Chapter 96: 096 Tan Heming’s Conjecture_1
Within the Mountain Ghost Association, Tan Heming and Luo Juerao, among others, used the Moon Palace Card Set and were immersed in an unbelievable shock.
Tan Heming and Luo Juerao controlled three cards, with the other two members playing support. After trying out the Moon Palace Card Set and adding two different Support Cards to aid Hou Yi, they battled the old card sets of the Mountain Ghost Association.
The outcome was without a doubt.
After three matches, the card sets with Hou Yi were undefeated.
Only in one extremely aggressive match-up, using four Control Cards to enforce strong control, were they barely able to restrain Hou Yi, the most powerful damage-dealer, and grind down its Card Spirit.
Having won this match, the team members found some humor in their plight, "It’s not like there’s no way to beat these three cards."
But Luo Juerao was not so happy. "These three cards, matched with two Support Cards, had no counter-control. We only managed to win by using an extreme card set. In a real match, would a coach even let you use four such cards? Besides, everyone knows it’s practically impossible to bring two Support Cards. If the remaining two cards are just switched to Defense Cards and cards that resist Strong Control Cards, no one can stop Hou Yi."
Following Luo Juerao’s words, the team members were left in an awkward position.
Tan Heming said indifferently, "The cards are imbalanced."
This was an ironclad fact.
Whoever held the Hou Yi card set would be the ultimate victor.
And yet, this was a public card set.
What did it mean for a card set to be public? It meant that the competitive scene would no longer be diverse. Without those three cards on the field, you could only wait for death.
The previous cards of the Yunxia Empire at least maintained an odd balance. If one player had a strong Defense Card, their opponent might have a powerful offensive card. As long as the skill gap between A-Level Spirit Card Masters wasn’t huge, they could have some back-and-forth on the field. But now, that was no longer necessary.
Luo Juerao analyzed in a low voice, "The core of this linked card set is Changer. Changer is the card that must be included. I can even imagine the chaotic scenes of future matches."
Changer could link with Hou Yi, and also with Jade Rabbit Pestle Medicine, but Jade Rabbit Pestle Medicine and Hou Yi could not link up.
So, the core card was Changer.
Tan Heming continued, "The breakthrough lies in Changer. On the field, you must kill Changer first, not Hou Yi.
"If Changer is dealt with before her ascension, Hou Yi won’t rampage. A non-rampaging Hou Yi still has terrifying damage output, but at least there will be a chance to fight back.
"He can’t move, and Strong Control Cards are his nemesis."
For Spirit Card Masters with quick reactions, like us, it wouldn’t be difficult to deal with this card, Tan Heming thought. The problem is that our whole card set can’t be disrupted just to specifically counter Hou Yi. Its outrageously high damage output makes it indispensable.
Luo Juerao was puzzled. "Why could such a card be created? We’ve also tried to make cards like this, but we’ve never succeeded."
Everyone wanted to create stronger cards, so why couldn’t they?
In fact, by the logic of card gaming, they even felt such cards were unreasonable.
For example, why should Changer gain such abilities after ascending? The power to see through invisibility makes no sense; nothing in her background story suggests she has this capability.
"This Card Maker is extraordinary," Tan Heming stated.
As a Card Maker himself, Tan Heming had some understanding of card creation. His Adam’s apple bobbed. "The main reason for the successful creation of a card is that the character must have a reasonable structure and worldview lore in the Card Maker’s mind as support. This Card Maker’s worldview and lore must be exceptionally terrifying.
"The fact that such a terrifyingly illogical state can be logically and successfully crafted shows that this Card Maker’s spiritual power must be stronger than other Card Makers of the same rank."
A Card Maker like this couldn’t possibly lack fame, Tan Heming mused.
Tan Heming pulled up some of the Mount Flower Association’s competition videos, all focusing on Wen Jiang.
Luo Juerao was somewhat puzzled after seeing them. "Oh, isn’t that the A-Level Spirit Card Master from the Mount Flower Association? She’s quite formidable, I hear. She only advanced from B-Level to A-Level recently, right? Why are you watching her videos?"
Even an A-Level Spirit Card Master, in their eyes, wasn’t worth special attention.
Because the future of the world was in the hands of S Rank Spirit Card Masters.
Tan Heming didn’t explain directly but said softly, "I’ve investigated her. She only became a B-Level Spirit Card Master a few months ago. After the competition, she quickly advanced to A-Level. I’ve heard from an A-Level team member of the Mount Flower Association that she’s very strong, even excessively so, a true genius."
Luo Juerao said, "And then? So she’s a genius contestant, this..."
Luo Juerao suddenly stopped.
He knew very well Tan Heming wouldn’t bring up someone irrelevant for no reason. Plus, they were discussing Card Makers... An incredible guess formed in Luo Juerao’s mind. "Are you suspecting that she is the Card Maker?"
Tan Heming confirmed, "Before she joined the Mount Flower Association, that B-Rank Dual-Change Card Set had just appeared. I’ve calculated the time; it was within a week after she registered as a B-Level Spirit Card Master that the B-Rank Dual-Change Card Set showed up.
"Her promotion from B-Level to A-Level happened too quickly. With all these coincidences, it’s hard for me to ignore."
He was a naturally sharp person and believed in his own instincts. He had chanced upon Wen Jiang’s competition videos online. Perhaps driven by some intuition, he’d felt that this girl was unusually strong, and that B-Level didn’t fit her stature. Shortly after her promotion to A-Level, he’d had this sense of ’I knew it.’ But that was not enough, not until the emergence of the Hou Yi Card Set.
"Everything started after she appeared," Tan Heming stated gravely.
"How is that possible?" Luo Juerao couldn’t believe Tan Heming’s words. He said in shock, "She hasn’t been A-Level for long, has she? In less than two months, you’re telling me she came out with the Moon Palace Card Set? I can’t accept that there’s a Spirit Card Master in the world who can be so heaven-defying!"
In all of history, he had never heard of a Spirit Card Master who could craft cards as easily as drinking water. Even for the most talented Spirit Card Master, going from inspiration to framework for a card took months of gestation. If a card turned out to be a world-class hit, its creator would have a life of wealth and fame. The current record for an A-Level Card Maker was held by one from the Frost Moon Empire, a 61-year-old who had made 27 cards in his lifetime. Thirteen of those cards had become important in the A-Level competitions of the Frost Moon Empire and had secured him supreme status there. This was already considered the person with the strongest card-making talent known. If this person from Yunxia was Wen Jiang... in two months, she made three cards?! And five more at B-Level?!
Of course, the naive Luo Juerao did not know that Wen Jiang also had her SSR Card, Mo Liqing, at the Mount Flower Association, and she had even begun creating the other three Heavenly Kings.
Tan Heming concluded, "I’m familiar with all the A-Level Spirit Card Masters on the market, and none of them can be linked to the Moon Palace Card Set. After all, not every S Rank Spirit Card Master can casually use SSR Cards, and A-Level cards are often among those privately used by S Rank Spirit Card Masters."