Uh, there was an omission in what I just posted. I've filled it in now~
Hong Tao shook his head. "Apparently, they haven't made any real progress."
Zuo Tingyi said coldly, "With their abilities, their chances of success are practically zero."
"How so?" Wang Ze couldn't help asking. After spending these past few days together, he had gained some understanding of Zuo Tingyi's temperament and knew how rigorous he was when it came to card making. Hong Tao knew Zuo Tingyi even better, and he too looked at him in surprise.
Whatever Zuo Tingyi was thinking, his expression looked a little strange. "I've studied that Combo Cards set. It isn't as simple as it appears."
Hong Tao and Wang Ze exchanged glances, then both turned their eyes back to Zuo Tingyi, waiting for him to explain further.
"The person who made this Card Film is very clever. He made some changes to the Illusion Cards' structure, and I still haven't figured out exactly what those changes do. But I suspect they may have been intended to prevent others from copying them." Zuo Tingyi hesitated, then continued, "I said may. I can't rule out other possibilities. But whatever the case, this Card Crafter is highly skilled." He paused, then emphasized again, "Extremely skilled!"
A name flashed through his mind: Blockhead! The names of the Card Crafter and scriptwriter were written on the Card Film Encounter. Among the girls at East Guard Academy, the names Blockhead and Lei Zi rang out like thunder. Zuo Tingyi had no interest in Lei Zi, the scriptwriter, but he was intensely curious about this Card Crafter, Blockhead.
Hong Tao and Wang Ze were astonished. This was the first time they had heard Zuo Tingyi praise anyone so highly.
Hong Tao stammered, "Surely not? Aren't all the cards in that Combo Cards set one-star Illusion Cards? However good he is, how good could he possibly be?"
Zuo Tingyi looked at Hong Tao as though he were an idiot. "I don't discuss card making with people who know nothing about it." He gestured at Wang Ze, indicating that he should explain.
Wang Ze considered for a moment. "I'm not very familiar with card making either, but I've heard that a Card Crafter's skill isn't measured by how many stars the cards he can make have. It's measured by his understanding of the rules governing cards, and his understanding of energy."
Hong Tao nodded, only half understanding, then suddenly said, "So it's like being a Card Adept? You don't judge him by how advanced the cards he can use are, but by how he uses his own cards and how he controls energy?"
"That's exactly it." Wang Ze nodded calmly and glanced at Hong Tao. "Tao, your fundamentals are solid. If you can apply them a little more flexibly and experiment more, you're certain to take another step forward."
Wang Ze and Hong Tao had long since become close through spending time together. Hong Tao had never seen how strong Wang Ze was, but the Star Academy students on that field exercise had all treated him with great respect.
Hong Tao listened to Wang Ze's words and committed them to heart, feeling as though he had grasped something.
Chen Mu probably never would have imagined that so many people were studying his cards, or that they would rate them so highly. The so-called modifications to that Illusion Card set weren't an anti-piracy structure at all, but a way of applying "planning." He had simply combined his knowledge of "planning" with Illusion Cards, which was why this Combo Cards set contained only ten Illusion Cards. Normally, a story of the same length would require about thirty.
Having tasted the benefits, Chen Mu soon became even more interested in the knowledge surrounding Planning Cards, and he kept incorporating it into his Illusion Card making. He discovered that Planning Card structures could greatly improve the efficiency of dynamic Illusion Cards, but offered little help with static ones. When making Illusion Cards that produced the same images, those with Planning Card structures consumed far less perception than ordinary Illusion Cards.
But he still devoted most of his energy to that mysterious card.
Finished? That was it? Chen Mu looked at the illusion before him in surprise. Without realizing it, he had finished reading all the foundational knowledge about Planning Cards.
The moment he finished reading the final sentence, the previously stable illusory environment suddenly changed. He was still in an empty void, but the two cards representing Illusion Cards and Planning Cards had both vanished.
Twelve grayish-white cards appeared before him. The cards were dark gray, with structural patterns faintly visible on their surfaces, but whenever he tried to examine them closely, he could make out nothing.
Chen Mu tentatively touched one of the cards. He had used this same method to activate the Illusion Card and Planning Card last time.
"Simulated Water Environment Illusion Card. Required rating: one star. Simulates an underwater environment. Can be activated using an Energy Card below three stars. Detailed parameters are as follows..."
Chen Mu was dumbfounded.
A Simulated Water Environment Illusion Card? What kind of Illusion Card was that? Judging by its requirements, it should be able to simulate an underwater environment, but how could such an Illusion Card exist? Perhaps he simply knew too little, Chen Mu told himself comfortingly.
The detailed parameters immediately made Chen Mu understand what this mysterious card intended: it wanted him to make these twelve cards!
That had to be it! To make sure, Chen Mu touched every card in turn.
Every one of these cards was bizarre. Not only had Chen Mu never heard of them, he had never even imagined them. Their listed requirements were even more mind-boggling. One Arrowfish Illusion Card, for example, not only imposed extremely strict requirements on the arrowfish's speed, but also required their movement paths to follow extraordinarily complex rules. The formulas alone made his scalp prickle.
After touching all twelve cards, Chen Mu couldn't help drawing in a sharp breath.
Although he still didn't understand what these cards were used for, one thing was certain: not a single one would be easy to make. Their crafting difficulty was extremely high. Though most were one-star or two-star Illusion Cards, so far Chen Mu had absolutely no idea where to begin.
Eleven of the twelve cards were Illusion Cards. The remaining one was a Planning Card-a pure Planning Card.
Surely I don't really have to make all twelve of these cards? A bitter taste filled Chen Mu's mouth as he stared blankly at the twelve dark-gray cards.
Cost. That was the second thought to surface in his mind. The expense of making these twelve cards...
The bitterness in Chen Mu's mouth deepened. Even pouring in all the money he had might not be enough. He had only just enjoyed a few days with money to spare, and now he would have to spend such a large sum on this. To say it didn't hurt would be an outright lie.
Yet a faint sense of anticipation stirred in his heart. If... if I really could make all twelve of these cards...
Illusion Cards with bizarre requirements-and, most importantly, there was actually a dedicated Planning Card among the twelve! Over these past few days, what had struck Chen Mu most was the power of Planning Cards. Merely incorporating Planning Card techniques into Illusion Card structures had produced such tremendous results. What, then, could a dedicated Planning Card do? He hardly dared imagine it.
It was this anticipation-or curiosity-that finally drove Chen Mu to make his decision.
I'll go for it! Chen Mu gritted his teeth and steeled his resolve.
(End of chapter)