The moment Xingqiu stepped inside, he saw Hu Tao walking toward the stage.
From what his subordinates had told him,
Yu-Gi-Oh! Duels were held on a special stage.
Xingqiu realized that must be the Duel Stage, since all the other customers were dueling there.
"Hall Master Hu!"
"So this is why I haven't seen you reading at Wanwen Bookhouse lately—you've abandoned poetry for Monster Duels..."
Hearing Xingqiu greet her,
Hu Tao turned, left hand on her hip, and said with a laugh:
"Well, well, isn't this Xingqiu~"
"Are you here to challenge me to a poetry contest?!"
"But I'm just about to duel our consultant. You'll have to wait!"
Hu Tao called herself the back-alley dark poet, spouting doggerel verses whenever she strolled about, unstoppable once she started.
Her most famous work was "Ballad of the Hilichurls."
It wasn't only beloved by port residents—even children in Qingce Village sang it.
Fans and storytellers alike were amazed by the simple yet profound style of "Ballad of the Hilichurls," flocking to Wanwen Bookhouse to seek out this great poet's works.
Unfortunately, Hu Tao's poetry collections "Idle Talk of the Auspicious Moon" and "Rice, Oil, Salt, and Firewood" had yet to be published.
Xingqiu, who spent his days in bookshops, also longed to meet such a character, and had once chosen an auspicious day to visit, bearing gifts.
The two hit it off immediately, composing verses together in the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor courtyard.
To Xingqiu's neat and traditional couplets, Hu Tao always countered with whimsical and bizarre lines.
For example, when Xingqiu recited:
"The moon in the sky turns full, families reunite."
Hu Tao instantly said:
"Dinner underground, bowls filled with meat."
Faced with Xingqiu's bewilderment…
Zhongli explained this as an "unfeeling couplet."
The two lines seemed unrelated, but the characters still matched neatly, forming a pair.
Steadying his heart, Xingqiu tried again, "Jade stretches eight hundred li, reeds fall and do not return."
Hu Tao thought a moment and said, "A boar weighs twenty jin, which pot could hold it?"
Perfectly matched, witty and strange... beneath the oddness lay rhythm and clarity, more memorable than ordinary poetry.
This exchange was truly like wild punches felling a seasoned master, leaving Xingqiu torn between laughter and tears.
Their poetic contest ended in cheerful camaraderie.
From then on... the two became poetry friends, often meeting to compose verses.
With time, even Chongyun was roped in as a judge, their laughter scattering through the streets like autumn leaves.
However, in the past half month, Xingqiu hadn't seen Hu Tao around. He never expected to run into her again today, at the Duel Monsters Specialty Shop!
Hearing Hu Tao say she was about to duel,
Xingqiu smiled: "Then... Hall Master, do your best."
Hu Tao grinned confidently:
"Of course, I'm the strongest Duelist!"
Zhongli responded: "Hall Master, let us begin."
Zhongli and Hu Tao simultaneously placed their Decks into the Duel Stage slots.
The moment the Decks were placed, they were automatically shuffled.
This was because when Luya had dueled Hu Tao before... she hadn't shuffled!
So right at the start, she drew two King of the Skull Servants with 4500 Attack each.
Nearly wrecking his tutorial duel!
So Luya had the system add an auto-shuffle function to the Duel Stage.
To prevent Hu Tao from breaking the game… If she opened with double 4500 ATK Kings every time, it would certainly cause chaos.
As Hu Tao and Zhongli stood on the Duel Stage, the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor civil war was about to begin.
Hu Tao and Zhongli both declared loudly:
"Duel!!!"
"Duel!!!"
Luya had requested the system to improve the Duel Stage with small features.
For example, the stage now automatically offered Rock-Paper-Scissors to decide who went first.
Solving the old problem of having no coin to decide turn order.
Hu Tao pressed Rock, Zhongli chose Scissors.
The system chimed to indicate Hu Tao's win.
"Hehe, I won!"
"A wonderful start~"
"Then I'll let our consultant take the first turn, hehe~"
As the duel began, the surrounding spectators grew even more excited.
Even Xingqiu was captivated by the atmosphere, watching intently.
On the other Duel Stages, monsters stood tall—the realism of it all left Xingqiu deeply moved.
He could no longer resist the urge to buy packs and summon monsters!
He rushed straight to Luya, pulling out the Mora certificate he had prepared.
"Shopkeeper, give me 1000 packs!"
He placed a certificate for 20 million Mora on the counter.
Luya smiled apologetically:
"Only 300 packs left today..."
"Hall Master Hu bought 1000 in one go."
At this, Xingqiu's eyes dimmed with disappointment...
He sighed:
"Then I'll take 300..."
"I'd also like to reserve 700 for tomorrow."
Luya nodded, retrieved 300 packs from the box, and set them before Xingqiu.
Xingqiu, face glowing with excitement, found a seat and began opening them. With each flash of light, he became increasingly absorbed...
…
By Rock-Paper-Scissors, Zhongli had the first turn.
The Wangsheng Funeral Parlor's civil war had officially begun.
"Ah! Waku waku!!!"
"This duel is going to be amazing."
"Both Hu Tao and Zhongli opened tons of packs."
"Who knows what kind of Decks they'll play this time!"
"It's starting, it's starting!"
"Look, look~"
It was Zhongli's first turn.
He drew five cards from his Deck, then began his Main Phase.
Expressionless, Zhongli spoke in a deep voice:
"I Set three cards."
With three solid thuds, the empty field now held three face-downs.
Seeing Zhongli start by setting three cards, Hu Tao only smiled.
This time, she had come well-prepared!
Her Deck now included cards to handle Traps with ease. And Hu Tao had one right in her opening hand.
[Harpie's Feather Duster]
A green feather plucked from the Harpie Lady, radiating a veil of light; crafted by a legendary spellcaster, its tail bore a golden magic ring to complement it, imbued with the power to sweep away all magic.
This Feather Duster was an Epic card Hu Tao had pulled yesterday!
Its effect was incredibly strong—Now, with Feather Duster in hand, Hu Tao was perfectly ready to face Zhongli's three face-downs.
She wasn't nervous at all… Not the slightest bit afraid!
This was the confidence Harpie's Feather Duster gave her.
But of course, no one else knew Hu Tao held this treasure. Which only made her secretly more delighted.
"Just watch as I unleash my trump card and shock the whole crowd!"
"Haha~"
Hu Tao couldn't help raising her hand near her face, giggling in anticipation of sweeping away three sets at once!
'Making Zhongli eat dirt~'
'Let's see if he can stay so calm then…'
...
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