Who said this card is outrageous?

"Let's settle on this for now. You guys prepare the remaining materials as soon as possible, and I'll try to make as many cards as possible in the next few days," Zhang Che said.

As for purple cards, Zhang Che currently only has two Tier 3 purple cards available: [Tidal Spirit - Fizz] and [Giant Shark].

Although both cards are quite powerful, neither is suitable for the current situation, so Pan Yue did not choose either of them.

And the resources saved were used elsewhere.

He didn't ask why the powerful fox-human demi-human card wasn't on the list, because he knew it would be useless to ask. If Zhang Che didn't want to, he could easily come up with a bunch of excuses.

At this crucial moment, there's no need to offend anyone.

……

After discussing official business, the meeting came to an end, and many participants, including Pan Yue, left to follow up on the matters discussed at the meeting.

Then Anqi took the initiative to approach Zhang Che.

"Mr. Zhang Che, may I have a few minutes of your time?" Angie's voice was soft, yet carried a touch of mature feminine charm.

Zhang Che nodded: "President An, please go ahead."

“I would like to ask you to make a few Tier 4 cards.” Angie got straight to the point, without beating around the bush. “Of course, you don’t need to worry about the reward.”

As she spoke, she took a list out of her briefcase and handed it to Zhang Che.

Zhang Che took it and glanced at it.

The list contains recipes and materials for several Tier 4 cards, mostly offensive and support cards, with virtually no summoning cards.

As a card master, Angie won't easily change her fixed summoned units before her strength undergoes a significant change, so what she needs now is more tactical options.

At the end of the list, a list of compensation was also attached.

Using her privileges as the vice president of the Adventurers' Guild, Angie also prepared a substantial reward for Zhang Che. While it wasn't on the "huge" level like Pan Yue's, it was certainly not stingy.

After reviewing the list, Zhang Che looked up and glanced at An Qi.

Anqi was looking at him with a smile, her eyes filled with anticipation.

“I can do it.” Zhang Che put the list away. “But it will take time, and you’ll have to prepare the materials yourselves.”

"The materials are ready." Angie was prepared. She pulled a suitcase from under the table, opened it, and found various materials neatly stacked inside.

They had clearly made ample preparations and were just waiting for Zhang Che to nod in agreement.

Zhang Che glanced at it and thought to himself, "As expected of the vice president of the Adventurers' Guild, his efficiency is indeed high."

“Alright, I’ll try my best.” Zhang Che closed the suitcase. “Making fourth-tier cards is very difficult and takes a long time. I need time, and I can’t guarantee the success rate.”

“I understand.” Angie stood up and extended her hand to Zhang Che. “Then I’ll leave it to Mr. Zhang Che.”

She knew, of course, that she was being forced into this situation, but she had no other choice.

Fourth-tier card makers are hard to find, and even if you do find one, they might not be willing to make cards for Angie.

In other words, Zhang Che had just been promoted and was probably short of cards and materials to practice with, which is why she felt there was an opportunity to take advantage of him.

Therefore, Angie's expectations were very low. She would consider it a win if she could get two cards in the end, and of course, the more the better.

Both sides got what they wanted.

Take one day off at the beginning of the month

as the title

Chapter 181 The Situation

With the order in hand, Zhang Che's leisurely life came to an end, and he started getting busy again.

The Tier 3 cards ordered by Pan Yue were relatively easy to make. With his current mid-level extraordinary mental strength, creating Tier 3 cards was a piece of cake. He could make them in any quiet place, and the success rate wouldn't be too low.

Therefore, Zhang Che directly converted Wang Xinran's basement into a temporary card-making workshop, since he would likely be staying there for a long time to come.

However, the fourth-tier cards that Angie requested were not so simple to obtain; the materials for fourth-tier cards were not as readily available as those for third-tier cards.

Although Anqi had prepared the materials, there were only one or two sets of materials for each card, so Zhang Che did not dare to start directly. Instead, he would make sufficient preparations before attempting to use them.

You should at least study the recipe carefully, simulate the card-making process in your mind, and anticipate possible problems before you start making cards.

Of course, he wasn't always busy making cards for others during this period. Occasionally, he would try other ideas, such as researching how to create the Harpy Commander, to accumulate experience for future new card research.

The most important thing right now is to supply the Tier 3 cards that Pan Yue requested.

During this period, the harpies' attacks became increasingly daring, using their aerial advantage to continuously approach the direction of Hezhou City. Most recently, a fourth-tier harpy commander even came within five kilometers of the city.

For a Tier 4 flying unit, this distance is just a matter of flapping its wings a few times; in reality, it's no different from directly taunting it face-to-face.

Then the harpy leader was blasted into a "spectacular" crimson firework by the city's defensive cannons—

The various high-powered weapons created by combining extraordinary power with Earth's technology are an important asset for humanity to expand its territory again many years after Earth officially entered the extraordinary era.

The city defense cannon is a typical example. Its principle is to use extraordinary energy to drive the rune array, then compress and amplify the energy, and finally release it in a targeted manner to form an energy beam powerful enough to kill high-level extraordinary creatures.

Its range is less than ten kilometers, but its power ceiling is high; even a fourth-tier creature cannot withstand a single shot.

Unfortunately, these things have a fatal flaw: because they require supernatural power to operate, each use consumes a large amount of energy, such as crystal cores or certain supernatural materials.

This is far too extravagant for modern humans; it would be much better to save it for cultivating extraordinary individuals.

Therefore, things like city defense cannons are generally used as a deterrent; when they are actually used, it means that the situation is already quite critical.

So don't be fooled by the impressive sight of the city defense cannon annihilating a fourth-tier harpy with a single shot; the price was a non-renewable fourth-tier crystal core and permanent damage to the cannon itself.

After being subjected to a massive energy impact, those rune arrays will experience irreversible decay, rendering the cannon useless after excessive use.

If that harpy hadn't been so arrogant, the city guards probably wouldn't have dared to fire that shot.

That's not all. Each time the city defense cannons are fired, they require at least three minutes of preparation time. This time, they only managed to catch the enemy off guard and launch a surprise attack. Otherwise, given the speed of the harpies, they might have actually managed to dodge it.

It can only be said that today's extraordinary technology is just beginning, and there is still a long way to go before it can recreate the technological heyday of Earth in the past.

If it were as convenient and easy to use as the technology of Earth before the Rift appeared, humanity would probably have already fired cannons at the entrance of the Rift and started bombarding it.

……

That being said, the effect of this shot was still quite good.

The harpy's forces were so frightened that they retreated a great distance, now only hovering within a radius of twenty or thirty kilometers from the acropolis, not daring to take another step closer.

They had considered other ways to approach stealthily, but flying in the air made it impossible to hide their presence. Basically, as soon as they stepped into the Acropolis's warning range, they would be immediately locked on.

This can be considered a weakness of the harpy race.

Because they rely too heavily on their ability to fly, they cannot fully utilize their strengths on the ground. Their feet are sharp claws, which can grasp, but are extremely unsuitable for running; their wings are an advantage in the air, but become a burden once they land.

If they land and are then ambushed, they are no match for the human superhumans.

Thus the battle remained deadlocked, with occasional skirmishes between the two sides resulting in casualties on both sides.

The result was that both sides were very unhappy.

In Hezhou City, due to the harpy's blockade, adventurers who ventured out were unable to hunt normally. Previously, they could find suitable prey not far from the city, and if all else failed, there were a few small rifts they could use.

But now it takes hundreds of kilometers to avoid the harpy's range, and some of the developed rifts are no longer accessible. A round trip is time-consuming and laborious, and the benefits are greatly reduced.

It's alright in the short term, but if it goes on for too long, the city's reserves of extraordinary resources will inevitably decrease significantly.

Of course, things weren't going well for the harpies either.

Their population is limited, and if a large number of them were to fight against humans for a long time, both hunting and reproduction would be greatly affected.

According to the reconnaissance team, some of the harpies recently observed have become noticeably thinner, and the luster of their feathers has also decreased, all signs of insufficient food.

Actually, if it were just these two forces, things would be fine. If things really don't work out, everyone could take a step back, or they could just start a fight and make do.

Just like the dynamic balance between the city and the dead zone rift before.

However, it was clear that neither side had forgotten the group of undead creatures that were quietly developing within the Dead Zone Rift.

The scenario of humans and harpies fighting to the death, only to have those undead creatures reap the rewards, is enough to give anyone a headache just thinking about it.

Therefore, faced with this situation, Pan Yue now looks forward to the arrival of his friend every day and places some of his hopes on Zhang Che.

……

That day, Zhang Che came to the city hall as agreed to deliver the newly made cards and also picked up a batch of card-making materials.

After some time of contact, he has been registered at the city hall and can now move freely in the core area of ​​Hezhou City by using facial recognition.

If he had any bad intentions, he could completely paralyze this place in a short period of time.

Cough cough, Zhang Che quickly banished this dangerous thought from his mind and quickened his pace.

As soon as Zhang Che entered the office, he saw Pan Yue staring at the report in his hand with a worried look on his face.

Compared to our first meeting, the mayor looked noticeably more haggard, and the ashtray on the table was at least twice as full of cigarette butts as the last time he visited.

Chapter 182 Two Pieces of Bad News

"You've arrived."

Upon seeing the newcomer, Pan Yue quickly composed himself, his gloomy expression vanishing, and rose to greet Zhang Che.

Although his movements were quite nimble, his spirit and energy were somewhat different from before.

After the two sat down facing each other and poured themselves a cup of tea, Pan Yue took the cards made by Zhang Che and began to examine them one by one.

Of course, after several pleasant collaborations, this inspection process was just a formality. Pan Yue glanced at the card for less than five seconds before quickly putting it away, a rare smile appearing on his face.

Each card in his hand, if used well, is equivalent to a skilled third-tier transcendent. While it may not be enough to decide the outcome of a battle, it is still a powerful asset.

At this critical juncture, every bit of strength must be used wisely.

The two were already somewhat acquainted, so Zhang Che didn't waste any words and went straight to the point: "I'm here to pick up a batch of card-making materials. Is everything ready?"

Upon hearing this, Pan Yue frowned again, remained silent for a moment, and then slowly said, "We're running out of materials."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Che put down his teacup, but he wasn't too surprised, clearly having expected it.

Because each of his recent visits, he has been able to obtain fewer and fewer materials.

But there's nothing we can do about it.