The villainous young master just wants to live a Buddhist-like life.

　The entire Duel City, its people, its city, and its culture, were all tightly bound together by the competition, becoming a unified whole.

　By 7 p.m., it was completely dark, with a bright moon and few stars. The spectators, having eaten and drunk their fill, all returned to their respective viewing spots.

　The remaining 32 contestants all returned to the contestant lounge.

　In the center of the Alliance Duel Arena, highlights of the 32 contestants' matches were still being played.

　Those specially selected clips were incredibly exciting and epic. They even gave the impression of a mythical era, where humanity possessed earth-shattering powers.

　This scene continued until the host, Ms. Marilyn, took to the stage.

　Things have changed.

　Needless to say, the audience already knows that tonight's crucial third round of matches is about to begin!

　“Let’s first take a look at who has advanced to the third round.” Ms. Marilyn smiled slightly and turned to look at the screen in the sky. The list of thirty-two contestants immediately appeared on the screen’s projection.

　Then she clapped her hands again, and the list changed to a popularity ranking of the thirty-two contestants.

　As a professional presenter, Marilyn is naturally adept at "deceiving with her beauty."

　She's reminding the audience that it's time to climb the charts!

　The effect is good.

　The popularity rankings began to fluctuate rapidly. Lily Laplace remained firmly in first place, but Princess Elizabeth, ranked second, was not far behind, and the gap between the two was closing quickly.

　Further down the list, contestants like the Valkyrie's Son, the Moon Elf Princess, the Holy Archbishop, the Blood Saintess, and the Eldest Prince are also seeing their popularity soar.

　In particular, the popularity of the eldest prince, Charles, who was previously barely visible, skyrocketed like a rocket.

　Since Charles revealed his identity, his popularity ranking has been steadily rising. But his real breakthrough came today when he defeated Noah Sharp and advanced to the third round.

　Charles's initial impression wasn't bad, but it wasn't great either; his public image was lower than Eliza's.

　But in this world where the strong are respected, past evaluations can be easily overturned as long as there are tangible achievements.

　Charles's advancement to the third round was absolutely unexpected. But this very fact, in turn, became a "surprise," greatly boosting the morale of his supporters.

　With the eldest prince's faction making a comeback, it's natural that it needs to be promoted in all aspects, including this popularity ranking.

　Charles himself has become one of the most watched focuses of tonight's game.

　Seven-fifteen.

　After a full fifteen minutes of the popularity rankings, host Marilyn finally began drawing the names of the first group of contestants to appear that evening. Dak and the others, who had been waiting anxiously in the contestants' lounge, were also eagerly anticipating the performance.

　Excitement, thrill, nervousness... each person has their own feelings.

　Marilyn paused on the lever for a moment before suddenly pressing it down, and the text panel on the selection device immediately began to spin rapidly.

　→[0]

　The appearance of two consecutive "0"s signifies the start of tonight's competition, where the top ten contestants from the preliminary rounds will be revealed.

　Who could it be?

　All eyes were on them. → [7] Finally, the last panel stopped scrolling, confirming the first contestant to appear.

　—"Silver Dragon Girl" Pandora Drogon! "Being the first to appear isn't bad." Pandora smiled.

　In the last round, she was in the second group to perform. This round, she's directly in the first group. This is exactly what she wanted—clean and efficient! "Let's see who my opponent is."

　"Dark said."

　He sincerely hoped that Pandora could make it into the main selection, and that the professor would not be chosen.

　On the hosting stage.

　Marilyn gave a brief introduction, then suddenly pulled down the lever, and the text panel started scrolling again.

　→【0】→【0 Two more "0"s! Unexpectedly, as soon as the torch was lit tonight, everyone held their breath and stared intently.

　Even Pandora herself looked solemn.

　Among the top ten in the preliminary selection, Chen, who was ranked FP0, did not want to engage in a civil war with the two professors.

　"Crack!"

　The last number appears. →[8]

　"Number 008! Louis Kennan!"

　"The first duel of the first round will be between Pandora and Drogon against Louis Kennan!"

　The host announced loudly, and the audience erupted in applause. Supporters from both sides chanted their respective contestants' names. The competition hadn't even started yet, but it was already in full swing.

　……

　“The opponent is Louis Kennan.” Darke frowned slightly.

　Louis Kennan was a rising star among the Sages in the open selection process. He faced Joliet in the previous round and won relatively easily.

　In the previous duel, he faced an elderly sage and won easily.

　In summary, his opponents in the two rounds of the qualifiers were not particularly outstanding, meaning their strengths and weaknesses were not yet apparent.

　For players who avoid strong opponents due to good luck, intelligence gathering is not very effective.

　Since he didn't show it at all, how could he collect it?

　As a disciple of the wise, Louis Kennan's teacher had long since retired from public life and remained relatively unknown.

　Before going into seclusion, that sage was a well-rounded individual with no particular specialization.

　This makes it even more baffling.

　Louis Kenan himself seems to have inherited his sage teacher's "all-rounder" nature; the duel cards he used in the tournament could fill a book.

　Therefore, although this player may not seem outstanding, he may be hiding some unexpected strengths.

　Senior Pandora cannot afford to relax if she wants to truly win.

　Dak turned to look at his senior and saw that she had begun to think seriously, so he knew that he had been worrying for nothing.

　Even a lion uses its full strength to hunt a rabbit, let alone in this crucial battle.

　At this point, trusting the senior student, he really has no right to worry about others.

　The selection of the second group of contestants began quickly.

　To everyone's surprise, it was another two "0"s! The top three contestants tonight were all from the top ten of the preliminary rounds.

　But soon the name of "Archbishop Harpagon Mauriat" appeared on the projection screen!

　And by the fourth place, the contestant was no longer among the top ten in the preliminary rounds.

　Harpagon Mauriat's opponent was a former professional duelist.

　Why do we say "in the past"?

　Because that's all in the past.

　Stivemarte was once a superstar in the dueling world with countless fans a few years ago.

　But at the height of his popularity, he was suddenly defeated by a newcomer duelist, and fell from grace, never to recover, and soon announced his retirement.

　Unexpectedly, after several years, he returned to the arena and made it into the top 32 in such a large-scale world-class event. Moreover, he was the only professional duelist to make it into the top 32.

　In other words, he is the last hope in the professional dueling world. This has led to a rapid return to peak popularity, even surpassing his former glory. However, his current dueling style is vastly different from his past, which inevitably raises questions.

　But regardless, he remains the last hope for the professional dueling scene. If he loses this duel against the "Archbishop of the Holy Church," the professional dueling world will truly become a joke.

　After all, those professional duelists were once big stars praised by countless people. The audience in the professional dueling circle went to great lengths to praise them, and some even compared them to war heroes.

　In this World Cup qualifier, those professional duelists also entered the competition surrounded by countless fans.

　Several of them did perform well and successfully advanced to the preliminary rounds.

　However, they were all eliminated in the first and second rounds of the preliminary rounds.

　Now all that's left is Stilwell Matter, their last shred of dignity!

　"Go for it, Stilwell!"

　Fans, players, agents, and countless others in the professional dueling world have offered their blessings to Stivemar, hoping he can break into the main draw, become the Duel King, and save his crumbling family.

　The selection of the third group of contestants then began.

　The first one to be drawn this time was "Fairy Princess" Eluri Clarissa.

　His opponent is the "Court Archmage" Cortoinby. "A terrible draw."

　Eluri was somewhat helpless.

　She has a very clear understanding of her own strength, and the existence of the [Legendary Fairy Nia] has raised the upper limit of her strength.

　But she will be facing the "Court Archmage" Cortoinby. As a member of the royal family, Eluri is naturally no stranger to Cortoinby.

　That was one of the contestants she least wanted to face.

　"It seems we can only go this far."

　Looking at the projection screen, Eluri thought, "But getting this far is not bad."

　But Nia, who was floating in the air, suddenly glanced at her and said disdainfully, "Cowardly lizard!"

　Eluri whirled around and grabbed at Nia, but grasped only air. Nia giggled and ran off.

　With the draw for the first three groups of contestants completed, the third round of the competition officially began. The first to take the stage was Pandora and Louise, the duel that Dark and the others were most eagerly anticipating.

　Facing a well-rounded opponent like Louis Kenan, Pandora opted for no fancy moves and directly chose her most trusted "White Dragon" deck.

　However, during her investigation of the legendary dragon, she made a major upgrade to the "White Dragon" deck, and now is the time to show it.

　The third round of the qualifiers can almost be compared to the "finals" in this competition format.

　If we keep hiding things here, we'll truly regret it if we lose.

　And the same.

　Louis Kennan clearly shared the same idea.

　He walked onto the dueling platform with a serious expression, exuding a faint aura of mystery.

　"Louis Kennan possesses the 'God Card'."

　In the players' lounge, Ergane suddenly spoke.

　Dark and the others exchanged glances and then nodded slightly.

　Louis Kenan possessing a "God Card" is within expectations. In fact, at this stage of the match, it's best to assume that your opponent also has a "God Card." Otherwise, if your opponent does have one and you can't counter it, you're doomed.

　Dark knew that Pandora was already prepared.

　Pandora has gone further than him in the "White Dragon" deck. She should be able to handle relatively ordinary "God cards." Moreover...

　Dark, on the contrary, secretly anticipated how Pandora would handle the situation. What would she gain after finding the remains of Nidhogg, the "Dragon of Despair"?

　The duel begins.

　After both players drew their cards, the battle began. Dark focused more of his attention on Pandora. At the start of the duel, Pandora immediately summoned (Dragon Pot).

　It was a pot made of long, slender, snake-like dragon-like creatures coiled around it.

　The dragon's mouth and tail meet at the spout of the pot, forming a tail-holding posture.

　Legend has it that as long as you pour spring water into the "Dragon-Turning Pot" and shake it vigorously, you can summon a real dragon.

　The effect of converting it into a Magic Card is to randomly summon a dragon from the deck!

　This dragon even includes the nine-star dragon species of the third tier!

　Pandora lifted the "Dragon-Turning Pot" and shook it gently. A dragon's roar immediately rang out from the pot, and the dragon's might filled the air.

　Immediately afterwards, a white light shone from the deck in his Duel Disk, and a Magical Card flew out—it was none other than "Celestial White Dragon"!

　She actually drew "Celestial White Dragon"! But Pandora didn't seem surprised at all.

　With a slight wave of her hand, she commanded the "Celestial White Dragon" to attack. She herself, under the cover of the "Celestial White Dragon," continued to summon...

　That was a magic card that Dark had never seen before—"The Cycle of Light and Darkness Reappears".

　The effect of this magic card is...

　When a Light-attribute Magical Spirit is present on the field, a Dark-attribute Magical Spirit of the same star level can be summoned directly.