234: Search and withdrawal

Chapter 234: Search, Fight, Retreat

"Holy crap, Continent."

When Shi Li saw the words "Search, Fight, Retreat," the first thing he thought of was the game on Blue Star, "Continent of Quadrilaterals."

Its game type integrated treasure hunting, fighting, and survival.

"But how do I play this?"

He suddenly became a little worried.

Because Search, Fight, Retreat had a relatively typical mechanism: True Damage.

The resources you searched for in the game would genuinely become your assets after safely Escaping the current game.

However, if you failed to Escape safely, then the resources you carried this time would be directly lost.

Therefore, this mode basically did not have a "unique" winner.

From a certain perspective, as long as you could safely evacuate without losing resources, it was considered a victory.

"Could it be that if I bring Characteristics in, I'll lose Characteristics if I lose the match?"

This was what he was worried about.

If he brought powerful Characteristics, he would worry about losing them.

If he didn't bring powerful Characteristics, he might not be able to win.

The two were contradictory.

Especially if it was his first time in this mode, he was unfamiliar with all aspects, which would obviously put him at a disadvantage and entail higher risks.

From the previous prompt, it was very likely that this automatic entry mechanism after a timeout already existed in the first round.

If others were already entering for the third time while he was only entering for the first, Shi Li clearly had no advantage.

As his thoughts turned, his vision shifted, and he appeared in a pure white space.

【In this mode, you need to select 4 characters to form a team and control them simultaneously in battle.】

"4 characters—"

Shi Li raised an eyebrow.

For him, whose Energy was almost in the four digits, multitasking with two, three, or four things was not difficult.

He wasn't worried about that at all.

He was worried that simultaneously using 4 characters would entail a greater risk of loss.

【In this mode, choosing to carry any Characteristic requires "pledging" points.】

【If a character dies, the corresponding points are lost.】

【Any resources you find in this mode will ultimately be converted into points.】

"So this is how this mode works."

Seeing this, Shi Li felt much more at ease.

He wouldn't actually lose Characteristics or character cards; he would only lose points.

If he could really lose character cards, he estimated that no one, except for crazy gamblers, would be willing to put their main cards on the field.

Since it was only a maximum loss of points, he could confidently use his abilities.

This mode had enough time reserved, so he would first check the relevant rules.

"So there's no time limit; as long as I can leave the map alive, it counts as a successful Escape, and I can get the points I collected."

"If only one team remains, that team will also be automatically judged as having successfully Escaped."

"However, I estimate that at that time, some people will guard the Escape point to earn points, gaining more points by killing others."

"A powerful team is absolutely necessary."

Shi Li then looked at his deck.

Since there was no time limit, a tactical plan had already formed in his mind.

The 'cattle-rearing' tactic.

And it was a 'double cattle' tactic.

The Diner and Lightning Flash, these two guys could stack stats for each other.

One with infinite health, one with infinite attack power.

Then, with a Lotus Succubus as a healer, he could do whatever he wanted.

However, after glancing at the converted character panel, Shi Li couldn't help but feel a little disappointed.

Although The Diner and Lightning Flash could indeed stack without limit, their stacking effects could not be generated through self-attack.

They would only stack by attacking enemies or being attacked by enemies in battle.

This meant that if he wanted to win, he would have to find someone to cooperate with.

However, he probably didn't know anyone here, making cooperation difficult.

Even if others agreed to cooperate with him, he couldn't fully trust them.

"So the most stable approach is Still strong overall combat power."

Shi Li thought for a moment and decided to change his strategy.

Then the most typical would definitely be the warrior-mage-priest iron triangle.

A warrior to tank damage, a mage with strong output, and a priest who could provide team survival and sustain.

Now there were 4 characters, so he would add another Support or output.

"Then I'll choose one by one."

In Shi Li's list, suitable "warriors" were simply character cards with damage-bearing capabilities.

Jumping Dragon Guard, hundred mountain vessel, Withering Dragon, The Diner, red dragon beast master.

"In this mode, there are concepts of 'entering combat' and 'Escaping combat'."

"And the character's Energy mode only manifests in combat."

"For example, the Wisdom System immediately gains full Charge after entering combat, while the Listening Wind System needs to be Still after entering combat to gain full Charge."

"All characters will quickly clear their Energy to 0 after Escaping combat."

Based on this, Withering Dragon was first excluded.

Because it needed a character to die in battle to Charge, this condition was too harsh.

Even though its Characteristic skills were greatly strengthened, it Still didn't enter Shi Li's consideration.

What's more, Withering Dragon only reset its health after each battle, and its own health panel was far below average.

Then, red dragon beast master was excluded.

Because it was a giant.

Although the 'Giant' Characteristic of giant cards was a Characteristic, it had a certain special nature and was mandatory to carry.

This was true on the card table, and it was also true in this mode.

So if he were to use it, it would directly occupy 3 character slots.

Next, Jumping Dragon Guard was excluded.

This card, after conversion, was indeed strong, but the problem was that its Characteristic was largely retained.

It was not affected by external Healing effects!

This meant that it could only recover health by continuously releasing Jumping Girl and then letting Jumping Girl die.

This was too complex, too troublesome, and too difficult to achieve.

Thus, the only one left was hundred mountain vessel.

hundred mountain vessel

cloud mountain – Characteristic: When hundred mountain vessel is attacked, cloud sea vessel gains Energy. Defense Field – Passive: hundred mountain vessel gains Shield (200 points) upon entering combat.

Support Protocol – Passive: When cloud sea vessel is present, damage taken by hundred mountain vessel is reduced (300 points).

Backup Supply – Passive: When cloud sea vessel is Still, hundred mountain vessel continuously gains Healing (500 points).

Energy Saving Mode – 10% Energy: Damage dealt by hundred mountain vessel is reduced for 10 seconds, and damage taken is reduced (300 points).

Dimensional Barrier – 30% Energy: hundred mountain vessel gains 1 stack of Barrier (300 points).

"Can only carry 1 Characteristic and 2 Characteristics, a bit expensive, huh—"

Shi Li looked at the available Characteristics and couldn't help but wince.

Even if he chose the cheapest options, hundred mountain vessel was worth 500 points.

With 4 characters, that would be 2000 points.

And his current total assets were only just over 10,000 points.

If he couldn't Escape safely, or if too many characters died, he would suffer a huge loss.

"No pain, no gain. I'll go for it."

Gritting his teeth, he made his choice.

cloud mountain + Backup Supply + Dimensional Barrier.

Although he would definitely bring a Healing character, as a damage-absorbing character, it was better for hundred mountain vessel to have its own Recovery methods.

After all, with 4 characters, if they sometimes had to spread out, it couldn't be guaranteed that a Healing character would always be next to hundred mountain vessel.

Choosing Dimensional Barrier was to allow it to withstand the opponent's high-damage attacks at certain critical moments.

Moreover, if he didn't bring an active skill, wouldn't the Energy bar be wasted? It was also a sunk cost.

Since hundred mountain vessel was chosen, then cloud sea vessel would undoubtedly also be on the field.

The range of Characteristics that cloud sea vessel could choose was actually very small.

Shi Li's final choice was cloud mountain + Ion Pulse + Flowing Cloud Retrospect.

cloud mountain: When cloud sea vessel is Still, hundred mountain vessel gains Energy. Ion Pulse: cloud sea vessel' attack consumes all current Energy and converts it into an equivalent amount of Quantum Entanglement (300 points).

Flowing Cloud Retrospect: cloud sea vessel causes 1 allied unit to Return to Field (1000 points).

Although Flowing Cloud Retrospect had many limitations.

For example, it required a very high amount of Energy, and it could only revive the target in combat; it could not revive after Escaping combat or after re-entering combat after Escaping combat.

But in this mode, Revival skills were simply too precious, equivalent to adding an extra layer of insurance for himself.

This could be seen from its expensive price.

As for Ion Pulse, it was a powerful burst skill.

However, the Listening Wind System was also at a disadvantage in this mode.

Moving in combat would not cause Energy loss, but being Still would generate Energy.

"Still" included not moving, not attacking, and not taking any actions.

So cloud sea vessel' tactical style would likely be to find a spot in combat to squat and store Energy.

When enough Energy was stored, he would then decide whether to unleash Ion Pulse to deliver a decisive blow or use Flowing Cloud Retrospect to recover losses.

Fortunately, in this mode, both hundred mountain vessel and cloud sea vessel had ranged basic attacks.

This was very important and one of the main reasons Shi Li chose them.

According to his observation, although most characters in this mode had ranged basic attacks, not everyone did.

For example, the Red Blade Maiden, whom he was definitely going to choose next.

He chose for Red Blade Maiden to carry Abundant + Vast.

Her Characteristic strength was too high, but unfortunately, she could only carry 2.

Shi Li made a difficult choice.

Steadfast: Red Blade Maiden possesses Overlord and Resistance effects. Abundant: Red Blade Maiden's maximum health is increased (500 points).

Vast: Red Blade Maiden attacks a small area, dealing True Damage based on her maximum health (1000 points).

1500 points, even more expensive than cloud sea vessel.

However, Shi Li knew it was worth it.

Because the Rage System inherently had higher health in this mode, and with Abundant, Red Blade Maiden's health directly became twice the base health of a normal character.

This amount of health was perfectly fine for tanking damage.

And Vast was a high-burst skill based on Red Blade Maiden's high health.

It had a very fast cooldown and didn't consume much health.

The key was that Red Blade Maiden's basic attack was melee, but Vast was a relatively short-range attack with an AOE effect.

Although opponents in this mode wouldn't foolishly clump together for you to AOE, hitting 2 targets with one skill would be a blessing.

Finally, of course, a character for team sustain was indispensable.

Shi Li undoubtedly chose Lotus Succubus.

Lotus Succubus

Whip of Joy: Lotus Succubus's attacks convert to Healing, while she loses her own health. Narcissism: Lotus Succubus continuously gains Healing (300 points).

Pure Baptism: Lotus Succubus grants 1 target Purification (500 points).

A total of 800 points, which was quite cheap.

Lotus Succubus used a whip as her weapon, so her basic attack was somewhere between ranged and melee.

Her Characteristic was weakened here, returning to how it was before, where basic attacks would cause her to lose health.

So Shi Li had to carry a Recovery Characteristic, as this guy couldn't heal herself through self-attack.

Then he would also bring Purification to prevent encountering enemies with powerful negative effects.

Moreover, choosing Lotus Succubus had another advantage.

That was, her Healing method didn't require Energy at all, so there was no need to consider whether it was in or out of combat.

After she finished Healing, she could just wait on the spot for automatic health Recovery.

Shi Li believed that this point would make her a very powerful and special healer in this mode.

With the four characters selected, a total of 4400 points were pledged.

"With this, about half of my points are used up."

He forced a smile.

"So I must ensure my absolute minimum: that all members can Escape safely."

The reason he chose for cloud sea vessel to have Revival was for this safety net.

"If everyone can Escape, then any points I get are pure profit."

After determining his guiding principle, Shi Li began to wait.

Not long after, a change occurred.

His perspective was raised to a God's-eye view, and the scene before him split into four.

Each area showed a third-person, overhead view of his character.

He then surveyed the surrounding environment.

It was a desolate-looking city, as if destroyed by a fierce war.

Half-collapsed buildings were everywhere, and his four characters stood inside a small, roofless bungalow.

【After the Fel Energy War, this city was contaminated by Fel Energy.】

【Search for everything you can find.】

【Some contaminated items might have research value.】

【Bring them back, and you will receive generous rewards.】

【Additionally, the mothership will deploy an anti-gravity beam in 30 minutes.】

【Reach the Escape point, activate the signal resonator, and the activated anti-gravity beam will allow for safe Escape.】

"So it's a Fel Energy instance, I should have brought Cicada Wing Patrol."

Shi Li felt a slight regret.

But for now, he would start searching.