Chapter 69: A Natural-Born Duelist?
Chapter 69: A Natural-Born Duelist?
Several days later...
"Has anyone seen Tetsuya?"
You Xuan began his search for his next opponent in the exchange duel.
Thus far, he had maintained a perfect record in the exchange duels, finding immense joy in each and every one of them. The ability to cultivate and enjoy himself at the same time made You Xuan feel like he had achieved the ideal state of learning.
However, he now faced a minor setback—he couldn't seem to find his next opponent.
After asking around for a while, a kind passerby finally offered some information. "Ah, you mean Tetsuya? I think I saw him head up to the rooftop earlier."
You Xuan expressed his thanks and immediately made his way to the rooftop.
Indeed, tucked away in a small corner of the rooftop, he found Tetsuya, who was trying his best to remain hidden.
"Tetsuya, there you are," You Xuan said with a smile. "It's me, You Xuan. We're paired up for this round of duels, right? You haven't forgotten, have you?"
Upon seeing You Xuan, Tetsuya's entire body shuddered as if he'd seen a ghost. All he wanted to do at that moment was burst into tears. 'Of course, I remember,' he thought. 'Otherwise, what do you think I'm doing hiding up here?'
"Well then, let's begin our duel with happy thoughts," You Xuan said cheerfully as he set up his Duel Disk.
Tetsuya nodded glumly and reluctantly activated his Duel Disk.
"It's time to duel!" they both exclaimed.
". . ."
You Xuan made the first move. "I activate 'Forced Turnover,' allowing me to look at your hand and return one card to your deck!"
". . ."
Tetsuya responded, ". . . I activate my Trap Card, 'Slip Slot'! When my opponent has four or more cards in their hand, I can look at their hand and return one monster card to their deck!"
". . ."
You Xuan continued his onslaught. "Trap Card, 'Seal of the Ages'! Skip your next draw phase!"
"I equip 'Magical Attack Force' to my 'Magic Attackman,' and then I'll use Magic Attackman to attack you directly! At this moment, Guardian Force boosts Magic Attackman's attack power!"
". . ."
A few minutes later...
Tetsuya gazed up at the sky, contemplating the meaning of life and why he had to duel a monster after having a filling meal. He began to question if dueling was truly his path in life and if he should consider dropping out of school to pursue other options.
After the duel, You Xuan packed up his Duel Disk, his heart filled with contentment from the day's entertainment, and left the rooftop.
On the same day, another student from the Yellow Dormitory finished his exchange duel and checked the student terminal to find out who his next opponent would be.
When the name "You Xuan" appeared on the screen, his facial muscles twitched, and he turned to look at his companions with a blank expression.
". . . I've been paired with 'him.'"
The people around him, who had been chatting and laughing, suddenly fell silent for a moment. Then, they put on sorrowful expressions, patted him on the shoulder, and shook their heads sympathetically.
Their reactions seemed to convey that it was a pity for such a young man.
". . ."
Having earned quite a few extra credits since enrollment and thoroughly enjoying the duels, You Xuan was in high spirits. He felt that he had been quite successful in the exchange duels, and by the end of the first day, everyone in the Yellow Dormitory probably knew who he was.
Becoming the most famous person in the dormitory in just one day—could anyone else achieve such a feat?
However, strange occurrences had started to emerge among the students of the Yellow Dormitory lately.
Rumor had it that some students had developed an unexplained aversion to bicycles. There were even reports of students screaming inexplicably and shouting, "Stay away from me!" when encountering bicycles at night.
". . ."
Today also marked the official start of classes at the academy.
You Xuan found the other classes rather uninteresting, as he spent most of the time fiddling with his existing deck and thinking about how he could further optimize and adjust it.
The most iconic character in the original story who mastered the art of divine drawing through cultivation was Obelisk Blue student Taiyama Hirou. This man secluded himself in the mountains for a year, living like a hermit, and is said to have comprehended the true meaning of drawing cards that lies within the laws of nature.
After a year of cultivation, his divine drawing skills reached a fantastical level. He even created a deck entirely reliant on drawing tactics, once leading people to believe he had achieved the ability to call any card he desired, akin to the king. He even guessed with pinpoint accuracy the cards his opponents drew.
However, it was later discovered that he couldn't entirely dictate which cards he drew but could only foresee the next card he was about to draw. After battling Judai, it was proven that innate divine drawing prowess surpassed that of Taiyama's cultivated skill, and his realm was still inferior to Judai's.
But Taiyama had, at the very least, proven that the practice of drawing card cultivation was indeed effective.
". . ."
"Every draw a duelist makes is sacred," said the teacher in charge of practical lessons, strolling back and forth on the playground with his hands behind his back.
"Each draw is a profound exchange with your deck, and every draw paves the way for your future."
"Most importantly, you must stabilize your 'momentum'."
"Powerful duelists will overwhelm their opponents with their 'momentum', and a true duelist must be able to maintain their 'momentum' even under immense pressure during a duel."
"If you can't maintain your own rhythm and tempo, your deck won't respond to you. In that case, you might as well consider yourself defeated even before the duel begins."
". . ."
The teacher imparted many words of wisdom, but they could be summarized in one word: practice.
No amount of experience or technique could substitute for practice.
For this reason, the teacher recommended some of the academy's most effective practice builds, challenging students to draw specific combinations with the fewest draws possible. The builds were categorized into three levels of difficulty: beginner, intermediate, and elite.
"This is just the first step," the teacher said.
"Our goal for the first semester is merely to pass the 'beginner' challenge. If some of you with exceptional talent and rapid progress keep up the pace, you might even be able to attempt the 'elite' build in the second semester.
The 'elite' build requires you to consistently draw the specified combination from a forty-card deck to be considered proficient.
And this is just practice against a wall; it's still different from an actual duel. In the next semester, we'll begin intensive training to ensure you can perform under the pressure of your opponent's 'momentum'."
"I did it!"
Before the teacher finished speaking, a student with a jellyfish haircut jumped up excitedly from the back row of the formation.
"There's nothing difficult about the 'elite' challenge, teacher!" The jellyfish-haired student chuckled, proudly displaying the five cards he had drawn in one go. "I succeeded on my first try!"
Teacher: "???"
The teacher adjusted his glasses, which had almost slipped off his nose, and stared at the jubilant jellyfish-haired boy, who was flashing a V sign at his classmates in triumph.
Completing the elite challenge on the first day of class? And in one go?
What is this? Is he a natural-born duelist?
Oh dear...
Maybe you should be the teacher for this class, and I'll just sit and listen?
To be continued after it's published...
Don't worry, brothers, even though it's not published yet, there will definitely be extra chapters tomorrow to make up for it, so there will still be extra chapters tomorrow~
Continue to seek pursuit! And then make an advance reservation for the first order support!
(End of Chapter)
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