Chapter 167. Galaxy-Eyes Fights Again vs. ZS Utopia! Four-Engine Patchwork Explodes with Suppression!
Yugi Muto and Pharaoh Atem were still discussing whether this Horus deck had anything to do with his origins.
And the old-guard duelists of the Duel Monsters world were more concerned about the connection between Horus and the Gravekeeper's clan.
By contrast, duelists from the other worlds cared more about Horus's power level.
After one pass through the explanation, the Horus mini-engine's pros and cons were laid bare.
Horus can revive from the Graveyard, and it can set up disruptions during the opponent's turn.
For example, as long as your own cards leave the field by an opponent's effect, you can trigger all kinds of effects.
And because the engine is small, it can be utilized alongside many different decks.
But the downside is obvious too—the engine is extremely dependent on King's Sarcophagus.
Without King's Sarcophagus, its strength drops off sharply.
In the main world, Sei Yuki slowly let out a breath after finishing the video.
To be honest, when playing Master Duel lately, I've been running into a lot of Horus decks.
Horus + Kashtira, Horus + Tearlaments, Horus + Yubel—there are all sorts of builds.
Whenever I run into Horus, my heart skips a beat.
I immediately think something's about to go very wrong.
Horus isn't about whether it's strong or not—it's that kind of matchup that just makes you feel annoyed.
"Whew, may there be no Horus in heaven."
"All right, let's look at the next deck type."
"Let me see, this Galaxy-Eyes video looks like it's pretty hot in the recommendations."
"Then let's watch Galaxy-Eyes again."
"There are a lot of Galaxy-Eyes decks in the Xyz Cup too, so I'll treat this as tech study."
After a bit of searching, Sei Yuki quickly locked onto another Galaxy-Eyes deck.
Once confirmed, the title appeared before everyone's eyes.
"Galaxy-Eyes VS ZS Utopia! Back-and-forth reversals until the very avenue of victory is worn away!"
The duelists across the worlds stirred.
Galaxy-Eyes?
ZS Utopia?
They all knew what Galaxy-Eyes was.
But what on earth was "ZS Utopia"?
Wait a second.
"ZS"?
Could it be the Kashtira tribe?
In the ZEXAL world, Yuma Tsukumo and Astral immediately understood roughly what this duel would be after reading the title.
And Kite Tenjo showed a faint smile.
Last time against Hope, Galaxy-Eyes was defeated.
This time against Hope, surely the wheel of fate should turn, right?
In the short video, duel info appeared.
Pure Galaxy-Eyes vs. ZS Utopia! 26
Both players at 8000 LP.
ZS Utopia had the first turn.
ZS Utopia: "My turn! I've taken first!"
Pure Galaxy-Eyes: "I'll activate Maxx 'C'!"
Pure Galaxy-Eyes: "All right, go ahead and do as you please."
ZS Utopia: "I Special Summon Kashtira Unicorn and search Kashtiratheosis!"
ZS Utopia: "I activate Theosis to Special Summon Kashtira Fenrir from the Deck!"
"I Normal Summon Kashtira Riseheart, banish Scareclaw Kashtira, then banish 3 of your cards from your Deck, and this becomes Level 7!"
"I activate the Continuous Spell Pressured Planet Wraitsoth!"
"By its effect, I Special Summon the banished Scareclaw Kashtira!"
"I overlay Scareclaw Kashtira, Kashtira Riseheart, and Kashtira Unicorn to build the Xyz Network!"
"Three Level 7 monsters, Xyz—!"
"Come forth! Kashtira Arise-Heart!"
"I Set 1 card!"
"My turn is over!"
As expected.
Sure enough.
Seeing this, duelists from all worlds wore unsurprised expressions.
Now that's more like it.
This is what high-tier deck construction looks like.
You can always slot in some deck engine that makes your eyes go dark.
The compact Kashtira monster lineup is undoubtedly the best choice.
A single rush to Xyz sets up Arise-Heart's end-board suppression.
Now let's see how the Galaxy-Eyes player breaks through.
Pure Galaxy-Eyes: "My turn! Draw!"
Pure Galaxy-Eyes: "I tribute your Kashtira Arise-Heart!"
Pure Galaxy-Eyes: "I'm giving you a nice present! Thunder King, the Lightningstrike Kaiju!"
"I activate the effect of Nebula Dragon in my hand, reveal Galaxy-Eyes Afterglow Dragon to Special Summon both!"
ZS Utopia: "I activate Fenrir's effect!"
ZS Utopia: "Banish your Galaxy-Eyes Afterglow Dragon!"
Pure Galaxy-Eyes: "Hold it! I chain my Quick-Play Spell Hyper Galaxy!"
Pure Galaxy-Eyes: "I tribute my Afterglow and your Fenrir!"
"I Special Summon Galaxy-Eyes Photon Dragon!"
"Now I have two Level 8 monsters!"
"Overlay—Xyz Summon!"
"Galaxy-Eyes Cipher Dragon!"
"Stack on top of Cipher!"
"Rank-Up Xyz Summon! Galaxy-Eyes Cipher Blade Dragon!"
"I'll keep ranking up!"
"Armor Xyz Rank-Up Summon! Galaxy-Eyes Full Armor Photon Dragon!"
ZS Utopia: "So cool! That's just too cool!"
ZS Utopia: "So this is a Galaxy-Eyes player, huh?"
ZS Utopia: "Then I'll flip my Set Trap!"
"Solemn Judgment!"
"I pay half my Life Points! When a monster would be Summoned (Normal, Flip, or Special), negate that Summon and destroy those monsters."
"So! Full Armor goes to the Graveyard!"
Galaxy-Eyes's stack-stack-stack got smacked by Grandpa Solemn and negated.
All the Galaxy-Eyes resources were sent to the Graveyard just like that.
Over in the ZEXAL world, even Kite Tenjo was dumbfounded.
What?
You're playing like this?
You burned through that much of the Extra Deck on Galaxy-Eyes?
Even though the opponent paid 4000 LP.
No matter how you look at it, that's super minus.
After eating this interruption—
Can Galaxy-Eyes still extend?
Kite shook his head, forcing himself to calm down and watch the duel again.
But in the video, the pure Galaxy-Eyes duelist showed a strange smile.
That smile left Kite, and even Yuma and Astral beside him, stunned.
You got hit by Grandpa Solemn and you can still smile?
Could it be…
Pure Galaxy-Eyes: "Heh heh heh."
Pure Galaxy-Eyes: "Look at you! Jumping the gun again!"
Pure Galaxy-Eyes: "Now you're done, aren't you? I activate the effect of Triple Tactics Thrust from my hand!"
"I search for this card!"
"That's right! Numbers Last Hope!"
"I pay half my Life Points!"
"I choose Galaxy-Eyes Photon Dragon and Galaxy-Eyes Afterglow Dragon in my Graveyard!"
"Use the two to build the Xyz Network!"
"Xyz Summon!"
"Light and darkness drifting through the cosmos!"
"A sorrowful dragon slumbering in the rift between!"
"Roar, Number 62: Galaxy-Eyes Prime Photon Dragon!"
"Then I perform a Chaos Xyz Rank-Up!"
"Chaos that rolls back the galaxy!"
"Become true radiance!"
"Open the door of hope! Number C62: Neo Galaxy-Eyes Prime Photon Dragon!"
"Now I enter the Battle Phase!"
"I activate Neo Galaxy-Eyes Prime Photon Dragon's effect, detach Afterglow as material! It can attack three times this turn!"
"But that's already irrelevant!"
"I trigger Afterglow's effect, bring out Galaxy-Eyes Photon Dragon! At the same time, my Number C62: Neo Galaxy-Eyes Prime Photon Dragon's ATK doubles!"
"Its ATK reaches 11200!"
"You've only got the Thunder King, the Lightningstrike Kaiju I gifted you on your field!"
"You already spent your Trap!"
"This is my equation for victory!"
"Neo Galaxy-Eyes Prime Photon Dragon, attack!"
Here it comes, here it comes.
The classic Galaxy-Eyes going second—Neo Galaxy-Eyes Prime Photon Dragon plus Galaxy-Eyes Afterglow Dragon combo.
One sequence and you're over ten thousand ATK.
If this connects, ZS Utopia can't possibly endure the damage.
No way.
So fast?
It's going to end this quickly?
Huh?
Sure enough, this combo is the best OTK line.
Unless there's…
Before the duelists across the worlds could think any further, the next move in the video left all of them dumbfounded.
ZS Utopia: "Oh? Solevido-kana?"
ZS Utopia: "I activate the effect of this Rainbow Kuriboh in my hand!"
"When an opponent's monster declares an attack, target that attacking monster!"
"Equip this card from my hand to that monster; it can't attack."
Pure Galaxy-Eyes: "It's useless! Neo Galaxy-Eyes Prime Photon Dragon is unaffected by monster effects!"
Pure Galaxy-Eyes: "Keep attacking!"
ZS Utopia: "Is that really true? Your card-text language score is failing!"
ZS Utopia: "My Rainbow Kuriboh becomes an Equip Card!"
"How can that be considered a monster card?"
"Sorry! Still works all the same!"
As the words fell, Neo Galaxy-Eyes Prime Photon Dragon's attack stopped.
That scene left the already-stunned duelists stunned once more.
In the chat, the old-guard were spamming question marks.
What is this?
What's with the "K-language" jab?
Rainbow Kuriboh's effect—
Neo Galaxy-Eyes Prime Photon Dragon actually has to eat it?
After some discussion, only then did Yugi Muto, Seto Kaiba, and the others understand.
Kuriboh becomes an Equip Card, which means it's no longer a monster card.
It's an Equip Spell.
So the Dragon Emperor can't attack.
And just like that—it's blocked.
Pure Galaxy-Eyes: "..."
Pure Galaxy-Eyes: "…What the—so it can be used like this?"
"Fine, fine! I Set 1 card!"
"Turn end!"
ZS Utopia: "My turn! Draw!"
ZS Utopia: "I activate Pressured Planet Wraitsoth, choose Fenrir in the Graveyard to Special Summon!"
"Fenrir's effect searches Unicorn!"
"Wraitsoth's effect lets me Normal Summon Unicorn!"
"Enter the Battle Phase!"
"Your Kaiju sure is strong! I'll have Thunder King attack your Galaxy-Eyes Photon Dragon!"
Pure Galaxy-Eyes: "I activate Galaxy-Eyes Photon Dragon's effect!"
Pure Galaxy-Eyes: "I banish it along with your Thunder King, the Lightningstrike Kaiju!"
ZS Utopia: "Then I won't be polite!"
ZS Utopia: "When your Photon Dragon's effect activates, I chain Unicorn and Fenrir!"
"Unicorn banishes your Extra Deck Galaxy Photon Dragon!"
"Fenrir's effect banishes your Prime Photon Dragon."
"So it's still no good, huh?"
"Then my Battle Phase ends."
"The banished Kaiju and your Galaxy-Eyes Photon Dragon return to the field."
"My Main Phase 2!"
"I build the Xyz Network!"
"Overlay Fenrir and Unicorn!"
"Raidraptor – Arsenal Falcon!"
"I activate Arsenal Falcon, detach Unicorn to Special Summon Raidraptor – Tribute Lanius from the Deck!"
"I activate Tribute Lanius, send Raider's Wing from the Deck to the Graveyard!"
"Raider's Wing's effect Special Summons itself from the Graveyard, and it detaches one material from Arsenal Falcon."
"I use Raider's Wing and Raidraptor – Tribute Lanius to build the Xyz Network!"
"Xyz! Primathmech Alembertian!"
"Alembertian's effect adds Mathmech Circular!"
"I activate Circular, send Mathmech Nabla from the Deck to the Graveyard to Special Summon!"
"Alembertian's effect tributes Arsenal Falcon to Special Summon Nabla from the Graveyard!"
"Nabla's effect tributes my Alembertian to Special Summon Mathmech Diameter from the Deck!"
"Circular triggers to add the Trap Mathmech Superfactorial!"
"I overlay Circular and Nabla to build the Xyz Network!"
"Two Level 4 monsters! Let's go!"
"ZS – Utopic Sage!"
"I activate Sage, detach 2 materials to Summon ZS – Ascended Sage!"
"Ascended Sage and Diameter overlay into a Rank 3 Xyz!"
"Appear! Number 39: Utopia Double!"
"Ascended Sage's granted effect adds Rank-Up-Magic Utopic Force!"
"Utopia Double detaches Mathmech Diameter to add Double or Nothing!, then I rank up!"
"Come forth! Number 39: Utopia!"
"Utopia continues to rank up into Number S39: Utopia ONE!"
"I activate Rank-Up-Magic Utopic Force! Target Utopia ONE to rank up!"
"Final trump card! Number 99: Utopic Dragonar!"
"I Set 2 cards and end my turn!"
Stunned.
Everyone was stunned.
In a short explosion of plays, it showcased Raidraptor, Hope (Utopia), ZS, and even Mathmech.
All inside one deck—a Hope deck stuffed with four different engines.
It completely baffled the old-guard duelists from every world.
Is this a deck?
You call this a deck?
What kind of Hope deck is this supposed to be?
It actually stuffs in so many strange build cards.
In the ZEXAL world, even Yuma Tsukumo and Astral shuddered when they saw this Hope player's deck.
"My scalp's tingling!"
"Astral, this guy's Hope is the ultimate patchwork abomination!"
"What exactly is he even trying to do here?"
"The more I watch, the more confused I get!"
Yuma's words left Astral helplessly spreading his hands.
He couldn't make sense of it either.
What felt even more absurd—each Xyz pivot in the whole process was completely unpredictable.
Two Level 7 Kashtira—you'd think he was going for Shangri-Ira.
But he pivoted into the Raidraptor engine.
Two Level 4 Raidraptors—you'd think he'd go into his namesake boss.
But he pivoted into Mathmech.
Seeing Mathmech, you'd think he was going to Link Summon.
But he pivoted into the Hope engine.
The more you think about it, the more ridiculous it is.
Pure Galaxy-Eyes: "One deck and you swapped in four different engines!"
Pure Galaxy-Eyes: "You're even more public-transit than Aleister!"
Pure Galaxy-Eyes: "So your final trump is Hope?"
"At your end step!"
"Then I flip my Set Continuous Trap! Photon Change!"
"After this card is activated, it's sent to the Graveyard during your 2nd Standby Phase."
"First I use its effect to send Galaxy-Eyes Photon Dragon to the Graveyard!"
"I Special Summon Photon Jumper! Then I search Photon Orbital!"
"Your turn is over!"
"Now it's my turn, draw!"
The turn on the field passed to the Galaxy-Eyes player.
After drawing, he actually fell into thought.
Meanwhile, the opponent's Number 99: Utopic Dragonar still held four materials, not using its effect to summon anything.
That puzzled the other old-guard duelists as well.
Why was this ZS Utopia leaving Number 99 with four materials?
What exactly was he planning to do?
And in this board state—can the Galaxy-Eyes player crack it?
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