Chapter 111: Hero VS Demise

"First, a direct attack from the Demon Shovel Bug!"

Xie Er was bathed in ghostly blue flames, the Orichalcos mark on his forehead shining brightly; for an instant, he seemed entirely swallowed by pitch-black fire.

"Die!"

The giant Shovel Bug charged at full speed, unleashing velocity incongruous with its massive size; a huge shadow surged toward Jūdai's position, its enormous, foul-smelling maw gaping as if to devour him whole.

But before Jūdai could even move, You Xuan had already drawn a card from his hand.

"Activating Trap Card from my hand—Magic Cylinder!"

Jūdai: "!"

Xie Er: "!!!"

The trap card's image materialized, and the Magic Cylinder appeared on the field in front of Jūdai. A look of astonishment crossed Xie Er's face: "Activating a Trap Card from the hand?"

"The face-down card destroyed by 'King of Demise' was the Trap Card 'Trap of Reflection'," You Xuan said. "During the turn this card is sent to the Graveyard by an opponent's effect, I can activate one Trap Card from my hand." (Original card)

Xie Er's expression twisted: "There's another trap!?"

In a single turn, he had used Phoenix God to clear the back row once, then used King of Demise to blow up the entire field twice.

And yet, even after such bombardment, the traps weren't fully cleared?

The obvious first layer of traps consisted of the dual defensive line built from You Xuan and Jūdai's respective "Solemn Judgment - Mirror Force" cards, but on top of that, You Xuan had also set up "Fake Traps" to replace the destroyed ones.

When the opponent consecutively cleared the field, sweeping away both layers of traps, they naturally lowered their guard, subconsciously thinking, "There's absolutely no way any more traps remain."

Never expecting a third layer of traps hidden right in the hand!

Until just now, all of Xie Er's hatred had been focused solely on Jūdai, but now his gaze shifted to You Xuan, staring at him intensely.

Setting trap upon trap upon another trap—you dig so deep, are you secretly a grave robber?

"You Xuan, amazing!" Jūdai couldn't help giving him a thumbs-up again. "It's a chain of traps! If he takes this hit, he's finished!"

[Xie Er, LP 1500]

[Demon Shovel Bug, ATK 3300]

"Not so fast!" Xie Er shouted. "Activating Quick-Play Spell Card 'Mysterious Chinese Pot' from my hand!"

Tribute one monster on your field, choose either its ATK or DEF value, and regain LP equal to that value!

"I tribute 'Demon Shovel Bug' to recover Life Points!"

A giant black cauldron set over a fire basin appeared on the field; the Demon Shovel Bug plunged headfirst into the pot, instantly cooked and decomposed into nutrients, which were absorbed into Xie Er's body.

Rather than letting the opponent use it for a borrowed-knife kill, better to fry it up and eat it oneself.

[Xie Er, LP 1500 → LP 4800]

Jūdai: "Ah, what a pity..."

They had narrowly escaped disaster, but with this, Xie Er's OTK setup was completely dismantled. He couldn't help glancing sideways at You Xuan.

"Tch, so this side has a sinister kid too? But I still have 'King of Demise' who hasn't attacked yet!"

He redirected his firepower, this time raising his hand to lock onto You Xuan as his target.

"Since you've decided to use your back row to protect your companion, then you shall take the fury of Demise in their stead!" Xie Er roared. "King of Demise, direct attack on that sinister brat!"

The King of Demise stepped forward, each footfall making the very earth tremble. His giant axe carved an arc of flame as it cleaved down, striking toward You Xuan with the force of splitting a mountain.

"I won't let you harm my friend!"

Jūdai raised his hand.

"The effect of 'Spirit Guardian,' which was discarded to the Graveyard last turn by You Xuan's 'Card Destruction' effect, now activates!"

"During the opponent's turn, by banishing this card from the Graveyard, I can negate one attack this turn!"

A spectral figure of a spirit manifested before You Xuan, forming a transparent force-field barrier in front of him. The King of Demise's devastating axe strike slammed into that transparent shield, blue flames washing over the barrier's surface.

Xie Er sneered: "Tch, so last turn's 'Card Destruction' hid this kind of coordination too."

His guaranteed OTK, achieved at the cost of massive LP and even his own life force to clear the field, resulted in a finishing combo that not only dealt zero damage but nearly sent himself packing.

Are these two brats really students?

Xie Er frowned, beginning to realize that his decision to fight two-on-one might have been overly ambitious.

Have Duel Academy students reached this level these days?

You Xuan smiled and nodded at Jūdai: "Thanks."

"Friends help each other, after all. Besides, you covered me first." Jūdai chuckled, rubbing his nose.

But seeing this interaction only made Xie Er more irritated.

"Still have leisure for friendship games? Fine, let's see how long you can last," Xie Er said grimly. "Activating Spell Card 'Spellbook of Burial'; I can banish three Spell Cards from my Graveyard to draw two cards." (Original card)

Golden light shimmered in the Graveyard; three cards popped out, which he displayed.

"Banning from the Graveyard the Spell Cards 'Nephthys' Hope,' 'Advanced Ritual Art,' and 'Mysterious Chinese Pot' to draw two cards."

Images of the three Spell Cards emerged from the Graveyard, quickly dissipating in golden light as Xie Er drew two cards from his Deck.

"Furthermore, I haven't performed a Normal Summon this turn."

"I Set one monster on the field, then Set two more cards. Turn end."

"Alright! Then it's my turn; I can't let the situation You Xuan created go to waste!"

Jūdai patted his face, gearing up with full concentration.

"My turn, draw!" Jūdai declared. "First, activating Spell Card 'Fusion Recovery'! I target one 'Polymerization' and one Fusion Material Monster in my Graveyard to return them to my hand."

"I return the Spell Card 'Polymerization' and 'Elemental HERO Bubbleman' from my Graveyard to my hand!"

Two cards returned from the Graveyard zone; Jūdai added one to his hand and immediately slapped the other onto the field.

"Then I Summon 'Elemental HERO Bubbleman'!"

[Elemental HERO Bubbleman, ATK 800]

"Bubbleman's effect: When successfully Summoned and with no other cards on my field, I draw two cards from my Deck!" (Original effect)

Two more cards added to his hand, Jūdai immediately played another.

"Equip Spell 'Bubble Blaster,' equipping it to 'Elemental HERO Bubbleman'; ATK increases by 800!"

[Elemental HERO Bubbleman, ATK 800 → ATK 1600]

Xie Er: "An 800-point ATK increase? Even so, it's still trash."

"Don't rush; let me show you the infinite possibilities of heroes!" Jūdai played a card. "Spell Card 'Polymerization'!"

"I fuse 'Elemental HERO Sparkman' and 'Elemental HERO Bladedge' from my hand!"

"The fusion of heroes releases infinite possibilities; tear through the darkness with the power of thunder—"

"—Elemental HERO Plasma Vice, Summon!"

Images of Bladedge and Sparkman both appeared on the field, immediately merging into the fusion vortex. Electric currents exploded, golden light rained down, powerful metallic pincer arms tore through the darkness, and the golden steel body of the Elemental HERO descended amidst surging electricity!

[Elemental HERO Plasma Vice, ATK 2800]

When Plasma Vice was adapted into actual cards, its ATK was mysteriously reduced by 200 points to 2600. But the original version in Jūdai's hand boasts 2800 ATK.

"Activating 'Elemental HERO Plasma Vice's' effect!" Jūdai shouted. "By discarding one card from my hand, I can destroy one Attack Position monster on your field!"

He sent one card from his hand to the Graveyard.

"I discard one card to destroy 'King of Demise'!"

Plasma Vice spread its arms, golden lightning enveloping its entire body; its full-power strike shot forth like a spear of thunder toward the Demon King of Destruction!

"Useless!" Xie Er's eyes were now filled with blue fire. "Activating my Set Card, Trap Card 'Scapegoat Darkness'! When an effect that would destroy a card on the field activates, I can negate that effect, then send a DARK Attribute Monster Level 3 or lower from my Deck to the Graveyard."

Black mist swirled up, forming a spiral barrier before the King of Demise. The thunder unleashed by Plasma Vice collided head-on with the black mist barrier, golden sparks exploding outward in all directions.

"The King of Demise is invincible, and with the enhancement of 'The Seal of Orichalcos,' his ATK has risen to 2900. Even your Fusion Hero cannot defeat him," Xie Er narrowed his eyes.

"If once isn't enough, then we'll do it again!" Jūdai roared. "'Elemental HERO Plasma Vice,' activate your effect again! Discard one card from my hand to destroy an Attack Position monster."

"Destroy 'King of Demise'!"

Xie Er was startled: "Just like the King of Demise, its effect has no usage limit?"

"That's right; Plasma Vice's effect can be activated any number of times per turn!" Jūdai declared. "Go! Plasma Pierce!"

The spear of golden current pierced through again, penetrating the dark demon king's body. A huge hole was blown through the King of Demise's chest; his massive form, wrapped in ghostly blue flames, tilted sideways and collapsed, exploding with a boom that sent pillars of blue fire soaring into the sky.

King of Demise, destroyed!

Tomorrow will still be at least ten thousand words; finishing the battle tomorrow...

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(End of Chapter)