"Absorb Shield Wing!"
The massive spider-woman unleashed silk, binding the Shield Wing and dragging it toward herself, absorbing it as an equip.
Akiza was shocked: "Such a powerful effect?"
Impressive!
Rudger laughed: "Twice-per-turn battle immunity—Shield Wing is indeed formidable. I bet you wanted to keep it around for a Tribute or Synchro next turn, didn't you? But that won't happen before the power of the underworld!"
He continued, "Also, due to 'Spider Web,' Underground Arachnid is now forced into Defense Position after attacking."
[Underground Arachnid, DEF 1200]
He finished by setting two more backrow cards.
"Set two cards, end turn."
Akiza covered her mouth, a bit worried. "Goodwin..."
Yusei noticed her concern and reassured her, "Don't worry. I've seen Rex Goodwin duel—he's strong."
Akiza nodded.
She knew, perhaps better than anyone, that this man's strength might surpass everyone present.
"He's the only one truly suited to face the Dark Signers' boss."
"My turn, draw."
Kira revealed the card he'd drawn.
"Activate Spell Card 'Take Over 5': send the top five cards of your Deck to the GY."
He quickly sent five cards to the graveyard.
"One card sent is 'Learning Elf'—which lets me draw one card when sent to the graveyard."
He drew an extra card.
"Next, Normal Summon 'Phantom Skyblaster'!"
A classic little devil from the GX dimension appeared, flapping impish wings.
[Phantom Skyblaster, ATK 1100]
"On Summon, depending on how many monsters I have, I can summon that many 'Skyblaster Tokens.' Since I have one, I get one token."
[Skyblaster Token, ATK 500]
Kira eyed Rudger's field—his spider had stolen Shield Wing.
…Heh, I'm familiar with monsters that equip others. I have my own methods.
"Activate face-down Continuous Trap 'Ultimate Offering'!"
Kira flipped his backrow.
"'Ultimate Offering' can be used during my Main Phase or your Battle Phase. I can pay 500 Life Points to Normal Summon an additional monster this turn."
[Kira, LP 4000 → 3500]
"'Phantom Skyblaster' and 'Skyblaster Token' are tributed! Advance Summon—a Level 8 Planet Series monster—
—The Big Saturn!!!"
The two monsters vanished into sparks, and a golden ring of energy traced a bright arc overhead. A white metal planet rose, wielding mighty iron fists.
[The Big Saturn, ATK 2800]
The sight of this mighty mechanical Saturn made Akiza reflexively press her chest—memories of certain terrifying events rushed in.
"Battle—'The Big Saturn,' attack 'Underground Arachnid'!"
With a thunderous punch, The Big Saturn lunged for the spider-woman. But just as it was about to connect, the spider-woman pulled the cocooned Shield Wing as a shield, taking the hit. Shield Wing shattered, but the spider itself was unharmed.
Jack exclaimed: "Using Goodwin's own monster as a shield!?"
Rudger laughed: "When Arachnid has an equipped monster, it can be destroyed instead of Arachnid. And due to 'Spider Web,' as Arachnid is now in Defense Position, I also won't take battle damage."
Leo: "That's not fair! Now even attacking is meaningless…"
Luna: "Not just that—any attacking monster is forced into Defense Position and can't turn back for a whole turn."
Sure enough, The Big Saturn was wrapped in threads and forced into Defense as well.
[The Big Saturn, ATK 2800 → DEF 2300]
Leo clutched his head. "All that effort to Summon a monster, and now it's sealed already..."
"It's fine," said Akiza, as if expecting something. "Goodwin definitely has a plan."
Kira drew two more cards.
"Set two cards, end turn."
Rudger: "My turn, draw!"
Immediately on his Draw Phase, the continuous trap at his feet activated.
"At the Standby Phase, activate 'Altar of the Bound Deity'!"
With a rumble, a titanic altar rose behind him.
"While this card is on the field, during each of my Standby Phases, for every face-up Defense Position monster on both sides, this card gets a 'Earthbound Immortal Counter'."
"Currently, with 'The Big Saturn' and 'Underground Arachnid' in Defense, that's two counters."
Two balls of purple-black fire danced atop the altar.
Rudger sneered: "Once this altar accumulates four or more counters, I can send it to the Graveyard to Special Summon an 'Earthbound Immortal' from my hand or Deck!"
Everyone was shocked.
"I see," said Yusei.
"So that's why Spider Web forces everything into Defense—it's not just to stall, but to set up for the Earthbound Immortal's arrival."
Akiza nodded: "He can block attacks, build up counters, and even Special Summon from the Deck. That solves the problem of drawing Earthbound Immortals…"
Jack added, "Since Earthbound Immortals can't be affected by Spells or Traps, they won't be forced into Defense by the field. After they attack, only Goodwin would be bound by the field's restrictions—plus Earthbound Immortals can ignore monsters and attack players directly."
Leo: "Won't that leave Big Brother Goodwin in dire straits!?"
Having seen the Earthbound Immortals for themselves, all of them felt the pressure, even while the god itself had yet to appear.
"Correct, this altar is your countdown to defeat," Rudger declared.
"Once the counters are full and the Immortal descends, your loss is all but certain!"
...
PS: Read at least 371 advanced chapters at patreon.com/AbsoluteCode