The storm descended upon the earth like a heavy warhammer, as the king of birds and beasts arrived accompanied by the hum of metallic wings, with cold light shining in its blood-red eyes.
[Gladiator Beast Gyzarus, attack power 2400]
"This servant..." Set seemed to have sensed the boundless power contained within this Ancient Roman King, slightly raising his eyebrows.
"Gladiator Beast Gyzarus' effect," Youyu said, "when successfully summoned, destroy up to two cards on the field. Destroy the Two-Headed Thunder Dragon and Thunder Dragon!"
The green alloy wings unfolded behind Gyzarus. He flew into the air, releasing red spikes that poured down like a deluge, piercing through the bodies of the two Thunder Dragons, and the two monsters exploded on the spot.
Set raised his arm to shield himself: "Annihilated in an instant?"
"Equip Magic 'Gladiator Beast's Battle Halberd,' equipping it to 'Gladiator Beast Gyzarus,'" Youyu continued.
A long halberd appeared in Gyzarus' hand, with its tip glowing a searing red.
"Battle, Gladiator Beast Gyzarus, direct attack on the player!"
Gyzarus soared into the sky, folding its wings back, its enormous body hidden at the center of a Mystical Space Typhoon, striking like a shooting star! The halberd was thrust straight forward, leaving an eye-catching shooting star-like trail in the air.
Boom!!!
Facing the bombardment, the impact upon landing exploded outward, blasting the young priest's entire body backward.
Egyptian soldiers were shocked. "Lord Set!"
[Set, LP 4000 → LP 1600]
"The effect of 'Gladiator Beast's Battle Halberd,' after the equipped monster battles, one Magic or Trap Card on the field is destroyed." Youyu pointed to the opponent's field, "I'll destroy the Continuous Magic 'Solidarity.'
This way, Thunder-Type monsters can no longer increase their attack power."
Gyzarus circled once and hovered in mid-air, waving its arm to launch the halberd, piercing through the Solidarity stone tablet. The halberd transformed into a beam of laser light piercing through the stone, leaving a noticeable hole, and the entire stone tablet collapsed into fragments.
"Gladiator Beast Gyzarus' effect: after the battle ends, Gyzarus returns to the card deck, and two Gladiators other than 'Gladiator Beast Noxious' are summoned to the field." Youyu said as the Duel Disc ejected two cards from the card deck.
"Come forth, Gladiator Beast Vespasius, Gladiator Beast Andal!"
The sea dragon-like Gladiator Beast and the bear-like Gladiator Beast both fell onto the field, positioned on either side of Youyu.
[Gladiator Beast Vespasius, attack power 2300]
[Gladiator Beast Andal, attack power 1900]
"The effect of Equip Magic 'Gladiator Beast's Battle Halberd,' when the equipped monster returns to the card deck, this card can be returned to the hand instead of being destroyed." Youyu retrieved the Equip Magic, while continuing to explain.
"Gladiator Beast Vespasius' effect, when he is present on the field, all our monsters' attack power increases by 500."
[Gladiator Beast Vespasius, attack power 2300 → attack power 2800]
[Gladiator Beast Andal, attack power 1900 → attack power 2400]
Although Set didn't quite understand the modern technical terminology used by Youyu, he took it as a unique explanation of the 'Battle Ceremony' from Youyu's place.
But Set could understand the changing situation on the field in his own way, even without Youyu's explanation. Although he couldn't see data messages, he could sense the remaining Life Points through soul power and accurately judge the strength of the monster's combat power through their aura.
However, ordinary Egyptian soldiers couldn't sense these things. In their eyes, all they saw was the summoning of spirits to fight each other, and from their perspective, it appeared that the outsider was gaining the upper hand.
The soldiers couldn't help but be astonished.
Who exactly is this outsider? Able to gain the upper hand in combat against the priest?
"Magic Card 'Gladiator Beast's Respite' activated," Youyu said, "return two Gladiator Beast Cards from hand to the card deck, then draw three cards."
He drew two cards, casually inserted them into the card deck, and the card deck in the Duel Disc slot quickly shuffled automatically. He then replenished three cards to his hand.
"Set one card face-down, turn finished."
Set was equally surprised by the strength of the spirits controlled by the outsider and their combat capabilities, but he quickly adjusted his mindset to focus on the battle.
"Then, it's my turn."
A new stone tablet descended before him. Set glanced at it, without much thought, he immediately activated it.
"I lift the seal on this stone tablet, unleashing the blessing Magic 'Pot of Greed'!" he exclaimed, "replenishing my usable stone tablets to five, but as a penalty, all my stone tablets will be destroyed after five turns!"
Youyu: "..."
Fluid as the CEO, unchanging as the Pot of Greed.
Who would've thought that this against-all-odds Divine Card was inherited from ancient times and has been used since then...
"I use the special ability sealed within the stone tablet of 'Thunder Dragonroar'!" Set exclaimed, "discarding the stone tablet sealed with 'Thunder Dragonroar,' allows me to retrieve 'Thunder Dragon' stone tablets from the graveyard or banished area!"
'Thunder Dragonroar,' by discarding a card from hand, allows retrieving Thunder Dragon Monsters from the graveyard or banished zone.
"Return to my hand, Thunder Dragonhawk!"
The stone tablet of Thunder Dragonroar transformed into golden light and dissipated, and the stone tablet of the discarded Thunder Dragonhawk from the last turn quickly returned to Set's side.
"Next, banish the Light Attribute Thunder Dragon and the Dark Attribute Thunder Dragonroar from the graveyard!"
Set held up the Millennium Rod high. The rod gleamed with golden light, blue lightning tore through the heavens and fell, striking behind Set.
"Descend! Thunder Dragonduo!"
Black clouds rolled, from within the thunderclouds emerged two pitch-black heads! The thunder and lightning were like bright sparks, as the dragon's body surged forth, its heavy form shattering the earth, causing the entire space to shake violently with black stones splattered from the cracked ground.
Thunder Dragonduo, summon!
[Thunder Dragonduo, Attack Power 2800]
Thunder Dragonduo cannot be normally summoned, but can be specially summoned by banishing a Light Attribute and Dark Attribute monster each from the game.
"Then activate the special ability of the recently recovered Thunder Dragonhawk again!" Set continued, "By discarding the sealed Thunder Dragonhawk stone tablet from my hand, I can summon a monster from the graveyard or banished area back to the field!"
Thunder Dragonhawk, when discarded from the hand, can specially summon a Thunder Dragon monster from the graveyard or banished zone.
The stone tablet of Thunder Dragonhawk was discarded, and Set immediately raised his arm: "Return to my side, Twin-Headed Thunder Dragon!"
Golden currents crackled as they erupted through space, and the Twin-Headed Dragon that hastily retreated last turn twisted its body to arrive once again!
[Twin-Headed Thunder Dragon, Attack Power 2800]
"Moreover, at this moment, Thunder Dragonduo's combat strength will be enhanced!"
Thunder Dragonduo has a monster effect that can be activated once per turn when played from the hand; its attack power can increase by 300 until the turn ends.
[Thunder Dragonduo, Attack Power 2800 → Attack Power 3100]
"Go, Thunder Dragonduo! Destroy that blue Gladiator Beast!"
Yugi guessed blindly that maybe the name Vespasius was too long and complicated for Set to remember, so he simply said, "Attack the blue Gladiator Beast"...
The pitch-black Twin-Headed Dragon roared upward, lightning tore through the dark clouds, and azure lightning pierced down from the sky, resembling a divine punishment from the heavens!
The powerful armor of the Gladiator Beast warrior was pierced by the lightning, and its body was charred and exploded into pieces amidst the thunder, bowing out of the battle.
[Youyu, LP 1700 → LP 1400]
"Because Vespasius was destroyed, Gladiator Beast Andal's attack power decreases," Yugi said.
[Gladiator Beast Andal, Attack Power 2400 → Attack Power 1900]
"Thunder Dragonduo's special ability," Set said as well, "when it defeats a servant controlled by the opponent, it can summon a new stone tablet to descend!"
When Thunder Dragonduo destroys an opponent's monster in battle, by banishing a card from the graveyard, a Thunder-Type monster can be added to the hand from the deck.
Set chose to banish the Magic Card "Defense Block" from the graveyard, and chose to add another "Thunder Dragonhawk" into his hand from the deck.
"Continue the pursuit," Set continued, "Twin-Headed Thunder Dragon, attack Gladiator Beast Andal!"
The Twin-Headed Thunder Dragon raised its heads high, golden lightning pierced forth with an aura of unstoppable force!
Yugi slightly curled the corner of his mouth: "This is the moment I've been waiting for."
"Nani?"
"Activate Trap - Double Passe!" Yugi waved his hand, "When your opponent's monster declares an attack on your Attack Position monster, this card can be activated. Your opponent's attack becomes a direct attack on my side!"
"What?" Set's eyes shifted.
If the Twin-Headed Thunder Dragon crushes Andal, it would only inflict 900 battle damage, leaving Yugi with 500 life points.
But after activating this trap card, Twin-Headed Thunder Dragon's attack becomes a direct attack, dealing 2800 damage, directly defeating Yugi!
Could this be self-destructive?
"At this moment, activate the effect of Gladiator Beast Noxious from my hand," Yugi revealed a card from his hand, "When the opponent declares a direct attack, Noxious can be specially summoned from the hand, then the attack target forcibly changes to Noxious, and it won't be destroyed by this battle!"
[Gladiator Beast Noxious, Defense 1000]
The thunder summoned by Thunder Dragonduo forcibly altered its direction, first aiming at Yugi, then quickly shifted again toward Noxious. However, this temporary leopard-like Gladiator Beast demonstrated incredible resilience, enduring the lightning strike, while electrical snakes jumped all over its body, with black smoke swirling, yet overall seemed unharmed.
Set understood: "I see, avoiding damage to oneself, preserving a servant, and simultaneously summoning a new servant, indeed a well-executed evasion..."
"Not only that," Yugi smiled, "the subsequent effect of Double Passe. The monster previously selected as an attack target on my side... the opponent must endure damage equal to that monster's attack power!
That means Gladiator Beast Andal's attack power of 1900 points of damage, swallow it down!"
[Gladiator Beast Andal, Attack Power 1900]
[Set, LP 1600]
Set: "!?"