Ahem, Mr. You Ye.
Just as You Ye was about to start explaining deck construction to Bai Yun'er, Sheng Ning finally regained her composure and called out to him.
This time, her tone was no longer the formal, professional one she'd used earlier — she now looked at You Ye with clear respect.
"Something wrong? Or do you want a best-of-three?"
You Ye looked over curiously, tilting his head slightly.
"No, no — Mr. You Ye, I completely acknowledge your strength! I just wanted to ask if you could help me adjust my deck. I really want to become stronger.
I don't have much money, but… I do know the location of a certain Spirit. With your ability, you might be able to obtain a new archetype and cards through her."
Sheng Ning spoke respectfully, but that last part — about the Spirit — came from her own private motives.
She'd memorized You Ye's dossier.
Now that she'd met him, she knew: this man was a super-genius.
Right now, he only lacked cards — but once he had them, the entire Duel World would be shaken to its core. Countless people would rush to curry favor with him.
And that's why — she knew — cards tempted You Ye far more than money ever could.
"Obtain a new archetype and cards? Wait—do you mean the process of gaining new archetypes is related to Spirits?"
Just as Sheng Ning expected, the moment You Ye heard "gain new cards and archetypes," his full attention snapped to her.
Money mattered, yes. But for You Ye, cards were everything.
After all, even his "useless" reward cards from Master Duel events could sell for millions. Compared to that, money was just… a number.
"Yes," Sheng Ning nodded. "But Spirits are extremely rare in our world. When they appear, the major families immediately swarm to them to try to earn their recognition.
That's why ordinary people hardly know about this — it's only circulated as an urban legend."
There was one detail she didn't mention, though: most Spirits were dangerous.
Duelists who challenged powerful ones and lost were sometimes… taken away — forced into servitude. It had happened more than once.
"I see. But if you knew that, why haven't you gone after it yourself — or reported it to the Bureau so someone could obtain that archetype and cards?
Unless… there's something wrong with this Spirit?"
You Ye frowned slightly. He wasn't about to agree blindly.
He wasn't stupid — this clearly had complications.
If the archetype was truly that powerful, why hadn't anyone taken it already?
He'd rather be cautious than fall into a trap.
At that question, Sheng Ning's expression stiffened.
Memories of her previous "duel" with that Spirit flashed through her mind, leaving her face pale.
Calling it a duel was generous — it had been pure torment.
"I know about it because… the Spirit is actually kept within our Bureau.
As for why no one's obtained her archetype, the reason's simple. We can't beat her.
Even when the heads of Hangcheng's major families and our Bureau Chief teamed up, none of them won.
And to make things worse, dueling her is… unbearably miserable. No one wants to go through it again.
So now, she's basically just being housed at the Bureau."
You Ye blinked. "You all just… gave up because you couldn't beat her? That's such a powerful archetype — isn't it a waste to leave it sitting there?"
He couldn't help but feel curious. In this world, strength was everything — how could they just abandon a chance like that?
"It's not that no one's tried," Sheng Ning said quietly. "A few duelists endured her torture long enough to earn some of her cards — but using that archetype caused their dueling rank to drop.
Basically, each card lowered its tier, like voluntarily handicapping yourself.
So even those who got her cards eventually gave up. No one wants to suffer like that again."
"...Rank-down effects? And oppressive gameplay?"
You Ye froze — then his eyes widened in realization.
He knew exactly which archetype she meant.
Then, his expression turned from surprise to unmistakable excitement.
Runick.
Others might only remember its toxic, stall-heavy playstyle… but You Ye knew the truth — Runick had once been a top-tier meta deck, capable of standing beside Tearlaments during its peak.
If he could obtain the Runick archetype, his biggest weakness — lacking a deck — would be solved immediately!
Yes, it was toxic.
But it was meta, and that was what mattered.
Fun decks? He didn't care. If it wasn't competitive, he'd rather stay with his Tearlaments prototype.
"So you really do know which archetype I'm talking about," Sheng Ning said with a knowing smile.
Seeing You Ye's sudden gleam of excitement confirmed her guess — the Runick archetype's allure was enough to stir even him.
As for herself? She didn't care anymore.
After that duel, she had zero interest in ever facing that Spirit again. That was the first Spirit who'd ever made her consider surrendering.
"Yeah," You Ye nodded. "A self-locking, rank-dropping archetype — no doubt about it. Runick."
"But I've got a question — I don't have a deck right now. Would she accept a Master Duel challenge?
If so, no problem. I'll crush her easily with my Great Exorcist—" he coughed, "—I mean, my Grand Purification Build."
He didn't deny recognizing the archetype immediately. But he did voice one concern.
He couldn't just borrow someone else's deck — because in this world, archetype-linked cards required Spirit recognition to use.
Even "trap-heavy" or hybrid decks had corresponding Spirits.
Normally, no one could wield another's deck — unless it was of the same archetype.
"She accepts," Sheng Ning said. "These days, she often duels us through Master Duel matches. And her online rank is… honestly pretty high."
At that, Sheng Ning's expression turned awkward.
Who would've guessed — the Bureau's highest-ranked duelist wasn't a human officer, but a guest Spirit living in their own building?
And that "Grand Purification Build" You Ye mentioned — what was that supposed to mean?
Did the Runick archetype's banishing speed really deserve such a grand title?
"Then that's fine," You Ye said, his last worry gone. "In that case, tell me what archetype you're using — once I've thought it through, I'll rebuild your deck for you."
"I… don't have an archetype yet," Sheng Ning admitted, embarrassed.
"I'm using my Bureau connections to try communicating with the Ancient Gear Spirit."
The corner of You Ye's mouth twitched.
"Forget Ancient Gears," he said after a moment. "They're fine for bullying newbies, but they can't even handle a small modern engine. Their ceiling are too low."
He wasn't being cruel — just realistic.
The Ancient Gear system was ancient and outdated. Even mid-tier casual decks could overwhelm it.
No matter how much he tried to "improve" it, there wasn't much to optimize.
At best, he could make it slightly less bricky — not competitive.
Unless he went completely wild and added a Horus package just to brute-force opponents down, which would be ridiculous.
"It doesn't have to be Ancient Gears," Sheng Ning said quickly.
"My body's… a bit special. As long as I can communicate with a Spirit, I can usually establish a connection with many different archetypes."
"If I can obtain a decent archetype later, I'd like your help constructing a proper build and play strategy."
"Oh? So you're a social butterfly type, huh?"
You Ye immediately understood, smirking slightly as he gave Sheng Ning a once-over.
Her cheeks flushed red under his gaze.
Senior, what's a social butterfly? Bai Yun'er asked innocently.
Basically, You Ye explained, someone who uses every possible means to make Spirits like them.
Hiss! Sheng-jie, you're terrifying! Bai Yun'er gasped, clutching her deck protectively like she was afraid Sheng Ning might seduce her cards away.
Sheng Ning: "…"
If you don't know how to talk, just don't talk!