My Stubborn Soul Card Follower

Freymia couldn't go out the second day.

Shen Sui arrived at the competition venue feeling fresh and energetic.

The giant squid returned to the sea once more; at least for the foreseeable future, it would reign as the undisputed ruler of this expanse of ocean.

However, none of this mattered to Shen Sui; it paled in comparison to the excitement and tension of the upcoming matches.

Shen Sui glanced at the schedule.

If today's matches went smoothly, he would likely face Xinyuan Yingxue again in the semifinals.

Vivian also advanced to the quarterfinals, but she was in the other half of the bracket. For the two of them to meet in the competition, it would probably have to be in the finals.

Competitions often felt this way, making one wonder whether the draws were manipulated behind the scenes.

In both the quarterfinals and semifinals, Shen Sui had a sense of destiny, as all his opponents were past defeats.

"An Hai," Shen Sui spotted An Hai as soon as he entered the venue.

It wasn't because his eyesight was particularly good; rather, An Hai's entire black trench coat and sunglasses ensemble was just too conspicuous in the hall. Coupled with An Hai's tall stature, Shen Sui saw him immediately upon entering.

"Are you here to watch your brother and sister's matches?" Shen Sui asked with a smile.

An Hai hadn't expected to run into Shen Sui, but he quickly composed himself and casually replied, "Partly."

To avoid suspicion, An Hai originally didn't plan to come to Coastal City.

However, due to certain matters, An Hai received a commission from the Exploration Bureau.

You Wenqi, Tan Song, and himself—An Hai learned through his own channels that similar tasks were assigned to two other ninth-rank Life Card Masters also in Coastal City.

An event like a city duel wouldn't normally warrant such a grand effort from the Exploration Bureau, so there had to be something unusual about it.

An Hai himself had been an eyewitness to the Extraordinary incidents of the Suffering Poetry Society, having seen firsthand the powers beyond this world's understanding used by those worshipers of Suffering during the duels.

Therefore, upon seeing the Exploration Bureau's actions, An Hai immediately concluded that this event definitely had some hidden agenda, possibly related to Extraordinary Power.

As such, An Hai came to the venue this time with the intention of preventing An Yang and An Wei from participating in the event.

Shen Sui found An Hai's manner a bit odd, but refrained from prying further; he simply exchanged pleasantries: "My first duel today seems to be against An Yang."

An Hai narrowed his eyes. He had been busy investigating the Exploration Bureau's mission intel and hadn't paid attention to the national tournament schedule. Had An Yang already run into Shen Sui?

"Hmph." An Hai scoffed, "Don't underestimate that kid; he might surprise you."

An Yang was already a veteran in the professional arena, with wins and losses on the field, but after losing to Shen Sui last time, he was greatly affected.

Recently, he's been training diligently with his Beast Taming in the trial grounds of the Soul Card World.

An Hai had always been aware of his brother's efforts.

Shen Sui watched An Hai's departing figure.

A surprise, huh?

Ah, I'm looking forward to it.

Shen Sui proceeded to the players' backstage area.

Staff were busily adjusting equipment, while Xinyuan Tanchun sat next to You Wenqi, listening intently as You Wenqi shared some skills and insights on data analysis.

"No pressure, Shen Sui. You've met the academy's expectations by reaching the national quarterfinals; the base prize is already secured. For the remaining duels, just relax," Xinyuan Tanchun said, assuming Shen Sui was late due to insomnia-induced oversleep, not realizing the reason he overslept was intriguingly unspeakable.

"There's really no pressure for the quarterfinals," Shen Sui replied quite casually as he plopped into a seat.

His duel today was scheduled for the second match; the first was Xinyuan Yingxue's match.

The organizers seemed to realize the allure of placing the two together, so they deliberately scheduled the matches this way.

"I think you should go watch Xinyuan Yingxue's match," You Wenqi suggested to Shen Sui, offering his personal advice.

"No tactical analysis?" Shen Sui pointed to the board You Wenqi was holding.

You Wenqi chuckled, "In Life Card Duels, so-called tactical analysis just means identifying the opponent's strategies. Truly formulating tactics requires drawing those cards, right? Didn't I use An Yang's deck for practice with you yesterday? Winning shouldn't be a problem. Instead, take this time to understand the opponent in the semifinals."

"I feel like you've inadvertently uttered a proverb," Shen Sui quipped. "I've decided that my pre-duel trash talk will be about studying my semifinal opponent."

"You rascal, don't mess around," You Wenqi advised gravely as a senior. "Casual pre-duel trash talk is fine, but don't say anything too impulsive, or it'll easily become material for others to mock you with."

You Wenqi was speaking from experience; during his early days, full of youthful vigor, he had once declared in pre-duel trash talk, "One world championship isn't enough; I aim to be an eight-time champion!" Since then, detractors had mocked him incessantly.

To this day, You Wenqi hadn't won a single world championship. Instead, he set a world record by becoming the Life Card Master with the most world runner-ups—a total of eighteen.

Many even joked that it was the first time they knew a runner-up could have a winning streak.