Oh, You're Done For

"I'll Normal Summon Geargia Machina Skeleton from my hand!"

You Chen gripped a card and swiftly placed it in the Monster Zone on his Duel Disk. A light bloomed before him, and an orange mecha soldier glided forward, as slender as a skeleton.

Geargia Machina Skeleton
Earth/Level 4/Machine/Union
ATK: 1800/DEF: 0

"I activate its effect! When this card is successfully Normal Summoned, I can add 1 'Machina' monster, except 'Geargia Machina Skeleton,' from my Deck to my hand."

"I choose to add Mecha Fortress to my hand."

You Chen's play made Zi Shu's brow twitch violently, his expression drastically changing. "Seriously, how did you even get your hands on the Rare Card Hunter Poison Wolf's Deck?"

This was something he hadn't known.

Upon seeing this Deck, his expression naturally shifted dramatically.

He was only a one-star arena master, and now he was facing the actual Deck of a three-star Rare Card Hunter. This was an intensity he shouldn't have to bear; how could his expression not change?

Zi Shu merely looked down on Underworld Decks with their trap cards, but he didn't look down on the Rare Card Hunter's Deck. At this moment, he was utterly speechless. This kid is completely dishonorable! Using a three-star Deck against a one-star arena master.

Damn it.

Emotion Value +550!

You Chen saw the Emotion Value and chuckled. Sure enough, you don't necessarily need trap cards to get Emotion Value. See?

As long as there's enough contrast, the opponent will have plenty of Emotion Value too.

"From my hand, I activate the Spell Card, Machina Redeployment!"

"I can choose one of the following effects to activate: ● You can discard 1 card from your hand; add 2 'Machina' monsters from your Deck to your hand. ● You can discard 1 'Machina' card from your hand; add 2 'Machina' cards from your Deck to your hand, except 'Machina Redeployment'."

When You Chen activated this Spell Card, numerous Machina troops had already appeared in the Field Zone, as if the area had become a large military site.

The surrounding audience watched the scene unfold.

It felt as if You Chen wasn't about to duel, but to execute Zi Shu!

Zi Shu looked a bit panicked; this posture truly made him nervous.

You Chen discarded a card from his hand, then added two Machina monsters to his hand.

"Not only that, I'll activate the effect of Mecha Fortress from my hand!"

"You can Special Summon this card from your hand or GY by discarding Machine-Type monsters from your hand whose total Levels are 8 or more!"

"I'll send two Mecha Fortress directly to the Graveyard!"

"Then, I'll revive Mecha Fortress from the Graveyard!"

The ground in You Chen's Monster Zone cracked open, and a tank-like Mecha Fortress emerged from the earth, rumbling and grinding forward with its anti-aircraft guns raised.

Mecha Fortress
Earth/Level 7/Machine
ATK: 2500/DEF: 1600

"I'll send Machina Colonel from my hand to the Graveyard!"

"And continue to Special Summon Mecha Fortress!"

You Chen swiftly made another move. Now, two Mecha Fortress monsters stood in his Monster Zone, their dark cannon muzzles aimed directly at Zi Shu.

"Gulp——"

Zi Shu swallowed hard.

This is truly the Deck of a three-star Rare Card Hunter; this method of Special Summoning is terrifying!

And yet, You Chen had won against it with a sneak attack back then.

"Alright! Battle Phase!!"

You Chen no longer wanted to waste words, pointing his hand forward.

"He's entering the Battle Phase just like that?"

"You scared me for a moment. Your Machina troops look fierce, but they can't even get past my Turret Warrior's ATK. What's the use of entering the Battle Phase?" Zi Shu breathed a sigh of relief when he saw his opponent entering the Battle Phase.

At that moment, You Chen calmly held a card between two fingers and swept it down.

"Is that really the case?"

"I activate the Quick-Play Spell Card, Rush!"

"Target 1 face-up monster on the field; its ATK becomes 700 until the End Phase."

"I'm increasing the ATK of the left Mecha Fortress by 700! That makes it 3200!"

"Mecha Fortress attacks the opponent's Turret Warrior!"

As the words fell, the anti-aircraft gun of the Mecha Fortress had already risen, aimed at its target.

"Hmph! You're thinking too simply. Do you really think I set all those cards face-down just for fun?"

"A duelist like you wouldn't even know how to properly use a three-star deck."

"During the Battle Phase, I can activate the effect of Guardian's Power!"

"Activate when the equipped monster declares an attack. Place 1 Spell Counter on this card. The equipped monster's ATK/DEF increase by the number of Spell Counters on this card x 500."

"Not only that, if the equipped monster would be destroyed by battle or card effect, you can remove 1 Spell Counter from your field instead."

"In other words, your entire family won't be able to get past my Turret Warrior. Once this perfect combo is established, it's almost impossible to break."

"Hehehe hahaha, what a ridiculous attack!"

Zi Shu grinned, his laughter hearty.

"Huh? Do I look that dumb?"

"And is it really that difficult?"

You Chen looked at him, shaking his head.

He then tossed out another card!

"I activate the Quick-Play Spell Card, Mystical Space Typhoon!"

"Target 1 Spell/Trap Card on the field; destroy it."

"I'll destroy your Guardian's Power on the field."

"Doesn't that solve it?"

"Hmm?"

You Chen spread his hands, tilting his head as he asked.

It seems very strange. What exactly are you so happy about?

Zi Shu's laughter abruptly stopped: "Hahahaha... ahem... You... you scoundrel!"

The speed of this change made the audience laugh.

This must have been the quickest cure for a hearty laugh.

Emotion Value +666!

With such a significant emotional drop, getting over six hundred is quite normal, isn't it?

You Chen was dueling while observing the patterns of Emotion Value fluctuations.

"It's useless! I still have a follow-up! Flip face-down card! I activate the Trap Card, Raigeki Break!"

"Discard 1 card from your hand, then target 1 card on the field; destroy it."

"I'll destroy your Mecha Fortress with 3200 ATK!"

Zi Shu waved his hand back, his momentum surging again.

As the Mecha Fortress aimed, a bolt of lightning struck from the sky!

BOOM——

It directly annihilated the Mecha Fortress.

This round of maneuvering had the audience boiling with excitement.

"Holy cow, it's getting intense!"

"Goodness, it's only the first turn, and the mind games have already begun."

"But it looks like Zi Shu still has the upper hand!"

"The champion is a champion after all; his practical experience is incredibly rich."

At this moment, You Chen's smile slowly appeared.

True Silent Magician seemed to have realized something, blinking from the side and muttering, "Oh-ho... it's already over."

Thanks to 2516, Master of Thirteen Realms, Qiu Se Tou, Luo Xue Shang Bing Hua, Meng Xiang Shi Zuo Ren, and Mu Gong for their recommendation votes!

Thanks to 8040 for the monthly pass!

Almost enough for an extra chapter from investments. I'll save the investment bonus chapter for when it gets promoted!