Chapter 25: Has it Begun?
Chapter 25: Has it Begun?
"Duel!" x2
[You Xuan, LP: 4000]
[Xuanyi, LP: 4000]
"I'll go first, draw."
Xuanyi secured the first turn. But instead of rushing to play his cards, he examined his hand and let out a sinister chuckle, his tongue flicking across his lips.
"Let this duel be a dark feast for you. Allow me to savor your pain."
"First, I activate 'Greed Jar' to draw two cards from my deck."
"Next, I play the magic card, 'Demon's Sanctuary'!"
As the card was slotted into the Duel Disk, a magical array unfolded beneath his feet, and a featureless, metallic humanoid emerged from the barrier onto the field.
[Metallic Demon Token, ATK: 0]
"The effect of 'Demon's Sanctuary' allows me to Special Summon a 'Metallic Demon Token' to my field," Xuanyi explained. "Then, I'll use this token as a tribute for a high-level summon!
Led by the will of darkness, let all enemies tremble in the shadows—
—I summon the Level 6, Dark Delta Tricorn Dragon!"
[Dark Delta Tricorn Dragon, ATK: 2400]
"Now, I'll set two cards face-down and end my turn."
Xuanyi flicked his tongue across his lips once more.
"Your move. Hurry up and let me taste the darkness and pain, hehe."
His expression and gestures reminded You Xuan of Malik, the six-year-old duelist, albeit lacking the true essence of the master of facial expressions, Mr. Moto.
"My turn, draw."
You Xuan was just as decisive.
"I'll set a monster in attack position and four cards face-down, and that's it for my turn."
He ended his turn with five face-down cards as a friendly gesture.
"Hmm?" Xuanyi paused, slightly taken aback.
Having witnessed You Xuan's duel against Ryouzaki in the finals, Xuanyi had expected his opponent to start with a Mechanical deck, but that didn't seem to be the case.
Could it be that he's not using his main deck in the finals?
"Hmph, so you're just going to set cards? Such a lukewarm duel will only lead to your demise, turning you into a sacrifice for the darkness."
Xuanyi chuckled coldly.
"However, during your End Phase, I'll activate this face-down card."
He flipped one of his face-down cards.
"Speed Spell—End Flame! This card lets me Special Summon two 'Blackflame Tokens' to my field!"
[Blackflame Token, DEF: 0] x2
"During the turn this card is activated, I can't summon any other monsters using their effects, but it's already your End Phase, so I couldn't summon monsters anyway."
Xuanyi stated.
"Now, it's still my turn. Draw."
After drawing, he hesitated for a moment, eyeing You Xuan's face-down cards.
"Perhaps you're relying on traps to stall for defense, but such tactics won't work on me.
I activate the magic card, 'Night Seize' from my hand!"
The magic card appeared amidst golden ripples of light, and a beam of golden light pierced through the darkness, aiming at one of You Xuan's face-down cards.
"Night Seize lets me destroy a face-down Magic or Trap card on the opponent's field. Additionally, the selected card cannot be activated in response!"
He pointed at the center card among You Xuan's face-down cards.
"I destroy the center card you set!"
You Xuan waved his hand. "At this moment, I activate a face-down card."
"It's no use," Xuanyi said. "I told you, you can't chain to 'Night Seize'."
"I know I can't use the selected card to chain to 'Night Seize'. But the card I'm activating isn't the one you chose—it's this one next to it."
You Xuan revealed another face-down card.
"Trap Card—Devil's Deal! When my opponent activates a magic card, I can pay 1000 Life Points to randomly discard one card from their hand."
[You Xuan, LP: 4000 → LP: 3000]
As his LP dropped, his heart skipped a beat, and a sharp pain assailed him. It felt like a stab, tearing at his heart and unleashing a flood of life force.
"Ugh."
You Xuan staggered, his body swaying.
The Silent Magician appeared beside him, casting a concerned glance at her master.
"I-I'm fine," he waved dismissively.
It was his first time experiencing this, and he was still adjusting.
Indeed, the Dark Duel took a toll on the body. The sensation of losing LP felt like losing one's life.
Undoubtedly, if one's LP dropped to zero in this duel, they would die.
"Hahaha! Do you feel it? This is the agony of a Dark Duel!" Xuanyi laughed maniacally. "Excellent, feel the darkness consume your life bit by bit. This is the true joy of a Dark Duel! Hahaha!"
You Xuan: "..."
There was no doubt that the existence of Dark Duels stimulated the awakening of many hidden psychological deviants. Potential criminals, lunatics, and serial killers, upon obtaining dark powers, would become more rampant, stronger, and harder to apprehend, while also descending further into madness.
Some Dark Duelists weren't even seeking greater power or personal gain through their dark endeavors.
"Whatever," Xuanyi nonchalantly sent the selected card to the graveyard and continued indifferently.
"But according to the effect of 'Night Seize,' the Set card you targeted for destruction will still be destroyed."
"Not necessarily," You Xuan snapped his fingers, "At this moment, I'm going to activate the Set card that you targeted with 'Night Seize.'
Trap Card—Thunderbreak!"
"Heh, are you stupid?" Xuan Yiqing gave him a look of concern, as if dealing with a mentally challenged individual. "I already told you, cards targeted by 'Night Seize' cannot be activated.
Are you even listening? Huh?!"
As they watched, the "Thunderbreak" card in You Xuan's backrow flipped open, causing Xuan Yiqing's green eyes to widen in shock. His expression seemed to convey a single word—
—Why?
How could a card targeted by Night Seize still be activated?
Could it be that he's a privileged Platinum Member of KaibaCorp with cheat codes enabled on his Duel Disk?
"I think you really don't understand," You Xuan explained calmly.
"Read the effect of your own card again. 'Night Seize' only states that the selected card cannot be activated in response to 'Night Seize,' but my 'Thunderbreak' didn't chain to your 'Night Seize.'
I chained it to my own 'Magical Deal.' Is there a problem?"
A huge question mark seemed to appear on Xuan Yiqing's forehead.
He didn't seem to understand.
"Is that how it is?" The Dark Duelist asked, sounding doubtful.
His expression clearly said, "Are you bluffing me?"
"Buddy, if you don't even understand this, why are you here dueling for your life?" You Xuan mocked.
"Of course, I understand this much," Xuan Yiqing mumbled.
"I was just testing your level, cough cough... yes, that's right."
Although he still didn't quite get it, since the effect had already resolved on the field, it was probably correct.
However, You Xuan wasn't bluffing. As a seasoned Duelist, he was merely utilizing the basic mechanics of the game. While cards targeted by "Night Seize" couldn't be activated in response, by inserting another effect in the middle of the chain, it naturally bypassed the activation restriction.
"You've got some skills, kid," Xuan Yiqing narrowed his eyes, "No wonder you were able to defeat Ryouzaki. You're indeed no ordinary Duelist... Mmm, a soul like yours is indeed worthy of being sacrificed."
You Xuan paid no heed to his words and continued with the effect.
"So, the effect of the Trap Card 'Thunderbreak' allows me to destroy any card on the field by discarding a card from my hand."
He sent a card from his hand to the graveyard.
"I destroy your 'Dark Delta Tricorn Dragon.'"
Dark, churning clouds gathered in the sky, and a demonic hand stretched out, releasing a shocking lightning bolt from its fingertips. The lightning struck Xuan Yiqing's Tricorn Dragon, instantly blowing it to smithereens.
"Additionally, as the cost for activating 'Thunderbreak,' I discarded the Spell Card 'Compensation Draw.' When this card is sent from my hand to the graveyard, I draw two cards." (Anime-only card)
The anime's drawing engine was just too satisfying, allowing one to draw until their heart's content.
"He couldn't even protect his 'Dark Delta Dragon' with 'Night Seize'?"
Xuan Yiqing pouted, feeling displeased as he watched his powerful monster get destroyed without even getting a chance to attack.
But it wasn't a big deal.
Xuan Yiqing Set another card from his hand.
"I'll Set another card and then activate the Spell Card—'Life-Shortening Draw'!"
You Xuan: "!"
It was actually "Life-Shortening Draw"?
This was the very same card that Seto Kaiba loved to use in the anime. It allowed the user to draw cards from their deck until they had five cards in their hand, but at the steep cost of discarding their entire hand five turns later.
However, any experienced Duelist knew that in the world of Duel Monsters, five turns was more than enough time for their opponent's graveyard to grow tall with discarded cards and defeated monsters. Compared to this drawing engine, even the powerful 'Greed' card seemed lackluster.
Years later, this card would also undergo a significant nerf before being released as an actual card, reducing the number of draws to three and imposing additional restrictions, such as being unable to inflict damage or Special Summon during the turn it was played, and forcing the user to discard their entire hand during the End Phase. Even with these limitations, it remained a valuable card in the real-life card game.
Any Duelist who had traveled through time and space would undoubtedly seek out such a powerful drawing engine, and You Xuan was no exception. He had searched for it but hadn't been able to find it on the market. It seemed that in the original story, only Seto Kaiba had used it, so perhaps it was a rare card exclusively available to the wealthy.
He couldn't help but feel a strong desire for it.
However, that was not a problem.
You Xuan thought that since this was a Dark Duel, if he won, his opponent's soul would be forfeited. Without the owner, the card deck would become ownerless, and it would only be natural for him to take it. It would be a waste to leave such a divine card lying around, so he wasn't intentionally trying to steal his opponent's cards; he simply couldn't bear to see resources go to waste.
As Xuan Yiqing prepared to draw cards, his movement paused instinctively.
He wasn't sure if it was his imagination, but he suddenly felt a sense of unease as he noticed a change in his opponent's gaze, which now seemed to be filled with a ravenous hunger.
(End of Chapter)
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