The Card Apprentice

For a card artisan, ten moves was no more than the instant a spark was struck from a flint.

The atmosphere in the great hall had relaxed quite a bit. Everyone believed the White Commander was going to give the Madam from Faya a way out. So long as he wasn’t going to kill anyone, the guests didn’t seem that nervous. They were most afraid of the White Commander killing someone there. While they might not have been able to say their own hands were clean, they couldn’t help but feel on edge beside someone so famous for killing people.

Still, it didn’t seem as though the White Commander was thinking that way, which eased the atmosphere in the hall. Most of them became excited to watch the battle between the two of them.

A person’s a name was like the shadow of a tree, and the magnificence of Caesar’s name had long since been etched into the minds of federation card artisans. Even though the man in front of them was only Caesar’s student, Butchie didn’t dare to be the least bit careless.

She activated the card in her apparatus in the first instant, and a chill filled the hall with shocking speed as the temperature plunged.

Astonishingly, a pair of long blue energy wings appeared on Butchie’s back in midair. The blue wings stretched from her ribs and extended all the way to the height of her shoulders, though they were two meters wide when opened. The pair of wings was composed of countless energy blades, each of which was about two fingers wide and suffused with a pure blue glow. The wings they composed were crystal-clear, as though made by polishing countless blue chips of sapphire. A bout of cold air arose when she spread her wings, which made the wings into something like wings of ice. The soft carpet became quite hard from the effect of that blast of chill, and fine ice crystals appeared not far from where Butchie was.

Rong Ming’s gaze focused as he blurted out, “Floating Wings of Blue Ice!”

The expressions of the card artisans in the hall became complicated.

After the five-star Floating Wings of Blue Ice was activated, it could form wings composed of blue energy blades. That was one top-of-the-line card and one that everyone was familiar with. It was publicly recognized as premium goods. With its two wings, one didn’t necessarily need the help of a jet stream card to move about freely. Not only that, but that pair of blue wings could spontaneously exude a frigid breath, which could be useful to greatly weaken close-combat card artisans without influencing the body of the one using it. The pair of wings was formed by 1,000 energy blades, each of which had shocking lethality.

Many legends had been created in the history of the Heavenly Federation about that card, but no one had ever thought Faya would get it. Moreover, it looked like Faya had not only gotten the card, but it must have included its legacy and how to make it.

They had previously thought the woman who kept saying she represented Faya was nothing more than a bit player. By now, however, no-one would look down on Butchie. How could she be a bit player if she was able to get the Floating Wings of Blue Ice?

It was Chen Mu’s first time to see such a strange card! He had seen plenty of energy simulations, such as the common Fiery Dragon Card, which emitted dragon-shaped energy bodies. But he had never seen such an energy simulation as the one in front of him. Those many energy blades seemed more like polished gemstones than energy bodies.

What a stable energy simulation! From that alone, Chen Mu was inwardly stunned. Clearly, the composition of those energy blades was utterly rational. Once an energy composition tended toward the reasonable, that would greatly decrease its rate of energy consumption. Thus, those massive wings would actually not be consuming energy at the shocking speed people might expect.

Feeling the bone-piercing cold, Chen Mu dared to affirm that the temperature of those energy blades was definitely extremely low! If one were touched by such a low-temperature energy blade, one would immediately plunge into a frozen state. His battling made high demands on his body, and any slowing would be fatal for him.

However, Chen Mu didn’t know anything about that sort of card, but was familiar to card artisans throughout the federation. He could only guess the characteristics of the Floating Wings of Blue Ice by the form of the energy bodies his adversary emitted.

Even so, he wasn’t the least bit afraid. Experiencing incessant battles had made his psychological qualities more mature by the day, so he could face any situation calmly. He had long since expected that her power had increased. Although the Floating Wings of Blue Ice were novel, he had seen countless cards.

His pupils contracted, and the mask made it impossible for anyone to see his expression. He could just stand quietly by as though he were indifferent to Butchie’s Floating Wings of Blue Ice, making him seem more inscrutable than ever. Now that Faya had opened with the renowned Floating Wings of Blue Ice, what would the White Commander use, as the descendant of the killing god, Caesar?

The colors of the world in front of him quickly faded as it turned into countless black and white lines that sketched out its every shape. Chen Mu’s mind became still more relaxed under State Zero. The exclamations from all around him were clearly transmitted to his ears. By that time, though, it was like his consciousness was drawn far away, and he was looking down on everything from someplace up high.

Butchie was decomposed into countless fine, hair-like lines. The smallest changes in her expression could be captured and seen clearly by Chen Mu through the fine grid structure. What surprised him, however, was that the pair of ice wings on her back couldn’t be decomposed! He could make out the approximate form of the structure, but its fine composition couldn’t be decomposed except for a few coarse lines.

It was Chen Mu’s first time to encounter that situation. He immediately understood that his ability in State Zero was insufficient, and he had no way to establish a model for the ice wings. That made his mind still more cautious since Butchie’s power had increased far more than he’d thought! Ten moves…

Butchie’s eyes had turned deep blue in midair, and there was nothing to be seen of her previous nervous terror as she stared coldly at Chen Mu.

Chen Mu made his move! With a flash, his body disappeared from where it had been.

So fast! The faces of the surrounding card artisans flinched; they had only seen a blur in front of them with no trace of the White Commander. Even Rong Ming looked shocked, having discovered the White Commander’s power seemed to have been somewhat refined since his previous contest with Ba Luojia! He wondered if the White Commander had deliberately held back last time or if he had improved in the meantime.

Rong Ming’s expression then changed. No matter which way it was, they would both prove how terrifying the White Commander was! If he had been hiding his power last time, that would be enough to demonstrate the depth and sophistication of his scheming and restraint. Once one offended a person like that, the consequences would be endless. If it were that he had progressed in the meantime… Even just thinking about it made Rong Ming feel his mouth go dry. That would only mean the White Commander’s talent was unbelievably shocking!

Moreover, there was nothing of Caesar’s violent addiction to killing to be seen on the White Commander! If it weren’t for Tan Yumin having destroyed his previous conjecture with her own words, he wouldn’t have dared to determine the White Commander’s identity. He couldn’t help but feel that Caesar’s luck was quite good for him to be able to get such a student and to not to have to turn his back on his life’s skills.

Rong Ming suddenly got a glimpse of the calm expression on Tan Yumin’s face. How was she so certain of the White Commander’s identity?

Among Chen Mu’s cards, he hadn’t used the Hundred Changes very heavily. Because of its low damage value, and given the battles Chen Mu was then facing, it was always hard for it to play any role. But it was still one of the cards Chen Mu was most familiar with among all of his cards. From its design to making it, he had done it all himself, and its composition wasn’t nearly so complex as that of the Child. He was as familiar as could be with everything about how to use it.

A deep green glow cut through the sky like a shocking rainbow. In the instant Chen Mu disappeared from where he had been, Butchie made her move. Three blue energy blades broke away from her ice wings and went shooting toward Chen Mu in a triangular formation.

The beautiful energy blades as pure as jewels exuded a deadly breath, and their shrill whistle made everyone’s heart clench! They were like three glowing blue streaks that were too fast to capture.

Pow!

The three blue streaks hit the wisp of green glow. The green glow, once so stunning, now looked so bleak in front of those dazzling blue streaks. With no suspense, the green glow was easily smashed by the three energy blades. Like three pieces of thin sapphire, the energy blades penetrated and shredded the glow as though it were fog. They then looked like they would hit Chen Mu.

Rong Ming frowned involuntarily. Was the White Commander still holding back? Although he didn’t know the name of the card in Chen Mu’s hands, he could mostly determine its power and star level. Unless he were at the level of Qiao Yuan or Jiao Si, it would be impossible to win against the Floating Wings of Blue Ice with such a card.

Seeing the eyes of the White Commander behind his mask on the scene, he felt more and more as though he couldn’t tell. It wouldn’t be unexpected for the White Commander to let that woman off. Most people would make the right choice unless they were as psychopathic as Caesar. In Rong Ming’s estimation, the White Commander should use his true skills to intimidate his adversary before magnanimously exposing his intentions. That way, he could earn his prestige without offending Faya. But if he were defeated by that woman, everyone would mock his stupidity and overreaching, which would immediately cause his prestige to bite the dust.

Chen Mu made a deft lateral shift to dodge the three rays of blue energy blades. At the same time, the light green energy bodies in his hands underwent another transformation. Shadows were popping out of the index finger of his right hand as countless fine energy threads came spurting from his fingers at shocking speed. Those energy threads interlaced in the blink of an eye and composed themselves into a huge net, enshrouding Butchie’s face.

That gorgeous move displayed Chen Mu’s powerful and refined perceptual control. The guests only saw a light green energy net suddenly appear on top of Butchie’s head like magic. Then, those card artisans’ faces turned serious in their praise.

Among the countless energy threads was hidden great danger. Any one of the energy threads could possibly show its fangs by becoming an energy thorn.

The expression on Butchie’s face didn’t change, as though she hadn’t even seen the huge energy net on her head. Her gaze was fixed on Chen Mu.

Just when the energy net was about to fall onto her head, her two icy wings suddenly spread, and the blue glow wove together with such speed that it couldn’t be seen by the naked eye. The energy net, which had been airtight, was twisted to pieces in that instant. The air was then full of bits of energy thread, that energy net finally having been twisted easily into countless pieces.

One of the card artisans shook his head and said, “It’s useless. Such an attack is just too uselessly flashy in front of the Floating Wings of Blue Ice.”

Even hearing that, Rong Ming’s didn’t take his gaze off of the White Commander. He had seen that man kill four people in the blink of an eye and didn’t think that was the only move he had.

The shredded energy threads were dancing in the wind and filled the sky like willow catkins. Rong Ming was moved as he watched the shreds of fine energy threads, which hadn’t dispersed. Could it be… Before he could think much about it, the dancing energy threads filling the sky suddenly drew tight and became as straight as needles.

Weng! They swarmed! Everyone saw a gorgeous scene as thousands of glowing threads suddenly converged on a single point. The sky was glowing like rain, so finely woven that the energy needles, which had just been drifting in midair, went shooting straight at Butchie from all directions!

That sudden twist exceeded everyone’s expectations. The card artisans who had just felt that the energy net was vulnerable were staring with their mouths hanging open.

Butchie’s pupils suddenly constricted; she finally felt the breath of danger! She curled into a ball and suddenly retracted her two wings and covered her whole body with them. “Hmph!” She made a cold snort as her body suddenly disappeared!

Anyone familiar with the Floating Wings of Blue Ice knew what those icy wings were capable of. Perhaps, however, no one knew Butchie could move that quickly!

The impressive display of the rain of needles became a glowing cloak of shredded glow without warning. It was composed of thousands of high-speed energy needles, which were annihilated at the same time into the spectacular scene of glowing shreds. The light green shreds were blown by the agitated air into a swirl. The entire hall was changed into a dreamy blur rendered in that instant by the swirling, shredded glow.

Apart from drawing amazement from the wealthy ladies, that gorgeous scene didn’t make any of the other card artisans avert their gazes in the least. Their astounded gazes were fixed on the two in midair without exception.

Chen Mu had already appeared in front of Butchie by the time she had used the speed and protection of the ice wings to escape from the rain of needles. In the eyes of everyone below, it was as though Butchie had rushed in front of the White Commander herself.

That was just too scary! Apart from his terrifying perceptual control, the appearance of the White Commander also made them unable to believe his tactical ability! Beginning with his first trial with the streak of green until the seemingly vulnerable energy net, the White Commander had started to set the stage. That hugely powerfully rain of needles had been nothing more than a feint by the White Commander. The shredded glow, which still hadn’t dissipated, reminded everyone of that!

That rain of needles had tricked Butchie and had tricked them all! That strategy of ratcheting forward step by entrenched step was enough to terrify everyone! Even Rong Ming’s expression looked a little ugly. Chen Mu was shocked; in his hands, a card he had considered perfectly ordinary had actually put into play such terrifying power. He had suddenly discovered that he seemed to have been a long way off in his estimation of the White Commander. At the same time, an ominous premonition was slowly crawling into his head.

With Butchie having suddenly appeared in front of him using the ice wings for protection, the two sides were so close that Chen Mu could finally see each energy blade clearly! Where he had previously been unable to establish a model for the ice wings, it now suddenly appeared in his black and white world. Chen Mu’s pupils remained just as cold and didn’t waver in the least, but he could feel that bone-piercing chill quickly spreading through his body!

All of those moves, which had exhausted his ingenuity, were for that one front-line opportunity!