Master of Trading Star Card Game - Chapter 12

Chapter 12 – The Second Original Card

Observing boss Zhang’s stall for a long while, Hong Zhu hadn’t seen anybody coming to sell [Lin Daiyu] cards. However, the spies that she dispatched to search for [Lin Daiyu] cards in the black market reported to her privately, “Sister Hong Zhu, I have found five [Lin Daiyu] cards!” “Sister Hong Zhu, I have found three [Lin Daiyu] cards!”

Hong Zhu replied immediately, “Buy them all at once! Be careful not to reveal your identity. You can tell the stall owners that you’re buying them to collect.”

Keeping Hong Zhu’s words in mind, the two swiftly bought all eight cards for the president.

Hiding behind the stall and waiting, a distraught Hong Zhu stared at the black market. The person that she was waiting for didn’t appear after a long time.

According to sister Xue, there were ten [Lin Daiyu] cards on the market, among which eight cards had been bought by her subordinates, who were sent to scour the market for [Lin Daiyu] cards. Where were the remaining two cards? It didn’t matter if they had been bought for collections, but what if they had been bought by clubs? Thinking about it, Hong Zhu felt increasingly worried. She stared sharply at the people walking around in the market, hoping to find the culprit at once.

However, instead of finding the culprit, she encountered one of her deadly enemies, Can Yang, the vice president of the Adjudication Club.

Both the Fenghua and the Adjudication clubs were among the top card clubs in the league, and their players were all super popular gurus. There had been constant conflicts between the two clubs, so they had a tense relationship.

Can Yang stopped Hong Zhu when she turned around to leave, sneering, “Sister Hong, I haven’t seen you for a long time. What have you been doing recently?”

“I’m buying some cards and materials in the market.” Hong Zhu said distantly.

“Are you preparing for the new season?”

“Yes.” Hong Zhu replied and left in a hurry.

This time, Can Yang let her go. Then he wandered around the black market.

If clubs wanted to buy cards of the highest grade, they would generally ask their merchants to buy some from the card specialty stores in the commercial street that had many ready-to-use cards of high stars. There was very little chance that cards of the highest grade would be sold in the black market, where most were low level cards of one-star to four-star that were sold for collections and worthless in battles. However, sometimes high-grade cards were sold in the black market and clubs would then track the creators, who were new and highly talented in creating cards.

Tang Muzhou, the chief card player of the Fenghua Club, rose by selling cards in the black market.

The era when Tang Muzhou’s plant cards swept the black market came to an end many years ago, but experienced players still felt shocked when they recalled it. At that time, Tang Muzhou, a newbie in the game, had made a great number of plant cards that had ‘Tang’ as a LOGO and sold them on the black market. His cards were snapped up in an instant. Later, Tang Muzhou raked in millions depending solely on his talent in designing cards. He alone had renewed the popularity of the Wood cards, which had been in decline for a long time.

Both Xue Linxiang, a trump card player’s agent, and Hong Zhu, the president of Fenghua club, were great figures led by Tang Muzhou in the online game.

Tang Muzhou’s appearance had a strong impact on the fifth season. A large-scale shuffle took place in the game and many veteran players were eliminated. At the same time, many new players seized the opportunity and managed to rise. Since then, all kinds of cards formed a balance. A certain type of card would not be overwhelmingly dominant. Card players had their own characteristics, like a hundred flowers in bloom, which resulted in more exciting professional league matches.

Perhaps due to Tang Muzhou’s influence, as well as the fact that sister Hong Zhu always enjoyed hanging around, the black market turned into a place to discover talents. Therefore, all managers of the clubs developed the habit of “if idle, hang around the black market”.

Unfortunately, after the legendary Tang became a celebrity five years ago, no one else ascended from selling cards at the black market to be a famous professional player.

Can Yang looked back at past events, and wandered through the black market.

At that time, he suddenly received a private message from their spy in Fenghua Club, “Boss, Hong Zhu suddenly requested members to buy beauty cards for collecting. What’s more, she privately set up a stall to purchase character cards with high prices in the black market.”

Can Yang was stunned, “Why is she buying character cards?”

The spy said, “It’s said that she recently started liking character cards, so she wants to buy some for collecting.”

Can Yang did not know what Hong Zhu’s real purpose was, so he urged the spy, “Continue to investigate. If there is more information, tell me as soon as possible.”

After a long time, when she didn’t see the card seller at that card store, Hong Zhu resorted to the method of luring the snake out of the hole and simply opened a big stall in the black market, named “High Prices for Collectible Beauty Cards”; basically saying that she wanted [Lin Daiyu] cards directly.

Everyone knew that every club sent undercover spies to other clubs, so Hong Zhu tried to keep a low profile and dared not talk directly about the [Lin Daiyu] card. Her actions had the major clubs in the game puzzled and they were all trying to guess her real target.

What made Hong Zhu dumbfounded, was that as soon as the stall opened, a mish-mash of card makers rushed there and she became aware of all types of beauty cards within half an hour.

Hong Zhu, surrounded by beauties, suffered unspeakably and only hoped that “Chubby” appeared soon!

***

But Xie Mingzhe would not go to that stall, because he had quit drawing Lin Daiyu.

He had made this decision after going to the black market twice. In this game, which had been in operation for ten years, various styles of card creators emerged one after another. There were innumerable character cards of handsome guys and beauties in excess of demand.

In this game, apart from unambitious players who just collected cards for fun, most players were battle card enthusiasts. The auction last time indicated that pet cards were worth only a few thousand gold coins, no matter how cute they were, while the best battle card [Tuberose] was sold at auction for 660,000 gold coins. Players full of zeal focus much more on card attributes than images on a card.

Therefore, it didn’t matter whether characters were good-looking. Strong combat power was the most important thing.

After Xie Mingzhe figured this out, he temporarily abandoned drawing beauties in the Dream of the Red Chamber, turning his attention to Water Margin¹.

When it came to strong characters in Water Margin, the first person he thought of was Wu Song².

He had loved to read novels and comics since he was a child. He was only six years old when he read the Water Margin comic strip. A philanthropist had donated these books to the orphanage he stayed in. He had read the comic strips with interest every day. He thought it was so cool when Wu Song punched a tiger to death – he was a real man! Unfortunately, he did not remember what Wu Song looked like in the TV series Water Margin. He only remembered the black and white illustrations in the comic strip.

Xie Mingzhe first sketched Wu Song slaying the tiger in his mind. After ensuring he could draw the scene without mistakes, he took out Nebula papers to make a new card.

Since he only remembered black and white comic strips, the composition this time was much simpler than Daiyu Burying the Flowers.

As Inner Spirit was injected in, a black-and-white ink wash painting appeared on the paper gradually – a strong man clenched his fists, on which veins protruded from the skin. He threw punches at the tiger’s head, beating its brains out! The tiger dies then.

System: “You’ve created a card successfully. Please connect to the database for verification!”

With the experience of verifying the Lin Daiyu card, Xie Mingzhe waited patiently. A few minutes later, he heard the prompt sound: “Your card passed the verification successfully.” Then he skillfully printed his “月半” LOGO on the back of the card.

It was still a one-star card. Xie Mingzhe picked it up, poring over its data.

Translator’s Notes:

1. Water Margin, also translated as Outlaws of the Marsh, Tale of the Marshes, All Men Are Brothers, Men of the Marshes or The Marshes of Mount Liang, is a Chinese novel attributed to Shi Nai’an.

The story, set in the Song dynasty, tells of how a group of 108 outlaws gather at Mount Liang (or Liangshan Marsh) to form a sizable army before they are eventually granted amnesty by the government and sent on campaigns to resist foreign invaders and suppress rebel forces. It has introduced to readers many of the best-known characters in Chinese literature, such as Wu Song, Lin Chong and Lu Zhishen.

2. Wu Song is a fictional character in Water Margin. The novel describes him as a good-looking man of an impressive bearing and with shining eyes, thick eyebrows and a muscular body. Wu Song slaying the tiger is a famous story in China.

On his way home, Wu Song passes by a tavern near Jingyang Ridge which puts out a large sign that reads “After Three Bowls, Do Not Cross the Ridge”. He stops there for a break. The waiter explains to Wu Song that the wine sold at the tavern is so strong that customers usually get drunk after having three bowls and are unable to cross the ridge ahead. That is the meaning behind the sign. Still sober after drinking three bowls, Wu Song demands that the waiter continue serving him wine. By the end of his meal, Wu Song had consumed 18 bowls of wine but he still appears sober. He is about to leave when the waiter stops him and warns him about a fierce man-eating tiger on the ridge. Wu Song suspects that the waiter is lying to him because he wants him to spend the night there to earn extra money from him. He ignores the waiter and continues his journey.

While crossing Jingyang Ridge, Wu Song sees an official notice which convinces him that there is a tiger on the ridge. However, he does not turn back for fear of losing face. As he moves on, the alcohol starts taking effect, so he decides to take a nap on a big flat rock. Just as he is falling asleep, a tiger leaps out from the woods and attacks him. After narrowly dodging the tiger three times, Wu Song attempts to fight back but breaks his staff on a tree. Left with no weapon to defend himself, Wu Song summons all his might and manages to pin down the tiger with his arms. He then rains blows with his bare fist on the tiger’s head. Local hunters in the area find Wu Song with the dead tiger and are amazed by his feat.

Explanations in translator’s notes are from wikipedia.

[Wu Song] (Fire)

Card Level: 1

Evolution Level: ★

Available Times of Use: 1/1

Base Attributes: Health 300, Defense 300, Attack 300, Agility 10, Critical Strike Chance 20%

Additional Skill: Wu Song Slaying the Tiger (Wu Song throws punches at the tiger’s head to cause huge damage to it. Has a 15% chance of triggering the instant death effect.)

This card’s attributes were much better than [Lin Daiyu]. [Lin Daiyu]’s Base Health was 100, Defense 15 and Attack 0. While [Wu Song]’s Health was 300, its Defense and Attack were 300, which were over ten times more than [Lin Daiyu]’s. But its Additional Skill was only targeted at tiger cards, so it couldn’t be widely applied. However its base attributes were high, and [Wu Song] looked particularly handsome. [Lin Daiyu] could be sold for 30 gold coins, so [Wu Song] should sell for a higher price?

Xie Mingzhe decided to take his card to the black market first to figure out the market price. If the card sold well, then he would come back and create a few more.

When he arrived at the black market, he found a stall named “High Prices for Collectible Beauty Cards” at the entrance, where many people were selling beauty cards. The purchase price seemed to be at least 50 gold coins. His [Lin Daiyu] cards had all been sold out, so he ignored the stall and went deeper into the black market.

The black market was a place where there were talented individuals in hiding. There were many supposedly ‘normal’ businessmen, but, in truth, they may have support from major clubs in the game. In particular, the business of those large-scale stalls, that purchased cards, was no worse than the shops in the prime location of the central square.

Xie Mingzhe went around, trying to figure out the selling price for cards that have similar attributes as [Wu Song]. After gaining the knowledge of the market price, he arrived at a stall named “Purchase Cards with High Attributes”. He handed the [Wu Song] that he had just made, to the stall owner, “Hi, what do you think about this card? How much is it worth?”

The owner took it and looked at it, saying, “Its attributes are very balanced, and the Additional Skill is common, so it has limited usefulness. Such a balanced card can not be sold for a high price. The purchase price for this one-star card is about 50 gold coins.”

Xie Mingzhe smiled, and took the card back, “You’re just fooling me because I’m a low-level newbie? Forget it, I will go to another stall.”

Xie Mingzhe did not want to have dealings with such a wily merchant. It was okay to buy a card that was worth 100 gold coins for 70 gold coins. But this stall owner only offered a price of 50 gold coins. Did he regard others as fools? Xie Mingzhe had learned that cards, with base attributes similar to [Wu Song], could be sold for 100 gold coins, give or take, at other stalls nearby.

Xie Mingzhe, deaf to the stall owner’s call, took the card back and turned to another stall.

The owner of this stall was a cute little girl wearing a princess dress. She said with a sweet voice, “Uncle Chubby, do you want to sell original cards?”

“Yes. Have a look at it.” Xie Mingzhe handed the card to her. The little girl said, “This card’s base attributes are balanced. I’m willing to make a generous offer of 100 gold coins.”

“Isn’t that a little bit low? This one-star card has 300 Attack. If it is upgraded to seven stars, its Attack can reach tens of thousands. It also has an instant death effect on tiger cards,” Xie Mingzhe tried to sell his card, “how about 140 gold coins?”

“…” This player was eloquent and his words were reasonable. The stall owner nodded after thinking for a while, “OK. 140 gold coins then!”

Nebula paper only cost 7 gold coins, and now the card was sold for 140 cold coins, which was 20 times the former. He would make a fortune!

Xie Mingzhe was delirious with joy, but he pretended to be calm. After selling the card to the stall owner, he asked with a smile, “I’m the designer of this card, so I can make more [Wu Song] cards. Do you want more? If you do, we can establish a long-term cooperation and you can buy in bulk. I can give you a discount.”

The stall owner waved her hands, feeling a headache, “You really have a silver tongue. But I don’t want to buy in bulk. Thank you.”

Feeling disappointed, Xie Mingzhe turned around and left.

***

Can Yang wandered through the black market to hunt for some distinctive cards, but, after a long time, he had yet to gain anything. When he passed by Shuang Shuang’s stall, he stopped and asked, “How is business recently?”

Shuang Shuang had set up the stall, to purchase cards in the black market, just for her Shifu today. Actually, she only had a limited understanding of cards. She thought [Wu Song] was special, so she bought one. Seeing that the vice president visited in person, she replied respectfully, “Everything is going well. Vice President, I bought one distinctive card just now. Here it is.” She passed the [Wu Song] card to Can Yang.

Can Yang observed the card carefully. This card’s base attributes, including Attack, Defense and Health, were balanced. This kind of card was only third-rate. The Additional Skill… Wu Song Slaying the Tiger (Wu Song throws punches at the tiger’s head to cause huge damage to it. Has a 15% chance of triggering the instant death effect.)

Can Yang’s pupils contracted sharply, and his fingers also grasped the card with great force——

A skill of instant death that was against tiger cards! If legend Nie encountered this card in PK, his white tiger card would be easily defeated.

Immediately, Can Yang’s breathing became more rapid. He looked around and felt a little relieved when he found no acquaintances nearby. Then he lowered his voice, and whispered to Shuang Shuang, “Who sold you this card?”

Shuang Shuang said, “A level 15 beginner named Uncle Chubby. He said the card was designed by himself.”

Can Yang’s voice trembled, “You know him, right? Hurry up, find him and call him back!”

Shuang Shuang looked blank, “What do you want him for?”

Can Yang said, “Just tell him that we want to buy his cards in bulk. Bring him to our club!”

Shuang Shuang was aware of the seriousness of the situation, so after handing over the stall to her fellow club member, who had set up a stall beside hers, she rushed to chase Xie Mingzhe.

She chased all the way through the black market, and saw a familiar fat uncle in front of her. She immediately shouted, “Uncle Chubby, wait a minute…”

But before she finished her words, that person opened the portal and returned to his apartment directly.

There were countless apartments on Gemini. An address was included under a players’ privacy. Unless the other side actively informed you of their house number, it was impossible to find out where he lived; it was just like looking for a needle in a haystack. In order to avoid players being harassed, only nearby players and friends could have private voice chat in the game. One could only send emails when the other side was not around.

Shuang Shuang remembered his name, so she sent an email to convey Can Yang’s words to him.

However, Uncle Chubby went offline and left the game, just as the email was sent.

Because the game studio’s boss, brother Chen, personally called Xie Mingzhe to eat.