The instant Lifeless Leaffish hit the field, Yusaku raised his hand again.
"I build the Overlay Network with Lifeless Leaffish and Buzzsaw Shark!"
"Xyz Summon, Rank 4: Bahamut Shark!"
The familiar golden vortex opened once more, and a third Bahamut Shark burst through it, descending onto the field in full majesty.
Bahamut Shark
Xyz Materials: 2
ATK 2600
"I activate Bahamut Shark's effect! I detach Lifeless Leaffish as Xyz Material!"
Bahamut Shark
Xyz Materials: 2 -> 1
"From my Extra Deck, I Special Summon the Rank 3 WATER Xyz Monster, LeVirtue Dragon!"
LeVirtue Dragon
Rank 3 / Sea Serpent / Xyz / Effect
ATK 2000
The moment the monster appeared, Yusaku shouted again.
"I activate LeVirtue Dragon's effect! When this card is Special Summoned, I can add 1 Virtue Stream from my Deck to my hand!"
"By that effect, I add the Trap Card Virtue Stream from my Deck to my hand!"
After adding the Trap, Yusaku raised a card in his Graveyard, his gaze steady.
"Next, I activate Lifeless Leaffish's effect in the Graveyard!"
"I can banish this card, then target 3 Fish monsters in my Graveyard, shuffle them into the Deck, and draw 1 card!"
"I banish Lifeless Leaffish and return Left-Hand Shark, Surfacing Big Jaws, and Bahamut Shark from my Graveyard to the Deck, then I draw 1 card!"
He glanced at the newly drawn card, then immediately revealed it.
"I activate the Spell Card Reinforcement of the Army! By its effect, I add 1 Level 4 or lower Warrior monster from my Deck to my hand!"
"I search ZS - Armed Sage from my Deck!"
After adding Armed Sage to his hand, Yusaku pulled a card from his Extra Deck.
"Xyz Armor Fortress's effect! Once per turn, I can also Xyz Summon it by placing it on top of a Rank 3 or 4 Xyz Monster I control!"
His eyes fell on the Bahamut Shark on the field, the one with only one material left.
"I target my Bahamut Shark and overlay Xyz Armor Fortress on top of it!"
"Xyz Summon, Rank 5: Xyz Armor Fortress!"
Xyz Armor Fortress
Rank 5 / Machine / Xyz / Effect
ATK 2500
Xyz Materials: 2
"I activate Xyz Armor Fortress's effect!"
Yusaku shouted.
"Once per turn, I can detach up to 2 materials from this card and add that many different Armored Xyz cards from my Deck to my hand!"
"I detach both of its materials!"
Xyz Armor Fortress
Xyz Materials: 2 -> 0
"From my Deck, I add the Spell Card Armored Xyz and the Trap Card Full-Armored Xyz to my hand!"
After adding the 2 cards, Yusaku swung his arm down.
"Next, I overlay Xyz Armor Fortress with Full Armored Crystalzero Lancer!"
"Xyz Summon, Rank 6: Full Armored Crystalzero Lancer!"
Full Armored Crystalzero Lancer
Rank 6 / Warrior / Xyz / Effect
ATK 2200
"I'm still not done!"
Yusaku pulled another card from his Extra Deck, his voice rising.
"I overlay Full Armored Dark Knight Lancer on top of Full Armored Crystalzero Lancer!"
As his words fell, Xyz Armor Fortress turned into a streak of golden light and shot into another Xyz vortex overhead. In the next moment, a monster clad in red-and-black armor slowly descended from the vortex.
Full Armored Dark Knight Lancer
Rank 7 / Aqua / Xyz / Effect
Xyz Materials: 2
ATK 2800
The instant Dark Knight Lancer landed, Yusaku drew yet another card from his Extra Deck.
"Full Armored Utopic Ray Lancer's effect!"
"Once per turn, I can also discard 1 Spell or Trap and place it on top of a Rank 4 or lower Xyz Monster I control to Xyz Summon it!"
"I target my Rank 3 LeVirtue Dragon, discard Full-Armored Xyz from my hand, and overlay Full Armored Utopic Ray Lancer on top of LeVirtue Dragon!"
LeVirtue Dragon turned into a streak of light and flew into a golden Xyz vortex.
A moment later, a black-and-gold mechanical warrior holding a staff and a blade slowly appeared. Its body was sleek and deadly, like a perfectly engineered killing machine, and it landed steadily on the field.
Full Armored Utopic Ray Lancer
Rank 4 / Warrior / Xyz / Effect
ATK 2500
"You just keep overlaying," Nightshroud said, raising a brow. "This kind of Xyz summoning is a first for me. I'll admit it, though, it's definitely resource-efficient."
Yusaku gave him a small, polite nod at exactly the right moment.
"Too kind."
Then he revealed another card from his hand.
"I activate the effect of ZS - Armed Sage in my hand! If I control an Xyz Monster, I can Special Summon this card from my hand! Since I already control Xyz Monsters, I can use this effect to Special Summon it!"
In the next instant, a monster wrapped in bright blue starlight slowly appeared.
ZS - Armed Sage
Level 4 / Warrior / Effect
ATK 0
"This monster's effect," Yusaku said, fixing his eyes on Nightshroud, "lets me send 1 card from my hand or field, except itself, to the Graveyard and add 1 Spell or Trap from my Deck to my hand!"
He revealed the card in his hand.
"I send Right-Hand Shark from my hand to the Graveyard and add the Spell Card Rank-Up-Magic Zexal Force from my Deck to my hand!"
After adding the Spell, Yusaku immediately revealed another card.
"I activate the effect of Hydrojet Shark in my hand! If I control a WATER Xyz Monster, I can Special Summon this card from my hand!"
"I control Toadally Awesome, so I can Special Summon Hydrojet Shark!"
A roar of rushing water echoed out as a mechanical shark shaped like a jet fighter, wrapped in white mist and spray, appeared on the field.
Hydrojet Shark
Level 4 / Fish / Effect
ATK 1000
"I activate Hydrojet Shark's effect!" Yusaku said without hesitation. "During my Main Phase, I can send 1 Fish 'Shark' monster or 1 'Xyz' Spell/Trap from my Deck to the Graveyard!"
"I send the Counter Trap Unbreakable Xyz Barrier from my Deck to the Graveyard!"
The Trap had only just hit the Graveyard when Yusaku continued.
"I activate Full Armored Dark Knight Lancer's effect!"
"Once per turn, I can target 1 'Xyz' card in my Graveyard and add it to my hand! I target the Unbreakable Xyz Barrier I just sent there!"
After recovering the Trap, Yusaku thrust out his hand.
"Next, I build the Overlay Network with Hydrojet Shark and Number 60: Dugares the Timeless!"
"Xyz Summon, Rank 4: Number 60: Dugares the Timeless!"
The Overlay Network unfolded in midair, and a demonic monster in dark robes, surrounded by ghostly blue flames, slowly emerged. It held an ancient staff, and a sinister aura clung to it.
Number 60: Dugares the Timeless
Rank 4 / Fiend / Xyz
Xyz Materials: 2
ATK 1200
"I activate Dugares the Timeless's effect!" Yusaku said immediately. "I detach 2 Xyz Materials!"
"I skip my Draw Phase next turn, draw 2 cards, then discard 1 card!"
He drew and discarded in one smooth motion, then raised his hand again, his voice burning with intensity.
"I build the Overlay Network with the Rank 4 Number 60: Dugares the Timeless and the Rank 4 Full Armored Utopic Ray Lancer!"
"Xyz Summon! Number F0: Utopic Future Zexal!!"
At those words, the 2 monsters became twin streams of dazzling light and flew screaming into the Xyz vortex overhead.
In the next moment, a mech-like warrior clad in gold, gray, and green armor crashed onto the field. Lightning crackled all around it, and it gripped a holy sword glowing with golden light. The very space it pointed toward warped under the pressure.
Number F0: Utopic Future Zexal
Rank 1 / Warrior / Xyz
ATK 0
"I'm still not done!"
Yusaku's voice rang out again.
"I activate the effect of Crystal Shark in my hand!"
"If this card is in my hand or Graveyard, I can target 1 WATER monster on the field, Special Summon this card, and halve that target's ATK!"
"I target my Toadally Awesome and Special Summon Crystal Shark!"
Toadally Awesome
ATK 2200 -> 1100
Crystal Shark
Level 5 / Fish / Effect
ATK 1100
"I activate the Spell Card Monster Reborn!" Yusaku said without pause. "I revive the Level 4 ZS - Armed Sage from my Graveyard!"
A blue resurrection light flared, and Armed Sage reappeared on the field, its starlight shining even more brilliantly.
ZS - Armed Sage
ATK 0
The instant it returned, Yusaku raised his hand sharply.
"I build the Overlay Network with ZS - Armed Sage and Crystal Shark!"
Nightshroud's face immediately flickered with shock.
"?"
"Xyz Summon, Rank 4: Number 39: Utopia!"
Number 39: Utopia
Rank 4 / Warrior / Xyz
ATK 2500
Nightshroud frowned hard as he looked at Number 39: Utopia on the field.
"One Level 4 monster and one Level 5 monster. How did you Xyz Summon a Rank 4 monster with that?"
Yusaku looked at him.
"Crystal Shark's other effect. If I use it for the Xyz Summon of a 'Number' monster, I can treat its Level as 3 or 4!"
"The monster I summoned, Number 39: Utopia, is a Number monster, so naturally I can apply that effect!"
As his words fell, he revealed the final card from his Extra Deck, his voice charged with rising momentum.
"I activate Number S0: Utopic ZEXAL's effect!"
"This card can also be Xyz Summoned by discarding 1 'Rank-Up-Magic' Normal Spell from my hand, then overlaying it on top of a 'Utopia' monster I control!"
Yusaku held up the Rank-Up-Magic in his hand.
"I discard Rank-Up-Magic Zexal Force and overlay Number S0: Utopic ZEXAL on top of Number 39: Utopia. Xyz Summon!"
"Appear, Number S0: Utopic ZEXAL!!!"
A blinding golden burst exploded across the field, the light so intense it seemed ready to tear space itself apart. A waterfall of purple-and-blue starlight poured down from the sky, lighting every face in the arena.
From that radiance emerged a red-haired warrior clad in prismatic armor, surrounded by several golden chains. Every vibration of those chains sent ripples through the air.
Number S0: Utopic ZEXAL
Rank 1 / Warrior / Xyz / Effect
Xyz Materials: 3
ATK 0
"Holy crap! Holy crap! Holy crap!"
The instant the players saw the monster radiating that overwhelming pressure, every one of them stared with eyes wide and mouths hanging open.
"It's the cult leader! The legendary banned cult leader!"
"If the cult leader's out, is there even any point in dueling anymore?!"
"I never thought I'd live to see the day he returned!"
"My god, my cult leader! I finally got to see you come back!"
"This is a no-haircut zone!"
"This deck is supposed to be Fish, so why did it end with all these Hope monsters?"
"How is it not Fish? There's still a Toadally Awesome sitting there, isn't there?"
Listening to the fans' feverish shouting from the stands, the other duelists could only stare blankly at Number S0: Utopic ZEXAL.
It was just a Rank 1 monster with 0 ATK. What was so special about it?
On the field, Nightshroud stared at the red-haired warrior and furrowed his brow. A powerful unease rose in him for no clear reason.
He had dueled countless times, but he had never felt anything like this before.
"Forget it," Nightshroud muttered inwardly, shaking his head. His eyes fell to the gold-glowing card in his hand, and he snorted to himself. "No matter how strong that monster is, it can't be stronger than this card in my hand."
With that thought, his nerves finally relaxed a little.
On the other side, Yusaku's voice rang through the stadium once more.
"Next, I activate Xyz Gift again! This card doesn't have a once-per-turn restriction by name, so I can use it again. I detach Number 60: Dugares the Timeless from Number F0: Utopic Future Zexal and detach 1 Xyz Material from Utopic Draco Future, then draw 2 cards from my Deck!"
After drawing, Yusaku continued.
"Number S0: Utopic ZEXAL's effect! This card gains ATK and DEF equal to the number of its Xyz Materials x 1000!"
"It has 3 Xyz Materials, so its ATK rises by 3000!"
Number S0: Utopic ZEXAL
ATK 0 -> 3000
"Next, I activate the Spell Card Armored Xyz, equipping the FIRE monster Number 60: Dugares the Timeless from my Graveyard to Number S0: Utopic ZEXAL as an Equip Spell!"
Number S0: Utopic ZEXAL
ATK 3000 -> 4200
"Next is Number F0: Utopic Future Zexal's effect!"
"This card gains ATK and DEF equal to the total Ranks of Xyz Monsters on my field and in your Graveyard x 500!"
"On my field, I have the Rank 1 Number S0: Utopic ZEXAL, the Rank 1 Utopic Draco Future, the Rank 7 Full Armored Dark Knight Lancer, the Rank 2 Toadally Awesome, and this card itself counts as Rank 1. That gives me a total Rank of 12!"
"So its ATK rises by 6000!"
Number F0: Utopic Future Zexal
ATK 0 -> 6000
"And finally..."
Yusaku raised his hand and placed 3 cards into his back row one after another, each motion crisp and decisive.
"I Set 3 cards and end my turn!"
With that, 3 clean humming sounds rang out, and 3 face-down cards appeared steadily at Yusaku's feet, their surfaces glowing faintly.
After finishing everything, Yusaku looked up at Nightshroud.
"My turn is over. Your move."
(End of Chapter)
[Get +30 Extra Chapters On — P@tr3on "Zaelum"]
[Every 300 Power Stones = 1 Bonus Chapter Drop]
[Thanks for Reading!]