The protagonist of the Yu-Gi-Oh! world might be the same person.

"Heh heh heh heh, the offering to awaken the sleeping god is ready..."

Rudger sneered as he placed a card from his hand into the Field Spellbox: "Activate Field Spell, [Earthbound Ground Painting]!"

"As long as this card is on the field, if I Tribute Summon a [Earthbound God] monster, I can Tribute two Synchro Monsters as tribute... Therefore, I release [Lightning Warrior]!"

"Souls of the dead, hidden within the light of my destiny, grant me strength to guide the darkness and truth in this changing world!"

At this moment, streams of energy floated out from the old MOMENT below, drifting upwards towards the cave.

"Hahahaha! Appear, [Earthbound God Uru]!"

After all the souls that became sacrifices gathered in one place, the heart of the evil god appeared.

The next second, a flash of evil light appeared, and a huge, pitch-black spider awoke in the cave. It pinned its eight thick spider legs to the wall, its massive body supporting it in mid-air, looking down at Yusei and the others below.

[Earthbound God Uru: Attack Power 3000]

[Ludger Godwin's hand cards: 3→1]

"Heh heh heh heh, did you see that, Yusei? This is the god I finally chose!"

"A chosen god? What does that mean?"

Seeing Yusei's puzzled look, Rudger said with a smile, "As the original owner of the Dragon Head Seal and the current owner are engaged in a life-or-death battle, I can feel a strong sense of destiny."

"The original owner? Could it be...?"

"Do you realize it now, Yusei?" Rudger raised his left hand, which was made of steel. "Do you see this hand of mine? My left hand used to house the power of the Red Dragon, but I ultimately chose the path of the evil god and severed my connection with the Red Dragon with my own hands. I never imagined that 17 years later, the person who would obtain the Dragon Head Seal would be Dr. Fudo's son. What an irony of fate!"

Yusei: !!! !!!

Qiu: "The original holder of the Dragon Head Seal was actually Ludger!?"

Crow: "What exactly happened 17 years ago? And it even involves Yusei's father..."

"Hmph, I might as well tell you." Now that we've started talking, it would be pointless not to continue.

Rudger then continued, "Seventeen years ago, Dr. Fudo discovered the asteroid particle and is an authority on proton physics."

"Particles?"

"what is that?"

Rudger: "A planetary particle is a particle that acts like a planetary gear, connecting other particles to each other. The doctor named this discovery after his son, hoping that you could become a link connecting others."

"And you are also very familiar with the application device corresponding to the planetary particle... That's right, it's MOMENT. The planetary particle is a new particle that is essential for creating MOMENT."

"Based on his discoveries, the doctor began developing MOMENT, a pollution-free energy device. Rex and I were deeply moved by the doctor's research and became his assistants as researchers."

"The research was going smoothly at first, but then..."

Later experiments revealed unexplained anomalies. Each time an experiment was conducted, the city was affected by abnormal weather. Therefore, in order to prevent the people in the city from being involved in the danger, Dr. Fudo decided to terminate the experiment.

Later, unwilling to end the experiment, Rudger investigated and found the place where the anomaly occurred at the same time as the experiment: Nazca, where the earthbound god was sealed. At that time, he met a man who called himself ILIASTER.

"ILIASTER?" This was the first time Yusei had ever heard of this name.

Ludger: "That man said that there are possibilities I have never imagined ahead of the light of MOMENT, and I want to see what that is like."

"So after I took over the doctor's experiment, I finally saw a new possibility for the MOMENT. The MOMENT was the device chosen to resurrect the gods from 5000 years ago!"

"In order to become a Darkmarker, I cut off my left hand, which housed the power of the Red Dragon, and gave it to Rex. Finally, I activated the old MOMENT, and you know what happened next. This is the truth behind the 'Zero Point Reversal' outbreak."

Upon hearing this, the crow angrily retorted, "KISAMA! That accident was caused by you! Because of your mistake, Jack, Yusei's parents, and I died, and the city was split into two parts, the satellite district and the city center. How many more lives do you intend to take before you stop?"

Ignoring the raven's question, Rudger continued, "Yusei, by the time I realized it, my fate was already in the hands of the gods, and in the end, I chose the darkness within my own heart. This world will soon be reborn; that is my answer!"

Yusei's face turned cold: "Then there's nothing more to say, let the duel continue!"

"As you wish... Earthbound Gods can directly attack their opponents when there is a field spell! Go, [Earthbound God Uru], attack Yusei directly, Hell Silk!"

With a command from Rudger, Uru shot a beam of spider silk towards Yusei's head, bypassing the Holy Dragon and striking directly at Yusei.

"Yusei!!" ×2

At this critical moment, Yusei quickly waved his arm and shouted, "Activate the Trap Card [Forced End]!"

The next moment, the level-stealing bug rushed forward, using its own destruction to offset the attack, and the spider silk instantly dissipated.

"What?!" Seeing this, Rudger asked in bewilderment, "What just happened? Why didn't the Earthbound God's attack work?"

Yusei then explained: "The Continuous Trap [Forced End] can force the end of the Battle Phase by sending one card other than this card from your field to the Graveyard during the Battle Phase."

"Hmph, a combination to stop the Earthbound God's attack... But the Earthbound God's power is not limited to this. As long as there is a Level 10 monster on the field, the Field Spell [Earthbound Ground Painting] will not be destroyed by its effect, nor can it be the target of its effect."

"I'll set one more card down, and the turn ends."

[Ludger Godwin's hand cards: 1→0]

Chapter Seventy-Six: The Perpetual Effect of Stardust Zero

"My turn!"

Yusei looked at the card he had drawn, then slammed it onto the Duel Disk without hesitation: "I summon the Tuner Monster 'Scrap Master' from my hand. This monster can be used as a substitute for any Tuner Monster with 'Synchro' in its name!"

"Then activate the effect of [Weapon Gloves], remove this card from the equipped slot and Special Summon it in Attack Position."

[Weapon Gloves: Attack Power 1800]

【Sacred Dragon Stardust Zero: Attack Power 5000 → 4000】

"Then, reduce the level of [Saint Dragon Stardust Zero] by one star and Special Summon [Level Thief Bug]."

Then Yusei shouted, "Use a level 1 [Level Thief Bug] and a level 4 [Weapon Glove] to upgrade the level 2 [Scrap Suppressor]!"

"Let the gathered shouts become echoing arrows piercing the sky, transforming into a path of radiant light!"

"Synchronization Summon! Appear, [Scrap Archer]!"

The light of sync shone once more, and an archer clad in orange armor with a bow on his left wrist burst through the light and landed on the planet's field.

[Scrap Archer: Attack Power 2300]

Crow: "Yosh! The effect of [Scrap Archer] is that you can banish an opponent's monster from the game once per turn until the end of the turn. Now even a Judas can't stop Yusei's attack!"

"The idea is wonderful..." Rudger said dismissively, "But at this moment, another effect of the field spell [Earthbound Ground Painting] activates!"

"When a Synchro Monster is Special Summoned once per turn, you can add one Spell/Trap Card with 'Earthbound God' in its name from your Deck to your hand. I added the Trap Card 'Earthbound God' to my hand."

[Ludger Godwin's hand cards: 0→1]

"The roar of a bound god, huh..." Yusei narrowed his eyes upon hearing this.

This card's effect is: when your opponent's monster declares an attack, if the attacking monster's ATK is lower than that of an Earthbound Monster, destroy the attacking monster and inflict damage to your opponent equal to half of the destroyed monster's ATK.

The Holy Dragon's attack power is higher than that of Earthbound God, and it's not affected by the effect. Therefore, this card, Rudger, should be targeting monsters with low attack power and direct attack effects. (Yes, I'm talking about you, Drill Warrior.)

Yusei: "Then I'll activate the effect of [Scrap Archer] to banish [Earthbound God Uru]!"

"It's no use!" Rudger decisively pressed the button to face down the card: "I'll activate the Trap Card [Skill Imprisonment] again!"

"Choose one card on your field. Negate the effects of monsters that target the chosen card this turn. I chose [Earthbound God Uru], of course."

In this way, the effect of the Scrap Archer cannot affect the Earthbound God, and this effect is effective for the entire turn, so even if the effect of the Return Device is used to refresh the Archer's effect, it will be useless.

However, the advantage still lies with Yusei. As long as the Holy Dragon is there, Rudger will not dare to make any rash moves. Once any monster effect is activated, his Earthbound God will be unable to be protected, which also indirectly blocks his monster effects.

Yusei: "I lowered the level of [Scrap Archer] from 7 to 6 and Special Summoned [Level Thief Bug] from the Graveyard. Then, I activated the effect of the Continuous Spell [Warp Matter Transfer Device] on [Scrap Archer] to refresh the level of [Scrap Archer]."

"That concludes my turn."

"My turn, draw a card!"

Rudger glanced at the card he had drawn, a smirk creeping onto his face. "Looks like your doomed fate has come sooner than I expected. I'll use this card to crush your hopes!"

"I activate the Spell Card [Earthbound Whirlwind] from my hand. If I control [Earthbound God], I destroy all Spell and Trap Cards on my opponent's field!"

Suddenly, a violent whirlwind blew out of the card and swept towards Yusei's field.

Crow: "Oh no! If [Forced End] is broken, Yusei won't be able to block the Earthbound God's attack!"

Whoosh whoosh whoosh...!

After the storm subsided, Rudger looked at Yusei's back row. The scene he had expected, where all the spells and traps were destroyed, did not occur. Upon closer inspection, the cards were covered with a faint layer of light.

"What?!" Rudger's eyes widened in disbelief. "Why wasn't your card destroyed?"

Seeing his reaction, Yusei's lips curled up slightly: "As a Synchro Monster of the highest level, the power of [Sacred Dragon Stardust Zero] is not just what it was just now... Zero's continuous effect is that all the cards on your field will not be destroyed by battle or card effects once per turn, so the destruction of [Forced End] and [Subspace Matter Return Device] is negated!"

"What did you say!? It grants all cards on your field resistance to destruction!?"

Qiu couldn't help but exclaim, "So amazing! Its effect, derived from [Shining Stardust], is no longer limited to a single card; it's arguably the strongest Guardian!"

Crow: "As long as Yusei uses the combination of [Level Stealing Bug], [Subspace Matter Return Device], and [Forced Termination] to create an infinite battle phase lockdown, that guy won't be able to enter battle mode!"

Furthermore, due to the protective effect of the Holy Dragon on monsters, Ludger's "Roar of the Earthbound God" also lost its effect.

"Set a card face down... End of turn..."

[Ludger Godwin's hand cards: 1→0]

Seeing Ludger helplessly end his turn with a face down card, Yusei said coldly, "It seems that the darkness you chose has not brought you any chance of victory. The fate you speak of has not yet been decided!"

"My turn!"

Yusei glanced at his hand and immediately threw it out: "I'm betting on this card to summon [Junk Destroyer]!"

As the light effects rose, a warrior holding a meteor hammer made of nuts appeared on the field.

"The effect of [Scrapbreaker] is activated. During the Main Phase of the turn this card is Summoned, release yourself and negate the effects of all face-up monsters on the field until the end of the turn."

"What!?"

After the Earthbound God is neutralized, Yusei can launch an attack using the Sacred Dragon.

"Activate the [Subspace Matter Return Device] once more, and exclude the [Scrap Archer]!"

Under the intimidation of the Holy Dragon, Rudger finally panicked: "So you still want to use the effect of [Scrap Archer]? Then I will activate the effect of [Skill Imprisonment] from the Graveyard. By banishing this card from the Graveyard and targeting [Earthbound God Uru], the effects of monsters that target this card this turn will be negated."

However, at that moment, Yusei suddenly sneered, "This is the moment I've been waiting for! Activate the other effect of the [Subspace Matter Return Device]!"

Chapter Seventy-Seven: The Last Earthbound God

"Another effect of the feedback device!?"

Yusei explained, "That's right. When your opponent activates a card effect, you can select one monster on the field whose effect has been negated, banish the selected card, and immediately return it to the field!"

"What did you say!?"

Rudger's pupils trembled upon hearing this, because the effect of the Earthbound God had already been nullified by the previous effect of the Junk Destroyer!

If he had known the return device had this effect, he should have activated the skill imprisonment effect decisively when the Scrap Destroyer activated its effect.

I regret it! I regret it so much!

Under the illumination of the feedback device, the effects of both monsters on both sides' fields were refreshed, and...

Qiu: "Great, now the skill imprisonment has lost its target and can no longer protect the Earthbound God."

Raven: "Although the Earthbound God's effect has been restored, without its protection, the Earthbound God can no longer be immune to the effects of the rubbish archer!"

"Go! [Scrap Archer], banish [Earthbound God Uru], arrow!"

With Yusei's command, the Scrap Archer immediately launched a beam of light, sending the Earthbound God to another realm, leaving Rudger wide open. Without the Earthbound God, the remaining Faceless Cards could not be used.

Watching the vanished Earthbound God, Yusei seemed to sense something: "Rudger, I don't understand what you mean by fate, but it must be wrong!"

"..."

"Because I know very well how much suffering will be left behind in this disaster, for many lives disrupted by your madness that you call fate."

"If it weren't for Father's research, the accident 17 years ago wouldn't have happened. That accident took the lives of Jack and Raven's parents and disrupted everyone's lives. Without it, everyone would have warm parents to take care of them and live happy days... Answer me, Ludger! How long are you going to prolong this sorrow? And how can I ever make it up to them?"

Ludger: "Aruto..."

The crow suddenly spoke up: "Yusei, you've been carrying this burden of guilt all this time, and I, as your companion, have only noticed it until now... But Yusei, I never thought it was your or your father's fault, and you don't need to take responsibility for this!"

"I'd rather say I'm so glad I was able to meet you and Jack, and other irreplaceable comrades, after this accident! Yusei, you have to win! You have to win for the sake of us comrades!"

“Crow…” Encouraged by his best friend, Yusei nodded firmly: “Rudger! My companions and I will never accept the fate you have chosen, so for the future of our companions, I will crush your ambition in this duel!”

"Go! [Saint Dragon Stardust Zero] attacks Ludger directly, Supernova Strike!!"

Having waited for a long time, the Holy Dragon received Yuxing's command, straightened its chest, and then the jewel on its chest sprayed out the condensed starlight. The torrent of light instantly engulfed Rudger.

boom--! ! !

"Gurgle... Ahhh...!!"