The Card Apprentice

There was not a single soul in Pomelo, which was all ruins. It had already become a new territory for wild beasts. The formerly bustling city was now overgrown with weeds, along with the occasional small animal. There hadn’t been enough time for tall trees to grow, but it was heaven for rapidly growing things like weeds. They were tall enough to reach a grown person’s knees.

A man with tattered clothes and pieces of grass in his wild hair was walking along the streets of Pomelo. He had a square face with inky, black, thick eyebrows and swarthy skin, though his eyes were as bright as stars. But his eyes were a little dazed as he looked around, muttering to himself, “How could this be? How could this be?”

White bones were strewn all over the place along with the remains of battle. His gaze flitted about until he suddenly strode toward a pile of bones, where he bent down to pick up a card wallet. He recognized it as the newly designed wallet released the previous year by the Aida Company. It looked like the one who had died must have been wealthy while he was alive. Flipping through the wallet, a flash of joy went through his dazed gaze.

Power cards! Five four-star power cards!

He couldn’t help but let out a big sigh. That was the thing he most needed just then! He had always been in the habit of carrying a large quantity of power cards. But during his struggles in the jungle, even though he had been trying to find ways to increase his energy efficiency, he had still exhausted them all.

He picked up a few more card wallets and pulled out all the energy and money cards, tossing away any others without even looking at them. He put all the energy cards he got into a backpack, which he’d also just picked up. Now having power cards, he finally started to look more relaxed. Pomelo had really been badly destroyed. He walked past a few places equipped with fantasy card viewers. Without exception, there was no way to use any of them, though. He guessed the lines had been damaged.

His gaze then fell onto a shuttle car by the side of the road. The shuttle car was pockmarked with rust from being in the sun and rain, and even the cockpit door was rusted away.

He furrowed his black brow, and a red beam suddenly appeared on his hand. A 15-centimeter-long and four-centimeter-wide red energy blade easily cut open an entryway in the cockpit door big enough for him to go through.

Diving into the cockpit, he opened the playback apparatus in the front and flipped through its content. He suddenly looked pleased when a color map appeared on the screen that had popped out. That was just what he had been looking for!

Carefully flipping through it for a moment longer, he then shut off the viewing apparatus and took out the fantasy card without hesitating. Leaving the shuttle car, he looked at the city in ruins and soared into the air with no further nostalgia, cutting a glowing track through the sky.

If anyone had been watching, they would certainly have found his speed shocking and would have marveled at how bold he was. The preferred choice for card artisans in the Outer Reaches was to fly at low altitude. Only really powerful card artisans would be so bold as to fly out in the open like that!

After seven days of flight, the man arrived at Amedal.

No one recognized him. He was too far from the image people had of him by then. Still, no one dared to mock him or bump into him; the power he naturally exuded was enough to scare anyone.

An ace! An absolute ace! Even card artisans unconsciously made way for him. The man maintained his indifferent expression all along, as though everything was as it should be.

As he walked into the city, it made him feel like it was a lifetime ago walking past the dreamy fantasy card advertisements and all the streaming people. Just as he was about to exchange his clothes, he suddenly stopped with his gaze cast toward a giant screen in the middle of the square.

“Friends in the audience! Friends in the audience! This just in! We are witnessing a moment in history! This day will certainly be written in the annals of the Heavenly Federation. Please remember this day. It will be legendary!

“Tang Hanpei, the creator of the level-four records in the federation, known as the most outstanding card artisan in the history of the Federation Comprehensive Academy, has just now succeeded in defeating the master of the Central Repository of the Classics! A lot of people won’t be able to sleep tonight! After Tang Hanpei assumed all the authority for the Federation Comprehensive Academy and so unexpectedly appeared at the gates of the Central Repository of the Classics to challenge its current master…”

The man’s brain went buzzing blank as he dumbfoundedly stared at the screen like a clay figure.

How could this be… How could this be? Tang Hanpei! The Federation Comprehensive Academy! His simple, square face, his thick eyebrows, and his dazed expression turned abruptly severe. He clenched his fists while his body trembled.

Hong!

His out-of-control perception raged like a hurricane, and he left the square with no warning! The pressure he felt was tangible. It spread around with him at its center.

It became as calm and silent as death. Any sound in the huge square disappeared in that instant. Everyone’s faces were frozen with their mouths hanging open, unable to even make a sound. Some card artisans with uncommon power were even looking in fear at that man, who looked like a scavenger.

After a few seconds, the man’s expression returned to normal. The pressure that had prevented anyone from breathing suddenly disappeared.

The square immediately turned chaotic, with the sounds of screaming and crying mixed together everywhere. In the blink of an eye, there was only that lone man remaining in the square.

With his thick, black eyebrows and determined gaze, his expression resumed its normal look. He put aside his intention to change his clothes and went flying straight to the long-distance shuttle train station.

“May I ask if this long-distance shuttle car goes to Dunyan?”

When the station worker heard the plain and simple voice of the one asking the question behind him, he noted some condescension in it. He had been working at the station for 20 years and had seen all sorts of people. Once he heard that voice, he knew the one asking was certainly someone. Moreover, Dunyan was situated at the border of one of the flourishing districts; in general, only passengers coming or going to the flourishing districts would go there. That sort of condescending voice was mostly heard among travelers from the flourishing districts.

“It does, sir. The train is about to depart. If you need a ticket, you’ll have to go ahead to the specific passage,” he answered respectfully. By the time he turned around, he was stunned to find a raggedy man who looked like a scavenger standing in front of him.

He only heard the man say, “Thank you.”

By the time he returned to his senses, there was already no sign of the scavenger.

* * *

Chen Mu looked at the line of people blocking him with a cold expression. He had just come through endless battles those past few days. To put it another way, he still hadn’t come out from his battle state. Going through so many continuous high-level battles meant he had a fight-or-flight reaction when encountering any situation.

That gang only felt a chill to their necks when they were pricked by Chen Mu’s gaze, and they unconsciously retracted their necks.

Could he be someone from Constellation? That was the first thought that flashed through Chen Mu’s mind as his gaze abruptly took on an ill-willed murderousness. The surrounding air temperature seemed to have plunged a few degrees.

“How are you doing, sir?” The lead card artisan looked a little pale, although he still forced out a smile.

“What’s up?” Chen Mu asked in an icy voice.

Under Chen Mu’s oppressive gaze, the lead card artisan was a little flustered. He hadn’t thought he would be facing that kind of situation. He felt some sudden regret; he would never have bothered that guy if he’d known earlier. His response was quick when he found that his hesitancy seemed to have made his counterpart’s gaze cool down a few degrees. He hardened himself and stammered, “It’s… It’s like this. W-we are a trading firm. When we saw there are so many of the materials we urgently need in your travel bags, sir, we made so bold as to flag you down. I wanted to inquire if you are selling, sir. If you are, we would like to make a purchase at a high price.”

“Purchase?” That was unexpected for Chen Mu, and the chill on his face dissipated quite a bit.

“Yes, yes!” Seeing that Chen Mu wasn’t really mad, the lead card artisan set his mind and rushed to say, “We are card artisans from the Chichi Trading Firm. Our boss is the master of the firm. The boss has recently been buying southern snow-ape pelts. Just now, when we saw you had some in your pack, we made so bold as to disturb you. Please excuse us if we have offended you. Our humble firm has 20 years of history in Zargan. If you were to ask around, you would know we would never cheat anyone.”

Although the card artisan’s expression showed some fear, he wasn’t cowering.

Chen Mu’s expression softened as he nodded to say, “Mmmm. I do want to sell these things. If your price is suitable, it would be fine to sell them to you.”

That made the lead card artisan happy. “Wonderful! We will certainly satisfy you with the price. Our humble master will personally discuss the price with you. Please, don’t worry.”

Nodding, Chen Mu didn’t say anything but only signaled for them to lead the way. He had just caught a glimpse of Wei-ah, which made him feel immediately more relaxed. With Wei-ah there, he didn’t need to be concerned at all about his safety. That nod just then was really meant for Wei-ah.

The party quickly arrived at the Chichi Trading Firm. It was a large firm, after all, located in the most prosperous part of Zargan. If one wanted to have such a large-scale trading firm in that district, where land was gold, it would be impossible without some power.

The workers at the firm were clearly familiar with that gang of card artisans. When they saw Chen Mu, however, they couldn’t hide their astonishment.

The lead card artisan took Chen Mu to the VIP lounge, where he served him tea before excusing himself to look for his young master.

Sitting on the soft sofa and sipping the fragrant, light tea, it was like another lifetime ago. Chen Mu poured three cups of tea in a single breath before he stopped drinking. If Xi Ping were to see him, he was afraid he couldn’t have helped but mock him for gulping it like that.

Now comfortable, Chen Mu couldn’t resist his inward thoughts. He vaguely felt that gang had something else in mind. They were certainly not only thinking of buying the bundle of things on his back.