Chapter 16
The cards made by Luo Qing'an are manifested as a pair of black and white clocks.
The Black Clock is made from a material called "Hypnotic Feather," derived from an extremely rare E-rank alien beast. This beast possesses no offensive capabilities but wields a sleeping aura that induces a drowsy state in all living beings around it, allowing them to survive. However, this aura is so powerful that even the beast itself cannot escape it.
The Black Clock enhances its abilities, putting all living beings in its vicinity to sleep, including the user.
The material used to make the white clock is called "Mind-Clearing Grass," a very common Grade E material. However, the Mind-Clearing Grass used by Luo Qing'an is a mutant, with its lucidity several times stronger than the original. Mutants of Mind-Clearing Grass are extremely rare, produced only in a very few areas—and the Luo family happens to possess one of them.
Therefore, the white clock's ability is to wake the user from sleep and bring them back to consciousness.
The student stepped into the simulation room again. Just as Luo Chengsi had expected, he first ran a lap around the field, attracting most of the alien beasts. He seized the opportunity and activated the black clock just before being attacked.
The pendulum swung, and the beasts instantly entered a dazed state, quickly falling into a deep sleep. The student himself was also affected by the card; his eyelids drooped, and his hands drooped uncontrollably.
He gritted his teeth, fought off sleepiness, and channeled his mental energy into the white clock.
……invalid?
Within the card, dormant energy occupies the card's runes and hasn't dissipated yet. Although the "awakening" ability exists, it's unusable for the time being due to the card's inherent flaws!
make……
He fell asleep.
"This is the final result." Song Shichun's smile became more genuine. "Ning Xi's card, ten minutes, Luo Qing'an's card, failure. Although this card is made of rare materials and has powerful functions, it's a pity—it cannot be used normally, so it is a failure in essence."
"Given Luo Qing'an's meticulousness and caution, if he had really been involved in the card design, he would have noticed this and considered how to correct it. Even if there was no result, at least his thoughts would have been left behind."
But no.
"So, this is my conclusion. Ning Xi gets one point on the entrance exam and one point on the midterm exam, for a total of two points. Luo Qing'an gets zero points."
"But Mr. Luo, there's no need to worry. Your son is quite good. Perhaps he can get all three remaining points."
"……good."
Luo Qing'an hid in the dormitory.
His illness had flared up again; he felt as if he were immersed in ice water, shivering with cold. Where was the medicine?
He didn't touch the medicine bottle; instead, he touched the vibrating quantum computer.
“Father,” he sat up. Although the room was empty, he couldn’t help but adopt a stern posture. “I’m sorry, I lost.”
“There’s still a chance.” The man’s emotionless voice came from the personal terminal. “Remember the gift you received for your first exam? It contained some information. Study it. This is your last chance.”
"That end-of-semester competition?"
"The family will make preparations. Luo Qing'an, don't let the Luo family down."
...
Ning Xi yawned and got out of bed. She had taken a nap in her dorm this afternoon during her card restoration class.
She received a new call from Zhang Min.
"Hello? I just woke up and I'm not hungry, so I won't go eat... Spicy crayfish? I'll be right there."
Arriving at the food street near the school gate, Zhang Min was still wearing her beloved 29.9 yuan long-sleeved shirt, and Yu Xiangyin was still wearing his eye-catching bright-colored jacket... no, wait.
"You two know each other?"
“I met him at the Academic Affairs Office,” Zhang Min said succinctly. “I went to the Academic Affairs Office to inquire about reporting a teacher, and that’s when I ran into him.”
"The teachers in the academic affairs office said, 'We all came for you.'"
"For my sake...did Director Song not see your report?"
Zhang Min shook her head: "The teachers in the academic affairs office advised us both to withdraw from the program. They said it would be more effective to report us after the grades came out."
"But I didn't expect you to pass. Congratulations!" Yu Xiangyin said.
"It's not 'surprisingly'! It should be said that our Ningxi is capable of passing this extremely difficult test!" Zhang Min said excitedly. "Now no one can say you're unworthy!"
"Let's finish this drink and start eating," Yu Xiangyin raised her glass. "The crayfish can't wait!"
Thanks to the three's hard work, crayfish corpses littered the field, and red oil covered the table.
Halfway through her meal, Ning Xi's terminal rang. She frantically tried to wipe her hands clean, but Zhang Min reminded her that the terminal could be controlled by voice. Amidst the noise, Ning Xi answered the call: "Hello? Who is this?"
On the other end of the call, a voice she knew all too well came through: "Ning Xi, congratulations on your great results. By the way, did you see the cards and materials I sent you at the beginning of the semester?"
Ning Xi: ……
Ning Xi was drenched in sweat. She had been so busy this semester that she hadn't even remembered this!
“Take a look when you have time,” Song Shichun said, not pressuring her. “With your foundation, reading papers won’t be difficult.”
"Okay, thank you, teacher."
“Speaking of which, I was also spoken to privately by Director Song.” Zhang Min had clearly heard Song Shichun’s voice clearly. “Although he didn’t say anything, but…”
"I heard some pretty shocking news, which I overheard Director Song talking to other teachers before I came in."
She lowered her voice mysteriously, and the other two couldn't help but lean closer to listen: "Our final grades for the card-making department require us to participate in the Youth Card-Making Competition, and our final grades are tied to our competition results!"
“That’s it?” Yu Xiangyin yawned. “Our Royal Card Department announced it a long time ago, and now the Academic Affairs Office is overflowing with complaints and reports, but the department just doesn’t plan to change it.”
Ning Xi said, "I told you that complaints and reports are useless. Mingxin Academy's style is to go its own way."
"To be precise, it follows the changes in policy trends." Zhang Min wiped her hands clean, picked up the terminal, and said, "Let me show you something."
Ning Xi: "A Study on Changes in the Field Over the Past Two Decades?"
This is a newly published paper in *Cards & Nature*, a leading publication in the card game industry. The author investigated the occurrence of realms on over 300 planets over nearly twenty years, and ultimately concluded—
"The arrival of domains is becoming more and more frequent."
Zhang Min said, "The academic community calls this situation 'domain decline.' They believe that a domain should be suspended above the real space-time and not intersect with the real world. But now, the rate of domain decline is accelerating, and more and more domains are merging with reality."
"Over the next fifty years, more and more planets will become edge planets, until every planet is occupied by the domain."
"Therefore, the government and the military have successively issued documents requiring the improvement of the practical combat capabilities of college-affiliated card players. This is not only the case at our school, but also at other schools, which actively encourage students to participate in the competition. Therefore, other colleges will also participate extensively in this year's league."
"Is that so..."
Yu Xiangyin's expression turned serious at first, then she frowned deeply: "You're talking about card makers, why aren't you card makers included? I remember the Youth Card Making Competition didn't even have a practical component!"
"Why isn't it included?" Zhang Min raised an eyebrow. "Oh, I forgot to mention, the Card Making Department also encourages students to participate in the Royal Card League as accompanying card makers. They say you get credits for attending, and even extra points at the end of the semester." She took a sip of tea and turned her gaze to the other side, "Ning Xi."
"ah?"
"Do you think we should give it a try?"
"The Royal Card League?" Ning Xi thought for a moment, "Forget it, I feel that my card making cannot be disturbed too much, and the speed is also inconsistent, so it is not suitable."
...
Ning Xi quickly regretted it.
After the midterm Monday, she was hit by a barrage of whistleblowing.
“Ning Xi, someone has reported that you are mixing flammable and explosive dangerous materials in your dormitory.”
Ning Xi: ?
I'm sorry, all the materials and cards in her possession are flammable, explosive, and dangerous items.
“Ning Xi, someone has reported that you always come to class looking disheveled, which is affecting the school’s image.”
Ning Xi: I've made something of myself; I can even represent the school now.
"Ning Xi, someone has reported you for cheating on the midterm exam."
Ning Xi: Then why don't you report Director Song?
To be honest, she was very familiar with this plot; it was similar to when she applied to Mingxin Academy. Ning Xi thought for a moment and sent Director Song a sincere letter requesting leave, explaining that she had been reported multiple times and had no time to attend classes.
Director Song replied: Understood.
The next day, the student union sent her a message saying that someone would come to verify the situation that day, and if the report was found to be false, the person who made the report would be punished accordingly.
Not long after, someone knocked on the door. Ning Xi opened the door and saw Luo Xian. She instinctively closed the door.
What are you doing here? This is the girls' dormitory!
"Ning Xi, open the door for me!"
"Get out of here, or I'll call the dorm manager!"
"It was the dorm manager who let me in! Ning Xi, instead of making things difficult for me, you should think about who you've offended that would resort to such underhanded tactics against you!"
"Who else have I offended besides you? You're admitting it without even asking?"
"Screw you! To those people, I'm just a beast of burden, you know? Why would I give up my patrol duties to report you every day?"
Luo Xian's voice was filled with the resentment of cattle and horses. Although he did not speak sarcastically, Ning Xi had a feeling that the current Luo Xian was much more dangerous than the Luo Xian who was obsessed with saving face and arrogant back then, so she opened the door for him.
Looking closely at Luo Xian, it seemed that his mental state was really not good.
Luo Xian ignored Ning Xi's reaction and handed her a stack of documents: "Fill them out. Once you've filled them out, it will be considered as verification."
"Will I be free after filling out these forms?"
"It's hard to say!" Luo Xian said through gritted teeth. "It depends on whether the people behind you want to let you go, or rather, whether they want to let our student union's law enforcement department go."
"Ning Xi, why don't you just participate in the Royal Card League? The academy provides you with a dedicated training room, flexible class schedules, and most importantly, you'll be managed by your direct department head. Once you go, reports won't be handled by our enforcement department anymore!"
"You just don't want to do any work, do you?"
"Do you really think these are all invalid reports, and we still have to write reply slips every day?!"
Ning Xi thought for a moment and changed the subject.
"Luo Xian," she asked, "what are your thoughts on this Royal Card League?"
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