The Card Apprentice

Qiao Yuan and Mi Xiaqing were in the meeting room while everyone else was resting. The pair of older and younger disciples looked serious. In the middle of the room was a projection of the geography surrounding Pomelo.

“We don’t know how Yanbai is doing, which is worrisome.” Mi Xiaqing’s handsome face was full of concern.

Qiao Yuan knew his younger disciple was close to Jie Yanbai. He said to comfort him, “Don’t worry; Jie Yanbai is resolute and tough far beyond anyone else. Even if he has run into some difficulty, he’ll be able to get through it safely, given his ability.”

Mi Xiaqing smiled bitterly. “I hope so. What does our second elder apprentice have to say about where he is?”

Qiao Yuan said in a deep voice, “Our number-two has already occupied the route terminus. When he took to repairing the route, though, he was afraid it would take some time.”

“Mmmm, so long as our second apprentice occupies it, no one can take it from him, unless Pavchek himself leads the troops.” Mi Xiaqing’s expression was relaxed as he spoke with a smile.

Qiao Yuan’s expression also relaxed quite a bit. “What I’m saying is that while our second apprentice might not be the best defender under the sun, he sure is among the top five. The year I tried to persuade him to enlist, he resisted. Otherwise, with his skills, he would have become one of the top commanders of the twelfth army with no difficulty.”

Mi Xiaqing smiled freely. “Don’t worry about him taking fire, Master Disciple. I actually think things are fine—otherwise, it would be hard for the three of us to be together.”

“That’s the truth.” Qiao Yuan’s bronzed face opened up into a warm smile. The two of them, worker Hao and Mi Xiaqing, were both brought up by Qiao Yuan. He was both brother and master in their eyes.

“How are things outside right now?” Mi Xiaqing asked with concern.

Qiao Yuan shook his head. “Not so good. Old number-two says quite a few of our defensive teams have been ambushed at the same time by some unknown power, and he surmises that it could be some organization.”

Mi Xiaqing’s handsome face turned cold. “Who could be so bold to dare intercede at this time? Why would they want to muddy the water?”

“It could be Faya,” Qiao Yuan said slowly. “They were the ones to instigate this conflict. Although they may have been clever, they still left some clues here and there. Too bad our second disciple has to organize the resistance and doesn’t have time to round them up. He always said Faya was behind this and warned us to be careful.”

“Mmmm, the second disciple has always been well-prepared. I imagine the possibility that it’s Faya has grown by a lot.” Mi Xiaqing was in accord, though he couldn’t help but ask, “Does the second disciple have our next move?”

“He says we had better take the one remaining route, gather our forces to break through, and return to the academy, where we’d have a better possibility for success. The longer this drags on, the worse for us. Those two famous commanders from the Federation Comprehensive Academy, Song Chengyan and Di Bo, are both taking care of something outside and can’t get here. By the time either of them gets here, things could become a lot worse.”

Song Chengyan… Di Bo… Mi Xiaqing had heard of those two.

Di Bo’s power was in the top ranks of the Federation Comprehensive Academy, and he was himself an ace card artisan with a fierce temperament. But Song Chengyan was the more storied. He was said to have originally studied centralized planning. Later on, when he participated by happenstance in the commander’s club inside the academy, he became interested in command. Within a short time, he became the vice chair of the club, representing the club’s participation in the 54 tournaments of the inter-academy league. They came in fifth in battle successes with 45 wins, three ties, and four losses.

Worker Hao, their own second disciple, was ranked tenth. He was undefeated, however, with 40 wins and 14 ties. His defense was steady, and he was the opponent all the contestants least wanted to encounter.

Song Chengyan occupied an even more legendary position than worker Hao, although he had been an ordinary student with no background nor battle skills. Any card artisan could have easily killed him. But worker Hao was a student directly under the lord of the Central Repository of the Classics, which gave him a distinguished identity. Although he wasn’t nearly as powerful as Qiao Yuan as a card artisan, he had become far more powerful than card artisans in general.

Song Chengyan was said to have already become the most critical defensive opponent for the Federation Comprehensive Academy. Every time he competed, professors from the card artisan department would personally protect him. He was the only one given such treatment, apart from the president of the Federation Comprehensive Academy, Pavchek. He had already become an important military trainee and would enter the corps each year to pursue training and study.

Di Bo was another outstanding scholar at the Federation Comprehensive Academy in that regard. He stood out for both his specialties and his shortcomings, however. His attacks were extremely powerful, though he was still deeply afraid of the number-one ranked freak, Rossini, from the Star Academy. But his defense was messed up in the same way, and he always suffered losses because of that. His battles were quite distinctive in that if he didn’t have a grand victory, it would be a grand defeat.

Still, worker Hao always won his contests with Di Bo, given his rather dominant psychological advantage.

People like them were the opponents to pay attention to at the academies. Their existence possibly influenced the subsequent disposition of the Federation Comprehensive Academy. They were even more valuable than card artisans.

However, youth were always more hot-blooded, and there would be no stage for them during times of peace. Therefore, in the eyes of ordinary people, they weren’t as famous as a card artisan like Qiao Yuan. But the ambitious academies always stressed that kind of command talent. The top ten in the inter-academy league competitions all came from the Big Six, which showed a lot. The Central Repository of the Classics had one such ace, though because he had been sent on assignment, he couldn’t return for the time being.

“Our number-two says if we can’t take the route in the near term, then after two days, we should completely destroy it. That way, no one will be able to enter unless they can go through the jungle the way we did. The first one through would definitely be our number-two, though there might be some trouble after he makes it through.” Qiao Yuan furrowed his brow.

“Mmmm. Do as the second disciple says.” Mi Xiaqing nodded with no hesitation. They had always placed a lot of confidence in worker Hao’s strength.

The more Chen Mu heard of the dialogue from down below, the more awesome he considered Bogner to be. Most of it was just as Bogner had guessed—as though he had seen it himself. But it was also clear from the dialogue that there were no fools in that world. If you were to assume you could do something flawlessly, you were the fool.

The Central Repository of the Classics had long since guessed what Faya was doing, but they were holding off for the moment. Chen Mu guessed the Federation Comprehensive Academy had also realized it on their own, but they didn’t have enough time either.

Thinking about that, Chen Mu couldn’t help but admire the dark power behind the scenes for Faya. It would be awesome if he could cover things up in a way that if someone else found out about it, they could jump out with no hesitation.

Qiao Yuan said suddenly, “Oh, right! Before I entered the region of Pomelo, I saw a new base, probably recently constructed. Jiao Si was there.”

Under the floor, Chen Mu was a little startled and listened carefully.

“Jiao Si?” Mi Xiaqing was surprised. “He’s in Pomelo?”

“Mmmm.” Qiao Yuan nodded, and he then cautioned, “I’m not sure why he showed up in Pomelo or what his objective is.”

Mi Xiaqing sighed. “I imagine Yanbai might know. We don’t have time right now to investigate.”

“Mmmm. He has a rather impressive student with him. He’s young but has outstanding power. I’m guessing it’s not beneath yours nor Jie Yanbai’s.” Qiao Yuan looked serious.

Mi Xiaqing looked excited. “The Origins Academy has such an ace? That old fox Jiao Si can really keep things to himself.”

“Mmmm. I imagine it’s the Origins Academy’s secret weapon. Although the Origins Academy has been getting stronger overall these last few years, they’ve never had a top ace to prop them up. That student must be somewhat interesting.” Qiao Yuan smiled but still didn’t think much about it. The appearance of one or two aces wasn’t going to shake the positions of the Big Six, so he wasn’t too concerned about the other academies.

However, someone so young but with similar strength to Mi Xiaqing still surprised him. When Mi Xiaqing was young, anyone who was called outstanding acted like someone favored by the gods. Qiao Yuan hadn’t seen the least bit of arrogance in that youth by Jiao Si’s side. On the contrary, he had a placid gaze, which was rare.

The one Qiao Yuan was talking about was Chen Mu, but Chen Mu didn’t think he was talking about him at all. There were many students under Jiao Si, and he thought someone among them must deserve that sort of praise. But he thought for a long time and couldn’t come up with anyone.

Chen Mu’s standard of comparison was Jie Yanbai. He had seen his power with his own eyes; even such a tough guy as Hugo nearly didn’t have the power to fight back.

Could Jiao Si have such a person under him? Chen Mu wracked his brains. He never imagined it was himself. He thought he was too far behind Jie Yanbai. The difference between them was as far as Heaven from Earth.

He didn’t know he had been inadvertently discovered by Qiao Yuan during his scan at the base, which had given Qiao Yuan some misconception of his strength. It was based on nothing more than the sensitivity of Chen Mu’s perception.

The chatting between them started to turn insignificant, and Chen Mu wasn’t going to get anymore valuable information.

He decided to make his move. Once they discovered the hole in the storehouse, the two of them wouldn’t be able to flee, even with wings. He gave Wei-ah the signal.

Qiao Yuan and Mi Xiaqing were chatting happily away when their expressions abruptly changed.

Peng! A floor board suddenly flew up with no warning and came shooting at the two of them.

Their response was quick; they raised their energy cloaks at the same time and moved off to the side. The two were aghast at the fact that they hadn’t detected the infiltration. If their adversaries hadn’t made a move, they would never have discovered them.

Assassins!

That was their initial thought as the energy bodies instantly took shape in their hands. But it was their first time to encounter such awesome card artisan assassins, and they involuntarily went cold.

After the floorboard, two faint shadows sprang out. With no hesitation, Qiao Yuan and Mi Xiaqing fired off the energy bodies in their hands toward the faint shadows. One of the shadows popped upward to easily dodge them, and the other took a strange slide.

The unforeseen event had happened too quickly. Even Qiao Yuan had no way to lock in on the assassins, and their energy bodies sank into the wall. Their expressions changed again!

However, as the beloved disciples of the lord of the Central Repository of the Classics, that wasn’t the limit of their ability. Qiao Yuan gave out a cold groan as his right hand quickly emptied and collapsed. All that could be seen where countless bright red energy shuttles pouring down like rain. They nearly filled the entire meeting room.

Mi Xiaqing’s reaction was just as fast. He opened his fingers like a flower blooming, and seven or eight colorful, glowing balls slowly floated to where the two shadows had been. When first emitted, the glowing balls were the size of a fingertip. In the blink of an eye, however, they grew to something like a disk. In the next blink, they looked like a large basin.

Chen Mu hadn’t thought they would so quickly encounter an attack. Such a fast response was worthy of the elite among the elite.

The red energy shuttles made the meeting room look like it had suddenly been roiled by an energy storm, leaving nowhere to hide. But Chen Mu was extremely familiar with what he was facing and wasn’t frightened; those shapes were the same as swimming fish in their lively variations.

Swordfish training! Weren’t those red energy shuttles just like the triangular swordfish?

The demands of swordfish training were harsher because the resistance in the water environment was a lot greater than in air. By the end of the swordfish training, the swordfish weren’t as fast or deadly as the red energy shuttles. However, there had been a lot more of them, and their strange liveliness had been more difficult to wind through.

With the footwork of a dancer, his intertwining was dazzling. His figure moved like water grass, full of a strange rhythm. Chen Mu so easily dodged the deadly red energy shuttles that it surprised even him.

How could that magnificent attack from Qiao Yuan be so easily dodged? He wondered if his adversary had been deliberately showing weakness, though his adversary had absolutely no need to do that! But he also knew muddled thinking just then would be no different than seeking death.

Wei-ah’s moves were even more agile. It looked like he had calculated his every step in advance. They were so accurate that they gave the sense he’d used a ruler. One of the red energy shuttles nearly grazed his mask, missing by no more than half a centimeter, though it didn’t have the slightest effect on his gaze.

What left Qiao Yuan and Mi Xiaqing still more aghast was that the excited energy shuttles hadn’t even opened up any distance between the assassins themselves. The assassins’ bodies had achieved something unthinkable, brazenly approaching to within two meters as they dodged.

Then, just as the two of them were shocked beyond description, Chen Mu got into a little trouble. The glowing discs Mi Xiaqing had thrown out could actually attack automatically. They looked harmless, but once among them, it would be like the road to death.

They watched Chen Mu and Wei-ah being chased by some of the colorful, glowing disks beside them. Chen Mu didn’t dare let the glowing disks touch him, but even Wei-ah couldn’t avoid them.

Fortunately, they had terrifying explosive power in such a small scope. That was especially true of Wei-ah, who made a move with his entire body as though he were a shooting arrow; his body had been suddenly stretched out.

Chen Mu’s style was a little different. The big mudfish card accompanied his unique pace, his moves and breathing strange. Quite a few of his moves went completely against the laws of physics.

Although the glowing disks were troublesome, their speed was rather slow in the end, which the two of them took advantage of.

Like a burst of wind, Wei-ah approached Qiao Yuan. His right hand was clenched into a fist, which he bashed into Qiao Yuan’s energy cloak.

But Qiao Yuan was Qiao Yuan, after all. As the one most recently hailed by the lord of the Central Repository of the Classics, how could he be so easily defeated like that? A strange color flashed by his eyes as the assassin in front of him was about to succeed. His eyes didn’t flinch at all—such a terrifying psychological nature! Qiao Yuan was no ordinary person, and there was a peculiar sheen to his bronzed skin as he faced Wei-ah’s fist without flinching.

Wei-ah’s ordinary-looking fist bashed powerfully into Qiao Yuan’s substantial energy cloak, which was smashed apart with a boom.

Qiao Yuan’s brown eyes finally flinched, seeming to have been surprised by Wei-ah. To be able to smash apart a four-star energy cloak with a fist meant an awful lot of power!

Then, the corner of Qiao Yuan’s mouth curled upward. Wei-ah’s pupils contracted as he pulled back his fist, which he had nearly stuck into Qiao Yuan’s nose.

Five energy shuttles, like five poisonous snakes, drilled out from Qiao Yuan’s belly.

Wei-ah was quick, but his clothes were still cut by one of the energy shuttles. If he had been the slightest bit slower, they would have left five bloody holes in his body.

With that win, Qiao Yuan wasn’t going to give his adversaries any further chance to fight back. The swarming red energy shuttles were like piranhas that had smelled blood. They sealed off any space for Wei-ah, so no matter which way he might run, it would be hard to escape the result of being pierced by the energy shuttles.

Qiao Yuan’s energy shuttles weren’t like Chen Mu’s tailless shuttles. They were flat like diamonds, each one about the size of a bamboo leaf and with extremely sharp edges.

Wei-ah remained unflustered under the red, glowing rain. He held his chest and pulled in his stomach, forming a ball in the air. He actually dodged the canopy of red, glowing rain.

“Nice skills!” Qiao Yuan praised, though he didn’t at all slow what he was doing. The red, leafy shuttles suddenly slowed, and three of them linked up head to tail to form a line. Then, one after another, they were no farther away than that energy storm.

Wei-ah had clearly turned a lot more serious. He carefully stared at those red, leafy shuttles. Their speed wasn’t all that fast, but he knew his adversary’s attack would certainly by unusual.

Suddenly, the foremost shuttle snapped and blew open, turning into five bright red streamers. There were two pops as the ones behind them also blew open.

Fifteen red streamers enshrouded Wei-ah.

Wei-ah looked a lot more miserable that time. The 15 glowing streamers had no visible order, which was the sort of attack that would give someone the most headaches. Because there would be so many indeterminate factors, the adversary had no way to grasp the rhythm of the attack.

What was an ace most afraid of? It wasn’t a tricky, unexpected move nor some powerful technique; it was a stray shot!

A stray shot was like an unreasonable rogue suddenly breaking into a group of disciplined businesspeople and charging about violently. There was no way to defend against that. Even awesome aces had no way to predict unexpected factors like stray shots.

Wei-ah wasn’t the only one out of luck. Chen Mu was suffering along with him. Several red, glowing streamers suddenly came shooting toward him, startling him as he was harassing Mi Xiaqing. He stopped his offense dead as he leapt to the side to evade the deadly red streamers.

Mi Xiaqing stared hard at his adversary with an ashen face, having just been forced into a fluster. Those strange paces and erratic figure made him think his adversary was using some kind of peculiar jet stream card. That guy was weird from head to toe.

The adversary’s attacks weren’t so fearfully powerful in his eyes. However, he had been forced to where he had no chance to fight back by such a seemingly inadequate attack. His adversary’s pace was too lovely and too freakish.

The body moved back and forth and side to side as though it had no center of gravity, drifting like a breeze. Mi Xiaqing fearfully looked at Chen Mu’s index finger, which was encased in a tubular energy shuttle ring. That was the first time Mi Xiaqing had seen such a peculiar ring and such a peculiar style of attack.

With a cold groan, Mi Xiaqing grabbed the opportunity. His fingers once again lightly bounced like a flower blooming. One after the other, colorful rings appeared. The disks weren’t flat like the last time; they were turned upward and pressing toward Chen Mu like a wall.

Once the glowing rings left Mi Xiaqing’s hand, they got abruptly bigger, each one half as tall as a person. But Mi Xiaqing had no intention of stopping as the glowing rings left his hands without pause. He released more than ten glowing rings in a single breath.

The glowing rings formed into a wall, pushing slowly toward Chen Mu. They grew bigger and bigger until the wall filled the entire meeting room, giving him no place to hide.

Wei-ah had just escaped from the red streamers. He had demonstrated a stunning ability to react, upon which he completely depended to avoid the streamers.

That was the first time Chen Mu had seen Wei-ah so miserable. Qiao Yuan’s power must have been really strong, after all!

Taking a look at the glowing wall of rings in front of him, Chen Mu lightly hooked a chair with his toes and smashed it into the glowing wall.