XYZ Divine Dragon Cannon, summon!
Little Hinoaka Seika's eyes sparkled from the sidelines.
Upon reflection, although she took a harsh beating just now and was infuriated afterward, throughout the match, the opponent had merely an 800 attack submarine bouncing around as their only real threat, while the single Eight-Star Monster that did appear was on her side of the field.
Never had she encountered a monster with such overwhelming suppression as now.
Could it be that the opponent hadn't been taking the duel seriously until now?
"XYZ Divine Dragon Cannon, activate effect!" Yugen declared, "Discard a card from my hand to destroy a card on the opponent's field!"
He sent a card from his hand to the graveyard.
"I discard a card to destroy the covered 'Electronicized Female Protagonist'!"
With ammo loaded, energy charged, and target locked, the twin barrels of the Divine Dragon Cannon unleashed dazzling blasts!
The students held their breath again. It's a decisive round, with the covered Electronicized Female Protagonist being the only line of defense on Asuka's field. If cleared and destroyed here, the match would be decided by the Divine Dragon Cannon's direct attack ensuing!
"Not that easy," Asuka shouted, "Activate Cover Card! Trap Card - Angel Shock Wave! When an opponent activates a Magic, Trap, or Monster Effect that includes 'Destroy a monster on the field', negate the effect and destroy it!" (Anime Card)
In the anime, it was Asuka's exclusive destruction-counter Trap.
Asuka smirked slightly.
Caught in the trap.
This Trap would turn her situation around. The opponent would lose the Divine Dragon Cannon here, and the field would be wiped clean next turn.
This Trap would create the flaw for her to counterattack from the brink of defeat!
"Then I activate the last cover card in chain." Yugen calmly turned over the last backfield, "Continuous Trap - Super Shell!"
Once activated, this card can act as an Equipment Card for any monster in the 'VWXYZ' series, increasing the equipped monster's attack power by 500 and making it immune to any opposing Magic, Trap, and Monster Effects!" (Anime Card)
Similarly, it's the exclusive equipment from the VWXYZ series that Chazz wielded in the anime, providing a powerful protective shell of absolute resistance.
However, it can still be taken down through battle, or by cleaning the backfield and destroying this equipment to remove the protection.
[XYZ Divine Dragon Cannon, Attack Power 2800 → Attack Power 3300]
Asuka: "!"
Even the spectators couldn't help but exclaim, "It surpasses the Blue-Eyes White Dragon's attack power, with godlike resistance!"
"Therefore, the Divine Dragon Cannon's effect continues," Yugen said, "destroying the covered 'Electronicized Female Protagonist'!"
The cannon fire passed through, the covered card shattered into pieces, and the monster retreated from the field.
"And the card I discarded was the Magic Card 'Card of Compensation', which, when discarded from the hand to the graveyard, allows me to draw two cards from the Card Deck," said Yugen.
Asuka gritted her teeth.
Her reversal move, the counter-killing ace, was broken again...
"Then activate Trap 'Peaceful Envoy'," Asuka declared, "This turn, my monsters won't be destroyed in battle, and the battle damage to me will become zero."
The Peaceful Envoy can't prevent the destruction by monster effects, so it couldn't protect the 'Electronicized Female Protagonist' from the devastation of Divine Dragon Cannon's fire. But it did allow her to survive another turn.
"Then, set two cards on the field, and end my turn."
She managed to endure another turn, Asuka took a deep breath and clenched her fists.
She couldn't let the opponent dictate the pace...
During the entrance exam, watching the opponent duel, she'd vaguely felt that this duelist was different from others.
His tactics gave a first impression of being opportunistic, dodging direct confrontations. But she also intuitively sensed that wasn't all there was.
Having faced him now, she was more certain of her impression.
He wasn't just adept at cunning tactics. He chose them because he favored such strategies and excelled at continually hindering opponents, preventing them from playing cards smoothly, thus frustrating and disrupting their mindset into his rhythm.
But that didn't mean he couldn't master other tactical styles.
This person, as a duelist, was irritating but strong.
She couldn't be led astray by him; she had to maintain her "momentum".
"My turn... Draw!" Asuka declared with determination.
Eyes locked in with undiminished resolve, Asuka drew her card, and Senior Sister Seika's gaze flicked: "Life Points down to 200, field empty.
With such a powerful monster on the opponent's field, having the ability to destroy any card and absolute resistance against any effects..."
The gap was vast by this point.
It was almost as if a loss was evident, right?
This was just a casual match, not a competition or exam. Moreover, Asuka had made it clear beforehand that even if she won, she'd withdraw from the Academy Miss election willingly.
Seika felt if it were herself on the field, her mindset would have fallen apart long ago, and the duelist's "momentum" would have been completely shattered. There was simply no need to continue the match.
"Why does she still hold on so persistently?"
Asuka drew a card and resolutely declared, "I came to Duel Academy because I love dueling.
I've never cared about being the Academy Miss. I wish only to be recognized as, and solely as, a duelist, nothing more."
Seika's heart stirred at this.
Perhaps even she hadn't realized that her gaze upon this junior sister was different from before.
Asuka: "Activate the Magic Card 'Pot of Magic Book'! Both players draw three cards from their Card Deck!" (Original Card)
Appearing in the GX manga, this wildly original draw engine was indeed a Divine Artifact that Yugen had acquired not long after arriving at the Academy.
However, unlike many draw-disregard anime elements, this one simultaneously carries the risk of providing resources to the opponent, theoretically turning a one-for-three into a three-card free draw for the opponent.
So, with the opponent so eagerly inviting the master to draw, Yugen naturally wouldn't hesitate and smoothly drew his cards.
"You are indeed strong, Yugen. I may not be able to defeat you... but as a duelist, my soul won't allow me to concede here!"
Asuka shouted.
"From my hand, activate the Field Spell 'Blessing Church - Ritual Cathedral'!"
With the rumble of a field transformation, a towering cathedral emerged from the ground, roses fluttering down in the sacred white light filtering through the windows.
"Ritual Cathedral, activate effect! By discarding a Magic Card from the hand, I can add a Light Attribute Ritual Monster or a Ritual Magic Card from the Card Deck to the hand."
Asuka sent a hand card to the graveyard and extracted from the Card Deck for a search.
"Add the Ritual Monster 'Digitalized Angel - Benten' from the Card Deck to the hand!"
Yugen raised an eyebrow.
The Digitalized Angels finally made their appearance.
Digitalized Angels, used by Asuka in the GX original series as a Ritual deck, remained without Physical Cards until a decade later. Thus, it can be imagined that this deck's strength was relatively advanced compared to others in the GX era.
The Digitalized Angels, upon becoming Physical Cards, underwent significant enhancement, with numerous new cards not seen in the original anime, and some monsters supplemented with powerful effects, making it a rare series stronger in physical than in anime form.
But even the original version was already highly powerful in the current environment.
"The true battle is just beginning now!" Asuka declared, "Watch closely, Yugen. This is... my full strength!"