You Ye, which one do you recommend I use?" asked Luo Hao, deep in thought after hearing the explanation.
He wasn't a rookie who just said, 'I'll take everything.'
He understood the rules — both the Main Deck and Extra Deck had strict limits.
If the Main Deck got too large, even with his strong bond with his Duel Spirit, allowing him to draw one or two key cards each game, the remaining cards could easily clog his hand. Facing another Earth-Rank Duelist, one dead draw could cost him the match.
The Extra Deck, meanwhile, defined both combo engines and finishers.
His current Extra Deck already had both, but almost no flexibility for a second combo path. Once he committed to one, the duel was all-in.
Now, with You Ye mentioning "Surface Cyber" and "Core Cyber", he immediately grasped the dilemma — but it left him torn.
If he chose Surface Cyber, he'd have to abandon monsters like Chimeratech Rampage Dragon and Cyberdark End Dragon, those high-end powerhouses that dominated through brute strength and negation.
But if he chose Core Cyber, he'd be giving up most of his OTK potential and aggressive win paths.
"In this world's meta," You Ye said decisively, "I'd go with Surface Cyber."
No hesitation.
He had long understood this world's bizarre "bond-based" card draw logic — the stronger your connection with your Duel Spirit, the more absurd your opening hand consistency became.
He once used Salamangreat at King rank, only for every opponent to casually topdeck Kaiju monsters in their opening hand — not once, but every time.
If the opponent's deck had a Kaiju, they always drew it. It was nonsense.
That was when he switched to Prank-Kids — no more relying on openings.
He simply built boards that broke through everything in one go, wiping the field clean before the opponent even had a chance to "topdeck salvation."
Sure, he could still win going first, but that required floodgates, multiple negates, and tight resource chains — too much narration, too much effort.
He preferred faster kills.
"Then Surface Cyber it is," said You Ye. "Come take a look at this structure. Memorize it. I'll also give you a simplified combo flow afterward — whether you reach Heaven Rank after that is up to you."
"Uh, Senior You Ye, could you maybe tweak it a bit more?" Luo Hao asked, rubbing his neck awkwardly.
"I have Raigeki, Red Reboot, Called by the Grave, and one Ash Blossom, maybe I can grind and fill out the rest — but Maxx 'C'… that's another story. They call that hand trap 'Heaven-Rank Only' for a reason. I can't get it at all."
Then he hesitated, eyes landing on a specific card in his binder.
"By the way, Senior, you know what Predaplant Verte Anaconda actually does? According to the Duel Association's database, no one's ever managed to communicate with its spirit. It's been sealed under my custody for months."
"Oh, right," You Ye said, realization dawning.
"In this world's format, your banned and limited lists are totally off. Anything too strong, and it becomes nearly impossible for you to bond with the spirit to obtain it. Alright — I'll modify the deck a bit. Add some going-second options and more starters."
Then, remembering what Verte Anaconda could do in combo-breaking boards, You Ye gave Luo Hao a sly grin.
"So… Verte's in your association's custody?"
"Yeah," Luo Hao nodded without thinking. "If you want to communicate with it, Senior, I can't just give you the original card, but I can authorize unlimited time for spirit communion."
"Perfect," said You Ye, clearly pleased.
Given how easy it was to buy cards like Red-Eyes Fusion, Red-Eyes Black Dragon, and Dark Magician from the Dueling Bureau or Bai Family stores, getting the material pieces was trivial.
With Verte under his control, he could finally dust off one of his earliest "trash cards" from the Master Duel era — Red-Eyes Dragoon.
Yes, trash card.
Without Verte, Dragoon was borderline unusable — every Duelist who'd played that era knew.
He'd even traded away his original copy, turning it into three mid-tier staples instead.
Did he regret it? Not at all. One of the trades had netted him Fairy Tail – Snow. Between an unusable boss monster and one of the most versatile cards in history, that was pure profit.
Ten minutes later, You Ye finished adjusting Luo Hao's build.
Since Luo Hao had been so tactful in offering Verte access, You Ye even threw in an extra Core Cyber decklist for him — though without the combo formulas.
He also updated Sheng Ning's Holy Knight, Longhui Qiao's Drytron, and Wu Ping's decklists, optimizing each for their respective users.
Still, he realized something unsettling.
If even Earth-Rank Duelists like Luo Hao had limited or semi-limited staples but zero banned cards, how could someone like Chang Xingge — who wasn't even Earth Rank — possibly gather a full set of restricted staples like Herald of Ultimateness?
From their point of view, reporting him for "card irregularities" almost made sense.
Except… that was their problem, not his.
"If they can't play well with my builds," he muttered smugly, crossing his arms, "that's not my fault."
Luo Hao and Wang Cheng exchanged subtle glances. Then Wang Cheng leaned forward with a polite smile.
"Senior, I assume you haven't joined any factions or organizations yet?"
"No," You Ye replied casually — then smirked, already guessing where this was going.
"You want me to join the Duel Enforcement Bureau, don't you?"
"Of course. If you join, all expenses below ten digits will be fully covered by us. Anything above that is half reimbursed. You'd instantly be promoted to Vice-Director of the Hang City Division. Upon reaching Earth Rank, Vice-Director of Zhejiang Province.
Reach Heaven Rank — and you'd become Vice-Director of the Dragon Nation's National Bureau itself. No one could touch you."
"Beyond that, any cards you need — we'll track them down for you. Any projects you take — we'll back them completely. All we ask is that, in your free time, you help our internal Duelists refine their decks. Nothing more."
Wang Cheng nodded confidently as he laid out the offer.
He didn't even bother mentioning the "become an apprentice to a Legendary Duelist" perk — no point insulting someone who could commune with Verte Anaconda on command.
Then Luo Hao added quickly:
"Our Duel Association offers something similar — but we're a global organization, free from national oversight. If your strength allows, you could one day become President of the World Duel Association. Even the so-called Duel Kings would show you respect."
"Next time, maybe," said You Ye flatly, not even thinking about it.
His academy's old principal had tried the same pitch once — join a faction, get access to rare cards faster.
He refused then, and he refuses now.
In a world built entirely on dueling, with his unmatched knowledge and field mastery, why would he serve anyone?
Did these people even deserve that?
Both Wang Cheng and Luo Hao sighed quietly. They knew from reports that the Bai Family had already tried and failed to recruit him. The fact that he showed up to register at the Duel Association with only Mu Ning in tow spoke volumes.
"Then please, be cautious," Wang Cheng warned softly. "The decklists you published yesterday — the ones you think only we saw? Certain people, certain factions… are watching you now. To you, they may be even more dangerous than the Dark Duelists."
Understood, said You Ye, eyes narrowing slightly. And… thank you.