The Card Apprentice

“The Tai-shus of Dongrui are certainly an ancient clan. About 80 years ago, however, they started a substantial decline in all regards, which reached its bottom about 30 years ago. The current master, Tai-shu Yong, took over ten years ago. At that point, the decline of the House of Tai-shu stopped and showed signs of a looming recovery. But restoring its former glory wasn’t something they could achieve in a short time for such a large clan as the Tai-shus. No matter what they might do, the House of Tai-shu had been reduced to a second-tier organization. That is just plain fact. So, I feel like we might just have an opportunity.” Smiling, Xi Ping said, “If it were a big monster like Moon Frost Island, we wouldn’t have even have half a chance.”

“Ha ha!” Bogner was rubbing his hands excitedly, though he maintained a certain amount of caution. “We shouldn’t be careless, however. As the saying goes, a skinny camel is still bigger than a horse. With its hundreds of years as foundation, this House of Tai-shu shouldn’t be looked down upon despite its decline.”

“Mmmm,” Xi Ping said in agreement. “The House of Tai-shu has a long history, and it has pretty good relations with all the other old houses and even with Moon Frost Island. It’s still deeply rooted in the Dongrui District. The transformation of the House of Tai-shu is principally reflected in its economics. Most of their card artisans are now unknown except for one pretty famous one called Kang Nali.

Chen Mu and Bogner were listening closely. Xi Ping had clearly expended a lot of energy investigating the House of Tai-shu.

“Kang Nali has achieved level seven with his perceptual strength. He has a hot temper and a frank nature. He formed an enmity with a large power when he was young. Tai-shu Yong succeeded in helping him to defuse the enmity, and he then subdued the ace under himself.”

Seventh-level perceptual strength! Chen Mu was stunned. No wonder he was called an ace. Not even Mobley had gotten to level seven as that Kang Nali had. He would have immense power. Chen Mu had never sparred with a card artisan with level-seven perception, but he knew the further behind one fell with perception, the harder it would be. The time required to move from the sixth level to the seventh was far beyond that required to move between the fifth and sixth.

People in the federation with perception at the seventh level were easily listed. But he didn’t really know how powerful Tang Hanpei’s, Jiao Si’s, and such top aces’ perceptual level was in the end. He then suddenly thought of Qing Qing from the Star Academy. He wondered what kind of powerful gal she must have been to scare even the demonic woman.

Of course, perceptual strength didn’t count for everything. For example, Xiaobo’s perceptual strength had only just broken through level six, but if he were to encounter an ordinary card artisan with level-six perception, that card artisan would almost certainly be defeated. Oddly enough, his weakest link was the strength of his perception.

Xiaobo’s precise control of perception was so refined that it made chills go down one’s spine. His outstanding battle awareness and his incomparably rich experience—not to mention the Wheel from the hands of Chen Mu himself—were all things that made him powerful.

“The Dongrui District is too far away from us, and I haven’t been able to find out that much. Moreover, the House of Tai-shu has been very low-key these past few years, and there hasn’t been much news of them in any regard. But we don’t seem to have any other choice,” Xi Ping said with a smile.

No matter how many mysteries there were in the House of Tai-shu, they still represented a lot more opportunity than Moon Frost Island. The Big Six could only render a person hopeless by their very existence.

Xi Ping’s expression turned straight as he continued his analysis. “The finances of the House of Tai-shu have been recovering these past few years. Anyhow, a family like that with such deep heritage and hundreds of years of legacy isn’t something an ordinary family could compare with. Things have gotten so chaotic and the situation so precarious these days; regardless of whether the House of Tai-shu would be acting to protect themselves or for any other reason, they will still need to increase their battle power.”

“Right.” Bogner was rubbing his stubble as though he had realized something.

“That’s our opportunity.” Xi Ping was really looking like a wily old fox now, squinting his eyes. “We can’t use force. Even though the House of Tai-shu is now only a second-rate organization, they’re still a lot more powerful than we are. They are looking for ways to recruit card artisans right about now, so we might as well take advantage of that to infiltrate the House of Tai-shu.”

“Heh heh.” Bogner sneered and said, “I like that. We’d only have to infiltrate to pull it off. We might as well just take the stuff or kidnap someone. I’m good at both of those!”

Chen Mu broke into a sweat.

As though he hadn’t been listening to anything Bogner said, Xi Ping continued talking. “Ransoming would be the best way. The Snowflake Card Artisan Team already knows we have the notion to get the gold-mottled liquid-soft fungus. Once that leaks out, we should expect the ire of the House of Tai-shu. That would mean we would have to abandon our base at this ravine again.”

Bogner immediately shut his mouth. It was the result of everyone’s hard work that the ravine had been developed to where it then was. No one would be willing to just abandon it like that.

“We don’t need many to go this time. Numbers wouldn’t do us any good. The boss and Wei-ah should go together, with the boss out in the open and Wei-ah staying hidden. So long as Wei-ah is there, we won’t have to worry about your safety, Boss. After the boss finds some way to infiltrate the House of Tai-shu and earns their trust, he could find out some specifics about the gold-mottled liquid-soft fungus. Then, we’d discuss what he should do,” Xi Ping said thoughtfully.

They had too little useful information just then. Even with such shrewd old hands as Xi Ping and Bogner, they still didn’t have too many options and would just have to figure things out as they went along.

“Mmmm.” Chen Mu nodded to show he understood. Having heard what Xi Ping had to say, he also understood it was his only chance. He considered whether he should ask Bogner for some advice after a while, given his knowledge of stealing and kidnapping.

“Boss!” Bogner’s gaze was burning into Chen Mu. Chen Mu had been keeping up his ever-calm look, as though what they were talking about had nothing to do with him.

“What?” Chen Mu was waiting for what Bogner had to say.

After pondering, Bogner finally said, “You’re too low-key, Boss. You’re going to have to change your style this time.”

“Too low-key?” Chen Mu didn’t quite understand.

“Right. Too low-key!” Xi Ping added. “Of course, nothing need be said about the boss’s power, but with no fame, it’s not good for this plan of ours. The better known you are, the more importance people will place on you, and the easier it will be to impress people. Think about it, Boss. If president Jiao Si were to show up in Dongrui, the whole region would probably be stirred up. If you had the fame of Tang Hanpei, then once you opened your mouth, the House of Tai-shu would immediately be groveling to put the gold-mottled liquid-soft fungus into your hands!”

“What Xi Ping is saying is so right!” Bogner spoke from his heart. “Being famous is a lot different from being unknown. Everyone is common, and you and I are no exception. If you break out with a little fame, you won’t even have to open your mouth before the House of Tai-shu will take the initiative to solicit you. If you remain unknown, nobody’s going to pay attention to you.”

It wasn’t as though Chen Mu knew nothing about the ways of the world, but he didn’t normally think about such things. With the two of them now pushing the same point, he finally got it.

“So, how am I going to get famous?” Chen Mu asked directly.

“Oh, that’s a good question.” Bogner was tapping his fingers, looking very expert. Putting on a serious act, he said, “For any other person, getting famous would be a pretty difficult thing. But for someone as stunning as you, Boss, it really would be nothing but simple. If you just show your hand, I guarantee people will be crowing your name right away…”

“I need specifics!” Chen Mu cut Bogner off.

Bogner sneered, and his gaze flickered like a wolf staring at its prey. “Very simple. The boss only has to defeat a few so-called famous card artisans. That would be enough. You have to be arrogant, for sure! If anyone dares to provoke you, you just have to take him down. Heh heh, to be so young with such power, it would be normal to have something of a hot temper.”

Chen Mu’s gaze turned to Xi Ping, who nodded. “This would certainly be the simplest way.”

Chen Mu suddenly thought of an issue. “What if we attract the attention of Tang Hanpei and those guys?”

That name was certainly a dark cloud over everyone’s head, with his fiery methods and decisive killings such that no one could ever know what he was thinking. How could anyone not be afraid of such a person?

“It would be better if you could change your appearance, Boss. Ask Sue Lochiro if she can do something about it,” Xi Ping muttered.

They kept up the discussion for a while and resolved a lot of details. It was a large-scale plan, and Chen Mu would have to master it as the situation developed. Even though he had no experience with such things, he would have to harden himself since it was his only chance.

After making the decision, Chen Mu took himself back into the lab, where he needed to do a great deal of preparation.

Only a few people knew about it when Chen Mu and Wei-ah left the base. The two of them had both entirely changed their appearances. No one knew what Sue Lochiro was thinking when she made Chen Mu into an ugly-looking youth. Wei-ah, on the other hand, looked unusually handsome, which went along with his chill-to-the-bone temperament that could entrance who knew how many women. It all left Bogner and Xi Ping endlessly laughing.

It was a long way from the Pascal District to the Dongrui District, requiring three months’ travel. Chen Mu knew how urgent the action was, but he wasn’t in any hurry. Apart from their travel time each day, he spent all of his time doing resistance training with Wei-ah.

According to the plan Xi Ping and Bogner had devised, he would have to quickly familiarize himself with the Hundred Changes. If he didn’t become completely familiar with that card, the challenges to come would be meaningless.

A series of snow shuttle vessels 15 meters off the ground whistled along. Unlike other districts, since the Heavenly Drum Village District was basically covered in ice, long-distance flights were dependent on the snow shuttle vessels instead of long-distance shuttle trains.

Sitting in the soft seat, Chen Mu fell into something of a daze. The training with Wei-ah the night before had worn him out, making the time along the road his chance to rest.

The vessel suddenly stopped, and the dazed Chen Mu opened his sleepy eyes.