Yu-Gi-Oh!: This isn't a duel!

"Take this hit!"

You Yang's voice was like the tolling of a judgment bell:

"Meteor Flash Strike—!!"

With a deafening roar, the dragon scales on its body, which were like crystal carvings, instantly burst forth with a dazzling light that surpassed the sun.

The light split rapidly in the air, transforming into two terrifying meteor trails that intertwined and entwined.

A beam of blazing white light, like the first ray of light at the beginning of creation; a beam of deep blue light, like the most mysterious star in the deep sea.

Two streaks of light spiraled and intertwined in the air, carrying the will to purify all evil and judge all things, tearing through the sky along their path and piercing straight through Kelos's body!

"boom--!!!"

Kairus knelt on one knee and withstood the attack.

[Kyros: 8000 → 4700]

Before the dust had settled, You Yang gave his opponent no chance to catch his breath, launching a relentless barrage of attacks:

"It's not over yet! Next, I'll use the [Flowing Sky Savior Star Dragon] to launch a direct attack on you!"

"Meteor Salvation Jet Sonic Speed!"

This time, it's an even more terrifying convergence of energy.

The immense radiance once again coalesced in the dragon's mouth, transforming into a destructive sonic torrent that shot towards Kelos, who had just regained his footing.

Faced with this deadly blow, Kelos, who was kneeling on the ground and dressed in rags, suddenly raised his head. Although there was blood on the corner of his mouth, his eyes revealed an almost insane determination.

With trembling hands, he revealed his last trump card!

"At this very moment!"

"I activate the effect of the monster from my hand—[Warbreaker]!"

"Can only be activated when the opponent's monster declares a direct attack."

Special Summon this card from your hand!

"After that, forcibly end the combat phase!"

"If this card, Special Summoned by this effect, leaves the field, it is banished."

With his roar, a bizarre, pendulum-like demonic mechanical monster appeared out of thin air in front of him.

The "tick-tock" sound emitted by the monster seemed to forcibly distort the flow of time, building an absolute barrier in this life-or-death moment.

I will Special Summon it!

"Stop right now—end your combat phase!!"

Kairos's gaze was fixed on the majestic dragon in the arena, his eyes behind his glasses flashing rapidly as his brain worked at lightning speed.

That [Warbreaker] card was originally his "trump card" that he had specially reserved for [Flowing Sky Savior Star Dragon].

According to his plan, [Survivor Star Dragon], as an ace card that appears and is revived through proper procedures, will have its effect reappear as its status is refreshed, unless there is a restriction that this card can only be used once per turn.

But just considering its conditions for being used, such a restriction shouldn't exist.

Every step he took before—including that seemingly reckless "spherical chestnut ball"—was actually a decoy.

He tried to force out the nullification and exclusion effects of [Flowing Sky Savior Star Dragon], thereby leaving Youyang's field empty.

Subsequently, even if You Yang launches further attacks, as long as this [Warbreaker] card passes, the battle phase can be forcibly ended.

In this way, although some damage may be suffered, at least one can survive and minimize the losses.

"Although the spherical chestnut ball was perfectly deflected... that was my mistake."

Kelos gritted his teeth, cold sweat trickling down his face.

"But it's not a big problem! This is still an acceptable one-on-one exchange!"

"As long as I force that dragon to leave the field, the remaining weak Stardust Synchron will be no threat to my health!"

"Want to end the battle phase? Not so easy!"

You Yang's eyes sharpened, and without the slightest hesitation, he said as expected:

"Chain your [Warbreaker] effect!"

"I activate the effect of [Flowing Sky Savior Star Dragon]!"

"Once per turn, can only be activated when the opponent activates the effect."

"This card is banished until the End Phase, negating and banishing that activation!"

"Disappear into the end of starlight! I banish myself, nullify your [Warbreaker] effect, and—utterly banish you!"

Before the words were finished, the [Flowing Sky Savior Star Dragon] roared to the sky, and the pair of huge wings made of pure starlight on its back suddenly unfolded, as if they covered the entire sky.

The wings of light were not physical objects, but rather a convergence of countless starlight. They stirred up a spatial vortex, instantly devouring the strangely swaying [Warbreaker] in front of them!

Immediately afterwards, the dragon itself transformed into a dazzling stream of light, and together they plunged into the torn spatial rift, disappearing into the vast void.

At this moment, Vivian, who was watching from the sidelines, frowned slightly, and her fingers unconsciously clenched the hem of her clothes.

“Using the only terminal monster to exchange for a defensive hand trap... such a ‘pair’ is not worthwhile for Youyang.”

Although the battle phase was prevented from being forcibly ended, the loss of the strongest ace on the field was far too risky.

unless……

She and Kairos shared a surprisingly similar thought—they both believed that the reason the [Flowing Sky Savior Star Dragon] dared to leave so recklessly was because it possessed some kind of ability to return on its own.

However, what happened the next second completely overturned their understanding.

On the field, You Yang remained calm. He did not look up at the sky to wait for the dragon to return, but slowly reached out his hand towards the graveyard.

"It's not over yet."

You Yang held the card that had popped out of the graveyard between his fingers and showed it to everyone, his voice calm yet filled with an air of absolute confidence:

"Activate the effect of the [Strike Synchron] in the Graveyard!"

"This can only be activated if a face-up Dragon Synchro Monster on your field is Tributed or banished."

"Ban this card from your graveyard and target that monster."

"That monster—Special Summon!"

As You Yang finished speaking, a strange fluctuation erupted in the cemetery area.

"I removed it from the cemetery, in exchange—"

You Yang slammed the card in his hand into the banished area of ​​the Duel Disk, then pointed it at the void that had just closed:

"Return from the other side of the dimension! Descend once more—[Flowing Sky Savior Star Dragon]!!"

"what?!"

At that moment, Vivian and Kairos exclaimed in shock almost simultaneously, their pupils dilating violently and their faces filled with disbelief.

Who could have imagined that the seemingly insignificant little [Strike Synchron], which had previously served as a mere stepping stone, would become the key piece in reversing the entire battle and forming a perfect closed loop after being buried in the graveyard!

"Crack—Boom!"

The void shattered once again. Without waiting for the round to end, the pure white dragon, which should have temporarily left the field, actually tore through the spatial barrier and, accompanied by an even more violent stardust storm, once again stood domineeringly in the center of the battlefield!

That feeling of desperate oppression was even stronger than before!

Seeing Kairos's completely frozen expression, You Yang mercilessly swung his arm down, issuing the declaration of the end:

"Now that all the obstacles blocking your way have been cleared..."

"The battle continues! I will launch a direct attack on you with [Meteor Savior Star Dragon]!!"

The suffocating pale stardust glow gathered once more in the dragon's mouth, and the aura of death swept over us.

Driven to the brink of despair, Kelos once again summoned a card and roared.

"Don't think you can defeat me like this! — At this very moment!"

Facing the torrent of stardust that was about to engulf everything, Kelos's eyes were about to burst, and he used almost the last of his strength to throw the card in his hand in front of him!

"I activate the effect of my monster—[Kite Robot]!"

"Discard this card from your hand. Any combat damage I take from you during battle will become 0!"

"Stop it!!"

As the card landed, a series of rapid mechanical transformation sounds echoed in the void. A comically shaped mechanical object, resembling a kite, appeared out of thin air. It spread its not-so-wide wings, transforming into a gentle yet resilient shield of light, forcefully blocking the devastating beam of stardust.

"boom--!"

The violent impact kicked up a cloud of dust.

Looking at the mechanical monster stubbornly resisting in the radiance, a hint of surprise flashed in You Yang's originally calm eyes.

"That design... [Kite Robot]?"

In his memory, this card was a special card used by a famous guy, and it didn't seem to have been made into a physical card in his original world.

Unexpectedly, it has become a real hand pit in this world.

On the other side, the smoke and dust gradually dissipated.

"Hahaha……"

Kelos was panting heavily, his chest heaving violently, and cold sweat had already soaked through his clothes.

Although this is not a "dark duel" where lives are at stake, duelists at their level unknowingly unleash a substantial release of elven power with every attack or summon.

Although he was spared from harm, the terrifying impact transmitted through the light shield still made his internal organs ache.

His hands were trembling slightly, but the light in his eyes did not go out.

"This is truly the last resort to save our lives..."

Kelos gritted his teeth. He knew his [Tech Genus] deck was weak in terms of sustain, so he deliberately included a lot of cards in the deck that could help him survive the battle phase.

Victory can be achieved by delaying the battle and exchanging resources with the opponent.

He never expected that You Yang would be so unreasonable. His fierce and relentless attacks gave him no chance to breathe and forced him to use up all his hand-pit resources.

"However... fortunately, the effect of [Kite Robot] is not limited to the hand."