Abyssal Summoning

"What's the Myriad Changes Card? What is it?" Hearing Ryan's startled exclamation, Jelona asked curiously. She rarely saw the usually composed young man lose his cool like this, and her curiosity was piqued.

"The Myriad Changes Card is a Wondrous Item left over from the Netherese Empire. It's the greatest achievement of alchemy from the previous era. Each card holds a wondrous power, and when opened, something incredible happens." Ryan recovered from his shock and carefully explained it to his companions.

As far as Ryan knew, the Myriad Changes Card was the brainchild of a legendary archmage from the Arcane Empire, created on a whim.

A complete Myriad Changes Card set contained 108 cards, each with a wondrous and unique power. The trump cards had especially powerful and mysterious effects, but their fortunes were unpredictable. Some people gained unimaginable benefits from them, while others suffered devastating calamities.

Besides the Magic Omnipotence Cards, the archmages had also created two even more precious sets: the Arcane Cards and the Fate Cards. The former had 72 cards, and the latter had 36.

In the legends and biographies Ryan had read, the Magic Omnipotence Cards still appeared in various ruins and stories. The other two sets, however, could only be found in rare, perilous ruins. The Fate Cards were particularly elusive, hidden in the cracks of fate like a dragon that never showed its tail. Only a rare few, favored by fortune, had ever laid eyes on them.

"Then these must be incredibly valuable, right?" Jelona and the other two stared at the splendid cards in the ironwood box, their eyes gleaming as if they could already see treasure and wealth beckoning to them.

"They really are valuable. After all, they're legendary items passed down from the Arcane Empire. But the problem is, nobody knows what a card does until they open it.

"Some people were crushed to death the instant they opened a card, buried under arcane gold coins that rained down from the sky. Their teammates got all the wealth. Others opened a card and were struck head-on by a powerful bolt of lightning."

Under the trio's searching gaze, Ryan explained the cards' drawback. As a ten-thousand-year unlucky soul, he truly despised games of chance!

Remembering the "guaranteed pity" banners from his previous life, and the heartbreak of failing to draw his favorite character even after a hundred pulls, Ryan's heart began to ache again. Damn this psychological trauma!

"Ah, they're that dangerous? So the Myriad Changes Card is all flash and no substance?" The dwarf gazed regretfully at the gorgeous, finely crafted cards, his hopes dashed.

"That's not entirely true. Some people have used the Myriad Changes Card to greatly increase their class level, and others have even gained a new inheritance of skills. In the end, it all comes down to luck." Ryan immediately refuted the dwarf.

"So what are you planning to do with these few Myriad Changes Cards, Ryan?" The sharp-eyed Half-elf Ranger noticed the barely concealed bitterness in Ryan's voice when he mentioned luck and asked what the Mage intended to do.

Ryan stared at the cards and pondered for a moment before deciding to use all three mysterious cards. In this mysterious, unfathomable ancient ruin, he had already experienced more than once the terrifying power and deep-seated mischief of the transmigrator who had come before him. He had little confidence about the trials ahead, so he was willing to try anything that could directly increase his strength.

"Take a gamble and turn a bicycle into a motorcycle. Win, and you're living the high life; lose, and you're working yourself to the bone. I mustn't think like that," Ryan silently warned himself.

As a cautious Mage, Ryan didn't trust anything that depended entirely on luck. Although his experiences in this life showed that he'd already gone from unlucky to lucky, and had managed to sneak into the ranks of the fortunate with his handsome face, his principle was that life came first and it was always better to be prepared.

Muttering to himself in words whose meaning he had only just learned, Ryan directed the dwarf and the barbarian to clean up the mess and clear a space twenty feet in diameter.

Gold engraved with special runes could unleash a magical blast, while silver amulets offered specific protection against evil creatures. Amethyst, paired with spell runes, could steady the mind. Each person held a bottle of specially prepared holy water from the church as a precaution. Ryan took various materials from Traveler Space and inscribed the magical runes he had learned onto the open ground.

After a while, Jelona and the others watched the complex, intricate magic circle slowly take shape on the ground. They didn't dare interrupt Ryan, who was completely absorbed in his work. The Mage's scholarly aura was in full force as he carried out the engraving with practiced ease, leaving the three adventurers too intimidated to make a sound.

"All right, the preparations are done. Everyone, hold on to your weapons and holy water, and get ready." Ryan straightened up, announcing that the major task was complete and reminding his companions to prepare themselves.

Ryan stepped into the magic circle, casually putting his ring and the miscellaneous little things on his person into Traveler Space. Then he took out a plain white bath towel and set it on a stand nearby. Lightening his load, he brought out the first Myriad Changes Card.

Jelona and the other two were utterly baffled by Ryan's actions, their faces full of question marks. The things he'd done before made sense, but what was the towel for? Was he worried he might accidentally summon a demon from the Abyss, then wave the towel around and call out, "Come on in, big guy"?

Facing their inquisitive, eager gazes, Ryan simply said, "Just in case," and offered no further explanation. Seeing that, the three didn't press him.

Ryan couldn't very well tell them that the moment he'd seen the Myriad Changes Card, he'd pulled up every record of it in the system and read all about the remarkable exploits and disastrous experiences of those who'd come before him.

The story that had left the deepest impression on him was about a high-level adventurer who'd inexplicably opened a Myriad Changes Card in the middle of the city. Fortunately, he hadn't drawn one of the terrifying calamity cards that summoned monsters or unleashed a catastrophic disaster. Unfortunately, he'd drawn a Master Thief card.

That unlucky lucky fellow had lost all his clothes, equipment, and valuables in front of a crowd. The people of that city were treated to the sight of a muscular, burly naked man sprinting through the streets and alleys. It became one of the most talked-about tales in town.

As for the man, who'd been something of a local celebrity, rumor had it that he'd left the city that very night, traveling day and night with a wagon. He settled somewhere new, left his old identity behind, and began a new life.

Ryan sympathized deeply with the man's miserable experience and held back his laughter long enough to mourn him for half a second. But the thought that the same thing might happen to him still made him uneasy. He carefully prepared every precaution, just in case. Besides, he might not even need the towel, right?

Standing inside the magic circle, Ryan let out a soft breath, gritted his teeth, and used a sharp little knife to make a small cut on his fingertip. He dripped a drop of blood onto the Myriad Changes Card in his hand.

The Myriad Changes Card had no front or back; both sides bore the same pattern. Only blood could open a card, and before it was opened, nobody could know what it would do. Even a legendary master of prophecy was powerless to find out.

As the Myriad Changes Card absorbed Ryan's blood, a faint red glow flashed across it. Ryan's face changed instantly. He flung the Magic Omnipotence Card away, retreated beyond the circle, and warned his companions, "Be careful! It's an Abyssal Summoning. Attack together when I give the signal!"

The effects of the Magic Omnipotence Cards were unpredictable. Some people gained treasures and power, while others summoned calamities and misfortune. Ryan had been unlucky enough to get the latter: a card with a summoning effect. Red light represented the Abyss and Hell, pure white light signified celestial beings, and five-colored light meant the summoned creature came from the Elemental Plane.

This particular Myriad Changes Card had summoned an evil creature from the infamous Lower Planes of Hell and the Abyss.

A mysterious vortex appeared in the center of the card. Images of sulfur, lava, icy wastelands, and blood-red skies shifted across its surface before settling on the snarling, twisted face of an ugly gorilla: a "Bagula Demon."

The Magic Omnipotence Card transformed into a blood-red portal, and a fierce, hideous figure appeared before them.