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

"Sizzle—!!"

Just as they were about to break through the outer firewall, a piercing screech of brakes exploded in everyone's minds.

The previously smooth data flow suddenly became chaotic and turbulent.

Several eerie figures, like ghosts, slowly emerged from the fog of data, blocking their path.

"Boss, watch out! These are the guys!"

Lena's voice held a hint of tension. She abruptly stopped, shielding You Yang behind her, and warily eyed the group of monsters emanating an ominous aura ahead.

"This is the culprit that just chased us so hard—the data ghost that roams the outskirts of the virtual world!"

"—【Phantom Spirit】!!"

Seemingly sensing the powerful aura emanating from You Yang, which belonged to a top duelist, the strangely shaped data ghosts that had been baring their fangs and claws in the data stream did not launch an attack rashly.

Instead, they began to emit a piercing electronic hum, and countless fragments of code, like iron filings attracted by a magnet, frantically converged towards the center.

"Zizi...Zizi..."

Amidst a sickeningly distorted sound, the scattered data blocks finally merged and reassembled, transforming into a humanoid creature emitting a faint blue light.

She hovered in mid-air, surrounded by unstable data gibberish. On her seemingly exquisite but lifeless face, a pair of electronic eyes flickered with an alternating red light.

A jumbled and shrill electronic synthesized voice came from her mouth. The voice seemed to be forcibly pieced together from countless damaged audio files, directly piercing You Yang's meninges and making his already dizzy brain, which was still feeling dizzy during the transmigration, even more uncomfortable.

"Forbidden...to go...take me...with you..."

Intermittent words, accompanied by static from the electrical circuits, kept coming out of her mouth.

She seemed to be trying hard to express some kind of desire, or some kind of warning.

But at this moment, trapped in the perilous data tunnel, You Yang clearly had no patience to slowly decipher this riddle that resembled gibberish.

"I don't understand what you're saying. Since you're blocking my way, then don't be rude, monster!"

You Yang's eyes sharpened, and he suddenly stretched his left arm out to his side.

"Crack!"

With a crisp mechanical opening sound, the silver-white duel disk lit up automatically, its sharp edges reflecting a cold glint under the glow of the data stream.

The moment the creature named Titania saw the Duel Disk unfold, the chaotic red light in its eyes suddenly faded considerably.

Instead, there is a cold blue light that belongs to the program and is absolutely rational.

That is the Law of Duel, engraved in the underlying logic of all Duel Monsters and Pokémon.

Her expression instantly became clear and fluent, without the slightest hesitation:

"Duel, Titania, accept the challenge."

"The winners will gain power; the losers will be banished to the void forever."

A confident smile curved You Yang's lips, his eyes burning with fighting spirit.

"That's right. Is this the rule we're supposed to follow?"

"Then let's see what this roadblock is made of!"

Seeing this, Lena, the twins, and Xiaoye immediately understood and retreated, creating a safe distance and leaving this area for the upcoming battlefield.

"Om-"

A pale golden spherical data barrier instantly opened, enveloping You Yang and Titania within it.

【DUEL START!】

[Titania: LP 8000] [Youyang: LP 8000]

A virtual coin, shimmering with neon blue light, flew high between the two, spinning in the data stream and leaving a dazzling afterimage.

Finally, with a crisp "ding," the coin fell to the ground.

The side with Titania's image printed on it should face up.

"Judgment confirmed. I choose to attack first."

Titania's voice was devoid of any emotion.

As the two players drew their starting five cards from their automatically shuffled decks, the duel concerning their fates in the real world and the virtual world officially began!

"My turn, draw a card."

Titania's movements were stiff yet precise; she displayed the card she had drawn and then slammed it onto the duel disk.

"I Normal Summon from my hand—[Phantom Spirit: Cyber ​​Puppet Master]!"

"Click, click..."

A strange, creaking sound rang out. On the field in front of Titania, countless green data cables intertwined wildly, eventually coalescing into a mechanical monster that resembled a marionette.

It has exaggerated limbs and a pale white mask, with a long fiber optic tail trailing behind it, exuding a chilling aura.

【Phantom Spirit - Network Puppet Master】【★4】【Light/Mage Race/Effect】【Attack: 1600 / Defense: 1700】

Chapter 279 Rewriting the System's Laws, Let the Wailing Resound Throughout the World! The Phantom Spirit - King of Privacy, Banshee

"Effect activated."

Titania declared mechanically:

"【Phantom Spirit - Network Puppet Master】can only be activated if the summoning is successful."

"Descend to your field and set 1 'Transforming Trap' card from your deck."

"Based on the effect, I choose to place 'Haunted Deathlock of the Metamorphosis Spirit' directly onto the field from my deck!"

As the threads in the puppeteer's hands danced, a card exuding a dark aura flew directly from the deck, leaving a trail of afterimages that covered the back row.

"Next, we'll work on the effects."

"The effect of the Continuous Trap Card [Haunted Deadlock of the Ethereal Spirit] applies."

"This card, which is Set by the effect of 'Transfiguration', can still be activated during the turn it is Set."

"I activate it and use the first effect of [Haunted Deadlock of the Metamorphosis Spirit]."

Titania pointed to the graveyard. "As part of the effect processing when this card is activated, send 1 'Transfiguration' monster from your hand to the graveyard."

"I send [Phantom Tempest - Malware Will-o'-the-Wisp] from my hand to the Graveyard."

A card vanished as a ghostly green flame. Immediately afterward, Titania's cold, electronic eyes locked onto the puppet monster on the field once more:

"Next, I activate the second effect of [Phantom Stalker - Network Puppet Master]."

"You can target 1 'Phantom Spirit' card on your field and 1 'Phantom Spirit' monster in your Graveyard; this effect can be activated."

"Send the target card to the Graveyard, and Special Summon the target monster from the Graveyard."

"Target locked—the Continuous Trap Card on the field, [Haunted Deadlock by the Phantom Trap], and the [Phantom Trap: Malware Will-O-Wisp] in the Graveyard!"

"exchange."

As soon as the command was given, the trap card that had just been revealed on the field instantly disintegrated, turning into countless data fragments that flooded into the graveyard.

At the same time, a blinding white light burst forth from her grave!

"Awaken, ghost lurking in malicious code."

A pure white mechanical construct surrounded by ghostly flames slowly rose from the vortex of the graveyard and floated beside the Network Puppet Master.

【Phantom Spirit - Malware Will-o'-the-Wisp】【★3】【Light/Mage/Effect】【Attack: 1500 / Defense: 0】

At this point, two monsters had gathered on the field.

Everyone present immediately knew what was going to happen next.

Suddenly, Titania stretched out her hand, palm facing upwards.

The background of the entire data space instantly darkened, and a dazzling connection loop suddenly opened behind her, with eight connecting arrows flashing with a dangerous light.

"Circuit activated!"

"The summoning condition is: 2 'Phantom Spirit' monsters!"

"I'm setting the [Phantom Swarm: Malware Will-o'-the-Wisp] and [Phantom Swarm: Network Puppet Master] on the field to the connection markers!"

The two monsters instantly transformed into two streaks of light, one green and one white, rushing precisely into the two connecting arrows below and to the right of the circuit, accompanied by a whistling sound.

"Arrow confirmed! Summoning conditions met!"

"Connect Summon!"

"Use this body as a medium to weave a curse that leads to an unknown otherworld!"

"Show yourself, LINK-2!"

"—【The Phantom Spirit: Sixteen Witches Hestia】!!"

From the depths of the blinding light of the connecting circuit, accompanied by a metallic rumble, a strange beast with an ancient brass hue slowly crawled out.

It has six sharp mechanical limbs, and each step it takes on the ground made of data streams sends sparks flying.

The enormous bull-horned head was engulfed in flames, a twisted fusion of mythology and technology.

【Phantom Spirit - Sixteen Witches Hestia】【LINK-2】【→】【↓】【Fire/Mage/Link/Effect】【Attack Power: 1500】

Titania's emotionless electronic eyes flickered, and she stiffly but precisely flicked a card from her hand:

"Then, I activated the magic card from my hand—[One-on-One]."

"You can activate this effect by sending 1 monster from your hand to the Graveyard."

Special Summon 1 Level 1 monster from your hand or Deck.

She pinched a card between two fingers, and the card instantly disintegrated into countless green data fragments at her fingertips.

"I discarded the [Phantom Spirit - Ethereal Feathered Spirit] from my hand as a price."

"Based on the effect, Special Summon from the Deck: [Melusive Spirit of the Shadows - Seeker Melusin]!"

There were no dazzling entrance effects, only ripples of dark blue data spreading across the field.

A little blue mermaid, clad in high-tech exoskeleton armor and holding an exquisite staff, gracefully emerges in the light.