Chapter 1: Rebirth! Link the world!

The night descended upon the bustling modern city, and one by one, the streetlights and billboards flickered to life. The vibrant hues and radiant glow of electronic screens intertwined on the circular square, casting a warm brownish-yellow hue upon the road, reminiscent of a delicate metallic sheen veiled in a hint of mist.

Su Yu found himself amidst the bustling crowd on the street, taking a moment to come to terms with his present situation.

This place, known as Tong Shiye, differed from the fictional island city he had originally inhabited, inspired by the beloved anime classic, "Yu-Gi-Oh!"

What piqued his interest was the recent release of the highly anticipated IP adaptation game, "Yu-Gi-Oh! Link World Online," in which he had just created his own character and eagerly logged in, ready to embark on a thrilling duel-filled journey... but then, everything vanished.

Instead of finding himself transported to the world of the anime, it seemed more likely that he had been transported into a game that bridged different realms.

"Link World Online" had been the hottest online card game in the world prior to Su Yu's unexpected transition. However, to categorize it simply as a card game would be an understatement.

This is an immersive online game that pushes the boundaries of cutting-edge technology. While it retains the essence of a card game, its gameplay resembles that of a vast MMORPG.

Within the game, players find themselves logging into the renowned Tono City, a legendary location from the world of Yu-Gi-Oh Animation and the cherished hometown of the original Duel King, Muto Game.

This game offers a remarkable level of freedom, granting players the ability to explore the expansive map at will. They can engage in battles with NPC duelists, undertake diverse tasks to earn rewards, and gather an impressive collection of cards to fortify their decks, ultimately bolstering their power within this captivating world.

Undoubtedly, in the Yu-Gi-Oh world, the potency of one's deck and the mastery of playing skills hold a direct correlation to overall strength. It serves as a fundamental principle within this realm, a world that reveres the art of card dueling.

Even the immensely powerful super bosses capable of world destruction must abide by the rules and engage in obedient card duels with the protagonist.

In truth, prior to his unexpected journey, Su Yu was deeply immersed in this game, dedicating countless hours to traversing the expansive map, completing tasks, investing in card packs with his hard-earned resources, and occasionally venturing into player arenas for thrilling encounters with fellow enthusiasts.

For Su Yu, Link World Online transcended mere entertainment; it became an integral part of his life, akin to a profession or vocation.

Initially, Su Yu stumbled upon a game video created by a renowned content creator within the gaming community. The video sparked an idea within him—to capture and share the exhilarating moments of his own gameplay in the arena through video recordings.

Harnessing his passion for the world-connecting game, he started producing entertaining-focused card game content, which garnered respectable results. While he may not have reached the pinnacle of fame like the true industry giants, he managed to sustain a modest living through his connection to the world.

However, his life took an unexpected turn when he found himself transported to another realm.

In this moment, Su Yu's heart brimmed with mixed emotions.

He was not an expert card player or a renowned figure in the field. Despite spending considerable time engrossed in the game, his focus had always been on providing entertainment rather than competing fiercely.

Now, finding himself in a world that revered card dueling, he couldn't help but feel a sense of inadequacy, realizing that relying solely on his self-proclaimed skills might leave him feeling somewhat inexperienced.

However, with his arrival, Su Yu understood that he needed to quickly find a way to adapt to his new circumstances.

To his astonishment, when he attempted to summon the game menu, the familiar interface from his previous life materialized before him once again.

Name: You Yu

Category: NPC

Level: 1

Charm: 95

Luck: 20

Endurance: 35

Physical Strength: 3/3

Remarks: Average abilities, striving diligently towards the aspiration of becoming a professional duelist.

"You Yu" was the chosen ID he adopted during character creation. It seemed like common (mis) sense to begin his card-playing journey with a name containing the word "you" in a game centered around Yu-Gi-Oh. As for the word "yu," it simply served as a homophone for his real name, Yu, without any additional significance.

However, it dawned upon him that the ID he had chosen would now become his permanent name, forever intertwined with his new reality.

Su Yu (now known as You Yu) considered himself somewhat fortunate. Reflecting on his chosen name, he was relieved that he hadn't impulsively named himself something outrageous like "Crazy Drag Long Shao Diao Bing Tian." If he had, he might have found himself stuck in an absurd predicament.

However, describing his current situation in one word proved challenging.

On the bright side, the panel data he encountered closely resembled the player panel he was familiar with, and he could comprehend most of the attribute information.

The unfortunate news was that his panel appeared to be slightly skewed toward the charm attribute. In simpler terms, it emphasized his appearance.

In this world, a perfect score in charm was one hundred points. Once the score surpassed eighty points, even in the most exclusive circles, reaching ninety points meant one was irresistibly attractive. With his initial score of ninety-five points, he might be approaching a level of uniqueness.

Now, you may wonder, in a mere card game, does a high level of attractiveness really matter? Can being handsome increase the chances of obtaining desired cards?

Well, you may not fully grasp the situation. In this game, every NPC possessed their own favorability system. The higher the favorability of a key NPC towards the player, the greater the likelihood of triggering special storylines or receiving rare card rewards.

Therefore, some players relied on their high charisma values and resorted to various means to ingratiate themselves with their favorite NPC, patiently awaiting the moment their favorability reached its peak, ultimately obtaining what they desired...

...such as engaging in card duels with Miss NPC or Mister NPC.

Ah, what are you thinking? Link World is a serious online card game, and after thorough review, it contains absolutely no inappropriate content.

Ninety-five points of charm were undoubtedly impressive. After all, being handsome was never a disadvantage. Furthermore, recent trends among bookworms and drama enthusiasts indicated a rising demand for attractive protagonists. It had become a market reality that individuals below average in appearance felt hesitant to step into the limelight and assume the role of the protagonist.

However, a luck value of twenty proved to be somewhat painful.

It wasn't that a low luck attribute prevented him from drawing the cards he desired during duels. According to this world's perspective, the ability to draw a desired card depended on "the bond between the duelist and the card" and had little to do with luck as an attribute.

In this context, a luck attribute influenced the probability of successfully activating effects such as coin flips to determine positive or negative outcomes.

A luck value of twenty essentially meant that he would lose every bet in life, unable to guess the correct outcome when flipping a coin.

In comparison, You Yu estimated that the predecessor, Katsuya Jounouchi, in the Yu-Gi-Oh animation possessed a luck value exceeding ninety. Most of his deck focused on gambling effects. This individual's extraordinary luck was practically a superpower. In the original animation, he astonished others by relying on his astounding luck to secure second place in the Duel Kingdom game and achieve the top four positions in the city tournament.

In general, individuals of this nature were often referred to by a single word—gamblers.

Next were the endurance and stamina values, both intricately connected.

You might wonder, what does playing cards have to do with endurance?

According to the worldview of Yu-Gi-Oh, the card game did indeed require endurance. While the summoned monsters and activated cards were displayed as three-dimensional images, they still exerted a physical impact on the duel, as per the game's mechanics.

The endurance value directly determined the player's upper limit of physical stamina. You Yu's stamina value of 3/3 indicated that he could engage in a total of three duels

when his stamina was at its peak. If he exceeded this threshold, he would no longer be able to participate in further duels.

With an endurance value between 40 and 50, one could participate in four consecutive duels. Between 50 and 60, five consecutive duels were possible. Values above 60 allowed for six consecutive duels, and so on.

Hence, playing cards demanded individual effort and imposed certain requirements on a duelist's endurance.

With a stamina value of 35, You Yu fell below the acceptable threshold, causing him some distress.

After all, no matter how skilled one's techniques were, inadequate stamina rendered them futile. (Referring to card-playing skills)

Lackluster physical strength directly impeded progress, although this attribute could potentially increase as one leveled up.

To advance in the Linked World, players needed to accumulate experience points through duels or task completion. Leveling up came with various rewards, such as coupons and spars.

Card coupons allowed limited exchanges for specific cards from the system, while spars enabled players to acquire card packs through drawing.

Thanks to these systematic channels, players even had the opportunity to obtain cards that shouldn't have been available in the Yu-Gi-Oh era.

But those considerations could wait for now.

At present, You Yu needed to carefully contemplate his path as an unknown NPC passerby in the world of Yu-Gi-Oh.