Chapter 87: What a Joyful Duel

The day of the first phase test finally arrived.

Like the entrance exam, the phase test consisted of two parts: a written test and a practical duel. Surprisingly, for a card academy, this school seemed to place unusually high importance on written scores.

After all, Student Yuzheng had been among the top players since enrollment, yet he’d been stuck in the Red Dormitory solely due to his poor theoretical scores.

The written test was scheduled for the morning, the practical duel for the afternoon. You Xuan arrived early at the exam hall and finished the paper in about twenty minutes.

But regulations required students to wait at least half an hour before submitting early, so he spent the remaining time flipping through the paper he saw no need to check, rustling the pages loudly and drawing envious, jealous, and irritated glances from those around him.

Almost everyone else in the hall was still scribbling furiously—even model students Sanze and Asuka were frowning in deep thought. But You Xuan had nothing left to do, so he began spinning his pen.

Some students in the same room who already knew him felt a pang of existential dread.

How the hell does this guy somehow ruin people’s mental state even while taking a test?

The moment the wall clock’s hands passed the thirty-minute mark, You Xuan stood up without hesitation, handed in his paper, and walked out, leaving behind a carefree silhouette for the rest of the room.

The pressure on the remaining students instantly spiked.

Long after You Xuan had left, Student Yuzheng finally arrived, slapping the shoulder of Wan Teng Shao, who was fast asleep with his face pressed against his test paper.

“Unforgivable, Sho! Sleeping during an exam? What’s the point of even showing up?”

“Huh?!” Wan Teng Shao jolted awake. “Big Brother?”

“Snap out of it, Sho!” he grinned. “The real battle is just beginning!”

His startling words drew immediate attention from those nearby.

Asuka frowned, wondering: had this guy arrived so late because he thought this exam was child’s play, something he could breeze through without effort?

Sanze also glanced over, puzzled: how could someone so powerful never show the slightest sign of seriousness?

Professor Dedeji, the proctor, stroked his pharaoh figurine while watching all this, smiling faintly and nodding slightly.

Hmm. No wonder they’re this year’s two prodigies—the dragon and the phoenix. One just arrived, the other already left.

Each, in their own unique way, had just shaken the morale of everyone in the same exam room.

Yet Student Yuzheng, despite storming into the hall with fierce determination, ultimately failed to complete his test. Just ten minutes later, he joined Wan Teng Shao in slumber, the two of them snoring side by side until the exam ended.

Professor Cronos, passing by the back door, saw this and nodded in satisfaction.

Exactly as he’d predicted—the underperformers’ written tests needed no intervention; they destroyed themselves. Now, as long as he tweaked the practical test a little…

Hehehehehe

After lunch, You Xuan arrived early at the duel arena and secured a prime seat, waiting for the practical test to begin.

“You’re here early, Number One.”

Sanze Dadi took a seat beside him.

You Xuan smiled at him: “So are you, Number Two.”

“Hah, but after today, that order might be reversed,” Sanze replied with a smile.

The practical test paired opponents within dormitories. As Sanze had predicted, they—first and second in their dorm—were matched against each other.

In the recently concluded internal Red Dormitory exchange matches, neither of them had faced each other, and both had perfect win records. Today’s duel wasn’t just an exam—it was the most anticipated match of the entire Red Dorm.

Today would determine who was this year’s king of the Red Dorm.

“Huh?”

Sanze looked down at the already-starting duel arena, surprised.

“Is that Red Dorm’s Yuzheng? His opponent is Manzaimo?”

Many eyes turned toward that arena—clearly, this matchup violated the exam rules.

But Professor Cronos had his own explanation.

“Student Yuzheng’s practical performance is so outstanding that no one in the Red Dorm can serve as a worthy opponent!” Cronos declared confidently. “Only Manzaimo is suitable as his practical rival!”

It wasn’t entirely without logic. Indeed, as a severely unbalanced student, Yuzheng had failed every written test, yet his duel performance was undeniable—so dominant in the Red Dorm that he was essentially fishing.

Cronos’s theory was that he must uphold the school’s proper elite hierarchy. He chose Manzaimo not only because he was strong, but because Manzaimo held the elite status of guaranteed admission to Obelisk Blue.

“But in exchange, if Student Yuzheng wins this duel, he will be granted special permission to transfer early to the Yellow Dorm. Is that acceptable?” Cronos asked.

“Perfect! Perfect!”

Yuzheng didn’t even think—he agreed immediately.

He probably hadn’t even heard what the professor said; he’d only caught the word “cards.”

The professor announced the start and quickly stepped back from the arena.

Alright then, today’s first match is between Yuzheng and Manzaimo.

You Xuan glanced over briefly. If the timeline hadn’t changed, this duel would have been Manzaimo’s first public use of the VWXYZ cards—but now, those cards were in You Xuan’s hands, and he was curious what Manzaimo would pull out instead.

Manzaimo opened with a defensive summon of “Stone Dragon,” 2000 DEF, then ended his turn with three face-down cards.

Without VWXYZ, is he shifting toward a dragon-based deck?

Is he aligning with Manzaimo’s manga deck?

No, it’s just one monster—too early to tell.

But those three sinister face-down cards…

Hmm, none of my business. You Xuan was certain.

Then came Yuzheng’s turn. He played just as steadily as ever: “Winged Knight,” “Blazing Lady,” “Hardworking Couple,” plus one Fusion card—still that familiar 502 flavor.

Naturally, he didn’t hesitate.

I must fuse immediately!

The Flame Winged Man, who had dazzled during the entrance exam and crushed Cronos, made a flashy debut. Just as Yuzheng prepared to swing his attack, Manzaimo suddenly threw his head back and burst into loud laughter.

“Fell for it, Yuzheng!”

Manzaimo shouted.

“Activate my face-down! Trap Card—Hell Fusion! When an opponent’s Fusion Monster is successfully summoned, you gain control of it!”

“Huh?!” Yuzheng blinked twice.

So that means…

Manzaimo’s grin twisted into something monstrous. “I now control Flame Winged Man!”

They say Flame Winged Man is your favorite hero?

Come here, you!

Indeed, red traps bring joy—NTR red traps bring double joy. Manzaimo was grinning so wide he couldn’t close his mouth.

You Xuan paused to think.

Hmm, Hell Fusion was always Manzaimo’s card. In the anime, he used it to steal Flame Winged Man in their first duel—absolutely nothing to do with me.

“.”

Several more turns passed. Yuzheng stubbornly resisted Manzaimo’s relentless offense. Meanwhile, Manzaimo summoned “Creation Dragon,” a 6-star dragon with 2200 ATK—the same monster he’d used in the manga.

It really did look like he was moving toward a dragon-based manga deck.

Then Yuzheng, using his classic anime combo, activated the trap “Hero’s Arrival” during Manzaimo’s attack, special-summoning “Elemental Hero Gold Edge” to destroy Creation Dragon. But one turn later, Gold Edge was destroyed by Manzaimo’s “Sacred Shield—Mirror Force.”

A moment later.

“.”

“Activate Fusion Recovery!” Yuzheng seized the chance. “Return ‘Blazing Lady’ and ‘Fusion’ from the graveyard to my hand! Then activate ‘Fusion’ again—fusion summon ‘Blazing Lady’ and ‘Clay Man’ from my hand!”

“Not so fast, Yu↑zheng↓!”

Manzaimo’s grin twisted again.

“Counter Trap—Seal of the Forbidden Spell! Discard one spell card from your hand to negate and destroy this spell card. And during this duel, your opponent cannot use that card again!”

You Xuan thought.

Hmm, this was Sanze’s tactic—the Fusion Seal. Manzaimo was a top student; it was natural he’d think to use this against Yuzheng.

Definitely nothing to do with me.

Duels are always like this.

“Huh?” Yuzheng exclaimed. “I can’t use Fusion anymore?”

Manzaimo: “Hahahaha—!”

“You’re completely in my palm, Yu↑cheng↓ Yu↑zheng↓! Feel the power and tremble!”

My turn! Attack your “Elemental Hero Thunder Edge” with Flame Winged Man!”

“Activate my face-down! ‘Interdimensional Tunnel—Mirror Gate’!” Yuzheng flipped his card. “When a monster on my field is attacked, swap control of the attacking monster!”

Manzaimo: “Nani?!”

You sneaky bastard with the jellyfish head—how do you have a trap like this?!

You Xuan raised an eyebrow.

The real card version of “Interdimensional Tunnel—Mirror Gate” could only be activated when one of your own “Elemental Heroes” was attacked, and only to gain control of the opponent’s monster for that turn.

But here, Yuzheng’s anime-exclusive version seemed to permanently steal the opponent’s monster.

Surprisingly useful. You Xuan silently took notes—decided he’d get one if he got the chance.

You can never have too many red traps.

“Damn it, think I don’t have traps?” Manzaimo grunted. “Then activate my face-down! Trap Card—Hell Explosion!”

“When a monster on my field is destroyed, destroy the monster with the lowest ATK on the field, and both players take damage equal to half its ATK!”

“The only monster on the field is Flame Winged Man—so destroy it!”

Yuzheng: “Ah, my Flame Winged Man…”

Poor Flame Winged Man, caught in this red-trap vortex: stolen, returned, then sent straight to the afterlife before even standing firm.

Flame Winged Man: I have no idea what I’ve been through in this duel.

【Manzhangmu, LP 450】

【Jida, LP 850】

At this point, both duelists’ life points were as fragile as candles in the wind. Jida had no cards in hand, but Manzhangmu still had two cards left.

“I set two cards face-down—end of my turn!”

Manzhangmu still had confidence.

His two face-down cards: one “Chasm of the Underworld,” one “Magic Cylinder.” Any monster with 1500 or more attack points summoned would be sent directly to the other dimension; even if an opponent summoned a monster with less than 1500 attack, it would be instantly destroyed by the Magic Cylinder.

And now, his opponent had no cards and no monsters on the field—no single card could possibly break through his invincible back row.

Could you possibly draw a card right now and one-shot me?

Jida: “My turn, draw! I summon ‘Elemental Hero Wild Edge’!”

Manzhangmu still sneered.

Hmph, just another weakling. Watch me obliterate it with my invincible Chasm!

Wait—Wild Edge!?

Manzhangmu’s eyes widened instantly—he remembered the effect of this Elemental Hero.

“This card is unaffected by trap card effects.”

Manzhangmu spat blood.

Empty field, empty hand, such a thick deck—and he just drew this one card? Out of all of them?

Did you just pull this thing out of your sleeve??

“Go, Wild Edge!” Jida cheered, swinging his fist. “Direct attack on Manzhangmu!”

The strike landed—Manzhangmu’s LP dropped to zero. His smile and joy vanished with it.

As he fell backward onto the cold dueling field floor, he gained a profound philosophical insight.

In this world, only one thing is as mentally devastating as the underworld.

That thing is drawing the impossible.

“I won!”

Jida struck a triumphant pose.

“What a joyful duel!”

Manzhangmu: “...”

Tomorrow’s card game will be long—probably at least fifteen to twenty thousand characters.

I’ll try my best to finish it all by tomorrow.

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

(End of Chapter)