"It's quite interesting."
Looking at the attribute panel of the "Evil Dog of Misdeeds · Year Beast," Chronicle couldn't help but smile.
This is a very interesting card:
The skill "Rampage" can destroy buildings in a certain area and affect nearby crops, but it doesn't specify whether the effect is good or bad.
After all, there are multiple interpretations of the origin of "year" or "eve."
"Evil beasts" are known for tearing and trampling, while "beneficial beasts" are supposed to protect homes and ensure a good harvest.
In other words, this is actually a skill that can be self-regulated.
"Mountain Travel" is its innate skill as a "vehicle unit," nothing much to say about that.
The "Zodiac" skill, on the other hand, is quite interesting.
According to its description, the Year Beast can currently borrow the skills of "Ren Yin Crouching Tiger" and "Gui Mao Black Rabbit."
The former can suppress the movement speed of "Hundred Beasts" units, making it suitable for speed races; the latter can suppress "Flying Birds" and even double as a "treasure hunting tool."
It can be said to be extremely versatile.
As for its characteristics, they are even more interesting.
"Night Travel" is a standard scene-specific speed boost characteristic.
"Gluttony" is similar to the "Essence of the Moon" and "Yin Absorption" of Brother Zongzi, belonging to the AFK characteristic.
But compared to "Essence of the Moon," "Yin Qi," and other free things, it's really a blow to this poor guy.
Looking at the "Lion Dog" with a body size comparable to a top-notch mud truck, if it were to be let loose, it would probably end up like Ziliang and Youyou's family, easily driven into poverty.
"In the future, I'll just treat it as a mobile trash can. Anything useless can be thrown into its mouth, not wasting anything and also protecting the environment."
"If it can't even be satisfied with that, I'll throw it into the secret realm to be a 'guardian beast,' and when it's full, it can guard the house, and when it's hungry, it can go down the mountain and find something to eat, self-sufficient."
"There's an old saying… well, I have a saying: A card spirit that can only be supported by a card master is not a good card spirit."
"That old Zongzi sleeps in the coffin every day, not even eating a mouthful of rice, and still 'lives' well."
"I just don't believe it. With such a good physique, if it's put to work, it can't even support itself?"
Chronicle thought to himself, and once again, a thin, tall shadow in the shape of a street lamp was pulled behind him.
But he remained oblivious and continued to analyze the characteristics of the Year Beast:
"Year's End… rises once a year… the battle process does not consume any spiritual power, and its quality and level will be raised to the highest level I can bear."
In other words, on New Year's Day, the strength of this 'Lion Dog' will directly surpass General Zeng, Seven Brothers, and Eight Brothers, becoming the number one in my team.
Although it's only for one day, if used well, it's definitely a very terrifying weapon.
"And…"
Chronicle lightly stroked his chin and said, "The feedback of this mythological card is extraordinary. Compared to the same level, my spiritual power has both qualitative and quantitative advantages."
"Just for now, I can support three to four card spirits in battle for half an hour, and it's not a problem for one of them to lead the army in battle for more than ten minutes."
With this kind of spiritual power reserve, if the Year Beast's state is full, it might even be able to take on all six of them together.
Even if it can't win, holding out for a while is not a problem… that's pretty amazing.
Chronicle smiled and said, "Perfect, although this world has lost a lot of things related to totems and customs, it still retains those traditional festivals."
"When New Year's comes, I'll take this guy to participate in the super large-scale competition organized by the official or card group. With its crushing strength at the same level, earning enough for a year's worth of meals in one go is not a problem."
"Of course, it's not for its meals, but for me and the living expenses of the other card spirits."
"The things in the secret realm are enough for it to eat."
"Kids, why keep so much money? It's better to use it to honor 'Dad'."
"I'm still growing."
The shameless Chronicle, who is over six feet tall, said, not knowing what else this adult could grow.
"Three Fears… doesn't this characteristic fit perfectly with Lu Shiping's 'He runs, she chases, he grows wings but can't fly'?"
"Anyway, this time the vehicle card race allows the use of some items within the 'specifications.'"
"I don't use those enhancement-type skill cards or potions, so is it excessive to tie a whip to its tail?"
"By then, I'll let Yingtai transform into the Red and White Form, use the 'Ghostly Wedding Dance' skill, and 'lead the race' in the inner circle of the track."
"The 'friendly' interaction between card spirits under the same card master is not only compliant but also in line with the traditional virtues of 'love and mutual assistance' in the Nine Provinces region."
In the future, it might even be selected by the "Touching Nine Provinces" program team, it's simply amazing.
"As for these three advanced routes…"
"Gluttony" is strong, but as the old saying goes: a half-grown glutton, eating up the forest. Can't afford to keep it."
With the power of the "Purple Star" deity, it is indeed much higher than the "Zodiac."
But the Year Beast is still in its early stage, the card information is incomplete, and based solely on the name, it's still impossible to judge which is better…
Chronicle thought to himself, and with a "return," his consciousness fell and returned to reality.
"Let's not think about these things for now."He stood up, put away the suspended coffin and the old zongzi sleeping inside, and pulled open the curtains, stretching his body:
"Anyway, one year beast is definitely enough for now, thinking about those is meaningless."
"Instead… let's get the firecrackers out first."
As far as he knew, there were actually things similar to "firecrackers" and "fireworks" in this world.
After all, with the wisdom of the people of Jiuzhou, since they had already developed gunpowder, how could they not use it to make something interesting?
It's just that the history here is incomplete, and there are barriers to information, so people don't connect those little toys with things like "exorcism" and "welcoming the gods."
They just treat it as a kind of prank toy.
"What was that thing called again? Red noise?"
After receiving the feedback from the year beast's card, Chronicle washed his face, quickly recalling the name of the firecrackers in this world.
Then he went downstairs, and together with the mountain ghost, they rode the year beast's back and headed to a toy material store in the city.
By the way, this time he brought the greedy goddess along, not because he was tired of her.
It's just that there are too many "elements" on Yingtai, and it's easy to scare the year beast.
Not to mention the "Red and White Attire" form, even in the "sword-wielding scholar" state, there are also a red protective shell for the phone and a sword hilt tied with the "Dreaming Red Gauze."
As the saying goes, there are a thousand roads, but safety comes first.
This time, let the mountain ghost accompany him.
***
"Welcome!"
As they entered the toy store, the toy bird hanging from the ceiling began to chirp softly.
"Hello, may I help you with anything?"
The shopkeeper was a woman in her twenties, and when she saw the mountain ghost, she was a little surprised.
The slender, well-proportioned, radiant, fair-skinned girl in front of her looked so beautiful that she didn't seem like a "person" at all.
But in those clear eyes, there was a hint of cunning and mischief that was rarely seen in Kalin.
This made her a little confused.
"This is my Kalin," Chronicle explained casually, then asked, "Do you have materials for red noise and bamboo here?"
"Yes, we do." The shopkeeper nodded repeatedly and turned to bring out two paper boxes from the warehouse.
Chronicle looked through them and finally gritted his teeth, spending a "large sum" (two thousand yuan) to buy two white materials called "Prank Red Noise" and "Fire Blood Bamboo."
Thinking that it wouldn't be right to treat one better than the other, and since Yingtai had a phone, he should buy something for the mountain ghost as well.
So he spent a few hundred yuan to buy the mountain ghost a "Night Surge Microphone."
It can be used to adjust the mood of this card master when singing, and it can also attract birds and beasts in a wider range when entering the secret realm.
It's like killing two birds with one stone.
"Okay."
Seeing the girl holding the microphone with joy, Chronicle couldn't help but smile and nod.
Then he went to the next store and bought a leather ball for future fun with the year beast.
"Let's go, year beast…"
After buying the things, Chronicle and the mountain ghost got on the back of the year beast.
But suddenly, he had a flash of inspiration and realized something: "Year beast… these two words seem to be cursing myself… I'll call it Lion Dog from now on."
He thought to himself, then lightly kicked the year beast's ribs with his legs: "Let's go, Lion Dog."
Then he took out half a silver sausage from his bag, tied it with Seven Brothers' fishing line, and led the year beast happily towards the hotel.
The speed far exceeded the "Paper Man Carrying Coffin" and "Paper Men Carrying Cursed Red Palanquin" that Bai Ziliang had given him.
The "fuel consumption" for ten kilometers was only half a sausage.
***
"Phew."
Back in the hotel room.
Chronicle lay back and once again entered the sea of consciousness, starting to work on the creation of the "firecracker" card.
After thinking for a long time in that vast white world, he finally decided to present this folk product in the form of a "material card."
"Consider it a warm-up, so that when I make 'incense' and 'Meng Po's soup' in the future, I won't know where to start."
He thought to himself, and in the void, he wrote the two words "firecracker" in a flowing manner, and then briefly described:
"Firecrackers, an item used for weddings, funerals, and certain major festivals, with a history of over two thousand years."
"The 'Jingchu Seasonal Records' records: 'On the first day of the first month, the rooster crows and rises, and firecrackers are set off in the courtyard to ward off evil spirits.'"
"Among them, 'evil spirits' are a kind of mountain demon that can cause illness in people."
"The ancients believed that only by driving them away could they be safe and auspicious."
"Therefore, the item has had the attribute of 'exorcism' since its birth."
"And because of its 'festive' attribute, it is also often used to 'welcome the gods.'"
With that, the information was filled out.
Since this item can interact with the already created "year beast."
Therefore, after just a few seconds, the sea of consciousness prompted the end of the review.
Chronicle then quickly drew the pattern of the card.
It was a long street covered with red confetti, and a boy in new clothes was hanging firecrackers on a wooden stick with one hand, covering his ears with the other, with a happy face.
And his friends and siblings were hiding behind the door, their faces showing a mix of fear and joy, leaning forward, looking eager to try.
Typical "inexperienced but loves to play."
With that, the card design was complete.
Next was the unique step of creating a material card: "Material Logic."
The logic of "firecrackers" is not complicated.Chronicle jotted down the rough methods for making bamboo firecrackers and modern fireworks, considering the task complete.
Simultaneously, the back of the card gradually turned into an auspicious bright red, slowly forming a neat diamond pattern, encasing a meticulously drawn character for "Fortune."
"Fortune arrives, set off the firecrackers."
Rows of card information instantly flooded into Chronicle's mind:
【Firecracker】(Shape-shiftable)
Quality: White
Category: Fire/Light
Role: Exorcism/Inviting Deities
Type: Material
Effects:
【Transformation】: Consumes a small amount of mental energy to freely switch between hanging firecrackers, throwing crackers, and double bangers.
【Exorcism】: On the first day of the lunar new year, at the crow of the rooster, setting off firecrackers in the courtyard to drive away spirits. The explosion of the firecrackers has a certain probability of inducing a 【Fear】 emotion in 【Demon】 class units of blue quality or lower.
【Inviting Deities】: As the firecrackers burn, the smoke curls upwards. Using this item in scenes primarily involving 【Summoning Deities】 or 【Inviting Deities】 has a low probability of granting the 【Purifying Flame】 effect to allied deity units.
Production Rule: Every twelve hours, a number of ordinary firecrackers are generated based on the card master's mental energy. For every three thousand firecrackers, one will have an enhanced 【Exorcism】 or 【Inviting Deities】 effect.
The former can produce 【Exorcism Flame】, causing a continuous 【Burning】 effect on 【Demon】 class units.
The latter can produce 【Divine Incense Flame】, slightly increasing the combat power of allied 【Deity】 class units and has an extremely low probability of attracting 【Deity】 class units within a ten-mile radius to temporarily join the allied ranks.
Introduction: Amidst the sound of firecrackers, the old year is swept away, and a hundred evils crumble like fireworks.
Advancement: None
Combination: Can be used in conjunction with units or items with characteristics like 【Year】, 【Deity】, 【Demon】, activating different effects.
"【Purifying Flame】, 【Exorcism Flame】, 【Divine Incense Flame】…"
Chronicle murmured softly.
A material card for practice, the only things that caught his attention were these three types of flames.
"An event involving 【Deities】…"
Chronicle thought to himself, silently uttered "Return," and in the blink of an eye, he was back to reality.
Looking at the white-bordered card in his hand, he couldn't help but mutter, "I've made plenty of blue and green cards, but this is the first white one."
"Although the feedback isn't much higher than normal cultivation, it has the advantage of low consumption."
"So this… is the world of my parallel class peers."
After exhaling slowly, he turned to look at the sunset outside the window and took a nap.
The competition gave them three days and two nights to craft, but he had created the 【Year Beast】 mount and the support material card in less than a day.
This efficiency, he reckoned, would hardly be believed even if he told others.
He had no desire to show off; for the next two days, he would stay in his room and meditate.
Most of the time was spent accumulating mental energy.
The rest was spent listening to the Mountain Spirit hum tunes he couldn't understand, relaxing his mind.
Or he would play games with Ying Tai, letting the young girl boost his rank.
Occasionally, he would also go out with Seven Brothers and Eight Brothers for a stroll or fishing, exercising his willpower.
His days were quite fulfilling indeed.