Chapter 2273 The Diamond Upgrade
Chapter 2273 The Diamond Upgrade
Date: 22 April 2321
Time: 02:25
Location: Card World, Southern Region, Blossom District, Sky Blossom City, Dungeon Highway, Blood Rock Dungeon Seal, Seed World
Once Corey, Dredre, and Ceed began dancing, Bloodette joined in while the crowd around them sang along. From a distance, Wyatt and the Field Marshal, both in their pixie forms, watched the celebration.
"Why are you avoiding Susan?" the Field Marshal suddenly asked Wyatt. Throughout Ceed's birth celebration, the tension between Wyatt and Susan was palpable to anyone emotionally mature enough to sense it.
"Weren't you the one who said I should give her space? Besides, this is a big moment for Dredre. I didn't want to make things awkward," Wyatt replied, explaining why he had been purposely keeping his distance from Susan during the welcome dance. He didn't want their tension to overshadow Dredre and Ceed's special day.
"I said to give her space, not to avoid her like the plague," the Field Marshal clarified. "If you keep this up, she might start believing the nonsense my niece and her cronies are spreading in the network and media. If you don't want to lose her, act like you used to with her. Be present, make her smile occasionally-but don't cling to her. Understood?" Despite rooting for Anna, the Field Marshal couldn't help offering Wyatt some relationship advice, knowing how much Susan meant to him.
"Does this also count as combat training?" Wyatt joked, but the Field Marshal's face darkened, annoyed by his deflection as he had been avoiding training altogether. "Here, take this Diamond-grade grimoire. You've long since surpassed the requirements to contract one. It's about time you upgraded," she said, taking out a Diamond-grade grimoire. After witnessing Wyatt's strength in the Lil Red Storm realm, she was certain his soul had reached the threshold necessary for him to wield a Diamond grade grimoire.
"Are you sure?" Wyatt asked skeptically, reaching for the grimoire. He felt he might be ready to upgrade to Platinum, but Diamond seemed premature. However, seeing the Field Marshal nod confidently, he decided to give it a try. Although he had acquired Diamond-grade grimoires during the Southern Capital incident, he couldn't pass up a free one when offered.
"I will give it a try then," Wyatt said, accepting the Diamond-grade grimoire and summoning his current golden grimoire. Preparing to upgrade, he turned to the Field Marshal. "Cover me."
Knowing the phenomenon accompanying his upgrade would be majestic and might disrupt Dredre's celebration, he asked the Field Marshal to conceal it so it wouldn't attract attention. He even informed his daughter gem Ceed to keep an eye out, just in
case.
Wyatt opened his golden grimoire and placed the Diamond-grade grimoire on the creation page. The Diamond grimoire quickly transformed into a cluster of soul pathways, merging with the soul pathways of Wyatt's golden grimoire, which began emitting brilliant rainbow lights that formed an aurora around him.
The Field Marshal reacted swiftly, using her spatial abilities to contain the spectacle so no one would notice Wyatt's upgrade happening just behind them. Soon, the aurora retracted, leaving Wyatt holding a newly upgraded Diamond-grade grimoire. Seeing this, the Field Marshal congratulated him, "Wyatt, congratulations on becoming the youngest card apprentice and the only Card Grandmaster in history to contract a Diamond-grade grimoire."
"Thank you," Wyatt replied, still focused on examining his newly upgraded Diamond-grade grimoire.
Apart from the Diamond-grade epidermis barrier and the restriction on using cards up to SSS rank, not much had changed with Wyatt's grimoire. Well, the grimoire network seemed to come with extra security and privacy features, but other than that, the demon merchant codex appeared unaffected and was still functioning perfectly. It seemed the demon merchant codex was more advanced than even a Diamond-grade grimoire, which was surprising, especially considering the existence of the devil codex.
Still, Wyatt was pleased with the upgrade, as it meant his primordial calamity daughter gem would now have an absolute effect on card demigods and devils. He had never expected to be able to subdue demigods and devils this soon. Caressing his Diamond-grade grimoire, Wyatt found himself looking forward to meeting Supreme Leader Karl.
"Here, an SSS-rank card to commemorate your grimoire upgrade," the Field Marshal said with a sly glint dancing in her eyes as she offered him the card. Taking it, Wyatt curiously examined the SSS-rank card, realizing it was a combat arts card. Specifically, it was a combat training card, which wouldn't instantly make him a combat expert but would guide him in mastering basic combat arts using insights of Martial Sage a.k.a the Field Marshal, Hence, its SSS-rank rating.
Wyatt now understood why the Field Marshal had suddenly proposed upgrading his grimoire to Diamond grade-it seemed that working with her crafty niece had taught her a trick or two about getting what she wanted. Seeing Wyatt roll his eyes, the Field Marshal insisted, "Since you have an unpredictable schedule, this card will help you train your basics whenever you have time. Isn't it handy?"
"It's handy, but couldn't you just give me some SSS-rank martial arts cards? That should be more than enough to make up for my lack of combat training," Wyatt teased,
O
but the Field Marshal instantly exclaimed, "Aha! So, I was right all along. You were making up excuses to avoid combat training on purpose. I knew it." Noticing the emphasis she placed on proving herself right, Wyatt squinted, doubting her priorities. Sensing his skepticism, the Field Marshal coughed, hiding her embarrassment. She then proceeded to persuade Wyatt to give combat arts serious consideration, adding, "Wyatt, if you don't have a solid foundation, you won't be able to use SSS-rank martial arts cards effectively. Forcing it will only harm you, which is why many demigods don't rely on martial arts cards and true martial artist don't need to. Trust me there's no shortcut to mastering combat arts. Just give it a try. I'm sure you'll love it. Think of it as studying the human body. No, combat arts is the study of the human body-yours and your opponent's."
"Just the human body? What if my opponent is a monster or some other race? Combat arts seem unreliable," Wyatt teased, pulling the Field Marshal's leg over her wording. Her face flushed with embarrassment, and, swallowing her pride, she corrected herself, "What I meant was that Combat Arts is the study of the body-yours and your opponent's."
Wyatt shook his head, smiling to himself, finding the Field Marshal's reaction adorable. It made him want to tease her even more, so he began, "What if" but was interrupted by the flustered Field Marshal, who snapped, "Wyatt, stop arguing and take this seriously. I'm doing this for your own good. You have abundant potential, but it's wasted because you don't even know how to throw a proper punch. Honestly, it's embarrassing."
"Hey, great-grandma, watch what you say," came a sudden voice in Wyatt's defense. Surprisingly, it wasn't Wyatt himself, nor Susan, but the last person anyone expected -Corey Bright.
The Field Marshal's outburst had brought the celebration to a halt, and all eyes turned to watch the scene unfold. Corey joining in was unexpected, but no one wanted to miss how this would play out. Dredre wanted to mediate, but Ceed tugged at her dress to keep her by his side, having received mental instructions from Wyatt to manage
Dredre and keep her content.
Corey's use of "great-grandma" made the Field Marshal furious, but she held back, as Corey was technically correct-she was Corey's great grandaunt, since Anna, in a drunken whim, had named herself Corey's godmother. The royal family had agreed to it as a gesture of thanks for her parents' outstanding work at the Way Beyond, and
now, the Field Marshal was reaping the consequences.
Feeling the Field Marshal's heated gaze, Corey hurriedly defended herself, "Great-grandma, don't call my boss an embarrassment. It's not his fault he's... well, not
exactly capable."
'Damn it!' Wyatt cursed inwardly at being called "incapable. Enraged, he shot back, "Are you forgetting you lost to me? If I'm an embarrassment, what does that make
you?"
"Boss, why are you turning on me when I'm defending you?" Corey asked, feigning exaggerated disappointment.
"How is calling me names defending me? Besides, I'm in this mess because of you!" Wyatt accused, blaming Corey for the whole situation.
Corey's eyes widened at Wyatt's accusation, and she replied with a smug grin, "Tsk, how is it my fault that you don't know how to throw a proper punch?"
"Where's the martial arts card you promised me?" Wyatt demanded, adding grimly, "If you don't have a proper explanation, prepare your behind for the whooping of a
lifetime."
Corey's smug smile froze as she suddenly remembered her forgotten promise to
Wyatt. She mentally called out to Park for help, but Park ignored her pleas. Laughing nervously, she stammered, "Haha, about that... give me a second-I'll get Park. You can discuss it with her." Saying this, Corey hurried over to hide behind Park.