Magic Card Era: Infinite Deck Enhancement — Chapter 175

Chapter 175: Intelligence Expert! Sistermon Ciel!

“There is a final catch to all of this. The rules explicitly stated at the very end that eliminating other freshmen grants bonus points., the points accumulated on this Trial Road can be directly exchanged for academy credits upon formal enrollment.” Luke muttered, his eyes narrowing as he analyzed the underlying mechanics of the exam. “Credits dictate your ranking, and ranking dictates your access to resources. They are deliberately forcing everyone into a bloodbath right out of the gate.”

Taking a slow breath, Luke finally understood the sheer brutality of the competition at Tianfu Academy.

Damn it all. They had only just reported for enrollment, and the academy was already throwing them into a meat grinder. If the entrance exam was this cutthroat, one could only imagine the intense, suffocating pressure of the internal competition once they officially became students.

“I wonder how many others have caught onto this detail,” he mused, glancing at the dense, quiet surroundings. The vast expanse of the trial grounds meant the competitors were scattered to the winds. “Even if I wanted to go on the offensive immediately, I have no idea where the prey is hiding. First things first: secure a vantage point, scout the area, and confirm enemy coordinates.”

With a decisive wave of his hand, Luke summoned Sistermon Blanc. At the exact same moment, his Digivice and the Super Evolution Plug-In S materialized in his grasp, the metallic surface gleaming under the ambient light.

“Sistermon Blanc, are you ready?”

As his voice fell in the quiet clearing, Luke swiped the Super Evolution Plug-In S cleanly through the slot of his Digivice. A heavy mechanical click echoed, followed instantly by a torrential eruption of digital data. A blinding, swirling cocoon of binary code and radiant light swallowed Sistermon Blanc’s petite frame entirely.

“Tamer Lord, we finally meet.”

A smooth, mature voice drifted from within the fading glow. It lacked the playful mischief of Sistermon Noir, carrying instead a calm, grounded elegance. As the luminous data scattered like dust in the wind, a completely different figure emerged from the light—Sistermon Ciel.

[Sistermon Blanc successfully evolved. Sistermon Ciel’s information updated. Magic Power Feedback obtained!]

As the twin sister of Sistermon Noir and the older sister to Blanc, Ciel possessed a distinct aura. Aside from their mature, alluring figures, the most noticeable difference among the three Sistermon siblings lay in their signature animal-themed hoods.

Sistermon Blanc wore a white rabbit, Sistermon Noir donned a black cat, and Sistermon Ciel’s hood featured a sky-blue mouse., Ciel’s weapon of choice was neither a trident nor dual pistols. Instead, she carried a long, narrow, exquisitely forged katana.

Her personality also stood in stark contrast to her sisters. Ciel was far more stable, generous, and composed. Her inner strength and mental fortitude were the most resilient among the three girls, making her an incredibly reliable operative. This calm professionalism was precisely why Luke valued her so highly for this specific task.

“Sistermon Ciel, I will leave the upcoming reconnaissance and investigation tasks in your hands,” Luke said, his tone steady. He wasn’t particularly surprised by her immediate recognition of him. When Sistermon Noir was first summoned, she had displayed the exact same intrinsic familiarity. The three sisters clearly shared a deep, unique mental network.

[Sistermon Ciel]

[Race: Digimon – Puppet Type]

[Quality: Perfect-grade]

[Level: Five-Star]

[Skills: Shirotsume-Ichimonji, White Kill, Grand Sister Cross, Awakening]

[Shirotsume-Ichimonji: Wields her beloved blade, Shirotsume-Ichimonji, to deliver a devastatingly fast slash to the target. The blade is imbued with the power of light, capable of absorbing all ambient light effects. The attack is completely silent at the moment of release, only generating sound and attracting attention upon a direct, fatal hit.]

[White Kill: Sistermon Ciel is a master of various assassination techniques. In close-quarters combat, she continuously throws hidden blades from her sleeves to launch silent, lethal attacks, carrying a high probability of triggering an absolute armor-piercing effect.]

[Grand Sister Cross: A supreme combination skill passed down through the Sistermon lineage. During its release, she splits into Blanc and Noir forms for a flawlessly coordinated, omnidirectional attack. A full-power strike’s destructive force is comparable to that of a Mega-level Digimon.]

[Awakening: Activates the Holy Mark hidden on her body to enter an Awakening state, forcibly increasing her combat level by one tier.]

“Her base data isn’t vastly different from Sistermon Noir’s, which I predicted,” Luke thought, his eyes scanning the translucent blue text hovering in the air. “However, among all the Magic Cards I currently possess, Sistermon Ciel is undoubtedly the most perfectly suited for our current tactical needs.”

Although Ciel’s level was currently capped at Five-Star Perfect-grade, her entire skill set—investigating anomalies, silent traversal, assassination, and hunting for critical information—aligned flawlessly with Luke’s strategy for the Trial Road.

“Leave it to me, Tamer Lord.” Ciel gently stroked the gleaming edge of her beloved blade, a confident, alluring smile gracing her lips. Her eyes locked onto his, carrying a hint of mature teasing. “If I successfully complete this mission, I will be looking forward to your reward, Tamer Lord.”

As her words faded into the quiet air, Ciel’s figure simply vanished. There was no smoke, no sudden burst of speed—she just ceased to exist to the naked eye. Yet, through their mental link, Luke could perceive her moving away through the dense foliage at an absolutely terrifying velocity.

“Covering her body with the power of light, isolating her own aura, and then absorbing all ambient photons to create a visual dislocation for perfect invisibility…” Luke analyzed, a thoughtful expression crossing his face as he stared at the empty space she had just occupied. “By doing it this way, she doesn’t cause any significant magic power fluctuations. Even the Magic User Race, who are hyper-sensitive to the slightest ripple of mana, would find it nearly impossible to detect her presence.”

He crossed his arms, nodding slightly to himself. “However, it is still only dislocation invisibility, not true ethereal intangibility. This technique places extremely high physical and mental restrictions on the user. Only someone like Ciel, who has spent her life running through hazardous environments, investigating anomalies, and mastering the art of the silent kill, could cultivate such a flawless ability.”

Pulling his thoughts back to the immediate present, Luke waved his hand once more. Two distinct bursts of magic power flared to life beside him.

“I’ll leave the perimeter defense to the two of you,” Luke commanded as Guilmon and Dark Magician Girl materialized. Dark Magician Girl hovered gracefully in the air, her staff twirling with a soft hum of arcane energy, while Guilmon crouched low to the ground, a deep, rumbling growl vibrating in his throat as he scanned the treeline.

The Trial Road had only just begun. There was absolutely no need to reveal a trump card like Red-Eyes Black Dragon this early in the game., Luke wanted to use the initial waves of this entrance trial to properly test Guilmon’s raw combat strength.

High above the trial grounds, in a hidden observation space, a pair of ancient eyes watched the scene unfold.

“Has he figured out the hidden rules of the Trial Road so quickly?” Wen Xiuyuan murmured, stroking his chin. As an Immortal Realm existence, his perception easily pierced through the canopy, clearly tracking Sistermon Ciel’s rapid, invisible departure. He didn’t find Luke’s preemptive actions against the rules at all.

Although the official beast assault of the Trial Road only started after a twenty-minute grace period, there was no rule stating that freshmen couldn’t make tactical preparations or move out during this time.

In truth, besides Luke, several other top-tier freshmen had also realized the strategy of hunting down their peers to secure bonus points and eliminate future threats. These elites were no fools. However, very few of them possessed the sheer decisive speed and crystal-clear objective planning that Luke had just demonstrated.

Yet, compared to Luke’s ruthless tactical mind, Wen Xiuyuan was far more captivated by the vanishing figure of Sistermon Ciel.

“If my memory serves me right, during the college entrance examination, Luke’s Sistermon Blanc evolved into a completely different entity—Sistermon Noir. But now, using the exact same base, she has evolved into Sistermon Ciel.” Wen Xiuyuan’s eyes gleamed with intense academic fascination. “This means his Magic Card Spirit possesses multiple, branching evolutionary forms.”

Evolution.

This was the absolute core mechanic of the Digimon Magic Card system. Although this was the very first time Wen Xiuyuan had witnessed it with his own eyes, an Immortal Realm powerhouse of his caliber instantly recognized the terrifying implications of such a concept.

However, even if he understood the theory behind it, Wen Xiuyuan knew he had absolutely no way to replicate a Digimon Magic Card.

First, there was the impossible barrier of the original worldview and lore required to construct the card’s foundation. Second, the word ‘evolution’ sounded simple in theory, but the execution was infinitely complex. Even if Wen Xiuyuan’s personal understanding of evolution differed by a single fraction from Luke’s defined parameters, the resulting Magic Card would collapse or mutate into something entirely unrecognizable.

“If this branching path is truly how his system operates, what kind of terrifying Magic Card Spirit would Sistermon Ciel become if she continued to evolve?” Wen Xiuyuan whispered, his voice tinged with a rare, burning excitement.

This was the intoxicating charm of an Original Magic Card. Even a supreme existence standing at the Immortal Realm could not remain immune to the allure of the unknown.

Luke’s Digimon Magic Cards, in every conceivable sense, completely overturned the established laws of their Magic Card Civilization. A single card that could continuously grow, adapt, and change forms to suit the battlefield was a concept deep enough to drive any Magic Card Master completely insane with envy. And the most terrifying part? Luke achieved all of this without ever having to bear the catastrophic risks and resource losses associated with the Reconstruction of a traditional Magic Card.