Is this the world of card dealers? Yada thieves!

As before, time rewound exactly six seconds, and the Red-Eyes Black Dragon, which had been destroyed by E·hero New Bubble Man, returned to Darkness's field unharmed. This meant that Jaden's attack was completely useless except for consuming the Bubble Launcher.

【Red-Eyes Dragon】【DEF1600】

【True Red-Eyes Black Dragon】【ATK2400】

"Your attack, devoid of will, cannot change anything, Jaden Yuki." With two cards remaining in his hand, Darkness looked at Jaden, who also had two cards left, and said, "This is the world of Dark Games. If you cannot destroy my [Red-Eyes Black Dragon], your life will end next turn!"

"There's even a second Red-Eyes Recurve Dragon! Even if it's Red-Eyes Black Dragon, it's popping out of the graveyard way too many times." Considering Darkness's actions last turn, this was the fourth time his opponent had Special Summoned Red-Eyes Black Dragon in this duel. Jaden couldn't help but complain, but he wasn't discouraged. Instead, he waved his hand again, saying, "Such an interesting duel, I don't want to be defeated so easily. Don't forget I still have monsters I haven't attacked yet."

"Even though the effect can only be used when the character enters the field, the attack power of [M·hero Acid] is 2600 points, which is higher than that of [Red-Eyes Black Dragon]. I will use [M·hero Acid] to attack the resurrected [Red-Eyes Black Dragon], Thunderous Roar!"

[M·hero Acid Water], who only drew his gun and released a large number of acid bullets to create rain that eroded the Darkness back field when he entered the field, always kept his gun at his waist. After receiving the attack order from Jaden, he simply walked towards the Darkness field without drawing his gun.

Having already revived multiple times, the Red-Eyes Black Dragon chose to strike first this time. M·hero Acid, which had not launched an attack beforehand, spat out a black flame bullet. However, M·hero Acid managed to dodge the black flame bullet by relying on its speed, and its speed closed the gap with the Red-Eyes Black Dragon once again.

Upon reaching its desired position, [M·hero Acid]'s hand, which had been hovering by its side, suddenly moved. It drew its gun from its waist and fired three shots in rapid succession. In just 0.3 seconds, the acid bullets swiftly struck the [Red-Eyes Black Dragon], which had already unleashed its dragon breath and was unable to prepare for a second attack. The highly corrosive acid bullets instantly pierced through its tough scales and skin, penetrating deep into its flesh and destroying the [Red-Eyes Black Dragon] once again.

The sound of [M·hero Acid] firing its gun didn't reach Darkness's ears until the combat damage landed on her.

[Darkness: 4000 → 3800 LP]

Even though the base score had dropped, the drop wasn't nearly as significant as the Black Flame Bullet that Jaden had previously encountered. Darkness remained unfazed, looking at the M-hero Acid Water that had returned to Jaden's field and saying, "This attack is slightly more decent, but it's still not enough. There's no difference between half-baked resolve and no resolve at all!"

"I'm activating the effect of my [Red-Eyes Rewind] for the third time! Time is reversing!"

"Click—"

It was exactly six seconds, no more, no less. Time was reversed to the moment before [Red-Eyes Black Dragon] was destroyed by [M·Hero Acid] and then stopped abruptly. Darkness's hand was reduced to only one card, while the number of monsters on his field increased to a full four due to Jaden's repeated destruction.

【Red-Eyes Recurve Dragon】【DEF1600】X3

【True Red-Eyes Black Dragon】【ATK2400】

"He actually drew all three [Red-Eyes Red-Eyes Relic Dragon] cards in one go..." Jaden glanced at Darkness and finally understood why this guy had casually played [Nightmare Mirage] without [Extraordinary Food] to cooperate.

Given the concentration of Dragon monsters in the opponent's deck, it doesn't matter if you have to randomly discard four cards during your Standby Phase, because that will actually increase the number of Dragon monsters in your Graveyard, thus boosting the attack power of the "Red-Eyes Dark Dragon" that was still on the Darkness field at that time.

Despite the combination of "Zero to Acid Water," the almost god-killing power of the combination of [E·hero New Bubble Man] and [Bubble Launcher], and the attack of [M·hero Acid Water], all I did this turn was pull the monsters from Darkness's hand onto the field one by one, while my opponent's monsters just kept multiplying.

“Although his style is slightly different from Mr. Jonouchi Katsuya’s, his use of the Red-Eyes Black Dragon is simply masterful, completely bringing out its full potential.” Asuka, watching the duel from behind Jaden, kept glancing at Darkness’s mask. “His fighting style is also different from the brother I know. What is it…?”

Jaden had three monsters on the field, but apart from [M·hero Acidic Water] and [E·hero New Bubble Man], the only remaining monster was [E·hero Solid Man] in Defense Position. Jaden had no choice but to declare the end of the Battle Phase and then draw a card from his hand, saying, "After my Battle Phase ends, during Main Phase 2, I use this [Winged Kuriboh LV6] from my hand."

"This card cannot be Normal Summoned. If I banish one [E-hero] Fusion Monster or [Winged Kuriboh] from my hand, field, or Graveyard, it can be Special Summoned from my hand or Graveyard."

"I'm banishing [E·hero New Bubble Man] and Special Summoning [Winged Kuriboh LV6], please, Aibo!"

"Kuriri~"

[E·hero New Bubble Man], the card with the lowest attack power on the field and the easiest target for Darkness, throws out another bubble grenade and explodes, leaving the field under the cover of bubbles. In the midst of that large expanse of bubbles, the evolved form of [Winged Kuriboh], adorned with the wings of [E·hero Flame Wingman] and a dragon head, arrives on the field and sits on its card in Defense Position.

【Winged Kuriboh LV6】【6☆/Light】

[Angel Race/Special Summon/Effect]

[300/200]

"I set one card face down, and my turn ends." With his last card face down on the back field, Jaden declared the end of his turn.

[Yujo Judai: 800LP, 0 cards in hand]

【E·hero Solid State Drive】【DEF1100】

【M·hero Acid Water】【ATK2600】

【Winged Kuriboh LV6】【DEF200】

【GaiKa】

"So you replaced the monsters to prevent me from attacking [E·hero New Bubble Man]?" Darkness sneered as he looked at the monsters on Jaden's field. "But it's useless. What can those weak monsters, powerless to resist the darkness, do? Since you can't uncover the darkness hidden deep within your own heart, then you might as well die."

"Hey, don't underestimate Winged Kuriboh! She's my most trusted Aibo!" Jaden said, annoyed that Darkness was so dismissive of his Winged Kuriboh Level 6. "If you underestimate her, you'll regret it!"

"Curry, Curry Curry!" Jaden's Winged Kuriboh LV6 on the field shouted fearlessly at Darkness's imposing Red-Eyes Black Dragon on the field, showing no fear of the latter.

However, Darkness merely glanced at [Winged Kuriboh LV6], completely ignoring Jaden's words, and simply drew a card from her deck, saying, "My turn, draw!"

Because he lost [Nightmare of the Mirage], Darkness no longer needed to discard cards and entered the main phase with two cards in his hand. He immediately played the last card he had left in his hand from the previous turn, saying, "Since you banished [E·hero New Bubble Man] from your field to summon what you consider a powerful monster, then according to the so-called 'tit for tat,' I will banish the monsters on my field as well."

As it spoke, the body of the single [Red-Eyes Rex] on the Darkness field began to melt away mysteriously, its flesh dissipating into nothingness, leaving only a ball of dark energy that looked extremely ominous.

"By banishing this Red-Eyes Recall Dragon, the one face-up Dragon monster I control, I summon the fiercest, most malevolent, strongest, and highest-ranking Dragon monster dormant in my Deck!"

"The surging power of darkness will transform into cold armor, and when both spirit and flesh dissipate at the end of time, the soul of the Demon King who rules over the dragon race will curse the world and reign supreme!"

Darkness held the monster card high in his hand, his trench coat swaying in the scorching wind that seemed to come from nowhere, and wisps of black energy rose from his body—especially from his mask—and flowed into the card!

"In the cold, despairing, and dark abyss, the supreme black dragon will evolve into its final form. Descend, my trump card!"

"【Red-Eyes Dark Steel Dragon】!"

Chapter 1144 Kuribo Bomb!

If Blue-Eyes is the dragon of victory and Red-Eyes is the dragon of miracles, then Red-Eyes Dark Steel Dragon is the dragon of miracles among miracles, having witnessed almost the rise and fall of dragon decks.

Since its release in 08, it has teamed up with Horus Black Dragon to form an 8-star dragon to fight against Dark Armed Dragon, formed the "Disaster Dragon" with Nuclear Dragon and Rai-Oh to fight against the Synchro Era, and together with Eclipse Wyvern, Stellaris, and Future Fusion, it has formed the classic Yu-Gi-Oh! number "12700". It even joined Galaxy Eyes Dark Matter Dragon to support the most shining glory of the Conqueror Dragon. In the end, under the protection of the Guardian Dragon, which could not protect anything, Red-Eyes Dark Steel Dragon was banned and censored.

This is [Red-Eyes Dark Steel Dragon], a noble Level 10 DARK Dragon-Type monster with 2800 ATK. Stacking two [Gustave Cannon] only results in a 600 ATK loss. It has the [Red-Eyes] attribute, can be summoned from the hand by banishing any Dragon-Type monster, and can Special Summon a Dragon-Type monster from the hand/Graveyard once per turn. It doesn't even have a card name and is limited to once per turn. Sending it to the Graveyard and then summoning it again refreshes the usage count. Then, along with [Guardian Dragon], it can randomly appear from the Deck... Wow! Aaaaaaah!

【Red-Eyes Dark Steel Dragon】【10☆/Dark】

[Dragon Clan/Effect]

[2800/2400]

Even though Jaden wasn't clear about the effects and power of Red-Eyes Dark Steel Dragon, he still clearly felt the powerful pressure emanating from it, a pressure belonging to the dragon race. His free hand clenched tightly as he looked at Darkness warily.

"Even without fusing with other monsters, Red-Eyes can continuously evolve into a stronger form. Red-Eyes Dark Steel Dragon is the ultimate evolutionary goal I can bring Red-Eyes to; it is the final king who rules over the dragon race!"

Darkness said, activating another card in his hand, "By now, both of you have very few cards left in your hands, right? The duel will end the turn [Red-Eyes Dark Steel Dragon] enters the field, so it doesn't matter. Accept this useless gift, Jaden Yuki!"

"The Spell Card [Heavenly Treasure] is activated! Both duelists draw cards from their respective decks until they have six cards in their hands!" Darkness said, drawing six cards from his deck. "I have no cards in my hand, so I can draw six cards at once!"

“But I’m the same!” Jaden followed Darkness closely, and having no cards in hand, he also drew six cards from his deck.

Watching Jaden draw a card, Darkness remained unconcerned: "Hand cards are an important resource, but only those that can be converted into tangible power are the real resources. Having a lot of cards in your hand is meaningless if you can't play them!"

However, Judai was taken aback when he heard Darkness's words.

"That's something Mr. Hayato likes to say; he's emphasized it repeatedly in class." Although Jaden often sleeps and daydreams in class, he occasionally has moments when he's really focused, like in Hayato's class about communicating with card Pokémon. "Is it a coincidence? Or are you also a student at Duel Academy?"

Darkness did not answer Judai, which deepened Asuka's suspicions about him.

Drawing a card from his hand, Darkness continued his turn, coldly stating, "This turn, I Normal Summon [Legendary Black Stone] in Attack Position."

The lava pool surged once more with Darkness's summoning action, and the black dragons on his field roared along with the rolling lava. From the lava that gushed forth like a fountain, a jet-black round stone gradually emerged, but upon closer inspection, it was clearly a dragon egg that was constantly absorbing the heat of the lava to hatch itself.

[The Legendary Black Stone] [1☆/Dark]

[Dragon Clan/Effect]

[0/0]

The moment the dragon egg appeared, Jaden saw cracks spreading across the eggshell, and red light emanated from it, shooting out in all directions. Darkness then spoke, “[Legendary Black Stone] effect: Tribute this card to activate: I Special Summon one Level 7 or lower [Red-Eyes] monster from my Deck.”

“I previously sent two Red-Eyes Black Dragons to the Graveyard using the effect of [Ruby's Treasure Card], but I still have one Red-Eyes Black Dragon left in my deck. Now, I’m going to Special Summon this third Red-Eyes Black Dragon!” Darkness said, taking the retrieved card and placing it on the Duel Disk. With a wave of his hand, he said, “Come forth, Red-Eyes!”

Lava erupted again, overflowing into the energy shield and nearly scalding Marufuji Sho. At the same time, another [Red-Eyes Black Dragon] appeared on the Darkness field, completely filling his monster zone.

"I unleash one Red-Eyes Recurve Dragon. I activate its second effect. This turn, I may summon one Red-Eyes monster in addition to my Normal Summon."

Without hesitation, Darkness released his Red-Eyes Recurve Dragon from his field, freeing up the Monster Zone. With a wave of his hand, Darkness finally began to use the power of Red-Eyes Dark Steel Dragon: "I will activate the effect of Red-Eyes Dark Steel Dragon on my field. Once per turn, Special Summon one Dragon-Type monster from my Graveyard other than Red-Eyes Dark Steel Dragon!"

"Return, Third Body [Red-Eyes Black Dragon]!"

The armored Demon Dragon roared to the sky, and the other black dragons around it responded with their own roars. Amidst the surging lava, the third entity, the Red-Eyes Black Dragon, arrived on Darkness's field.

In just one turn, Darkness not only summoned the powerful [Red-Eyes Dark Steel Dragon], but also managed to gather all three [Red-Eyes Black Dragons] on his field! It's not so much a huge advantage as it is that the situation is almost completely one-sided!

Darkness looked at Jaden, only to find that after witnessing the power of the Red Eyes, Jaden showed no surprise or tension, but instead wore a smile of great interest.

"Wow~ You actually had that trick up your sleeve? That's amazing. The three Red-Eyes Rex and one Red-Eyes Black Dragon from before have turned into three Red-Eyes Black Dragons and one Red-Eyes Rex in the blink of an eye. You're really something else."

Impressed by Darkness's brilliant maneuver, Jaden exclaimed, "So strong! That's incredible! In that case, I'll have to match your strength and show you the power of Aibo!"

"Curry!"

It wasn't until the sound of [Winged Kuriboh LV6] rang out that Darkness belatedly noticed that the frail monster had disappeared from Jaden's field at some point, and its cry, which had echoed Jaden's voice, seemed to have come from nowhere.

"where is it?"

Did it take advantage of the lava eruption during the appearance of [Red-Eyes Black Dragon] to escape? Darkness wasn't sure; she was simply searching for the missing [Winged Kuriboh LV6]. Her eyes, hidden behind the blue mask, scanned the field until she heard [Winged Kuriboh LV6]'s voice for the second time, "Kuri Kuriboh~"

"There... there!?"

Darkness shifted his gaze to his own Red-Eyes Dark Steel Dragon and was surprised to find that the Winged Kuriboh LV6, which had disappeared without a trace, was not elsewhere, but right behind his Red-Eyes Dark Steel Dragon. Because of the heavy armor, even Red-Eyes Dark Steel Dragon had not noticed the arrival of this inconspicuous monster!

"When the opponent declares an attack, or when the opponent activates the effect of a monster on their field, I will release my [Winged Kuriboh LV6] to activate its effect!" Jaden's voice reached Darkness's ears. With a bright smile on his face, Jaden pointed at [Red-Eyes Dark Steel Dragon] and said, "Destroy that monster and inflict damage to the opponent equal to that monster's original ATK!"

"【Red-Eyes Dark Steel Dragon】is extremely powerful, but precisely because of this, when it is destroyed by the effect of 【Winged Kuriboh LV6】, it will also inflict tremendous damage on you, Darkness!"

Clenching his fist and swinging it forward, Jaden declared, "Destroy yourself, Aibo! This is a necessary sacrifice!"

"What?!"

Although Darkness was wearing a mask, Jaden still noticed the surprised expression on his face. Meanwhile, Winged Kuriboh LV6, which had received Jaden's order, was clinging tightly to Red-Eyes Dark Steel Dragon. No matter how much Winged Kuriboh LV6 struggled to break free, it couldn't shake off the dragon.

The equipment on [Winged Kuriboh LV6], resembling that of [E·hero Flame Wingman], is not merely for show or decoration; it's not just for looks. Intense flames burn upon its body, making [Winged Kuriboh LV6] appear, for a fleeting moment, like a phoenix. After a brief charge, [Winged Kuriboh LV6] detonates itself!

"Kurikurikuriku!"

Although Darkness couldn't understand what [Winged Kuriboh LV6] was saying, Jaden understood that she was talking about "Kuriboh Bomb." Like an "Ultra Bomb," [Winged Kuriboh LV6] self-destructed, turning into a giant fireball that "sacrificed itself for the greater good," engulfing Darkness's [Red-Eyes Dark Steel Dragon].

Despite its extremely powerful effect, the [Red-Eyes Dark Steel Dragon] ultimately has no resistance whatsoever. It has no resistance to anything, not even the "Majestic" or "Battle Break" effects, and was easily blasted into pieces by the self-destruction of [Winged Kuriboh LV6].

Darkness, who followed, also suffered high effect damage, engulfed by the exploding flames, and its base score dropped significantly.

[Darkness: 3800 → 1000 LP]

Because of the sudden drop in his base score, even Darkness couldn't help but bend over and cover his chest, trying his best to endure the damage and pain. However, when the flames dissipated, he quickly straightened his chest and looked at Judai again.

"A seemingly weak monster, yet it can unleash such power? I must admit I underestimated you, Jaden Yuki. However, that doesn't change the fact that you are a 'responder' who is passively acting." Darkness said, taking a card from his hand. "Without enough willpower to drive your actions, you can't keep up with the power of [Red-Eyes]!"

“The Spell Card [Monster Resurrection] allows me to discard one card from my hand and target one monster in my Graveyard. I discard one card from my hand and target [Red-Eyes Dark Dragon].” Darkness sent a [Dark Hole Dragon] from his hand to the Graveyard and retrieved [Red-Eyes Dark Dragon] from it. “Because of the effect of [Monster Resurrection], I add [Red-Eyes Dark Dragon] to my hand.”

"Next, release my [Red-Eyes Black Dragon] on the field, and summon [Red-Eyes Dark Dragon] again!"