Chapter 106: The Secret of Dueling

The Elf Dimension, somewhere.

Night was ink-black; dim moonlight shrouded the dense forest. The man in black, hooded, moved silently, his form blending into the shadows as if one with the underbrush.

He arrived at a cave concealed by thick vines, where only a faint, dim glow leaked from within. The black-clad man bowed slightly and entered the cave.

A cold wind drifted from deep within the cave, accompanied by a wailing sound. The environment was initially dark and silent, but as he went deeper, faint clamor and commotion seemed to rise around him—sounds of fighting and shouting.

It was a group of insectoids.

In an open space, insectoids of all shapes and sizes were locked in fierce combat. Some had massive bodies like giant beetles; others, small and agile, darted swiftly through the swarm. Roars and crashes rose and fell, shaking the cave walls. They tore at each other with fangs and claws, each strike spraying bodily fluids and shattering carapaces.

This was the insectoid nest.

The boss vanished after circling around, the Beetle Armor Knight was wasted, and now the entire nest was leaderless. The remaining insects were now fighting fiercely over who would take command next.

Then suddenly, one insect noticed the black-clad man at the entrance.

“The scent of humans!”

“A human? Here?”

“Seeking death!”

The insects immediately dropped their fighting and surged toward the black-clad man like a wave, claws and fangs bared, ready to tear him to shreds.

But the black-clad man merely lifted his head calmly; beneath his hood, his eyes glowed with cold green light. A six-pointed star mark appeared on his forehead, as if a magical wheel slowly turning.

Boom!

“.”

Minutes later, the battle inside the cave was over.

The insectoids lay scattered everywhere—shattered carapaces, bodily fluids, and blood mingled together, forming a strange, bloody pattern.

The man stood at the center of the cave, coldly observing the fallen insects. The glow of the six-pointed star on his forehead blazed, and his black robe stirred without wind.

Behind him, a colossal shadow slowly faded, leaving behind traces of a faint blue flame.

“Wait, wait—I’m on your side!” a mantis-like insectoid cried, coughing blood as it begged for mercy.

“We didn’t know a divine emissary had descended...”

The black-clad man asked coldly: “Has a duelist from another dimension come to this realm?”

An insectoid immediately nodded.

“Yes. They say the White Bone King’s wife ran off with the enemy, and then he defected too.”

“That’s rumor,” another insectoid couldn’t help interjecting. “That’s too absurd.”

“Absolutely true! My intelligence network is flawless.”

“.”

The black-clad man gestured for them to be silent, then asked coldly: “Where has your leader gone?”

The insects looked embarrassed.

“Uh, the boss heard the White Bone King was taken down, so he went to confront those guys.”

“And then?”

“. And he hasn’t returned since.”

The man fell silent, as if thinking.

The mantis insectoid asked cautiously: “Emissary, since our boss is gone, shouldn’t we appoint a new acting leader? What about me?”

The man gave it a cold glare; the mantis immediately shrank back, daring not to make another sound.

“One last question.”

The man’s eyes glowed green as he asked in a low voice:

“. Is there a Phoenix God relic in this dimension?”

The Elf Dimension, camp.

“Come on, come on—those who want to practice dueling, line up!”

Jūdai grinned broadly.

“One at a time, no pushing. Everyone gets a turn.”

“.”

Hearing that You Xuan had once coached elves in card dueling—something so interesting—Jūdai couldn’t stand it anymore and declared he absolutely couldn’t miss such a thing.

So he began training the elves who wished to learn dueling from the interdimensional hero.

“.”

The warriors soon realized this hero’s style was completely different from the previous one’s.

If the previous duelist made you feel powerless—like you had strength but couldn’t use it, cards in hand but couldn’t play them—this one made it seem effortless. No matter what card or move you played, he effortlessly countered it in unexpected ways.

For example, during Jūdai’s duel with the “Dark Magician Merchant.”

Jūdai: “Activate the Spell Card ‘Fusion’! Fuse the Elemental Hero Bubbleman, Wingman, and Sparkman!”

“Appear, my strongest hero—Elemental Hero Stormman!”

【Elemental Hero Stormman, ATK 2800】

Dark Magician Merchant: “Nani!? A monster with 2800 ATK? But I have my own ‘Dark Magician Merchant’ on the field—so long as a Continuous Spell or Trap is active, I cannot be destroyed by any means!”

【Dark Magician Merchant, DEF 200】

“I have the Continuous Spell ‘Dark Gate’ active—only one monster may attack during each Battle Phase. Even Stormman can’t break through my defense!”

“Don’t rush.” Jūdai grinned confidently. “Activate the Quick-Play Spell ‘Fusion Reversal’! Reverse the Fusion of Stormman and Special Summon ‘Wingman,’ ‘Bubbleman,’ and ‘Sparkman’ back to the field!”

“Then activate the Spell Card ‘Wing Shot’! As a cost, forfeit the attack rights of all other monsters on your field this turn—Wingman may attack a number of times equal to the number of monsters on your field. I have three monsters, so Wingman attacks three times this turn!”

“Then activate Spell Card ‘H-Blazing Heart’! Increase ‘Elemental Hero Wingman’s’ ATK by 500 and grant it Piercing Attack!”

【Elemental Hero Wingman, ATK 1500】

【Dark Magician Merchant, DEF 200】

“Nani!? Three attacks—and Piercing Attack...”

“That’s right! Go, Wingman—Wing Shot, Triple Strike!”

Dark Magician Merchant: “Waaahhh!!!”

【Dark Magician Merchant, LP 0】

“I won!” Jūdai cheered, gesturing triumphantly. “What a fun duel!”

Dark Magician Merchant: “.”

You Xuan watched, lost in thought.

How to put it...

“Wing Shot,” the card that grants Wingman multiple attacks, was one of those baffling cards in the Elemental Hero bundle.

Wingman’s ATK is only 1000—what’s the point of multiple attacks with a fish like that?

And it requires you to sacrifice the attack rights of your other monsters to enable it—“number of attacks equal to number of monsters on your field.”

Normally, it was clearly a useless, fishy card.

But Jūdai said: “I summoned it, I destroyed him—what’s your problem?”

Jūdai’s training continued.

“.”

“Activate Trap Card ‘Golden Blade Hammer’! Tribute your own ‘Elemental Hero Golden Blade’ to destroy one monster on your opponent’s field and inflict damage equal to that monster’s original ATK!”

“.”

“Activate Counter Trap ‘Wing Wind’! If ‘Elemental Hero Wingman’ is face-up in Attack Position, negate and destroy any activated Spell or Trap Card!”

You Xuan: “.”

It couldn’t be denied—though his deck looked like nothing but dead draws at first glance, when actually played, it had negation, destruction, and resistance—somehow surprisingly well-constructed.

Whether the elves could learn any dueling secrets from this was another matter.

Jūdai: Huh? Dueling? Isn’t it just about drawing the right cards to win?

(End of Chapter)