For a moment, many people's hands trembled slightly.
The use of the Minor Joker Card began with Cloud Peak, and now the Major Joker Card was the first to be played by Cloud Peak again!
In this life-or-death battle, not everyone had the courage to throw out their trump cards one after another, especially when not even half the rounds had passed.
Amidst the shock and sighs, everyone began to speculate: Why had Cloud Peak used the Major Joker Card now? Had they found a way to secure victory in one move?
Once this thought emerged, many felt restless. Would they be among the ones Ye Zhongming had chosen?
And what exactly was the Major Joker Card?
The condition for purchasing the Major Joker Card was owning and using the Minor Joker Card. Currently, apart from Cloud Peak, only Greater America and the Mechanical Genius met this requirement.
Greater America had already finished their turn without using it, the Mechanical Genius hadnât reached his turn yet, and Cloud Peak was in between.
If they hadnât used it, it wouldâve been fineâbut now that they had, everyone couldnât help but feel that Cloud Peak hadnât recklessly played this one-time-use card. The timing was impeccable.
Of course, retaliation was inevitable after using it.
"Cloud Peakâs Major Joker Card effect isâMulti-Card Combo!"
"Please select the base card."
"Cloud Peak has chosen the base cardâShared Fate Card!"
"Please select three factions as targets for the Shared Fate Card."
"Cloud Peak has selected the Mechanical Genius, Gyanendra, and the Women Guard as targets."
"Cloud Peak chooses to pay the toll fee."
"The Major Joker Card has the highest priority. All cards used by Cloud Peak this round will take full effect, and the effects on the targets cannot be exempted."
"The toll fee has doubled due to the Difficulty Surge Card and increased by an additional one-fifth due to the Commission Card."
"Cloud Peak has completed payment. The Mechanical Genius, Gyanendra, and Women Guard must now pay their toll fees."
A series of announcements left everyone stunned, especially the named factions: the Mechanical Genius, Gyanendra, and the Women Guard. They felt like disaster had struck out of nowhere.
Due to the Major Joker Cardâs supreme priority, the unchosen factions couldnât use exemption cards. This meant they had to pay the same exorbitant fee as Cloud Peakâan astronomical sum.
The Mechanical Genius remained silent inside his mechanical war puppet, his expression unreadable.
Gyanendra had already paid a steep toll fee earlier. Though he had earned some income and would benefit slightly from the Commission Card (taking at most three-fifths of the transaction), he now had to pay more than double his previous fee!
The Women Guardâs side was dead silent.
They were already nearly broke. Though the exact amount wasnât yet known, it was undoubtedly beyond their means. What could they do? Trade equipment?
If possible, they wouldâve rather chosen to fight than be humiliatingly drained like this.
Being unable to resist sometimes felt worse than death.
"Ahâ!"
A sharp scream shattered the brief silence.
It was the Mechanical Geniusâs signature shrill voice.
He spat out a rapid, furious stream of wordsâan extremely long sentence in what some recognized as Berber, an ancient Moroccan language. Though obscure, many knew of it.
No one understood what he said, but it definitely wasnât anything polite.
After two more sharp curses in the same language, the Mechanical Genius was cut off by the spatial voice.
"Cloud Peak has completed payment. Other factions must pay within five minutes."
"This isnât fair!"
Some of the Women Guard shouted.
But the space ignored them, coldly continuing the countdown.
With only one minute left, it seemed the three factionsâGyanendra, the Mechanical Genius, and the Women Guardâstill hadnât paid. Some cursed in frustration, while others desperately scrambled for solutions.
But clearly, this was unavoidable.
Cloud Peakâs use of the Major Joker Card at this moment had one clear purpose: another round of elimination.
"What happens if we donât pay?"
Suddenly, Ella, one of the Women Guardâs leaders, asked.
This time, the space answered: "Elimination."
"What if we pay part but not all?"
Another leader, Gianna, followed up.
But the space didnât respond, only restarting the countdownâ30 seconds remained.
The Women Guard gritted their teeth and began paying.
They wouldnât give up until the last moment!
The other two factions did the same. The Mechanical Genius, still cursing, paid becauseâlike Cloud Peakâhe was one of the top contenders for victory.
But double the toll fee for a top-tier Guardian Beast wasnât easy to cover. By the end, even the Mechanical Geniusâs voice had changed.
"Timeâs up."
The spaceâs simple four words silenced all factions once more.
"The Mechanical Genius has paid in full."
"The Women Guard failed to pay the full amount, short by 15%."
"Gyanendra failed to pay the full amount, short by 27%."
Not paying meant eliminationâbut what about partial payment?
The space soon provided the answer.
Amidst the screams of many women, the space began forcibly "collecting" the debt.
One Women Guard warrior rapidly aged, her hair turning white and her body withering into a frail old woman. Then a second.
Screams erupted, but nothing could stop it.
The space drained the life energy of 29 Women Guard warriors before deeming the 15% deficit settled.
The Women Guardâs founding was already a tragic tale, and like the Female Guard, these warriors shared deep bonds. Watching their comrades wither away plunged them into grief, with some openly weeping.
Ye Zhongming remained silent. Though he couldnât see, Gianna and Ellaâs fragmented words gave him a rough idea of what had happened.
Gyanendraâs side suffered even worse. The space seized his mechanical assetsâone after another, they exploded, sometimes taking their evolved operators with them. With his forces already depleted, Gyanendra closed his eyes in agony.
Now, he and his remaining men were combat-ineffective and penniless. With several rounds left, defeat seemed only a matter of time.
The Women Guardâs losses were smaller, but as the weaker faction, they, too, had effectively lost the competition.
A single Major Joker Card had nearly knocked two factions out of the running.
The Mechanical Genius had paid in full, but he was likely drained of resources and would have to fight barehanded from now on.
As everyone calmed down and analyzed the situation, they realized: Cloud Peak, as the "banker," had indeed dragged two factions downâbut they hadnât gained much either, having paid the same exorbitant fee.
The only real beneficiary seemed to be⊠Great America.