficient climbing phase.

【Riding a Dragon - Carrying a Dragon】is indeed a living being, but it is a magical creature from a fantasy world. For it to feel tired, it would have to run at its current speed of nearly Mach 2 for at least a day before we even think about it. In fact, for 【Riding a Dragon - Carrying a Dragon】, which is exactly what its name suggests, Hayato's little load is nothing to worry about. Carrying another two or three hundred pounds of weight would be no problem for it!

—Does Mach 2 sound fast? Actually, a certain yellow octopus teacher has a speed ten times that, but what's even more outrageous is that the XX-61 missile is already five Mach faster than him.

"Is this distance... fifty kilometers?" With the [Dragon Rider - Dragon Carryer]'s incredible speed of 680 meters per second, even a distance of fifty kilometers, which would cause a certain communication delay, could be traversed in just one minute. A few seconds after Hayato set off, he could increasingly clearly sense the presence of the students he knew and the faculty and staff of the Duel Academy!

Chapter 1756 Shield Strikes Repeated

Prana's ability was called "New-Type" by Hayato, which led everyone else to also call this ability "New-Type," but it all started just from Hayato's weird sense of humor.

But as time went on, Hayato found that the name "New-Type," which he considered to be more fitting for this quality than the original "Planar," as if the world was changing according to his will.

In Kaiba's understanding, "New-Type" refers to new humans, a general term for people who have the ability to correctly understand this expanded world after humans have incorporated the Duel Monsters containing the power of another world into their living space.

In other words, such people can be described as beings who, in addition to understanding and mastering the lifestyle related to Duel Monsters, naturally incorporate Duel Monsters into their own lives as a community of shared destiny, and further overcome the difficulties they encounter in the process, even possess the ability to transcend words and achieve mutual understanding and communication solely through their pure hearts.

That is, taking it for granted that concepts like "saving the world through duels" are acceptable, never giving up even when facing a desperate situation in a duel, and using cards to interact and perceive each other's will, etc.

In short, "New-Type" is a higher species that surpasses the existing beings known as "Homo-Sapiens," and can be called "Hyper-Sapience."

—This name clearly shows that it was Kaiba's idea, but because Kaiba used words like "Sapiens" and "Sapience" which were beyond Jonouchi's English level, he couldn't remember those messy words at all. So in the end, everyone just accepted the simple and lively term "New-Type" that Hayato originally proposed to refer to "New Humans".

In order to adapt to the vast realm of Duel Monsters beyond Earth and to live in this enormous world, "New-Type" must try to transcend this vast space. Perhaps this is why, just as Kaiba used "communication duels" to overcome the delay of spatial distance, "New-Type" has shown a similar ability to cross space and feel each other with another human.

Although it may seem ambiguous, if one had to describe it with a specific concept, the perceptual ability used by "New-Type" is like "telepathy".

Or to put it another way, there are barriers between people due to various factors such as the weather, time, temperature, language, and race. However, "New-Type" can overcome these barriers, as well as those of time and space, to create resonance between each other and further develop the ability to understand each other's inner feelings.

Sitting in the [New Generation Fossil Vehicle - Skull All-Terrain Vehicle] summoned by Jim, Jaden subconsciously turned his head to look at a certain spot and muttered to himself, "Hayato-sensei?"

"Huh?" Hearing this, Asuka, who was sitting in the back seat of the car with Judai, turned her head in confusion, but could only see the dust kicked up by the speeding vehicle on the sand, and in the distance, only the endless desert that had not changed. "Hayato-sensei...where are you? Judai, are you seeing things?"

"Hmm... I don't know how to explain it, but I just have this feeling, like someone poked me with their finger from that direction, but after feeling it more carefully, I feel like it's just my imagination."

Judai scratched his head in confusion, unsure of what to say.

Although the theoretical maximum distance that the human eye can see is 25 kilometers when it is about 1.5 meters above sea level, and even 590 kilometers when the eye is 35 meters above the ground, in reality, due to the curvature of the earth, a person standing at 2 meters can only see 5 kilometers, and even if they stand at 100 meters, they can only see 35 kilometers.

The desert world where Jaden and his companions were located was characterized by three main features: undulating sand dunes, dust obstructing their view, and a curvature that seemed to far exceed that of Earth. Therefore, even when standing in the vehicle and observing the area behind them, Jaden could only see about three or four kilometers away. Within this distance, there was no sign of Hayato, whom Jaden had sensed.

"Perhaps you were too exhausted from your duel with Dr. Cobra, Bro?" Jim, driving the ATV, paused and reassured him. "There's still a short distance to the academy, we'll be there soon. You should get some rest then, Jaden."

"But it still feels so magical. In this world, everyone can materialize Duel Monsters just like Dr. Cobra did before. Or, could this world really be the world where Card Spirits originally lived?"

"Perhaps." Jaden said, looking at the Winged Kuriboh that had appeared beside him, not in its usual illusory form, but actually perched on his shoulder. This wasn't the first time he'd seen the Winged Kuriboh materialize; he'd also encountered it in the "Valley of the Royal Long Sleep" of the Gravekeeper clan in the back mountains, and in the world of the Kaibamans beneath the hot springs. This was Jaden's third time entering the world of Card Spirits.

He was discovered after Winged Kuriboh appeared beside him out of concern, having escaped from the collapsed elevator platform. Since it wasn't the first time, he quickly explained the situation to Obryan and Jim, who were the only ones who hadn't experienced the incident before.

Compared to O'Brien, who experienced too many worldview-shattering things in a single day, Jim was much more accepting of the supernatural. He not only quickly understood the situation but also followed Jaden and the others' example by taking out cards and using the Duel Disk to summon the [New Generation Fossil Motor Vehicle - Skull All-Terrain Vehicle] as a means of transportation.

—This point was inspired by Jaden's description of how they rode Marufuji Sho's [Super Transport Robot - Giant Drill] in the "Duel-Links" world, and compared to the [Mesozoic Fossil Vehicle - Skull Touring Vehicle] and the [Paleozoic Fossil Vehicle - Skull Truck], the [Cenozoic Fossil Vehicle - Skull All-Terrain Vehicle] is indeed more suitable for driving in desert areas.

Meanwhile, holding onto the tusk of the [Jade Beast - Amber Mammoth], John laughed happily, "I never thought I'd be able to get so close to you guys in this way, Amber!"

"Instead of all that, can't you at least slow your elephant down a bit, John Anderson!"

Manjoume was filled with regret for being lazy and riding on the [Jewel Beast - Amber Mammoth] summoned by John. Maintaining balance on the back of a galloping mammoth was no easy task, not to mention that the [Jewel Beast - Amber Mammoth] would occasionally toss Manjoume up as it traversed the undulating sand dunes.

If he hadn't clung tightly to the mane on the back of the [Jade Beast - Amber Mammoth], he would have been flung away long ago!

"It's not an elephant, it's a mammoth!" [Jade Beast - Amber Mammoth] corrected. "I don't want to slow down! Do you want me to be overtaken by that car next to me? As long as I don't stop, the road ahead will keep extending—so, don't stop!"

“Hahaha, you’re really energetic, Amber.” John chuckled as he sat on the long tusks of the Amber Mammoth, turning back to Manjoume and saying, “Why don’t you sit in the front too, Manjoume? O’Brien and I can make some room for you.”

"No way!" Wan Zhangmu secretly vowed that if there were a next time he needed to travel like this, he would never be lazy again and would definitely have the [Dragon of Light and Darkness] come out and carry him.

The Jade Generations weren't entirely clear on the specific principles of spatial teleportation, nor did they understand why, although a large area of ​​land had been initially teleported, they were now rushing back to the academy across the sand, with the original land along the way disappearing—along with the surrounding forests. However, this also shortened their journey back to the school considerably.

They returned to the academy in just a few minutes, and could see Professor Chronos and Coach Napoleon standing in front of the school entrance from afar.

Just as Judai was about to stand up and greet them, he saw Coach Napoleon running excitedly into the distance, with Professor Chronos beside him unable to stop him.

"Is that a rescue team? Hey! Look over here, Aru!"

"Wait a minute, Coach Gene, that doesn't look like it..."

Professor Chronos didn't need to continue; at first, Coach Napoleon thought they had appeared in some strange place, and that the black dots flying in from the horizon were air rescue teams that had come after learning about the recent trouble at the Duel Academy, which is why he ran out so excitedly.

But after he ran about ten meters away, as the black dot in the sky closed in, Napoleon himself realized that the thing didn't look like an airplane at all; it was more like a large bird.