The Card Apprentice

It had been a week since the ambush on Borman City. The incident that had caused a major uproar in the Heavenly Drum Village District had since been gradually forgotten by the people. Not only those from the district, but the attention of everyone in the Heavenly Federation was also focused instead on another city in the Heavenly Drum Village District—Qianhu City.

Qianhu was one of the oldest cities in the Heavenly Drum Village District. It had been tremendously prosperous since the age of the sects.

“This place is really smack dab in the center of everyone’s attention!” exclaimed a reporter as he was jostled by his fellow reporters milling about everywhere.

Due to the aggressive advertising made by the Heavenly Drum Village District Alliance, the gathering this time had attracted the attention of almost all mainstream media in the Heavenly Federation. In a short time, droves of reporters had flocked to Qianhu. Besides the reporters, the general assembly that would be hosted by Moon Frost Island had also brought together powerful leaders of different forces in the Heavenly Drum Village District. Invitations were also sent out to notable leaders in other districts, in hopes that they would attend the ceremony as well.

The gathering was a grand occasion, as, throughout the history of the Heavenly Federation, there hadn’t been any other occasion that could hold a candle to the sheer size and grandiosity of this event. However, with crowds came chaos. The bodyguards that accompany the moguls were all elites. The card artisans, who came upon hearing the news, were all successful artisans who enjoyed fame and prestige to some extent. Thus, the presence of so many seasoned warriors would really put the security measures in Qianhu City to the test.

For the days leading up to the event, conflicts would erupt almost every day. As a result of these skirmishes, more than 30 buildings had been blasted into smithereens. Although the alliance that was lead by Moon Frost Island was prepared for this, nevertheless, it was impossible to prevent these incidents from happening completely. Even Baiyue had to be assigned to patrol duty. The conflicts that had cropped up incessantly seemed to cast a shadow on the upcoming conference.

As Qianhu was way overcrowded with spectators, reporters, and assembly participants, it was close to impossible to secure a place to rest within the city. Many visitors decided to just set up camp outside Qianhu, while Moon Frost Island, as the organizer, also helped them settle in by providing free services in many areas.

The Snow Silkworms Card Artisan Team was also stationed outside Qianhu, but in comparison with other card artisan teams, they did enjoy way better treatment. The reason behind this privilege was partly due to the explosion of fame that the Snow Silkworms Card Artisan Team had experienced recently. Additionally, with the revelation of Bogner’s identity that was deliberately made public, no one dared to neglect such a powerful force. Not to mention that the Luo family from Qianhu had always maintained an amicable partnership with Snow Silkworms Card Artisan Team, so the Luo family would naturally grab this perfect opportunity to further strengthen their relationship.

“It is a pleasure to meet you again, Mr. Bogner,” Miss Weiwei greeted while smiling warmly. She seemed to be more reserved and respectful now. “I had assumed that Mr. Bogner’s identity was extraordinary, but the truth was not something I could have imagined. To be honest, when I came to learn about it, it gave me quite a surprise.” There was also an old servant trailing behind her, his head bowed submissively.

Bogner replied diplomatically, “Miss Weiwei, I appreciate your compliment, but I am a mere nobody! I don’t deserve such high praise from you. In fact, I would say that we are fortunate to have the help of the Luo family, or else we would have had to camp way out there in the wild.”

“Hehe, Mr.Bogner really loves to joke. Currently, with the reputation of the Snow Silkworms Card Artisan Team, who would dare to provide subpar service? Not to mention that Headmaster Jia had personally instructed us to take great care of your team. So Mr. Bogner, saying that is just way too self-deprecating!” Miss Weiwei then steered the conversation to another subject. “Also, knowing that Mr.Bogner is interested in this alliance was a surprise to me as well.”

“Oh, why would Miss Weiwei think so?” Bogner tried his best to appear interested.

“Everyone out there assumed that the Snow Silkworm Card Artisan Team would desire a seat on the council of the assembly. Even Headmaster Jia also asked Weiwei about this matter. However, I never believed that it would be true. In my humble opinion, if what Bogner wants is power, it is still something that does not require you to put that much effort into acquiring. And yet, mister had stayed under the radar for ten years! This shows that you were never interested in it in the first place,” Miss Weiwei said coyly.

Bogner’s heart lurched. Outwardly, he put on a cheeky smile. “Well, well, I never knew that the esteemed Miss Weiwei would pay so much attention to little old me! This is making me feel so flattered.”

“Yes, but it’s not only Weiwei! Headmaster Jia had also praised Mr. Bogner very much,” Miss Weiwei continued, her faint smile still firmly in place. “He said that a talented person like Mr. Bogner is as valuable as a whole army! He also expressed that if Mr. Bogner would ever be interested, the position of tactical commander of Moon Frost Island will always be vacant for you.”

Bogner feigned a wide smile as he replied, “I am sincerely grateful for how highly Headmaster Jia thinks of me, but for now I’m happy to stay in this team, and have no intention to change allegiances in the near future.”

“Heh, that’s what I thought your answer would be! Your team leader is truly a blessed person to have acquired the loyalty of a talented person like Mr. Bogner.” Miss Weiwei’s pretty eyes flashed as she chirped, “Also, it seems that I have not seen your chief yet! Is he not around?”

Bogner immediately became alert and his demeanor even more guarded, but he smiled and said, “Yeah, our team leader had some personal affairs to attend to. That’s why I was sent here, to get out of his hair.”

“Oh? Then what would be the intention of your team leader?” Weiwei prodded.

“Intention? What do you mean, Miss Weiwei?”

Weiwei smiled slightly. “Of course, his intention towards this alliance.”

“Haha! Miss Weiwei does like to jest. A newly established card artisan team like us is in no position to request anything. We do not harbor any ambition towards this conference. We are just here to sightsee and experience all of the hustle and bustle!” Bogner jokingly brushed her off.

“Oh? Your team isn’t interested in the alliance? That is such a pity,” sighed Weiwei. Despite what she had said, deep down inside, she could feel her heart lighten. Currently, the division of power within the alliance had already been allocated to the relevant parties. It would be troublesome if the Snow Silkworms were suddenly interested in the voting of the conference as well.

Her tone changed. “Well, since we are done talking about official matters, let’s move on and discuss the cooperation between our families. I’m wondering if your team could transfer the technology of the card set to us? Weiwei isn’t greedy, I would only require one full set of card set technology. In exchange, Mr. Bogner may list any conditions that you want.”

Bogner smiled and said, “I’m afraid that I don’t have the authority to make any decisions on this matter, but I will surely convey this message to our leader.”

“Hmm, then I shall thank you for your trouble, Mr. Bogner.” Weiwei knew that the meeting was basically over at this point, as there wouldn’t be any progress even if they went on with the conversation. So, she stood up and left. After they walked out of the card artisans’ camp, the smile on Weiwei’s face vanished.

“My lady, should we consider any alternative ways?” the old servant beside her suddenly interjected.

“No can do,” Weiwei rejected the suggestion flatly.

“In this sensitive period, we cannot act rashly. If we alert Moon Frost Island to our plans, we wouldn’t have the chance to obtain that set of cards. Plus, won’t Bogner be even more defensive? However, if we, the Luo family, want to rise up and no longer be a pawn of Moon Frost Island, we must acquire the technology of the card sets. For the time being, you should search for some well-known expert card makers and have them join this operation. Currently, it would seem that the possibility of the Snow Silkworm Card Artisan Team selling us this technology is too small, so we should focus our energy on cracking the technology instead.”

“Understood!” The old servant bowed and answered.

“This leader guy of the Snow Silkworms Card Artisan Team is a pivotal character,” Weiwei muttered as she furrowed her brows. “I still can’t figure out how he managed to persuade Mr. Bogner to work for him. Other than that, I do have to wonder, where did the technology of the card set come from? Oh, and what do you think of their camp defenses?”

“All of them are the average run of the mill card artisans. There was no sign of anyone who is particularly skilled,” replied the old servant.

“As expected of that wolf! No wonder even Jia Yingxia wanted to recruit him to his cause. A normal card artisan team in his hands could even wipe out the Blood Hammer Unit. It is indeed an impressive feat that is worth the respect afforded to him. Not only him, but the card set too. Without the card set, would the Snow Silkworms Card Artisan Team be the same?” Weiwei snarled coldly.

“This card set is truly shrouded in mystery,” agreed the old servant. He still remembered the surprise he felt when he saw the card set for the first time.

“Station some of our troops nearby to keep an eye on their camp. Report to me immediately if they see anyone enter or exit that camp at any time. Since it’s such a big event, I’m sure that the esteemed leader of Snow Silkworms Card Artisan Team will show up. Besides, if they truly have no intention to do anything in this conference, why would they even bother to come to Qianhu?”

“Yes my lady, I shall see to that immediately!”

A short while after the departure of Weiwei and her servant, Xi Ping and the others had arrived at the meeting room. Bogner relayed to them what Miss Weiwei had said, which led to a messy discussion as everyone tried to voice their thoughts at the same time.

“This Luo family is testing our boundaries,” Xi Ping growled in a low voice. “They have been eyeing our card set technology for quite some time, and now that we are in their sphere of influence, it’s impossible that they don’t have any tricks up their sleeves.”

“That’s right,” Jiang Liang agreed.

“If only the boss was here!” Ru Qiu couldn’t help but grumble.

“Haha!” Bogner laughed and said, “I think the boss will be here soon. Heh, who would have thought that the boss would become so powerful? With Wood Word Camp, even Cang Lan suffered a big loss on his hands. Also, according to the information that we have gathered, Wood Word Camp had disappeared without a trace. If my predictions are correct, then it is very likely that the boss may already be close to Qianhu.”

“Near Qianhu?” Sue Lochiro’s eyes brightened with anticipation.

“Heh heh, why would Wood Word Camp disappear suddenly? That’s most likely because our boss doesn’t want anybody else to know about his destination. Furthermore, if we calculate the travel time relative to the distance, we can safely estimate that the boss will be arriving soon,” explained Bogner.

Right at the end of his explanation, the lazy fat dog that had always been sprawling on the ground suddenly pricked its ears up in alertness and abruptly got to its feet. It let out two deep, throaty barks, and then it scrambled towards the door.

In the meeting room, everyone’s faces drained of color. Did any of their enemies successfully infiltrate the camp?

The dog had almost dashed out of the room when suddenly, a hand reached in from outside and took hold of the fat dog’s scruff. Despite that, the dog didn’t protest or go nuts, its only reaction was to blink its eyes docilely. Every spectator’s jaw dropped as the fat dog had an extraordinarily bad temper, so apart from Ru Qiu and Sue Lochiro, who could get close to it, others couldn’t even touch it, let alone hug it.

There was only one person who could make the dog demonstrate such behavior.

“Wei-ah!” Everyone erupted in excitement and elation.

“Boss!”

A party of travelers, fresh off the road, filed into the room. The person at the lead was that unmistakably familiar youth. This time, all of them weren’t wearing any masks.

Who would have thought that, as they were talking about their boss just now, barely a minute later, the boss would appear in front of them?

“Boss!”

“Boss!”

“Boss!”

…

“All of you gave us quite a hard time trying to find this place,” Chen Mu said with a wide smile. The sudden surprise made everyone feel like they were dreaming.

Wei-ah did not care about anyone else in the room. He picked up the chubby dog gently and made a beeline for the corner of the room, with Little Bomo tagging along tentatively. It was a rare chance to see Wei-ah look like that. However, when he saw how the fat dog resembled a miniature mountain made of meat and bones, he couldn’t help but remark silently in his head, Wei-ah sure has a weird hobby!

When the news of Chen Mu’s return spread through the camp, every member of the Snow Silkworm Card Artisan Team rejoiced and descended into unparalleled joy and celebration!