Who said this card is outrageous?

The sufficiently long development time allowed the opponent's strength to far surpass that of a top-tier Tier 3 Shattered Void Shadow Leopard. If it hadn't been trapped in the rift, it would probably have already advanced to a mid-level transcendent by now.

Unfortunately, there are no "what ifs" in the world. Although this giant creature is powerful, its true form is ultimately just a plant, which greatly limits its mobility.

It was naturally restrained when facing Ahri, who possessed powerful fire-type abilities, and could only let out an unwilling scream in the sea of ​​fire that had merged with spiritual energy before turning into ashes.

With Tidal Sea Spirit and Six-Tailed Fox around, there's no need to worry about causing an irreversible forest fire.

However, the spatial energy required for Ahri to advance to the purple rank was far beyond Zhang Che's imagination. Even after using three Void Crystals, the purple patterns on the card only covered less than half the area.

If things continue like this, in order to guarantee her promotion to a purple card, Ahri will need to fuse at least four more Void Crystals of roughly the same size or other extraordinary materials of the space system.

But Zhang Che has already searched almost the entire Void Rift, so where are we going to find Void Crystals?

They can't just sit here and wait for the next spatial fluctuation, can they? Even if Zhang Che were willing, six days have passed, and the supplies he carried are almost gone. He can only last for another two or three days at most.

However, Zhang Che was definitely unwilling to give up just like that, so he decided to take advantage of the last bit of time to wander around with Ah Li, just in case they ran into Lao Liu hiding again?

But reality was harsh; after two days, they still hadn't found anything.

Seeing that his supplies were almost gone, Zhang Che had no choice but to give up the idea of ​​staying any longer and prepared to return to the position where he had entered the rift to use the teleportation card to leave.

On the way back, I passed by the swamp where I had encountered the giant swamp frog and found that it had a new owner.

Chapter 74 Spatial Fishman?!

"Tsk, I didn't expect to encounter a murloc in the Echoing Rift..."

The moment this thought crossed Zhang Che's mind, he immediately realized something was wrong:

Although fish-men are quite common in the outside world, they are actually extraordinary beings born in another world and then came to Earth through a rift to take root.

The Echoing Rift was discovered and protected by humans a long time ago, so it is impossible for fish-men to spontaneously arise here!

They could only have come in from the outside—either the coastal city had been defeated and the entrance to the Echoing Rift had been taken by the murlocs.

However, this is simply impossible!

After all, only a few days have passed. Even if the Fishman King has advanced to the sixth rank, it is impossible for him to take over Binhai City, which has more than a dozen mid-level transcendents, in such a short time.

Therefore, there is only one answer: beneath this swamp, there may be another rift entrance leading to the outside world!

Zhang Che immediately commanded the Tidal Sea Spirit to deal with the swamp mud fishmen. Then, Ahri stepped forward and focused her senses. Sure enough, she discovered a faint but stable spatial fluctuation beneath the thick swamp.

Subsequent exploration by the Tidal Sea Spirit revealed a hidden crevice exit in a corner at the edge of the swamp.

After a lot of effort to clean it up, a small silver vortex with a diameter of less than half a meter and very stable fluctuations at its edges appeared in front of Zhang Che.

Zhang Che cautiously let the Tidal Sea Spirit go in and out several times first, and only after confirming that there were no traps or powerful supernatural creatures near the exit did he and Ah Li bend down and pass through the narrow exit one after another.

After the familiar dizzying sensation, a gentle sea breeze carrying a salty scent swept over me.

A strong feeling of nausea surged up his throat, and Zhang Che almost couldn't hold it in. Fortunately, the external space was stable enough, and he had prepared himself mentally beforehand, so he wasn't as disheveled as when he first entered the Void Rift.

Beneath his feet were rough reefs, and all around him was the vast ocean. Even with Zhang Che's eyesight, which far surpassed that of ordinary people, he could not see any signs of coastline or mountains, indicating that this island was at least one or two hundred kilometers away from the nearest mainland, or even further.

However, judging from the size of the Void Rift, the two locations it connects are no more than 300 kilometers apart. Zhang Che judged that his location should not be far from Binhai City, and at the very least, the Tidal Sea Spirit could carry him back.

He turned around and looked around, confirming that it was an isolated island, roughly several kilometers in circumference. The island was sparsely vegetated, with only scattered rocks and low trees, and looked deserted, showing no signs of human activity.

So he was the first to discover this fissure exit?

Looking back, the silver vortex exit still floats beside the jumbled rocks, almost invisible without careful observation.

The stable spatial connection of the Void Rift meant that he could return to the rift at any time through the exit. Zhang Che felt a little more at ease and prepared to observe the surroundings carefully before returning the way he came.

He certainly couldn't enjoy something like this by himself.

First of all, the Void Rift is controlled by the official authorities. Not only do you have to wait in a long queue to enter, but there are also time limits, making it extremely difficult for individuals to develop their own.

So Zhang Che's plan was to report the matter to the authorities after he returned, and maybe he could get some Void Crystals in return. Wouldn't that be better than a rift exit that was completely unusable?

The greatest value of this kind of rift that can connect two extremely distant locations is that it can be used to build a transit station. If luck is on their side, for example, if there are some rare resources nearby, Binhai City might even be able to take off.

As the discoverer, Zhang Che should reap many benefits: the meat belongs to the Federation, the bones belong to the high-ranking officials in Binhai City, and he himself should be able to get a piece of meat soup.

Thinking about this, Zhang Che felt a surge of joy.

But just then, Ahri, who had gone to scout the other side, rushed back, her voice filled with anxiety: "Master, a very powerful aura is approaching us, we must leave immediately."

Zhang Che's heart skipped a beat. He knew Ah Li's strength; for her to say "very powerful" was...

He turned and ran without hesitation!

However, before Zhang Che could even step into the vortex, a figure appeared nearby without warning.

There was nothing there just a moment ago!

It was a magic-type murloc, a bit thinner than a normal murloc, but it exuded a suffocating sense of oppression that made Zhang Che feel suffocated.

The merman held a bone staff, the tip of which was inlaid with a silver-white crystal core that emitted faint spatial ripples. Its eyes were silver-white, just like the eyes of the Shattered Void Shadow Leopard, which had been eroded by spatial power, but were even deeper and colder.

At this moment, the fishman was looking at Zhang Che and Ahri with a mixture of surprise and delight.

"Teleportation...the power of space..."

Upon witnessing this scene, only these few words flashed through Zhang Che's mind, and he was terrified!

He didn't have time to think anymore; his body reacted faster than his brain. He quickly retrieved Ahri into the card, summoned the Tidal Spirit, and then plunged into the narrow silver vortex, disappearing from the spot.

The rapid, continuous spatial traversal caused Zhang Che to have a violent physiological reaction. The contents of his stomach churned and rose upwards, his vision blurred in waves, and he felt as if he had been stuffed into a constantly spinning drum.

But the current crisis left Zhang Che with no time to think about anything else. He could only vomit as he pulled out the one-time teleportation card from his pocket and, with trembling hands, infuse it with his mental energy.

The next second, the card lit up with a pale blue light, and the teleportation was about to begin.

However, he underestimated the strength of the merman. The moment the card was activated, the creature had already appeared inside the rift—

As it emerged from the silver vortex, it passed through an ordinary door without any hindrance, its gaze fixed on Zhang Che, a hint of mockery flashing in its silvery-white eyes.

Then it raised its staff, and an invisible spatial force surged forth, transforming into an unseen giant hand that abruptly pulled Zhang Che back from the almost-completed teleportation process.

"thump--"

Zhang Che's body tilted forward uncontrollably, crashing heavily to the ground. The intense pain made him grimace.

However, after being thrown like that, his nausea symptoms improved considerably, and his mind became clearer; he didn't feel as uncomfortable as before.

Of course, this is just an illusion caused by the secretion of adrenaline and dopamine in the body. Once this feeling passes, he will only feel more uncomfortable and in pain.

However, Zhang Che couldn't care less about any of that now. Recalling his recent experience and the merman mage standing not far away, only one sentence remained in his mind—

A mid-tier, extraordinary space-type fishman?

Has this world gone mad?!

Chapter 75 Parasitic Octopus Monster

With his teleportation interrupted and unable to escape, Zhang Che had no choice but to fight the fishman to the death.

Fortunately, after absorbing three Echoing Crystals, Ahri is now considered a "half-step purple card," and her combat power has increased significantly compared to when she first entered the rift.

That's the advantage of cards. As long as the quality level of the card itself can be improved, its combat power will naturally increase as well, without needing to undergo a long period of training and accumulation like real creatures.

Without hesitation, Zhang Che activated the [Nine-Tailed Fox] card that he had been clutching tightly in his hand since the beginning. Ahri's figure appeared from the light, with nine tails spreading out behind her. The demonic flames at the ends of the tails were brighter than before, faintly revealing a hint of purple.

At the same time, Tidal Spirit and Six-Tailed Fox were also summoned again. Together with the other skill cards Zhang Che carried, he used up almost all of his resources.

However, Zhang Che knew very well that his goal was not to defeat the fishman in front of him, but simply to escape successfully.

Zhang Che has been in the rift for nearly nine days now. According to the rules, if he does not come out within ten days, someone will come in to look for him.

Live to see people, die to see corpses.

As long as I can hold out until then, I can survive!

However, the murloc mage's reaction was somewhat unexpected. It didn't rush to attack, but instead stood at a distance, quietly watching Zhang Che activate the card, as if waiting for him to finish preparing.

Its calm and unhurried demeanor made it seem as if it wasn't fighting, but rather enjoying a performance.

The moment Ahri appeared, Zhang Che keenly noticed that the fishman mage's expression suddenly became excited, as if he had finally seen what he had been dreaming of.

Zhang Che's heart skipped a beat. Could it be that this ugly monster had taken a liking to Ah Li?

But now is clearly not the time to let our imaginations run wild. Whatever their intentions, we should just go for it.

Ahri took the lead in the attack, swinging her nine tails simultaneously, and the [Eerie Foxfire] transformed into a vast net of fire that enveloped the murloc mage.

Tidal Sea Spirit and Six-Tailed Fox provided support from the sidelines, trying their best to cause trouble for the Murloc Mage.

While he could still move, Zhang Che activated one skill card after another with trembling hands, not seeking to cause damage, but only to distract the murloc mage.

However, the gap in strength between the two sides was simply too vast.

As a mid-level transcendent being, the merman mage also possesses spatial powers; this difference in raw strength cannot be compensated for by sheer numbers.

As soon as the Tidal Sea Spirit approached, it was blasted away by an invisible spatial force, crashing into the rock wall and dissipating into specks of light. The Six-Tailed Fox tried to launch a sneak attack from the side, but the Fishman Mage didn't even look at it. With a wave of his hand, he froze it in place, and then with a gentle push, the Six-Tailed Fox's body also turned into specks of light and disappeared.

In less than a minute, Tidal Sea Spirit and Six-Tailed Fox had died twice in a row, forcing Zhang Che to give up on summoning them.

Every bit of his mental energy is now precious, not only because he has to maintain Ahri's existence, but also because he has to be responsible for remote interference.

During this time, the murloc mage did try to kill Zhang Che from a distance using spatial skills. Several times, Zhang Che felt a sharp spatial force rushing towards his face, which he couldn't dodge in his current state.

Fortunately, Ahri has now mastered some spatial power, and can intervene in time each time, giving Zhang Che time to react and preventing him from being killed in one blow.

What puzzled him was that the Murloc Mage mainly used control skills when fighting Ahri, and rarely used powerful moves.

Several times, Ahri was clearly caught off guard, but the Murloc Mage only tried to control her instead of taking advantage of the situation to deliver a fatal blow.

But it was precisely this fighting style that prevented Zhang Che from realizing his original plan to escape.

As a card summon, Ahri is not afraid of getting hurt or even dying. If the opponent really goes all out, he can use this advantage to make Ahri pretend to fight desperately, thus creating an opportunity to escape.

The situation has now become this: facing the Murloc Mage's control skills, Ahri and Zhang Che can only concentrate all their energy on dealing with them, otherwise, once the opponent succeeds in controlling Ahri, everything will be over.

Time passed second by second, and Zhang Che's mental energy was being rapidly depleted.

In addition, as the effects of adrenaline and dopamine begin to wear off, the suppressed pain surges back up.

Under the double blow, Zhang Che felt a moment of mental confusion and his mood began to become pessimistic—he had been very careful, so how could he still encounter such a terrible thing?

Could it be that I am really going to die here?

The drawbacks of cards are exposed at this point: the state of the summoned creatures is closely linked to the user's mental state, and if the user's mental state becomes abnormal, the state of the cards themselves will also be affected.