As the group of teenagers made their way toward one of the four entrances of the House of Cards, they came across more and more Magi.
Some were vigilant and made distance from them, while others tried to get rid of them seeing that they were just a bunch of kids. However, these people immediately cowered in fear when Adam released a tiny amount of his mana.
Having practiced the Astral Tyrant Manual for so long had altered Adam's mana characteristic, making it extremely overbearing to those who felt it.
Moreover, during his training retreat, Adam was able to experiment a lot with the applications of mana. Unlike before when he would haphazardly release mana, now the mana he released was fine-tuned and highly precise.
This could be seen in how his friends, who were the closest to him, weren't affected by his intimidating aura at all. Yet the Magi in the distance were already sweating buckets from the pressure heavily weighing down on them.
When his friends learned this, they were greatly shocked.
Daneli asked him incredulously, "How did your control over mana get so… definite? What did you do?"
"Hehe." Adam looked at the blond elf and smugly said, "You just have to live in harmony with mana."
Lisa asked with raised eyebrows, resisting the urge to roll her eyes, "Live in harmony with mana? What bullshit are you spouting now?"
The expression on Adam's face turned smug. "It's too early for you to understand what I'm saying, little lass. You should just focus on the analytical study of magic."
"Analytical study? That's what we've always been taught, though." Atiel said in puzzlement with a tilt of her head. "Is there another aspect of magic that you've studied, Adam?"
"It is the philosophical study of magic!" Adam faintly smiled, a profound light dancing in his eyes. "It cannot be studied, only understood."
"Ugh, he's at it again!"
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "64ce79d606107d003c23ea27", id: "pf-5140-1"})"Stop the bullshit!"
"Uhuh, Adam, I almost believed you!"
Everyone simply thought that Adam was playing with them again. Everyone except Edward, that is.
Adam secretly glanced at him and smirked, Well, it shouldn't be difficult for you to comprehend it though. After all, you're loved by mana!
It was indeed as Adam had speculated. Edward felt like he was on the cusp of understanding something very esoteric, but for some reason, the more he tried to grasp this feeling, the further it got out of reach.
How strange, Edward thought to himself. This feeling was new to him and also annoying.
It was like trying to recall that one word that you clearly remembered the meaning of, but no matter how hard you tried, the word would always evade you.
In the end, he simply shook his head and focused on his current situation. He looked around and saw that they were about to reach the entrance of the House of Cards.
From up close, this pyramid looked even more majestic.
It was made of playing cards that were abnormally large in size. Each of them was nearly three meters tall!
One could see the four suits of spades, clubs, diamonds, and hearts, numbering from ace to ten. And finally, there were the face cards - jack, queen, and king.
On the walls of the pyramid, the group could either see the front side of the card or its blank rear side. Seeing such a spectacle of magic left them breathless.
"How many cards did it take to even construct this pyramid?" Atiel asked with wonder gleaming in her eyes.
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "64cc9e79c7059f003e4ad4b0", id: "pf-5109-1"})"Too many," Daneli replied while gazing at the structure with awe. "Also, I doubt that such a structure can be constructed by hand."
"It's very likely that this entire pyramid was directly summoned by the Magus who created this secret plane," Lisa speculated.
"Summoned?" Edward was shocked. "Where would they even summon such a colossal structure from?"
"The Spirit World!" Adam replied matter-of-factly.
Oddly enough, the youth's answer made complete sense to everyone present. After all, it was said that the Spirit World was not only the home to spirits but also all things bizarre.
Moreover, the School of Summoning also had close ties with the Spirit World!
The group finally arrived in front of the entrance. It was an unassuming rectangular door, nothing too grand. However, from within this entrance, an ethereal white light could be seen. Nothing else could be seen beyond it.
Two giant pillars—also made of playing cards—stood on either side of the entrance. And on it were carved words in the language of the Southern Federation.
'Welcome to the House of Cards;'
'Where the earth hides its treasures, and the wind whispers its secrets;'
'Only the Magi with courage in their hearts and a keen mind shall succeed;'
'Proceed with caution, and may fortune favor the bold;'
'For beyond these gates lies that which you desire the most.'
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "663633fa8ebf7442f0652b33", id: "pf-8817-1"})"…Lies that which you desire the most!" Edward's eyes lit up as he read the last line. "It is exactly like what the ancestors of my family have said about the pyramid!"
"Care to explain?" Daneli asked with a stoic face, but the curiosity and eagerness in his voice could barely be hidden.
Edward contained the bubbling excitement in his heart and explained, "Once we enter the pyramid, each of us will be teleported to a different place that will lead us to the item that we need the most."
"H-How is that even possible?!" Daneli blurted out in shock.
Edward simply shrugged. "Don't know, but it's true. Generations of elders as well as patriarchs of my family have attested to this. Even my father said so."
Lisa grasped a crucial point from Edward's information, and asked, "Are we going to be separated again?"
Edward nodded. "Indeed."
Adam started to stroke his chin and mumbled, "We were separated first when we entered the secret plane. And now we will be separated again once we enter the pyramid. It seems that the objective of the secret plane is to test a Magus' individual prowess."
Everyone couldn't help but nod in agreement.
Adam glanced at Valerian who was comfortably sticking his head out from his robes and looking around curiously. "Little Val, time to go back in."
"Myu!" The young dragon nodded cutely. He then waved his tiny paw at Edward and Lisa, bidding them farewell, and then turned into a gray flash, returning to Adam's spirit sea.
Adam took a step forward and approached the entrance. His lips slowly curled up into a wide grin. "Beyond these gates lies that which you desire the most, huh?"
He rubbed his hands and his grin turned sly. "Ehehehe, I desire money~"
The next moment, without hesitation he ran through the gates while screaming,
"Give it to me!!"
