The Card Apprentice

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

Half a year later, at the Pomelo ruins.

All that was left of the once flourishing and prosperous city were ruins. In a few years, this place has been overtaken by weeds and became a haven for wild animals. Except for a few survivors who came back to reminisce, no one ever set foot in the city anymore.

A few years ago, Pomelo was bombarded by Tang Hanpei, and this incident tarnished his honorable reputation. As time passed by, people started to forget about it. Nevertheless, six months ago, Tang Hanpei announced that Pomelo would serve as the location for the final battle. This place has once again attracted the attention of the whole Heavenly Federation.

It was as though the Federation had returned to its olden days in these six months. There was no war, and all the forces were careful, restraining themselves and keeping calm.

Everyone anxiously waited with mixed emotions, anticipating this battle that has drawn the attention of the world.

That day, has finally come.

Tang Hanpei was the world's greatest card artisan, while Chen Mu was the disciple of Caesar. This was the ultimate fight of the Heavenly Federation, but the significance behind the battle was not merely to determine the strongest card artisan.

This match would decide the future direction of the whole Federation; it would determine the life and death of countless people; it would direct the lives of the people in the days to come.

Today, the whole city took time off, everyone stayed at home, waiting in front of their fantasy card receiver.

There was only one show airing on all channels, broadcasting the live battle.

Card artisans who came from all over the world gathered outside the ruins; even news anchors were not allowed to enter. The teams from Eastern Wei and the Comprehensive Federation Academy had utterly surrounded the ruins. There was not too much hostility between both groups of people.

Their leaders would resolve the conflict between the two dominant forces.

What they needed to face were external troubles. Who knew if there were hidden killers among the miscellaneous card artisans surrounding the ruins? Hence, a strange scene was seen outside the Pomelo's ruins. Two forces that were supposed to be incompatible like water and fire were cooperating, in perfect harmony. They were not like enemies but brothers instead.

Chen Mu and Tang Hanpei were high in the air. Only two of them were present in the enormous city ruins.

Looking at the ruins below his feet, Chen Mu felt nostalgic as he recalled the time he was in Pomelo.

"This day has finally come." Tang Hanpei was slow to speak, looking calm as usual and wearing a smile on his face. The years seemed to leave no trace on his face; he still looked the same from the last time Chen Mu saw him.

"Yeah," Chen Mu stretched, sounding relaxed.

Tang Hanpei looked at Chen Mu with admiration, leisurely. "Since the first time I saw you, I knew you would be exceptional. However, I still underestimated the potential in you. At that time, I thought you would only be a grandmaster."

Chen Mu laughed as well. "You overestimated me, I could never become a grandmaster."

"To establish Eastern Wei puts you far beyond a grandmaster." Tang Hanpei shook his head.

"This is not entirely true. I could not establish Eastern Wei without Master Rosenberg," said Chen Mu honestly.

Tang Hanpei shook his head once again. "That is because it was you. Other people would not have been able to create Eastern Wei even if they had the legacy of Rosenberg. The Star Academy actually had the bloodline of Heiner Van Sant."

Chen Mu did not want to argue; he laughed. "Let's stop on this topic."

Tang Hanpei laughed too, he stared at Chen Mu and asked, "Did Caesar pick you to be his disciple so that you can challenge me?"

"Yeah, he took it to the heart that you are the greatest," Chen Mu laughed.

Surprisingly, he did not show any nervousness or timidity when facing the world's greatest, Tang Hanpei. His body was at ease. Both of them were like friends, talking to each other affably.

"Such a pity and a blessing," Tang Hanpei lamented.

"What do you mean?" Chen Mu asked curiously.

There was a distant look in Tang Hanpei's eye, and his voice followed the wind. "It was a pity that I could not fight against Caesar in this lifetime. It was a blessing that Caesar had you as his disciple."

Chen Mu pondered carefully over that statement. All of a sudden, he felt pride filling his heart, and he could not help but smile. "So let's not waste any more time!"

Tang Hanpei showed some reluctance. "I just thought of having a good chat with you. It was hard to find someone to talk to."

He stopped for a while, his facial expression turned cold suddenly and indifferent. He said, "But you are right, let's battle!"

A sudden murderous air erupted as the two were having a standoff in the air.

Inside a small, dark and moldy house, an old man sat in front of a display screen. His hair was gray, his face looked haggard, his eyes were blurry, and he coughed from time to time. Every time he coughed, blood spilled from the corner of his mouth. He was not bothered by it at all, only focusing on the two men displayed on the screen.

"Yes! Yes! Yes!" he mumbled, relief and pride filled his words.

His cough became intense, blood from the corner of his mouth spilled onto his body, it was a ghastly sight.

There was no hint of suffering on the older man's face. He continued to stare at the two men on the screen even when he was coughing.

His cough became weaker, his pupils dilated, and his breath faded away.

Caesar, whose body had been badly damaged for a long time, passed away. The legendary God of Slaughter in the Heavenly Federation chose to leave the world in a way like this. Faint traces of the youth, who had blatantly left the Federation years ago in denial of becoming a pawn, could be seen.

On top of the Pomelo's ruins.

"This is Wang Ge," Tang Hanpei said with a gentle tone, beside him, a porcelain-like child was floating in the air, sucking his chubby thumb, sizing up Chen Mu curiously with his big and innocent eyes.

"Energy war puppet?" Chen Mu was shocked.

Tang Hanpei smiled lightly. "Seven stars card—Wang Ge!"

The energy war puppet was not unexpected because it was the most crucial strength of the Comprehensive Federation Academy. However, he was still astonished when he saw the kid, not because he had such a human-like body.

But intelligence! To his surprise, this energy war puppet had intelligence!

He had never expected this.

An energy war puppet equipped with intelligence, if he did not witness this with his own eyes, who would believe that the research on energy war puppets of the Comprehensive Federation Academy had already reached this profound stage?

The pupils of Wang Ge were moving like two black diamonds. Chen Mu felt a deep chill rising from his heart.

"Wang Ge, play with this brother for a while," Tang Hanpei spoke with such a gentle tone as if he was nursing his son.

"Yi, yi, yi!" Wang Ge clapped his little hands happily and suddenly vanished.

Chen Mu's hair stood on end suddenly. Instinctively, he slid towards the side!

Zi la la!

Three streams of lightning struck his previous position. The adorable silhouette of Wang Ge could be seen indistinctly in the air; he seemed to be even happier that his attack missed.

That was quick!

Even though he had fought a hundred battles, this still made Chen Mu break out in a cold sweat.

Fortunately, he remained in State Zero all along. Otherwise, it would have been tough for him to avoid the previous attack.

Inside the Zero World, a white line showed a subtle hint of leaping. Chen Mu's heart dropped a beat, he moved his jet stream card, and a scorching red light brushed past Chen Mu, missing by a hair's breadth.

Tang Hanpei, who was at a distance, seemed to be very comfortable. He calmly clapped, his tone accompanied with admiration. "Bravo! He is an energy form, familiar with all modes of power attack."

While he was talking, Chen Mu helplessly avoided soundwaves, light blades, electric nets…

This energy form had indeed familiarized himself with all sorts of power attacks. They were at his fingertips, and the speed was incredible. This was far beyond the limit of human card artisans!

No, it cannot go on like this!

Once again, Chen Mu alarmingly dodged Wang Ge's attack and threw out a square metal box.

At the moment when Chen Mu decided to dodge, the attack stopped. To his surprise, Wang Ge appeared next to the metal box and gazed at it curiously.

"Oh, what is this?" Tang Hanpei was also curious.

A chance!

Chen Mu's eyes brightened. Tang Hanpei was now close to him, and Wang Ge was still looking at the metal box.

The energy war puppet card was a type of powerful war card. It could release energy war puppets with high battle strength to help the card artisan defeat his enemy. Energy war puppets usually have potent abilities and were hard to knock down, but card artisans who specialized in energy war puppets were not without their weaknesses. Compared to the active energy war puppets, the card artisans themselves were much weaker.

Killing the card artisan himself is the most common way of dealing with energy-war-puppet card artisans, it is also the most effective way.

Chen Mu's figure flashed past, rushing towards Tang Hanpei.

His vision blurred abruptly. Then, Wang Ge appeared in front of him unexpectedly. He could not help but sigh, forcibly dodging to the side.

An energy cage appeared at the position he was in, anger filled the adorable face of little Wang Ge, Chen Mu's earlier action had provoked him.

"Ya, ya, ya!" he waved his little hands while shouting with his baby voice.

However, his attack, in comparison, was nothing near adorable! If Chen Mu were to describe it with a term, it would be "a furious storm"!

The overwhelming energy rained down heavily!

Chen Mu changed his expression slightly and made a cold hum. His silhouette dimmed. Then, just like a fish swimming against the current, he soared upward.

The Fiend's Eye!

A blood-red eye appeared in front of him. He did not wait for Wang Ge's reaction before activating his supreme skill—Wavering Golden Eye!

The golden pupil inside the blood-eyes was apathetic and callous. Countless tiny golden light beam spiraled towards little Wang Ge, like a bundle of soft golden silk.

Little Wang Ge seemed to be very curious about these golden light beams. He stopped in the air, taking measures against these golden lights with curiosity. It appeared as if he was unaware of how deadly these light beams were!

The golden lights penetrated little Wang Ge's body like needles!

There was no reaction!

As if a stone was thrown into the lake, the surface quickly returned to its calmness.

"Yi, yi, yi!" Little Wang Ge exclaimed with pleasure. His black, bright eyes were wide open, as though he saw something fun.

A chill permeated Chen Mu's heart.

Looking at this adorable and innocent little Wang Ge, he felt an increased horror!

"Hehe, I forgot to mention that any power attack will be useless on little Wang Ge. Also, he can analyze the attacks he has received and duplicates it. So how about it, Master Chen, as a card master, give me your opinion on this card." Tang Hanpei sounded a little sarcastic, looking at the battle between Wang Ge and Chen Mu with satisfaction.

His voice had hardly faded away before little Wang Ge cast a bloody giant eye in front of him. A golden pupil resided inside the giant eye.

In Chen Mu's sight was the flickering of golden lights. He did not have enough time to dodge; in desperation, he activated the Wavering Golden Eye again!

Boom!

Two beams of Wavering Golden Eye collided with each other wildly!

A scorching bright golden mass of light gathered and shone in the air. Like a piercing, bright sun, the golden lights illuminated the whole sky.

A low cry arose from the card artisans who were watching from afar. The dazzling golden lights and intense waves of energy fluctuation made many people subconsciously hold their breath at this moment. The level of explosion coming from the head-on collision between the two strongest people was sufficient to destroy half of Pomelo city.

Everyone could not help but estimate the current power of Chen Mu. The battle between Tang Hanpei and Qiao Yuan in Pomelo years ago did not produce such a mighty force. Otherwise, it would have been unnecessary for Tang Hanpei to use the war card to turn the Pomelo city into ruins.

In mid-air, Chen Mu was flustered. There was only a small piece remaining from the top part of his battle suit.

Not far away, little Wang Ge was looking over with his huge eyes, holding a proud smile on his face. In front of Tang Hanpei, a transparent power shield blocked all the attacks.

A terrifying guy, indeed!

Chen Mu looked at the innocent and pure little Wang Ge. Compared to the tight spot he was in, the battle seemed as simple as drinking water for little Wang Ge. He could even provide Tang Hanpei with an energy shield. Sure enough, it was an energy war puppet. The utilization of power was undoubtedly their basic instinct.

"You must not be familiar with Breakthrough; otherwise, you would still have battle strength. The Fiend's Eye was the strongest light beam card, so how could it be such a mess when played against my Wang Ge? Sadly, even Su Hanhao was incapable of using this move," Tang Hanpei stood proud.

Breakthrough? Chen Mu laughed involuntarily. It was hard enough for him to grasp the Wavering Golden Eye.

Tang Hanpei saw the crisscrossing wound on Chen Mu's body, he was astonished, "No wonder you dared to challenge me, you had something to rely on. You do not have to hold back. Come on! How could Caesar's disciple be equipped with only these tricks?"

With a flash, Chen Mu's figure vanished, and he appeared right beside little Wang Ge.

Little Wang Ge was sucking his little finger. His absentminded look would make people smile. He looked as if he did not know about the danger that was approaching.

The right arm of Chen Mu suddenly moved in a strange motion; every muscle of his arms trembled all of a sudden. Phew! An Air Slash slipped out of his hand.

The Air Slash was almost transparent, its material was like a clear crystal, breaking the air with a light moan instead of the previous sharp thrush, only a soft hissing sound was heard. In this half a year, his Airskill has gone up to a higher level.

The transparent crystal-like Air Slash swept through countless remnant shadows, shooting towards little Wang Ge at a speed hard to catch with the naked eye.

Chen Mu was gasping. He used enough strength for that strike to make sure he could hit little Wang Ge. This could be seen from the terrifying speed of the Air Slash.

Got it!

The Air Slash was like a hot metal blade slashing through butter, effortlessly chopping little Wang Ge into half.

Chen Mu was just starting to relax, when all of a sudden, his pupils contracted! The waist of little Wang Ge that was chopped into two was transforming mystically, recovering to his original form in the speed of light.

How could it be?

Tang Hanpei laughed, "Little Wang Ge is an energy form; this kind of attack is useless on him. Why are you covering up? I do not even have to guess. You are buying time. Your ultimate weapon is this box, right!"

His long and fair finger pointed towards the quietly floating metal box.

Chen Mu's expression changed slightly.

"It was not damaged at all by the power attack just now, even its position remained the same," Tang Hanpei said calmly, "I know the Eastern Wei are experts in card appliances, the outcome of your research with all the forces in Eastern Wei must not be a common item."

"I guess you have bought enough time. I am looking forward to it." Tang Hanpei laid out one finger, his tone was serious. "Do you know why I admire you?"

He continued to talk, "You always broke the old stuff, and made something new. This applies to the cards you make, even to your founding of the Eastern Wei; all of them are new. Breaking through the old rules, I like it."

"Come on!" Tang Hanpei straightened his back. He was like an unsheathed sword, remarkably sharp!

However, Chen Mu turned his body around, suddenly rushing toward the ground.

"Hehe, running away?" Tang Hanpei raised his brows. He was overflowing with a murderous aura. "That's enough! If you have nothing else up your sleeve, then die!"

Little Wang Ge raised his tender hands in the air, shocking waves of energy fluctuated like the surging seawater.

The waves of energy fluctuated as if doomsday was here, rippling away like waves.

The clouds started to gather on top of little Wang Ge. In a blink of an eye, dark clouds were all over the sky of Pomelo city, the lightning flashed, and thunder rumbled!

All card artisans who were watching from afar were dumbstruck; their face turned ashen.

This power… was it really something achievable by a card artisan?

Although Tang Hanpei had the title of the world's greatest, everybody still underestimated him. His strength was far beyond the limit of all imagination! Under such powerful energy, you would feel as if you are as tiny as an ant. It was almost impossible for anyone to have the desire to oppose him!

Chen Mu did not turn around. He did not need to. The destructive waves of energy fluctuation in the sky above his head made every cell in his body tremble involuntarily.

He did not slow down but accelerated. The wind blew across his ears. He was like a meteor falling from the sky, about to crash ferociously to the ground.

"Can you escape?" Tang Hanpei sounded indifferent with a hint of disdain. Chen Mu's attempt at escape worsened Tang Hanpei's impression of him.

At this exact moment, something unforeseen happened!

Ding!

A crisp sound even the roaring thunder and lightning could not block!

Tang Hanpei felt an irresistible impulse to turn his head around.

The metal box has disappeared. There was only a ball of black mass!

Absolute darkness, it was as if that block of space had collapsed, vanished.

Little Wang Ge's face showed an expression of pain and suffering.

Hiss, hiss, hiss!

The lights in the rolling layer of clouds flushed towards the ball; the scene of dense lights swarming into darkness was frightening.

This sphere was like an avaricious monster that would never have its belly filled, for it continuously swallowed the electric awns.

The hint of suffering on little Wang Ge's face became stronger and stronger, as his form became blurry. He turned around and tried to run away, but no matter how hard he tried, he could not move an inch. After a few seconds, he became a mass of colored light rays. Just like those other lights, it slowly approached its doom. The closer it got to the black ball, the stronger the suction force.

Tang Hanpei's expression changed for the first time. He turned pale!

Almost in the blink of an eye, he understood the function of this mass of darkness⁠—engulfing energy! It could consume all forms of energy!

He could feel that he was losing control over the power of the energy card inside his meter, as it was itching for action!

He had a sudden realization; Chen Mu was not running away—he didn't want to fall to his death!

Tang Hanpei did not hesitate. Using all his perceptions, he managed to control the power in his meter, turned around and flew towards the ground.

Chen Mu could not care about anything else. That thing, it knew nothing about differentiating between enemy or ally!

The power in the meter became more and more disordered and out of control! Fortunately, he got closer and closer to the ground. It was just a matter of speed…

D*mn it!

The power in his meter lost all control. Sizz, sizz, sizz. It was broken down into a series of rays, shooting towards the black ball.

Chen Mu was shocked. He had no energy, and the jet stream card had lost its function, he had no way to slow down!

D*mn it!

He could not help but break out into curses. He was only 50 meters away from the ground!

This time, he couldn't care less about others; he clenched his fists and shoved them into a downward motion. Air Pellet!

He could only borrow some energy from the reflected shock!

Between life and death, he went into a rampage. With his eyes red, he growled and raged while his fists punched like shadows. Countless Air Pellets rumbled down in desperation. The ruins below were bombarded into a mud pit, the strikes scattered even the mud…

Boom!

Chen Mu fell heavily onto the mud pit. His head felt heavy!

After a long time, he crawled up with much difficulty. It was as though his whole body was no longer in one piece, and it was almost impossible to raise both of his arms due to the aftereffect of using the Airskill crazily! He looked around as if he were off in another world.

I survived at last!

That scene just now, it was so close!

Swiftly, his gaze fixed on Tang Hanpei! Not far away, Tang Hanpei was walking with difficulty. It was unexpected that he could land safely! The perception control of this guy was terrifying!

But now…

Tang Hanpei also caught sight of Chen Mu and stopped, knowing that it was useless to run away. The energy in his meter was all gone, and although Chen Mu looked way more flustered than him, Chen Mu's ability as a cardless sect member became the last straw that crushed the camel to its death.

"You have won!" Tang Hanpei looked calm. "I only have one question, what is that box?"

After taking a deep glance at Tang Hanpei, Chen Mu attacked without hesitation!

Only after the body of Tang Hanpei fell to the ground did he spit out three words unhurriedly, "Energy Black Hole!"

It was chaotic outside Pomelo City. Card artisans were surprised as they suddenly realized that they had lost control of all their powers from the power-card inside their meters. The power-cards had all disappeared!

In this period, countless card artisans fell from the sky to their deaths!

The other card artisans also lost their battle strength. However, the card artisans from Eastern Wei were well prepared. The cardless sects were their foundations, to begin with, giving them the upper hand in a situation like this.

When Chen Mu walked out of the ruins, Eastern Wei burst into cheers!

It was clear to everyone that the outcome was a foregone conclusion!

(The End)