Inside the preparation room.
You Chen found a comfortable sofa and sat down. He had barely settled in when a fragrant breeze drifted over.
That familiar scent told him it was Hua Ningning even without looking up.
She sat right beside You Chen, utterly unconcerned with the looks from others.
Her slender legs, wrapped in black stockings, were crossed casually, and through the hazy glimpse, her fair skin could be seen.
"Don't forget to help me build an Underworld Deck suitable for doubles tonight."
Hua Ningning reminded You Chen, afraid he might forget.
"Don't worry. I won't."
You Chen was observing the students from the other schools nearby.
Since Hua Ningning was here, he could have her introduce them to him.
Hua Ningning seemed to guess what he wanted before he even spoke. "That red-haired guy over there is one of High School Five's top three. He has a terrible temper. His name is Tyrannosaurus Rex—everyone calls him that. His real name doesn't matter, because it sounds awful."
"The quiet boy reading beside him is good at analysis and exceptionally strong. He's High School One's strongest student, Chen Mo."
"The girl with glasses beside him is also from High School One. She's nearly on par with Chen Mo in strength, though she's slightly weaker overall. Her name is Xia Sheng, but most people prefer calling her Sheng Xia."
Hua Ningning introduced them from the side.
You Chen watched them as well.
He noticed that they all had one thing in common: they were incredibly competitive!
In his previous world, people like that were usually called Roll Kings.
He had not expected this world to have them too.
The duel was about to begin, yet they were still holding their decks and thinking through their builds.
"The draw is out!"
At that moment, Xu Fei spoke from not far away.
The results of the draw appeared on the large screen in the preparation room.
The very first duel was actually You Chen versus Tyrannosaurus Rex!
Each school had eight slots, meaning twenty-four people were competing.
In the first round of eliminations, students from the same school would not face one another.
It was a process of mutual elimination.
After the first round, only twelve people would remain.
Among High School Nine's eight representatives, You Chen ranked fifth, above Chen Jianming.
That meant there were still six people above Chen Jianming!
Chen Jianming was not weak, but after losing to You Chen, his ranking had plummeted.
The first to speak were the students from High School Five.
"Tyrannosaurus Rex got lucky!"
"I've seen this You Chen before. He's ranked fifth at High School Nine. This duel is practically free points."
"Still, don't be careless. Rankings don't mean everything."
"If you brick your hand, nothing you say matters."
The students from High School Five began discussing it.
Tyrannosaurus Rex fixed his gaze on High School Nine's side.
"Which one of you is You Chen?" Tyrannosaurus Rex asked calmly.
"Need something?" You Chen froze for a moment. He had not expected the other party to approach him first.
Was he planning to trash-talk before the match?
"Nothing much."
"I just hope you can let me enjoy myself."
Tyrannosaurus Rex did not really trash-talk.
Still, that sentence alone revealed his arrogance.
You Chen suddenly fell silent.
He lowered his head. Is that so?
Fine, then. Since he asked so politely, it would be rude not to let him enjoy himself.
The High School Five students assumed You Chen had been intimidated by those words and did not dare say anything with his head lowered.
They could not help laughing.
Sure enough, Tyrannosaurus Rex's presence was simply too fierce.
"Pfft, Tyrannosaurus Rex, you scared that little brother."
"Go get ready. It's about to begin."
"Make it quick!"
The High School Five students did not seem worried in the slightest.
At that moment, You Chen rose to his feet and headed toward the arena.
Hua Ningning watched the match with great interest.
The scene of You Chen dueling the Rare Card Hunter was still vivid in her mind, but duels involved an element of luck.
So it would not be surprising if either You Chen or Tyrannosaurus Rex won.
Besides, Hua Ningning felt that the students from High School Five were being far too optimistic.
Still, according to the Collegiate League results from previous years, High School Nine had never won a championship. It was only natural for others to look down on them.
Come on!
You Chen, show them your unique Underworld charm again.
Meanwhile, in a corner, Mu Qingyu sat quietly by herself. Dressed comfortably yet elegantly, she possessed the understated grace of a green lotus. She was also watching the duel, and had even taken out a notebook, seemingly intending to record something.
Inside the Duel Hall.
The venue was packed to the brim, and the roaring cheers were deafening.
Streamers from the opening ceremony drifted down from above.
The seating areas for each school had all been arranged.
At the commentary desk.
They had invited famous duel commentators as well.
Duoduo and Mi Shuo.
"Duoduo, what do you think of this year's Collegiate League?"
"This year's Collegiate League is more important than previous years. There's no other reason—Elder Xiao from Thunder Academy, one of the Four Great Academies, has actually come in person. That alone shows how significant it is."
"Still, High School One has always been stronger in previous years, with High School Five coming next. High School Nine has been somewhat lackluster. I wonder whether they can turn things around this time and rise to the very top!"
"That'll be difficult. The gap in raw strength is right there."
"Alright, the match is about to begin. Let's turn our attention to the Duel Arena."
On the Duel Arena.
You Chen and Tyrannosaurus Rex walked out at the same time.
This arena was ridiculously large. How large was it?
It looked just like the Dynamax battle arena from Pokémon Sword and Shield. The two contestants stood so far apart that they could not even hear one another speak, so they had to use microphones.
"First, please welcome Long Xiaohua from High School Five!"
"He once ranked first in his grade!"
"His combined duel and knowledge score reached a high of 680 points! He is an outstanding student with the potential to enter one of the Four Great Academies."
"He also placed second in his school's monthly examination tournament."
"He is currently a Two-Star Duelist."
One impressive title after another was announced, leaving the audience astonished.
You Chen raised his eyes, somewhat stunned. At last, he understood why the man preferred being called Tyrannosaurus Rex.
It was because his actual name had absolutely no imposing quality to it.
Still, this guy had ranked first before?
He probably was not anymore.
That really did make him a tough opponent.
As Tyrannosaurus Rex's titles were announced, the students from High School Five erupted in excitement, clearly even prouder than before.
When it came time for the host to introduce You Chen.
The host paused, searching his mind for flattering words, but none seemed appropriate.
In the end, he simply could not force the praise out.
He could only introduce him with an awkward laugh. "The other contestant is You Chen from High School Nine!"
"I'm not sure whether there's an issue with the data."
"Student You Chen's combined score is only around four hundred points."
"However, it is worth mentioning that he defeated Chen Jianming of High School Nine."
Well, there truly was nothing else worth praising.
Chen Jianming became a backdrop once again, dragged out for comparison.
The most embarrassed person was not You Chen, but Chen Jianming.
Inside the preparation room, Chen Jianming felt as though he had nowhere to hide. He clenched his fingers so hard that his knuckles turned white.
He even felt as if countless eyes were staring at him, countless mouths discussing him and mocking him.
In truth, many people did not even know who he was.
But some people were like that. They cared too much about what others thought, creating boundless pressure within themselves.
A duelist like that would not get far in the arena.
You Chen, on the other hand, did not seem to care.
Titles were like skins.
If you performed well, that skin would look cool.
If you performed poorly, people would only mock you even harder.
They were useless. A duel spoke for itself.
"Four hundred points?"
Tyrannosaurus Rex had thought his opponent would at least have some skill.
He trusted his instincts, but after hearing that score, he instantly lost interest.
Thanks to Smiling Glutinous Rice Ball, 8986, and Mu Gong for the recommendation votes!
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