Is this the world of card dealers? Yada thieves!

Looking at Misawa, Tanya, who was in the form of a tiger, spoke in human language: "What a thrilling duel, Misawa-kun."

With a smile, Tania sniffed the rose petal she clutched in her paws, and disappeared along with the rest of the Amazons into the brilliant sunlight that re-emerged after the duel.

Besides Misawa and Maeda, only Oyama Hirai, who had become a "pitiful" slave after losing the duel with Tania, was left behind. He was lying on his back with his mouth open and eyes closed, looking suspiciously flushed.

Not knowing what he had been doing, he noticed the change in his surroundings, sat up with a look of panic and disappointment, and looked around: "What happened!?"

But Misawa didn't pay attention to his feelings. Quite disappointed, Misawa looked at the spot where Tanya had disappeared and muttered to himself, "Tanya, was she a tiger? Should I say I'm lucky or unlucky? It turned out that what I said casually was actually correct. If that's the case, then Daitokuji-sensei might really be a Seven Star."

He chuckled self-deprecatingly and looked up at the blinding sunlight. "Although I hate to admit it, I seem to have fallen for this woman named Tanya."

Chapter 1139 is different from Tanya, and different from Tanya!

Tanya is the woman who can be my wife.

Despite having such thoughts, Misawa reluctantly accepted the cruel reality after witnessing Tanya lose the glove that seemed to have special powers, turn into a tiger, and disappear from the world along with the other Amazons.

It was the first time I'd met someone I clicked with so well, the first time I'd encountered someone of the opposite sex who liked me and whom I reciprocated. These two joyful things happening together should have been doubly delightful, but... how could this have happened...?

"Don't be like that, Wuzhe-kun. Tanya is a nice woman, isn't she...?" Maeda said, comforting Misawa, who was devastated by the disappearance of the person she liked after turning into a tiger. "If you really miss her, you can come visit the Red Dorm more often. 'Pharaoh's' fur should feel similar to that of a tiger, although it's a little 'billion' fatter."

“Although we’re both felines, cats and Tanya are different! Unlike Tanya!” Misawa sighed. “Also, my name is Misawa Daichi…”

"In short, one of the four 'Seven Stars' who came to the island has been defeated. I don't know what the situation is with Jaden Yuki and the others, but I think Professor Chronos and Jaden should be able to handle it."

Although the first "Seven Stars" they faced was Titan, who had kidnapped Asuka and Sho, used vile hypnotic techniques to cheat in duels, and dragged Jaden into the Dark Games, Jaden and the other students had a terrible first impression of the "Seven Stars" and imagined their limits to be very low, Misawa's impression of the remaining "Seven Stars" was different from Jaden's because they encountered Tanya and Camilla respectively.

Jaden and his friends' impression of the "Seven Stars" worsened, while Misawa, though learning from Tanya that the "Seven Stars" were a group of inhuman duelists, also understood that not everyone was as wicked as Titans, and that there were duelists like Tanya who acted out of loyalty to someone. However, their positions were ultimately opposed, and even with Tanya, whom he admired, Misawa was forced to defeat her in the final duel.

I wonder what kind of people the "Seven Stars" that Judai and his group will encounter will be.

Speculation alone will not yield any results. After being asked by Oyama to keep his existence and his performance in the Amazon territory from others, Misawa and Maeda decided to leave the Amazon "ruins" and move to where the others were, hoping they could be of some help.

But just as the mountain swept away the vines of the jungle, disappearing into the dense forest like Tarzan, and as Maeda Hayato and Misawa Daichi picked up their bicycles and were about to set off, Misawa subconsciously looked back again. Under the increasingly glaring sunlight, the clearing where the [Savage Arena] had been stood seemed so stark, and the surroundings were unusually quiet, unlike before when there were sounds of activity from the [Amazonian] tribe.

Looking up at the sky, even without looking directly at the sun, Misawa felt that the sun was unusually hot and bright today, and he couldn't help but squint. At the same time, he suddenly noticed something peculiar—why did it seem like there was a black dot moving next to the sun? Was he hallucinating due to the strong light?

No, no, how could that be? That thing didn't look like an airplane or a bird; it looked more like a ship. But how could a ship fly into the sky on its own? I couldn't possibly have encountered a legendary unidentified flying object (UFO) so easily, could I?

Hmm, it must be an illusion.

Misawa and Maeda were about to leave when they didn't notice that the black dot in the sky that they had observed seemed to have lowered its altitude and was approaching their location when it noticed Misawa and Maeda moving around next to a clearing in the dense forest.

Meanwhile, Caesar was still on his way through the jungle to the location of the [Savage Arena] that he had previously confirmed had disappeared.

On the other hand, things are really bad for Judai.

Despite his boastful words when he left Professor Chronos, he became quiet and reserved as he and Asuka sped towards the volcano to conserve their energy. When their stamina began to wane and their speed started to drop, they both fell completely silent.

There's a saying in *Journey to the West*: "Looking at the mountain, the horses walk backwards," meaning that in a place called Wangshan (Looking at the Mountain), the horses walk backwards...

Not at all! This saying means that even though you can see the mountain, there's still a long way to go, enough to exhaust the horse to death. It's like how Hayato has fought Jaden more than once in the past. Each time, Jaden felt he had improved, but he was still a long way from defeating Hayato. It's not that Hayato always held back, only using slightly more power than Jaden; on the contrary, the stronger Jaden became, the more he perceived the terrifying and powerful nature of Hayato's strength.

The journey towards the volcano in the center of the island became increasingly difficult due to the rugged terrain and the lack of transportation. Even Asuka, who regularly exercised through long-distance running, was exhausted. Not to mention Marufuji Sho, who was small and not well-trained. He was barely hanging on behind Judai and Asuka, and it would not be surprising if he suddenly fell behind.

Although Jaden was exceptionally talented and physically strong, he couldn't withstand the fact that he first ran from the academy to the red dormitory, then rode his bicycle with Marufuji Sho to the lakeside next to the blue dormitory, and then traversed the jungle to head towards the volcano in the center of the island. Even the most monstrous stamina was almost completely depleted.

In their current state, even if they were to immediately encounter the "Seven Stars" heading to the central volcano of Duel Academy Island, it would be difficult for them to be in a fully fit state to engage in the Dark Game, which already places a great strain on their bodies. Although Jaden could shout things like "I'll make up for the loss of stamina with my fighting spirit" to encourage himself when he was caught up in the heat of the moment, when his stamina was already in the negative, even his fighting spirit would be hard to sustain.

"B-Big brother, can we take a break for a while? I really can't keep up anymore..." Finally, Marufuji Sho felt that he couldn't hold on any longer. Even with Tenjouin, whom he had always admired, present, he couldn't help but suggest to Judai, who was at the front, "In our current state, even if we find that masked 'Seven Stars,' we won't have enough energy to duel him, right?"

“But we can’t just leave that person alone, can we?” Judai slowed down slightly after hearing Marufuji Sho’s words. “There’s a saying that ‘it’s easier to go up the mountain than to come down,’ but that person has a hang glider. Who knows where he might attack while we’re resting? Justice delayed is justice denied. We should find that person and prevent him from attacking others as soon as possible.”

Because of Titan and Camilla, Jaden doesn't have a good impression of the "Seven Stars." He wonders how things are going with Misawa. The "strong man" riding a tiger doesn't sound like someone to be trifled with. Hopefully, he hasn't encountered any heart-pounding dangers.

Upon hearing Judai's words, Asuka said, "Marufuji-kun makes a good point. I'm even more eager than you to find the masked 'Seven Stars,' Judai. However, we should also act within our capabilities. Our current state is indeed not suitable for a duel."

"As for hang gliders, although they can indeed be used to move quickly from high places, the wind direction on Duel Academy Island recently has been blowing from the academy towards the volcano. That person might be able to reach the volcano by hang glider, but it won't be so easy to use a hang glider to come down from the mountain."

Judai thought about it and realized that recently he often felt a comfortable sea breeze near his dormitory, instead of the hot wind blowing towards the ocean from the direction of the volcano on the island. In addition to altitude, wind direction is also something that must be considered when gliding.

"But, Asuka, you're considering things according to normal human standards, right? But Camilla is a vampire, and that Titan is a monster who escaped from the Dark Games. I once read in a book that 'Stand users attract each other,' so maybe monsters do too. My intuition tells me that the so-called 'Seven Stars' might also be an organization of non-human duelists, which means we can't rule out the possibility that the person wearing the mask isn't human."

Based on her own thinking, Judai unexpectedly obtained the same information that Misawa had gotten from Tania, and continued, "What if he is some kind of werewolf or lizardman? If we relax because of the hang glider incident, we might miss the chance to stop him and cause other classmates to get hurt!"

With a determined punch, Jaden said earnestly, "Hayato once taught me a saying, 'A hero's passion must never be extinguished.' A hero cannot desert his post!"

Hearing Jaden say that, Asuka sighed helplessly, "Since you've put it that way, let's continue on our way. Honestly, my feet will probably hurt all day tomorrow."

"Don't worry, Asuka, even if you're so tired you end up in the school clinic, I'll bring you food, and I'll take care of your class notes too!" Judai said shamelessly, while secretly thinking about how to ask Misawa to take two sets of notes for him—after all, he had already asked Misawa to take notes for him before, and adding Asuka's would make two sets.

Seeing that Asuka had failed to persuade Judai, Marufuji Sho sighed, but he wasn't too disappointed; instead, a feeling of joy rose in his heart. The reason was simple: just because Asuka had spoken up for him when he suggested to Judai that they take a break, that alone was enough to make Marufuji Sho excited beyond measure.

Even Marufuji Sho felt his body had become much lighter and a strange strength had suddenly risen within him, so he could easily run for another half hour without any problem—no, let's forget about that.

The heavy, aching legs, feeling like they were filled with lead, brought Marufuji Sho back to reality. Because of Judai's insistence, he had no choice but to continue following. As for leaving the group and returning, he would never choose that. Who knows if he would be kidnapped and become a hostage again?

"While I admire my older brother's decisiveness, he's a little too self-centered." Looking at Judai's retreating figure, Marufuji Sho said in a slightly sour tone, "He's always thinking only of himself."

The same words, spoken by Kiyomaru Sho, meant one thing, but were interpreted differently by the listener. Asuka, hearing only Kiyomaru Sho's words that he "only thinks of himself," nodded in agreement and casually said, "Yeah, Judai is too self-centered, always thinking of solving problems by himself."

"It's good to rely on other people more often."

When Judai heard Asuka and Sho behind him mention him, he turned around in confusion and asked, "What? Are you talking about me? You were just too tired to speak a moment ago."

"That's because I wanted to conserve my energy and run faster than you. Didn't you say that whoever finds the masked 'Seven Stars' first will have to duel him?" Asuka paused, then retorted, "But now I understand. I'll never compete with you in stamina again. There's no chance of winning. I'd rather focus on the duel itself."

"Hehe, since you've said so, Asuka, then I'd better work harder in the duel, otherwise it would be terrible if I lost to you." Judai responded to Asuka's provocation with a bright smile, and then asked, "By the way, where's Sho?"

"Huh? Wasn't he right behind me—" Turning her head in confusion, Asuka discovered that Marufuji Sho, who had been following behind her and Judai just moments before, had vanished without a trace? He had mysteriously disappeared without a trace, and she hadn't even noticed how he disappeared!

“First, let’s rule out the possibility that Sho doesn’t want to continue with us. I know that with his courage, he would never dare to walk alone in a remote jungle. Maeda can scare him into hiding under the covers even when he tells a story about a scholar falling in love with a female ghost.” Judai and Asuka immediately stopped and turned back to look for Sho. “Besides, even if he fell into some kind of pit, he could easily shout for help.”

"Having ruled out those two possibilities, there's only one reason why Marufuji-kun suddenly disappeared—"

Asuka turned her head to look at Jaden, and the two said in unison, "He's been kidnapped by 'Seven Stars' again!" x2

Marufuji Sho, who was following Judai and Asuka, suddenly felt a darkness before his eyes and then Judai and Asuka disappeared. When he opened his eyes again, he saw a man in a long black trench coat standing not far in front of him with his back to him. His hands and feet were bound and his mouth was gagged so he could not speak.

"W-Why am I being kidnapped again?!" Looking at the black-clad man who slowly turned his head, his scarlet eyes beneath the black mask staring at him, Marufuji Sho recognized him as the hang glider man he had seen before. Tears welled in his eyes. "It's...it's 'Seven Stars'! Get back!"

"Croak, don't come any closer!"

'Jūdai, save me!'

Chapter 1140 The Challenge of Red-Eyes

"A true duelist is one who can create their own destiny!" Jaden said solemnly. "And this is the future I have created!"

"Bah-"

The wooden stick fell to the ground as Jaden released his grip on it, pointing randomly in a direction. Jaden immediately declared, "Alright! Let's go this way!"

Beside Judai, Asuka had no doubt that Judai's seemingly childish way of finding his way could lead him to the suddenly missing Marufuji Sho, because she knew that although Judai was somewhat directionally challenged, he had an inexplicable good luck that would always lead him to the right route.

In another world, Jaden accidentally lost his ability to communicate with card spirits and even see Duel Monster cards due to the influence of dark forces during a duel. While taking a walk in the jungle to clear his mind, he accidentally lost his way and wandered further and further away from the academy. However, he ended up finding new friends and regaining his original abilities.

Even in this world where the time for that event has not yet come, Asuka, though unaware of what has yet to happen, has heard Judai mention that once, before Judai was familiar with the school, he accidentally got lost and happened to run into Aunt Tomie, who ran a convenience store and needed help.

Jaden, who helped Aunt Tomie without hesitation, almost missed class, but unexpectedly received a gift that noon. It was the day the Duel Academy store restocked, and the store brought in many card packs from overseas, including many newly released ones. However, those new card packs were so popular that they were quickly sold out. But Aunt Tomie specially saved one pack for Jaden as a gift.

Later that afternoon, during a weekly duel practice session, when facing Jun Manjoume, who had bought a bunch of new cards, and his deck of cards such as "Giant Dragon - Shining" and "Dragon Paladin," Jaden launched a beautiful counterattack using cards he had drawn from his card pack, such as "Thousand Changes" and "Warlords' War."

The gifts she received for helping others came in handy when she encountered trouble later. Even the protagonists in old-fashioned hero novels who are blessed with good luck don't have such outrageous luck. If Jaden were to print a card out of thin air one day, Asuka probably wouldn't be surprised.

Sure enough, just five minutes after Marufuji Sho disappeared, as Judai and Asuka walked about a hundred meters in the direction Judai had randomly chosen, the half of the stone disc on Judai's chest suddenly emitted a purple light.

"This is!?"

Asuka looked at the stone disc that had suddenly appeared on Judai's chest with a puzzled expression. Judai, in turn, looked at the stone disc on his own chest and recalled the words spoken by the Elder of the Graveyard who had given him half of the stone disc in the "King's Ruins" of the Graveyard Clan not long ago.

"The Elders who guard the tombs said that only three people, including myself, successfully passed the trial of the King's Relics they were guarding. However, the first person to pass the trial reportedly didn't care about the rewards at all, and the Elders who guard the tombs weren't qualified to award that person any prizes."

Looking at the half-stone disc, Jaden continued, "And someone else besides me also got half a stone disc. It is said that this stone disc can not only play a passive role when I participate in the Dark Game, but the two separated stone discs can also resonate with each other."

"So, Judai, your half of the stone disc sensed the existence of the other half? I remember that woman named Camilla said that the masked person who looks somewhat like me also has a stone disc."

"Could he be... my brother..." Asuka took a deep breath and said seriously, "It seems we are really getting closer to each other. Marufuji, who has gone missing, is most likely with him. Let's hurry up, Judai!"

"Um, well, I think it might not be necessary?" Judai's voice was slightly hesitant. He pointed to the half of the stone slab that had just been flickering like a breathing light, but was now constantly lit like a car's high beam, its purple light gradually becoming dazzling. "Judging from this, the other side has also discovered us and is approaching us."

The light grew brighter and brighter, even blinding Judai and Asuka, forcing them to close their eyes to avoid the intense light. They only opened their eyes again after the light subsided slightly.

However, they discovered that the two of them, who were originally in the jungle, had been moved to a new place while they closed their eyes. Although it was their first time here, judging from the surrounding rock walls and the surging lava under their feet, this place was very likely the crater of the volcano on Duel Academy Island that had been smoking for years but never erupted!

Upon noticing the lava beneath his feet, Jaden instinctively moved to shield Asuka from falling and protect his important friend. However, after falling only a few meters, a strange, semi-transparent barrier suddenly appeared, catching them and preventing them from falling further.

Asuka climbed up from the side of the Jaden, trying to appear calm, and said, "W-Could this be a volcano crater? Why did we suddenly appear here? Anyway, thankfully this layer caught us, otherwise we would have been completely doomed if we had fallen into the lava."

"Yeah, we're really saved. But even so, we seem to be a bit too close to the lava. Asuka, your face is all red from the heat." Judai also stood up, opening her coat and fanning her collar to create a barely noticeable breeze, while looking around.

Jaden could somewhat understand the glowing half of the stone disc earlier; it was simply the two discs sensing each other. If it were Hayato, he would probably have said something like, "Do you believe in gravity?" However, spatial teleportation was something Jaden couldn't comprehend.

Moreover, it wasn't just himself and Asuka; Judai quickly noticed a man in a long black trench coat standing not far ahead with his back to them.

Could that person's attire be the "Seven Stars" that Xiang mentioned before? Could it be that they were responsible for transferring us here?

"I see. Besides protecting the user from the dark forces, this stone disc also has this ability?" The man in the black trench coat turned around, revealing half of the stone disc on his chest. It was not exactly the same as the one worn by Judai, but they could fit together perfectly to form a complete disc. Also revealed was a half-face mask with sharp angles on his face.

"Who are you?!" Asuka looked at the man whose chin was only visible, staring directly into the crimson eyes peeking through the holes in his mask. She recovered from her shyness and asked, "Are you the one who brought us here?!"

"And Sho! Did you kidnap him?!" Judai chimed in from the side.

The man shifted his gaze from the stone disc on Judai's chest to Asuka's face, paused for a moment, and then continued, "Although this is the first time I've seen what the power of two stone discs combined is like, it seems that I have a stronger compatibility with darkness, so I was able to successfully intervene during the spatial transfer. Theoretically, it was indeed me who brought you here."

"As for 'Xiang'? I've never heard of that name, but I did kidnap your companion." The man casually pointed to the side and said, "Right...over there!"

Following the direction the man pointed, Jaden and Asuka saw a protruding rock on the churning lava, with three claw-like pillars holding a spherical energy shield. It looked exactly like the barrier beneath Jaden, Asuka, and the man in the trench coat, all of which had the power to isolate the lava.

Inside that sphere, Marufuji Sho, still bound hand and foot with a piece of cloth stuffed in his mouth, looked at Judai with teary eyes, as if shouting to him, "Come save me, big brother!"

"Sho!" Seeing Sho Marufuji trapped inside the sphere, Jaden was quite tense, especially when he saw the lava churning and crashing against the sphere like waves. However, when he saw Sho Marufuji unharmed after the lava receded, he breathed a sigh of relief and looked at the man in the trench coat again, saying, "You despicable bastard, Sho has nothing to do with the 'Seven Essence Seals'!"

“Is that so? But I left that brat there for three reasons. First, naturally, to make him a wager, forcing you, who hold the key to the ‘Seven Essence Seal,’ to duel me. Second, to use his constant danger to distract you during the duel.” After a pause, the man in the trench coat continued, “The third reason is that I somewhat dislike that guy, and kidnapping someone you dislike and putting them in danger doesn’t need a reason.”

Don't ask him why he would feel ill will towards a complete stranger who doesn't look like a high school student at all. Does such a thing need a reason? He also thought the woman across from him looked familiar, but his head started to feel a little uncomfortable whenever he tried to recall her. However, it didn't matter if he couldn't remember, since his purpose had been clear from the beginning.

"Although it was this stone disc that led me to you, it's all the same to me. All I want is the key to the 'Seven Essence Seals' on you." With a flick of his left hand, the Duel Disk, already inserted into the deck, unfolded on its own. The man in the black trench coat said coldly, "I am a member of the 'Seven Stars,' named Darkness. Bet your keys and play a dark game with me!"

"So it really is a Dark Game..." Asuka scrutinized the chin peeking out from under Darkness's mask, but even she couldn't recognize someone by their chin, since Darkness's chin wasn't as distinctive as Professor Chronos's. Upon hearing Darkness's words, she stepped forward without hesitation and said, "Alright, then I'll be your opponent."

"But if I win, I'll make you take off your mask!"

Seeing Asuka step forward, Darkness subconsciously frowned, not wanting to duel her at all. It wasn't out of fear or anything; Darkness himself couldn't quite explain what that strange feeling was.