Chapter 33

  Shouren could feel something grasping at the back of his mind. It was like his brain was inside a shuttle, driving him through a complex web of maze and towards a specific destination.

  His class card repelled another set of wisps, making that drive slow down, almost like it was running out of fuel. The class card absorbed another wisp, rekindling the shuttle and jostling it ahead into the maze.

  [Synchronization: 23%]

  The remaining wisps were all rejected by the class card, and the shard had completely dissipated. Shouren could sense a fragment of knowledge in the distance, but it kept alluding him.

  This single shard alone pushed my synchronization by 3%.

  Shouren mused as he quickly took out another small shard of the same set. He now understood why individual shards weren’t worth a lot, and why people brought specific cards to shard. There was some type of resonance there.

  Before the illusory web could vanish, Shouren subsumed the second shard without hesitation.

  [Synchronization: 24%]

  [Synchronization: 25%]

  [Synchronization: 26%]

  He was halfway to the center of the maze. He could vaguely feel it. Shouren devoured another shard of the same set. The boy was on his third shard.

  [Synchronization: 27%]

  [Synchronization: 28%]

  However, the 3rd shard only raised his synchronization by a further 2%.

  Blighted hells, it’s slowing down.

  Shouren cursed, taking out another shard. He knew the sharding gave diminishing results the more he used it. The small shards were still significantly more potent than the normal shards, but their effects were gradually tapering off.

  The boy didn’t want to slow down, and he threw all caution to the wind. He summoned the remaining four shards in his vault and stacked it over the one he already had in his hand. One by one, he consumed the shards without a break.

  His 4th shard raised his synchronization by another 2%

  [Synchronization: 29%]

  [Synchronization: 30%]

  The 5th shard by 2% again. Shouren was close to the center of the maze now.

  [Synchronization: 31%]

  [Synchronization: 32%]

  The 6th shard only raised a single 1%. A few more steps were all that remained.

  [Synchronization: 33%]

  The 7th shard by 1% again. The boy could feel something brushing against his mind now.

  [Synchronization: 34%]

  This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

  Shouren’s class card thrummed inside his chest. The boy squeezed the final shard, its wisps charging with momentum towards his class card.

  The class card rejected all the wisps, its glow dying down, and the mental construct of the maze inside Shouren’s mind shattered into phantasmal particles.

  Donkey’s balls, what happened!?

  Shouren almost yelled out loud before catching himself. Rubin was still sound asleep on the side. The boy was so close to arriving at the center of the maze.

  It’s a concept, or a technique.

  The boy racked his brains for an answer. The slight touch with that unknown thing in the maze had given him clues as to what it was. If he mapped all his insights onto a maze, the different sections would lead to different insights. He instinctively knew that the shards didn’t create that maze.

  It already existed inside his mind.

  The shards were like a compass that could navigate through the web and guide him to specific insight within his subconscious. That was why the class card repelled the incompatible wisps. Because it only resonated with the wisps that were compatible with his insights.

  The larger shards had too many intertwined locks of wisps. Even if there was a single wisp that the class card could absorb, the other mismatched wisps glued to it caused it to be repelled by the class card. Conversely, the smaller shards frequently produced individual wisps that the class card could easily absorb.

  Shouren now comprehended why the shards increased the synchronization rate. They were like dense fragments of energy that pushed relevant insights to the forefront of your mind.

  It wasn’t a complete waste then. The next time I absorb similar wisps from a similar shard, I’ll return back to the spot where I last stopped.

  Shouren couldn’t know for sure, but he felt it was true. That particular insight was there in his mind, and if he could attain a few more identical wisps, he could seize that insight without repeating the entire journey.

  All wisps led to different insights.

  The boy didn’t want to stop here. He was on the cusp of understanding his Sharding ability.

  Shouren took in a long breath. And another shard appeared in his hand. It was from the set of six shards. The same card that unlocked his Veinreader trait. The sensation of his synchronization going up was addicting. He felt more full… more complete.

  The slightly bigger shard shimmered and seeped into Shouren’s palm. Struck by an idea, Shouren triggered his Veinreader trait. A pale green, runic pattern hovered in front of his left eye.

  Nothing.

  The wisps were the same as in his normal vision.

  It’s not a card, is that why?

  Shouren unactivated the trait, and observed the new trail of wisps. He noticed that the larger shard had more of the wisps bundled together, with several individual wisps.

  His class card rejected the first individual wisp that approached. A cluster of intertwined wisps were the next line. Shouren turned his attention to the next individual wisp, but suddenly, the bundle of wisps were sucked into his class card.

  The web of maze flickered back in his mind, the shuttle thrusting ahead with full force. Shouren was in a different part of the maze, but this insight was already close to him.

  [Synchronization: 35%]

  Shouren was confused. Why did the class card accept the cluster of wisps?

  The shard is from Spectral Threads! It’s a card I forged myself.

  It finally dawned on the boy. Shouren already had the recipe for the Spectral Threads spell card, and its signature was woven into the fabric of his consciousness. He could feel his class card throbbing with excitement.

  Shouren didn’t hesitate. He grabbed the remaining five shards and crushed them together. He was going to use all the momentum to reach that insight.

  [Synchronization: 36%]

  His class card had already consumed three of the shards, and Shouren could see the brilliant ball of insight floating in the center of the maze. The shuttle didn’t have to travel far. He was already close to grasping this insight before the shards.

  The final three shards dissolved into wisps, and Shouren’s body tingled as a strong pulse washed over him. He touched that glowing ball of insight.

  A torrent of knowledge flood into his mind. It was his insight about lumen control. All lumen was wild in its nature. It had to be tamed. A Cardsmith didn’t need potent lumen or explosive lumen like the combatant class cards. Instead, their focus should be on controlling the lumen into threads. The more threads a Cardsmith could weave, the more powerful their forged cards.

  Shouren closed his eyes and breathed in the newfound revelation. He was already on this path, but now the insight confirmed it. Back when his card exploded during the sharding process, Shouren had reflexively split his lumen into two threads. One to stabilize the card’s frame, and the other one to poke the card’s veins.

  He didn’t realize it then, but he had already stepped onto the path of lumen control. It was simply buried in the back of his mind.

  [Synchronization: 37%]

  [Synchronization: 38%]

  Shouren opened his eyes, his hazel green irises brimmed with ecstasy. He looked down at his palm and channeled his lumen. It curled around his arm. The boy then sent a command. The lumen obeyed and twisted to split apart into two threads.

  Shouren watched in fascination. The threads were akin to his arms. He could freely move them around. The boy then tried to split them again into four.

  The lumen spluttered and choked before rapidly dissipating. A sharp pang went through Shouren’s brain.

  Ouch! It’s like splitting my mind into two.

  The boy shook his head as the pain slowly receded.

  However, that failure didn’t faze Shouren. He was excited. What would he be able to do with multiple lumen threads? Were other Cardsmiths capable of this?

  I should sleep, Rubin said tomorrow is the last day in the dungeon.

  Shouren yawned, shifting his body on the earthy ground and preparing to sleep.

  No, wait, the wisps in the shards are not a concept or technique like I initially thought. They’re memories of the original card!

  Shouren shivered, frozen in place. He sensed he was onto to something. The wisps didn’t impart new concepts. It helped the existing insights by joining their memories together.

  The flashing notification confirmed Shouren’s suspicions.

  [Synchronization: 39%]

  The card’s frame is its body, the channels are its veins, the lumen is the blood coursing through it, and if the wisps are the card’s memories…

  …then does that make it the card’s

  …soul?

  [Synchronization: 40%]

  Hope you guys enjoyed the chapter!

  Bonus Chapter Milestones [Every milestone will unlock a Bonus Chapter each]:

  1000 Followers [719/1000]

  200 Favorites [140/200]

  10 Reviews [9/10]