Saturnian Rescue
[Ugh, why wasn't there a face-jumping warning during the live stream?! A huge bat just swooped in!]
[You said it was a live stream, of course there was no warning...]
But isn't live streaming essentially generated by an emulator? It should be reviewed before it airs.
Am I the only one feeling sorry for these vanguard teams? They seem utterly powerless against C-rank alien beasts.
[It's all because of that D-rank card maker who creates high-powered cards. If it weren't for her, how could the bat have died so quickly?]
[Um... it's not really right to use a virtual character to attack a real person.]
[What's wrong with that? She should have considered this when she started profiting from virtual characters.]
[Although... the competition only lasted less than a day. There's no need to be too harsh on the card makers. Real-world card-making groups will choose the cards needed for their strategies and won't be completely led by the card makers. Besides, this Bat King was bound to appear sooner or later; it's just a matter of time.]
[With the appearance of C-rank beasts, the demand for C-rank cards has increased, leading to higher point values. Some D-rank card makers are about to suffer.]
Ning Xi frowned.
This wasn't a good change for her; the cards she made earlier had depreciated slightly, but not by much, since the Bat King would keep summoning little bats.
But this change made her think of something unpleasant.
As the competition progresses, will more mid-to-high-level monsters appear? Will low-level cards continue to depreciate in value?
Ning Xi's eyes flickered slightly as she looked at the ingredients menu.
Perhaps she should also make new preparations.
...
the next day.
Not long after the game started, the progress bar reached 50%.
"The Card Masters paid a heavy price to finally defeat the Bat King and rescue the miners trapped underground. In order to reclaim Earth Ring Star and protect local property, the Card Masters launched attacks on multiple C-level areas."
"P.S.: Many materials produced within this region have been added to the material exchange pool. Exchange them now to enjoy discounts!"
interesting.
From a purely fictional perspective, the large-scale influx of materials into the market would indeed lead to price reductions. From a competition perspective, it means the organizers want contestants to use more rare materials without hesitation.
Moreover, after opening the material selection interface, Ning Xi also found that her points had increased significantly.
"Reward points? Is it the same for everyone, or is it determined by the number of cards made the previous day?"
[It's determined by the number of cards and their ratings! I just checked next door, and the highest scorer didn't even have half of 1089.]
[Still far from being a C-level card maker.]
[1089, hurry up and show your skills! Yesterday you were using cheap materials all day, I felt so sorry for you.]
Judging from her shabby appearance, she probably hasn't used many high-quality materials.
Ning Xi glanced at the battle report and noticed a clear differentiation in the C-level environment, with no longer any distinct characteristic or targeted cards. In other words, any high-quality card could be useful.
In that case... her prepared card designs can also come in handy.
She exchanged for several pieces of intense and expensive fire-attribute materials, and then buried herself in card crafting.
[Speaking of which, why are all the other contestants starting to seriously study the battle reports, but she hasn't?]
[He's run out of ideas. It's just a D-level film; there's not that much creativity to be had.]
It seems like she's making only the same type of cards, right? It's gotten more boring than yesterday.
Although, her score was still pretty good, right? Over 2500.
【Don't you even look at the materials she used? Is getting over two thousand points with C-grade materials something to be proud of?】
Let's go, let's go see the other talented contestants.
The live stream room suddenly became much quieter.
No one noticed that the scores of the cards Ning Xi created were steadily increasing.
...
"Tsk, they've finally learned to read the battle report today."
Michael crossed his arms. In front of him, the live streams of the card makers were arranged in a neat grid pattern.
The contestants left the competition venue that night and exchanged information with the outside world, naturally learning about the hidden secrets of the competition. Unfortunately, the competition had anticipated their predictions. The areas that appeared the next day were diverse, and it wasn't easy to see obvious relationships of mutual restraint.
This day is more suitable for participants to use the discounted rare materials to create cards that they are good at.
As the referees, Michael and his team faced immense pressure. When the first day's matches were broadcast, numerous factions called to question the unfair match setup, claiming it gave too many opportunities to those skilled with Earth-type cards. Fortunately, the organizers had already provided a scenario that allowed different card players to utilize their strengths.
Unfortunately, these card makers, who should have been showcasing their skills, are currently preoccupied with yesterday's information, carefully studying the battle reports in order to gain an opportunity to achieve high scores.
Michael watched for a while, then got bored and simply zoomed in on Ning Xi's live stream.
Although Ning Xi didn't livestream to protect her privacy, he didn't recognize her face; he only recognized her by her card-making techniques. However, after two months of not seeing her make cards, Ning Xi's card-making skills seemed to have improved even further, and her use of materials' energy was also more refined.
"Is this the card maker you've chosen?" Fang Yining asked curiously as she approached Michael. "I've heard of her."
“She’s a disabled S+ level card user who can’t use cards. Our academy in the capital almost admitted her.” He sighed. “I never expected her to choose to become a card maker in the end.”
Michael raised an eyebrow, showing interest.
But Fang Yining didn't continue, and instead asked, "And you? How did you meet her?"
Michael was born in the Saint Seil Star Region and worked in his hometown for many years. Fang Yining was very curious about how he met Ning Xi from the Vast Ocean Star Region.
“We met on the forum,” Michael said without keeping us in suspense, “and like panning for gold in the sand, I eventually found a pearl.”
Fang Yining narrowed her eyes: "Whether she's a gem or a fish eye is still uncertain. She hasn't crossed the C-level threshold at this age, so her future prospects may not be very promising."
Michael bristled slightly. At his age, he was still making money by crafting E-rank cards, completely incomparable to a prodigy like Fang Yining. He rolled his eyes at the other man: "It's alright, in the eyes of those card masters, we're all considered to have no future."
"Besides...did she really not cross that threshold?"
Mental strength has its own susceptibility.
Ning Xi has discovered that her spiritual power becomes exceptionally active when it encounters materials related to the fire element and possessing explosive energy. The cards she creates then are imbued with even greater spiritual energy.
The cards she made for her clients before were actually very close to Grade C, almost like half a Grade C card.
The fact that it wasn't completely successful could be attributed to her lack of skill or failure to grasp the techniques for crafting C-rank cards. However, looking at it another way, it might be because the material wasn't perfectly compatible with her spiritual power.
Ning Xi didn't have enough money to find materials that perfectly suited her needs.
But this competition gave her a great opportunity.
The materials flowed through her hands one by one, and what remained in the end was a crystal that seemed to be flowing slowly.
【Lava Core】, a material born from the volcanic region, hides intense and scorching energy beneath its seemingly calm exterior.
This is a good material for crafting spell cards.
She prepared to inscribe two skills on the completed card.
The first is a state of energy stillness. In this state, the user can summon a pool of lava that appears calm but will actually annihilate any creature that approaches it.
Secondly, there is the energy burst state, which simulates a volcanic eruption and can generate dozens of fast-moving magma columns that unconditionally destroy everything around them.
The energy field simulated molten magma, churning and colliding within her mental power. Yet, some of it was compressed, imprisoned, and melted into tiny cards.
Skill card [Volcano], completed.
Grade C.
Ning Xi held the card up and examined it intently for a long time, as if trying to memorize every detail.
Then, she put the card into the teleportation box.
Soon, the points reward arrived.
60,000 points.
...
Don't rush, Luo Qing'an, take your time, you won't lose!
[That Ning Xi is done for; she can't even handle making cards worth two or three thousand points anymore.]
Luo Qing'an coughed twice, and the card-making pen in his hand tilted, rendering the card invalid.
The virtual space actually improved his physical fitness to some extent, but the high-intensity card production during this period greatly depleted his mental energy.
Ning Xi...
Everyone believed they wouldn't lose to him.
But after returning on the first day, a brief glimpse of the intelligence made him lose confidence.
Ning Xi would not give up the opportunity to surpass him; he knew this clearly.
[It's alright, Luo Qing'an. You can easily earn over 50,000 points with just one card. Starting today, the points for mid-to-high-tier cards are still increasing. You won't be defeated by a D-rank card master!]
Ladies and gentlemen, I have some bad news.
Perhaps because of the rush, this comment didn't even include punctuation: 【Ning Xi created a C-rank card worth 60,000 points! Go check out her livestream!!!】
【ah? 】
Those who disrupt the morale of the army shall be executed!
But she actually made it! The card's performance in gameplay has already been streamed live, and I have to say, the lava effects are kind of cool... how to put it... a kind of overwhelming beauty.
[Thankfully, Luo Qing'an can't see the comments... It's okay, stay calm! Ning Xi didn't have much chance to practice with C-rank cards; she probably just got lucky and made one. There won't be a second one. Our Luo Qing'an estimates she can make another five or six cards; her D-rank cards can't fill such a large points gap.]
[Oh no! Ning Xi has created a second C-rank card, costing 65,000!]
So fast???
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