Is this the world of card dealers? Yada thieves!

Next to the frozen twin tornadoes, a new whirlwind was generated, shattering the [Mirror of Light Inhalation] on the back field of the Jaden and the [Oz the Great and Powerful - Emerald City] which had been used twice, and the environment returned to the previous forest clearing.

As [Oz the Great and Powerful - Emerald City] was destroyed, Keith retrieved another card from his deck and added it to his hand: "The third effect of [Oz the Great and Powerful - Emerald City] can only be activated if this card in the Field Zone is destroyed. I add one [Oz the Great and Powerful] card from my deck to my hand. I chose the second [Oz the Great and Powerful - Emerald City] in my deck."

"Next, I reactivated [Starry Sky - Emerald City]. Its effect does not have the restriction of being used once per turn. I used its first effect again to add my banished Level 7 [Starry Sky - Dark Scimitar] to my hand and lose 700 Life Points."

"Then comes the second effect of [Starry Sky - Emerald City], which returns [Starry Sky - Dark Scimitar] to the deck and shuffles it, and I draw a card."

Keith Howard: 2000→1300LP, Hand 2→2

Chapter 1490 Oh dear, I "forgot" to give the previous chapter a title (I'm sure of it).

After one round of maneuvers, Keith still had two cards in his hand. He successfully removed Jaden's [Mirror of Inhalation] from his field at the cost of 700 life points. Looking at the three monsters remaining on Jaden's field, he pointed to [E. Hero Dark Neos] in Attack Position: "Although [Star Trek Delta Shuttle] only has 2000 ATK, less than your [E. Hero Dark Neos], I haven't used its effect yet."

"Once per turn, I can send one 'Starry Night' monster from my Deck to the Graveyard, and then target a face-up monster on the field. The targeted monster loses ATK and DEF equal to the Level of the monster sent to the Graveyard by this effect x 100." Keith drew a card from his Deck and revealed, "I sent my Level 10 'Starry Night - Darkstar' to the Graveyard, and reduced the ATK and DEF of 'E. Hero Darknecomer' by 1000!"

The moment Keith finished speaking, Jaden smiled, as if he had finally gotten what he wanted.

As Keith gave the order, the transport hatch of the [Star Trek - Delta Shuttle] opened, and despite its relatively small size, an extremely large, spherical machine flew out from its belly.

It has a crown-like structure at each of its upper and lower poles, and a solar-powered orbital ring at the equator in the direction of rotation. It is so large that it resembles an artificial planet. Its prototype seems to be the famous Death Star, the decisive weapon in Star Wars, and the castle where the Wicked Witch lived in The Wizard of Oz.

[Star Trek - Dark Star] accelerated towards Jaden's field, as if to execute some kind of kamikaze attack. It didn't aim to destroy Jaden's [E·hero Dark Neos], but merely to weaken its attack power.

“Just now, Mr. Keith, you did say, ‘Activate the effect of [Interstellar Wonderland - Delta Shuttle],’ right?” Jaden paused, then continued, “This is the moment! This is the moment I’ve been waiting for to deliver the final blow! Your action to deactivate [Mirror of Light] was exactly what I expected!”

"When my opponent declares an attack, or when my opponent activates the effect of a monster on my field, I will Tribute my [Winged Kuriboh LV6] to activate its effect!"

As Jaden waved his hand, his Winged Kuriboh LV6 stood in front of Star Trek - Dark Star, and flames erupted from its body.

"Curry, Curry!"

【Winged Kuriboh LV6】is as if saying, "It's just a small asteroid, but I'm not just for show. Watch me push it back!"

"Under the effect of [Winged Kuriboh LV6], the effect of [Star Trek - Delta Shuttle] will not be nullified, but it will be destroyed!"

Hearing that Jaden only said that, Keith sneered: "Destruction? Nothing to worry about! Don't forget that [Star Trek Delta Shuttle] is also a Machine-Type [Star Trek] monster. You're just helping me Special Summon a new [Star Trek] monster from my deck."

"I haven't finished yet, Mr. Keith." Jaden waved his hand, "At the same time as the [Starry Sky - Delta Shuttle] is destroyed, the effect of [Winged Kuriboh LV6] will also deal additional damage to you equal to the original attack power of the [Starry Sky - Delta Shuttle], which is 2000 points!"

"And your base score is now down to only 1300 points!"

"What?!" Keith's eyes widened as he stared at his Duel Disk. His Element Points were indeed lower than the attack power of [Star Trek Delta Shuttle], and just within the KO threshold of [Winged Kuriboh LV6]!

When he looked up, he saw in front of the [Interstellar Wonderland-Delta Shuttle], the [Winged Kuriboh LV6], transformed into a firebird and crashing into the asteroid. The seemingly weak monster had actually pierced through the artificial planet and even pierced through the [Interstellar Wonderland-Delta Shuttle], pushing a large amount of debris toward him!

"boom!"

At the same time, as [E·hero Dark Neos] was injured by the impact of falling planetary debris, its attack and defense both decreased by 1000 points, Keith's field was also covered in smoke and dust due to the explosion of [Star Trek - Delta Shuttle], it seemed that Keith had been hit by the shot-down spaceship and suffered damage.

【E·hero Black Neo-Universe】【2500/2000→1500/1000】

Jaden did not believe that he had successfully defeated Keith, because although the stats of [E·hero Black Neos] had indeed decreased, he did not disappear and remained on the field, indicating that the duel was not over yet.

Just then, Keith suddenly said, "Sure enough, like teacher, like student."

The smoke and dust from the explosion were suddenly dispersed, revealing a card in Keith's hand that had absorbed all the shockwave and damage from the explosion. Keith had an expression that said, "Kobayashi Hayato loves using effect damage so much, and Joeyichiro Katsuya's Red-Eyes is really disgusting when it burns your health. Do you think any professional duelist wouldn't have some cards to guard against effect damage?"

"Quick-Play Spell Card: [Paper Doll with Curse Return]!"

(It's probably not Jonouchi himself who gets hurt by the backlash.)

As Keith inserted the card into the Duel Disk, a white paper doll appeared on his field. The effect damage he had just absorbed seemed to reside inside it. Keith continued, "This can only be activated when the effect of the monster that damaged me is activated. It allows my opponent to absorb the effect damage caused by that effect!"

"Therefore, the one who will suffer 2000 points of effect damage is not me—but you!"

In an instant, a large number of small black paper figures were released from the paper figures and impacted Judai, reducing his life points!

"Whoa!" Instinctively, Judai raised his arms to shield himself.

[Yuki Jaden: 4000→2000LP, 0 cards in hand]

In an instant, the situation reversed, and Judai's base score was reduced to the same level as Keith's!?

Furthermore, light appeared simultaneously in Keith's graveyard and hand, suggesting that a card effect was about to activate!

"If the Machine-Type [Starry Sky] monster [Starry Sky Delta Shuttle] is destroyed by battle or card effect and sent to the Graveyard, you can also banish this card from the Graveyard to activate its effect, and Special Summon one [Starry Sky] monster from my Deck whose Level is lower than its own (i.e., Level 4 or lower)!"

After a pause, Keith revealed another card from his hand. "It's not over yet! As expected, my old friend will have a chance to appear again. If a Machine-Type DARK monster on my field is destroyed by battle or card effect, I can activate this effect and Special Summon this card from my hand!"

"The trigger of the outlaw's fate is pulled here—turn the wheel, Waghatamashi!"

Special Summon, Level 8!

"Aim, fire! [Desperate Revolver Dragon]!"

[Desperate Revolver Dragon] [8☆/Dark]

[Mechanical Race/Effect]

[2800/2200]

At the location where the [Star Trek Delta Shuttle] on the field was destroyed, his ace monster - [Desperate Revolver Dragon] - appeared, its three gun barrels, consisting of arms and head, locking onto all three monsters on Jaden's field.

But it wasn't over yet. After the effect of [Desperate Revolver Dragon] was dealt with, it was time for the final effect of [Starry Sky - Delta Shuttle] to appear. Keith retrieved a card and placed it on the Duel Disk, saying, "The monster I Special Summoned from my Deck by the effect of [Starry Sky - Delta Shuttle] is this one, a Level 4 [Starry Sky - Dark Rose]."

【Starry Night - Dark Rose】【4☆/Dark】

[Psychic Clan/Effect]

[1900/300]

Although the [Mirror of Inhaling Flash] is no longer there, Keith still Special Summons a DARK monster—for no other reason than that it has the highest ATK among the lower-ranked [Starry Sky] monsters. A graceful woman, dressed in a black robe and silver boots, enters the field, her fierce gaze preventing anyone from harboring any other thoughts towards her.

The double-headed lightsaber in her hand, and the "Rose" in her name, suggest that her prototype is likely Darth Maul, the Sith Lord from Star Wars who survived numerous disasters, or Nessa Rose, the unlucky witch from the Wizard of Oz who was killed by the protagonist in her first appearance. One of these prototypes won multiple resurrection battles, while the other died in a "plane crash"—what a mess!

"Two more powerful monsters have appeared all of a sudden!?" Marufuji Sho was nervous for Jaden. "To make matters worse, the attack power of my brother's [E·hero Black Neos] has been reduced, and even his base score has been reduced to 2000 points."

"Luckily, all of Big Brother's other monsters are in Defense mode, otherwise he would be in danger."

Just as Marufuji Sho was feeling relieved, Fubuki frowned and said, "No, Judai's crisis is not over yet. Marufuji, you may not know the effect of Mr. Keith's trump card, right?"

"During the battle phase, you flip three coins and destroy the number of monsters on the field that appear heads up. That's the effect of [Desperate Revolver Dragon]," Ameruda explained. "If you're lucky, this card can even destroy three of your opponent's monsters at once, and three heads up can even replenish the owner's hand. However, three tails up means you can't destroy any monsters, and [Desperate Revolver Dragon] cannot attack during the turn you use this effect."

"A gambling card that feels like something outlaws would do. Even Hayato Kobayashi had some trouble dealing with it back then."

"I'll just go into my battle phase and activate the effect of my [Desperate Revolver Dragon]!" Keith declared. "Once per turn, during both players' battle phases, I flip three coins. Based on the number of heads, I destroy the monster with the most heads on the field."

Keith made a gun gesture and aimed at Jaden's three monsters on the field. "And you happen to have three monsters on your field. For an average duelist, the probability of each shot is only 50%, but for an expert like me, the probability of hitting with all three is—"

"Senpasen dou (1000%) da!"

On the head of the "Desperate Revolver Dragon" in the Keith arena, three virtual coins with blue-eyed white dragon images are tossed down, and without exception, they all land heads up!

"Bang!" "Bang!" "Bang!" "Pull-My-Devil-Trigger!"

The three barrels of the "Desperate Revolver Dragon" fired simultaneously, and the three bullets destroyed the "E-hero Black Neos", "N-Flame Beetle" and "N-Sky Hummingbird" on the field of the Jaden. Because three coins landed heads up at once, it also triggered a special sound effect like the "777" jackpot from a slot machine.

Keith Howard: 2000LP, hand 0→1

“Since there are three coins facing up, I can destroy all three monsters on my opponent's field, and I can also draw an extra card from my deck.” Keith raised an eyebrow as he glanced at the card he had drawn. “After clearing all obstacles on the field, I can have [Starry Night - Dark Rose] attack my opponent's duelist directly!”

"Cosmic Sword Technique, Fourth Form: Atal!"

With no cards in hand and no face-down cards on the field to respond to the attack, Jaden could only watch helplessly as Dark Rose swung her twin lightsaber at him, drastically reducing his Life Points!

"Well!"

[Yuki Jaden: 2000→100LP, 0 cards in hand]

Looking at Jaden's remaining 100 life points, Keith said with some regret, "It's a real pity. During the turn that [Desperate Revolver Dragon] activates its effect, it cannot attack regardless of whether there is a coin heads or tails."

"While [Oz the Stars - Dark Rose] also has the ability to banish itself to Special Summon [Oz the Stars] monsters from my hand, I was unable to draw a new [Oz the Stars] monster from the effect of [Desperate Revolver Dragon]."

Looking at Judai, Keith curled his lip: "You got lucky, kid.

"I place a card face-down on the back row, and the turn ends."

Keith Howard: 2000LP, hand 1→0

【Star Trek - Dark Rose】【ATK1900】

【Desperate Revolver Dragon】【ATK2800】

【GaiKa】

Venue: [Interstellar Wonderland - Emerald City]

At the very moment the turn of Keith's declaration ended, [E·Hero Absolute Zero], which had been banished by [Elemental Protection], returned to Jaden's field. Looking at the monsters on Keith's field and then at Jaden's Life Points, [E·Hero Absolute Zero] was greatly shocked. He remembered that Jaden had clearly used his effect to destroy the opponent's field when he left, so how come the opponent still had two not weak monsters on the field after just one turn?

And there's still the base score for the tenth generation. I'm not mistaken, am I? Wasn't it 4000 points just now? How did it suddenly drop to a mere 100 points?

[Yujo Judai: 100LP, 0 cards in hand]

【E·hero Absolute Zero】【ATK2500】

"Wow, as expected of a legendary professional duelist, he's already in this state after just one round." Noticing the look in [E·hero Absolute Zero]'s eyes, Jaden said with a sense of helplessness and distress, "Not only have they depleted all my resources, but my Life Points are also just one point away from being wiped out and reduced to zero."

"I was quite proud of myself for being able to use my new card so skillfully. Mr. Keith is really amazing. He quickly combined it with his original cards to create a dangerous combo."

Upon hearing Jaden's evaluation of his combo during the battle, Keith sneered, "Kid, flattering me won't do you any good. The word 'holding back' doesn't exist in my dictionary."

“Yes, I know, because you look very serious, Mr. Keith.” Jaden nodded and smiled easily. “But you seem a little too serious. A duel should be enjoyed.”

"Ha, Duel Monsters is such a cruel game, how can the losers laugh? Only the winners have the right to laugh." Seeing Jaden's relaxed appearance, Keith sneered, "With that look on your face, do you think you can turn the tables in one turn?"

Jaden lifted the Duel Disk and smiled, "To be honest, I'm not sure, because I haven't drawn any cards yet. Drawing cards is like buying Duel Bread; nobody knows what the filling is until you open it."

“That’s what makes duels so exciting and unpredictable, isn’t it, Mr. Keith? Now, it’s my turn. Draw—”

Chapter 1491 Heaven and Hell Broken

"My turn, draw a card!"

Just as Jaden was drawing a card, Keith suddenly pressed the button to activate a face-down card, saying, "Then at this very moment, I will also activate my face-down card in the back row—the Quick-Play Spell Card [Fusion Deactivation]!"

"Target your opponent's [E·hero Absolute Zero] and return it to your Fusion Deck. This is neither sending it to the Graveyard nor banishing it, and your [E·hero Absolute Zero] effect cannot be activated!"

As soon as Jaden drew his card, [E·hero Absolute Zero] on the field was kicked back into the Fusion Deck by [Fusion Deactivation], leaving him with no monsters left on the field, which made Fubuki's expression on the sidelines turn serious.

"Oh no! If Jaden had drawn [Beloved Hero] just now, he could have used [E-Hero Absolute Zero] with 4500 ATK after adding DEF to attack [Starry Night - Dark Rose] and wipe out his opponent's Life Points, but now he doesn't even have a single monster left on the field."

Frowning, Tenjōin Fubuki thought for a moment and said, "But Judai only has one card left in his hand, and he hasn't even had a chance to use his most powerful [Fusion]. Unless... Judai draws the [Heavenly Treasure Card]?"

"Relying on cards like the 'Heavenly Treasure Card' isn't the mark of a true duelist," Ameruda said calmly, his opinion on Jaden unclear.