Is this the world of card dealers? Yada thieves!

Jaden inserts a card into the Spell & Trap Zone, and a rainbow-colored door opens, seemingly leading to a "new space".

Manjou raised an eyebrow and said angrily, "Stop joking! Even I know that only magic cards can be activated directly from the hand, and only during your turn, while trap cards can only be activated after they have been set on the field for a turn!"

"I see, that's right. But the 'new space' is a power of the universe that transcends Earth's gravity and belongs to the [Hero]. It cannot be bound by the common sense of dueling!"

As Jaden spoke, he took out a card from his hand. "If I have no cards on my field, [Neospace Expansion] can be activated from my hand. Its effect is to Special Summon any number of [N] monsters and [E-Hero Neos] from my hand or Graveyard in Defense Position. The effects of the monsters Special Summoned by this effect are negated."

"However, since [E·Hero Neos] is a Normal Monster, whether its effects are nullified or not is irrelevant!"

"Come forth, cosmic hero from the new space—Urutoraman Neos!"

Unconcerned about copyright, Jaden shouted and slapped the card in his hand. The silver-white [E·hero Neos] appeared on his field!

【E·hero Neo-Universe】【7☆/Light】

[Warrior/Normal]

[2500/2000]

"His attack power is only 2500 points, and that's in defense position. A mere 2000 points of defense is nothing. Mr. Saiō's [Secret Ritual Power XXI - World] and my [Tool Cart] could crush such a monster more easily than picking a leaf from the roadside grass!"

Despite the unexpected appearance of the [E·hero Neos] monster in the Jaden series, Manjoume Chosaku did not take it seriously and arrogantly expressed his contempt.

However, Jaden shook his head and said, "My [E·Hero Neos] alone is indeed not enough. But I'll use Saio's words to retaliate against you, Manjoume's older brother—this is a doubles duel!"

“Although I didn’t adjust my deck before the duel, Manjoume did add certain cards, and I have faith in his abilities.” Turning to look at Manjoume, Jaden raised his hand and said, “Then let’s switch places, Manjoume!”

"Snapped!"

Although he acted quite obediently and gave Judai a high-five, Manjoume still said arrogantly, "Stop ordering me around, Judai. If the opponent is my brother, then it's my turn to take action, isn't it?"

"Your monster is too useless. You'd better just obediently serve as a tribute for my monster's appearance—Pass, reveal this card in my hand!"

【游城十代→万丈目准：4000→4000LP，手牌4→2→5】

Holding up a card, Manjoume shouted, "I can chain the Special Summon of [E·Hero Neos], and during my opponent's Main Phase, by revealing this card in my hand to activate its effect, I can perform a Normal Summon of a [Primal Stone] monster!"

"I Tribute Summon this Normal Monster, E. Hero Neos, which I control!"

"A thunderous excavation of rock that shakes heaven and earth! Within it lies light, and a ferocious roar! Rage forth from the imperial lineage, dragon piercing the light!" Manjoume held up the card, "Superior Summon, Level 6☆!"

"Show your fangs! [Original Stone Dragon - Imperial Topaz Dragon]!"

Chapter 1535 The Unseen Immaculate Pulse

[Original Stone Dragon - Imperial Yellow Jade Dragon] [6 stars/location]

[Dragon Clan/Effect]

[2600/0]

Its rock-formed body resembled a moving mountain range, and the giant dragon on the vast field opened its eyes, revealing its topaz-like pupils.

"There's something I have to admit, even I have to admit, Saiou, you're right." Manjoume placed the card [Original Stone Dragon - Imperial Jade Dragon] horizontally on the Duel Disk and looked at Saiou opposite him, saying, "That is, I've been stuck in my current state for a very long time."

"First it was Judai, then it was that guy Caesar. Time and time again, people have stepped on my head to show off their power, using my defeats as stepping stones to highlight their strength. I seem to have willingly fallen into this state and have remained in it, seemingly becoming a comedic character."

"Seems like it?" Marufuji Sho blinked. "Isn't it?"

"Shut up, you worthless wretch!" Manjoume waved his hand without turning his head. "But Saiou, you claim to be able to see the future, but you're just a fake fortune teller who can only see the surface. You're not even as good as those street fortune tellers who are good at guessing their customers' psychology. Because there's one thing you've fundamentally wrong—"

"That is me, who has never given up my ambition to surpass Caesar and Jaden, and become the king of the Duel Academy! Did I think I had a world that I could control just because I stopped time? But it was in this stopped time that I clothed my dragons in the rocky armor accumulated over the years and unearthed their inner brilliance!"

"And now, in this stagnant world, you're no longer the only one capable of action!"

Before Saiou could speak, Manjoume Nagasaku glared at him with displeasure and said, "Is your arrogance based on this monster that only has a mere 2600 attack power? Accurate? Stupid and incompetent. I thought that even the worst person would only use one of these two words, but you actually used both!"

"Those monsters are no match for Mr. Saiō's [Secret Ritual Power XXI-World], much less my [Tool Trailer]!"

"Cars and motorcycles are good things, but too many of them can be a disaster. That's why we, the Manjoume brothers, devised a strategy to dominate three domains! Just like the world where time is stopped by Mr. Saiō's [Secret Ritual Power XXI-World], one driver is enough to move freely, leaving no room for your recklessness!"

"Insolence? No, get your facts straight, brother. You're driving the Manjoume Group toward a dead end, and I'm stopping you!" Manjoume raised his hand. "Besides, now that I've already excavated the sealed rock shell to reveal the topaz that was formed, it means that this closed and stagnant situation is about to be broken!"

"【Primal Stone Dragon - Imperial Topaz Dragon】Activates when summoned by Superior Summon!"

As Manjoume slammed his raised hand heavily onto the ground—not to mimic Kaiba's "floor draw," but to instruct the massive [Original Stone Dragon - Imperial Topaz Dragon] behind him to do the same—numerous stone spikes sprouted and protruded from the ground, instantly creating a stone forest that sealed all of Manjoume's monsters on the field within the thick rock!

"What?!" Manjoume Nagazaku stared in astonishment at the dense stone forest before him. "What are these 'tawa'?"

"As a dragon born from a Primal Stone, [Primal Stone Dragon - Imperial Topaz Dragon] has the ability to make the opponent experience the same feeling of being 'frozen'. One of these abilities is to permanently negate the effects of all face-up monsters on the opponent's field! Whether it's [D. Telephone] which hasn't used its effect, [Tool Truck] which has increased its ATK with its effect, or..." Manjou pointed at [Arcane Power XXI - World] and said, "—that [Arcane Power XXI - World]!"

"Time, begin to flow!"

"Click!" A sound like the ticking of a clock suddenly rang out. The power to stop time, which was unleashed by the [Secret Ritual Power XXI-World], was broken, and the time that had been imprisoned and frozen for Judai and Banjou resumed its flow!

"They actually gave [Arcane Power XXI-World] to..." Manjoume gritted his teeth, "However, the attack power boost from [Tool Truck] won't disappear because its effect is nullified; it'll still be 5300 points. Adding the 3100 attack power from [Arcane Power XXI-World], it's still enough to finish you off—"

"That possibility doesn't exist!" Interrupting Nagasaku, Manjoume said smugly, "I... no, my power far exceeds your imagination! There isn't just one [Original Stone Dragon - Imperial Topaz Dragon]! It can also banish all monsters on your opponent's field that have the same race or attribute as any Normal Monster in my Graveyard!"

"And right now, in our graveyard, there exists the [E·Hero Neos], a Light-attribute Warrior!" Jaden continued, picking up where Manjoume left off. "Heh heh, it seems there's an advantage to Neos being a Normal Monster, isn't there?"

"Idiot! What do you think I included the [Original Stone Dragon] card in my deck for? It's just to match you, the guy who likes to include those nonsensical Normal Monsters!"

"Wow, how fierce and cold-hearted is Manjoume!"

“Thanks to Saiou’s reminder, I remembered that you and I aren’t exactly friends, are we? Because sworn enemies can only be arch-enemies!” Manjoume paused, then pointed to himself, “And, it’s Mr. Manjoume!”

Although Saiou's verbal offensive had some effect, this so-called effect was actually absorbed into filling the tacit understanding between Judai and Manjoume. The two of them seemed to be arguing, but they had subtly achieved a certain cooperation.

Pointing to a spot, Judai asked, "Where is it?"

"No, it's this way." Manjou pointed in another direction.

"Should we move it a little more?" "Hmm, just barely."

“Then this spot will do…” Judai’s words were cut short by Manjoume, “…this is the perfect spot to beat them up!”

"The moment of revelation! Petrify all things—the unseen, immaculate pulse!"

On the chest of the [Original Stone Dragon - Imperial Topaz Dragon], the rock armor shattered, revealing its clear and brilliant transparent topaz body. The power of light provided by [E·hero Neo-Universe] from the Tenth Generation Tomb surged into its chest cavity, transforming into an energy ball, and was released instantly!

The target, naturally, is the opponent's only LIGHT monster on the field—[Arcane Power XXI-World]!

"Crack—!"

Seizing the opportunity, during Manjoume's turn, Judai and Manjoume coordinated to unleash a combo, successfully launching a counterattack that defeated [Secret Power XXI-World], banishing it directly from the game!

"Ugh, how could that be!" Manjoume Nagasaku stared angrily at the [Secret Ritual Power XXI - World] card that had vanished from the field and was calmly put away by Saiou. "You're really quite smug, aren't you? But you made sure you were prepared to bear the cost of having [Original Stone Dragon - Imperial Topaz Dragon] attack position."

"Enter my combat phase, then use the [Tool Wagon] to attack the [Primal Jade Dragon - Imperial Topaz Dragon]!"

To be fair, the 2600 attack power of the [Primal Jade Dragon - Imperial Topaz] isn't low; it's even 100 points higher than the officially certified "Strongest Mage"—the [Dark Mage]. However, it depends on what it's being compared to.

The [Tool Trailer], with an attack power of up to 5300 points, may look like a child's toy with its plastic texture, but just like the transformation tool of Kamen Rider O, seemingly toy-like items can sometimes unleash tremendous destructive power. The moment the [Tool Trailer] fired, even the earth trembled for a moment!

"boom!"

Lowering his hands from his ears, Judai turned to Manjoume and asked, "How are you, Manjoume?"

"Hmph, nothing happened!" Manjou's voice came from the dust kicked up by the attack. It sounded very tough, but how could "nothing happen" when the attack was even stronger than the Five Divine Dragons? The rapidly decreasing Life Points on his Duel Disk also proved this point.

[Manjou's hand: 4000 → 1300 LP, Hand 5 → 4]

"It's not over yet! Next, I'll unleash a direct attack with [D·Telephone]!" After destroying the [Original Stone Dragon - Imperial Topaz Dragon] in the battle, Manjoume Nagasaku pressed his advantage, showing no mercy even though the opponent was his own younger brother. "Midnight Bell!"

"What a terrible name!" Just as he finished his thought, Jaden and the others were forced to cover their ears again, as [D·Telephone] launched a barrage of noise from its hand cannon. In a sense, this was even more damaging than the Dark Games, a double attack of both mind and body.

[Manjou: 1300→1200LP, 4 cards in hand]

"Tch, so noisy, this disgusting attack." Although he only lost a mere 100 basic points, Manjoume felt that the attack from [D·Telephone] was even more unpleasant than the attack from [Tool Trailer] earlier; it was simply torture.

After completing his attack, Manjoume Nagasaku, who only had one card in his hand, ended his battle phase. However, before he could end his turn in one go, Saiou, after a period of silence, suddenly spoke up: "I've found the right spot!"

"Ok?"

Upon hearing this, Manjoume and Judai instinctively looked at Saiou together, only to see him suddenly wave his hand and say to Manjoume Chosaku, "I see it, Manjoume Chosaku, the right time to activate the card in your hand! The revelation from fate is the reversed 'Judgment'! That is, disillusionment with no progress!"

"Hey, can you direct your teammates like that in doubles?" Jaden asked, puzzled, after hearing Saiou's words. "Isn't that almost the same as singles?"

"If you can accurately direct your teammate to make actions without seeing what cards they have in their hand, that's fine, Jaden Yuki," Saiou said calmly. "But you don't know what cards Jun Banjoume has in his hand, do you?"

"Alright, now's the time. Activate the card in your hand!"

"Now?" Manjoume Nagasaku glanced at the card in his hand. Although somewhat puzzled, he followed Saiou's instructions without hesitation. "Then, after my Battle Phase ends, activate this Continuous Spell Card during Main Phase Two!"

"Perpetual Magic Card [Nightmare Mirage]!"

The card that Manjoume Nagasaku used was none other than the one Hayato had almost worn out: [Nightmare of the Mirage]. As the card name suggests, it could create a mirage-like illusion in the hand, and then, just as Saiou had predicted, result in "disillusionment with no progress"—the loss of the ability to draw cards!

"My turn is over, then it's your turn." Nagasaku instructed Manjoume, "Hurry up and draw your card, then I can draw four cards during your preparation phase using the effect of [Nightmare Mirage]!"

"Don't... command me!" Manjoume said unhappily, glancing at Saiou.

The performance of Saiou and Manjoume Nagasaku just now has fully demonstrated that Saiou is the one who dominates their duel. In terms of card strength, Saiou's [Secret Ritual Power] is obviously stronger than Nagasaku's [D], whose strength is not yet clear. However, Manjoume Nagasaku activated [Nightmare Mirage] at this moment.

Of course, this card allows the user to draw cards from the deck as much as possible during the opponent's standby phase until they have four cards in their hand. However, after that, during the holder's standby phase, they have to randomly discard a few cards after drawing them. Without a card like [Unusual Food] to complement it, the benefits are hard to match the risks.

In particular, only Manjoume Nagasaku would draw cards because of this effect, while the stronger Saiou would have to discard the cards in his hand because of this card's effect?

Manjoume didn't understand what kind of mystery Saiou was playing at, but he was certain of one thing—

"My turn, draw a card!"

"So, because of the effect of [Nightmare Mirage], I draw four cards from my deck!"

Almost at the same time that Manjoume was drawing cards, his older brother, Manjoume Chosaku, also drew four cards from his deck in one go.

【Manjou: 1200LP, Hand 4→5】

【Manjou no Nakamaru: 4000LP, Hand 0→4】

【D·Telephone】【ATK100】

[Tool Trailer] [ATK5300]

[Valhalla, the City of the Gods] [Mirage of Nightmares] [Gaikka] x2

"This chaotic duel is really annoying. It's your fault for irritating me!" Looking at a card in his hand, Manjoume inserted it into the Spell & Trap Zone. "Let's finish this messy duel in one go—right in my turn!"

"Spell Card [Special Hurricane] activated! Discard one card from my hand and destroy all Special Summoned monsters on the field!"

A pure white storm rose from the ground, crackling with electricity, its power immense. The moment this storm appeared, like lightning striking from the sky, it simultaneously destroyed the [D·Telephone] and [Tool Trailer] on the field. Before this natural force, all attacks, regardless of their power level, are equal.

Although it's not as good as [Black Hole] or [Lightning Strike], there's nothing that can be done about it. After all, Manjoume didn't draw those two field-clearing cards. But as long as he can clear the obstacles on the field, that's enough—because he has cards in his hand to play!

"I Normal Summon [Primal Stone Dragon - Variant Emerald Stone Dragon] to my field in Attack Position and activate its effect to Set one [Primal Stone] Spell/Trap Card from my Deck to my back row. The card I chose is this one: the Continuous Spell Card [Primal Stone Royal Lineage]."