Chapter 2 First Card Draw Operation
[On an adventure...]
The next day arrived as scheduled.
【06:45】
Normally this time is when Chen Shuang gets up, washes up and prepares for work, but that is no longer the case.
After relaxing for a few minutes, she got up and cleaned up.
The system still displays the words "Please wait patiently", and it is unclear how long the adventure will take.
However, rather than waiting for unknown adventures, it would be wise to seize the time to explore the outside world. Chen Shuang put the matter of [adventure] aside for the time being.
Yesterday, she had taken special measures to prevent the fire at the door from going out. When she went out to check, she found that the fire had not yet gone out, so she put some dry grass and firewood under it to ensure that the fire would not go out.
After getting herself ready, Chen Shuang opened some instant noodles to fill her stomach, opened her backpack and took out a bottle of water to replenish her water.
The few things in the system backpack are simply not enough, and we must start exploring the Lost Land as soon as possible.
"Xiaoyi, are there any places nearby that we can't go near?" she asked.
Although last night was relatively peaceful, it did not mean that this wasteland was safe. When Chen Shuang was clearing the dead grass yesterday, he discovered that there were scattered skeletons of non-human creatures hidden in the soil, with signs of being eaten. It would be easy to get into trouble if he walked around rashly.
System 147 responded quickly.
[There are no other forces near the temple, and dark creatures are initially friendly]
It popped up a map, and the black area marked with the Dark Temple was marked in red by the system.
[When you get close to the border, I will remind you to return in time]
After the system passed the test, Chen Shuang felt relieved.
With system reminders, at least you don't have to worry about being attacked if you accidentally enter someone else's territory.
Picking up the simple hoe she made yesterday, she officially stepped into the wilderness.
The sun in the Lost Land seemed to be covered with a layer of gauze, making it particularly unreal. The sparse sunlight was scattered on the wasteland through the mist. The whole world was so quiet that the only sound left was the breathing of the frost.
Using a sharp hoe to clear a path, she advanced towards the lower area at a steady pace.
She decided to find a water source first today.
There are two ways to find water in the wild. One is to look for traces left by animals, and the other is what Chen Shuang is using now, which is to move towards lower terrain.
"The soil here is wetter than before, which proves that the direction is correct." She squatted down and dug a handful of soil, and the moisture moistened her palms.
It should be not far away.
She continued to move forward, and at a certain moment, the vegetation in front of her suddenly became sparse.
Chen Shuang: “Hmm?”
She pushed aside the last clump of dry grass and bushes blocking her way, and her vision suddenly became clear.
It was not that the vegetation became sparse, but that it was flattened. Chen Shuang stopped and saw a road in front of him, about an arm's width. It was obviously the trace left by some medium to large creature passing by.
Chen Shuang looked to the front right, and then heard a clear "click" sound.
She felt her heart skip a beat.
This is a group of huge ants.
On the low mounds of earth, there are ants the size of adult wolves. Their body walls are smooth, and their strong mandibles can easily dig into the hard soil. Their stalked antennae tremble slightly, and they flexibly exchange information with their companions.
The system prompt sounded at the right time.
[Demon Ants: Creatures unique to the Lost Land, they feed on rock walls, soil, and microorganisms. They are friendly.]
Chen Tshuang had already jumped up and ran when he saw the magic ants just now. Now he has retreated at least fifty meters.
For example, if you see a large dog on a leash on the road, you have to avoid it, let alone an ant this big.
147 paused, and the electronic voice hesitated.
【How do you run so fast? 】
Chen Shuang stopped at this moment and patted her trouser legs: "It's better to run fast than to run slow and get cold."
147: [……]
That makes a lot of sense.
It took out the original appraisal report and again doubted the judgment of "stable mental threshold".
Chen Shuang lowered her body and walked back, carefully observing the group of demon ants.
There are seven of them in total, with well-developed mouthparts that can easily crush hard, compacted clods of earth, and even chew up rocks mixed in them. You can hear the sound of metal colliding while they chew.
She was not surprised at all that these demon ants could easily break her bones.
“Ka-ka-da—”
Chen Shuang discovered that there was a sudden commotion inside the magic ant mound. Because the mound was too small, the largest magic ant was bumping into its companion next to it, trying to get more space to eat. The force was so great that the ground shook slightly. The smaller one was directly knocked to the ground, crawled up dejectedly and shrank into the corner.
"You say these demon ants without any love from their companions are friendly?" she asked doubtfully.
147 is very sure.
【The illustrations will not go wrong】
It suddenly raised its voice and reminded.
【careful】
As soon as the system finished speaking, something passed by Chen Shuang's cheek. She turned her head and narrowly avoided it.
"What's this?"
The "hidden weapon" just now was a purple stone. It was knocked towards this side during the dispute between the magic ants. Because of the huge force, it was embedded in the soil, and now only the purple tip is exposed.
The location was very close. Chen Shuang hid in the tall bushes and moved two steps slightly, and successfully got the purple crystal.
It is smooth to the touch, and the interior of the crystal is a rich dark purple, which reflects a dreamy feeling under the skylight, as if a purple galaxy is flowing through it.
[Magic Crystal +1]
The diamond-shaped amethyst in her hand disappeared from Shen Shuang's hand the moment of contact, and correspondingly, the system prompt sound rang in her mind.
Chen Shuang opened the panel and stared at the 1 in the magic crystal column.
This thing is the magic crystal.
It turns out that in addition to obtaining territory residents and having the system distribute magic crystals, you can also directly mine magic crystals.
Chen Shuang's eyes gradually became hot.
"Xiao 1, your definition of kindness is the common sense of friendliness and goodwill, without any irony, abstraction, or suggestion, right?"
After receiving a positive answer, Chen Shuang slowly exhaled, stood up and walked out of the bushes that concealed her figure.
She first stood at a distance and quickly reached out to pick up the magic crystals scattered on the ground. These magic ants seemed to be only interested in the mounds of earth, and the purple crystals inside were discarded by them as useless things.
Really no reaction.
The magic ants were busy gnawing on the soil. She, such a big living person, had not attracted any attention for a long time. It seemed that they were eating very seriously.
The number of magic crystals in the system is increasing, and Chen Shuang's picking movements are gradually speeding up.
Suddenly, a complete, huge, and translucent magic crystal rolled down from the front and stopped right at her feet, tempting like a red fruit in the Garden of Eden.
Chen Shuang looked up and saw a demon ant tilting its head to look at her, its red moth-like antennae touching each other, as if curious.
After watching for a while, its tentacles raised to the sky as if it had been electrocuted, and it opened its mouth and plunged into the pile of soil. Not long after, it dug out a round and shiny magic crystal. With a kick of its powerful segmented hind legs, the magic crystal rolled towards Chen Shuang.
After kicking the magic crystal over, it kept staring at Chen Shuang's reaction, tilting its head back and forth, as if wondering why she didn't pick it up.
Chen Shuang looked at the movements of the magic ants, then looked at the two high-quality magic crystals on the ground. She moved back half a step and reached out to pick up the magic crystal.
A dark purple light reflected in her eyes, and the system prompted that the number of magic crystals +2. Together with the ones Chen Shuang had picked up before, she already had five magic crystals.
When the magic ant saw Chen Shuang pick up the magic crystal, its drooping antennae raised up again and it continued to dig the soil excitedly.
Chen Shuang looked at the magic crystals rolling on the ground one after another, and now she began to believe what the system meant by "friendly".
I always feel like I'm being fed by the enthusiastic big ants passing by.
What happened next was a little unexpected.
The most enthusiastic magic ant crawled over and pushed her to the edge of the mound. It beat the magic ant next to it intimidatingly, occupied the other ant's eating position, and then gentlemanly gave up its position to her, as if it wanted her to enjoy the pleasure of chewing the soil together.
Chen Shuang: Thank you, but I don’t eat dirt.
She moved her eyes and found that the unlucky little guy who was squeezed away and the enthusiastic overlord ant seemed to be the two that had just fought.
It's really like catching a sheep and plucking it.
After the small commotion, the magic ants continued to eat as usual, not caring about the unexpected human being at their eating area.
"These demon ants really don't eat demon crystals."
Chen Shuang was close enough to see clearly that the mound was covered with purple debris. The magic ants probably didn't eat magic crystals in their diet, and the purple crystals mixed in the soil were bitten off and discarded as waste.
They were all busy eating dirt, and no ant paid attention to her.
Chen Shuang tried to snatch the stone from the ant's mouth several times. The enthusiastic ant shook its antennae, gave up the magic crystal reluctantly but lovingly, and took care of her like a cub.
It also understood Chen Shuang's desire to complete the purple stone, and would actively push it to her after discovering the magic crystal.
This is not a monster at all, this is simply an advanced red scarf of the new era.
With the help of the red scarf, Chen Shuang successfully collected ten magic crystals, which was just enough to draw from the card pool.
Without pausing, she directly opened the system interface and pressed the card pool button.
A large pale hand suddenly appeared on the page, with an intricate gemstone chain hanging from its palm, resembling a dark medieval wizard. The image showed the hand reaching into a pool of dark water, and when it came out again, there was a card in its hand, emitting a faint blue glow.
It wasn't just pure blue light, there seemed to be an ominous black mist entangled around it.
The card pool ended, and Chen Shuang had an extra card in her hand.
Of course, getting gold right away was a small probability, and the blue item was within her expectations, but what was the black mist wrapped around this card?
She flipped through the card.
This is a clown card. The protagonist in the middle is a clown with funny clothes and a round nose. The front of the card is a smiling red clown, and the back is a black clown with a crying expression.
The system made a "ding dong" sound.
Schrödinger's Luck
Mr. Clown from the Land of Miracles loves performing. When accumulating inspiration for his performances in daily life, he likes to listen to stories.
If you can make Mr. Clown in a good mood (the empty stars on the card turn into five red stars), the user's luck value will be greatly improved; if you fail to meet Mr. Clown's expectations (failure to reach five red stars or accumulation of any black stars), it will bring unimaginable bad luck.
Note: Once activated, it cannot be stopped. You only have ten minutes to tell jokes. After the deadline, the clown will immediately settle the judgment. (High risk, please use with caution)
[How to use: Say "I'm going to start telling the legend" to Mr. Clown]
Chen Shuang stroked the frosted hollow stars on the card.
It was slightly different from the blue item she had imagined. It was not too weak, but too strong.
In a sense, this card is terrifyingly powerful. Luck is a kind of fate, and this joker card can actually control fate.
However, after Chen Shuang finished reading the precautions, her eyes fell on the usage rules and the two words "doom" marked in red. She almost understood why this card that drives fate could be reduced to the level of a blue item.
What kind of joke would a clown find funny?
Black humor, or a tongue-in-cheek joke?
Once started, it cannot be paused. If the clown's emotions cannot be aroused, the unstoppable ten-minute countdown will be the user's death warrant.
Besides, there is no way to avoid this kind of failure penalty. The Joker card turns black and bad luck comes. It is useless to escape anywhere.
Although luck is sweet, bad luck is equally terrible.
"Now is not the time to take risks."
Chen Shuang had no plans to touch this card for the time being. She put the Joker card into her backpack and continued to collect magic crystals with the magic ants.
The magic ants are extremely hardworking creatures. Chen Shuang had to eat and rest while mining with a hoe, but this group of ants worked from day to night and seemed willing to continue working.
They had already eaten two-thirds of the mound where the magic crystals grew. The red scarf left for a while and brought back ripe and sweet fruits, which he kept stuffing into Chen Shuang's hands. It was obvious that he was taking good care of this co-worker.
The sky gradually darkened, the hazy light dissipated, and the Lost Land returned to its gloomy atmosphere. From time to time, the sound of "cuckoo cuckoo" came and went, as if celebrating the arrival of darkness in advance.
Chen Shuang wiped the sweat from her forehead.
Although we didn’t find any water source, we still gained a lot today.
She worked diligently all day, and with the help of the magic ants, the system now received 90+ magic crystals, enough for nine draws. Together with the first draw in the morning, she was guaranteed to get a purple within ten draws.
I don’t know what purple light, which is even scarcer than blue light, can be extracted.
She sat on the ground to rest, and the red scarf that came to accompany her lay beside her. Its tentacles trembled slightly, and it rubbed her calves happily, as if it had obtained some beloved treasure.
Maybe humans have the same aesthetic taste as the magic ants.
Chen Shuang opened the system interface, clicked directly on the card pool, and drew nine times.
The pale hand reappeared, the jewel chain hanging on its palm brighter, and it reached into the dark pool of water, stirring it.
Blue, blue, blue, blue, blue, blue, blue, blue.
It’s really a guaranteed win. It seems that my luck is not very good this time.
The pale hand on the page paused at the edge of the pool, a little embarrassed. When it reached in for the ninth time, it was obviously much faster and looked a little exasperated.
There were no more things like Joker Cards in the blue light, and the blue items drawn were all ordinary survival supplies.
Three buckets of water, a box of instant noodles, two boxes of chocolates, a box of fishing bait, and a black maid outfit in the shape of a doll.
Chen Shuang: “?”
In her hand was a black and white maid outfit about 20 centimeters long. The wide skirt was layered, complex and beautiful. If it hadn't appeared here, Chen Shuang might have praised the good craftsmanship.
She stared at the maid outfit and still felt torn.
It feels a bit ridiculous, like a survival game or a mutant dress-up game. What on earth is the use of this thing?
After putting all the items drawn into the backpack, the tired African finally waited for the last guaranteed purple light.
A pale hand took out a necklace inlaid with purple gems from the pool. The bright light looked particularly brilliant in the dark interface. After a brief pause, the necklace shattered into starlight and sank into Chen Shuang's eyes.
【Witch's Secret (Damaged Edition)】
[Elegant and wise witches always have servants who love them deeply, and puppets are eager to bring the most decent life to their masters]
[How to use: This is a skill book. You will master the witch's "manipulation" tricks by reading it quickly.]
Purple light flashed in Chen Shuang's eyes, and the moment the skills converged with her, she mastered the method of using manipulation.
Simply put, this is a kind of mental link that connects individuals through the user's will, thereby achieving the effect of control.
However, what Chen Shuang drew was only a damaged version, which had certain limitations. It could only link to docile and obedient individuals. If they encountered fierce resistance, it would not be able to form control. Moreover, the number of controls was also related to the strength of her mental power.
Chen Shuang's eyes moved to the red scarf lying beside her legs.
Let’s try it first.
【You are using "Witch's Secret"】
[Spiritual power determination successful, you have successfully established contact with [Dark Dependent Demon Ant]]
Chen Shuang felt a simple and active thought appear in her consciousness. She tried to call out in her mind: "Can you hear me?"
The magic ant nestled beside her legs stood up quickly, with its two moth-like antennae erected high. The whole ant stayed where it was, and its shock was obvious without any communication.
It felt like a kitten that had been fed on the roadside suddenly stood up, patted someone on the shoulder, and then spoke clearly in human language.
[Hear...speak...love you]
The demon ant was so excited that it spun around in circles, responding briefly to Chen Shuang in the mental link.
[Like…Like…Like]
The straightforward enthusiasm came over her. She didn't expect that the ferocious-looking demon ant would be so warm and friendly to her. Shen Shuang was a little flattered.
She touched the hard head shell, calmed the demon ant, and said, "I want purple crystals, the more the better. Can you help me?"
[I can…love…sacrifice…your Excellency…]
The magic ant agreed and did not forget to express its love. It raised its antennae, shook its tail, crawled to the mound and started mining.
Chen Shuang didn't know how many magic ants he could connect with with his current mental strength, so he simply used his skills on all the remaining magic ants.
[Spiritual power determination successful, you have successfully established contact with [Dark Dependent Demon Ant]]
The second and third ones went smoothly at first, but by the fourth one, Chen Shuang felt a little tired, her brain reaction began to slow down, and she felt a slight tingling sensation.
Just when she thought that all subsequent links would fail, a low voice suddenly sounded in her head.
[Individual dependent mind access…change…group mind access]
[Spiritual power determination successful, you have successfully established contact with [Dark Dependent Demon Ant]]
What's this?
Chen Shuang felt that the skill link was strengthened by some special power. In the next few seconds, the consciousness of all the magic ants was integrated into the mental network, chirping in her mind, very excited.
After the order to collect magic crystals was given, the magic ants became much quieter and gathered around the mound to mine more seriously.
Chen Shuang was thinking about the sudden sound that had just broken in.
It wasn't the usual electronic sound of the system, but a sound that came from a deeper level of her spirit.
"Xiao 1, did you hear any other sounds just now?"
【No】
147 realized something and reminded.
[The Lost Land is filled with whispers of the left behind, usually coming from the resentment of powerful creatures at the time of their death. If you hear an unknown voice, please ignore it as soon as possible. Those who do not know cannot see, and those who do not hear or speak can quickly get rid of entanglement.]
Although she had a feeling that it wasn't something like resentment, the system couldn't detect it either. A thought flashed through Chen Shuang's eyes, and then she shut her mouth obediently.
"I understand," she nodded, putting the voice behind her for the time being.
*
The tightly closed eyes trembled slightly due to the brief touch of divine consciousness, and fell into deep sleep again due to the power of confinement.
With a fleeting glance, the God sitting on the high throne finally saw the priest destined by the kingdom of God before falling asleep.
It is a human, a human with long black hair and black pupils.
Black, what a supreme color.
If Iper still possessed the power to rule over everything, he thought he would bestow the greatest favor upon the priest.
Countless thoughts flashed through the mind of the dark god who possessed the power of love.
[Love her, deceive her, watch her indulge in the sea of desire, and tempt her to become the most loyal servant of God. What an interesting thing.]
The brief clarity of mind faded away, and I fell into a sleep exhausted.
Chen Shuang knew nothing about this.
Because she is trapped in the head-patting challenge of the magic ants.
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