The Card Apprentice

Rong Ming was so angry that he smiled. “Your eminence is surely joking to just open your mouth to call out a suspect. Aren’t you aware that I humbly serve as the captain of the guards division?”

At that time, an elegant-sounding woman’s voice said, “So, Faya is still as arrogantly defiant as always, after all.” The voice was as sweet as could be, and everyone involuntarily turned their gaze toward the voice’s source, which was impressively Miss Tan Yumin. She walked in a leisurely fashion with a small, elegant smile on her face. She took a look at Butchie with a mild expression before turning to give Chen Mu a sweet smile.

Sensing the surrounding gazes brushing over him, and the envy and jealousy they contained, made him feel uncomfortable all over. Good lord. A single monkey is plenty bothersome, but with two of them… How can a person even go on?

“Miss Tan Yumin?” Butchie’s gaze became suddenly aggressive. Faya hadn’t only had one or two struggles with Tan Yumin, and she had long ago heard of how capable that woman was.

“Oh, you know me?” Tan Yumin lightly glanced at her as though she were looking at air and calmly said, “I’ve been schooled in Faya’s moves many times over. It would seem that wherever Faya shows up, there are always murders.”

Butchie snorted. “It’s not too late for the feud between us to be settled when the time comes, Miss Tan. What do you mean by shielding him this time?” She was speaking quite cleverly, pointing out the basic enmity that existed between them. That made it easy to mislead the others, as if the reason Tan Yumin had spoken as she had was only because she wanted revenge on Faya.

“Feud?” Tan Yumin seemed to be chewing on that term before smiling sweetly. “Faya has assassinated me several times over, which shows a pretty big vendetta.” She lifted her flawless chin as her expression became abruptly disdainful. “Still, who are you to represent Faya? Of course I will avenge this enmity directly with Faya, but how do you qualify?”

Butchie’s face abruptly flushed red for her to have been so scorned by her counterpart, and the crowd in the hall went immediately wild. Faya had actually dared to assassinate Miss Tan Yumin? At that time, nearly everyone was looking at Butchie with gazes full of disparagement. For those past few days, apart from having to attend banquets, Tan Yumin had spent all of her time taking care of orphans. She wasn’t just making a show of it but was actually doing the work. She had used her own behaviors to win over everyone’s respect and admiration.

Still, Butchie remembered her goal in coming there and powerfully repressed the anger she felt. “Miss Tan naturally has the last word about whether I have the qualifications. Regardless, it involves our Madam this time, and whoever blocks our way is our enemy!”

Butchie had spoken so firmly that everyone felt chilled! Of course Faya wasn’t the equal of Moon Frost Island in the Heavenly Drum Village District, and perhaps they had no way to face off against Miss Tan Yumin so long as she had Mei Ji. But if she were to enrage Faya to go up against such local powers as they were, that wouldn’t be so difficult for Faya!

Tan Yumin gave a light laugh. “No matter how strong Faya is, you still have to talk reason. You say the White Commander is Qiao Yuan, but what proof do you have?”

Butchie wasn’t moved by that, and she said in a low voice, “Take off his mask, and we can know whether he is or isn’t.”

Tan Yumin took a look at Chen Mu, whose eyes through the white mask had no sign of fluctuation, as though what was happening in front of him had nothing to do with him. Without knowing why, once she saw Chen Mu’s indifference, she felt rather speechless. Her eyes then flashed a hint of playfulness.

Chen Mu was certainly cool and calm. That was because he had suddenly realized there was absolutely nothing for him to be afraid of. Apart from Butchie and Rong Ming, no one there could pose any threat to him, and he wasn’t worried about the rest of them. Moreover, in such a complicated environment, once things erupted in confusion, no one could stop him when he was using the Big Mudfish.

By the time he and Wei-ah and the rest would be gathered, even fewer people in Dongrui could stop them. Perhaps they couldn’t make a frontal attack with their insufficient numbers, but stopping them wasn’t something that would depend only on the number of card artisans. And, once they entered the forest, never mind Faya; even if Tang Hanpei himself were to come, he wouldn’t necessarily be able to nab them.

Wei-ah was a specialist in the forest, and Xiaobo had honed his skills alone in the forest across many years. Chen Mu himself could be considered half an expert in the forest. Battles there were what they were best at. There was nothing for him to be afraid of! After he thought it through, Chen Mu quickly relaxed.

Tan Yumin protecting the White Commander like that raised a lot of speculation among quite a few people.

Smiling meaningfully, Tan Yumin said languidly, “There’s no need to remove it. I just happen to know where the White Commander comes from.” She looked at Butchie with ridicule. “I wonder how Faya would treat you if they were to find out you were now bound up with such a powerful enemy?”

“That’s not something for Miss Tan to be concerned about.” Butchie felt chilled, but her mouth held forth as though she were tough. Could the White Commander really have some kind of background?

Tan Yumin seemed to have seen the worries beneath Butchie’s look. The curve on her mouth grew, though she maintained the elegance of her smile. “Oh, I do believe you will certainly have heard of his teacher.”

Butchie felt an ominous premonition as she responded by instinct, “Who is he?”

“The killing god, Caesar!” Tan Yumin lightly spat out those four words.

Some people overturned their tables with a crash, everything smashing to the floor. Some spattered wine on their snow-white shirts, not even noticing. But most of the people were subconsciously retreating several steps away, as though there was something frightening in front of them.

Chen Mu was immediately surrounded by emptiness, leaving him standing there alone like a rock. In the eyes of the crowd, the white mask with those two curvy black lines winding down it became suddenly criss-crossed with a murderous aura. That indifferent gaze became like the god of death watching someone in their dying struggles with no hint of feeling.

Rong Ming’s face shifted, and his gaze also became terrified. Butchie’s face was brushed white and without a hint of blood.

The killing god, Caesar! Those four words were the stuff of nightmares in the hearts of federation card artisans. Even the military couldn’t compare with the blood on Caesar’s hands.

If one were to say the air had been on fire just before, it was now as cold as the polar winds, everyone only feeling a chill to the point of freezing solid. It was deathly still! No one dared to say anything or even to move. Even though their clothes were stained with red wine and butter, they didn’t dare to wipe it off.

It was Caesar’s disciple, after all! No wonder he wanted to wear a mask. That thought popped into everyone’s head at the same time. They were absolutely unconcerned about whether there was any logical connection between wearing a mask and being Caesar’s disciple. Tai-shu Yong’s gaze, which only just before had shown no signs of struggle, became terrified.

Chen Mu was somewhat surprised, not having thought Caesar’s name would actually be so powerful.

Beads of sweat oozed from Butchie’s forehead; the situation in front of her had gone far beyond anything she’d expected. Her adversary was Caesar’s disciple, and she had poked a hornets nest! Caesar was a tough character feared by everyone. He had dared to challenge the Federation Comprehensive Academy with only his individual power. What made Caesar most famous was his violent temper and his character as a killer. He would make a move if a single word was out of place, which was really nothing more than eating lunch to him. No power wanted to offend that lunatic, especially in those desperate times!

“I didn’t know you were actually the disciple of the elder Caesar, White Commander. I am sorry if I have just offended you.” Butchie tried hard to maintain her calm. Her arrogant bullying had made her suddenly admit defeat and made her wonder what she was going to do.

Seeing Butchie’s attitude turn around 180 degrees right in front of him, Chen Mu felt like he was watching a farce. He hadn’t said a single word from the beginning, when Rong Ming had become enraged, even through Tan Yumin’s appearance and Butchie’s apology. It was just that…

Chen Mu’s gaze became colder and darker. A thread of murderousness followed the cold and gradually rippled open.

Ping! Ping! Ping! People were uncontrollably dropping their wine glasses to the floor, where they broke into pieces.

Rong Ming was crying out to himself about how awful things had become. He had seen Caesar but hadn’t thought of him since. The card artisan who had made him feel so gripped by fear had actually been Caesar! Looking at Butchie’s face, which had gone white, he was crying inwardly about how badly things had gone. Of course, the White Commander couldn’t have caused offense. If someone from Faya were to die in his place, however, his days from then on wouldn’t go so well.

“Don’t get angry, White Commander. Don’t get angry. I’m sure this young lady didn’t wish to cause any offense.” Rong Ming rushed to smooth things over while making a look toward Tai-shu Yong on the side.

Tai-shu Yong, who looked terrified, responded. As he was just about to open his mouth, though, Chen Mu had something to say.

His voice was cool and calm, with the icy feeling of a knife being stuck into the neck. “No matter who you are, you’ll have to pay the price for slandering me in public!” The two winding black lines on the white mask were shaking along with the flesh on his face, as though the mask had come to life. It was unspeakably bizarre and eerie.

Rong Ming was crying bitterly to himself.

“Today is Miss Rong’s birthday, and I don’t wish to destroy such beauty.”

Rong Ming’s heart abruptly lightened, but he had no chance to feel glad. Danger filled the sky along with those chilly words. It swept the entire hall, blowing Rong Ming’s hopeful heart back to ashes!

“Ten moves, win or lose!”

If it had been just before, everyone would probably have laughed if Chen Mu had said that. Now, however, everyone knew it was a matter of course. They felt from their hearts that the White Commander intended to let the woman go that day. All of that was because of a single name: the killing god, Caesar!

Chen Mu wasn’t thinking about any of that; his gaze was fixed on Butchie. Murderousness was raging in his chest, and he wasn’t thinking what others were. He had no intention of letting Butchie go. The matter of offending Faya had long since lost any impact on him. Hadn’t he already completely offended Faya? The enmity between him and Faya was now a true matter of enmity to the death, with no possibility of reconciliation!

The perfect opportunity was right in front of him! Butchie’s arrogance and bullying had given him sufficient excuse for trouble. He did know that if his plan were truly to be exposed, though, Rong Ming would certainly make a move! He would absolutely not allow Butchie to die in his house.

Therefore, he had deliberately said ten moves. That was the only way Rong Ming wouldn’t interfere. No one believed he could kill Butchie in ten moves even if he were wearing Caesar’s halo. Rong Ming didn’t believe it, Butchie didn’t believe it, Tan Yumin didn’t believe it, and no one else did, either!

Moreover, he still couldn’t use the Bipolar Card or the Golden Word Shackle, which would expose his identity. He could only use the Hundred Changes!

To kill Butchie within ten moves relying on the Hundred Changes… There was only a single thing to his calm and cool gaze—murderousness!