Is this the world of card dealers? Yada thieves!

But what is most striking is not the girl herself, but the change that occurred the moment she appeared on the armored warrior with a pair of sword arms—the Guardian of Solemnity and the Guardian of Law.

The green orbs on its body lit up one by one, and the barrier beneath its feet was activated, beginning to supply energy into its body. Unparalleled power emanated from the blade of the [Guardian of Solemnity - Guardian of Law], causing its aura to surge, surge, and surge!

The best example of this is that its attack power has actually doubled!?

[Guardian of Solemnity - Guardian of Law and Reason] [ATK2050→4100]

Chapter 1377 Shedding Mortal Body and Ascending to Dragon

[Guardian of Solemnity - Guardian of Law and Reason] [ATK2050→4100]

"Attack power... it's actually doubled?!" Marufuji Sho's eyes widened in astonishment. "And it's a full 4100 more attack power than [Electronic Terminator Dragon]'s 4000 points!?"

"It's almost as good as the legendary [Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon], and Tenjouin-kun has only used one card from his hand, leaving him with five more." Maeda Hayato didn't miss this opportunity to learn from the experience and quickly wrote down the effect of the Ritual Monster in front of him, "It will definitely be useful next time!"

"The power of the [Guardian of Solemnity - Guardian of Law] is called 'Guardian Power'. In order to protect [reason], he can unleash an exceptionally powerful force."

Asuka explained, "As long as there is [Solemn Prayer - Reason] on my field or in my graveyard, its ATK increases by 2050. And only when there is [Solemn Prayer - Reason] on my field and the opponent activates the effect of a Spell, Trap, or Monster can the most powerful third effect of [Solemn Guardian - Guardian of Law] be activated, negating and destroying that activation!"

"The chain continues. This can only be activated if [Solemn Prayer - Reason] is Summoned or Special Summoned. I place one [Solemn Prayer] Continuous Spell/Trap Card from my Deck face-up in my Spell/Trap Zone. The card I choose to place on the field is this one: Continuous Trap Card [Solemn Prayer's Majesty]."

Following [Voice of Solemnity], another card was placed on Asuka's back row, positioned on either side of her Spell & Trap Zone, giving the impression that she was about to perform a Pendulum Summon. This "Red-Green Array" was certainly not just for show; Asuka immediately activated the "Red Array," the effect of the Continuous Trap Card [Voice of Solemnity].

"【Solemn Radiance】has the effect of the card name, which can only be used once per turn. During the Main Phase of both players, you can choose one of its two effects to activate. I chose the first effect: return a Warrior-Dragon LIGHT Ritual Monster or a Ritual Spell Card from my hand or Graveyard to the Deck, and add 1 【Solemn Radiance】monster from my Deck to my hand or Special Summon it."

Selecting a card in front of her, Asuka said, "I return this Ritual Spell Card 'Prayer of Solemnity' from my hand to my Deck, and Special Summon 'The Sage of Solemnity - Primordial Dragon' from my Deck!"

Holding a heavy grimoire, an old man with flowing white hair and dragon horns appeared on Asuka's field in defense stance. From the shape of his dragon horns, Jaden and the others could easily guess that, just as [The Solemn Dragon Sage - Saphira] was the human form of [Dragon Goddess - Saphira], this [The Solemn Dragon Sage Saint - First Dragon] was also the human form of [Ancient Saint Dai - First Dragon]!

【The Solemn Dragon Sage - The First Dragon】【7☆/Light】

[Dragon Clan/Effect]

[2600/2800]

At this point, Asuka has summoned a total of four monsters on her field, and after expending some cards, she still has four cards left in her hand. Among them, there is a second "Solemn Dragon Princess - Saphira" and "Ancient Saint Dai - First Dragon" which can be used as a hand trap.

"Finally, I activate this card, the Spell Card [Compassionate Mechanical Angel]." After playing a Spell Card, Asuka revealed the last card in her hand. "To activate this card, you must Tribute a Ritual Monster of [Cyber ​​Angel] from my hand or field. I Tribute this [Cyber ​​Angel - Idaten -] from my hand."

"I draw two cards from my deck, then choose one card from my hand and return it to the bottom of my deck. After this card is activated, I cannot Special Summon Ritual Monsters until the end of the turn."

Asuka drew two cards from her deck, put one back into the deck, and said, "However, my main purpose is actually to release [Cyber ​​Angel - Idaten -] rather than changing my hand."

"This card can only be activated when it is Tributed. It increases the ATK and DEF of all Ritual Monsters on my field by 1000. At this moment, the only Ritual Monster I have on my field is [Guardian of Solemnity - Guardian of Law]. It gains an additional 1000 ATK on top of its original ATK, bringing its ATK to 5100!"

[Guardian of Solemnity - Guardian of Law and Reason] [ATK4100→5100]

Even Manjou in the audience widened his eyes in astonishment: "5100 points!? That's even higher than my [Five Divine Dragons] attack power!"

"It can perform a three-color counter once per turn, its attack power can be increased from 4000 points, and with the help of back row cards, it also gains resistance to being targeted by effects..." Even Jonouchi couldn't help but complain, "Although it doesn't have resistance to being destroyed by effects, isn't it too similar to [Super Magical Dragon Knight - Red-Eyes Dragon Knight]?"

"While it's certainly not as easy to summon as [Super Magical Dragon Knight - Red-Eyes Dragon Rider], which supports [Red-Eyes Fusion], as a Ritual Monster, [Guardian of Solemnity - Guardian of Law] has no self-restriction. If it weren't for the last [Compassionate Mechanical Angel], this turn wouldn't even have a Ritual Monster's self-restriction." Yugi couldn't help but exclaim, "What a powerful card!"

Rebecca, who was standing nearby, felt something was a little strange: "At times like this, according to your usual practice, shouldn't you be praising the duelist? Why are you only praising the card itself this time?"

“Because he’s still just a kid.” Hayato said mysteriously, keeping Rebecca in suspense. “Just keep watching, and you’ll find out. Although [Solemn Voice] is a very powerful deck, the strength of the cards is not the key to the outcome of a duel. Ultimately, it depends on the user.”

"I remember when I first entered the school, I was one of the spectators of the duel between you, Judai, and Manjoume." Not hearing the voices from the audience, Asuka looked at her [Guardian of Solemnity - Guardian of Law], whose attack power had broken through the 5000 mark, and couldn't help but recall the past. "You, Judai, put on a very beautiful and wonderful duel back then."

"However, I am different from Manjoume! My [Guardian of Solemnity - Guardian of Law] has grown stronger than his [Five Divine Dragons] back then, and it also has additional resistance. Try to overcome this barrier that is blocking your path to victory, Judai!"

"I'll set two cards face down, my turn is over!" Asuka said seriously, placing the two cards face down on her back row. "Come at me head-on!"

[Tenjouin Asuka: 4000 LP, 1 card in hand]

[Guardian of Solemnity - Guardian of Law and Reason] [ATK5100]

【The Solemn Dragon Sage - The First Dragon】【DEF2800】

[The Solemn Prayer - Reason] [DEF2050]

[The Proclaimer's Shaman] [DEF300]

[Solemn Barrier] [Solemn Radiance] [Gaikar] x2

As Asuka's turn ended, the level of her [Announcer's Priest] on the field dropped back to its original level, but she didn't care. The main reason she used her Normal Summon point on [Announcer's Priest] was not to raise its level as a sacrifice for Ritual Summoning, but simply to fill the graveyard with that [Three Holy Ones].

The effect of that card is that during both players' Main Phases, you can Tribute Fairy-Type monsters on Asuka's field to Special Summon yourself from your hand or Graveyard, and apply different effects depending on the number of monsters Tributed. 【Voice of Solemnity】 protects Asuka's LIGHT monsters on her field from being targeted by her opponent's effects, but it's powerless against cards like 【Earth Slicer】 or 【Earth Shatter】 that don't target. 【Three Holy Rulers】 is designed for situations where such cards appear.

You can Tribute any Fairy-Type monsters on your field that are affected by the effects of cards that do not target, and then Asuka can revive a high-level "Three Holy Ones" from the Graveyard. You can even use the effect of "The Proclaimer's Witch" being Tributed to Special Summon another "Solemn Prayer - Rin" from your Deck and place a "Solemn Prayer" Continuous Spell/Trap Card.

In addition, her "Solemn Dragon Sage - First Dragon" can be quickly returned to her hand when the opponent's effect is activated, and then Special Summon a Warrior/Dragon LIGHT Ritual Monster from her hand or Deck, such as her other form "Ancient Saint Dai - First Dragon". In addition to being used as a hand trap, it can also be used to chain the Special Summon of the opponent's monsters to negate and banish them.

In addition to the three-color combo of [Guardian of Solemnity - Guardian of Law], the unused other effect of the Continuous Trap Card [Radiant Solemnity], the second effect of the Ritual Spell Card [Prayer of Solemnity] in the Graveyard, and the two face-down cards on her back row... In Asuka's opinion, she had done everything she could and given it her all!

Even the tenth generation probably couldn't do it easily—

"My turn, draw." Judai drew a card from his deck and added it to his hand. He glanced at the six cards in front of him, selected one, and said, "Since Asuka, you used [The Proclaimer's Witch], Hayato-sensei's gift... well, it would be more appropriate for me to use this card too, wouldn't it?"

"Release [Guardian of Solemnity - Guardian of Law] and [Sage of Solemnity - Primordial Dragon] from your opponent's field, and bestow this powerful monster upon you!" Jaden laughed heartily. "Come forth, [Lava Demon]!"

Even a powerful card like [Super Magical Dragon Knight - Red-Eyes Dragon Rider] cannot escape the fate of becoming fodder for turtles, let alone [Guardian of Solemnity - Guardian of Law], which only achieves a low-end "Red Daddy" effect by combining other cards.

As lava erupted, the card Jaden played forcibly appeared on Asuka's field, engulfing the two high-level monsters, [Guardian of Solemnity - Guardian of Law] and [Sage of Solemnity - Primordial Dragon], with lava before revealing itself!

(I won't post the original artwork since I'm already familiar with it; this time I'll post artwork from Bilibili artists.)

【Lava Demon】【ATK3000】

Watching helplessly as her two superior monsters vanished in an instant and transformed into the [Lava Demon], a monster whose very existence had a significant negative effect, Asuka felt her blood pressure rise sharply, and she even clenched her fists: "You really do... like this card as much as ever, Jaden."

"Of course, because [Lava Demon] and my [Hero] deck have great synergy. Even Hayato-sensei strongly recommended it. After all, it's not always possible to encounter a monster with 3000 ATK placed in attack position opposite me." Jaden said with a smile, "I have to say that even five years ago, Hayato-sensei's recommendation and understanding of Duel Monsters were many years ahead of their time."

"The release of [Lava Demon] is not an effect, and it cannot be chained and nullified if it does not target. So, the effects of [Guardian of Solemnity - Guardian of Law] and [Sage of Solemnity - Primordial Dragon] cannot be activated, right? They can only be sent to the graveyard as sacrifices."

Unable to refute Judai, Asuka looked at the [Lava Demon] who was simply standing in front of her, not excessively confining her in the cage on its chest, and nodded helplessly, but then said to Judai, "But Judai, you will not be able to perform a Normal Summon the turn the [Lava Demon] is Special Summoned."

"Besides—even if you freed one of them, it doesn't matter, but don't forget about this [Solemn Radiance] on my back row!" Asuka waved her hand, "I'll chain [Lava Demon]'s Special Summon, activate its effect, and both players can choose one effect to activate during their Main Phase. Since I don't have any Warrior/Dragon LIGHT Ritual Monsters on my field right now, I can only choose the first effect!"

"Return one LIGHT Ritual Monster of Warrior or Dragon type from my hand or Graveyard, or one Ritual Spell Card, to my Deck. Then add one [Solemn Voice] monster from my Deck to my hand or Special Summon it. I chose to return this Ritual Monster [Ancient Saint Dai - First Dragon] from my hand to my Deck, and then Special Summon the second [Solemn Voice Dragon Sage - First Dragon]!"

"Add to the chain, activate my backrow face-down card, the Normal Trap Card [Frontline Resurgence], and Special Summon [Guardian of Solemnity - Guardian of Law] to my field in Defense Position!"

【The Solemn Dragon Sage - The First Dragon】【DEF2800】

[Guardian of Solemnity - Guardian of Law] [DEF2500]

At the cost of losing its normal summoning ability, the two monsters that Jaden had just released and sent to the graveyard instantly returned to Asuka's field. Although [Guardian of Solemnity - Guardian of Law] lost the blessing of [Cyber ​​Angel - Idaten-] and became defense position, [Prayer of Solemnity - Li] was still on Asuka's field, so she could still use the tricolor Yasushi once per turn to interfere with Jaden's strategy.

Asuka only lost a face-down card in the back row and a card in her hand, but the field layout now includes an extra [Lava Demon].

"I thought I had successfully broken through your defense, but you've recovered in the blink of an eye. As expected of Asuka." Judai wasn't disappointed. She glanced at the five cards she had left in her hand, played one, and said, "In that case, I'll use the move Professor Chronos taught me. Magic Card [Pot of Greed] activated. I draw two cards from my deck."

Seeing the limited card Jaden played, Asuka said helplessly, "Am I supposed to decide when to use up the negation effect? ​​Don't forget I've also attended Professor Chronos's classes, Jaden. Although I really don't want you to gain a card advantage, in order to prevent cards like [Lightning Strike] from wiping out all the monsters on my field, I won't chain your [Pot of Greed] to activate the effect of [Guardian of Solemnity - Guardian of Law].

"--That's true, but I'm not without other cards to activate." With a wave of her hand, Asuka pointed to the [Solemn Dragon Sage - First Dragon] on her field and said, "I can use the second effect of [Solemn Dragon Sage - First Dragon] to chain with [Pot of Greed]. When my opponent activates a card effect, I can return this card on the field to my hand!"

"Special Summon a LIGHT Ritual Monster of Warrior/Dragon type from my hand and Deck. The monster Special Summoned by this effect returns to the Deck during the End Phase of the next turn. And the monster I've chosen is this one: Summon, [Ancient Saint Dai - Primordial Dragon]!"

At the same time as the 10th generation draws a card, the body of the [Solemn Dragon Sage - First Dragon] on the field is also enveloped in light. The wide robes dissipate to reveal the dragon scales beneath, and the white hair continues to extend and transforms into flowing dragon whiskers.

Shedding its mortal form and ascending to become a dragon? No, it's merely revealing its true form. The aged [Solemn Dragon Sage - First Dragon] here reveals its true form, the Azure Dragon driving the clouds to surround itself, high in the sky overlooking the earth!

【Ancient Saint Dai - First Dragon】【DEF2800】

[Yujo Judai: 4000LP, hand size 5→6]

Chapter 1378 Sharing Some Great AI Heroes

Seeing that Asuka didn't easily hand over Yasushi and even let him draw cards, Judai looked at the card he had just drawn with a little trouble.

"Hmm? This card?" Jaden's eyes lit up, and he looked up. "It feels like it might work!"

"Although it won't be the target of the effect, Asuka, your monsters don't have any resistance to destruction, right? In that case, how about trying to deal with this card?"

As he spoke, Jaden took the cards that were floating in front of him and threw them into the sky: "Impressive Heavenly Might, let the cards draw it in! Magic Card [Lightning Strike] activated!"

"Under this card's effect, all monsters on your opponent's field will be destroyed!"

The Thunderstrike that Jaden threw out dissipated into the air, but it attracted a large number of thunderclouds that were already above the Thunderclouds to gather above Asuka's field. The thunder rumbled and seemed about to strike at any moment, wiping out all the monsters on her field.

"Don't even think about it!" Although she wanted to keep Kang here, the appearance of [Lightning Strike] forced Asuka to use the effect of [Guardian of Solemnity - Guardian of Law] to protect more monsters. "While [Prayer of Solemnity - Reason] is active, when the opponent activates the effects of Spells, Traps, or Monsters, activate the third effect of [Guardian of Solemnity - Guardian of Law]!"

"Null and destroy that activation!"

【Guardian of Solemnity - Guardian of Law】Raises his twin swords above his head, crosses them into an "X" shape, and then swings them towards the sky. The sharp sword energy is unstoppable, instantly splitting the thunderclouds in the sky into four parts. Then, the exploding sword energy storm completely dissipates the dark clouds.

The previous Judai's "Pot of Greed" failed to trick Asuka into revealing her true identity. At the time, Asuka's choice was not problematic. After all, Judai still had five cards in hand, and even if she had revealed her true identity with "Pot of Greed," she would still have four cards left. Who knew what unexpected things might be revealed? Naturally, she couldn't just hand over her true identity.

But who could have imagined that Asuka's discarded "Pot of Greed" would allow Judai to draw a "Lightning Strike," forcing Asuka to give up her card to protect her monster. As a result, Judai's hand size changed from four cards when countering "Pot of Greed" to five cards when countering "Lightning Strike." It would have been better to have discarded "Pot of Greed" earlier to prevent Judai from replenishing his hand.

All I can say is that Professor Chronos's Pot trick... I mean, the value of the "Pot of Greed" trick is still increasing. You have to choose between letting others gain cards and giving up points.

"What a pity, it failed." Jaden looked at [Lightning Strike] being negated and destroyed with some regret, but then said with a smile, "But in this way, Asuka, the only card you have left on the field that can interfere with me is [Ancient Saint Dai - First Dragon], right? After so many duels with you, I haven't forgotten its effect."

“So—” Jaden called out, drawing another card from his hand, “Unless I have no face-up monsters on my field, I must pay half of my Life Points to activate this Spell Card, [Hero Arrives]!”

(The AI ​​thinks the hero's opponent is a phrenorhinone (laughs))

"I will Special Summon one Level 4 or lower [E·hero] monster from my Deck, and the one I want to Special Summon is [E·hero Bubble Man]!"

[Yujo Jaden: 4000 → 2000 LP]

Upon hearing the name of the monster card mentioned by Jaden, Asuka gave him a "I knew it" look: "Is it this combo again? And then you're going to use the effect of the Special Summoned [E·Hero Bubble Man] to draw a card, right?"

"Hehe, although Manjoume often says that my combo is just a three-hit wonder, that's what heroes are like. As long as you can win in the end, you can use the same finishing move fifty times without getting tired of it." Jaden said with a smile, holding up the card [Hero Arrives], watching this magic card transform into the monster card [E·Hero Bubble Man] in this virtual world, about to be played.

(With the evil swordsman)

"Alright, choose, Asuka." Blue bubbles were already rising around Judai, ready to summon [E·hero Bubble Man] at any moment.

"The choice is to let me Special Summon [E·hero Bubble Man] and then increase my hand size again."

"Or should we use the card in your backrow for the Special Summon of [E·hero Bubble Man]?"

"Huh? How did you know that my back row card can be chained to use the Special Summon of [E·hero Bubble Man]?" Asuka asked, somewhat surprised.

Touching his nose, Judai grinned and said, "Because Asuka, when you saw me use [Hero's Arrival], you had a 'I knew it' expression, right? It was like you had expected me to use this card and were relieved that the cards in your back row wouldn't go to waste."

"So, Asuka, do you want to open a chain?"

"The same choice again, huh? Well, I won't make the same mistake again." Faced with the choice Judai presented, Asuka smoothed her blonde hair, smiled, and said without hesitation, "This time, of course I'll chain it—no, rather, I can only chain it to activate this face-down card in my back row!"

"Continuous Trap Card [Cash Back]! This card can negate the activation of an Effect Monster, Spell Card, or Trap Card activated by your opponent paying Life Points, and return it to your Deck!" Asuka pointed to the [E-Hero Bubble Man] that was about to land, "[Hero Arrival] is a Spell Card activated by paying Life Points, and under the effect of [Cash Back], its activation is negated!"