172: 【Magic Rainbow】

Chapter 172: "Magic Siphon"

Wisdom Resonance: 60% → 80%

After obtaining his Destined Hand Card, his Wisdom Resonance increased again.

Honestly, this mission was easier than Shi Li had imagined.

After deducting the money spent on purchasing the second-to-third Star Ascension token card, he still had 530,000 remaining.

This meant that Shi Li had only attempted this mission 10 times, spending 220,000.

There were two main reasons for such few refresh attempts.

Firstly, this mission was indeed not as difficult as "Crimson Liberation," "Dead's Talisman," or "cloud mountain."

Secondly, the participation of Flower Cudgel Leader through Dimensional Intervention was incredibly convenient.

Its energy synergy with Demon-Defeating Dark Hunter could produce very strong output effects.

Flower Cudgel Leader was even more suited to this simulation mission than Red Blade Maiden.

"I have to say, Demon-Defeating Dark Hunter and Flower Cudgel Leader are indeed a perfect match."

Looking at the Destined Hand Card in his hand, Shi Li expressed his satisfaction.

"Magic Siphon": When Demon-Defeating Dark Hunter's energy value reaches 0, select 1 target to share energy with. Demon-Defeating Dark Hunter itself is a very mana-intensive character card.

Moreover, it only has 40 energy, and its energy can often be depleted in just one round.

Especially when equipped with Echo.

Therefore, it's actually very easy to meet the release conditions for its Destined Hand Card.

It can usually be achieved within 1 or 2 rounds of revealing the card, which almost means there are no conditions.

As for the shared energy value, Shi Li would need to test it to understand the specific mechanism details.

"Nice, comfortable."

He was very pleased after getting the results in the simulated cards.

The first test, naturally, was the further synergy between Demon-Defeating Dark Hunter and Flower Cudgel Leader.

After Demon-Defeating Dark Hunter selected a target, its own energy slot disappeared.

In its place was Flower Cudgel Leader's 20/20.

Then, with Flower Cudgel Leader's Characteristic, the energy would never run out.

This resulted in Demon-Defeating Dark Hunter essentially having infinite energy, allowing it to trigger various skills at will, as its skills' energy consumption was already low. It was a bit of a shame that Shi Li had actually hoped to see Flower Cudgel Leader also consume energy with Demon-Defeating Dark Hunter's help.

However, Flower Cudgel Leader's Characteristic had a higher priority than Magic Siphon, so this could not be achieved.

Of course, besides linking with Flower Cudgel Leader, Demon-Defeating Dark Hunter could also link with other cards.

There were two main tactics for linking with other cards.

The first was to connect with highly efficient Charge cards like bo shan and cloud river, to continuously provide energy to Demon-Defeating Dark Hunter.

However, in most cases, connecting with Flower Cudgel Leader would be more efficient than connecting with other allied character cards.

Moreover, connecting with allied character cards would also affect their Charge.

The second was to connect with the opponent's character cards.

By using Demon-Defeating Dark Hunter's high energy consumption, it could hinder the opponent's Charge.

And as a Destined Hand Card, Magic Siphon would not be blocked and could directly connect to the opponent's backline cards.

If "Finishing Blow" + "Echo" were triggered simultaneously in one round, plus its own active skill, that would be a consumption of 30 energy.

30 points in one round, even a Listen to the Wind card couldn't recover that.

It was very effective for suppressing the opponent's active skills.

However, this Destined Hand Card also had limitations; it was useless against Balanced cards and Rage cards.

"The remaining money should be enough to Star Ascension Tao Tao Mo."

Without resting, Shi Li once again immersed himself in the simulation missions.

Six days later, Qingchuan University's tarmac.

The students who made it to the Top 32 of the Placement Tournament stood before the aircraft, ready to board.

This expedition was expected to last 30 days, and whatever achievements they made within those 30 days would depend entirely on individual performance.

Only after returning from the expedition would the third stage of the Placement Tournament begin.

This stage would determine the participants for the Top 16 into Top 8, and Top 8 into Top 4.

"Alright, students, that's all I have to say."

After the grade director announced the precautions, he gestured for everyone to board: "I wish you all a smooth journey and abundant rewards."

So, the 32 people lined up and boarded one after another.

When Chang Zhun reached the iron ladder, he stopped.

"Student Chang Zhun, what's wrong?"

"There are still - 3 minutes and 27 seconds until boarding time."

"Get out of here!"

Chang Zhun, who was still looking at his watch, was kicked into the cabin by Shi Li.

After all 32 people were seated neatly, the aircraft slowly ascended.

"Fasten your seatbelts."

"This flight will take approximately 45 minutes; you can take this opportunity to get some rest."

The teachers leading the group, one male and one female, were from Kuangbao Academy and Steadfast Academy respectively.

Level 4 Exotic ( Foreign Land), only Platinum card players were allowed to enter.

Therefore, these two teachers were not very old, belonging to the younger cohort of the teaching staff.

The male teacher had a colder personality, named Dai Teng, Platinum 25.

The female teacher was more warm and friendly, named Huo Zhao, Platinum 23.

Both appeared to be in their early thirties.

"This time, you 32 people will be divided into 8 groups for free movement."

Huo Zhao introduced the upcoming rules of action: "How to allocate personnel and internal group regulations, please decide among yourselves.

We only have one requirement: ensure that there is at least 1 Platinum 10 or 2 Platinum 9 in the team."

In other words, during the ten-odd days Shi Li was away, some members of the Top 32 had achieved breakthroughs in their ranks.

Among them, 3 people advanced from Platinum 9 to Platinum 10, and 2 people advanced from Platinum 8 to Platinum 9.

Naturally, Shi Li's dorm quartet automatically formed a team.

"Then I'll be the captain."

As the only Platinum 10 in the team, A Ya Jun volunteered.

"No, then our team will only be able to come in second!"

Gong Ping immediately expressed his dissatisfaction.

"Isn't guaranteeing you second place enough?"

Chang Zhun, on the other hand, was very open-minded.

"Indeed, the 32nd and 31st places are both in our team; getting second place would be like a conceptual god triggering."

Shi Li nodded in agreement.

"Never mind, let's change the topic."

Gong Ping sat back down, then looked at everyone: "Do you know why the teachers require us to be in groups of four this time?"

"Why?"

A Ya Jun looked at him with a puzzled expression.

"Because it's said that this Exotic ( Foreign Land) is a bit different from the Exotic ( Foreign Land) you know; it's entirely enveloped by special rules."

To Shi Li, it sounded a bit like a Chess Domain.

A Chess Domain was an example of an entire world being enveloped by special rules.

"So what are the special rules?"

Chang Zhun asked.

"I don't know, after all, that Exotic ( Foreign Land) hasn't opened yet.

No one has entered it; it's just some decrypted wavebands detected by instruments.

It seems that you have to form a team to enter, and there can be no more than 4 people."

Gong Ping spread his hands.

"Where did you get all this information?"

Shi Li was more curious about this question.

Gong Ping: "Hehe, you wouldn't know, but I have my own intelligence channels."

Shi Li: "You, you've become the dormitory's source of information now."

A Ya Jun: "But this should be the only contribution you can make to the dorm, right?"

Gong Ping:

...Shi Li: "It's still better than Chang Zhun, that completely useless guy."

Chang Zhun: "I can tell time."

The three: "Get lost."

At the same time, in a grand hall floating in the stellar cosmos.

A man in a black robe stood before a mirror as dark as ink.

His identity was one of the thirty-six cabin masters of the Blacklight Society's Withering Branch.

"Master, according to observations, the small world where the 'Withering Shard' is located is about to open."

He clasped his hands, showing utmost respect.

A moment later, the smooth mirror rippled like a water surface.

A muffled, ancient voice seemed to come from afar, passing through the mirror and creating ripples.

"To select suitable candidates, the gods have sown the seeds of the abyss."

"And within the Mang Realm, their activities are becoming increasingly frequent."

"All signs indicate that the Divine Realm is about to reappear in the world."

"If we do not accumulate enough power before the Divine Realm opens, we will not be able to secure a foothold."

"The matter of recovering the shards must succeed, no failure is allowed."

"Yes!"

The Helmsman ( Helmsman) responded in a deep voice.

"It's just that this small world is a Level 4 extremely small passage, only allowing 1 Platinum to enter.

Your subordinate is concerned that our strength may be insufficient, and unforeseen changes might occur."

He added.

...There was another brief silence.

"I remember you have 3 Holy Sons under your cultivation."

"Among them, 2 have already advanced to Emerald, and only 1 remains temporarily at the Platinum 33 realm."

“Then send him.”

“Understood, my lord.”

The helmsman lowered his head and remained motionless.

Sure enough, after a while, ten black lights flew out of the mirror.

“These ten item cards were personally refined by me; have him take them with him.”

“There must be no mistakes.”

“Yes!”

The helmsman accepted the cards.

Only after the mirror was completely still did he pick up these ten identical item cards to check their effects.

“As expected from the master’s hand, their power is simply boundless.”

He exclaimed in admiration.

Not long after, a handsome young man arrived in the hall.

The young man first bowed to the helmsman, then respectfully said, “Godfather, you were looking for me.”

“Hmm…”

The helmsman nodded slightly.

“I need you to go to a place and retrieve an item.”

“Whatever Godfather commands, I will go through fire and water without hesitation.”

“Take these five cards.”

Five cards flew into the young man’s hand.

“This is—!”

A hint of shock appeared in the young man’s eyes.

“When you encounter a situation, it can help you overcome powerful enemies.”

“Thank you, Godfather!”

The aircraft landed at a temporary camp.

They were very lucky; their arrival coincided with the opening of the Exotic.

None of the students present had yet entered the Exotic, but witnessing its opening firsthand was a first for them.

They saw that the surface of what was originally a spherical object, about half the size of a basketball court, suddenly peeled off like a broken shell.

Then, a pure orb of light, seemingly composed entirely of light, appeared before their eyes.

The orb of light underwent a series of Characteristic changes, eventually forming a towering pillar of light.

Thirty minutes later, the two teachers had everyone line up.

“The Space-Time Trace is now stable; we are about to enter.”

“Before we officially enter, I need to introduce this Exotic to you.”

“Judging from the energy frequency, this should be a team-based Exotic.”

“Card players can only enter as a team.”

“Most of these instances have special circumstances and require teammates to support each other.”

“Therefore, I hope that once you enter, you can unite and cooperate, striving to achieve the desired effect of this practical exercise.”

After a general introduction to the situation, Huo Zhao distributed one [Escape] item card to each person.

“Heh heh heh, I still have the [Retreat] card from the contract assessment; I haven’t even used it yet.”

Gong Ping said smugly.

“Which contract assessment?”

“The one I was with you.”

“What’s the point of that?”

Shi Li was too lazy to retort.

If he remembered correctly, that [Retreat] card could only target 2-star monsters; it would be useless in a Level 4 Exotic.

With the prelude preparations complete, everyone entered the Exotic one after another.

After a dizzying sensation, Shi Li looked with pity at the three useless wastes beside him who had fallen to the ground.

“You, get up!”

He slapped Gong Ping’s face.

“What are you doing?”

Gong Ping, who had briefly lost consciousness, immediately woke up.

“You should thank me.”

Shi Li snorted coldly and looked at the other two: “If it weren’t for me, you would probably already be awake.”

It turned out that even without him waking them, they would have woken up quickly.

“???”

Gong Ping covered his stinging face, just about to shout that it was unfair, when everyone saw several lines of text pop up before their eyes.

“World Name: ** Fragment Island”

“What does that mean? Why is the name censored?”

His attention was drawn away.

Chang Zhun: “Generally speaking, only swear words are censored.”

A Ya Jun: “So you mean, the suffixes of those [Emerald] card players we saw were all swear words?”

“You have entered a special area.”

“Within this area, it will shrink by one circle every 30 minutes.”

“Within this area, team-shared card games are allowed, as are independent card games.”

“Each team must eliminate each other.”

“Until the last victorious team receives rewards.”

“A special mode Exotic!”

Chang Zhun immediately understood.

Special mode Exotics are Exotics where activities must adhere to special rules.

No one knew how these rules specifically evolved.

They only knew that everyone within them could not resist their rules.

Chang Zhun: “In last week’s Exotic class, the teacher just talked about special mode Exotics.”

The three of them: “???”

After Chang Zhun’s explanation, they realized that this current mode was called the “Great Wave Sifting Sand” mode.

The constantly shrinking area was the great wave, and the card players within it were the sand.

Chang Zhun: “That is to say, our opponents now are any card player teams in this world.”

“That even includes Teacher Huo and the others.”

Shi Li: “Rewards, huh, interesting——”

Gong Ping: “What do you guys think the punishment would be if we stayed outside the shrinking area?”

A Ya Jun: “I want to wash my hands; are there any water sources nearby?”

Chang Zhun: “Are you guys even listening to me, damn it?”

Elsewhere on Fragment Island, Dai Teng and Huo Zhao were randomly teleported into a dense forest.

“I didn’t expect it to be a battle royale mode.”

After reading the text description, Huo Zhao gave a wry smile.

“Don’t worry, they all have [Escape] cards.”

While comforting his colleague, Dai Teng was surveying the surroundings.

Although the battle royale mode’s apparent opponents were other card player teams, the local alien race or monsters were also not to be underestimated.

“Let’s first find a high point to observe the shrinking area.”

Soon, Dai Teng made a decision.

“Teacher Dai, you…”

Huo Zhao was slightly taken aback.

“Our duty is to improve the quality of practical training while protecting and guiding students.”

Dai Teng knew she had misunderstood, so he could only explain, “Since that’s the case, what could possibly enhance the experience more than playing along with their scheme?”

“You have a point.”

Huo Zhao smiled, relieved.

Although the rewards given by a Level 4 world will certainly not be bad, they were even enough to make both of them feel a little tempted.

But as leading teachers, to compete with students for opportunities would be too unworthy of a teacher.

“Don’t overthink it. If the two of us really teamed up, all 32 of them combined probably wouldn’t be our match.”

Dai Teng also smiled, preparing to climb a large tree in front of them.

However, in the very next moment, both of their movements stopped simultaneously.

They saw a two-meter-long black line appear out of thin air less than five meters away from them.

It then rapidly expanded into a vertical eye shape, and a young man in a black robe stepped out from within.

“So, are you two the strongest card players here?”

He had heard their conversation.

“Fel Energy card player.”

Although Huo Zhao was surprised internally, she did not show it.

“Attention everyone, an Fel Energy card player has appeared.

If you encounter one, immediately use [Escape].”

Dai Teng was also very experienced and immediately issued an order via his communication wristband.

The young man just watched, smiling silently, and did not try to stop them.

“This… this… this…”

However, Dai Teng was only met with static in response.

Because an Fel Energy Space-Time Trace had just appeared nearby, electromagnetic interference disrupted communications.

“Are you all set?”

Only then did the young man speak again.

“Let’s go together.”

Dai Teng didn’t reply but instead directly hit the opponent with a targeting cursor.

Buzz.

The card game immediately began.

“Courageous.”

The young man stood with his hands behind his back.

“Speaking of which, my demon-slaying cards haven’t been used in a long time.”

“If we take care of this guy, the rewards we get might be even higher than the battle royale.”

Dai and Huo had encountered Fel Energy card players before and were already rubbing their fists in anticipation.

Indeed, the opponent’s Platinum 33 rank was a notch higher than each of theirs.

But let’s not forget, they were now in team mode.

Platinum 25 + Platinum 23, their combined deck depth could be considered Platinum 48!

Not only were they not losing, but they were also a significant step ahead of the opponent!

“I’m also in a hurry, so let’s speed this up.”

As the young man gestured, he had already arranged his deck.

“Hmph.”

Dai Teng and Huo Zhao both snorted coldly at the man’s overconfidence.

Five minutes later.

Buzz.

The card game Barrier faded, and Dai Teng and Huo Zhao both fell to the ground, eyes filled with disbelief.

Thud! Thud!

“You do have some skill; you wasted two of my holy cards. Hmph.”

The young man dusted off his robe and turned to leave.