Duels should be played with a smile.

“You…” Yusei frowned. He was about to say something to calm Raku down when he noticed that Raku, who had just seemed very agitated, had suddenly calmed down again.

From extreme stillness to extreme movement, and then back to extreme stillness, in those short ten seconds or so, Leyou's emotional changes, which were as fast as light, gave Youxing a sense of dislocation and disconnect.

Unpredictable, but somewhat frightening.

'Which state is the real him?' Yusei couldn't help but wonder.

"Sorry." Suddenly calm, Leyu apologized to Yusei in an unusually calm tone, then got on the motorcycle he had just gotten off.

"Since you've already cut to the chase, let's hurry up and find out where they are. We can talk about the rest on the way."

Yusei was momentarily taken aback by the sudden, commanding tone. However, as someone who had experienced major events, he was already moving while his mind was still processing the information. Once everyone was on the D-Wheel, he came to his senses, sent Ryuko's address to Leyou, and took the lead in starting the D-Wheel, guiding the way for Leyou.

"The enemy's situation seems a bit complicated. We'll discuss the details when we see them. Although the Snow Woman was seriously injured, she seems to have a way to deal with it and is currently out of danger..."

On the way, Yusei organized his thoughts and concisely told Rakuyu the information he had just received from Aki. Rakuyu, who was riding his D-Wheel behind him, listened quietly, nodding slightly from time to time without saying a word.

His face was as still as water, as calm as a still well. At this moment, Leyou, piloting the D-wheel, began to think seriously for the first time in a long time...

Normally, a lighthearted, carefree attitude towards life is a good thing, but sometimes...

With one hand resting on the jade crystal on his chest, Leyou calmed his mind and began to sense the states of the Snow Maiden, Philvo, and Ella...

The Snow Woman's condition... seems a bit strange?

"Ella, there's an emergency. If we haven't found any clues to inherit the fiberglass, we should return temporarily... Remember to be vigilant. If we encounter a situation that requires our attention... feel free to use the power of the source code. I'll cover for you. Your safety comes first..."

"Fairvo, put the virtual world matters aside for now. I'll send you the relevant information. Leave your current tasks to the Codetalkers and come back here..."

"Just now, the crystal on my chest kept flashing, making me think I was about to turn into light..."

"In short, the team is in danger, return immediately!"

……

"What a... truly imperfect card! However, even though it was a scrapped design, it still has some use today."

At first, he was somewhat arrogant, just like Jack himself, but before he could finish speaking, he became expressionless as if he had been forced to calm down. From the very beginning, Jack felt a strange sense of incongruity from this imposter.

Having synchronized Jack's image and some of his outward appearance, Darkness's thinking was inevitably affected. As a collection of wills, Darkness, after being given an additional skin, had a composition that cannot be described as complex.

Not to mention, after He was reawakened by K, the lingering resentment of what Leyou had destroyed remained in His consciousness, which had some influence. If He hadn't fought a great battle with thousands of Lords before, which made His mind less muddled, Darkness might have been arrested by the traffic police for drunk driving before even getting onto the racetrack.

"First strike is mine! My turn!"

"It's laughable that you Synchro Dimensional beings still enjoy something like Rapid Combat, which should have been abandoned long ago..."

Jack frowned, somewhat displeased, and retorted, "Hmph! Someone like you who has to hide even your true identity has no right to talk to me about speed duels! You don't understand speed duels yet you challenge me to one; you're just asking for death!"

"How naive!" Darkness exclaimed. "The supreme Creator has bestowed upon me unparalleled glory, yet it is but a mere speed duel! Let me defeat you with your most prized speed duel!"

The dark version of Lucky D Wheel accelerated again, leaving Jack behind. At the same time, the duel officially began, and the exclusive field spell card for the high-speed duel, [High Speed ​​World 2], was automatically activated, instantly turning the scene on the track into a sci-fi scene.

"These outdated rules are such a burden... Just to fit the rules, we have to cram in some ridiculously weak high-speed magic. Without this unnecessary stuff, I wouldn't be stuck like this..."

Darkness's words were filled with disgust for speed duels. After being reawakened by K, all the rules of dueling, including some related derivative rules, appeared in his memory.

After He learned of some information that did not exist in this world, He naturally developed a dislike for derivative rules such as Speed ​​Duel. In an environment where the first striker is prepared to kill the opponent in the first round, does Speed ​​Duel, a shameful thing that adds one counter per round and requires multiple counters to be effective, really still have any meaning?

Without K needing to give any specific instructions, Darkness volunteered to be the vanguard and explore the path of the synchronized dimension.

He is different from the thousands of Lords who were beaten up and forced to submit, only intending to go through the motions. He is a loyal dog who wholeheartedly fulfills K's will.

With dueling having become an integral part of the world, it is not easy to completely destroy it. Eliminating these derivative rules, which can be considered "village rules," will at least have some impact.

"Activate [High-Speed ​​Magic - Boost]! My High-Speed ​​Counters increase by 4, decreasing to 1 at the end of the turn!"

With the engine roaring, the speed, which had already reached its limit, surged again, and Darkness left Jack far behind.

"And then there's this [High-Speed ​​Magic - Angel's Scepter]! It can only be activated when you have two or more High-Speed ​​Counters. Draw 2 and discard 1!"

A weakened version of the Heavenly Gift, this card that draws and piles up the graveyard is always useful. It's basically a card that can be easily maxed out to 3. Because of this, this card can only be used freely in the heavily restricted Rush Duel, and it also needs to meet the requirement of high-speed counters.

Jack, who was behind, managed to catch up just in time. Seeing that his opponent had two high-speed spells in his starting hand, he taunted, "Looks like your hand is really bad!"

"It's really bad, but it's more than enough to deal with someone like you who only knows how to attack... After all, you never learn your lesson. No matter how many times you fall into the same trap, you'll always fall into it again!"

Since being awakened, aside from completing the tasks assigned by K, Darkness has spent most of its time analyzing and learning from the guys who defeated it in the past.

With the partial access granted by K, Darkness obtained much of Leyou's information in this world. Darkness also displayed its original "eager to learn" nature, learning many things from Leyou that it didn't yet know if they would be useful.

However... judging from the obvious anger on Jack's face, Darkness felt that he had indeed learned something very useful.

At the very least, that guy is really good at provoking his opponents.

"The instant I discarded this card from my hand! The effect of [Cerberus the Divine Beast] in my Graveyard activated. If this card is discarded from my hand to the Graveyard, I summon this card!"

"Please enjoy the feast I've prepared for you!"

Chapter Fourteen: Oh my god! Jack didn't crash!

"The Demonic Beast? Hmph, Unico is indeed a very troublesome monster, but in a high-speed duel, Unico doesn't have much room to maneuver!"

When it comes to his first impression of the Beast of Devastation, Jack immediately thinks of that monster that is practically invincible under certain circumstances. However, Jack is not worried about that now, because powerful cards often come with risks or limitations, and Unico's limitations are among the more significant ones.

"Is this all the knowledge you have?" Darkness mimicked Leyou's tone, turning back to Jack and taunting him, "Old relic from the past can only go this far! Next, I'll show you what a duel in the new era is all about!"

"【High Speed ​​Magic - Accumulation Rise】! You can only activate this effect if you have 2 or more High Speed ​​Counters. Send any card from your hand to the Graveyard. For each card sent to the Graveyard, gain 2 more High Speed ​​Counters."

"I send 1 card from my hand to the Graveyard, increasing my counters to 7!"

Under Jack's questioning gaze, Darkness's speed surged again. After several accelerations, even though they were still in a duel, Jack could only hang far behind Darkness, inhaling its exhaust fumes, unable to catch up at all.

If it weren't for the fact that the arena in Speed ​​Duel displays the opponent's duel information on the D-Wheel, Jack probably wouldn't even be able to see his opponent's actions.

"Continuously adding counters... There are indeed powerful cards in high-speed magic, but starting so aggressively and depleting his hand to only one card, how is he supposed to continue?"

While Jack was still pondering his opponent's next move, Darkness suddenly reappeared not far ahead of him—as if deliberately mocking Jack for not being able to keep up and slowing down on its own.

"Relax, I'm not that bored! The card I just sent to the graveyard was 'Swift Anglerfish.' According to its effect, if it is sent to the graveyard from the hand or deck, you can Special Summon up to two Level 3 or lower monsters with 'Swift' in their name, other than the same card."

"I'm specifically recruiting two Swift Beavers!"

[Water · 2★ · Beast · Defense 100]

"Adjustment plus non-adjustment, but not Unicron... could it be..."

Jack immediately thought of a very troublesome monster—[Rainbow Proclaimer], which comes with a counter-attack and a basic version of the Cosmic effect. Although its attack and defense are very low, it can be Normal Summoned to kill a monster and then unleash its full potential. However, doing so would mean wasting its Battle Pass.

"But... you could have Special Summoned 2 but only Special Summoned 1. Was it to protect against Meteorite? Or was it simply because you didn't want to waste the Rainbow Light?"

Jack was having a bit of a headache. He'd seen a lot of decks before, but the world of duels was just so "colorful"—someone could come up with a fancy concoction out of some random deck at any time.

Jack has never been one to hide his emotions, and Darkness saw right through him, saying, "Put away your thoughts. This is the glory bestowed upon me by the Creator, a deck far beyond your comprehension!"

"Next up is the third High Speed ​​Spell, [High Speed ​​Spell - Downshift]! Remove 6 of your High Speed ​​Counters to activate this spell, and draw 2 cards from your Deck!"

The markers that had just been built up using several cards instantly returned to their original state. Darkness slowed down prematurely, and now his D-wheel was keeping pace with Jack.

If someone were monitoring this duel at this moment, they would probably go insane from seeing two identical Jacks.

"Now, let me show you the true core of my deck!"

"[Satellite Shining - Blue Jet Spirit] is in my hand! Based on its effect, if there's a Level 2 monster on the field, I can Special Summon it!"

"This is an extraordinary power that an old relic like you has never seen before!"

Darkness was overjoyed. He remembered that when K bestowed this deck upon him, he also told him that it was one of the first decks created specifically to destroy the world, and that he was among the first to use it.

After becoming familiar with the series, Darkness believed that with this deck, he was invincible—his previous decks were indeed very powerful, and decks like Ethereal Spirit could indeed defeat most of his enemies, but... if he had used Satellite Shining, he felt that he would not have lost to Leyou.

Compared to Darkness's excitement, Jack was completely bewildered.

"Satellite Shining? Wasn't this series used by someone two or three months ago? What's going on with this guy? Or is there something strange about this series?"

"However, purely in terms of strength, Satellite Shining is indeed very powerful, and I must be careful... Wait, Blue Jet Spirit has already appeared, so what about my card...?"

"Let's witness the power of the satellite Shining!" Darkness shouted excitedly, interrupting Jack's thoughts.

"Blue Jet Spirit's effect: Search the deck for [Satellite Shining - Red Sprite]!"

"And just like the blue Jetfire, the red Pokémon can be Special Summoned directly!"

In the blink of an eye, Darkness had four Level 2 monsters on her field, and she hadn't even used her Normal Summon yet.

"Now, reveal yourself! Great circuit of God!"

In imitation of its creator, Darkness summoned a connection circuit above its head.

"The summoning condition is 2 monsters, including a Level 2, Rank 2, and Link 2 monster! I've set Beaver and Blue Jet Spirit as arrows!"

"Link Summon! Link 2! Unleash the lightning! [Satellite Shining Splinder]!"

[Flame - Link 2 - Lightning - Attack Power 1400 - Arrow ↙↗]

Red jets and blue lightning converged and exploded in the air, slowly transforming into a humanoid form. The brand-new satellite Shining descended upon this place as if it were a twin.

The dazzling light made Jack feel vaguely uneasy.

"Splinter's effect can only be activated if a Link Summon is successful, and 1 Level 2 monster is sent to the Graveyard from your Deck!"

"A level 2 graveyard monster? There aren't any really strong level 2 monsters, are there?" Jack thought to himself, but his hands were already moving.

The deck has two Level 2 monsters in the graveyard, and another Link 2 can Special Summon a Level 2 monster from the graveyard. In other words, Satellite Shining has the ability to summon all Level 2 monsters. This level of summoning ability deserves respect.

Moreover, if you don't show respect now, you really won't have the chance to show respect later.

Although it certainly won't work, it still needs to be submitted, as it will have some effect.

"At this very moment! I will chain your activation, activate this card!"

"The effect of [Primal Lifeform Nibiru] in my hand! It will..."

"Don't even think about it!" Darkness interrupted Jack before he could finish speaking, as if he had expected it.

"The effect of the red spirit on the field releases my Demon Beast, negating your effect!"

The red sprite quietly approached Cerberus from behind, and while it wasn't paying attention, it stunned it with electricity. Then it was carried into the sky and launched like a cannonball to block the incoming meteorite.

"This is a necessary sacrifice!" the red elf thought, clapping his hands.

Seeing this, Jack breathed a slight sigh of relief. With the adjustment monster gone, at least Rainbow Light couldn't come out, which was equivalent to getting rid of one and a half Kangs, so it wasn't a loss.

"Your meteorite has been neutralized; continue processing Springer's effects."

Darkness grinned sinisterly, eagerly anticipating Jack's reaction upon seeing the monster.