239: Racing Mode

"This is the one."

After a few attempts, Shi Li already knew that these Duel Modes were all random.

Of course, he could also wait until the Time Limit Expired and then challenge the Search, Attack, and Retreat Mode.

However, he had two concerns.

First, after the zones merged, he didn't know if the Time Limit Expired event would Still be Search, Attack, and Retreat.

Second, the risks of Search, Attack, and Retreat were too great, and he couldn't guarantee that he would be able to retreat completely unscathed.

Moreover, unless one party took all the spoils, the points awarded in this mode wouldn't actually be very high.

So, he decided to first check out the mode currently available.

[Name]: Hot-Blooded Racer [Mode]: Speed Racing [Participants]: 3/20

"That was fast, three people have already entered."

Shi Li was somewhat interested in this mode.

It felt like a free-for-all mode, and if he could win among 20 people, the reward probably wouldn't be low.

Most importantly, there was no risk.

So, he immediately entered the Light Gate.

As soon as he entered, a prompt popped up.

[This mode is Speed Racing Mode.]

[Card Players must build their team and ride together in one vehicle.]

[Competitors may interfere with rivals during the speed race.]

[The first to cross the finish line is the winner, and points collected along the way belong to the individual.]

"A bit interesting."

Shi Li carefully examined the panel in front of him.

Displayed before him was a bizarrely shaped vehicle.

It was clear that this technology did not belong to Blue Star Civilization.

There were three square slots on the vehicle, seemingly representing space for 3 card characters.

"The key seems to be interfering with enemies. Can I just blow them up?"

Since fighting was involved, the first character Shi Li thought of was naturally the Red Blade Maiden.

[In this mode, character energy will serve as vehicle energy.]

[Please carefully select non-energy type characters.]

"It works like that."

Shi Li looked at the detailed Calculation Formula.

It turned out the racing vehicle was divided into a Driver and three Passenger positions.

All three characters can provide forward energy to the vehicle; the greater the efficiency provided, the faster the vehicle speed.

Among them, the Driver has the highest energy conversion rate, and Listening Wind System characters are not recommended for this role.

Because the Driver is considered to be in constant Movement, Listening Wind System characters cannot recover energy.

However, Listening Wind System characters acting as Passengers are considered Still, allowing them to provide the highest energy transmission efficiency.

Of course, besides charging the vehicle, there is another important point.

That is how to obstruct opponents and prevent being interfered with by opponents.

Therefore, relying purely on Listen to the Wind to maximize vehicle speed would be overly idealistic.

"In that case, I think I've found the core character."

After reading the Calculation Formula and rules, Shi Li immediately thought of one card.

Demon-Defeating Dark Hunter.

A Wise card, it has enough energy at the start to activate the vehicle.

Moreover, in this mode, he can use its Destiny Hand Card. If he gives it Mana Siphon, won't it become a perpetual motion machine?

Before long, he selected the Attributes for the Demon-Defeating Dark Hunter.

[Demon-Defeating Dark Hunter]: Wisdom, 60/60.

[Demonbane]: Demon-Defeating Dark Hunter possesses the Magic Immunity effect. [Intercept Source - Passive]: When Demon-Defeating Dark Hunter sets off, it can temporarily prevent 1 target from recovering energy. [Mana Destruction]: Demon-Defeating Dark Hunter's attack comes with Quantum Entanglement.

[Conditional Counter-Curse]: Demon-Defeating Dark Hunter automatically initiates Echo.

[Demon-Defeating Seal]: Demon-Defeating Dark Hunter selects 1 target to receive the corresponding effect. "If it acts as the Driver, the Driver's weight is higher, and Magic Immunity can significantly reduce the negative effects caused by opponents."

"Its Attributes, Conditional Counter-Curse and Demon-Defeating Seal, can both cause great hindrance to the enemy."

Shi Li hadn't decided whether to let it be the Driver yet; he would look at other characters first.

Since energy is needed to drive the vehicle, another highly compatible character is naturally the Flower Cudgel Leader.

The Flower Cudgel Leader's energy does not drop, meaning it can continuously supply energy to the vehicle.

If used alongside the Demon-Defeating Dark Hunter, it might produce extraordinary results.

Moreover, it also has Destiny Hand Cards, and more than one.

However, not all of its Attributes are suitable for the current mode.

[Flower Cudgel Leader]: Momentum, 0/30.

[Weight of the Flower Cudgel]: Flower Cudgel Leader has no energy loss but cannot use skills when at full energy. [Thousand Jun Waiting to Bloom]: When Flower Cudgel Leader's energy is not full, power provision increases. [Irresistible Momentum]: When Flower Cudgel Leader is at full energy, vehicle speed is additionally increased. [Shaking Mountains and Moving Peaks]: Flower Cudgel Leader causes 1 target to receive Knockback.

[Heavy Flower Storm]: Flower Cudgel Leader attacks 3 targets. Attacks in this mode do not refer to attacking rival vehicles.

Instead, they refer to attacking "Point Coins." Point Coins that are hit will be converted into the Card Player's own points.

"In this mode, the Po Shi system can Charge simply by hitting other people's vehicles, or by hitting Destructible Obstacles or Point Coins."

"And it can also increase vehicle speed."

"I feel like it's more suitable to be the Driver than the Demon-Defeating Dark Hunter."

Just like that, two positions were decided.

For the third position, after some screening, Shi Li chose Lightning Flash.

[Lightning Flash]: Momentum, 0/100.

[Contained Rhythm]: Every 20 attacks by Lightning Flash, the trigger condition for Fighting Thunder in this round decreases by 1. [Fighting Thunder]: Every 7 attacks by Lightning Flash, the next attack becomes a 2-hit combo. [Bursting Light Flash]: Lightning Flash attacks 1 target, applying Blindness effect. [Crescent Moon Flash]: Lightning Flash's current attack can bypass obstacles. [Furious Splitting Flash]: Lightning Flash attacks 1 target, applying Stun effect. "Two forms of crowd control, plus additional multi-frequency attacks."

"Hard control can be used to obstruct others, and attacks can collect more gold coins."

"I feel like this card is very suitable for the God Realm."

Thus, his three characters were finalized.

After thinking it over, he decided to let the Flower Cudgel Leader serve as the Driver.

After all, there were very few Attributes that could increase speed.

About 30 minutes later, all 20 participants were finally gathered.

Their scenes switched simultaneously, and 20 racing vehicles all appeared before the Starting Line.

For a moment, everyone began sizing each other up.

As everyone knows, the strength of a character can sometimes be judged by their appearance.

For example, if you have a Gundam Mecha and a Goblin, even if both are four-star or even unique cards, the first reaction of the crowd will be that the mecha is stronger.

Everyone was currently using this method to observe in advance if there were any strong competitors worth noting.

For instance, the vehicle in the middle lane had a cool, hat-wearing Cowboy in the front seat, and the two back seats also held Cowboy characters.

This clearly looked like a Series Deck, which might have powerful synergy effects.

Another example was the vehicle on the right side, where two characters holding massive weapons stood in the back row.

One had a Fine Steel Greatsword, and the other had a Precision Heavy Cannon, both looking formidable.

However, when someone browsed all the way from the right side to the far left, they suddenly noticed that one vehicle seemed odd.

Why was there a Meerkat standing on the roof of the Driver's Compartment?

"Wait a minute."

"One Driver, two Passengers in the back—that's already three."

"Is the one on the roof a Mascot?"

"No, wait, why don't the other people have Mascots on their roofs?"

Obviously, Shi Li's uniqueness attracted everyone's attention.

But Shi Li didn't care about their objections; after all, his actions were within the rules, and he wasn't cheating.

When selecting characters, he had discovered the special quality of the Fennec Fox Girl.

[Fennec Fox Girl] Listen to the Wind, 0/60.

[Stand Anywhere]: Fennec Fox Girl can be placed on the roof, increasing the number of characters deployed by the user by 1.

[Listen to the Wind Sound]: Fennec Fox Girl provides an extra boost to vehicle speed. [Enemy Disturbance Scream]: Fennec Fox Girl selects 1 target, causing them to Slow Down. [Demonstration Scream]: Fennec Fox Girl selects 1 target and releases Dispel.

Before all vehicles departed, everyone was allowed to view each other's characters.

Since the Meerkat caught their attention, they naturally started checking it out.

"Damn it, how are we supposed to play now?"

"How are we supposed to fight against their Four-Wheel Drive Brothers when we only have three-wheel drive!"

"That's kind of rogue behavior."

Several competitors who possessed Wisdom System characters had secretly prepared.

As soon as the race started, they would immediately move to obstruct Shi Li's vehicle.

When the signal actually sounded, a barrage of skills was indeed thrown toward Shi Li.

His newly started vehicle was immediately suppressed and quickly fell out of the leading group.

"Uh, having one extra character isn't necessarily a good thing; instead, I've become the Target of Public Criticism."

Shi Li felt slightly helpless.

However, his situation was not unique.

Others weren't necessarily under attack, but rather facing Energy Mechanism issues.

Aside from Wisdom System characters, other characters actually lacked the ability to start immediately upon the whistle blow.

The Chasing Wind System needs the vehicle to start moving before it can begin to Charge, and only if it is acting as the Driver.

The Listening Wind System needs to stand Still for a while to gain enough energy to start, and it cannot act as the Driver.

The Po Shi system needs to hit gold coins or crash into other vehicles to Charge.

The Steadfast System needs to be hit by other people's vehicles to Charge.

Shi Li had a Wisdom System character that could start immediately upon the whistle, and although his speed wasn't fast and he was obstructed, it was Still considered good.

"Enough talk, it's time for me to start moving."

Seeing that the Demon-Defeating Dark Hunter's energy was nearly exhausted due to multiple Echo triggers and providing fuel, Shi Li quickly had the vehicle adjust its lane.

The speed racing lane was very wide, with different items on different lanes.

For example, there were Acceleration Zones. As long as the vehicle drove onto them, it would automatically accelerate, making them great aids for competing for rank.

Another example was the Coin Zone, where the lane was filled with gold coins, allowing people to gain many points.

However, the gold coins had a slight physical form, and contact with them would reduce vehicle speed.

Furthermore, choosing the coins meant not being able to choose the Acceleration Zone at the same time. If one was overly greedy in collecting coins, the trade-off would easily allow others to pull ahead.

There were also Obstacle Zones. When several vehicles were running parallel, if you couldn't squeeze past others, you would be forced into the Obstacle Zone.

At best, it would slow you down; at worst, you would be temporarily forced to stop.

Currently, there were three types of lanes before Shi Li: one Acceleration, one Coin, and two Slow Down lanes.

Shi Li did not choose the Acceleration Zone.

Because the map was very long, and he held an absolute advantage in power, there was no need to rush.

Acquiring as many gold coins as possible was the current priority.

Therefore, his target was the Coin Lane.

Moreover, the Coin Lane could also provide energy for his Po Shi system characters.

This Coin Lane had already been driven over by several vehicles, and the remaining gold coins were significantly reduced.

Shi Li hoped he could consume the remaining amount entirely by himself.

"Get lost! This lane is mine!"

However, another Card Player had also set their sights on this lane.

This person's vehicle was wrapped in heavy, turtle-shell-like armor, likely related to the character they chose.

Although it looked clumsy, its startup speed was not slow.

Several surrounding vehicles were brutally hit by it, and one was even knocked directly into the roadside Guardrail, falling into a Stun state. It was unclear if this was due to some passive effect it carried or a skill it activated.

"Isn't this perfect timing?"

Seeing the Turtle Vehicle approaching, Shi Li wasn't flustered at all.

He was just looking for a target to help him get started.

So, he flung out a Shaking Mountains and Moving Peaks carrying Knockback.

[Take this stick!]

The Flower Cudgel Leader was seen leaning halfway out of the Driver's Compartment, and the Long Metal Cudgel in her hand suddenly stretched out like the Ruyi Jingu Bang, smashing toward the Turtle Vehicle.

Bang!

However, the seemingly powerful blow only caused the Turtle Vehicle to shake slightly.

"Haha, you think you can take me down with that little bit of strength?"

Seeing this, the opposing Card Player laughed loudly.

However, before his smile lasted a few seconds, he saw the cudgel strike down repeatedly.

[Get out! Get out! Get out!]

If one Shaking Mountains and Moving Peaks wasn't enough, then came two, then three.

Boom!

This time, the Turtle Vehicle finally couldn't withstand the impact and slammed violently into the Guardrail.

"What's going on! Does he not consume energy when using skills?!"

The owner of the Turtle Vehicle was confused.

Driving the vehicle consumes energy, and activating skills also consumes energy.

Logically, activating skills should affect vehicle speed, so why was the opponent's vehicle driving faster and faster?!

In reality, what he didn't know was that the Flower Cudgel Leader truly didn't consume energy when releasing skills.

Instead, three consecutive Shaking Mountains and Moving Peaks instantly brought it to full Charge.

The vehicle ran even faster.

"That's satisfying."

The Flower Cudgel Leader reaching full Charge made Shi Li feel satisfied.

He immediately played Mana Siphon, linking the Demon-Defeating Dark Hunter's energy bar with the Flower Cudgel Leader's energy bar.

Just like that, two Perpetual Motion Engines were completed.

All the gold coins along the way were collected by the Lightning Flash, following his command, through flying attacks.

Meanwhile, the Fennec Fox Girl standing on the roof remained Still, and her energy was rapidly increasing.

Before long, the energy of all four characters was full.

Oh, wait, the Demon-Defeating Dark Hunter's energy remained at 30/60.

However, since it benefited from being linked to the Flower Cudgel Leader and wouldn't decay, it was effectively the same as being full.

Thus, he effectively possessed four fully charged Engines.

His speed running in the Coin Lane was not even slower than the Acceleration Lane next door, which only occasionally featured one or two Acceleration Zones.

[You gained 20 points.]

[You gained 20 points.]

[You gained 20 points.]

The prompts that popped up after each gold coin was destroyed made him beam with joy.

If this pace continued, he estimated he could collect several thousand points just by picking up gold coins by the time this mode ended.