This Trainer Has No Sportsmanship Chapter 11

The masked brute froze, then asked in surprise, "Why did you set an Instant-Activation Spell Card on the field?"

Instant-Activation Spell Cards could be activated directly. Only Spirit-Accumulating Spell Cards needed to be set on the field to absorb spiritual energy, and Card-Hunting Reaper's ability could only destroy the latter, not the former.

You Zhi put on an innocent expression. "Who knows? Maybe it's just a personal quirk of mine. I like setting Spell Cards on the field."

"Bullshit! You knew Card-Hunting Reaper's ability and deliberately set that Spell Card to lure me into a trap!"

The masked brute immediately understood and guessed the truth. His emotions surged, causing his spell refinement to fail. Fortunately, protected by the Duel Barrier, he did not suffer spiritual backlash. He hurriedly calmed himself, telling himself not to fall for the other party's scheme, while ordering his three Pokémon to unleash an even fiercer assault.

Before long, Goblin Attack Force took another Aura Sphere and lost another member.

But this was exactly the moment You Zhi had been waiting for. "Now! Activate the spell, Earthquake!"

The set Spell Card flipped over, releasing spiritual energy. The ground within the Duel Barrier shook violently, so fiercely that it resembled a trampoline. Overlord of Dark World, Dark Chimera, and Silent Magician were all knocked flat onto the ground.

Instead of panicking, the masked brute laughed. "Hahaha! Card-Hunting Reaper is floating in the air, so Earthquake won't affect it. You've only shot yourself in the foot! Reaper, attack the Spellcaster!"

"It's not just your Pokémon that aren't affected. Goblins, use Payback!"

Although the Goblins' feet were on the ground, as associated Pokémon, they were not only unaffected by Earthquake—they even used the tremors as a boost, launching themselves forward. Dark-type energy gathered around their bodies as they pounced on Card-Hunting Reaper like missiles.

"Dodge!" the masked brute shouted urgently.

Sadly, he was a step too late. Card-Hunting Reaper was struck head-on by the two Goblins. Its Defense of 1930 was high, but Goblin Attack Force's Attack of 2070 was even higher. On top of that, Dark-type moves dealt double damage to Ghost-types, while Payback doubled in power when used after the opponent acted.

Under that triple threat, Card-Hunting Reaper barely preserved a sliver of health thanks to its advantage in stars and level. But at that very moment, Silent Magician Teleported in front of it and fired a point-blank Confusion!

With nowhere to evade, Card-Hunting Reaper exploded into spiritual particles on the spot, which were absorbed by Goblin Attack Force and Silent Magician. Both Pokémon leveled up simultaneously.

"Now our numbers are even," You Zhi said.

"They won't be for long."

Knowing Goblin Attack Force's traits, the masked brute swiftly refined the D-rank Spell Card Spell Removal. After activating it, he erased Earthquake's lingering effects, stopping the training ground from shaking. Then he impatiently ordered, "Overlord, Chimera, attack the Goblins!"

The two Fiend Pokémon regained their ability to move, climbed up from the ground, gathered energy, and aimed at the two Goblins, who had lost their fighting spirit and were wandering aimlessly across the battlefield.

"Your reaction was too slow!"

At that moment, You Zhi activated his second Spell Card, Ballista Squad.

Since Goblin Attack Force would Slack Off after launching an attack, he might as well sacrifice the loafing Goblins and make them give their all!

Silent Explosion

As Spirit-Accumulating Spell Cards of the same rank, Ballista Squad refined faster than Earthquake. Under normal circumstances, it needed to be set on the field to absorb spiritual energy, but for You Zhi, this was clearly not the time to conserve energy. He decisively spent extra spiritual energy to force its activation.

In an instant, four ballistae appeared on the field. Two stood empty, while the other two bound the Goblins onto their drawstrings as flesh-and-blood bolts, then aimed them at Overlord of Dark World and Dark Chimera.

Normally, Ballista Squad could only summon one ballista. But one look at the card art made it obvious that it was Goblin Attack Force's associated card, so its effect was enhanced.

The masked brute immediately realized things were bad. But his two Pokémon had just followed his orders and advanced. At their current distance, they had no time to dodge. They might as well continue attacking and try to intercept the shots head-on. After all, Goblin Attack Force only had zero Defense.

"Overlord, use Brick Break! Chimera, use Flame Charge!"

In an instant, the bowstrings snapped forward, launching the two Goblins furiously toward their respective targets.

Dark Chimera burst into flames and charged forward. With a loud crash, it was sent flying back even faster than it had come. Its shoulder and neck were mangled and bloody, and it was clearly seriously injured.

Overlord of Dark World slashed out with a fierce hand chop, striking the Goblin launched toward it with perfect accuracy. Its Attack was far greater than Dark Chimera's, and Fighting-type moves countered Dark-type Goblins. It actually blew the Goblin apart in midair, suffering only minor injuries from the impact.

However, before the masked brute could celebrate, a neon beam shot forth and struck Overlord of Dark World, which had not yet recovered, head-on. It was badly wounded and blasted away—it was Silent Magician's Psybeam!

The masked brute was shocked. Such precise timing amid this chaotic brawl could not possibly be described as mere luck.

As if he knew what the other man was thinking, You Zhi generously explained, "I may not be good at group battles, but that doesn't mean my Pokémon aren't."

Over these past days, Silent Magician had often teamed up with Demon Lizard Yihao to battle You Zhi, accumulating extensive experience in group combat. It was especially skilled at slipping attacks through openings.

With Goblin Attack Force gone, You Zhi immediately pulled a Pokémon Card from the void and summoned Demon Lizard Yihao. "Look, the numbers are still even."

With the situation severely against him, the masked brute had no mood to trade words. He immediately refined a second Spell Card, Chaos Shield.

[Continuous Spell: Chaos Shield]

[Effect: All monsters on your field gain 300 Defense.]

At once, two rings of light rose on the field, shielding Overlord of Dark World and Dark Chimera within them.

Clearly, the masked brute saw that his two Pokémon were heavily injured while his opponent's two Pokémon were in excellent condition. He wanted to buy time for them to recover by increasing their Defense. There was nothing wrong with that tactical line of thought.

But that did not stop You Zhi from mocking him. "Sure enough, from the moment I saw you, I knew you were a coward through and through. The facts have proven that my judgment of people is very accurate."

"Hmph."

The masked brute ignored him and continued refining Spell Cards.

This level of taunting wanted to anger him? What a joke!

"A real strong person only grows braver when facing danger, while you only act when your own safety is guaranteed. That's why you cover your face, afraid others will see your ugly features. That's why you act late at night, afraid sunlight will reveal your twisted shadow. That's why you struck when the butler was gone, afraid to duel an expert. Kidnapping hostages, summoning three Pokémon for a group battle, shrinking back at the first sign of danger—every last thing proves that you have neither a trainer's dignity nor the courage to face someone in a proper duel."

You Zhi pointed at him and shouted, "Your soul is nothing but a filthy, lowly cockroach. You can't stand the light or face other people. You only deserve to rot in a sewer. I really don't know where you found the nerve to invite me to join you. Should I stop being a decent human and become a cockroach like you?"

Veins bulged across the masked brute's forehead. His entire body trembled as he gritted his teeth. "Useless. Don't think you can provoke me!"

He nearly failed his refinement again by accident. He hurriedly reminded himself to stay calm and not fall for the trick.

"You think too highly of yourself. I don't need any provocation tactics to deal with you. I simply wanted to curse you out to my heart's content. Your defeat was already destined. No matter how you struggle, it's meaningless."

You Zhi stopped his verbal barrage and began refining a Spell Card instead.

At this point, Demon Lizard Yihao and Silent Magician unleashed a fierce joint assault, but every attack was blocked by the light rings. The card description for Chaos Shield said it only increased Defense by a mere 300 points, yet in reality it was exceptionally sturdy. Even after enduring a barrage of attacks, it only developed a few cracks.

As a limitation, the two Fiend Pokémon inside the light rings were likewise unable to attack outward.

Before long, the Spell Card in the masked brute's hand took shape. He immediately snapped back resentfully, "You'll regret wasting time talking! I activate the Spell Card, Rain of Mercy!"

[Normal Spell: Rain of Mercy]

[Effect: Both sides recover 1000 Life Points.]

Fine rain containing healing spiritual energy fell from above the training ground. Every Pokémon touched by the rain recovered vitality, and the wounds on Overlord of Dark World and Dark Chimera visibly healed at a rapid pace.

Under normal circumstances, Rain of Mercy was a useless Spell Card that benefited Pokémon on both sides. Though it was C-rank, people rated its practical value as only D-rank. After all, in the overwhelming majority of Spirit Duels, trainers only sent out one Pokémon to fight.

At this moment, both of the masked brute's Pokémon were seriously injured, while You Zhi's two Pokémon had merely spent some stamina. The benefits each side received were completely incomparable.

Simply because of a difference in timing, a useless Spell Card had achieved a B-rank effect. This proved that the man really had some skill.

"Now it's time for our counterattack."

Though the masked brute had no cheat that allowed him to inspect Pokémon levels, he had already roughly guessed Demon Lizard Yihao and Silent Magician's levels, Attack, and Defense from the surface characteristics of their Pokémon Cards and their earlier combat performances. Neither could compare to his own Pokémon, and he immediately formed a plan.

"You said earlier that I had no trainer's dignity and no courage to duel others head-on, didn't you? Heh. Then I'll fight you openly and honestly with my command skills now. Let's see who isn't qualified to be a trainer, and who the real cockroach is!"

"Oh? Didn't you say you wouldn't be provoked? You seem to care quite a bit."

You Zhi smiled faintly. The Spell Card in his hand had finished refining, and he set it onto the field again.

The masked brute warily glanced at the set Spell Card, snorted, and immediately commanded his Pokémon to attack. "Chimera, use Crunch on the Spellcaster! Overlord, use Strength to stop the lizardman!"

The two Pokémon took the initiative to leave the light rings and charged toward their opponents.

Seeing this, You Zhi simply said, "Use Combination Tactic Two."

The two Pokémon immediately understood. Demon Lizard Yihao swung its tail in a sweep along the ground, sending a pile of tiny stones flying precisely into Chimera's face. Though it did not do much damage, it stalled Chimera's movement.

At the same time, Silent Magician waved its staff and unleashed Psybeam. A neon beam twice as thick as before shot straight out.

"Dodge!" the masked brute roared urgently.

Overlord of Dark World threw itself to the side and barely avoided it.

"Why did this Pokémon's attack suddenly become so much stronger? Was it holding back before?"

The masked brute could not understand it. There was simply no point in doing that.

"Who knows? Maybe it broke through during the battle."

You Zhi had no intention of explaining the reason to his opponent. He immediately commanded his two Pokémon to attack. At this point, Silent Magician's information, as seen through his cheat, had already undergone an enormous change.

[Silent Magician LV4 (4 stars) LIGHT attribute]

[Lineage: Psychic]

[Level: 14]

[Attack: 1000 (2280)]

[Defense: 1000 (780)]

Every time the opponent completed a spell refinement, Silent Magician's Attack increased by 500, making it the Pokémon with the highest Attack on the field.

The type matchups on the field were extremely clear. According to the masked brute's original plan, Overlord of Dark World should naturally face Demon Lizard Yihao while Dark Chimera dealt with Silent Magician, since Dark-types had an obvious advantage against Psychic-types.

But because of that sudden turn of events, Demon Lizard Yihao had seized the chance to tie down Dark Chimera, while Silent Magician faced Overlord of Dark World. The former was Fighting-type against Dark-type, while the latter was Psychic-type against Fighting-type. The situation was exceptionally unfavorable for the masked brute.

Furthermore, because Demon Lizard Yihao and Silent Magician had often sparred together against You Zhi, they had long developed seamless coordination. They needed neither verbal communication nor a trainer's commands to cover each other, and the former would sometimes even voluntarily act as a shield for the latter.

"Damn it!"

The masked brute focused on commanding his Pokémon, but he still could not reverse the decline.

In contrast, You Zhi stood with his arms crossed and said nothing, a confident smile hanging at the corner of his lips. It was as though he were echoing his earlier declaration that the man's defeat had already been destined. Though he had set a Spell Card, he refused to activate it, as if responding to the other man's earlier claim that he would fight openly and honestly with command skills.

That posture infuriated the masked brute more than any taunt could. He decisively abandoned his declaration of an open and honest fight and clasped his hands together to refine a Spell Card.

In truth, using Spell Cards to assist Pokémon in battle was part of a trainer's duty and completely within the bounds of a fair fight. But the masked brute had imposed the restriction of using command skills himself, so he could not help feeling embarrassed at breaking his promise. Fortunately, his mask concealed it from others.

Before long, the Spell Card was complete. The masked brute looked up and found You Zhi still standing with his arms crossed. He had not begun refining a Spell Card just because the masked brute had broken his word, carrying himself as though to say, "Even if you choose to be a villain, I will remain a gentleman."

At that moment, the masked brute truly felt humiliated, far more intensely than by the earlier verbal taunts. It felt as if what little trainer's dignity he had left had been viciously stabbed.

As though venting, he roared, "Regret your arrogance! I activate the Spell Card Witch Hunt, destroying all Spellcaster Pokémon on the field!"

As long as he destroyed Silent Magician, the Pokémon with the highest Attack, the remaining Demon Lizard Yihao could be defeated by Overlord of Dark World alone.

As spell light flashed, a cross appeared out of thin air behind Silent Magician. Flaming ropes bound it tightly, and even Teleport could not free it. The beheading blow was about to fall.

"I knew you would refine Witch Hunt. You personally saw Pegasus transfer Pokémon to me through the air, and your past experience of victory would subconsciously drive you to make the same choice. Your reaction was completely within my expectations. Playing tactical mind games with you is as boring and uninteresting as competing in wits with an elementary school student."

You Zhi calmly activated the set Spell Card. It was one of the two C-rank Spell Cards he had previously summoned using Demon Lizard Yihao as a medium.

[Quick-Play Spell: My Body as a Shield]

[Effect: When your opponent activates a card with the effect "destroy monsters on the field," pay 1500 Life Points to negate its activation and destroy it.]

This was a powerful Spell Card that could negate the opponent's destruction effect and retaliate. Under normal circumstances, activating it required sacrificing a Pokémon's life force, but when its associated Pokémon was on the field, there was no need to pay any price.

A blond warrior clad in armor and wielding twin swords suddenly appeared behind Silent Magician. With one slash, he severed the flaming ropes and cross. Then he crossed his swords and swung fiercely at Overlord of Dark World, unleashing a savage cross-shaped sword aura.

The sword aura tore through the air with incredible speed. Overlord of Dark World had no time to dodge and was struck directly, a gruesome cross-shaped wound appearing across its chest.

Silent Magician pressed the advantage, Teleporting behind its opponent and unleashing Confusion at close range.

Though Confusion was weaker than Psybeam, it was easier to activate and required no charging. Moreover, because the masked brute had refined another Spell Card, Silent Magician's Attack increased by another 500 points.

After taking two heavy hits in a row, Overlord of Dark World swayed on the verge of collapse, with barely any health remaining. The masked brute panicked and hurriedly said, "Chimera, go help!" At the same time, he urged his spiritual energy into another refinement, trying to save his Pokémon.

However, Demon Lizard Yihao used its type advantage to firmly hold Dark Chimera back. Silent Magician seized the opportunity, first using Reflect to block its opponent's final counterattack, then unleashing Confusion again and completely blasting it apart.

As a five-star Pokémon at level 26, Overlord of Dark World released exceptionally dense spiritual energy after exploding. Silent Magician absorbed it and leveled up on the spot, then immediately turned to help Demon Lizard Yihao.

With the two Pokémon working together, they soon injured Dark Chimera. Demon Lizard Yihao rushed in, grabbed it, and used the Seismic Toss it had just learned. After continuously shaking to break through its defenses, it smashed Chimera violently into the ground and completely blew it apart.

The outcome was decided. The masked brute felt himself lose control over the Duel Barrier, but he was not discouraged. As a professional assassin, Spirit Duels were merely one means of achieving his objective, not the only one.

Though he had lost this battle, he had not suffered any backlash. More than half of his spiritual energy remained, and he still had the strength to fight. If he could launch a surprise attack while that brat across from him let his guard down in victory, he might still be able to turn things around in one stroke.

"I'm sorry. I lost. Please spare my life. Whatever you want to know, I'll confess everything honestly."

The masked brute decisively dropped to his knees and begged for mercy, only to realize the next instant that no one was standing before him anymore.

Then a voice that made his heart tremble came from behind him.

"I told you, your defeat was already destined. Learn your lesson this time and work harder next time. At the very least, don't let me find you boring again."

With a flying kick, You Zhi knocked the masked brute unconscious.