Chapter 278: Breakthrough the LOCK!
Chapter 278: Breakthrough the LOCK!
Was he about to lose?
Manjome found himself in a daze as he faced the impenetrable formation before him, an unassailable fortress. The sense of powerlessness he had felt against You Xuan in the past returned, that feeling of being unable to do anything, of all his efforts being in vain.
Despite all the trials he had endured, despite becoming stronger, crawling his way back from the depths of despair, he had vowed never to repeat his past mistakes. Yet, it seemed that the gap between him and his opponent had not narrowed at all.
Manjome had considered the analysis of his brother, Mitsuru, and it seemed that the only option left was to sacrifice a large amount of his Life Points to command his tokens to a suicidal attack. However, he had no doubt that You Xuan had anticipated this move as well, and he could foresee that the chances of success were slim to none, even without trying.
He was powerless.
Almost instinctively, Manjome turned his head to look at the audience, and his gaze met the furious faces of his brothers. Without a word, he could hear their voices in his mind.
"What are you doing, Manjome?"
"Forget it. You're always the disappointment of the family. It's my fault for giving you so much hope."
"Maybe you were always destined to be among the bottom-feeders."
". . ."
No, this wasn't how it should be.
Why should he always be the black sheep of the family? Manjome clenched his fists.
No, it wasn't over yet. This duel, this one duel, was the one he couldn't afford to lose!
"My turn!"
Manjome lifted his head once more, his eyes locking onto the unbeatable lockdown formation before him, and his fighting spirit ignited anew.
It was the burning determination of a challenger facing an insurmountable peak.
This time, he would bet it all on his draw!
"Draw!"
Manjome's pupils contracted as he held up the card he had drawn, his voice filled with determination.
"Magic Card—
—Mind Crush!"
"Oh?" You Xuan narrowed his eyes, a slight smile playing on his lips.
Things were about to get interesting.
"Mind Crush!" Manjome declared. "By tributing one monster on my field as a cost, I can select one monster on your field and reduce its ATK to 0 until the end of this turn!"
"Impressive!"
Mitsuru shot up from his seat, unable to contain his admiration.
"Who would've thought of this move? Even I didn't see this coming."
"But with Ice Blade in play, all card effects are negated, right?" Fujio asked, still confused. "Wouldn't the effect of the Magic Card also be negated?"
"Ice Blade does negate all card effects," Asuka explained. "However, it only negates the 'effects' of cards. Tributing a monster on the field is the activation cost of 'Mind Crush', not its effect.
Activation costs cannot be negated."
"That's right," Mitsuru added. "By tributing one of the three 'Ryouran Tokens' as an activation cost, the number of monsters on Manjome's field becomes two, causing the effect of Ice Blade to no longer apply." He looked at Manjome with a mixture of admiration and respect.
"The Manjome from the Northern School has indeed changed. To find a ray of hope in a situation that seemed almost impossible to break through, he has surpassed his past self."
". . ."
"I tribute one 'Ryouran Token' to reduce the ATK of your 'Ryouran King' in attack position to 0!" Manjome declared.
[Ryouran King: ATK 3000 → ATK 0]
With a heavy sigh, Manjome averted his gaze, his eyes drifting towards his brothers in the audience.
This time, his brothers' faces finally lit up with a glimmer of approval.
Yes, he had already decided long ago—no longer would he be the black sheep of the family.
Manjome's gaze hardened with determination.
He would use his own two hands to reclaim the status that was rightfully his!
You Xuan smiled and nodded, "Impressive. So, you've even broken through my Ice Blade LOCK. Seems like you've got some tricks up your sleeve."
"Hmph, your composure ends here," Manjome declared. "Since I now have two monsters on my field, the effect of Ice Blade is no longer applicable! I activate the Magic Card, 'Discount Shopping'! By discarding a Level 8 monster from my hand, I can draw two cards from my deck!"
Manjome sent a card from his hand to the graveyard and proceeded to draw two cards.
"Next, I activate the Magic Card, 'Angel's Charity,' allowing me to draw three cards and then discard two cards from my hand!"
With the blockade lifted, Manjome accelerated frantically, drawing cards at a rapid pace as if to make up for lost time.
Of course, he hadn't forgotten that the crisis wasn't entirely averted. Although the temporary seal had been broken, if he summoned another monster, the number of monsters on his field would revert to three, and the Ice Blade LOCK would resume its effect.
"And now, this card will utterly shatter your devious formation—'Black Hole'!" Manjome exclaimed, holding up a card. "Magic Card, 'Black Hole'! Destroy all monsters on both sides of the field!"
A collapsing celestial body appeared, warping the entire field space. Manjome's token, Yu Xuan's Chaos Emperor, and Ice Blade Hand were all sucked into the annihilating celestial body and crushed to pieces.
"Now, for the effect of the two destroyed 'Ryouran Tokens,'" Yu Xuan said. "When a token is destroyed, each one inflicts 300 points of damage to you."
[Manjome: LP 4000 → LP 3400]
"But this leaves the field clear once again," Manjome said.
"Then I activate the Magic Card, 'Level Modulation'! In exchange for my opponent drawing two cards, I can Special Summon an 'LV' monster from my graveyard, ignoring its summoning conditions!" Manjome declared.
A monster card emerged from the graveyard.
"Thus, I revive this card from my graveyard and return it to my field—Armed Dragon LV7, rise again!"
A storm brewed as the steel-clad Armed Dragon returned to the field with a mighty roar!
[Armed Dragon LV7: ATK 2800]
"The LV monster summoned by the effect of 'Level Modulation' cannot attack or activate its effects during this turn.
But! I offer the 'Armed Dragon LV7' on my field as a Tribute, allowing it to evolve further!"
The Armed Dragon LV7's body dissipated into a golden glow, and a storm brewed as the dragon's body rapidly expanded and evolved within the whirlwind. Fiery crimson light tore through the sky, and a massive silhouette slowly emerged in the raging gale.
Hardened dragon scales and sharp metallic armor gleamed with icy cold light, and the howling gale transformed into a vortex of airflow, swirling like an obedient servant by the dragon's side. Its eyes blazed with fiery crimson light like two burning flames.
"The ultimate Armed Dragon, Armed Dragon LV10, I summon you!"
[Armed Dragon LV10: ATK 3000]
(End of Chapter)
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