At this moment.
Venti couldn't stop the smile on his face.
The value of a card isn't determined solely by its tier. Even among high-tier five-star cards, their worth varies.
Power is a given, but value needs to be assessed separately.
Take this current [God] card, for example.
Its value is incredibly precious!
It signifies that once [God] is born, it carries its own divine nature! It comes with its own skill modules! It possesses the realm of a high-level deity!
This card can essentially be seen as another version of [Barbatos]!
Why call it another version?
The reason is simple.
Not everyone knows what the true Anemo Archon Barbatos looks like, but out of a hundred Mondstadtians, ninety-nine believe in the Anemo Archon.
Their collective faith means that whatever Venti can do, the new god can too!
And what Venti can't do, the new god might still be able to!
But the new god won't be overwhelmingly stronger than Venti, simply because it's constrained by the card's tier.
If you want the new god to surpass Venti, it's also straightforward—just change the faith of the Mondstadtians, making them believe the Anemo Archon can do this and that.
But the outcome is hard to predict.
Because the faith would no longer be pure, no longer devout.
Venti plans to play it safe and stick to Mondstadt's current state.
A guaranteed deity at the level of the Seven Archons? That's a win!
"How long are you going to keep grinning like that?"
Lu Heng asked with an amused smile.
Hearing this, Venti finally snapped out of his daze and chuckled, "It feels like a dream. Let me savor it a little longer."
"I'm not rushing you," Lu Heng shook his head with a laugh.
He understood Venti's feelings.
Originally a wind spirit seeking freedom, Venti became a god after a series of events.
Now, with a new god to take over, of course he's thrilled.
Having a successor doesn't mean Venti will completely abandon Mondstadt—at the very least, the new god can shoulder a lot of responsibilities.
By then, he'll have even more freedom.
"Let's get back to drawing cards."
Venti felt his luck was on a roll.
He tapped for a 10,000-draw.
Nothing happened.
Another 10,000-draw—still nothing.
Now it felt right.
This was more like it.
After five rounds of 10,000-draws, Venti waved his hand. "You guys take over. I'm done!"
Diluc had already drawn 500,000 times himself. He shook his head and said, "Let Kaeya, Albedo, and Klee have a go."
Kaeya's eyes lit up. "Does Klee's luck help with drawing cards?"
"It does, but not much. Don't get your hopes up," Venti replied, shaking his head.
Klee's luck with card draws was a bit unpredictable.
Perhaps due to her innocence, a small portion of the cards she drew were things she genuinely liked, while the rest were fairly average.
"I see," Kaeya nodded in understanding.
Then, he glanced at Albedo.
"You go first," Albedo stood to the side, more interested in the principles behind the cards.
"Alright."
Kaeya nodded.
Then, he tapped for a 10,000-draw.
Suddenly, a golden light flashed.
"Oh?"
Kaeya raised an eyebrow. "Looks like my luck isn't bad either?"
A five-star gold card appeared.
Lu Heng flipped it over.
The card depicted a skeleton riding a Harley-Davidson motorcycle. From the black-and-white illustration, flames could be seen burning on both the skeleton and the bike.
Bro.
Are you Ghost Rider?
Lu Heng appraised it.
With color added, it was indeed a skeleton riding a motorcycle, wreathed in flames!
The information appeared:
[Infernal Knight]
Tier: Five-Star Gold
Type: [Talent Card]
Trait: [Hellfire]
Description: A knight from hell, wielding hellfire to burn away sin.
Lu Heng was surprised.
The image was highly similar to Ghost Rider.
But it wasn't what he'd imagined at all.
Could it be that even hell is keeping up with the times these days?
"Boss Lu, what's the deal with this card?" Kaeya asked curiously.
"Not bad at all."
Lu Heng explained, "Equip this card, and you become an Infernal Knight straight out of hell. Gain this talent painlessly, with control over hellfire… Tsk, a true nemesis of evil."
Talent cards were special.
Once equipped, the talent became innate, as natural as breathing.
Like Diluc's [Five-Element Thunder Body], it was an inherent ability!
But once unequipped, all traces of the talent would vanish.
"Anyone interested?" Venti glanced at the group.
"Do you turn into a skeleton?" Kaeya asked.
"No," Lu Heng shook his head. "You can customize your appearance. Even if you couldn't, it's still pretty cool, right?"
"True. With power like this, no point being picky," Kaeya was genuinely intrigued.
"Then it's yours. No objections here," Venti said with a grin.
Diluc had no issues either.
Albedo and Klee were even less interested—the two of them had zero desire for it.
With the [Centralized System] in place, there was no fear of anyone misusing the cards.
Immediately, the card was bound to the system and then sent to Kaeya's [Card Equipper].
The eye he kept uncovered suddenly seemed to burn with flames.
As if sensing something, Kaeya waved his hand, summoning a fiery red motorcycle beside him.
He swung a leg over the seat, gripped the throttle, and twisted it.
Lu Heng couldn't help but think of Ghost Rider!
With the twist of the throttle, orange-red flames erupted, engulfing Kaeya and the bike.
Yet he showed no signs of pain, though everyone could sense the strangeness of those flames.
They… didn't seem to emit heat!
Instead, they carried a bone-chilling coldness!
Lu Heng thought of Kaeya's identity.
Captain of the Cavalry!
How could a cavalry captain not have a steed?
Of course, that was in the game.
In reality, Kaeya was a true cavalryman—Teyvat had horses, after all, since carriages were the most common mode of transport.
And now, Kaeya had upgraded to a motorcycle.
The way he rode it… Lu Heng was reminded of Murata, the Pyro Archon.
Then, he thought of the [Blazing Rider].
Hey, now that he thought about it.
If Kaeya really treated the motorcycle as his mount and wielded a longer weapon…
It'd be just like that!
Lu Heng even pictured Guan Yu—charging in on a motorcycle and delivering a single slash.
Kaeya could totally pull that off now!
Lu Heng's thoughts turned to La Signora.
There was no doubt—La Signora's strength wasn't five-star tier.
If Kaeya leveled up his [Card Equipper]… and she dared to provoke Venti, Kaeya could just ride over and cut her down with a single strike!
"So strong!"
Kaeya's first impression was the sheer power of the card!
The hellfire made him feel like he could truly burn away anything!
A Cryo Vision?
Kaeya couldn't help but scoff—that was downright laughable now.
His second impression?
Cool as hell!
No way around it—just look at the envious gazes around him.
It was an all-consuming, head-to-toe thrill.
Strong and cool!
In his excitement, even knowing the [Centralized System] could remotely disable the card, Kaeya felt a sense of trust.
It was a strange feeling, but deep down, he also felt… acknowledged.
"Thanks."
Diluc's expression remained neutral.
Venti grinned. "As long as it's the path you believe in, walk it boldly."
So the Anemo Archon knew?
Of course.
What could escape the wind's notice?
Kaeya nodded solemnly, committing the words to memory.
--------
T/N:
You'll also get 5 extra chapters just for being a free member!
Access 50 chapters in advance on my Patreon : [email protected]/furinaimpact