Chapter 25: Did It Open?

"Duel!" x2

[Youxuan, LP 4000]
[Genichiro, LP 4000]

"I'll take the first turn. Draw."

Genichiro claimed the first move. However, he was in no hurry to play his cards. After glancing at his hand, he let out a series of guttural, sinister chuckles and flicked his tongue across his lips.

"Let this duel be a treat for you—a banquet of darkness. Let me savor your suffering."

"First, I activate 'Pot of Greed' to draw two cards from my deck."

"Next, the Spell card 'Magical Sanctuary'!"

He slotted the card into his Duel Disk. A magic circle unfurled at his feet, and a faceless metallic figure emerged from the barrier onto the field.

[Metal Fiend Token, ATK 0]

"The effect of Magical Sanctuary allows me to Special Summon one 'Metal Fiend Token' to my field," Genichiro declared. "Then, I offer this 'Metal Fiend Token' as a Tribute for an Advanced Summon!

Guided by the will of darkness, let all enemies tremble in the shadows—

—Level 6, Dark Tri-Horned Dragon, emerge!"

[Dark Tri-Horned Dragon, ATK 2400]

"I set two cards on the field and end my turn."

Genichiro licked his lips once more.

"Now, it's your turn. Come on, let me taste the darkness and the pain... hehehe..."

The expression and gestures reminded Youxuan somewhat of Marik Ishtar at age six. However, this man lacked the true essence; compared to the master-level facial expressions of the Yu-Gi-Oh! judge-class performer, he was far behind.

"My turn. Draw."

Youxuan was equally decisive.

"I set one monster in the front row and four cards in the back row. Turn end."

Five cards set in a show of "friendship."

"Huh?" Genichiro paused.

Having watched Youxuan’s final against Ryuzaki, Genichiro had fully expected his opponent to open with his usual Machine-type deck. That was clearly not the case. Did this guy not even use his main deck for the finals?

"Heh, just setting cards? A duel as lukewarm as this will soon turn you into a sacrifice for the darkness," Genichiro sneered.

"But at the end of your turn, I shall activate this face-down card..."

One of his back-row cards flipped face-up.

"Quick-Play Spell—Final Flame! This card allows me to Special Summon two 'Black Flame Tokens' to my field!"

[Black Flame Token, DEF 0] x2

"During the turn I activate this card, I cannot summon any other monsters via other effects... well, since it's the end of your turn anyway, I wouldn't have been able to summon monsters regardless," Genichiro remarked.

"Now it is my turn. Draw."

After drawing, he hesitated, eyeing Youxuan’s face-down cards.

"Perhaps you hope to stall with traps... but such tactics are useless against me. I activate the Spell card—Night Beam from my hand!"

The spell card manifested before him amidst golden ripples, a beam of light striking toward one of the cards in Youxuan’s back row like a sword piercing the night.

"Night Beam targets one Set Spell or Trap card on the opponent's field and destroys it. Furthermore, the targeted card cannot be activated in response to Night Beam!"

He pointed to the middle card in Youxuan’s back row.

"Destroy that face-down card in the center!"

Youxuan waved his hand: "In that instant, I activate a face-down card..."

"It's useless," Genichiro said. "I told you, you cannot respond to the activation of 'Night Beam'..."

"I know I cannot chain the card you targeted to 'Night Beam.' But I am not activating the card you targeted; I am activating this one next to it."

Youxuan flipped over another face-down card.

"Trap card—Deal of the Dark! When the opponent activates a Spell card, by paying 1000 Life Points, I can force them to discard one random card from their hand."

[Youxuan, LP 4000 → LP 3000]

The moment his LP dropped, his heart seemed to skip a beat. An intense, piercing pain struck him, as if a spike had been driven into his body, opening a gap in his heart through which his vital life force gushed out like a bursting dam.

"Ugh..."

Youxuan felt faint and swayed. The Silent Magician appeared beside him, casting a look of concern toward her master.

"I... I'm fine," he gestured dismissively.

It was just the first time, so he was a bit unaccustomed to it. As expected of a Shadow Game; the feeling of losing LP was exactly like losing one's life. There was no doubt: in a duel like this, if his life points reached zero... he would die.

"Hahaha, do you feel it? This is the pain of a Shadow Duel!" Genichiro laughed wildly. "Good, that's it. Keep suffering, feel the darkness slowly devouring your life. That is the joy of a Shadow Duel! Hahaha..."

Youxuan: "..."

The existence of Shadow Duels undoubtedly stimulated the awakening of many hidden psychopaths. Potential criminals, madmen, and serial killers became even more depraved and powerful after obtaining dark powers, making them harder to catch and increasingly insane. Some Shadow Duelists didn't even seek power or profit; they simply enjoyed the process of inflicting pain on their opponents.

Youxuan quickly regained his composure and continued. "The effect of 'Deal of the Dark' requires you to discard one random card from your hand. Discard the one on your far left."

"As you wish."

Genichiro tossed the chosen card into the Graveyard nonchalantly and continued calmly.

"But according to the effect of Night Beam, the card you set is still destroyed..."

"Actually, no." Youxuan snapped his fingers again. "At this moment, I will activate the face-down card you targeted with 'Night Beam.' Trap card—Raigeki Break!"

"Heh, are you an idiot?" Genichiro looked at him with the pity one reserves for the mentally challenged. "I already told you, the card targeted by 'Night Beam' cannot be activated. Can you not understand human language...? Nani!?"

Seeing Youxuan’s "Raigeki Break" actually flip open, Genichiro’s green eyes widened. His entire expression seemed to scream one word: WHY?

How could a card targeted by Night Beam still be activated? Was he a Platinum Member of the Kaiba Corporation with hacks for his Duel Disk?

"I see you really don't understand," Youxuan explained calmly.

"Read your card effect again. 'Night Beam' only states that the targeted card cannot be activated in response to 'Night Beam.' But my 'Raigeki Break' did not chain to your 'Night Beam.' I chained it to my own 'Deal of the Dark.' Any problems with that?"

A giant question mark seemed to hover over Genichiro’s head. He didn't seem to understand.

"Is... that so?" the Shadow Duelist muttered skeptically. His face clearly asked, 'You aren't cheating me, are you?'

"Buddy, you’re betting your life without even understanding the rules?" Youxuan narrowed his eyes.

"I... of course I understand such things," Genichiro mumbled vaguely. "I was just... testing your level. Ahem... yes, that's it."

Although he still didn't quite get it, since the game state had already processed it that way, it must be correct. In truth, Youxuan wasn't cheating; this was a basic application of Yu-Gi-Oh! rules for an experienced player. While a Spell/Trap targeted by Night Beam cannot be activated in response to Night Beam, by inserting another effect into the chain, the activation restriction is bypassed.

"You've got some skills, kid," Genichiro narrowed his eyes. "As expected of the man who defeated Ryuzaki. You're not an ordinary duelist... well, only a soul like yours is worth sacrificing."

Youxuan ignored him and continued the resolution of the effects.

"Then, the effect of the trap card 'Raigeki Break': I can discard one card from my hand to destroy any one card on the field."

He sent a card from his hand to the Graveyard.

"I destroy your 'Dark Tri-Horned Dragon'."

Dark, churning clouds gathered in the sky. A demonic hand reached out, its fingertips releasing a stunning bolt of lightning. The thunder struck the Tri-Horned Dragon on Genichiro’s field, shattering it into pieces.

"Also, the card I discarded as the cost for 'Raigeki Break' was the Spell card 'Compensation of the Pot.' When this card is sent to the Graveyard from the hand, I draw two cards." (Anime card)

Anime-style draw engines were truly satisfying.

"Tch... Night Beam couldn't even protect the 'Dark Tri-Horned Dragon'..."

Seeing his big monster destroyed before it could even land a hit, Genichiro frowned in annoyance. But it wasn't a big deal. He set one card from his hand onto the field.

"I'll set one more card, then activate the Spell card—Card of Sanctity!"

Youxuan: "!"

*What? It’s actually 'Card of Sanctity'?*

In the anime, it was the favorite draw engine of President Kaiba. The user could draw until they had five cards in their hand, but at the heavy cost of discarding their entire hand after five turns. However, any veteran player knew that in Yu-Gi-Oh!, after five turns, the opponent would have long since won. Compared to this, the Forbidden "Pot of Greed" was child's play.

Even after being heavily nerfed for the real-life card game—drawing only three cards and imposing restrictions like no special summons and no damage for the turn—it still held competitive value. Youxuan had searched for this card, but it never appeared on the market. In the original story, only President Kaiba used it; perhaps it was a limited edition for the ultra-wealthy.

He hadn't expected to run into one here.

He was truly envious.

But it didn't matter. Youxuan reasoned that since this was a Shadow Duel, if he won, his opponent's soul would vanish. With the person gone, the deck would become ownerless property, and taking it for himself would only be natural. It would be a waste to leave such a god-tier card to collect dust on the street.

He wasn't trying to steal someone else's cards; he just couldn't bear to see resources wasted.

Genichiro, who was about to draw, instinctively paused. He couldn't tell if it was an illusion, but he suddenly felt a wave of unease as he noticed...

...the look in the kid's eyes across from him had suddenly become incredibly hungry.