Magic Card Era: Infinite Deck Enhancement — Chapter 144

Chapter 144: Shangguan Wan’er’s Invitation

Roughly half an hour later, the intense hum of the Magic Card Editor finally dialed down into a low, steady purr. Luke sat back, exhaling a long breath as he observed the fruits of his labor resting on the console: a thrumming purple-grade material and a radiant orange-grade material.

That was his absolute limit for the day. He had to cut the testing short.

‘Synthesizing a purple-grade material only takes four blue-grade materials,’Luke calculated silently, feeling the hollow ache in his mana reserves.’But a single purple-grade synthesis completely drained my remaining Magic Power. The consumption is steep, but still manageable.’His gaze shifted to the glowing orange-grade item.’But jumping to orange-grade… not only does the required number of purple-grade raw materials double to eight, the Magic Power cost skyrockets. It instantly burned through two entire Magic Power Crystals.’Despite the heavy toll, a satisfied smile touched his lips. Trading eight purple-grade materials and some raw energy for a single orange-grade material was an astronomical profit. In the open market, even eighteen purple-grade materials wouldn’t guarantee a successful exchange for something of this caliber.’Still, mass-producing orange-grade materials is a bit out of my league right now.’ Gathering the newly fused items, he carefully stored them away. His planned synthesis trials were officially complete.

He currently had exactly one Magic Power Crystal left in reserve for emergencies. Even at absolute peak condition, Luke knew the Magic Power capacity of a Commander Realm wouldn’t be enough to synthesize a red-grade material—the tier directly above orange.

Red-grade materials were the foundation for crafting Ten-Star Magic Cards. He could already sense that the energy required to forge something of that magnitude would be terrifying. Even after he eventually broke through to the Monarch Realm, he might struggle to sustain the sheer output required.

“Master, someone was looking for you just now.”

A soft, melodic voice broke his concentration. Xiaobai stood beside his chair, holding his personal terminal in both hands. Her silver-white hair cascaded over her shoulders, and her bright eyes looked up at him with quiet, absolute devotion.

While he had been lost in his synthesis tests, the terminal had buzzed with several incoming requests. Knowing how crucial his focus was, both girls had remained perfectly silent, waiting patiently in the background.

“Thank you, Xiaobai.” Luke took the device, his hand naturally lingering to gently stroke her hair.

The affectionate touch sent a vivid crimson flush spreading across Xiaobai’s cheeks. She leaned into his palm, her eyes fluttering shut. A few feet away, Mana shifted on her feet, her eager eyes locked onto Luke’s hand with undisguised anticipation. Chuckling helplessly at the Dark Magician Girl’s transparent jealousy, Luke reached over and gave Mana a warm, lingering head pat as well, earning a bright, satisfied beam in return.

Only then did he unlock the terminal.

The notification screen was flooded. Dozens of unread messages cluttered his inbox, almost entirely composed of lucrative endorsement offers from various mega-corporations and merchant guilds. The College Entrance Exam had just concluded, and as the undisputed top scorer of the entire Eastern Region, Luke’s name was currently worth its weight in gold.

If they could secure the Eastern Region’s champion to model their gear or praise their potions, their quarterly profits would skyrocket. And if his fame faded after a year? The capitalists didn’t care. There would always be a new champion next year. They only cared about riding his current wave of absolute popularity.

Luke had zero interest in playing corporate mascot. He had already received and ignored a mountain of these requests over the past few weeks. Opening them was a waste of breath. He would rather spend that time conceptualizing new Magic Card architectures.

Select All. Delete.

With a few smooth, practiced swipes, the terminal’s interface was wiped clean, leaving behind a beautifully empty screen.

“Hmm? Is it her?”

As he scrolled through the few remaining personal logs, his finger paused over a specific name.

Shangguan Wan’er.

He remembered the young lady of the Shangguan family quite well, though he couldn’t fathom why she was reaching out to him now. They had exchanged contact codes before parting ways at the Cang Capital Youth Training Competition, but their communication since then had been practically nonexistent.

Curious, Luke tapped the callback icon.

The screen flickered to life a few seconds later. Instead of Wan’er, the frame was entirely filled by a tiny, exquisitely dressed figure wearing a miniature crown. The Silver Crown Mandala Queen peered into the lens, her large eyes blinking up at him.

“Tamer Lord Luke, please wait a moment.”

Recognizing him, the Queen loli immediately spun around. Her tiny legs blurred as she sprinted toward her master. Despite her rapid pace, the terminal in her hands remained perfectly level, the camera feed gliding forward without a single jitter. Her small stature was deceptive; even if she were carrying a two-meter-tall giant instead of a lightweight tablet, she would still run as smoothly as a hovercraft over flat ground.

“Are you in a library?” Luke asked, watching the background.

Through the screen, towering shelves of ancient tomes and modern texts whipped past, stretching upward into vaulted ceilings. The sheer scale of the place felt like an endless ocean of knowledge, rivaling the grandest national archives of his past life.

At the center of this sea of books sat Shangguan Wan’er. She wore a form-fitting, light blue dress that accentuated her elegant posture, a heavy hardcover resting in her lap. Silver-framed glasses rested on the bridge of her nose, giving her a sharp, intellectual edge.

Hearing the Queen’s approach, Wan’er looked up. A single, rebellious strand of dark hair slipped loose, framing her eyes. Rather than ruining her immaculate image, the slight imperfection breathed a spark of lively warmth into her usually composed and tranquil aura. It was a striking contradiction, framing her like a classical painting brought to life.

Caught off guard by the quiet beauty of the scene, Luke let out a soft breath. “I finally understand why you carry such a heavy scholarly aura around you.”

“I will take that as a compliment.” Wan’er closed her book with a soft thud. She reached down, effortlessly lifting the Empress Loli onto her lap, a faint, gentle smile gracing her lips.

“You can definitely take it that way,” Luke said, leaning back in his chair. “By the way, what did you need me for?”

“I plan to set off for Tianfu Academy soon. I reached out to see if you were interested in traveling together.” Wan’er didn’t bother with small talk, laying her cards directly on the table.

She didn’t ask if he had been admitted. Since she had secured her own spot at Tianfu, she knew with absolute certainty that a monster like Luke would receive an invitation. In fact, she suspected his acceptance letter had arrived long before hers.

Her confidence wasn’t baseless. Just a few days ago, she had overheard her grandfather mentioning that the Lord of Tianfu, Wen Xiuyuan, had been personally inquiring about Luke’s status. If Luke chose to decline Tianfu’s offer, she would accept it gracefully, but she highly doubted he would pass up the premier academy.

“Heading to Tianfu?” Luke tapped his finger against his desk, calculating his timeline. “Roughly when are you setting off?”

Wan’er’s assumption was spot on. He had received his golden admission letter from Tianfu the very day the Night Queen departed. Even if Wan’er hadn’t called, he had already been planning his travel itinerary. He just needed enough time to finalize the reconstruction of the Red-Eyes Black Dragon and finish drafting the Swords of Revealing Light.

Traveling with a familiar face would certainly make the long journey more tolerable.

“One month from now.” Seeing his interest, Wan’er raised a slender, pale hand. “I plan to depart exactly a month from today. Yanran will be joining us as well.”

Luke nodded. Liu Yanran had also earned a spot at Tianfu, and given how close the two girls were, it made perfect sense they would travel together.

‘A month, huh? That gives me just enough time to properly flesh out Kisara’s background and lore settings,’Luke thought, his mind already spinning with card mechanics.’And before I leave, I need to make the rounds. I owe proper goodbyes to City Lord Cang, Chairman Yu, and Principal Gu.’

They had all backed him when it mattered most. Slipping out of the city without a word of thanks simply wasn’t his style.