Chapter 22

Chapter 22

Ning Zhu poked its trembling little head and said, “I won’t give you the chance.”

Bai Ze: “……”

Ning Zhu: “As long as I become strong enough, you won’t eat me.”

Bai Ze turned back and glared at her. “Who wants to eat you! Could you possibly taste better than canned food!”

Seeing Bai Ze turn back around, Ning Zhu scratched under its chin again and asked once more, “Will [Fate Conversion] cause harm to you?”

Bai Ze let out a rather pleased purring sound and said, “What kind of joke is that? It’s just two Zodiac Cards. At most they’d only tickle a [Star God Card].”

Ning Zhu now had a clear understanding in her heart. She looked toward Yang Huaizhou and said, “Principal, I have no more questions.”

Yang Huaizhou could not hear Bai Ze’s voice, but he could hear what Ning Zhu was saying—

She was worrying about the Star God Card spirit.

“Student Ning Zhu…” Worry filled Yang Huaizhou’s tone.

Ning Zhu guessed what he wanted to say and took the initiative to speak first. “Principal, how did you learn that this Star God Card spirit would eat its card owner?”

Those words sounded somewhat ungrateful. Yang Huaizhou had kindly warned her, yet she was instead questioning him. But this matter was too important, so Ning Zhu had no choice but to ask clearly.

“You said before that there are very few records regarding [Star God Cards]. Moreover, the number of card owners capable of seeing the card spirit is already extremely small, so…”

Yang Huaizhou said, “This was a warning left behind by the first-generation card owner.”

Ning Zhu: “……”

The chubby white cat visibly shrank back a little, but it said nothing, as though it had heard nothing at all.

Yang Huaizhou added, “Of course, this may not necessarily be reliable. Only Star Demon saw that warning, and that person… has always been full of lies. You can’t completely trust what he says.”

Ning Zhu’s brows furrowed slightly.

Judging from Star Demon’s later actions, perhaps he really had seen that warning, which was why he had “killed” Bai Ze.

Of course, it was also possible that Star Demon was the villain accusing first.

Clearly he wanted to kill Bai Ze, yet he first claimed that Bai Ze would eat him.

“I understand.” Ning Zhu gathered her thoughts and said, “I trust my own judgment, and I also believe Bai Ze would never harm me.”

Those words sounded as though she were saying them to Yang Huaizhou, but every single one went straight into the little white cat’s ears.

Its ears trembled slightly. With a catlike huff, its body no longer remained so tense. Its soft front paws and back paws drooped down lazily as it sprawled across Ning Zhu’s shoulders.

Yang Huaizhou said nothing more.

On the surface, he said that Star Demon was full of lies and that his words could not be trusted.

But deep down, he knew that the Star Demon who had spoken those words to him back then was trustworthy.

At that time, there had been no need for him to deceive him.

“To avoid future complications, I’ll contact Li Jin right away and have him cast [Fate Conversion] for you.”

“Mhm!”

The moment Ning Zhu thought about the possibility of her parents being discovered, she wished everything could happen faster and faster and faster.

Li Jin arrived very quickly. He was still wearing the Libra Division uniform of the Spirit Card Academy.

The white upper garment, the sharp shoulder lines, and the neatly arranged buttons extended down to a deep blue waist binding as dazzling and mysterious as the starry sky, making his figure appear even taller and straighter.

The dark trousers were tucked into leather boots. The perfect fusion of Chinese style and modern fashion gave him a unique temperament that was calm and restrained while also carrying a sharp edge.

“Senior Li Jin!” Ning Zhu was very happy to see him again. She greeted him enthusiastically and then asked, “Your body is fine now, right?”

Last time in the Land of Spiritual Resonance, Li Jin had suffered backlash from the Zodiac Card in order to break open the [Maze Card].

Li Jin said, “I’m fine now.”

Ning Zhu carefully observed his complexion, but could not see anything unusual.

Yang Huaizhou said, “Don’t worry. He only needs to assist me. He won’t shake the [Libra Card] again.”

Ning Zhu did not understand these things, so she could only nod and obediently wait.

The process was far longer than she had imagined.

Ning Zhu could only sit there completely motionless.

Yang Huaizhou summoned the [Aries Card]. It was an exceptionally beautiful card, entirely dark red in color—restrained yet passionate. The back was covered in intricate patterns, and every single line seemed to hide countless secrets within it, making it impossible to look away.

Ning Zhu could not see the front, yet she was already deeply captivated, unable to move her eyes away.

So beautiful.

Only those three words echoed through her mind.

At that moment, a streak of starlight flashed past, and Li Jin’s [Libra Card] floated in midair.

The instant she saw it, even Ning Zhu’s breathing nearly stopped.

The beauty of the [Aries Card] still carried a certain restraint, but the [Libra Card] was gorgeous and flamboyant, its beauty overwhelmingly striking. Its entire body was the deep blue of a profound starry sky. Too many stars glittered upon it, dazzling Ning Zhu until she could hardly take it all in, even giving rise to a strange yearning within her…

Yearning?

Ning Zhu shuddered and forcibly suppressed her violently pounding heart.

Bai Ze lifted his eyelids slightly and lazily said, “That Libra brat is still too young and can’t completely control the [Libra Card]. Mm, though at only seventeen or eighteen years old, being able to reach this level is already very impressive.”

Ning Zhu’s mind was a mess, but she barely understood Bai Ze’s words.

Because of control?

Principal Yang Huaizhou clearly had stronger control over the [Aries Card], so all she felt was that the [Aries Card] was beautiful.

Senior Li Jin, on one hand, was too young, and on the other hand had only recently obtained the [Libra Card], so his control was insufficient. That was why the [Libra Card] was exposed so completely, so…

The word “alluring” spun wildly through Ning Zhu’s mind.

She had to use all her strength just to suppress the surging emotions in her chest.

Want…

Want to eat him…

Ning Zhu abruptly shut her eyes tight. She gripped the armrest so hard her fingernails nearly split apart.

“Star butterflies tremble, the fate disk rotates.”

A low voice sounded out. Yang Huaizhou and Li Jin successfully activated [Fate Conversion].

Ning Zhu’s mind was filled entirely with the [Libra Card], and she heard everything only vaguely.

Come to think of it, a [Star God Card] should also be able to activate [Fate Conversion], right?

Well, Bai Ze had said before that she would not be able to trigger divine skills again for a short period of time.

It hurt!

It hurt too much!

Ning Zhu kept her eyes tightly shut, unable to tell whether this discomfort came from [Fate Conversion], or from… from the [Libra Card].

“It’s done.”

She did not know how much time had passed before a cool, clear voice sounded out. Ning Zhu only felt her mind suddenly clear, and that strange feeling disappeared.

Ning Zhu was still inside the principal’s office, sitting in the soft sofa. Beside her was Bai Ze flapping his little wings, and in front of her was Li Jin.

He had already put away the [Libra Card]. Probably because the consumption from using [Fate Conversion] had been too great, his neatly arranged short hair was slightly messy, there was a fine layer of sweat on his forehead, and his complexion was paler than usual. At that moment, he was focused intently on Ning Zhu.

Ning Zhu’s heart inexplicably trembled as she asked, “Is it done?”

Li Jin said, “You are now an Ancient God card owner.”

Ning Zhu herself felt absolutely nothing. She looked at Bai Ze and saw no abnormalities either. Bai Ze rolled its eyes and said, “I already told you. This little trick only fools you humans.”

Still uneasy, Ning Zhu asked again, “Then the Zodiac Society won’t identify me as a Star God card owner anymore, right?”

Li Jin said, “Other than the principal and me, no one else knows your true identity.”

Ning Zhu let out a sigh of relief and said, “Thank you.”

After calming down, she suddenly realized something. “Where is Principal Yang?”

Li Jin lowered his dark eyelashes slightly and said, “You slept for half an hour. The principal still had matters to handle, so he went out first.”

Ning Zhu: “Oh……”

Li Jin added, “How does your body feel?”

Ning Zhu immediately replied, “Pretty good. Nothing feels wrong.”

Li Jin said, “I’ll escort you back to the dormitory.”

Ning Zhu practically jumped up and said, “No need! I can go back by myself! No need to trouble Senior Li Jin!” After saying that, she fled in utter panic.

Bai Ze coolly remarked, “Why are you afraid of him? He’s just a tiny Libra card owner.”

Ning Zhu: “……”

Bai Ze added, “Wanting to eat him is perfectly normal. Who told him to be so weak?”

Ning Zhu’s throat became painfully dry. She felt as though she could drink ten [Bottoms-Up Cards] in one go. She swallowed hard and asked, “What is going on? Why would I have thoughts like this?”

Bai Ze said, “Come on. Zodiac Cards originate from [Star God Cards]. Wanting to reclaim that power is perfectly normal.”

Ning Zhu: “……”

That logic made sense, but the feeling was way too strange!

Ning Zhu could not help but continue, “But toward the [Aries Card]…”

Bai Ze said, “The little principal’s age is right there. He’s probably possessed the [Aries Card] for at least a hundred years. How could that level of control possibly be compared to that Libra brat’s?”

Ning Zhu: “…Fine.”

She was starting to become afraid of getting close to Li Jin. She was genuinely worried that one day she might lose control and actually…

Ahhh, she wasn’t human anymore.

What normal person wants to eat people!

This was way too terrifying QAQ!

Ning Zhu had no choice but to distract herself, so she asked Bai Ze again, “If your power became stronger than mine, would you also become like me…”

Bai Ze fell silent.

Ning Zhu patted the cat on the back and solemnly said, “Don’t worry. I won’t give you that kind of opportunity.” She absolutely had to become stronger. This was too fatal.

Also, Senior Li Jin should hurry up and become stronger too. She did not want to become the Hannibal of the card master world ahhh!

Spirit Card Academy principal’s office.

Li Jin pushed open the door to the rear lounge room.

Inside the lounge was a soft couch, and seated upon it was a boy around twelve or thirteen years old.

The originally well-fitting dark red robe now dragged across the floor. The sleeves had also become much longer, while the clothes underneath hung loosely and sloppily, practically falling off.

“Principal…” Li Jin softly called out to him.

Yang Huaizhou looked at himself in the mirror and gave a bitter smile. “Now there’s no helping it. I’ll have to use [Deception Technique].”

Li Jin said, “Next time, please let me—”

Before he could finish speaking, Yang Huaizhou looked at him sternly and said, “When you inherited the [Libra Card], you once promised me that as long as I am still alive, you must not actively touch ‘fate.’”

The Bell of Heavenly Fate did not ring.

Because this [Fate Conversion] had already been registered beforehand, and Yang Huaizhou had also voluntarily paid the price for it.

Fate, the future, karma…

How could insignificant humans attempt to shake such things without paying a price?

Yang Huaizhou should never have allowed such a young Li Jin to inherit the [Libra Card].

But…

There had been no other choice.

It was not only the Spirit Card Academy. The Secret Card Academy and Illusion Card Academy had also successively handed over the “obedient” Zodiac Cards to outstanding young students.

—They could no longer afford to lose the Zodiac Cards.

After wandering around in circles, Ning Zhu returned to the auditorium once again.

She still did not know where her dormitory was. There seemed to be a guide map inside the auditorium, and she was just about to go take a look.

The auditorium was already empty. Everyone had busily gone off to find their dormitories and tour the campus.

The moment Ning Zhu walked in, she heard Lu Xianyue’s voice.

“Ning Zhu! Over here!”

“Didn’t you all already go to the dormitories?”

“We came back to pick you up!”

Ning Zhu’s eyes instantly curved into crescents as she smiled. “Thank you!”

The two girls surrounded her and said, “What’s there to thank us for? The two of us didn’t have anything to do anyway. After putting our luggage in the dormitory, we figured you definitely wouldn’t know the way, so we simply came back to the auditorium to wait for you.”

Warmth filled Ning Zhu’s heart as she asked, “How’s our dormitory?”

Lu Xianyue proudly puffed out her chest and declared, “It couldn’t possibly be better!”

The three of them walked out of the auditorium together, and Ning Zhu finally caught a glimpse of the full appearance of the Spirit Card Academy.

She had imagined it many times before, yet the magnificent and majestic campus before her was even more breathtaking than all her imaginings combined.

“Awesome, right!”

“All the freshmen come out of the auditorium completely dumbfounded.”

“I think this is probably the masterpiece of a [Scene Card] too.”

“It’s way too shocking!”

Without a doubt, the Spirit Card Academy was enormous, covering an immense area.

It stood atop a towering mountain, with swirling clouds and mist visible all around. Yet the air was not damp or cold. Instead, it was dry and comfortable. Occasionally, a breeze drifted by, carrying the refreshing crispness of early autumn.

The entire academy’s color scheme consisted of dark red, silver-white, and deep blue.

Dark red symbolized the Aries Division, deep blue symbolized the Libra Division, while silver-white served as the primary tone supporting everything, bathing the entire academy in an ethereal, chilly moonlit elegance.

The ground was paved with marble, smooth and gleaming.

Along the roadside stood highly futuristic street lamps that looked like tiny upright robots—

And indeed, they were capable of much more than just providing light.

Lu Xianyue enthusiastically introduced them. “Over here! If you place your student card here, you can receive a [Sliding Card].”

“Sliding Card?”

“Come on, come on, try it and you’ll understand. It’s super simple and super useful!”

Curious, Ning Zhu inserted her student card into the card slot. Before long, a prompt popped up:

“Would you like to rent a [Sliding Card]?”

“Yes.”

A uniquely designed card fell into Ning Zhu’s hands. At first glance, it looked somewhat like… a skateboard.

Under the expectant gazes of Lu Xianyue and Lin Ting, Ning Zhu used the [Sliding Card]. She only felt her feet suddenly become light, as though she were stepping on smooth ice, immediately making her somewhat flustered.

“Relax, just walk normally!”

“It feels… feels like walking on ice!”

“Fun, right? And you don’t need to be afraid. It comes with anti-fall effects. Even if you want to fall, you can’t!”

Ning Zhu could feel it. She had gone to an ice skating rink before, but her skills had been terrible. The moment she put on the skates, she started falling all over the place. How could it compare to now? Even though it felt like walking on smooth ice, she walked steadily without the slightest sign of falling.

“Let’s go! Back to the dormitory.” Lu Xianyue and Lin Ting also used their [Sliding Cards]. Clearly, they had already used them once before and were far more skilled than Ning Zhu.

“No wonder the ground is made of marble…”

“There’s something even more fun ahead!”

After turning a corner, Ning Zhu realized that the auditorium was positioned very high up, while the other teaching buildings of the Spirit Card Academy were all below.

And directly before them was a downhill slope dozens of meters long.

There were no stairs, only a sloping path extending downward like a giant slide.

Lin Ting grabbed Ning Zhu’s hand. “Don’t be scared. You won’t fall.”

Lu Xianyue said with a smile, “But you do have to be careful to avoid hitting people.”

The two girls pulled her down the slope. Ning Zhu could not help but let out a soft cry before breaking into happy laughter.

“Feels awesome, right?”

“It feels amazing!”

The sound of rushing wind echoed beside them. The [Sliding Cards] beneath their feet steadily accelerated, sending their entire bodies diving downward.

This was way too fun!

Even someone who could not ski got to safely experience the joy of skiing.

At the bottom of the slope stood rows upon rows of towering buildings.

The architectural style of the Spirit Card Academy was extremely unique. It combined the flying eaves and elevated walkways of traditional Chinese pavilions with modern technology in just the right balance.

Together with the “sliding paths” visible everywhere, which coiled around the tall buildings like auspicious clouds, it created a stunning sense of Chinese cyber aesthetics.

“This way.” Lin Ting had an excellent sense of direction and was already leading them through shortcuts back to the dormitory.

Lu Xianyue pointed at a plump cylindrical building and said to Ning Zhu, “That’s our cafeteria!”

Lin Ting said, “Let’s go back to the dormitory first. We can eat later.”

Ning Zhu smiled so brightly her eyes nearly disappeared. “Okay!”

With the help of the [Sliding Cards], they arrived at the dormitory building as though riding the wind itself.

They also ran into quite a few students along the way.

The freshmen were all happily trying out the [Sliding Cards], while the older students were much calmer. Every single one moved with graceful ease, and paired with those white school uniforms, they looked as though they were walking among the clouds, carrying an almost immortal-like elegance.

[Sliding Cards] could not be used inside buildings.

This was because the interiors were crowded and collisions could easily occur. The [Sliding Card] came with anti-fall functions, but it did not prevent crashes.

Especially for freshmen—if one lost control and slammed into another person, both sides would end up bruised and battered.

The dormitory building was clean and orderly.

Lu Xianyue said, “The girls’ dormitories are on the left, and the boys’ dormitories are on the right. Every dormitory building is like this. But our class has fewer people… so lots of dorm rooms are empty. Some people have four-person rooms shared by only two people, and some even have three-person rooms all to themselves…”

The moment Ning Zhu went upstairs, she saw someone familiar.

Li Leyang was surrounded by a group of boys, listlessly climbing the stairs.

One of the boys was saying, “Brother Yang, you’re definitely the number one in our division. That Ning Zhu is just from a pure-human background. She probably can’t even tell card-making materials apart…”

Li Leyang jolted and shouted, “Will you shut up already!”

“We can’t boost other people’s morale while crushing our own prestige. Back in the preparatory class, you weren’t even scared of Ye Jianrong, so why are you afraid of—”

“Crap crap crap, shut your mouth! You’re not allowed to say that name!”

“It’s not that serious, Brother Yang… huh, Student Ning Zhu…”

“I told you, don’t mention th—”

Li Leyang’s voice abruptly stopped. He stiffly turned his head and saw Ning Zhu behind him…

Then, like a mouse spotting a cat, he fled in panic.

Several boys hurriedly chased after him. “Brother Yang! Brother Yang!”

None of them could understand what was happening.

Wasn’t it just having all six columns maxed out?

Ye Jianrong had that too.

Yet Li Leyang still had not been afraid of him at all.

Lin Ting still remembered Li Leyang. She frowned and said, “What’s wrong with that guy?”

Lu Xianyue blinked. “Ah, he’s that… that Li Leyang!”

Lin Ting: “Who’s Li Leyang?”

“The number one student in the preparatory class. People talked about him on the school forum. He’s really impressive and already considered one of the star freshmen.”

Lu Xianyue took out her phone and tapped her student card against it. She very conveniently entered the school forum.

She had originally wanted to pull up Li Leyang’s posts for Ning Zhu and Lin Ting to see, but instead—

“Ah?”

“Little Zhu…”

Ning Zhu also leaned over to look. The moment she saw it, black lines filled her face.

The school forum was filled with hot posts, all with keywords like:

“Shock! There’s actually an Ancient God card owner among the freshmen.”

“What is an [Ancient God Card]?”

“I heard it’s a mythical card on the same level as a [Star God Card]!”

“True or false？I’ve never heard of it before.”

“Wait, who’s the Ancient God card owner? Ye Jianrong or Ning Zhu?”

“Ning Zhu!”

“Holy crap, isn’t she from a pure-human background?”

“That’s why my entire family is shocked!”

Ning Zhu felt an indescribably complicated mix of emotions while reading.

The good thing was that [Fate Conversion] was genuinely useful.

The bad thing was—did they really have to make such a huge spectacle out of it?!

Lu Xianyue and Lin Ting both looked at Ning Zhu with expressions full of disbelief.

Ning Zhu fell silent for a moment before saying, “Actually, I just stepped in dog shit and got lucky.”

Bai Ze immediately puffed up in anger. “I’m not dog-shit luck!”