This was all forced out by you, you know? I originally planned to wait until you used your last unknown backrow before responding. Without a Fountain to recycle, I can't just fire Runick Quick-Plays carelessly. Especially since I only had one destruction spell left — what if that last unknown card was Eternal Soul? Since you already revealed Circle, it wouldn't be strange if you had Salvation too."
You Ye smiled faintly.
"Don't joke, Senpai. I already drew the tech card for you, plus Circle and several starters — my hand was already insanely good. If I still had Eternal Soul and Salvation in here, I must've used my lifespan to draw them."
Li Quanming glanced at his hand helplessly and ended his turn.
Seeing his expression, You Ye nodded without comment.
Indeed — with a hand that concentrated in-theme cards at this density, wanting all six cards to be live was basically burning lifespan.
It's our turn.
He drew two cards from Eye of Magic.
When he looked at the two drawings, the corner of his mouth curved into a strange smile.
Li Quanming instantly tensed up again.
After the mental war earlier, he had poured all his focus into the Duel.
Now seeing that creepy smile on You Ye's face, his expression darkened, and cold sweat poured down his back.
"Relax. I just drew two Spells. And neither is the one you're terrified of — Runick Flaming Fangs."
You Ye said casually.
"...phew."
Li Quanming finally exhaled.
With no Flaming Fangs, no monster, and no Fountain on You Ye's field, he could still endure this turn.
Seeing him breathe out, You Ye's grin grew even stranger.
Because yes — he could make Verte Anaconda and fetch Red-Eyes Fusion anytime…
But no one ever said he couldn't simply draw Red-Eyes Fusion instead.
Main Phase 1.
"I activate the Spell — Red-Eyes Fusion!"
Li Quanming: ???
No Flaming Fangs?
Sure.
Instead, he draws something even more ridiculous!?
"Senpai… the Spell you said you drew… was Red-Eyes Fusion??"
Li Quanming stared, stunned.
Then he remembered — Red-Eyes Dark Dragoon is properly summoned via Red-Eyes Fusion.
Using Verte was actually the cheese method.
The "proper way" was exactly this.
"Yeah! It's a Spell, isn't it?"
You answered with a bright smile.
Red-Eyes Dark Dragoon appeared majestically.
You Ye pressed forward immediately:
"I activate Red-Eyes Dark Dragoon's effect — non-target destruction and burn damage equal to the destroyed monster's ATK.
I destroy your Dark Magician, the Dragon Knight!"
Li Quanming LP: 7000 → 4000
"I now enter Dragoon's restriction — I skip my Battle Phase. End of turn."
Li Quanming's turn.
Draw.
He immediately declared, "I end my turn."
This wasn't surrender — it was his last attempt to survive.
With only one card, he could never crack Dragoon's three omni-negates.
But with two turns?
Maybe.
Especially since You Ye was on Runick Stun — without monsters besides handtraps, without Dragoncaller, without Fountain, he might not be able to deal lethal if Dragoon didn't swing.
It's our turn.
He didn't draw a monster.
Draw two, set one, punch with Dragoon, pass.
Li Quanming's turn.
He drew, entered Main Phase, and activated Magician's Souls — eaten by Dragoon's negate.
Then he Normal Summoned Rod, activated its effect, and got hit by You Ye's set Runick Freezing Curses, negating it.
At that point, Li Quanming finally gave up resistance.
Next turn, You Ye activated Dragoon to destroy Magician's Rod.
With Li Quanming at only 1000 LP, the effect damage reduced him to 0.
The Duel was over.
"You're too strong, Senpai. Until the end, most of the cards you set turn one weren't even used. Meanwhile, I used a tech card specifically meant for you and still lost this badly."
Li Quanming spoke with sincere respect.
"Your archetype's strong, that's all."
You Ye waved it off.
This duel required no technique from him — just simple, brutal mainstream deck suppression.
Seeing You Ye so humble, Li Quanming respected him even more.
He personally opened the unlocked door and escorted him out — the guy truly knew how to behave.
While leaving, You Ye offered him a small benefit:
"As long as you give me one specific card I need, I'll help you adjust your decklist.
I won't say it'll become top-tier, but the consistency will absolutely improve."
Li Quanming nodded gratefully.
He hadn't officially joined the Duel Association yet, so he didn't think too deeply about it — but after joining, he understood what You Ye's words meant.
From then on, whenever he wasn't working, he spent all his time hunting cards — desperate to get You Ye to help him modify his deck.
When the two walked out, Mu Ning and the others also arrived from the other side.
But the people present were fewer.
When You Ye summoned Dragoon, Zeng Jie realized Li Quanming had no chance whatsoever and left early to avoid embarrassment.
As the groups met, Wang Cheng, Luo Hao, and Chang Xingge nodded politely to You Ye.
Then Bai Lingtian stepped forward with a smile:
"Greetings, Senior You Ye. I am Bai Lingtian, Bai Yun'er's father and the current head of the Bai family. I was away during the time the family hosted you. After you complete your Profound Rank certification, I will personally visit."
"Oh? Yun'er's father? No problem."
You Ye nodded.
The Bai family had helped him acquire two cards from the Zengs and even gifted two more — not an enormous favor, but the respect they showed was genuine.
"Senior, I am Sun Ce, the head of the Sun family. Upon learning that you were competing in the city tournament, I immediately came hoping to observe your duel and maybe receive guidance."
A short, skinny man hurried over respectfully.
Despite looking over thirty and being a clan head, he showed no arrogance at all — even calling himself "junior".
"…Sure."
You Ye's mouth twitched slightly.
What can he say — there were dumb clans like the Zengs, but also smart ones.
This level of flattery was a bit extreme, but acceptable.
"My Mo family also hopes to learn from Senior."
The spectacled Mo Wang, a gentle-faced middle-aged man, spoke next.
"You've all come to me, so prepare more cards.
Aside from your family's main archetypes, if your card pools contain many things I need, I don't mind helping your promising juniors or new archetype users adjust their decklists."
You Ye said calmly.
If people were offering cards, he certainly had no reason to refuse.
"In that case, we thank Senior on behalf of our juniors. Also, if you ever need help against the Zeng family, just say the word. We will never refuse."
The two clan heads immediately looked delighted.
Of the six major families in Hangcheng with Heavenly-Rank ancestors, one was the problematic Zeng family, and one was the observing Bai family.
Why had only two of the remaining four shown up?
Simple — the Sun and Mo families both had members using newly awakened archetypes, like Bai Yun'er's Swordsoul, and they were stuck with undeveloped deck construction.
Their real purpose today was to befriend You Ye, hoping he would modify their juniors' decklists.
Now that he had agreed, how could they not be ecstatic?
Bai Yun'er's Tenyi Swordsoul list was nearly guaranteed Heavenly Rank.
If their own juniors could get similar treatments — even if slightly weaker — their clans might gain new Heavenly-Rank duelists.
The other two families didn't come because they believed their deck-building was already good enough, and they didn't want to get involved in the conflict between You Ye and the Zengs.