C13 Careless Gamble

I had planned on getting a good night's sleep, but then the grim reminder of my impending doom arrived.

Well, so much for sleep—time for an all-night monster-slaying marathon!

For now, I'm steering clear of the monster hordes. Shadow Vanishing only lasts a few minutes, and while my Immortal Body lets me bounce back quickly, the cooldown between skills is long enough for those critters to overwhelm me.

If I lose my cool and tangle with the swarm, I'd probably be signing my own death warrant.

I managed to snag a few low-level prawns, just enough Spirit Beads to upgrade the Shellfish House one more level.

Facing the BOSS requires full energy; there's no way I'm grinding through monsters all night.

The next morning, I'm jolted awake by the game's alarm.

The seabed is shrouded in darkness, day or night.

I flick on the Shellfish House light, only to jump at the ghostly face looming outside the French window.

The Deep Sea Phantom!

It's grinning at me, a grotesque smile like something out of a nightmare. On closer inspection, I see parasites writhing in its empty eye sockets.

The skull, barely held together by flesh, doesn't look like it should be capable of smiling, but I've got this gut feeling—it's definitely grinning.

It's the thrill of a hunter closing in on their prey.

The phantom's slimy hands press against the glass, its long Sickle Fingers tapping ominously on the French window.

With its palms against the window, I can see more parasites squirming beneath the skin.

Pressing too hard, the phantom suddenly pulls back, ripping the skin from its palms!

The skin, stuck to the outside of the window and crawling with parasites, is so revolting I nearly lose my last meal.

The phantom's withered arm lifts and slashes at the window, its Sickle Fingers sparking against the glass, leaving five deep gouges.

That really gets my heart racing.

Thankfully, the window heals itself, the scratches sealing up as if they were never there. The phantom's Sickle Fingers glow red-hot, bubbles forming and bursting as they cool.

Xiao Hao glanced at the magic power meter; of the 5000L capacity, only 4250L of mana remained.

He swiftly ran the numbers for the Shellfish House in his head.

Since leveling up to level 5 the day before yesterday, accounting for the automatic mana consumption of the Shellfish House and the mana used by the Exploring Bubbles, the ghost's claw had likely sapped around 20-30L of the Shellfish House's mana.

One of the ghost's hands glowed crimson, while the other was unscathed.

With a swipe of its claw, sparks scattered in all directions.

Mana Power: 4225L.

Roughly thirty seconds later, the ghost's claw had cooled.

Another swipe, leaving 4204L remaining.

His estimate was spot on, but the monstrous rate of mana depletion meant the Shellfish House could only sustain for a few more hours at best!

Xiao Hao hurriedly reviewed all the usable cards in his inventory.

Besides the Slow Exchange Card, there were several gifted by the Deep Sea Phantom.

Reflective Card: Use this to bounce a wild monster's attack back when they strike the base camp. (Usable three times)

Defensive Barrier Card: An invincible shield that locks the base camp's mana at 100L if it falls below that level, preventing any further reduction. (Duration: 1 minute)

Double Card: Doubles the Guardian's attack power and all attack skills when the base camp is under assault. (Duration: 1 hour)

Maintenance Card: Restores the base camp's mana at a rate of 1L/s when under attack. (Duration: 8 hours)

Silence Card: Inflicts forced silence on a wild monster attacking the base camp, pinning it in place for 3 seconds, rendering it immobile. (Usable once)

Calm Card: Forcefully disrupts a wild monster's attack skill when they target the base camp. (Duration: 3 hours)

Together with the Slow Card, he had a total of seven cards at his disposal.

While he was tallying up his options, the phantom had already drained another 25L of mana.

He glanced at the phantom, then at the cards in his hand.

Xiao Hao was struck by a sense of déjà vu, as if he were playing a game called "Lie Down & Level Up - Haunted Dormitory."

But there was a catch: in that game, players could earn gold coins just by lying down. Xiao Hao, on the other hand, couldn't collect Spirit Beads that way!

Hmm?

Why had it gone quiet outside the window?

Looking up, Xiao Hao saw the Deep Sea Phantom's Sickle Finger spewing energy, morphing into a massive purple-black energy claw.

The energy claw, resembling an oversized eagle talon, effortlessly gripped the Shellfish House as if it were a mere plaything!

Had it powered up?

Xiao Hao quickly activated the calming card!

The energy claw, on the brink of detonation, vanished into thin air. The phantom, now turning its head in confusion, caught sight of Xiao Hao with the card inside the Shellfish House and let out an enraged shriek.

The female ghost's scream was so piercing that even the parasites in her eye sockets were startled, burrowing towards her brain.

Wasn't that its own thing?

This jerk was using its own item against it!

Xiao Hao paid no mind to the impotent rage of the ghost outside, swiftly stowing the calming card.

The card's timer read 2 hours, 59 minutes, and 55 seconds remaining.

A twisted smile crept across Xiao Hao's face.

This calming card could exploit a glitch!

By using it the moment a wild monster unleashed its ultimate move, he could perpetually disrupt the attack!

If that was possible...

Could other cards exploit glitches, too?

Cards with a usage limit certainly couldn't, but what about those with a time limit?

The double card likely couldn't exploit a glitch since his guardian skill was in constant effect; pausing it would cause the power of the Dark Erosion to plummet.

The Maintenance Card was in the same boat, acting as a "spare health bar" for the room.

However, the defensive barrier card could exploit a delightful glitch.

Using the barrier card just as the room's mana was about to hit zero not only granted invincibility but also locked the mana at 100L, effectively replenishing nearly 100L of the Shellfish House's mana!

With skillful use of the barrier card, its one-minute duration could be stretched to an hour, or even dozens of hours!

At that moment, the spirit outside was in a state of utter frenzy.

It clawed at the window, incredulous that it was being ignored.

Ignored!

Ten black scythes, eerily reminiscent of the Reaper's Scythe from Western fantasy films, suddenly extended in length.

Never before had anyone dared to insult it so!

If it could get its hands on this accursed human, it would invent new ways to inflict torture!

Each blade of the Reaper's Scythe was a massive two meters long, and there were ten of them.

If they were to latch onto the Shellfish House, it would take hundreds of L of mana to counteract them!

Xiao Hao was quick to react, swiftly deploying the Pacify Card.

The enormous Reaper's Scythes retracted before they could even touch the Shellfish House, and the spirit's rageful strike hit nothing but empty air.

Xiao Hao's face seemed to echo his thoughts: "Stay cool! Just take a deep breath."

The spirit was seething internally, with no outlet for its fury.

Its powerful move, conjured with such effort, was suppressed with equal force!

Who could endure such frustration?

Unknown to the spirit, Xiao Hao was intent on not just thwarting its attack but on crushing its very essence.

Without its special moves, it was confident it could still breach the Shellfish House!

Ignoring the throbbing pain in its Sickle Finger, the spirit ramped up the frequency of its attacks.

But it quickly sensed that something was amiss—as if time itself had slowed.

Lifting its head, now scarcely covered in flesh, the spirit fixed its gaze on the card in Xiao Hao's hand.

He was using one of its own cards against it, yet again!

It recalled possessing six such cards!

That despicable human, unforgivable!

Even with cards at its disposal, it would not let this human survive!

It had faced card-wielding players before and knew well that such cards had their limits; they couldn't be used indefinitely!

The spirit steadied itself, and Xiao Hao's brow furrowed at the sight of its measured assault.

If the spirit lost its composure, Xiao Hao might stand a chance.

But if the spirit, with its formidable strength, maintained a steady offense, then Xiao Hao's stack of cards would eventually run dry, no matter how plentiful.

Surely the game wouldn't allow for such a glaring oversight!

There has to be another solution!

Perhaps the barrage of comments will offer him a clue.