Card Apprentice Daily Log

Chapter 2561: Ultimate Mastery Elasticity Space Rule Meaning

Date: Unspecified

Time: Unspecified

Location: Myriad Realms, Card World, Central Region, Central Academic City, Morningstar University District, Morningstar University Campus, Garden of Beginning, Time Vestige, Morningstar University 2nd Campus

[The Card Apprentice has advanced the plus ultra mastery of the ’Elasticity’ meaning of the space rule to ultimate mastery.]

Before long, I achieved ultimate mastery of the ’Elasticity’ meaning of the space rule and once again found myself at the bifurcation point to choose my second space-rule meaning. Having reached ultimate mastery in my first meaning, I now had more meanings available in the space-rule source than I did the first time. With a single glance, I could tell there were at least twenty times more space-rule meanings available to me this time than before.

I was just about to pick one at random and begin comprehending it before I started overthinking, when a text suddenly appeared in my grimoire, informing me that the Time Vestige had reached our present and I could get off whenever I was done and ready.

The news caught me off guard. Lucine had told me it could take weeks, months, or even a full year, yet not even thirty-six hours had passed since I entered the Boundless Space Chamber. We had arrived a lot sooner than I had expected to. And in other words, I had reached ultimate mastery in a space-rule meaning in barely a day and a half.

If other card apprentices ever heard about this, they would flip the table, wondering how the world could be so unfair. While they struggled for weeks, even months, just to begin comprehending a single rule, I had reached ultimate mastery, in a brand-new meaning of rule I had only just started comprehending, under two days.

After receiving the text, I felt a bit relieved—not because I was glad to return to our present earlier than expected, but because it meant I no longer had to rush my choice of a second space-rule meaning. Instead of forcing myself to focus on just three meanings as quickly as possible to advance my mastery of the space rule, I preferred to take my time and choose carefully, making sure the rule meanings were compatible with me and suited my battle style.

This way, when the time came for me to fuse my first three space-rule meanings to form my very own space rule stream, the process would be far less tedious and time-consuming.

It had taken Lucine billions of years in seclusion in time expansion chamber to fuse her three time-rule meanings and forge her time-rule stream. Granted, the time rule was far more complex and rarer than the space rule, but the sheer span of time involved was not something anyone could ignore. So if I planned to forge my own space-rule stream, I needed to be far more careful with my choices of space-rule meanings.

As for the elasticity space-rule meaning, I chose it only because it met all my requirements and checked every box. That was why I began comprehending it without any hesitation. I also believed that the first three meanings one comprehended formed the foundation of their mastery over that rule. And for the sake of eventually achieving ultimate mastery of the space rule as a whole, having a strong foundation was essential.

Now I planned to apply my comprehension of the elasticity space-rule meaning in my daily life and in combat, to see where it excelled and where it fell short. By understanding its strengths and weaknesses, I could choose the other two space-rule meanings with elasticity at the center, making it easier to fuse them later and forge my space-rule stream.

Unlike other card apprentices who had to choose their rule meanings blindly, I could select mine with full awareness of what each was capable of within the space-rule source. It would be foolish not to take advantage of that. Others didn’t have the luxury of picking meanings that were both compatible and mutually reinforcing—but I did. So I intended to use that advantage to plan ahead for the rule-fusion stage and the stream-formation stage. This way, I could form my space-rule stream as quickly as possible and go further into the space-rule meaning.

Mapping out my next course of training for later, I stepped out of the Boundless Space Chamber and found Lucine waiting for me. A smile tugged at my lips, seeing her there to greet me after my seclusion.

Noticing my smile, Lucine bit on her lips in annoyance and snorted, saying, "Don’t misunderstand. I wasn’t waiting. I just wanted to check on you before leaving the Time Vestige. I only arrived a moment ago."

"Aww, you were checking up on me?" I teased, pretending to be touched and making my voice as obnoxious as possible.

Lucine narrowed her eyes and, ignoring my question, she warned, "Wyatt, I know we’re familiar enough that we don’t bother with formalities. But I’m still your elder, and I expect those formalities from you in front of others."

I raised my left eyebrow in amusement. "And what’s in it for me?"

I had a feeling my teasing was the reason she suddenly cared about such things—especially with her second family, Morningstar University, watching. Maybe she didn’t want them to misunderstand our relationship as something more than it was. If that was the case, I could see why appearances mattered to her suddenly.

"What do you mean by what’s in it for you? You should be doing it anyway. It’s basic manners," Lucine replied while staring straight at me, making it clear she wasn’t going to back down on this one.

"Fine, but if you push your luck, don’t blame me later," I said, agreeing with her while warning her not to overdo it. Knowing her personality, I doubted she’d stop while she was ahead, but at least I’d said my part.

Seeing her nod, I asked, "We arrived a lot sooner than you said we would. Were you lying to me earlier?"