010: Metal Hemisphere Card

"I need quiet when crafting cards. I prefer to work alone, so I won't join you," Tang Jian said with a smile, politely declining Xie Dong, who had eagerly approached him.

Xie Dong was taken aback, not expecting such a direct refusal from Tang Jian. He found himself speechless, frowning slightly before nodding. "Alright, then."

With that, he brushed past Tang Jian, his cheerful expression turning cold.

Since Tang Jian hadn't shown him any respect, Xie Dong decided he wouldn't hold back tonight.

Turning to watch Xie Dong's retreating back, Tang Jian's lips curled into a slight smile, his eyes glinting as he touched the Sleeve Arrow Card in his pocket. He continued on his way to the Card Crafting Room.

Just as he had refused Xie Dong, he clearly sensed a flicker of irritation and anger in the other person's eyes.

Although Xie Dong quickly masked it, Tang Jian knew from the two words the other person uttered afterwards that he was displeased.

Tang Jian, after all, was a reborn individual who had experienced the ups and downs of society. His ability to read people was superb, whereas Xie Dong was, at most, a high school student. No matter how cunning he might be, his schemes were limited, and Tang Jian saw through him at a glance.

"While I can't be certain this guy is deliberately approaching me with ill intentions, he does have a history. Given how he's acting now, I really do need to be on guard."

Tang Jian shook his head, momentarily putting that thought aside.

After all, he had been a Three-Star Card Master in his previous life. There was no need to treat a high school student like a formidable enemy; a little caution would suffice.

Soon, Tang Jian and two of his classmates arrived at the Card Crafting Room.

The Card Crafting Room was quite large, spanning about five hundred square meters. It resembled a massive laboratory, filled with tables, each equipped with sophisticated card crafting devices.

These included Sketching Pens, precision instruments, and more.

Although the school provided the Card Crafting Room as a benefit for all students, it didn't offer extensive resources. Materials like Energy Ink and Blank Cards had to be supplied by the students themselves.

At this moment, more than half of the crafting tables in the room were already occupied.

With the college entrance exam approaching, many students were awakening to the need to hone their card crafting skills. As a result, the Card Crafting Room was more than half-full compared to usual.

"Tang Jian, hurry, let's grab a spot!" Shi Lei called out from beside him.

"If you guys have any discarded cards, remember to save them for me. I need a lot," Tang Jian reminded them, then found a seat and sat down.

Although every table in the Card Crafting Room was equipped with instruments, some functioned better than others, while some were damaged from prolonged use. This was why Shi Lei and the others were scrambling for tables.

Tang Jian, however, chose his spot quite casually.

At this stage, all he needed was a Sketching Pen.

He took a Blank Card from his backpack and placed it on the table. At the same moment, his consciousness converged.

A stat panel quickly appeared before his eyes.

Owner: Tang Jian.

Card Energy: [33/33]+

Spirit: [2/4]+

Physique: [6.2]+

Special Abilities: 1. ??? (???)

2. Dream. (???)

Current Energy: [0]+

His Card Energy had now recovered to its peak, but his spiritual power was still only 2 points.

These 2 points of spiritual power would likely only be enough to craft one One-Star Blank Energy Card.

Tang Jian now had a new plan.

There was also a "+" sign after his spiritual power.

This indicated that spiritual power could also be enhanced and increased by utilizing sufficient energy.

However, he didn't know how much energy it would take to increase his spiritual power by one point.

Logically, Tang Jian should only focus on increasing his Card Energy at this point.

Because only by raising his Card Energy to a sufficiently high level could he join the Rocket Class in just over ten days.

But practically speaking, if his spiritual power wasn't strong, Tang Jian would be limited in the number of cards he could craft daily. At most, he could only create two One-Star Blank Cards per day, which would severely hinder his progress.

"A One-Star Blank Energy Card, without consuming my own Card Energy, should be able to increase my Card Energy by one point. As for how much it can increase my spiritual power, that's unknown.

To play it safe, I should accumulate enough Energy Cards before attempting to enhance my spiritual power. But my top priority right now is to raise my Card Energy to prepare for the Rocket Class in eleven days."

Tang Jian sat at the table, his mind rapidly analyzing, and finally formulated a plan.

"Three Energy Cards. I'll prepare three Energy Cards. If three still aren't enough to boost my spiritual power, then I'll temporarily give up and focus all my efforts on increasing my Card Energy."

Tang Jian made up his mind.

Three Energy Cards, at his current rate of crafting at least two Blank Energy Cards per day, would cost him a day and a half.

With the remaining nine and a half days, he could, barring any unforeseen circumstances, craft at least 18 Energy Cards. This would barely allow him to increase his own Card Energy to over 50 points by the eleventh day.

Exceeding 49 points and reaching 50 points in Card Energy meant becoming a Two-Star Card User.

Currently, only twenty-four Card User students at the school had reached this level.

Theoretically, in eleven days, as long as Tang Jian reached the level of a Two-Star Card User, he should qualify to join the Rocket Class.

Tang Jian casually pressed his hand on a card embedded in a metal instrument on the table, inputting a slight trace of Card Energy into it.

Immediately, the embedded card in the metal instrument lit up faintly, and then metal plates sprang out from both sides of the instrument.

The two metal plates extended like flowing water, quickly enclosing the entire table where Tang Jian sat, covering his upper body and the tabletop, leaving only his lower body visible.

This was a mechanical series card—a One-Star Blank Metal Hemisphere Card. Its function was very singular, primarily used in similar Card Crafting Rooms, libraries, phone booths, and so on. It could only form a half-sphere, encapsulating a person within to create a relatively quiet and private environment.

However, this card also had an advanced version, the mechanical series Three-Star Blank Metal Sphere Card, which could form a complete metal sphere, enclosing the entire person within for protection.

Inside the half-sphere, Tang Jian immediately felt the surrounding noise reduce by seventy to eighty percent, and the environment became much better.

He immediately focused on the Blank Card on the table, picked up his Sketching Pen, and began to sketch.

At another table not far from the Card Crafting Room, Xie Dong frowned, watching Tang Jian use the Metal Hemisphere Card to conceal himself. He couldn't help but let out a cold snort.

This kid is really persistent.

He had intended to secretly observe how many Blank Cards Tang Jian had brought, but Tang Jian had only taken out one card before using the metal hemisphere to hide, thwarting his plan.

No matter what, I'll try to deal with this kid during dinner tonight.

Xie Dong harbored ill intentions.

Tang Jian, meanwhile, was fully focused on sketching the Energy Card.

Elegant black lines rapidly converged under his pen, forming intricate patterns. A One-Star Blank Energy Card quickly took shape in his hands.