In the presidential suite, Zhang Bin was diligently cultivating the Pure Heart Mystique.
He hoped to quickly enhance his newly erged Special Ability. This would allow him to understand what it was, and it might even be useful in the competition. Otherwise, he had no assurance he could make it into the top ten, let alone contend for the title of World King of Gamblers. The upcoming rounds would be more brutal and the competitors even more formidable—each a master among masters.
Unfortunately, he had been cultivating for an entire week. The first round of the competition was already over, and the list of the top one hundred contestants had been released. Tomorrow, the second round would begin. Yet, he still couldn't sense what his new Special Ability was. This ant his new ability was too weak for him to even detect.
It seems I can't count on this new ability for now. Zhang Bin mused. He took out a leaf from the Fu Leaf Tree, along with a Fu Brush and a bottle of red liquid he had prepared over the past few days.
This red liquid was no simple substance; it was real Dragon Blood, drawn from Xiao Jin.
Using Dragon Blood to draw Talismans increased both the success rate and their potency. For the past few nights, he had entered the Virtual World to diligently practice drawing Talismans and had already attained a certain level of skill.
In essence, drawing a Talisman was the act of using a special pattern to express one's understanding of the Dao. One could even condense and seal an intended attack within the pattern. It was a profound and mysterious affair, not easily accomplished, requiring painstaking practice and a high cultivation level. Drawing Special Talismans was even more challenging.
If Zhang Bin had only reached the Liquid Phase Initial Stage, his comprehension of the Dao would have been too superficial. He might have succeeded in drawing ordinary Talismans, but creating Special Talismans would have been nearly impossible.
Fortunately, he had reached the Liquid Phase Middle Stage on his way to Arica. He had continued his grueling cultivation ever since, and the True Qi in his Dantian was steadily increasing. His understanding of the Dao had deepened, and he now felt he was ready to try.
Dipping the Fu Brush in Dragon Blood, he began to ticulously draw on the Talisman Leaf. A Talisman had to be drawn in one continuous stroke, without any pause or break. Zhang Bin's speed was neither fast nor slow, and he finished in just a few breaths.
A special pattern erged on the Talisman Leaf. This pattern held a specific aning, one that had been derived and created by Cultivators from Xuanwu Star who practiced the Qingmu Longevity Technique. It was said to possess miraculous abilities.
Unfortunately, the mont Zhang Bin lifted his brush, the Talisman Leaf burst into flas, turning to ash in the blink of an eye.
"Failed!" Zhang Bin murmured, frowning as he deeply contemplated the reasons for his failure.
After a while, he began to draw a second one, but it also failed. He carried on like this, tirelessly drawing, analyzing his mistakes, and accumulating experience, failing ti and ti again.
Ti slowly ticked by as the night deepened.
Ma Rufei and Chen Chaoyue had already gone to sleep. Even Betty had laid down and drifted into slumber. Zhang Bin had worn her out over the past few days, but now she could finally get a good night's rest.
「anwhile, in another presidential suite.」
A few people were also working through the night. They were, of course, Zhao Dawei, Qian Bing, and Sun Tie. Each sat with a laptop, busy analyzing and mapping the layout of the U.S. Biological Base.
A closer look at the graphics on their computers revealed Las Vegas. Deep underground lay the Biotech Base. Decades ago, Las Vegas was just a small oasis in the desert with no real value for developnt. However, the Aricans had inexplicably built their Biotech Base underneath this oasis. To conceal it, they constructed a city—Las Vegas—right over the oasis, turning it into a world-famous gambling cca and, eventually, a major tourist destination.
The Special Action Team had paid a huge price to obtain intelligence on the U.S. Biotech Base, but infiltrating it was harder than ascending to the heavens.
The Biotech Base's defenses were terrifying. Most of the structure was made of steel, so even Superpower Users and Cultivators with the Wall-Piercing Ability couldn't get in. This was because the Wall-Piercing Ability could only penetrate walls made of earth or stone; steel walls were impenetrable unless one had mastered tal Escape. Furthermore, the depths of the Underground Biotech Base were riddled with terrifying high-tech traps and chanisms. An infiltrator might suddenly be hit with high voltage or find themselves trapped in a steel cage. What was even scarier was that Arica's strongest Superpower Users and Genetically Enhanced Humans were standing guard in the underground base. Sneaking in was tantamount to suicide.
The underground base was also constructed from special materials with powerful shielding capabilities, so not even Tutu could infiltrate its systems. Using hacking thods was absolutely hopeless.
The only option was a frontal assault, mobilizing the most powerful experts. But even a direct attack required perfect timing and a thorough understanding of the terrain. Otherwise, the losses would be imnse.
This ti, the Special Action Team was planning just such an assault, and the World King of Gamblers competition provided the perfect opportunity. The city was flooded with so many tourists of all kinds that the appearance of powerful Cultivators from China wouldn't arouse suspicion.
The abilities of Golden Core Late Stage and Nascent Soul Stage Cultivators were terrifying. They had naturally developed clairvoyance. As they walked the streets, they could see the situation underground, even viewing parts of the base's interior. They would then record what they saw in their Jade Scroll Simples.
Zhao Dawei, Qian Bing, and Sun Tie, all three of them rare hacking experts, were responsible for creating a detailed map of the Underground Biological Base from the data provided by these masters.
"My God, what is this?" Qian Bing, who was reading a Jade Scroll Simple, suddenly shouted in shock.
"What did you find?" Zhao Dawei asked in surprise, looking up.
"Let connect the Jade Scroll Simple to the computer so you can see," Qian Bing said, his face still etched with shock as he quickly worked on his laptop.
Indeed, these Jade Scroll Simples were specially made and could be connected to a computer, effectively acting as small hard drives. Soon, a strange 3D image appeared on the screen.
It showed a heavily guarded hall. In the center of the room was a Crystal Coffin containing the body of a young girl.
Since the image was obtained via clairvoyance, the girl's face was unclear. However, it was still possible to see that she had an incredible figure, with long slender legs, flowing black hair, a slim waist, and full, perky breasts.
She was dressed in a green dress and her head was adorned with many beautiful ornants. She wore special jade jewelry on her snow-white wrists and ankles.
The most incredible thing was her ears. They were completely different from a human's, resembling those of a rabbit—large and pointed, yet they didn't detract from her beauty in the slightest…
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