Chapter 457 - A Six-star New Card!
Somewhere.
Cold winds were howling gently.
The sky was dark.
Night fell. The lights faded away. There were only stars in the sky. Fortunately, the lights had no impact on the Swordsmen.
At this moment…
Two Swordsmen were still looking into the distance.
“Is An Mingdong… reliable?” One Swordsman whispered.
“I don’t know.”
His companion said lightly, “Humans are a very strange species. No matter how loyal one is, they change when it concerns their best interests.
“Furthermore…
“This is an ancient Sword Embryo.
“If An Mingdong betrays us and leaves with the Sword Embryo, that is understandable.”
He was very calm.
“Then what should we do?”
The Swordsman was worried.
“Don’t worry.
His companion smiled. “Since we have thought of this, I was naturally prepared for this. Someone is supervising An Mingdong until he completes his mission.
“If he betrays us…
“Heh.”
He smiled lightly.
“In that case…
The Swordsman contemplated for a moment. “How do you ensure that the person you sent will not betray you?”
Loyalty was difficult.
Especially when there was the temptation of changing one’s life.
Since An Mingdong could betray them, the person that he sent might betray them as well! It was to the extent that he might be more dangerous than An Mingdong!
After all, to steal what was entrusted to his care…
“That is because I am his father.”
His companion cast deep stares at him and he paused briefly. “At the very least, that is what he calls me at night.”
The Swordsman was speechless.
…
At this very moment…
An Mingdong could no longer stand.
It was true.
He felt weak and his body was drained of energy. His limbs were weak. He felt as if he had been staring at goldfish for seven consecutive days. He was seeing multiple Lu Mings in front of him.
“I…
“Actually lost?”
An Mingdong was in a trance.
“Goodbye.”
Lu Ming smiled faintly.
He had no wish to talk nonsense with An Mingdong.
Swoosh!
Cold lights flashed.
The Lunar Shadow Sword slashed once again.
At night, the layers of emerging moon shadows seemed to be more powerful than ever.
However… just when Lu Ming thought that he could kill An Mingdong instantly, a light emerged, quietly blocking him.
Bang!
There was a crisp and clear sound.
The Lunar Shadow Sword was being blocked!!!
There was a man in black in front of An Mingdong.
The color of his clothes seemed somewhat different. It was the same as the men in black, yet at the same time, it seemed to integrate with the night. It was demonic.
“I shouldn’t be moving.”
The man in black cast a cold glance at An Mingdong. “Good-for-nothing, you can’t even complete such a simple task! You have shamed my foster father!”
He was there to supervise An Mingdong.
He did not expect that…
The good-for-nothing did not betray them, however, he was unable to complete the mission! He was too foolish! At times, being useless was worse than betrayal!
It seemed that…
In the end, he had to do it himself.
“It’s you!”
An Mingdong tensed up.
He did not think that person would be among the men in black who seldom spoke!
“Foster father?”
Lu Ming was stunned.
He then came to his senses.
Crap! He must be referring to his godfather!
Oo…
True enough.
Is this the mastermind of this entire incident?
Perhaps…
This is the person who sent them here.
Hence…
He secretly crushed several cards.
You can’t defeat me.”
The man in black glanced at Lu Ming. “You have good talents. Are you interested in working for me? At the very least, it will be more interesting than your association that doesn’t even have a seven-star.”
“Interesting?”
Lu Ming rolled his eyes. “Are you referring to ‘calling others father’? I really don’t understand why someone would have this kind of hobby? However, if you are interested…
“In fact, I don’t mind.”
Lu Ming smiled faintly.
The man in black became sullen.
He suddenly had an impulse to kill someone.
However…
He was not a good-for-nothing like An Mingdong.
He took a deep breath and calmed down. “You are young and arrogant. I won’t be angry. Child, I am afraid you don’t know your value…
“You are so young and given your abilities, it will be a pity if you die.
“Of course.
“I know that you are confident.
“It’s a pity.
“I’m very sorry.”
He shook his head. “Unlike An Mingdong, I am not a good-for-nothing. Meng Shisan could not defeat me either. I am a Swordsman at two realms six-star!”
“Two… realms?”
Lu Ming was doubtful.
Wait a minute.
What the hell is this?
“Oh.”
The man in black came to his senses. “I forgot that you don’t understand…
“It is no wonder…”
The man in black chuckled. “Child, you should know that there is no limit after six-star. Some people keep on enhancing their abilities, but they will never be a grandmaster.
“How do you think their abilities are standardized?
“Do you think everyone is peak six-star?
“Of course not.
“In order to standardize abilities after peak six-star…
“The association alliance redefined peak six-star, using six-star as the basis.
“The tempering process from beginner six-star to peak six-star is a standard. After peak six-star, every tempering process will be considered as the enhancement in the realm, and the increase in abilities. Therefore, there is a new standard quantifier—[one realm].
“Simply put…
“If a peak six-star is a bucket of overflowing water …
“The expression of the realm can be explained as a bucket of water, two buckets of water, three buckets of water… before breaking through to seven-star, no matter how many buckets, all of them are full of water!
“As for seven-star…
“It is ice.
“When water turns into ice, that is seven-star. If it does not form ice, one will forever be six-star!”
The man in black was as warm as spring.
“Oh.”
Lu Ming understood now.
This was similar to using a dong to represent two minutes and a kun to represent two and a half years, realms were a similar expression. According to this standard, no matter how powerful six-stars were, they could be standardized!
“An Mingdong, he is currently 1.5 realms.
“Meng Shisan is only 1.4 realms.
“And for me…
“I am already two realms!”
The man in black was proud of his abilities.
This was why he was confident.
He was very proud of himself to be able to reach two realms at his age and with his talents! Very few people at the same stage could surpass him!
Perhaps…
This was why he was chosen by his foster father…
“Oh.”
Lu Ming understood. “How about my sister?”
Shush!
The proud expression of the man in black froze.
Somewhere in his stomach where he had been stabbed before suddenly ached with pain…
Damn it. Why did he mention that woman?!
Hence…
The man in black pretended not to have heard him.
“Child.
“Are you interested in following me?”
The man in black said gently.
Lu Ming finally understood. He was serious in recruiting him!
“Follow you in…
“Calling someone father?”
Lu Ming felt amused.
“Of course not!”
The man in black shook his head. “Child, if you join me, I think it will be slightly different.”
Lu Ming was dumbstruck.
Suddenly…
He understood. He stared at the gentle and affectionate expression on his face and he remembered that he kept calling him child, he suddenly understood…
This man was trying to take him in as a foster son!!!
Yes, that was right!
Someone once took a fancy to this man and took him in as a foster son. Right now, this man was interested in taking him as—
Damn it!
How should he address his foster father?
According to textbooks, the father of his father was his grandfather…
At the thought of this…
Lu Ming’s expression darkened.
“Get lost!”
He took a deep breath.
It was impossible to call him father! Did he think that he was Jiang Feng!?
“Heh.”
The man in black merely smiled.
It was okay.
He was still a child. He was young and proud.
Lu Ming was around sixteen to seventeen years old. To him, he was still a child. Since he did not understand, he would let him see his combat abilities for himself.
He would show him what a two realms six-star was!
Bang!
He took a step forward.
A surge of powerful mental strength descended.
It was like Armageddon.
Pfft!
A few Swordsmen who were already covered in injuries spat out mouthfuls of blood. They could not last a second under the repressive feeling of the mental strength.
This was two realms six-star!
“Damn it…
“This guy…”
Meng Shisan gritted his teeth. He was defenseless.
The gap in their abilities was evident at this moment.
So what if he could skip levels?
He was able to do it and could skip even more levels!
“Child.
“Are you willing to submit to me?”
The man in black looked toward Lu Ming. “If you are willing to be my son, I will impart everything to you and you will have the chance to become a seven-star in the future!”
“Get lost!”
Lu Ming had the same reply.
“Well…”
An Mingdong suddenly interrupted. “If I can become a seven-star, I don’t mind calling you father…”
“Get lost!”
The man in black turned sullen.
Who the hell wanted him to call them father!
Given An Mingdong’s age, it was more suitable that he called him father!
Whoosh—
He took a deep breath and looked at Lu Ming again.
“It’s okay.”
He smiled gently. “If you don’t agree, I will bring you back with me. I will make you agree to it. Sooner or later, you will be willing to surrender to me.”
This was interesting.
It would be an interesting experience to bring the child back with him and to teach him all his ways.
He made a move.
“Be careful!”
Meng Shisan and the rest who had just ended their fights stood in front of Lu Ming to block the attacks.
Bang!
Sword gleams surged.
The Swordsmen were sent flying out.
Lu Ming narrowed his eyes. Was this a two realms six-star enemy?
He was indeed powerful.
However…
Come to think of it…
He threw out several Burial Mound Cards, Desolation Cards and made Xiao-Xiaojian dissipate the cards in the card bag silently, casting them while keeping a low profile!
However…
Nothing happened!
There was no reaction!
Which meant that there were no dead bull-like veterans there.
“It is such a pity.”
Lu Ming sighed.
If a dead seven-star bull appeared right now, his problem could be solved. Right now… he had to fight it out by himself.
Hence Lu Ming turned his hands and crushed seven Sunlight Cards.
Buzz—
Lights flashed.
Seven Sunlight Cards condensed in the Original Card.
In the end, it transformed.
It formed an advanced six-star card in the truest sense. It was the strongest card that Lu Ming had integrated by far!!!
This was a card from the Summon series!
Four-star cards would summon moonlight, infuse one’s body with energy and enhance the body!
Five-star cards would summon sunlight, destroy shadows and detonate within a specified range!
Well…
What about a six-star card?
Compared to the Carry Card series and the Bulls series, Lu Ming had more confidence in regular cards like the Summon series.
I will have to leave it to you.
Lu Ming took a deep breath.
Shush!
Lights flashed.
He threw out his strongest card ever.
Buzz—
The card dissipated.
The exclusive top-notch six-star aura dissipated. Even the men in black were on alert. The aura of the card…
Suddenly, in the sky, the stars started shining.
Eh?
Everyone looked up at this moment.
In the sky, the moonlight was as charming as ever, shining down at them. However, at this moment, the stars shone and the moonlight actually dimmed.
Buzz—
Buzz—
All the stars twinkled.
The starlight gathered.
Starlight streaked across the sky, shining like a meteor, forming many perfect arcs across the sky and coming together.
Bang!
The starlight suddenly landed!
“This is…”
Everyone widened their eyes. It was a very powerful aura! To think that Lu Ming had cards at that level!
Every starlight was faint!
They were each only at a five-star level.
However, when all the stars in the sky condensed together to form a spectacular aura, it even surpassed the man in black who was a two realms six-star!
“It is very powerful!”
The man in black narrowed his eyes.
Lu Ming…
Is this his hidden trump card?
He had indeed underestimated him… However, he was not the only one with a hidden trump card! As a two realms six-star cultivator, how could he possibly not have any trump cards?!
Shush!
Cold lights flashed.
He raised his hands and a Sword Embryo was suspended in the air.
Buzz—
Sword gleams flashed.
The aura of the man in black surged. This was the inner breathing method imparted by his foster father. It could be combined with the Sword Embryo to greatly increase his combat abilities!
Buzz—
His abilities increased madly.
2.1 realms!
2.3 realms!
2.5 realms!
…
In the end…
He stabilized at 2.8 realms!
His combat abilities were far beyond An Mingdong’s and Meng Shisan’s!
The Swordsmen were terrified. It was only then that they found out the man in black was that powerful!
“Come on!”
The man in black pointed his sword at the sky, looking proud of himself.
2.8 realms!
This was his new limit!
Although he could not last long, it was more than enough to deal with the so-called starlight!
This was what he thought.
“Xiao-Xiaojian!”
“Yes.”
“Can you predict the strength of the card?”
“Yes! I have finished the analysis. The power of the condensed starlight should be about 2.2 realms. However, with the enhancement of the man in black… It is likely that… we can’t defeat him,” Xiao-Xiaojian whispered.
“Can’t defeat him…”
Lu Ming sighed.
Two realms were already very powerful!
This was already beyond the concept of peak six-star!
However…
Lu Ming stared at the sky full of starlight and suddenly understood the evaluation mechanism of this card—It was calculated according to the stars in the sky!!!
Yes.
The more stars, the brighter the starlight!
This might be the real motivating mechanism of this card?
However…
The number of stars that night was like any other night… If they were in places where there were many stars, it might wipe out all the men in black!
Right now…
It was a sheer pity.
Lu Ming sighed. “Xiao-Xiaojian, get ready to escape.”
“Understood,” Xiao-Xiaojian whispered.
Only the two of them could understand the power of the card!
Therefore, everyone was looking forward to the fight, while the two of them had already calculated that given their current abilities, they could not beat the man in black who had enhanced his abilities!
So, the right thing to do was to take the opportunity to run away from the duel.
A man and a card prepared themselves.
Bang!
Starlights surged.
Right then…
Everyone looked into the sky.
They knew that Lu Ming’s super hidden trump card and its surging starlight would clash with the sword of the man in black in the final duel and the winner would be determined!
An Mingdong, who was dizzy, tried to stay awake while watching the fight.
Swoosh!
That instant, the starlight finally landed.
“Break!”
The man in black used his most lethal move.
He used his powerful swordplay together with his terrifying 2.8 realms six-star abilities. This was his strongest combat ability so far!
However, at that moment when the swordplay collided with the starlight…
Buzz—
The starlight shook.
It did not attack him. Instead, it quietly integrated his body, turning into a soft light, like spring water nourishing his body.
The men in black were dumbstruck.
Spring water?
Nourishment…
Wait a minute.
He looked within his body and was shocked to discover that the starlight quickly replenished the energy he had lost and healed his injuries. It continued to replenish his body with energy…
His limbs suddenly swelled.
3.0 realms!
It continued to replenish his energy…
His fifth limb swelled as well.
3.2 realms!
It continued to replenish his energy…
His body began to swell.
3.5 realms!
The countenance of the man in black changed. The starlight strengthened his body!!! His body that was strengthened by force continued to be replenished…
Pfft!
He spat a mouthful of blood. It was filled with energy.
Lu Ming and Xiao-Xiaojian who were getting ready to run were stunned. Wait a minute. The effects… It was completely different from what he had imagined! This seemed to be…
Lu Ming was reminded of his last opponent!
Could it be that…
Lu Ming’s eyes lit up.
An Mingdong watched the duel, envious of the man in black.
Eh?
His energy seemed to be increasing!
He was indeed the foster son of that person…
Look, even his blood contained energy.
However, he quickly realized that something was not right. The power of the man in black kept increasing!
Buzz—
The face of the man in black began to swell. He resembled a plump woman.
He continued to swell…
He continued to get bigger…
3.6 realms!
3.8 realms!
4.0 realms!
In the end…
Bang!
There was a deafening sound.
The man in black exploded, turning into the starlit sky. Endless starlight swept the surroundings. Surging energy scattered over the sky, illuminating the dark night.
It looked flirtatiously beautiful.
The man in black was dead.
Shush!
There was total silence.
Meng Shisan was speechless.
The Swordsmen fell silent.
The remaining men in black were frightened.
They looked at Lu Ming who was in the distance, shuddering in fear… Their boss’ combat abilities was at 2.8 realms, but he was not able to withstand one single card from Lu Ming?!
What the hell was this combat ability?!
…
Lu Ming was speechless.
To be honest, he was very surprised with the outcome.
He thought that the starlights would condense into a beam to attack the enemy. He did not expect that the card was essentially the same as the Moonlight Card. It would bring about an increase in one’s ability!!!
Therefore…
The man in black died from the surge of energy!!!
He died because he had reached his energy limit, but his abilities were still enhanced by force.
What else could he say?
But then again, looking at the enhancement of the Moonlight Card and the strengthening of the Stars Card, as well as the Sunlight Card that he used as an AOE[1.Area of effect is a term used in many role-playing and strategy games to describe attacks or spells that can affect multiple targets within a specified area.]…
Lu Ming remembered a very important thing.
According to the way the sun, moon and stars cards functioned, if the Moonlight Card and the Stars Card could be used to strengthen oneself, the Sunlight Card should essentially be used to strengthen oneself as well!?
It was just that…
He had used the wrong method?
Lu Ming thought about it and felt that it might be possible! He was curious what the effect would be if he used the Sunlight Card on the human body…
What would the effect be?
Instinctively….
He looked at An Mingdong who was nearly dying. Should he… test it?
An Mingdong clamped his skinny legs together. Judging from Lu Ming’s expression, what was he thinking of doing?
…