Under the audience's gaze, Luya activated the lottery system! The second-round matchups appeared:
[Hu Tao vs. Ye Fan]
[Zhongli vs. Xiangling]
[Xiao vs. Lin Ming]
[Yanfei vs. Xingqiu]
[Ningguang vs. Zhou Bai]
[Keqing vs. Xiao Ran]
Once again, the lucky Ganyu received a bye... without playing a single match, she advanced straight to the third round.
"Miss Ganyu's luck is divine..."
"She actually got another bye!"
"Her fortune defies the heavens..."
Even Ganyu herself was flustered. She hadn't done anything, yet advanced straight into round three.
The second round began. Only six Duel Stages were needed this time. The spectators were thrilled! They cheered loudly for their favorites.
"Go, Lady Ningguang!!!"
"Good luck, Miss Yanfei~~"
"Charge, Great Sage!!!"
"Let's go!!!"
"Go, Xiangling!!!"
"Don't mess it up, Master Hu~ hahaha!"
"Lady Yuheng! You're the best!!!"
The matches began. On all six Duel Stages, duelists launched into battle.
"Duel!"
Twelve voices rang out, each beginning their match. Each arena echoed with calls:
"I Set a monster in Defense Position!"
"I Set two cards!"
"My turn ends!!!"
"I Normal Summon [Mezuki]!"
"Enter the Battle Phase!"
...
Unlike the others, Zhongli's duel looked a little different.
"I Set a monster in Defense Position."
"I Set four cards face-down, turn end!"
Zhongli summoned a monster and immediately set four back-row cards, leaving nothing in his hand.
"What's Mr. Zhongli playing at?!"
"All Traps..."
"Xiangling's in trouble, huh?!"
"With Mr. Zhongli playing like this, even if Xiangling has [Magic Cylinder], it won't help!"
"I thought his Deck looked strange last round..."
...
Meanwhile, Xiao faced off against the civilian Lin Ming.
"I Normal Summon [The Six Samurai - Nisashi]!"
"I activate [Legendary Six Samurai - Kizan]'s effect! If there's another 'Six Samurai' monster besides [Kizan] on the field, I can Special Summon this card from my hand."
"I Set one card, turn end!"
Luya watched. Xiao had actually pulled several [Six Samurai] cards... not bad luck.
[Six Samurai] is one of Yu-Gi-Oh!'s archetypes. Its monsters are inspired by figures from Japan's Sengoku and Azuchi-Momoyama periods, while its Spells and Traps draw from historical tactics and artifacts.
Many [Six Samurai] monsters combine traits of multiple warriors rather than one individual.
The archetype includes Shien, Six Samurai, Legendary Six Samurai, and Secret Six Samurai, with ties to the Ninja series. The Deck is highly strategic, excelling at breaking defenses.
Of course, with limited packs, Xiao couldn't build a complete [Six Samurai] Deck. However, even a few scattered cards could show its strengths. After all, everyone was using Decks built solely from what they opened on the spot.
Aside from Zhongli, the other fields were fairly standard: monsters summoned, cards set, spells, and traps clashing.
When Xiangling summoned a [Gemini Elf], Zhongli made his move.
[Gemini Elf] Level 4│EARTH│Spellcaster│1900 ATK / 900 DEF
Zhongli raised his hand calmly: "I activate a Trap Card! [Just Desserts]!"
A giant gorilla appeared on Xiangling's field... Suddenly, two blazing fires flared beside it. The flames engulfed the gorilla, which panicked and crashed into Xiangling. She took 1000 damage.
"[Just Desserts] inflicts 500 damage for each monster your opponent controls."
Xiangling had two monsters, so she lost 1000 Life Points.
[Xiangling, LP: 4000 → 3000]
Zhongli continued: "I activate the Trap Card [Ring of Destruction], targeting [Gemini Elf]!"
[Ring of Destruction] can only be activated during the opponent's turn. It destroys a monster with ATK less than or equal to their Life Points and inflicts damage to both players equal to that monster's ATK.
A ring appeared on Zhongli's field, eight green grenades strapped to it. The ring shot toward Xiangling's [Gemini Elf]. The twin sisters—one blonde, one red-haired—boasted a high 1900 ATK for a Level 4 monster. But the [Ring of Destruction] closed around them...
Boom!!!
They exploded into fragments. The shards blasted both Xiangling and Zhongli. Each lost 1900 LP.
[Xiangling, LP: 3000 → 1100]
[Zhongli, LP: 4000 → 2100]
With [Gemini Elf] destroyed, Xiangling still had [Axe Raider] with 1700 ATK. So she entered the Battle Phase. Biting her lip, she declared:
"[Axe Raider], attack Mr. Zhongli's face-down monster!"
The golden-armored [Axe Raider] charged with its massive axe... Zhongli's face-down monster flipped up.
[Marshmallon] Level 3│LIGHT│Fairy│300 ATK / 500 DEF
╵This card cannot be destroyed by battle. When this face-down card is attacked, after damage calculation, inflict 1000 damage to your opponent.
A round, fluffy creature with tiny beady eyes appeared. Struck by [Axe Raider], it puffed into a giant marshmallow. No matter how it was hit, it remained unharmed!
"[Marshmallon]'s effect activates! It cannot be destroyed by battle! And when attacked face-down, its controller's opponent takes 1000 damage!"
So even though its DEF was only 500, it endured the 1700 ATK assault... and Xiangling took another 1000 damage!
[Xiangling, LP: 1100 → 100]
Her Battle Phase ended.
Zhongli calmly said: "It's not over yet... I activate the Trap Card [Chain Detonation]!"
The moment he spoke, a massive bomb fell right over Xiangling's head.
BOOOOOM!!!
Xiangling's Life Points were cleared instantly.
"[Chain Detonation]—Inflict 500 damage to your opponent's Life Points. If this card is activated as Chain Link 2 or 3, it is not sent to the Graveyard after activation but returned to its owner's Deck. If activated at Chain Link 4 or higher, it is returned to the owner's hand."
Although no chain was made, that 500 points of damage was enough to end the Duel!
The first winner of this round was decided—it was Zhongli!
Xiangling could only shake her head helplessly as she left the stage.
Seeing this, the spectators exclaimed:
"No way!?"
"Mr. Zhongli's Deck is way too cursed… It's full of this kind of thing!"
"That [Marshmallon] is truly disgusting!!!"
"It can't be destroyed by battle, and one card can block a whole group of monsters."
"On top of that, it inflicts 1000 damage to Life Points… And then this [Ring of Destruction]... direct pinpoint blasts... both players lose Life Points."
"Mr. Zhongli's playstyle is... kinda unbearable."
"Still, as long as he wins, it's fine."
...
After a while, the results from the other five Duel Stages came in one after another. In the end, the players advancing to the third round were Zhongli, Ye Fan, Xiao, Yanfei, Ningguang, and Keqing—along with Ganyu, who had a bye!
In the second round, Hu Tao lost to Ye Fan, regrettably dropping out of the tournament...
"Blast it, I was so close to winning!"
"What a pity..."
Although Hu Tao lost, she also found her own weaknesses, which helped her improve her Duel skills. She wasn't particularly upset. She felt the reason she lost was that she relied too much on powerful cards rather than her own ability. It served as a wake-up call for her.
Now, only seven participants remained. After this round, only four would be left.
...
Just like after the previous round, Luya once again activated the drawing system.
[Zhongli vs. Ye Fan]
[Xiao vs. Ganyu]
[Yanfei vs. Ningguang]
Keqing had a bye... she could finally step onto the Duel Stage!
Ganyu walked onto the stage with excitement. The crowd cheered from below...
The matches quickly began!
"Duel!"
The three Duels started in full swing.
Zhongli, as always, used his burn Deck, doing his best to avoid battles. By chaining together Traps and Spells, he inflicted damage on his opponent.
Seeing the kind of Deck Zhongli was running, many spectators gained new ideas!
"It looks like Mr. Zhongli has really figured out this tournament.... Since no one really has strong cards, playing like him actually makes sense."
"Just throw together monsters, Spells, and Traps that inflict damage."
"Who would've thought... you can actually do that?!"
"Mr. Zhongli is truly a clever man!"
"Played this way... it feels like no one can stop him."
"Given how improvised these Decks are, Mr. Zhongli's approach really is solid."
"Each Duelist only has 4000 Life Points, so if a single card can deal 1000 damage, then four cards are enough to kill!"
"That's basically like having four Dark Magicians in the format!?"
"If you can draw four of them, you just win..."
"Hiss... that's true!"
As the spectators chattered, Zhongli, like chanting an incantation, revealed his set cards...
"I activate [Just Desserts]! For every monster on your field, you take 500 damage! You have three monsters on your field, so that's 1500 damage!"
Ye Fan's Life Points plummeted from 4000 to 2500 in an instant!
Zhongli continued his plays. It was as if, as Wangsheng Funeral Parlor's guest consultant, he was determined to help its Hall Master reclaim her honor.
Just one [Just Desserts] from Zhongli, and Ye Fan's Life Points dropped by 1500.
[Ye Fan, LP: 4000 → 2500]
Hu Tao shouted out with a grin: "Zhongli, avenge me!"
Zhongli gave her a small nod. "Next, I activate [Ring of Destruction]! Destroy one monster, and both players take damage equal to its ATK. I target [Dark Blade] with 1800 Attack."
A circular ring loaded with grenades exploded, blasting Ye Fan's [Dark Blade] on the field! Both Ye Fan's and Zhongli's Life Points dropped by 1800!
[Ye Fan, LP: 2500 → 700]
[Zhongli, LP: 4000 → 2200]
"It's not over yet... I activate the Trap Card [Secret Barrel]. Deal damage equal to the number of cards in your opponent's hand and field ×200. You have four cards in total..."
Four machine guns fired, inflicting another 800 damage to Ye Fan.
[Ye Fan, LP: 700 → 0]
With just three cards, Zhongli instantly took down Ye Fan, who had just defeated Hu Tao.
The spectators were stunned.
"Holy moly... it's over already!?"
"Uh... well then..."
"As expected of Mr. Zhongli… Way too nasty!!!"
"Hahahaha, but Zhongli's pack-opening luck must be insane to have pulled so many of these..."
"Sure, it feels great to use these effects."
"But you'd need a lot of luck to actually draw them!"
"That's true... playing like Mr. Zhongli, you risk bricking a lot. And besides… a single [Harpie's Feather Duster], and it's game over..."
Although Zhongli's victory came quickly, his Deck clearly had weaknesses. Mainly, it could brick, since there was no guarantee of drawing the burn cards. So it was either he OTK'd the opponent, or got OTK'd himself...
...
In the match between Xiao and Ganyu, Xiao relied on the Six Samurai's Special Summon effects to gain field advantage and defeated Ganyu.
"The Conqueror of Demons really is powerful..."
"But Miss Ganyu's skills aren't bad either!"
"It's just that she's had too little time to learn Dueling, that's why she lost to the Great Sage."
"Keep it up, Miss Ganyu!"
Ganyu had only been playing Yu-Gi-Oh! for less than two days. Even though, as an adeptus, her mind was sharper than a human's and she could quickly grasp the game, Xiao's stronger understanding of the game and his Deck's synergy let him defeat her quickly.
Still, plenty of people cheered Ganyu on! Because of that, even though she lost, Ganyu didn't feel bad at all.
Meanwhile, in Yanfei and Ningguang's Duel, Ningguang narrowly claimed victory...
"What a shame, Miss Yanfei was so close to winning..."
"Lady Tianquan must've been sweating by the end..."
"They were evenly matched opponents!"
After this round, the four finalists advancing were set: Zhongli, Ningguang, Keqing, and Xiao!
...
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