Is this the world of card dealers? Yada thieves!

Moreover, Yubel was able to deceive Hayato because she relied on the help of Hayato's student, Amon Garlem, whom she had met back in the SAL underground research institute.

—During the initial spatial transfer, although Yubel did indeed only transfer the portion above a certain altitude without transferring the underground forest, thus wasting energy, Amon Garam somehow managed to reach the surface via underground ventilation ducts and was thus also sent to the Elf World.

Not only that, he also took away the nutrient solution rich in dueling energy that had been used to soak Yubel's body in the underground research institute. Yubel simply appeared beside him and started a deal with him. Without anyone else's help, Yubel, who possessed the ability to bewitch, easily stirred up the darkness in Amon's heart, using its power to help him hide and evade Hayato's search.

Although Yubel could sense a deeper darkness within the Duel Academy, considering that Hayato Kobayashi would not return for an unknown period after leaving, Yubel dared not be taken around by Amon. Instead, he possessed Amon's body, intending to consume the considerable darkness within him. At the same time, he began his own scheme, planning to use despair and fear to oppress the worst students in the academy and let Jaden witness the "darkness of Duel Academy."

Amon Garlem, who was possessed by Yubel, was also included in Yubel's Plan-B. His spy identity might make Jaden doubt his past relationships, and even if it was just a little bit, Yubel's goal would be achieved.

Yubel even has a Plan-C, because after she teleported away Hayato Kobayashi, she discovered that when Hayato Kobayashi dueled with her, a significant portion of his energy was attached to an invisible particle in the air due to the use of Synchro Summoning. With the power of the "Light Wave" intercepted in the past, Yubel deduced that by consuming the energy of this particle, she could actually reproduce Hayato Kobayashi's Synchro Summoning.

Yubel collected all of those particles, but some were still absorbed by Amon Garlem due to his presence. However, after Yubel forcibly awakened the spirit of his Duel Monster Card "Lord of the Mist" and stuffed it into Amon's body, controlling him to duel and squeezing out duel energy, a large portion of those special particles were also collected by Yubel.

Yubel gave a very small portion of it to Professor Cobra, not to truly grant him great power, but merely to use it for experiments. The result of the experiments was that Professor Cobra's deck simply gained a few more "Reptile Fairy" cards. The Synchro Monster "Reptile Fairy - Melusin" was just so-so, not even close to Kobayashi Hayato's level.

On the contrary, after possessing Amon Garam, Yubel discovered that although Amon himself could not perceive the existence of these particles, the remaining residue actually combined with the zombie virus that he originally intended to spread in the Duel Academy, and turned into an Undead deck with Synchro Summoning ability, which was the deck that Amon "switched" to use halfway through his duel with Jaden.

Yubel thought that even if the first two plans failed, he could still defeat Jaden and drag him to a secluded place to slowly train him, right? But Jaden actually managed to resonate with Amon Garlem's mind with that strange ability, and even broke his possession of him. Luckily, he managed to cut off the connection in time, leaving only an energy clone to absorb the damage from the battle, otherwise he would probably have been destroyed by Jaden there!

Even so, all of Yubel's energy was consumed while he was possessing Amon's body, and a large portion of it was lost. Even though the students of Duel Academy relied on the "Duel Energy Distributor" to recover their physical and mental strength and fight against the Duel Monsters that tried to approach the school, and the generated Duel Energy was received by Yubel through the "Death Gloves," in the end, they could only barely break even. Yubel's Duel Energy reserves were still almost depleted, and he was unable to heal his injuries and become a complete entity.

—But to say she gained nothing at all wouldn't be entirely true. She had squeezed out the final portion of those special particles from Amon Garlem's body and sent them to Yubel. She felt that if she continued to be so stingy with the energy within those particles, her progress in "conquering" Jaden wouldn't advance much even by the time Hayato Kobayashi returned. It was better to go all in and acquire a powerful force.

At the same time, Yubel also remembered to find herself a new body. This time, she figured it out—she absolutely couldn't find someone close to Jaden. It would be best if he didn't know her at all. Otherwise, who knows if Jaden would shout "bonds" or "friendship" and kill her again.

However, they can't be completely unfamiliar with each other, because Yubel simply can't stand not looking at Jaden all the time. If the possessed person has already met Jaden at least once, then it's normal to take a few extra glances at him when passing by Jaden, right?

Of course, the most important thing is to have enough darkness in one's heart. Although Yubel admits that he is very "love-struck" and his mind is full of Jaden's affairs, Kobayashi Hayato's existence is like the Sword of Damocles. No one knows when he will come back. Maybe he has already found clues to other student dormitories that Yubel himself does not know where he was teleported to after being away from school for half a day.

Therefore, it is necessary to quickly gather enough dueling energy, supplement it with the darkness in the possessed person's heart to heal and strengthen oneself, and at the same time, give up everything and use the energy of those special particles to exchange for enough power. The power of "evolution" contained in the power of "light wave" can also come in handy.

Yubel herself experienced the enhancement of that power. When she was sent to heaven, she only had the card 【Yubel】. It was under the power of this "Light of Evolution" that she acquired the second stage 【Yubel - The Hated Knight】 and the third stage 【Yubel - The Extremely Sad Dragon】. After receiving the power of the "Light Wave" that she chose to give up after being defeated, she gained the power of 【Yubel Phantom】 and other powers. Even cards such as 【Graveyard Creeper】 also gained enhanced forms such as 【Hell Graveyard Creeper】.

—Although in the end, it still couldn't beat Kobayashi Hayato's "Tears" deck. After all, the power of that deck was just too outrageous. Not to mention that it could even be combined with another deck called "Kusha". Kobayashi Hayato even claimed that the deck that was missing some "Opa Rei power" was not the complete version. It's so ridiculous, do you understand?

Without the useful body of Amon Garlem to assist her in moving around the academy, walking around the Duel Academy in her current energy form would be too conspicuous. After all, the academy's surveillance cameras weren't just for show, and she couldn't just casually jump around the school.

(He transforms into Professor Cobra's adopted son, jumping around at school, even with his bottom exposed.)

So, what are some ways to shift the school's vigilance to the outside, reduce the internal surveillance so as to seize opportunities, and at the same time, stimulate students' emotions as much as possible to spread the darkness in their hearts so that they can find a suitable new host?

Oh, there really is!

Although Yubel wouldn't be bold enough to openly appear in front of Jaden and the others again, even though she could easily defeat them in the human world, in the spirit world, because Jaden and the others' Duel Monsters can also materialize, although she still has a great advantage, Jaden and the others have also gained the ability to fight back. Conflict would only be a waste of her energy reserves.

However, there are countless Pokémon in this desert that can be manipulated and incited by oneself. As long as a certain number of Duel Monsters, which are much stronger than the Pokémon currently besieging the Duel Academy, can be gathered, even Jaden and his friends will have to devote all their energy to defending against attacks and protecting those troublesome so-called "friends". This will give one the opportunity to absorb the dueling energy from high-intensity duels while searching for people with enough darkness in their hearts.

Even the crisis of "monster siege" can spread fear and despair among students and stimulate the growth of darkness in people's hearts - it is simply a flawless plan!

Yubel, full of confidence, left the dark corner where he was hiding. He furtively looked around to make sure no one was passing by, and then used his energy body to pass through the ventilation duct of the Duel Academy. Although the ventilation duct of the Duel Academy was designed to be very narrow and not suitable for people to climb through like in movies and TV shows, what could Yubel do when all he had materialized was a hand and the rest was energy?

Leaving the Duel Academy, Yubel's feet touched the sand. He turned back and looked at the academy, muttering to himself, "Although I could efficiently absorb the dueling energy provided by the 'Death Gauntlet' and occasionally see Jaden, I was just a caged bird, a fish in a net, trapped inside. Now, having left, I'm like a fish entering the sea, a bird soaring to the sky, no longer bound by any constraints! Hahahaha!"

With her wings spread wide, Yubel flew rapidly across the desert, preparing to put her plan into action.

Chapter 1785 Choose Your Tamashi

"Fifty hours have passed since humans began migrating to the Elf Realm due to overpopulation."

"The massive Duel Academy building, situated in the heart of the desert, became humanity's second home. People were born, grew up, and died here."

"In 2007 AD, the Duel Academy branch school furthest from the main campus—the Northern Branch School—launched a war of independence against Duel Academy in the name of 'Saint Slave Academy.' In the first hour of the battle, half the world's population died, and people developed a fear of their own actions, but the war continued."

"The battle reached a stalemate, and more than eight hours had passed... Okay, I can't make up any more of that."

Hayato casually tossed a plan aside and looked at the students in front of him, saying, "In short, from now on, we will begin the live-fire exercise according to the above settings, codenamed—'Rainbow Dragon Stands Tall on the Earth'!"

"What a hastily set story background! And the name they gave the northern branch school is weird too," Marufuji Sho complained, raising his hand. "Did they copy the setting from some anime from the last century?"

"Marufuji Sho, shut up." Hayato picked up the pointer beside him and tapped a movable blackboard behind him. "Listen quietly to the teacher during class and don't whisper to each other."

"So why do we still have to go to class even though we've come to another world?" Although Hayato's "Spirit Coexistence Class" was one of the few classes that Jaden liked, since the class assigned a lot of homework, as if it was meant to exhaust their energy so they wouldn't have anything to do after class, the content of the class was very interesting, at least better than other classes that required a lot of rote memorization.

However, in this dangerous other world, Hayato-sensei, who had just found the three lost dormitories and brought the students back to school, had no intention of giving them a break. Instead, he took them to the desert next to the school to start teaching. It's really something to complain about.

“Although it’s called a class, it should actually be considered special training.” Standing next to Jaden, Asuka explained, “Back in the human world, ‘Spirit Coexistence Class’ was a waste of time for most people. After all, they were too busy to even master the basic knowledge and didn’t have the energy to spare for this elective course.”

“But things are different in this world of card spirits.” Manjoume crossed his arms and stood tall. “The so-called ‘coexistence with spirits’ is no longer limited to resonating with one’s own cards. Fighting against the ferocious and dangerous spirits that are all over this world is also part of ‘coexistence’.”

"Just like what Manjoume said, because of the changes in the environment, the content of my course now needs to be changed to keep up with the times." Ignoring Marufuji Sho's complaints, "It's okay for the older brothers to talk, isn't this discrimination?" Hayato tapped the words "Spirit Coexistence" written on the blackboard with his pointer. "Although I used to teach you to treat card spirits well, the current situation in this world no longer allows you to give kindness to all spirits indiscriminately."

"Under the emergency avoidance regulations, people who are starving are allowed to kill protected animals to fill their stomachs without breaking the law. Moreover, coexisting peacefully with elves has never been an explicit legal provision. Even the title of this lesson only states 'coexistence' and does not require 'peaceful coexistence'—if you encounter a dangerous elf, it is okay to kill it."

With these harsh words, Hayato took out a card and inserted it into his Duel Disk: "This lesson is based on this fundamental concept, and today's training is for you to fight according to the settings I have given you."

"Battle?" John asked doubtfully. "Isn't a duelist simply someone who summons their cards and then completely trusts their opponent?"

“Not everyone’s cards awaken agile spirits like yours, John-san,” Fubuki explained John’s doubts. “Moreover, rather than commanding monsters in actual combat, what’s more important to us is how to summon monsters at the very first moment of battle.”

"That's right, this is the core content of this lesson - the difference between 'Quick-Reaction Monsters' and 'Tack Monsters'. The latter concept is obvious, referring to the strongest power that your strongest monster can unleash. The content in this regard is actually similar to ordinary duels. As long as you can summon it and shorten the deployment steps as much as possible, you're done. But the important thing is the former - 'Quick-Reaction Monsters'."

"When you are ambushed, the act of simply setting up your Duel Disk can be enough to knock you down. Moreover, you can't set up your Duel Disk smoothly in all situations—for example, when you fall, it's difficult to even maintain your balance, let alone draw a card."

“In situations like this, ‘Quick Reaction Monsters’ become necessary—just like the secondary weapon pistols commonly found in Wargames. Their rate of fire and shooting power may not be high, but they are the most readily available counterattack weapon when your main weapon runs out of ammunition and is temporarily unusable. The same applies to Duel Monster cards.”

Jim extracted the key words from Hayato's string of terms: "So, the card that can be summoned the fastest and has some defensive capabilities is the 'Quick Reaction Monster'?"

Upon hearing this, Jaden took out two cards from his person and said, "For me, it would be [Winged Kuriboh], and maybe I could also add [E·Hero Neos Spirit]?"

"The Dragon of Light and Darkness won't be a 'traitor' in a situation like this." Manjoume was also very confident in his card.

“My family and I will risk our lives to protect each other!” John said, holding up seven [Jade Beast] cards.

"I already told you, let's exclude those 'spirit users' who can communicate with the spirits in their Duel Monsters cards first," Kenzan complained, then unfolded his deck with a troubled expression. "As for my deck... the strongest one should be [Jurassic Giant Beast], but if we're talking about the fastest card to summon with some defense... [Little Horned Dragon]?"

"What can [Little Horned Dragon] do, please tell me? Is it summoned to take the hit?" Marufuji Sho retorted, glancing at Marufuji Ryo who had unhesitatingly chosen the card [Cyber ​​Dragon], and Jaden who was choosing between [Winged Kuriboh] and [E·Hero Neos Elf]. He too began to select cards from his own deck.

When choosing a so-called "quick-response monster," the strength of its defensive capabilities is secondary. The key point, just like the name Hayato chose, is that it is a monster that can be summoned quickly. In other words, it is the kind of card that, even if you are panicking, you can subconsciously feel at ease when you see that card and have full confidence in summoning it.

Otherwise, in terms of defensive and offensive capabilities, isn't Marufuji Sho's [Kite Robot] far more effective than his brother's [Cyber ​​Dragon]?

Even Fubuki and the others were troubled by Hayato's concept. If Marufuji Sho could sense that this was the truly important choice, how could they not react? However, finding that core card in one's own deck was not an easy task.

When building a deck, you can simply choose cards based on their strength or weakness, or you can add a card to your deck because you like its artwork. For example, in the past, Marufuji Sho's deck included "Lightning Lady," which fit his aesthetic. If he could get "Dark Magician Girl" cards, he would have included "Dark Magician Girl," which is not part of the same deck, in his deck.

However, the former type of card is more useful in duels, while the latter type is merely a mascot and not very suitable as a quick response method in times of crisis...

—But, thinking about it carefully, such cards actually meet the requirements quite well, don't they? After all, such cards exist as amulets that give people peace of mind. Even if drawing them would be a problem when facing a crisis in a duel, they can still provide a certain placebo effect.

Suddenly inspired, Marufuji Sho thought of something and started rummaging through his deck. He quickly found a card: "A card that makes me feel at ease and gives me high hopes. Shouldn't I choose this one for my deck?"

Seeing that Marufuji Sho had made his choice, Judai curiously leaned over and asked, "What? Sho, which card did you choose?"

"It feels a little shameful to let people see my choice... but it's fine if it's my older brother." Sho Marufuji shyly showed off his card, and Judai saw that the card Marufuji was holding was [UFO Robot].

"Huh? Why did you choose this one, senpai?" Kenzan curiously leaned over after noticing the card Marufuji Sho had chosen. "I thought senpai Sho would choose the [Thunder Goddess] card."

"Hmph, who do you think you are, a mere sword mountain?" Marufuji Sho put away the card and said confidently, "I'm no longer the kind of person who's obsessed with [Thunder Goddess]. Ever since I saw the materialized [Dark Magician Girl], I've grown up!"

"What have you grown up in? It sounds like you've just shifted your focus to other women. What's so great about that?" Manjoume retorted, glancing at Asuka on the other side. Asuka had chosen her card faster than Fubuki. "Asuka's choice, [Ancient Saint Dai - First Dragon]?"

“I think I understand why Asuka chose that card.” Marufuji Sho said, glancing at Judai. He clearly remembered that Judai had first opened the card [Ancient Saint Dai - First Dragon] from a card pack, and then traded it with Asuka. The [Beloved Hero] obtained from the trade is still frequently used in Judai’s deck today.

In a sense, viewing the two cards, [Beloved Hero] and [Ancient Saint Dai - First Dragon], as a connection between the older brother and Asuka... ya ya ya~

However, the reason I chose [UFO Machine] is very simple. It's not because this card has the common effect of Special Summoning a Machine-Type monster with 1500 or less ATK after being destroyed by battle. It's simply because this card is the only one in Marufuji Sho's deck, besides [E·hero Necromancer] given to him by Jaden, that can synergize with Jaden.

【E·hero Necromancer】represents more the care Jaden showed him and the help he received, but 【UFO Robot】represents Marufuji Sho's inner desire to help Jaden, not to stand behind his older brother and be protected, but to stand on the same side as his older brother and fight side by side - however, Marufuji Sho himself doesn't feel that Jaden will ever be able to accept his help.

Fubuki and the others quickly made their choices, finding the card they felt was the most suitable. Hayato nodded and said, "I can guess that you were somewhat hesitant, thinking that maybe the card you chose wasn't suitable and that you could choose another one later. But what I want to tell you is to trust your first instinct as duelists. The card you choose based on your intuition is the most suitable partner for you."

"Yes, in this world of card sprites, our real 'Sprite Coexistence Course' is about to begin. In addition to teaching how to fight, the card I asked you to choose actually has another meaning. It is a card that embodies the most important dueling will for a duelist. It is like a copy and personification of the duelist's other body and soul. It is the 'Soul Card', 'Tamashi'!"

When talking about "Tamashi", Hayato emphasized it for some reason, "For duelists, victory is above all else, but beyond victory, and even beyond life and death, there is something else that is even more important. That thing is different for everyone. It is something that no teacher can teach. It can only be understood by each person himself. And the only way to glimpse its true nature in advance is to find your own 'Tamashi'."

"Lesson 1, don't have any strange expectations of me;"

Lesson 2: Don't let the card notice;

"Lesson 3, trust the card, just trust it."

"In the past, I taught you the first three lessons. Now, the fourth lesson of the 'Elf Coexistence Course' is coming up—Lesson 4."

"Let's pay our respects." Hayato took a card from his deck and inserted it into the field area of ​​the Duel Disk. The desert landscape was transformed into an arena, resembling the Colosseum in ancient Rome, only with a more futuristic art style.

Looking out from the arena, the sky outside was actually glowing as if created by a volcano? This was an arena built on top of a volcano, and even drawing energy from the erupting volcano to keep it running!?

"Pay tribute to your decks, to the cards you trust, and to the meaning of dueling in your hearts." Saying these ambiguous and incomprehensible words, Hayato waved his hand, "And then, step into a completely new phase of dueling."

"Fight to your heart's content in this [Disc Arena - Beast Belt Fighting God Circular Arena]. Don't worry about friendly fire; I'll stay here as the safety officer. Now, fight with all your might to steal your opponents' talents and accelerate your own growth."

However, the [Disc Arena - Beast Belt Fighting God Circular Arena] is not truly empty. After all, Hayato specifically explained at the beginning that it was a complete copy of the background setting of "Mobile Suit Gundam". Although it doesn't have as many strangely shaped aquatic creatures as Zeon, it has plenty of large mechanical warriors.

Under Hayato's command, the [Beast Warriors], who are the avatars of the constellations in the sky, appear one after another as warriors. These are the opponents that Hayato has prepared for Jaden, John, and the others.

Following the four mechanical-style [Beast Warriors] embodied in Pisces, Taurus, Cancer, and Aries, the King of the Arena and the Queen who has broken free from her seal—[Beast Warrior "King" Xuanyuan XIV] and [Beast Warrior "Empress" Arasia Star]—are also moving their bodies, preparing to join the battle.

And the answer from the Jadens was—

Chapter 1786 Caesar: The cowardly me of the past is dead.

"Oh my god! We won't lose either!" Taking the lead, Jaden rushed into the arena without hesitation and excitedly began the battle.

Manjoume and Asuka followed closely behind. "Don't even think about getting there first!" "That 'Pisces' is mine!"

"Wait for me, bro!" x2

Marufuji Sho and Kenzan followed him in side by side, while Jim and O'Brien also entered the dueling arena looking eager to try their luck.

"I'll be going first, Ryo~" With a wave, Fubuki also entered the room. In the blink of an eye, only John and Caesar remained beside Hayato. As for Misawa? He hadn't come to this class in the first place. Instead, he was at school with Daitokuji, researching ways to travel back in time.

"What, do you have any questions for me?" The eight people who have entered are now challenging the four [Beast God of War] in pairs, while there are still two empty seats waiting for their opponents to enter. Hayato didn't urge John and Caesar, but just looked at the two of them and asked casually.

“I thought you would find someone to duel with me, instead of using your Duel Monster as a trial like this,” John said, somewhat troubled. “Because I remember you saying that before, Master?”

When Hayato left the Duel Academy to find other students in the dormitories, there were indeed plans for John to find more people to duel in order to grow and discover the power of the [Ultimate Jewel God - Rainbow Dragon] as soon as possible. However, now that Hayato has returned to the school, he has changed his mind and switched to the current special training method.

"That's why I came here too," Caesar said. He wasn't very interested in simple monster battles. He originally came to continue attending classes as a graduate because he wanted to have the chance to play cards with John, but he didn't expect Hayato's class to be such a "free-for-all".

“Because I rather arbitrarily used the way our generation grew up to educate you, although I don’t want to admit it, it was all a mistake made because of youth.” Hayato said with a sigh, “Although he seems to be a hot-blooded idiot like Jaden, John’s personality and dueling are actually the opposite. He is a strategist full of probing and weighing.”

"This is certainly influenced by the fact that the deck you used in the past and present is the Insect-Type, which is weak individually, and the Crystal Beast, which only has a few monster cards and has to play in combination to preserve its strength. But it also shows your personality. The so-called 'seeing a person through a duel' is not some kind of metaphysics but has a real application."

“Simply fighting with others can certainly help you grow, John, but the dueling opponents required for your dueling style to develop are very demanding. First, they must be able to put enough pressure on you, forcing you to think hard about how to win. Then, your opponent must be the type that even someone as gentle and peaceful as you would want to win, and thus subconsciously crave power.”