42: Borrowing cards late at night, decklist!

The night grew deeper.

Lu Yuan stealthily returned to Venus Tower, still covered in mud stains.

All the way, he had been recalling and pondering… He seemed to have missed some crucial information.

His mind was a mess, with various thoughts flooding in.

He shook his head, trying to clear his mind, but only felt more confused.

Unconsciously, his steps became light as he walked out of the fire escape, along the corridor, and instinctively stopped in front of a door.

The door opposite, and then the next one.

As if by a ghost, he raised his hand and knocked.

“Thump thump.”

The crisp knocking sound was particularly abrupt in the silent hallway.

After knocking, Lu Yuan suddenly came to his senses.

Damn it! This was Yao Xiao’s room!

How did he end up here?

He turned to sneak away, but it was too late.

A rustling sound came from inside the door, and a moment later, the door opened with a “click,” revealing a crack.

A pretty face, sleepy-eyed and with a hint of laziness and confusion, peeked out.

Yao Xiao was wearing a pink cartoon bunny pajama, her long hair casually draped, her chest rising and falling dramatically. She wasn't wearing a mask, revealing her delicate chin and fair neck.

She saw Lu Yuan standing at the door, paused, then frowned, her face flushing.

“Lu Yuan? Not sleeping in the middle of the night, what… what do you want to do?”

Lu Yuan looked at her attire, his face inexplicably warm.

He opened his mouth, but for a moment, he didn't know how to explain.

He couldn't possibly say he was spacing out and sleepwalking to her door, could he?

Seeing him not speak, just staring blankly at her, Yao Xiao’s eyes instantly became wary and annoyed.

“What are you looking at! Pervert!”

She suddenly pulled the door wide open and raised her hand to slap Lu Yuan’s face!

With a whoosh!

Lu Yuan’s pupils contracted, almost instinctively, he sharply tilted his head back!

By a hair’s breadth!

Slap!

The crisp sound of a slap missed its target.

Yao Xiao was even angrier when her attack failed, she stood with her hands on her hips, glaring at him.

“Do you want to die! Can’t you say whatever you need to say tomorrow at school? You just had to knock on a girl’s door in the middle of the night!”

Lu Yuan dodged the slap and looked at her pouting expression, feeling a bit like laughing.

He touched his nose and cleared his throat.

“Uh… misunderstanding, misunderstanding.”

“I just… wanted to ask if you had any extra blank cards, to borrow two.”

“You…”

Yao Xiao scrutinized him up and down, her gaze clearly like she was looking at a lying petty thief.

“Are you crazy? Asking me for blank cards late at night? Why should I lend them to you?”

“Besides, didn’t you just come into a fortune? Can’t afford them?”

Lu Yuan was speechless. In moments of tension, men often blurt out things they don't expect a second later.

Well, this grudge was settled.

“Alright, never mind. Sorry to bother you, go back to sleep.”

He decisively admitted defeat and turned to leave.

“Hey!” Yao Xiao called out to him again.

Lu Yuan stopped and looked back.

The girl stood leaning against the doorframe with her arms crossed, hiding her body below the neck inside the room.

“I was going to tell you tomorrow.”

“About the Black Water Gang… you’d better be careful.”

“My family received news that they don’t seem to be letting it go.”

“Especially your parents!”

Another warning.

Lu Yuan’s heart stirred slightly.

“Thanks.” He nodded, said no more, and quickly returned to his dormitory.

Yao Xiao watched his figure disappear at the end of the corridor, then pouted.

“Pervert!”

She closed the door, but her sleepiness was gone.

What exactly did that guy want to do just now… Could it be?

...The next day.

The Honor Class’s exclusive classroom.

Lu Yuan, with faint dark circles under his eyes, sat by the window.

When Yao Xiao came in, she glanced at him, seemingly wanting to say something, but ultimately didn't, sitting down next to him with a slightly flushed face.

Last night’s awkwardness seemed to be just a minor interlude.

Dean of Students Sun Libang walked into the classroom on time.

He spoke concisely, with no unnecessary words or pleasantries.

“From today onwards, you will receive the highest standard of training.”

“Resources and privileges will all be tilted towards you.”

“However, opportunities are always reserved for the most diligent.”

“Venus Tower is not a safe, and those who are complacent will still be eliminated.”

“If you understand, then get your attitude straight and let’s start class!”

The morning was for theory class. Sun Libang explained the Source Power application techniques of Second-Tier Card Masters and the basic principles of deck construction.

“The biggest improvement for a Second-Tier Apprentice Card Master, besides the breakthrough in Source Power limit, is the activation of the second Origin Card slot.”

“This means you are no longer operating with a single core combat mode.”

“How to build a deck around two Origin Cards, with auxiliary cards and skill cards, to form a set that has sustained combat capability and can adapt to different environments, is your most important task for the coming year!”

Sun Libang’s words opened the door to Lu Yuan’s thinking.

Deck!

He had only thought about the strength of individual cards before, but ignored the importance of overall synergy.

In the afternoon, it was free practice and practical time.

Lu Yuan immediately rushed to the individual training quiet room on the second floor.

He chose the training room marked “Triple Gravity.”

Stepping inside, a heavy pressure instantly enveloped his entire body, as if he was carrying a small mountain.

Even breathing became difficult.

Lu Yuan gritted his teeth, sat cross-legged, and circulated his Source Power to resist.

The speed of Source Power flowing through his meridians was clearly hindered, but it also became more condensed and pure as a result.

Sweat quickly soaked his clothes, but he didn’t care.

Training here for an hour was more effective than meditating for half a day in a normal environment!

The resources of the Honor Class were indeed well-deserved!

Coming out of the gravity room, Lu Yuan felt his body drained, but his spirit was exceptionally excited.

Without resting, he plunged into the data room on the first floor.

The access here was far superior to the school’s public library.

He gained permission to access detailed information on a large number of Second-Tier, and even some Third-Tier, cards.

The attributes, skills, pros and cons, market prices, and acquisition methods of various cards… were dazzling.

There were also many deck-building tips and combat recordings left by senior Card Masters.

Lu Yuan absorbed this knowledge ravenously.

He first reviewed his current deck.

【Raging Waves Sea Soul】: gold Two-Star, Origin Card No. 1, ultimate trump card, not to be used lightly.

【Heavenly Thunder Light Falcon】: gold Three-Star, Origin Card No. 2, powerful main damage dealer, but consumes huge Source Power, difficult to sustain.

【Wind Bamboo Worm】: White Two-Star, scout card, outdated performance, urgently needs replacement.

【Sharpness Technique】, 【Bite】: Auxiliary skill cards, still usable.

【Wind Spirit Butterfly】: Green One-Star, two remaining, ready to be sold.

【Glimmer Detection】, 【Tough Skin】: Green One-Star, Three-Star, spoils of war, usable.

There was also a 【Mimicry Technique】 and a few white cards, which were not very useful.

The problem was clear at a glance.

Aside from the two gold cards that couldn't be used lightly, his regular combat power was almost zero!

Having lost the durable and offensive 【Swamp Crocodile】, once the 【Heavenly Thunder Light Falcon】 ran out of Source Power, he would be a toothless tiger.

He must quickly acquire a reliable regular main combat card!

Combining Sun Libang’s theories and the information in the database, Lu Yuan determined his goal.

He needed a Second-Tier, blue quality, around three-star beast taming card.

It needed to have a certain frontal combat capability to fill the void left by the 【Swamp Crocodile】, but its consumption couldn't be too high, allowing for sustained regular combat.

He carefully filtered through the database.

【Rock Giant Lizard】: Green Three-Star, Earth attribute, extremely strong defense, comes with 【Hardened Skin】 and 【Poisonous Bite】, excellent survival ability, but speed is a weakness.

【Mist Fairy】: Blue Three-Star, Psychic type, good at creating illusions and psychic interference, strong crowd control, but itself fragile, needs protection.

【Hellhound】: Blue Four-Star, Fire attribute, has dual skills 【Flame Breath】 and 【Frenzied Bite】, extremely aggressive, astonishing burst damage, but relatively average sustainability and defense.

These three cards each had their pros and cons.

The Rock Giant Lizard was like a weakened Crocodile, barely usable as a main force.

The Mist Fairy’s crowd control was tempting, but he lacked means to protect it.

The Hellhound had the strongest attack power, and its blue four-star quality was the highest, but its price would likely be… A Second-Tier three-star green card starts at at least ten thousand star coins on the market.

Blue quality cards would be several times more expensive.

A four-star blue card like the Hellhound would be out of the question without at least a hundred thousand star coins, and might even be priceless.

The money he got from selling the 【Wind Spirit Butterfly】, plus his previous savings, was only a little over twenty thousand star coins at most.

Buying a three-star green card would be difficult, let alone a blue card.

star coins! Again, star coins!

Lu Yuan felt a headache coming on.

He really wanted to auction off a gold card to quench his thirst.

Just as he was about to close the database and go to the Hunter's Market to sell the remaining two 【Wind Spirit Butterfly】 cards for money.

A piece of information accidentally caught his eye.

It was a niche theoretical study on “Source Power Resonance.”

The author was an unknown old Card Master, and the article was published decades ago in a very obscure academic journal.

The core idea of the theory was: high-quality cards of the same origin or similar attributes, especially between Origin Cards, when maintained by the Card Master’s Source Power, might produce a special “resonance” phenomenon.

This resonance could not only enhance the Card Master’s control over the cards, but might even, under specific conditions, mutually amplify the power of the cards!

The article also cited several vague examples, such as water and ice, light and dark, wind and thunder… Wind and thunder!

Lu Yuan’s heart suddenly skipped a beat!

【Raging Waves Sea Soul】 was Water-element!

【Heavenly Thunder Light Falcon】 was Thunder-element!

Water and thunder, in nature, were inherently intertwined and often appeared together!

Could there also be this “Source Power Resonance” between his two gold Origin Cards?

He thought back carefully.

Ever since he obtained the 【Heavenly Thunder Light Falcon】, his perception of the 【Raging Waves Sea Soul】 indeed seemed clearer.

Moreover, the recovery effect inherent in the 【Raging Waves Sea Soul】 also seemed to have received a slight boost due to his advancement to Second-Tier and the appearance of the second gold card.

Could it be… this was the manifestation of “Source Power Resonance”?

But the article also mentioned later that to activate and utilize this resonance, extremely stringent conditions, massive resource investment, and… an unspeakable amount of luck were required.

It might even require specific rituals or mediums.

This thing sounded unreliable.

This direction could be noted, but for now, solving the card shortcomings and star coins problem was more practical.

He closed the light screen and got up to leave the data room.

Destination: Hunter's Market!

As soon as he walked out of Venus Tower and arrived at the school gate.

A familiar black sedan was parked on the roadside not far away.

The car window slowly rolled down.

Yao Xiao sat in the back, having removed her mask, and waved at him.

“Hey, get in.”

“I’ll take you to a good place.”

...