From the moment Li You used Radiant Phantom Dragon – Lightspeed Draconis to summon Galaxy-Eyes Tachyon Dragon, the outcome of the duel was already sealed.
He didn't bother with any further setup.
"Battle phase," he declared calmly.
Liu Xinghun narrowed his eyes. "Straight into battle? But you only have one Xyz Dragon. Its attack power is equal to mine. At best, you can take out my Laval Inferno Demon. It won't deal much damage."
Li You arched a brow and smirked. "Sore wa dou kana?"
"Huh?!"
Li You opened his palm, eyes blazing with intensity.
"This duel... was already decided the moment we entered this phase!"
"At the start of the battle phase, I activate Galaxy-Eyes Tachyon Dragon's effect. By detaching one material, all other monsters on the field have their effects negated. And—"
He pointed directly at Liu Xinghun.
"—each time you activate a card effect this battle phase, Tachyon Dragon gains 1000 ATK and an additional attack opportunity!"
Liu Xinghun frowned, unimpressed.
"So what? Even if my monsters are neutralized, your Tachyon Dragon only has 3000 ATK. At most, you can trade with one of my Synchros. I'm not scared of a suicide play."
But what Li You did next threw all of that into disarray.
He reached toward his Tachyon Dragon's base and detached a material.
The card was revealed—its name glimmering in silver text:
Galaxy Watcher Dragon(Link-2 / ATK 2000)
Li You smiled. "In response, I activate Galaxy Watcher Dragon's effect from the Graveyard."
"By banishing it during the battle phase, I select one Galaxy-Eyes Tachyon Dragon on my field…"
"…and its ATK becomes equal to its Number × 100."
"Which means—10,700!!"
The crowd gasped. A monstrous power spike in an instant!
Liu Xinghun's eyes flew wide open. "W-What?! Ten thousand seven hundred?!"
Kyūyō Tenma nearly bit his tongue. "How can a card have an effect that insane?! That's basically an instant kill!"
Li You chuckled. "Of course, there's a trade-off. As compensation, any battle damage dealt to the opponent this turn is halved."
Liu Xinghun exhaled shakily, some color returning to his face.
But even then, taking 5,000+ in one swing was still disastrous.
Then—his eyes flicked to one of his monsters on the field.
And froze.
His pupils shrank as realization struck him like thunder.
Oh no…
Cold sweat instantly soaked his back.
Li You saw his reaction and laughed.
"So you finally realized? Too late."
"What's going on?" Dragon Xingdou asked in confusion.
Yin Xingren furrowed his brows, deep in thought. "…Wait a minute."
Just then, he gasped. "I see now!"
Tenma and Xingdou turned to him at once. "What? What is it?!"
Xingren pointed at one of Liu Xinghun's monsters.
"Demon Dragon – Flygon's second effect—whenever its controller takes damage, its ATK increases by that exact amount!"
Dragon Xingxin, who'd been quietly observing, added, "But Tachyon Dragon's effect negated all monster abilities. Isn't it a blank slate?"
Xingren grimaced. "That's the worst part—it's a mandatory effect!"
The whole crowd fell silent in shock.
Mandatory effects still attempt to resolve, even if they get negated. They still trigger—and that was all Tachyon Dragon needed to go wild.
"It's a traitor…" someone whispered.
In dueling slang, a card like this—whose compulsory trigger ends up hurting its own player—was called a traitor.
And that traitorous trigger just gave Li You's dragon another 1000 ATK… and a second attack!
Tachyon Dragon: ATK 10,700 → 11,700
Liu Xinghun let out a bitter laugh.
"You even used my card's effect against me… Was this all part of your plan?"
Li You simply smiled.
Truth was, he'd been holding a card in hand that could've triggered the boost anyway.
But how could he resist letting his opponent's own monster betray him? The crowd-pleasing impact was worth the detour.
Li You raised his hand high.
"It's over—Tachyon Dragon, attack again!"
"Obliteration Spiral—Double Burst!!"
BOOOOM!!
The space around Liu Xinghun shattered as the dragon's energy erupted—distorting light itself, vaporizing his remaining life points in a golden storm.
Liu Xinghun's body was flung backward, falling hard as his LP counter dropped to zero.
[Duel Over! Victory Achieved!][Win Streak: 3]
It was a flawless, theatrical finish.
And Liu Xinghun… had nothing left to say.
The crowd burst into thunderous applause.
"That was incredible!"
"A one-turn kill! Against Liu Xinghun?! Insane!"
Even Team Satisfaction couldn't help but be impressed.
Dragon Xingdou whooped, "You're amazing! From this day on, I swear—you're my new idol!"
Dragon Xingxin sighed and muttered, "Please stop embarrassing yourself in public…"
Meanwhile, broom-headed Zhang Xingyi helped their captain to his feet.
Liu Xinghun gave Li You a serious look. "You win. Fair and square."
"But I'm not satisfied. This duel made me realize how shallow my strength truly is…"
"I've been sitting in my little Synchro bubble for too long."
"I'll train harder. And next time—we'll duel again."
Li You smiled. "I'll be waiting."
Liu turned to leave.
But Li You called after him.
"Hey—where are you going? The private room should fit seven, right?"
"You guys waited around just as long as we did. You must be starving too."
"Let's eat together."
Liu paused mid-step.
Zhang Xingyi brightened. "Yeah, that's a great idea! I'm starving!"
Dragon Xingdou nodded frantically. "Yes! Let's go, Captain! Food makes everything better!"
Liu Xinghun didn't resist.
And so, amid laughter and cheers, all seven of them headed into the hotpot restaurant.