Chapter 178: The Perfect Duel

The duel was over.

Tianma Yuexing, having been entertained in turn by his own boss monsters, staggered backward. His Life Points hit zero, and he knelt on the ground, unable to rise for a long time.

With his head bowed, he looked as if he had shut himself off from the world.

Misawa and Asuka both wore complex expressions. They looked at Fujiki You Xuan, then at Yuexing, momentarily at a loss for words.

He had won again.

And it seemed the number of Fujiki You Xuan-style strange new strategies had increased once more.

Looking again at Yuexing, who still hadn't risen after quite a while, they even began to worry: would a legendary duelist lose his dreams just like that after today?

Was there really no one left who could stop the pace of this "anti-social" duelist?

Asuka subconsciously pressed a hand to her deck, thinking of the "Cyber Angel - Natasha" that had just been completed under Fujiki You Xuan's guidance.

She suddenly felt she saw a familiar flavor in Fujiki You Xuan's tactics today.

She didn't believe for a second that Fujiki You Xuan's personal quirks weren't mixed in there.

At this moment, a voice from the direction of the Industrial Illusions building reached them.

"I told you so long ago."

The group looked toward the sound in unison, only to see another "Tianma Yuexing" standing at the entrance—he was a carbon copy, carved from the same mold. If they weren't standing side-by-side for comparison, it would be impossible to tell them apart.

Needless to say, this was naturally Tianma Tiamen Yexing, Yuexing's younger brother.

Yuexing stood up and looked at his brother: "Tiamen Yexing."

"I told you he was strong, brother. I'm afraid you were no match for him." Tiamen Yexing stood with his hands behind his back and smiled. "Of course, I knew that even if I said so, you would still have had to try."

Yuexing shrugged, remaining silent.

He turned to look at Fujiki You Xuan, seemingly having adjusted and calmed his emotions, then chuckled softly: "That was a good duel. I have learned much."

What else could he say? That playing cards like that was wrong?

But the man was using their father's cards. Pegasus himself was a deep-seated enthusiast of "NTR" tactics; he couldn't very well deny his own master's taste, could he?

"Not at all, not at all. I am the one who has learned much."

Fujiki You Xuan smiled and shook his hand again.

Tiamen Yexing also greeted him, saying: "It hasn't been long since we last met, but it seems you have already become even stronger. You've mastered the power of Relinquished so quickly..."

No, he even felt that saying it like that was an understatement.

Because he felt that when Relinquished was in Pegasus's hands, it didn't seem as smooth as it did today. Of course, that might also be because Pegasus had long since retired from the scene and didn't touch cards much anymore.

"I lost."

Yuexing said, glancing at Tiamen Yexing.

"You were indeed right. A duel with him... with Student Fujiki You Xuan, truly does have a special feeling."

He said this while looking at Fujiki You Xuan.

"Thinking about it now, perhaps you are exactly that type of duelist."

Fujiki You Xuan raised an eyebrow.

"Many years ago, Mr. Pegasus once evaluated me like that... but that was a long time ago, back when I was still in the stage of learning to duel."

Tianma Yuexing showed a look of reminiscence.

"Tiamen Yexing and I were both orphans adopted by Mr. Pegasus. Mr. Pegasus adopted many children like us, raising us as his successors."

"At that time, I was one of the first children to stand out, showing extraordinary talent in dueling, far ahead of all the children in my cohort."

"But back then, after Mr. Pegasus personally came to watch my duel, he gave me that evaluation."

He turned to Fujiki You Xuan and said earnestly.

"'Your dueling is almost perfect. Every step from the very first card is a meticulous calculation aimed at guiding you toward victory, just like a first-class chess player.'"

"And it was precisely because of this that Mr. Pegasus finally bestowed upon me this title: 'The Perfect Duelist.'"

Misawa and Asuka also crowded over, listening to the big shot speak with rapt attention.

"But the perfection Mr. Pegasus spoke of was merely the limit I had personally reached. Compared to my brother Tiamen Yexing, it is now very difficult for me to make further progress..."

Yuexing closed his eyes and smiled lightly.

"And if I had to say, the design of deck construction, the ability to calculate and control a duel... these factors combined... Student Fujiki You Xuan, you should be the one called 'The Perfect Duelist.'"

Yuexing said seriously.

"You are exactly the kind of duelist Mr. Pegasus described: one who relies on intellect, construction, and an absolutely calm mindset at all times to achieve victory."

"I think that perhaps because you can calculate the path to victory many steps ahead of others, your dueling gives people that feeling of being light and breezy."

Fujiki You Xuan: "..."

Huh? Is that so?

"Now that you mention it," Misawa suddenly thought of something, "it does seem so. Compared to that Judai Yuki, you two are exactly two completely opposite extremes of duelists."

"Oh?" Yuexing was interested when he heard this. "Is that also a student at your Duel Academy?"

"Yes, he's also an incredible guy. It's just that he's the complete opposite of Fujiki You Xuan..." Misawa thought for a moment. "How should I put it? If Fujiki You Xuan gives me the feeling of being calm and composed at all times, specializing in strange tactics and leaning toward winning by using his brain, then Judai Yuki..."

He paused here, as if not knowing how to continue.

Asuka smiled: "You mean to say he doesn't use his brain at all, right?"

"Haha, that's the feeling." Misawa laughed. "Judai is the person I've seen with the most exaggerated passion for dueling; he always seems to be 'fired up' at any given moment. Now that I say it, I realize he's almost the exact opposite of Fujiki You Xuan."

"His dueling never goes through his brain; he rarely thinks carefully. But he has an incredible ability to draw cards, and it seems that no matter what situation he faces, he always has a way to break through. He's also an absurdly strong guy."

"I see. A duelist who duels entirely with his 'heart'."

Yuexing became interested immediately.

"You actually have two such rare duelists in the same year? It seems the students at Duel Academy this year are truly not to be underestimated."

"Now that you mention it, Judai does seem to have a special talent." Asuka also said. "How should I put it? It's as if everyone who gets close to him will involuntarily get fired up..."

"Indeed. Even Hayato from Slifer Red, who had already wanted to give up, seems to have regained his interest in dueling." Misawa added.

Only when they said this did the two realize that in this respect, Judai and Fujiki You Xuan seemed to be at two completely opposite ends.

One of them could hook everyone around him into a card-playing addiction through dueling, while the other could make everyone lose their dreams of playing cards through dueling...

Misawa suddenly seemed to understand a little why these two people teaming up would have such a strange chemical reaction.

Perhaps this is what is called "complementary."

They each possess exactly what the other lacks, which is why they have such astonishing performances when they come together.

And Fujiki You Xuan was thinking.

"Dueling Judai, huh..."

If one were to go by this theory, he wondered if a duel with Judai could allow him to gain a deeper level of insight into dueling.

The reason he hadn't arranged a duel with Judai yet was that he wanted to save this important checkpoint for later, as a periodic test of his "Heart of the Cards" practice.

Actually, the early-stage Judai wasn't considered very strong; in the first semester, he lost to the Academy's Kaiser, Zane Truesdale. And Zane Truesdale shouldn't have been using his full strength in that match either.

It wasn't until the end of the entire first academic year that Judai caught up to Zane Truesdale, barely managing a draw with him in their graduation duel.

So for Fujiki You Xuan, what he truly regarded as a trial was not how strong the current Judai was, but rather his extraordinary "momentum."

Being able to duel while facing that level of "momentum" was the best test for the results of his own training.

However, this opportunity should be coming soon.

Probably within the next month, the annual freshman match between Duel Academy and the North Academy should be coming up.

At that time, the Academy would have to designate freshmen to participate.

In the original anime, it was the top student of the Yellow Dorm, Misawa Daichi, and the nominated Judai who dueled to compete for the opportunity to represent the school. So, barring any accidents, Fujiki You Xuan guessed that he would be the one nominated in place of Misawa for this competition.

(End of Chapter) ===== CHAPTER 179 =====