https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-377-A-Card-Enthusiast-s-Exchange/12557524/
Chapter 378: The Rich and Powerful Hero
Chapter 378: The Rich and Powerful Hero
Yuxian, LP 1000
Xiang Hongye, LP 3300
As Yuxian arrived, it seemed the duel was nearing its climax. Xiang Hongye had only one monster left on his field, the "Elemental Hero Wildman" in defense mode, while the Tenth had nothing on his field.
Elemental Hero Wildman, DEF 2000
Although they both used Elemental Heroes, the Tenth's deck consisted of the commoner hero series centered around the famous Four Junk Warriors, easily obtainable at any street card shop.
On the other hand, Xiang Hongye's heroes seemed to lack any of the common cards, and instead included some rare heroes that were completely unavailable on the market.
It could be said that Xiang Hongye's Elemental Heroes were a championship exclusive set. The clash between his luxurious deck and the Tenth's commoner deck evoked a sense of deja vu—a battle between the technologically advanced rich and the mutated underdogs.
"I can feel the passion between you and your heroes, Tenth," Xiang Hongye smiled, "worthy of a duelist who has made it this far."
Meeting a fan was always delightful, and seeing the Tenth reach the quarterfinals with a deck full of common heroes earned the boy his respect.
Now, after dueling him, he was even more infected by the Tenth's enthusiasm, feeling his passion for dueling burning brighter than ever.
"But you have an empty field, and only one card in your hand," Xiang Hongye said with a smile, "can you break through Wildman's defense of 2000 LP with just one draw?"
"Hehe, I still have one more draw left," the Tenth said, rubbing his nose excitedly.
"Then watch closely, Mr. Hongye, it's my draw! My turn, I draw!" the Tenth exclaimed after drawing his card.
"Excellent, as expected! I activate the magic card 'Mass Production of Darkness' to return two normal monsters from my graveyard to my hand. I retrieve 'Elemental Hero Voltic' and 'Elemental Hero Clayman'," the Tenth explained.
"So he recovered those two Elemental Heroes," Xiang Hongye muttered, narrowing his eyes slightly as if he had guessed something.
The card the Tenth had just drawn must have been...
"I activate the magic card 'Polymerization'! I fuse 'Elemental Hero Voltic' with 'Elemental Hero Clayman'..." the Tenth continued.
The two heroes disappeared into a vortex of fusion, and amidst the crackling electricity, a thunderous giant descended!
Elemental Hero Thunder Giant, ATK 2400
"With your final draw, you precisely drew the crucial 'Polymerization' magic card for your Elemental Heroes," Xiang Hongye remarked with an appreciative expression.
Indeed, this kid was a genius born for dueling.
"When 'Elemental Hero Thunder Giant' is successfully fusion summoned, destroy the opponent's monster with an originally lower ATK!" the Tenth exclaimed.
"Go, Thunder Giant—Thunder Flash!"
Rolling electricity erupted from the giant hero's palm, like thundering bolts from the sky. The electricity converged on Xiang Hongye's field, shattering Wildman and leaving only a slowly rising cloud of black smoke.
"Thunder Giant's direct attack!"
With no defense monsters or trap cards, the lightning spear roared out from Thunder Giant's hand, piercing through Xiang Hongye.
The champion stood firm, his clothes billowing from the electricity that coursed through him, a satisfied smile on his face.
Xiang Hongye, LP 3300 → LP 900
"Alright, my turn is over," the Tenth said, growing more excited as the duel progressed.
"So close!"
With the summoning of Thunder Giant, the tide had turned. Xiang Hongye had no monsters on his field, and only one card in his hand. With an additional draw next turn, it wouldn't be easy to take down a powerhouse like Thunder Giant. But this only made the duel more thrilling.
"What will Mr. Hongye do next?" the Tenth wondered, his excitement building.
He was dueling the world's strongest Elemental Hero user, the very man who had claimed the world championship with the power of his heroes!
Could it get any better than this?
"I've felt your passion, but it seems this will be your last draw no matter what," Xiang Hongye said with a smile, "I wish this duel could go on forever."
"Haha, me too," the Tenth replied happily.
Xiang Hongye smiled and then turned serious, "My turn!"
But as his fingers touched the top card of his deck, his movement suddenly froze, and his expression stiffened as if he had been electrocuted.
"Mr. Hongye?" Yuxian exclaimed in surprise.
"It's nothing. More importantly, here I come, Tenth!"
The strange behavior lasted only a moment as Xiang Hongye quickly regained his composure.
"In this duel, I will fight to the end as a true duelist! I activate the magic card, 'Hero's Arrival'!"
You Xuan narrowed his eyes.
This is the power of a champion? Even though they both used Elemental Heroes, every card Xiang Hongye played seemed to be a dimensional strike against his own deck.
'Hero's Arrival' was a powerful support card for the Elemental Hero archetype, often splashed into various non-hero decks as well. It was originally Xiang Hongye's card in the manga, and surprisingly, the real-life card effect was not weakened in the slightest compared to its in-story version.
"If you have no face-up monsters on your field, pay half your Life Points," Xiang Hongye declared. "Special Summon from your deck, an 'Elemental Hero' with 4 or less stars!"
[Xiang Hongye: 450 LP remaining]
"As I pay half my Life Points, I Special Summon this card from my deck."
Xiang Hongye revealed the monster card he had searched from his deck.
"Elemental Hero Aer Neos!"
You Xuan was left speechless.
Well, the arrival of Aer Neos was a familiar play. It was a signature combo from the champion.
Even though the Tenth was the face of the Elemental Hero archetype, half of the popular and powerful Elemental Hero cards were from Xiang Hongye's deck. The title of the "Strongest Elemental Hero User" was indeed well-deserved.
However, You Xuan was surprised once again when Xiang Hongye chose not to activate Aer Neos' effect.
The standard play was to follow up 'Hero's Arrival' with Aer Neos, and when Aer Neos was successfully summoned, you could search for another 'Elemental Hero' from your deck. It was a combo etched into the DNA of every Elemental Hero player during the "Arrival Heroes" era.
Then it hit You Xuan.
Oh, my bad, this isn't the real-life version of Aer Neos.
The real-life version of Aer Neos received an epic boost. In the manga, "Elemental Hero Aer Neos" only had a decent 1800 ATK along with an effect that allowed it to attack directly by halving its attack points.
It was on a whole other level compared to its manga counterpart.
You Xuan rested his chin on his hand in thought.
It seems like there's still a lot of room for improvement and strengthening the Elemental Heroes in this world.
"I activate the magic card, 'Miracle Fusion'! By removing from play the 'Elemental Heroes' in my graveyard, I can perform a Fusion Summon!" Xiang Hongye announced, revealing the two cards in his graveyard.
"I remove from play 'Elemental Hero Woodsman' and 'Elemental Hero Ocean' to Fusion Summon!"
He raised his arms high, and the two monsters disappeared into the vortex of fusion.
"Watch closely, Tenth. This is my ace card, the ultra-rare hero that exists as a single copy in the entire world—
—Elemental Hero Grand Neos!"
The fusion of Woodsman and Ocean took the form of the Earth's avatar, a blue planet, descending upon the dueling arena in the form of an elemental giant.
Elemental Hero Grand Neos has been summoned!
"That's amazing!"
Tenth's eyes were practically heart-shaped with excitement.
"Grand Neos, the ultra-rare hero that exists as a single copy in the world."
You Xuan furrowed his brows slightly.
It wasn't just a holographic projection. He could feel the unique pressure and powerful presence, indicating that a spirit of considerable strength was residing within Grand Neos.
"Elemental Hero Grand Neos, one of the Planetary Series representing Earth. I never expected to see it here," Guiping commented with interest.
"This tournament is turning out to be quite interesting."
"Grand Neos' effect allows it to absorb the ATK and DEF values of other 'Elemental Heroes' on my field by tributing them!" Xiang Hongye explained.
"I tribute Aer Neos to activate its effect! Grand Neos—
—Lava Burning Mode!"
The white giant turned crimson, as if lava was erupting from its body. The entire giant was enveloped in crisscrossing streams of molten lava!
[Elemental Hero Grand Neos: 4300 ATK]
"Here I come, Tenth! This is my final attack!" Xiang Hongye declared. "Grand Neos attacks 'Elemental Hero Thunder Giant'!"
Grand Neos sprinted forward, the lava transforming into a sword in his hand. Thunder Giant was sliced and melted by the scorching flames, but Tenth remained excited.
"Grand Neos, you're so cool!"
[Tenth: 0 LP remaining]
(End of Chapter)
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