Chapter 84: A Combo of Insanity
Chapter 84: A Combo of Insanity
"Great Tornado! Destroy all Magic Trap Cards on the field!"
The ultimate tool for clearing the backfield swept across the entire arena, demolishing You Xuan's defensive line of "Insect Barrier" and simultaneously lifting the three facedown cards.
"At this moment of destruction, I chain the effect of one of the Trap Cards, 'Entry Prohibited! No Entry!!' to change all Attack Position monsters on the field to Defense Position.
I will use this effect to switch 'Boss Zarug' to Defense Position."
[Boss Zarug: ATK 1400 → DEF 1500]
One of the other cards swept up by the tornado was barely recognizable as "Bottomless Trap Hole" from its shattered remains.
Even catching a glimpse of that telltale red pit as it left the field sent a chill down the spines of the spectators, who were now even more grateful not to be in You Xuan's position.
"The other card you just destroyed was the Magic Card 'Divine Offering.' When this card is destroyed by an opponent's card effect and sent to the Graveyard, I can select two Magic Cards from my Deck and place them face-down on the field." (Anime effect)
This was a Magic Card used by Yuuki Judai in the anime, which had been nerfed in its physical card release to only search for Quick-Play Spells, and only one at that.
Although the trigger condition of needing to be destroyed by the opponent was a bit cumbersome, the ability to search for two Magic Cards was still incredibly powerful.
"I will search for these two cards from my Deck."
You Xuan drew out the two cards that popped out of his Deck.
"I will set the Magic Cards 'Reinforcements' and 'Monster Reborn' on the field."
"But this means you have neither an attack lock nor a Trap Card now!" Watanabe Shuichi exclaimed. "However, I will use the effect of 'Hell Centipede' in my hand!
When you have monsters on your field and I have none, this card can be Special Summoned by halving its original ATK and without Tributing!
So, I Normal Summon 'Hell Centipede'!"
[Hell Centipede: ATK 1300]
"Then I activate the Equip Spell, 'Dull Axe'!" Watanabe Shuichi declared. "A monster equipped with Dull Axe gains 1000 ATK, and its effects are negated!
Since the effects of Hell Centipede are negated, the downside of its own Tribute Summon is negated, returning its ATK to 2600! And with the boost from Dull Axe, its ATK becomes 3600!"
[Hell Centipede: ATK 1300 → 3600]
"Next, I activate the Equip Spell, 'Nitro Unit'!" Shuichi continued. "This card can only be equipped to an opponent's monster. When the equipped monster is destroyed by battle and sent to the Graveyard, inflict damage to your opponent equal to the ATK of the equipped monster!
I equip 'Nitro Unit' to 'Boss Zarug'!"
A stick of dynamite was suddenly strapped to the defensive Zarug, and his rugged face wore an expression of utter despair.
"Hell Centipede, attack 'Boss Zarug'!"
[Boss Zarug: DEF 1500]
The giant centipede effortlessly crushed the hapless boss, setting off the Nitro Unit strapped to him in a chain reaction. An explosion rocked the arena, with fiery blasts engulfing half of You Xuan's field, and the storm of battle sweeping over him.
[You Xuan: LP 3000 → 1600]
"Then I set two cards and end my turn!" Watanabe Shuichi concluded.
". . ."
"As expected of Watanabe-kun," commented the well-endowed senior from the stands. "To be able to turn the tables and regain the upper hand in this situation."
"Indeed," agreed the Duel Club student beside her. "And from the looks of it, he's solidified his defenses as well. That newcomer may have had the upper hand thanks to some... unique methods, but it seems he's reached his limit.
Still, he's put on quite a show, and the judges will likely pass him."
Watanabe Shuichi himself was thinking along the same lines.
On his field was the formidable Hell Centipede with an ATK of 3600, and one of his facedown cards was the Trap Card "Security Orb," which could switch an attacking monster to defense during his opponent's turn. If it were destroyed by a Magic or Trap Card, it could also destroy a monster on the field.
It was a versatile Trap, useful for both defense and counterattacks.
The other facedown card was the Trap Card "Holy Spear," which allowed him to regain life points equal to the ATK of an opponent's monster during their attack declaration, making it another defensive Trap.
His defenses were virtually impenetrable.
But at that moment, Shuichi was unaware.
Unbeknownst to him, the moment he had blown away the "Divine Offering," allowing You Xuan to search his Deck, the duel had already reached its climax.
You Xuan: "My turn, draw."
The equation for victory had been set.
"I activate the Magic Card 'Hurricane'! Return all Magic and Trap Cards on both sides of the field to their owners' hands!"
The storm swept up, lifting the "Monster Reborn" on You Xuan's field and the two facedown cards on Watanabe's field back into their hands.
Watanabe Shuichi glanced at the two Traps that had returned to his hand and scowled.
His backfield defenses were gone, but it shouldn't be a problem. Even without the boost from "Dull Axe," Hell Centipede's ATK would only drop back to 2600, which was still more than enough. And he still had 2600 life points.
Could you take him out in one turn?
You Xuan drew another card that had been blown back into his hand by "Hurricane": "I activate the card I searched last turn with 'Divine Offering,' the Magic Card 'Reinforcements.' I can add a Level 4 or lower Warrior-Type monster from my Deck to my hand.
I add 'Iron Knight Gia-Fleid' from my Deck to my hand."
Iron Knight Gia-Fleid was one of Yuugi Mouto's signature low-level monsters during the DM era. However, by the time of GX, it had become a common low-level utility card, even used by elementary school students dueling against Marufuji Shou in his flashbacks.
You Xuan: "'Iron Knight Gia-Fleid,' Normal Summon!"
[Iron Knight Gia-Fleid: ATK 1800]
"Then I activate the Magic Card 'Monster Reborn' that returned to my hand!" You Xuan declared. "I will revive this card that was discarded to the Graveyard by 'Angel's Charity' earlier—
—'Magical Beast Cerberus'!"
[Magical Beast Cerberus: ATK 1400]
The simultaneous appearance of the Iron Knight and the Magical Beast was enough to strike fear into the heart of any experienced physical card player, as it heralded the arrival of "that card." Some might have even been preparing to surrender at five-speed and make a run for it.
Watanabe Shuichi furrowed his brows, perplexed by You Xuan's actions. "Why is he summoning so many weak monsters? What is he planning to do?"
"Just wait and see. My final card will reveal everything." You Xuan said with a wave of his hand.
"I equip 'Butterfly Dagger - Elma'!"
[Equip Spell: Butterfly Dagger - Elma
Effect: Increases the ATK of the equipped monster by 300 points. If this card is sent from the field to the Graveyard: You can add this card to your hand.]
At first glance, it seemed like an ordinary and insignificant equipment card, nothing out of the ordinary. Novices to Duel Monsters might be puzzled as to why such an unremarkable card was infamous enough to be banned indefinitely.
Apparently, no one in the audience grasped the severity of the situation, nor did they foresee You Xuan's intentions.
"With 'Butterfly Dagger - Elma' equipped, 'Iron Knight Gia-Fleid' gains 300 ATK. However, 'Iron Knight Gia-Fleid' has an effect of its own.
It cannot be equipped with any Equip Cards. If an Equip Card is activated and targets this card, destroy it."
As soon as You Xuan finished explaining, the equipped "Butterfly Dagger - Elma" was destroyed due to the effect of "Iron Knight Gia-Fleid."
Shuichi: "Huh?"
But what was the point of destroying his own equipment?
You Xuan continued, "At this moment, the second effect of 'Butterfly Dagger - Elma' activates. When this card is sent from the field to the Graveyard: You can add this card to your hand."
You Xuan retrieved "Butterfly Dagger - Elma" from the Graveyard, returning it to his hand.
Shuichi furrowed his brows further, still confused. "But even so, what's the point of all this?"
"Of course, there is." You Xuan said, "I still have 'Magical Beast Cerberus' on the field. As long as it remains on the field, each time a Magic Card is activated by either player, place 1 A-Counter on it.
Additionally, its ATK increases by 500 points for each A-Counter on it."
[Magical Beast Cerberus, ATK 1400 → ATK 1900]
Watanabe Shuichi: "A mere 500 points of ATK increase? That's nothing to be concerned about!"
But then, he started to realize something was amiss.
Wait, could it be...
"I activate the Equip Spell 'Butterfly Dagger - Elma' again, equipping it to 'Iron Knight Gia-Fleid.' But due to the effect of 'Iron Knight Gia-Fleid,' the equipped card is immediately destroyed.
Then, the effect of 'Butterfly Dagger - Elma' activates, allowing me to retrieve it from the Graveyard."
[Magical Beast Cerberus, ATK 1900 → ATK 2400]
Watanabe Shuichi started to tremble as the truth dawned on him.
"Y-You...!"
Even the slowest of the spectators realized what was happening.
It was an infinite loop!
One of the earliest and simplest infinite loops in the history of Duel Monsters, requiring the fewest components to achieve.
By equipping "Butterfly Dagger - Elma" to "Iron Knight Gia-Fleid," the destruction effect of "Iron Knight Gia-Fleid" would activate, destroying the equipped card. Then, the effect of "Butterfly Dagger - Elma" would activate, allowing You Xuan to retrieve it from the Graveyard. This process could be repeated infinitely within a single turn, continuously activating Magic Cards.
Correspondingly, the ATK of "Magical Beast Cerberus" would also increase infinitely with each iteration of this loop!
In practice, however, this combo wasn't considered a top-tier strategy during its time. The card "Butterfly Dagger - Elma" was only banned in March 2005, and before that, it didn't leave a significant mark on any major tournaments. This indicated that while the infinite loop was devastating, it was ultimately a gimmick that couldn't consistently outperform the top-tier strategies of that period.
You Xuan, before his journey to this world, had attempted to build a deck centered around this combo out of curiosity, but he found that it wasn't as overpowering as he imagined. The success rate was low, and even when the components were assembled, a well-timed counter trap could easily disrupt the entire strategy. In reality, it couldn't compete with the top-tier strategies of that era.
Konami had a zero-tolerance policy when it came to infinite loops, and anything remotely associated with such combos was promptly banned.
However, these gimmicky strategies were all about the thrill of pulling off something extraordinary.
And when they succeeded, they did so in spectacular fashion.
In the real world, there were time limits for each turn in a Duel, but in this world, there was no such restriction. While there was a limit on the amount of time one could remain idle, there was no cap on the total duration of a turn.
As the ATK of "Magical Beast Cerberus" skyrocketed with each iteration of the loop, Watanabe Shuichi was left stunned, almost breathless. He couldn't find the words to express his shock.
"S-senior... what are you...?"
"Butterfly Dagger activates again, boosting Magical Beast's ATK further!"
[Magical Beast Cerberus, ATK 12400]
He felt like crying.
The sheer force of such an attack was unimaginable.
He wanted to ask, "Why, junior? Do we even have a grudge?"
The other spectators were equally dumbfounded, and even the host nearly dropped his jaw in astonishment.
This unprecedented display even left Manjoume, who thought he had seen through You Xuan's tricks, completely bewildered.
He stared, wide-eyed, for a moment before muttering to himself, "Just who are you?"
The entire arena fell silent, as if everyone had been turned to stone, their eyes fixed on You Xuan as he relentlessly executed his combo.
[Magical Beast Cerberus, ATK 22400]
"Hmm, I think this should be enough."
You Xuan could have continued, but constantly performing the loop was exhausting.
Besides, he was impressed that his senior hadn't conceded and fled yet.
As a token of appreciation for his senior's persistence, You Xuan declared, "'Magical Beast Cerberus,' attack 'Hell Centipede'!"
[Hell Centipede, ATK 2600]
Watanabe Shuichi: "..."
A hellish roar echoed through the arena as a terrifying impact washed over Shuichi.
[Watanabe Shuichi: LP 2600 → LP 0]
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(End of Chapter)
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