153: Star upgrade, PVP best

Chapter 153: Star Ascension, Top-Tier PVP

Shi Li remained silent, awaiting the other party's explanation.

“This Abyssal Kind is a single-player mode, and it also has a task quota.”

“What is a task quota?”

“Simply put, each Abyssal Kind has a group task.

If the task isn't completed, based on the experience of other civilizations in past weeks, it could lead to a catastrophic disaster.”

Director Hou realized it wasn't easy to understand just by talking, so he took Shi Li to see it.

Riding in Director Hou's hovercar, the two arrived at a desolate area on the outskirts of Durian City. The official efficiency of Durian City was incredibly fast; in just a few days, a base had been built here, its scale no less than the entrance to the Gan Territory in Jiangbei Province.

Crisis also represented opportunity.

It was clear that Durian City wanted to seize this chance to rise.

After completing a series of procedures, the two entered the interior of the base.

However, what surprised Shi Li slightly was that he hardly saw any familiar faces.

After all, he had spent time in the three major Card Halls and participated in the Pioneer Team for the foreign territory.

Logically, among the core Card Players of Durian City, even if he didn't know all of them, he should at least recognize two or three out of ten.

Yet, upon arrival, he saw almost none.

“There are a total of 3 Abyssal Kind in the South District, and all of them need to be resolved by the Card Player forces within our South District.

So, currently, most of the Card Players here are from out of town.

Our local Card Players already went in a few days ago and are now on rotation.”

Facing Shi Li's question, Director Hou provided the answer.

“I see.”

Shi Li nodded, and the two quickly arrived at the entrance.

It was guarded by dedicated personnel, with people constantly coming and going.

“Currently, there's a large flow of people at the entrance, and everyone entering needs to go through a unified application process.

But don't worry, I've already reserved a spot for you.”

Director Hou pulled out an ID card and helped Shi Li pass through the hall's access control.

After entering, the two queued for a short while.

There seemed to be a limit on the number of people inside, or perhaps it was to avoid chaos.

In any case, only when one person came out could the next person go in.

Director Hou could, of course, use his connections with the local Show Card Hall to go through the back door, but Shi Li didn't think it was necessary.

After waiting for about ten minutes, they arrived in front of the teleportation gate.

This was a large teleportation gate, similar in scale to the entrance of the Gan Territory.

It was still that purplish-black energy vortex, and there was still a palpable sense of malice.

“The current entry threshold for this Abyssal Kind is Platinum 15. I just meet the standard, hehe.”

Director Hou introduced.

.

Shi Li looked up at the tag above the other party's head.

Since their first meeting, Brother Hou had maintained this rank.

Shouldn't this be something to reflect on? Why did this guy seem a little proud?

“Nah, let the valuable resources be for you younger generation.

At my stage, all I pursue is my career.”

Director Hou seemed to have heard some whispers.

Just then, two people came out, and it was their turn to enter.

After a moment of weightlessness, Shi Li arrived in a space with a dominant purplish-black tone.

It looked like a fictional small town scene, with a purplish-red sun hanging in the sky.

This was very Abyssal.

The next second, a line of text popped up in front of him.

【Please enter your “codename” in the Abyssal Kind.】

“First-timers all have to choose a name for themselves.”

Seeing him pause, Director Hou knew what was going on.

“Sorry, I never rely on luck when playing cards.”

Shi Li typed in a sentence in response.

【Sorry, codename is too long.】

【Please re-enter.】

“Sorry, I rely purely on skill when playing cards.”

【Sorry, codename is too long.】

【Please re-enter.】

“A failed coffee.”

He liked to drink coffee and also loved listening to the song “Coffee.”

【Sorry, codename is too long.】

【Please re-enter.】

It still didn't work.

Finally, Shi Li didn't care anymore and randomly typed in the three characters, “Wang Defa.”

【Congratulations, this codename is unused.】

【Setup complete.】

After finally setting up his codename, new text popped up.

【Abyssal Kind No. 68, current phase tasks:】

【Kill 4 Evolved: 233 / 10000】

【Kill 5 Evolved: 39 / 1000】

【Kill 6 Evolved: 1 / 100】

【Kill 8 Evolved: 0 / 10】

【Kill 10 Evolved: 0 / 1】

“Now you know, right? This is what I meant by group tasks.”

Director Hou knew Shi Li had already seen the task progress.

“What is the time limit for the so-called ‘current phase’?”

Shi Li asked.

He had a say regarding the evolutionary strength of the Abyssal Kind.

It had only been open for a few days, and many people were still queuing to get in.

For over 200 people to complete the first tier of tasks was already quite good.

But those 5-time and 6-time evolved ones were truly not that easy to deal with.

“Hard to say, according to the experiences of other civilizations.

The time limit for this phase should be around 3 months. If it's not completed on time, then an Event of Abyssal Kind invading the local area will erupt.

And each person can only enter the same Abyssal Kind in the same phase; they cannot enter multiple Abyssal Kind.”

Regarding this, Shi Li didn't find anything particularly troublesome.

Anyway, transportation was developed now; taking an aircraft from Qingchuan University to Durian City only took half a day.

Compared to other places, his first choice would naturally be to protect his hometown.

He could also often go home to visit, which was quite good.

“Then is this Platinum 15 admission threshold always maintained?”

“That's also hard to say, but it's said that the threshold will only get looser, not tighter.”

The two talked as they walked along the town road.

Director Hou's Platinum 15 repeatedly received gazes of slight respect.

After all, this rank was already the top-tier expert in Abyssal Kind No. 68.

As they walked, Shi Li saw several large stone tablets appear ahead.

The stone tablets listed rows of names, along with dates and times.

There were ten stone tablets in total, each with a different header, and a small teleportation gate next to them.

They ranged from the [1-Time Evolved Kill List] all the way to the [10-Time Evolved Kill List].

“This is the real-time updated battle record ranking list for Abyssal Kind No. 68. Those who complete the corresponding kills earlier will be listed on the ranking earlier.

Besides that, the ranking also considers some other factors.”

“Brother Hou, are you on it?”

Shi Li was a little curious.

“Of course.”

Director Hou pointed to the [4-Time Evolved Kill List], and on a list almost entirely composed of Platinum 15s, he counted down from the first place.

Counting to the 151st entry was his codename: [Accidental Success].

“Why can't I find your name on the [5-Time Evolved Kill List]?”

Shi Li looked around.

Logically, our Brother Hou is at least a Platinum 15 master, so how come he's not even on the [5-Time Evolved Kill List]?

“Uh, 5-time evolved Abyssal Kind are not as easy to deal with as you imagine.”

Director Hou gave a wry smile.

In reality, his deck strength and card skills were considered decent for someone who could make it onto the [4-Time Evolved Kill List].

But even so, he could only rank after the 100th place.

Besides that, Shi Li also noticed a solitary codename hanging on the [6-Time Evolved Kill List].

1. [Wu Tianjin], Rank at time of kill: Platinum 15

“Who is this? It looks like a real name.”

He pointed to the top of the list.

“It is indeed a real name. This person is quite well-known in our South District.

More precisely, the group he belongs to, [FunPlus], is very famous.”

“[FunPlus]? What kind of group is that?”

“Unofficial Pioneer Team, have you heard of it?”

Director Hou said.

“Uh, aren't the biggest unofficial Pioneer Teams those of the five major Card Halls?”

Shi Li questioned.

Strictly speaking, the five major Card Halls are not required to obey official directives.

But it cannot be denied that in the foreign territory activities on Blue Star, the power contributed by the five major Card Halls accounts for at least 60% or more.

“The five major Card Halls are so large that they are already large enough to be considered another kind of official entity.”

Director Hou smiled and said, “The unofficial Pioneer Teams I'm referring to are those smaller groups.

Their members can also be members of various Card Halls, but they gather together due to shared aspirations or other reasons.

Among them, [FunPlus] is a very well-known small Level 4 foreign territory Pioneer Team in our 9 provinces of the South District.”

Shi Li had thought that the pioneering of foreign territories would be like the last time in Yu Continent, with the major forces deploying in an orderly fashion.

In reality, that was because the Level 3 foreign territory Pioneer Team had relatively few personnel.

The truly bustling Level 4 foreign territory pioneering involved a large group of people in a grand procession.

That was what true pioneering was called.

“This Wu Tianjin is a member of [FunPlus].”

Director Hou returned to the main topic.

“Hey~! Director Hou!”

Just then, an enthusiastic greeting caught their attention.

A young man with a patch of yellow hair walked over.

His eye sockets were slightly dark, his cheeks sunken, and his steps a bit frivolous, giving him the air of a shiftless ruffian.

Behind him followed several others, who looked about the same age but appeared to be respectable people.

"What a coincidence, speak of the devil and he appears."

Director Hou muttered, then immediately put on a cordial smile: "Oh~! Wu Tianjin!"

As a mid-level leader of the local Show Card Hall, he had dealt with this group quite a bit recently.

If you're slick, I'll be even slicker.

Immediately, the two put their arms around each other's shoulders.

"Brother Hou, our brothers had quite a haul this time."

"Is that so? Congratulations, congratulations."

"Do you think you could help adjust the rounds? I still have a few brothers outside who haven't come in yet."

"Hmm, about that—"

The two walked away, talking.

Eventually, it's unclear what they discussed, but Director Hou immediately dropped his previous smile when he returned.

It's worth noting that neither Wu Tianjin nor his companions even glanced at Shi Li the entire time, let alone asked him anything.

Because in their view, a Platinum 6 player was nothing in this Abyssal Kind.

A player of this rank would be lucky to defeat a 1st evolution Abyssal Kind.

Shi Li, of course, didn't care about such things; he was more curious about Wu Tianjin's opening remarks.

"It sounds like it's very easy to gain something here."

"That's what's different about this current Abyssal Kind. Whenever you achieve a new personal best or record, this Abyssal Kind space will give you material rewards."

"In addition, if you can make it onto the leaderboard, you'll receive extra rewards."

"So far, to my knowledge, the best reward for No. 68 was a Star Ascension token card for a non-Unique Character Card, allowing a direct promotion from three to four stars."

"As for the winner, you just saw him, it was Wu Tianjin."

"Three to four? Direct promotion?"

Shi Li was stunned when he heard this.

When he was in Blueberry City, he had done market research, and a direct promotion token card from two to three stars for a unique card sold for 2 million cubic coins.

While that might have been a bit inflated, a direct promotion token card for a non-unique card from three to four stars should at least be around that price.

"In addition, to encourage everyone to complete the team task for this stage as soon as possible, the officials have also offered additional incentive bonuses."

"Completing a 4th evolution kill rewards 10,000 cubic coins, 5th evolution 200,000, 6th evolution 400,000, 8th evolution 2,000,000, and 10th evolution 10,000,000."

"The bonus for each level varies greatly, and those who meet the standard after the task is full will no longer receive it."

"That much—"

The first thing Shi Li thought of was that he had once participated in resolving an 8th evolution BOSS at the secret base.

"Don't overthink it; the Abyssal Kind here are completely different from what you fought then."

Director Hou seemed to see through his thoughts,

"Is that so? Then, Brother Hou, what level do you think I can challenge now?"

"You?"

When Director Hou heard this question, he subconsciously wanted to say, you're a Platinum 6, just focus on dealing with the 1st and 2nd evolutions first.

But then he reconsidered, how many times had Shi Li proven him wrong on this journey?

He couldn't judge this kid with ordinary eyes.

"I think you should have a chance to challenge the 4th evolution."

So, he raised his initial mental expectation by one level.

One should know, this was already a very high regard for Shi Li.

After all, Director Hou himself, at Platinum 15, had only just managed to defeat the 4th evolution.

And currently, on the leaderboard for 4th evolution, the lowest-ranked person was a Platinum 12.

"4th evolution, huh—"

Shi Li fell into deep thought.

"Alright, since I've accompanied you here, I'll go and try the 5th evolution again."

"You can stay here and slowly familiarize yourself and try things out."

Before Director Hou left, he remembered something and added, "Oh, right, feel free to stay as long as you like. Your access card is different from theirs; it has no time limit."

"No matter how long you stay, there won't be any penalty for overstaying after you leave."

"Okay."

Shi Li watched him leave, then began to wander around the small town.

To his surprise, there were actually establishments for daily needs here, such as taverns and inns.

However, they weren't run by the government or individuals.

Instead, they were provided by the Abyssal Kind; one only needed to provide cubic coins to receive the corresponding services.

Managing these places were some "Abyssal people."

There were beastmen, elves, succubi, and humans.

However, after comprehensive testing by officials, they didn't seem to be truly living beings.

They were more akin to NPC-like existences.

Of course, in terms of intelligence, ordinary communication with players was completely fine.

It was just that if one tried to extract information related to the Abyssal Kind, they would feign ignorance, using templated, formulaic responses.

Shi Li walked around for a bit and finally settled into an inn called "Elf's Beautiful Night."

A room cost 100 cubic coins, which was even slightly cheaper than in reality.

Then he took out the two-star token card he had previously purchased, preparing to undertake the simulated task that Director Hou had interrupted before it even began.

Upon using the token card, several lines of text popped up.

"This task is named: The Magic Resistance Chronicle. (Star Ascension)"

"The previous fierce battle with the Enforcers ended with Aliu severely wounded and fleeing."

"She hid in the deep mountains and old forests, recuperating for a long time before finally recovering."

"During this time, Aliu had been pondering a question."

"That is, how insufficient her own strength was."

"They say that to defeat an enemy, you first need to understand the enemy."

"So she decided to find some channels to understand the enemy."

"Please help her make a choice."

"A. Disguise herself and go to the nearest town to join the Mage Association."

"Aliu's physique is quite special; if she's not careful, she might be exposed."

"B. Set up a trap, actively reveal herself to lure the Enforcers, and capture them."

"If 'that person' is lured again this time, she might not just be getting injured again."

"C. It is rumored that in the south of this country, there is a senior Archmage who lives in seclusion due to being wronged."

"Also persecuted by the Mage Association, perhaps the other party and Aliu will have common ground."

"Choose C."

Shi Li randomly picked one.

Just like that, 30 minutes later, his task failed.

And so, two days later, he finally succeeded.

"You have completed this simulation, with a completion rate of 100%."

"You can obtain Character Card [Defeated Magician (Two-Star)] x 1."

"You can obtain Hand Card [Counter (LV2)] x 2."

"Yes/No to reset this task for 5000 cubic coins."

"Satisfying."

Shi Li clicked no, and his resonance changed again.

"[Wisdom Resonance]: 20% → 40%"

Let's look at the card face immediately; this time, it gave two Characteristics, which is quite good.

"[Defeated Magician]"

"Wisdom, 30 points, Two-Star Attack 30, 100/100, 30/30"

"[Defeated Magic - Characteristic]: Defeated Magician possesses [Magic Immunity] effect [Source Intercept - Passive]: When Defeated Magician reveals a card, it can prevent 1 target from recovering energy this turn [Eradicate Evil - 10 Energy]: Defeated Magician automatically initiates 10 [Finishing Blow]"

"[Anti-Magic Mark - 20 Energy]: Defeated Magician makes your side immune to enemy hand cards this turn (T0)"

"([Magic Immunity]: Immune to non-control negative effects)"

"([Finishing Blow]: When an enemy target's HP first drops to 50% or less, immediately launch 1 attack)"

"One Characteristic is biased towards PVP, and one is purely for PVP; it's practically invincible."

Shi Li was very satisfied with this two-star Character Card.

First, let's talk about this [Finishing Blow]; it has good synergy with Red Blade Maiden and Flower Cudgel Leader.

Red Blade Maiden and Flower Cudgel Leader often deal half an opponent's card's HP in one hit in PVP card games.

Red Blade Maiden generally maintains high damage, easily taking half HP off anyone with one strike.

Flower Cudgel Leader, on the other hand, not only synergizes with [Finishing Blow] but also with [Source Intercept].

Both cards can be considered good partners for the Defeated Magician, easily creating combinations.

The key advantage of this passive skill is that it triggers automatically and deducts energy automatically, without consuming an action slot.