Early the next morning, Youye brought Munin to the entrance of the Hangcheng Duel Association building.
The reason they had come here—more precisely, the reason Youye had come here—was simple.
In this world, after obtaining a deck and becoming a true Duelist, one needed to undergo Dueling Rules certification. Once certified, a Duelist would receive a rank. Future rank promotions would also provide advancement missions and requirements based on the certified individual's objectives, identity, faction, and other factors.
Of course, certification was not mandatory. But without it, one was merely an ordinary Duelist, unable to enjoy the status, privileges, and physical improvements of high-ranked Duelists. One also could not participate in certain tournaments due to their rank requirements.
He had not had a deck before, but now that he possessed a meta deck, there was no way he would pass up these benefits. Especially since, after reaching the Heaven rank, one could live in the Spirit World and gain a lifespan of several hundred or even a thousand years. He had been incredibly envious of that for a long time.
The moment they entered, a staff member approached them respectfully. "Honored Master, are you here to receive an advancement mission?"
"No, I'm here to receive Dueling Rules rank certification. Which way should I go?" Youye shook his head and asked in return.
"Huh?" The staff member's eyes were filled with confusion. He had brought a spirit with him—wasn't he undoubtedly at least an Earth-level Master Duelist? What was this about receiving Dueling Rules rank certification? That was a service only newly initiated Duelists who had just obtained decks would need.
"You're Youye, correct?" At that moment, a woman around twenty-five or twenty-six approached to the sound of clicking heels. She wore a white business suit and had an oval face. Although the kind smile on her face made her seem approachable, she still possessed the bearing unique to someone in a position of authority.
"That's right. You are...?" Looking at this complete stranger, Youye could not understand how she knew him.
"I am Chang Xingge, the Vice Minister of the Hangcheng Duel Association branch. The Inspector Bureau contacted me about you last night. They also informed me that you had newly acquired a deck archetype and a suitable deck, and that you would most likely come with a spirit today to receive rules certification, so they asked me to receive you." Still smiling, Chang Xingge first took out her work ID to introduce herself before explaining the situation.
"I see!" Youye nodded and gave Sheng Ning a mental thumbs-up.
The Duel Association staff member who had originally been assigned to receive Youye stood respectfully nearby, curious about just who Youye was. He had come for certification with a spirit in tow, and the Inspector Bureau had even vouched for him and arranged for the Vice Minister to receive him.
However, he wisely did not ask any questions. He watched Chang Xingge lead Youye and Munin toward the certification area before resuming his work receiving other Duelists.
Those nearby who had noticed the scene likewise chose to watch Youye's group leave. People of somewhat higher status at most asked those around them whether they knew Youye's identity. There were no fools lacking the sense to loudly cry about unfairness.
"Youye, after you complete your certification, would it be convenient for you to duel me once? I'll offer you a card you need as payment," Chang Xingge asked Youye as she led the way to the Dueling Rules certification area.
"A duel? Not a Master Duel? With that kind of payment, I don't really mind."
"But are you sure about this? Since you know people at the Inspector Bureau, you should know what archetype my deck belongs to, right? You should understand what dueling me means as well, shouldn't you?"
Youye looked at her in surprise. What surprised him was that she was willing to offer a card he needed merely for a duel with him.
Since she had learned from the Inspector Bureau which cards he needed, she surely knew that offering one of those cards could at least be exchanged for a chance to communicate with the spirits of Ash Blossom, Effect Veiler, or Infinite Impermanence. She should also understand how torturous it would be to duel him.
In a sense, she was giving up an opportunity to strengthen her deck in exchange for a chance to make herself a red name. No matter how he looked at it, it was not worth it.
In response to Youye's question, Chang Xingge fell silent for a moment before slowly speaking.
"To be honest, I also originally had a new archetype. But back then, I was alone and exhausted every possible method researching it, yet I could not find a suitable build, so I had no choice but to give up. Only through the Duel Association did I obtain my current archetype, and through it, I gained my current status and position."
As she said this, her face was filled with complicated emotions, bitterness, and deep unwillingness.
Indeed, the new archetype had caused her strength to rise rapidly. From barely holding on at the bottom of the Yellow rank, she had reached the limits of the Profound rank in only four years. So long as she completed the advancement mission and requirements given by the rules, she could become an Earth-level Duelist!
But that was precisely where the problem lay.
"My current archetype has already reached its limit. I failed when trying to communicate with its boss monster for cards, and I failed the Earth-level challenge mission. The road ahead has been cut off, and there is no suitable powerful archetype for me to choose. The only thing I can trust is whether my original archetype can break this deadlock."
After saying that, she looked at Youye with eyes full of anticipation, hoping he could optimize her archetype and make her stronger!
Having heard this much, Youye naturally understood that she had learned about him from the Inspector Bureau and had come to him to break her deadlock.
Yes, she had come to him. Now that she had made things so obvious, it was clear that this was not simply because the Inspector Bureau had informed her, but because she herself had specifically requested it.
"Youye, don't worry. As long as you can provide a suitable build and playstyle, no matter which of my two archetypes it is for, I'll give you the other two cards you need as payment!"
Seeing that Youye was not speaking, Chang Xingge's heart skipped a beat. She immediately raised the stakes. Youye was the only hope she could see, and she did not want to miss this chance.
The first reason she had proposed the duel was to personally confirm Youye's strength. The second was that, if her original archetype truly could not be developed, she would have Youye help revise the build of her current archetype.
In truth, she was even more extreme than Youye had guessed. After receiving the information from the Inspector Bureau last night, she had immediately investigated it. Once she confirmed it was true, she had waited at the entrance the entire time for Youye to arrive.
"Two more cards?" Youye was deeply surprised. The cards he wanted were all difficult to find, yet Chang Xingge could actually produce three of them. He quickly composed himself and asked, "Tell me about your archetype. If it can be strengthened, I can revise the build and improve it for you. But if it's one of those particularly weak archetypes, there's nothing I can do."
Seeing that Youye had essentially agreed, Chang Xingge's tense heart immediately settled considerably. She then slowly spoke.
"My archetype is Drytron. Have you heard of it?"
"Drytron? Are you sure?" Youye stared at her, his face full of bewilderment as he sought confirmation.
Leaving aside that Drytron Herald had once been meta, Drytron itself had three high-ATK boss monsters. Its strength should have been quite decent in this world, so how had she ended up unable even to reach the Earth rank?
Could it be that she was even more outrageous than Bai Yun'er? Because Ritual Monsters required card disadvantage to summon, had she simply given up on summoning even the boss monsters from the Main Deck?
"I'm sure!" Seeing Youye's strange expression, a sense of foreboding rose from Chang Xingge's heart. Her face even turned somewhat pale, but she still clenched her hands and nodded firmly.
"Then that doesn't make sense. With the strength of Drytron's three boss monsters, as long as you became more familiar with the cards, the bosses have 5,000 ATK, disruption, and floating effects, while the lower-level monsters have protection. No matter what, you shouldn't be unable to reach the Earth rank."
Youye voiced his confusion.
"Huh? Since when did Drytron have three boss monsters? Isn't there only 'Drytron Meteonis Draconids'?"
Chang Xingge asked back with a completely baffled expression. If she had not already verified Youye's information, she would have wanted to ask just what nonsense he was spouting. Did he not know that she was the one who possessed the Drytron archetype?
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