Card Making: My Card Game Starts with the White Dragon

Sketching the card back, infusing it with spiritual power, and completing the card's spiritual cycle are crucial steps in determining whether a card can be formed.

However, it is rare to hear of a card maker failing to produce a card due to an error in depicting the spiritual trajectory on the back of the card.

This is simply because for card makers with exceptionally strong mental power, this is a technical task that doesn't present much difficulty.

Through years of practice, almost every card maker has mastered the spiritual path of the cards.

But Zhou Hao was different; this was his first time encountering the mental circuit of the [Legion Card], and he only had half an hour to do so.

But he knew that it was precisely in times like these that he needed to remain calm and composed. Only with a steady mind could his hands be steady, and only with steady hands could he have a chance to succeed.

"It all hinges on this."

Zhou Hao took a deep breath, and the tip of the drawing pen slowly fell.

In an instant, Zhou Hao felt his mental energy flowing into the floating cards in front of him as if a floodgate had been opened.

His mental energy almost dried up instantly.

But what's amazing is that while his mental energy is depleted quickly, it recovers even faster.

Zhou Hao watched helplessly as his mental energy reserves fluctuated wildly, like he was dancing at a disco.

He now fully understands why Principal Zhu insisted on teaching him how to make Legion Cards on the spot.

They gained a deeper understanding of how extraordinary the environment of the nest ruins could be to enhance mental power.

"Without the remains of this nest, such a terrifying mental energy consumption would probably have drained me dry in an instant."

But why do I feel like my mental energy is getting stronger and stronger? The total amount is even increasing!

As the drawing progressed, Zhou Hao's mental energy consumption gradually slowed down, but the rate at which mental energy flowed in remained unchanged.

As a result, Zhou Hao watched helplessly as a large amount of spiritual energy leaked out and dissipated.

Even so, Zhou Hao still felt that his total mental energy had increased significantly.

"Crafting Legion Cards from the ruins of the lair can also increase your total Spirit Power?"

When Zhou Hao came in, he didn't have time to ask Principal Zhu and Commander Yu many questions.

Therefore, he didn't understand why this was happening, but it was still a good thing.

Soon, with Zhou Hao finishing the last stroke, his first legion card production was also successfully completed.

"Fortunately, the final mental loop didn't go wrong."

Zhou Hao looked at the card depicting [General Shrimp] holding a diamond mace and wearing radiant beast armor, and felt that he looked very majestic.

The sight of the shrimp soldiers looming behind him only added to his imposing presence.

"Not bad."

Zhou Hao was quite satisfied with the results of his first attempt at making Legion Cards.

But he had no intention of resting. He activated his mental energy again, and the newly created [Shrimp Soldier] card disappeared.

[Aoshan Taro] and four [Stone Crabs] appeared out of thin air in front of Zhou Hao, the huge crab phantom standing in the gray mist like staggered mountain peaks.

As he connected his spiritual power to the largest illusory figure of [Aoyama Taro], another memory began to flood his mind:

The image that appeared in Zhou Hao's mind was a dark, damp fishing village covered with algae, with strange-looking people walking around in the village.

Their hands are like crab claws, their eyes are supported by two exoskeletons on the top of their heads, but the rest of their bodies are no different from those of humans.

[Aoyama Taro] is similar to them, only much larger in size, and of course, requires much more food.

"Taro, Taro, it's okay, Mommy and Daddy can find even more fish and shrimp..."

"Taro must not be full, Mr. Aoyama. We have some iron shells left at home, let Taro have them..."

"I had some leftover dried fish at home, so I gave it to Taro as well."

"Taro's hungry..."

"Lord Aoshan, you can't go! Once you leave the waters of the Greys, both humans and sea monsters will tear you apart..."

Lord Aoshan has not returned...

"Sister-in-law, Brother Aoshan is already gone, you can't let anything happen to you..."

Lord Aoshan's wife also did not return...

"Daddy, Mommy, Uncle, don't leave, Taro's hungry..."

"Uncle has so little meat, everyone has so little meat, but as long as I can stay with Taro forever, that's enough..."

……

Zhou Hao's memories were fragmented, but he still understood.

If the memories of "Invincible Shrimp" made Zhou Hao sigh, then the memories of "Taro Aoshan" made Zhou Hao feel nauseous.

"So, this thing ate the entire village? And because it was afraid everyone would leave, it evolved into this kind of creature?"

Zhou Hao wasn't surprised; it fit his stereotype of the simple life he had in his previous life.

"But what are the [Greys]? Are they rejected by both humans and sea monsters? And can they even transform into sea monsters?"

Zhou Hao suddenly felt that he knew nothing about this world, but he didn't have time to care about it anymore.

He had already seen those phantom figures begin to swing their giant pincers, becoming somewhat unruly.

In the gray fog, the scroll slowly unfolded, and Zhou Hao wrote the two large characters "Crab General" with lightning speed.

The characters shone with golden light, and the illusory images of the giant crabs faded somewhat. Zhou Hao did not stop writing and continued writing:

Crab generals are regular naval forces under the command of the Four Seas Dragon Kings, and usually refer to crab-like aquatic spirits with magical powers.

Crab General excels in defense, primarily responsible for protecting the Dragon Palace, charging into battle, and trapping and subduing enemies.

The leader of the Crab Generals is the Crab General, whose real name is Aoyama Taro.

[Aoyama Taro was originally a commoner, but he possessed an extraordinary talent: he was born with an enormous appetite and was constantly hungry.]

[Aoyama Taro's parents perished while searching for food for him, leaving him alone at home.]

[Unexpectedly, due to hunger, Aoyama Taro devoured the entire village, young and old, and was thus possessed by a demon, transforming into the Crab General.]

[The Crab General is thirteen feet tall and sixteen feet wide, possesses immense strength, and is harder than metal. On the battlefield, he often eats the corpses of the enemy to satisfy his hunger and recover from his injuries.]

Later, General Crab ended up among a group of crabs on a rock. Relying on his enormous size, he became their leader, leading the group to run rampant and wreak havoc on humankind.

[It wasn't until he encountered Ao Lie, the third prince of the West Sea Dragon Palace, that he was subdued by him and from then on led the crab generals to conquer the four seas.]

……

When Zhou Hao finished writing, the huge phantoms of [Aoshan Taro] and [Stone Crab] had already vanished without a trace.

Only on the scroll, each character shimmered with golden light, extraordinary and wondrous.

Zhou Hao knew that the most dangerous part of the [Crab General] card had passed, and those phantoms had completely merged into the story.

Zhou Hao breathed a sigh of relief. Next up was Zhou Hao's favorite part: drawing the card illustrations.

"This crab general is full of evil energy. No, no, it will damage the image of the Dragon Palace."

"General Shrimp is wearing bronze-colored, gleaming armor, so General Crab shall wear black, patterned armor."

"Great, much better looking now."

The originally terrifying "Crab General" still exudes a sense of oppression under Zhou Hao's brush.

However, he no longer possessed the sinister aura of the previous [Aoshan Taro]. Instead, he appeared calm and reliable, making people feel at ease.

Although the armor worn by the shrimp soldiers and crab generals is merely an external depiction in the story, it does not provide any additional protection in combat.

But Mr. Zhou, who has an art background, is willing to spend more time on such superficial projects, even if it's just to make things look comfortable and welcoming.

The final task of drawing the card back was no longer difficult for Zhou Hao, who had just finished the "Shrimp Soldier" card, since he had just drawn it once.

Before long, Zhou Hao finished writing, and the [Crab General] in front of him appeared with specks of blue light, while Zhou Hao's mental power also increased once again.

"Monster lairs are such great places! If I can create cards in extraordinary environments more often, wouldn't I be able to break through to intermediate card maker in no time?"

But Zhou Hao knew that was a matter for later; now that the card was finished, it was time to leave the cave.

……