Back home, Tang Jian heard Old Huang bark twice in the distance, and his mood improved considerably. He touched the gold chain and cash lying safely in his backpack, then felt the battle pet card in his pocket. A smile tugged at his lips.
He opened the courtyard gate and casually glanced back, pretending not to care. Seeing no one, he finally relaxed a little.
"Looks like it really was Teacher Sun. Teacher Sun is so conscientious, she should handle some unnecessary trouble for a newbie like me, right?"
Tang Jian thought to himself, feeling much more at ease.
Sure enough, Sun Yiying had not continued following Tang Jian. Instead, she used special means to intimidate Mosquito once again, frightening him out of his wits. He no longer dared entertain any thought of retaliating against Tang Jian and fled back to his hideout in panic.
When Tang Jian entered the house, he found both his parents watching television.
"Didn't you say you had a gathering today? Why are you back so early?"
Tang Lin sat on the old sofa and looked at his son, somewhat surprised.
Normally, he would ride his little electric scooter to school to pick Tang Jian up. Recently, however, Tang Jian had said he needed to intensify his training and no longer needed a ride, claiming he could run home himself.
"Ah, we gathered early today, so everyone left early." Tang Jian picked up the kettle on the table, poured himself a glass of water, and drank it. He answered casually, never mentioning his encounter with Mosquito that night.
He did not want his parents to worry about something like that. The less he said, the better.
"It's good that you came home early. Little Jian, things have been a little unsettled lately. How about starting tomorrow, your dad picks you up from school again?"
Chen Lianrong brought over a plate of cherry tomatoes and set it on the coffee table, gesturing for Tang Jian to eat while speaking worriedly.
"What happened?" Tang Jian casually picked up a cherry tomato and ate it, puzzled.
"Brother, our homeroom teacher warned us about it today. Don't you know? Those lunatics from the Old Kingdom Organization have started causing trouble again. Several children disappeared near South City Second Elementary School after school today, and a police officer was injured by a lunatic who suddenly appeared."
Tang Yueyue came downstairs just then, her little face tense as she spoke.
"What?" Tang Jian was startled.
"Yueyue, you don't need to concern yourself with such things. As long as you all stay quietly at school and don't run around, you'll be safe."
Tang Lin gave Tang Yueyue a stern, displeased look.
He was worried that Tang Yueyue's words would affect Tang Jian's state of mind. After all, his son had an important assessment tomorrow, and he had already learned about it from Sun Yiying.
Tang Jian's performance at school had been improving steadily lately. Sun Yiying had spoken with Tang Lin more than once, saying that Tang Jian possessed exceptional talent as a card cultivator. This rekindled some of Tang Lin's old hopes, and he had begun placing great expectations on Tang Jian.
Back then, Tang Lin had exhausted every effort yet still failed to become a card cultivator. Now, however, his son had both the potential and talent. It made Tang Lin tremendously excited.
Tang Yueyue pouted after being scolded by Tang Lin, looking a little aggrieved.
Just then, the television began broadcasting a news report. The channel had apparently already been switched to the Xi City channel.
It was today's news, and some of the footage showed streets near South City Second Elementary School.
The footage showed that it had been late afternoon, nearing dusk. Numerous startled cries and panicked shouts spread through the scene. Then, in the blurry footage, a terrifying monster resembling a black spider charged out from a street corner, seemingly flinging someone far away.
The scene flashed by in an instant. Soon, a group of people dressed in special combat uniforms appeared on-screen, along with card cultivators arriving at the chaotic scene.
Tang Jian even saw a card cultivator in special combat gear activate the exquisite card device in his hand. His body immediately swelled to an enormous size, muscles knotting all over him. He rushed into battle with the black spider, and soon afterward, the spider was crushed and hammered to death.
The footage quickly ended there, switching to a news anchor delivering rapid commentary.
His parents both looked slightly worried yet excited, while Tang Yueyue kept staring intently at the anchor on the television screen.
"Residents of Xi City, please rest assured. Under the organized suppression led by our heroic card master, He Yan, the Old Kingdom Organization members who appeared, along with the evil monsters they summoned, have all been killed. Over the next period of time, we..."
"Whew, thank goodness. What lunatics? Those Old Kingdom Organization members are terrifying. They could even summon such a huge spider."
Hearing the anchor say that everything was fine, Tang Yueyue let out a sigh of relief and patted her chest.
"Alright, you two need to be more careful. Things may be fine for now, but be cautious at night. Little Jian, how about I pick you up tomorrow night after all?"
Tang Lin looked at Tang Jian and smiled.
"No need, Dad. I'll come back with my classmates. Besides, after the Interstellar Tower ends tomorrow, those of us who pass may have to undergo intensive training somewhere for a while. We might not have time to come home."
Tang Jian said.
"Heh heh heh, looks like you're very confident. Fine then. Your dad wishes you success tomorrow."
Tang Lin smiled and nodded.
Praying to Old Ma won't help with something like this. You need to spend money!
Tang Jian grumbled inwardly and turned to head upstairs.
Tang Lin watched Tang Jian's departing back with a smile, his eyes full of anticipation.
He knew Tang Jian's vitality and card energy had already surpassed his by far. His son had grown up. There really was no need to worry too much.
Tang Jian returned upstairs with a somewhat heavy heart.
Only after seeing that news report did he remember something from a rather distant memory.
At this time in his previous life, Old Kingdom Organization members really had appeared in Xi City. Though those lunatics were dealt with by the Federation afterward, they had indeed caused panic in Xi City for a time.
According to later expert analyses and news reports, those lunatics from the Old Kingdom Organization deliberately targeted small county cities like Xi City, where public security was poor and defensive forces were weak. They specifically abducted young teenagers and children from those towns.
Xi City had not been the only place where such incidents suddenly occurred. Lunatics from the Old Kingdom Organization had appeared in many similar small county cities, causing countless teenagers and children to disappear.
Statistics from Xi City that year showed that more than thirty children had gone missing. Tang Jian vaguely remembered that the heroic card master, He Yan, who had just appeared in the television report, had also died in the line of duty during a battle that year.
Yet now, He Yan was still alive and doing quite well.
Should I send this hero an anonymous warning?
The thought flashed through Tang Jian's mind before he quickly dismissed it.
He was only a high school student now. Setting aside whether he could even contact He Yan, even if he did, would telling him to be careful and not die actually keep him alive?
He would probably be cursed as a lunatic, and might even make an enemy of him, drawing the attention of a card master.
Tang Jian lay down on the bed wearily. His strength was far too weak right now; there was nothing he could do about something like this. He could only let events unfold.
In any case, no one in his family had come to harm in his previous life. He only needed to remind his younger sister to be careful tomorrow. There was no need to worry needlessly.
With that thought, Tang Jian took the Poison Mosquito battle pet card from his pocket and examined it before his eyes.
The card was thick and sturdy. Its white surface was not made from the mina tree bark used for Energy Cards, but from the tanned bones of a curved blue toad. The lifelike, savage Poison Mosquito on the card seemed ready to break free and fly off the surface.
The ink-black lines forming the Poison Mosquito were smooth and flowing, pleasing to the eye and filled with artistic flair.
Judging by Tang Jian's former standards as a Three-Star Card Crafter, he could tell at a glance that the Card Maker who created this battle pet card had likely already reached the level of a One-Star Card Maker. Making this card would have been effortless for them.
This unexpectedly acquired battle pet card was equivalent to another increase in his combat power.
However, battle pet cards were unlike Mechanical Cards such as the sleeve arrow. Each activation consumed an enormous amount of card energy. With Tang Jian's current card energy, he could probably summon the Poison Mosquito only once before completely draining himself.
Yet Tang Jian glanced at the energy value in his Attribute Template, and a sly grin spread across his face.
With a cheat that could restore card energy at any time, summoning this kind of battle pet seemed absurdly overpowered.
When an enemy painstakingly killed one Poison Mosquito, only to suddenly discover another one—or even two more—appearing, that would probably feel incredibly satisfying.
However, pet cards like the Poison Mosquito Card also belonged to the type of cards capable of combination evolution. When the Poison Mosquito Card was combined with the auxiliary Aura Card—the Blood-sucking Card—it could form the Blood-sucking Poison Mosquito Card.
Tang Jian still remembered several matching Combination Card Set formulas.
Blood-sucking Poison Mosquito Card + One-Shot Kill Card = Semi-Mechanical Blood Mosquito Card
Semi-Mechanical Blood Mosquito Card + Gigantification Card = Giant Blood Mosquito Card
Giant Blood Mosquito Card + Zombie Card = Vampire.
Before you continue