Chapter 30
Chapter 30
Ning Zhu had only been enrolled for a week, and she had already checked in at both the principal’s office and the department head’s office… hmm, she actually would have preferred going to bubble milk tea shops a few more times with her friends.
Li Suwen’s office also had a dark red color scheme, somewhat similar in style to Yang Huaizhou’s office.
The difference was that there were no intricately complex mysterious cards hanging on the wall behind her desk; instead, there was a dark red curtain.
The office also had a strong sense of disorder—especially the desk, where various documents were casually scattered. One glance was enough to give anyone a headache.
“You’re here?” Li Suwen stood up and said, “What would you like to drink?”
Ning Zhu was about to say “anything,” but then she remembered Principal Yang’s 【Anything Card】 and changed her words: “Brilliant Star River Glass Milk Tea.”
Li Suwen’s wristband flashed, and a dreamy drink like a starry sky appeared on the table. She smiled, revealing a pair of small dimples, and teased: “You actually like this? This is the most popular drink among Libra-type students.”
Ning Zhu’s hand holding the cup paused slightly.
Li Suwen’s wristband flashed again, and another drink appeared on the table—one that looked like erupting lava. She said: “This one is called Molten Burst Explosion Tea, and it’s the favorite of Aries-type students.”
Ning Zhu said: “I’ve only had the Brilliant Star River…” So she still wasn’t sure which one she actually liked.
Li Suwen pushed both drinks in front of her and said: “No need to struggle, both are yours.”
Ning Zhu smiled: “I can’t drink that much…”
“Then take them back and drink slowly.”
Ning Zhu accepted without further refusal: “Thank you, Professor!”
Li Suwen also asked about her physical condition and reminded her to continue using the 【Scar Erasure Card】 so that the burn marks on her wrist could fully recover.
Ning Zhu nodded repeatedly, feeling a warm sense of comfort in her heart.
As a department head, Li Suwen gave off a friendly and gentle impression.
She didn’t feel like a “mother” figure, but more like a “maternal aunt” or “younger aunt”—somewhere between an elder and a peer, making people feel relaxed and at ease.
Li Suwen did not know about what had happened in the card-making class, which undoubtedly made Ning Zhu breathe a sigh of relief.
In the end, she had done something “bad,” and inevitably felt a bit guilty.
Before she realized it, Ning Zhu had already drunk more than half a cup of the Molten Burst Explosion Tea—she had to admit, the taste and texture were very different from the Brilliant Star River.
If the Brilliant Star River was like ethereal, dreamy moonlight, then the Molten Burst Explosion was like a scorching red sun.
The former was soft and restrained, with very low sweetness, while the latter burst instantly with juice; its sour and sweet intensity was much higher, but not cloying—instead, it gave a tingling, refreshing sensation.
Bai Ze said greedily: “Is it good?”
Ning Zhu didn’t dare speak out loud, but she… actually leaned slightly more toward the Brilliant Star River. Still, the Molten Burst Explosion was also quite interesting!
Only then did Li Suwen continue: “About your card ring…” She suddenly stood up again. “Oh right! Look at my memory!”
Li Suwen got up and took out a wooden box from the drawer beneath her desk.
The wooden box was exquisitely crafted, with intricate patterns carved on it like rune diagrams, seemingly containing some mysterious power.
With a click, Li Suwen opened the box. On a dark red silk cloth lay a wristband emitting a faint reddish glow.
Li Suwen said: “This is a four-star wristband… well, it’s the highest star rating available on the market. Unfortunately, it’s still not quite enough for you.”
She took out the wristband, then held Ning Zhu’s left hand. When she saw the burn scars on her wrist, Li Suwen’s brows furrowed slightly: “It’ll heal very soon…”
“Professor Li!” Ning Zhu forcefully pulled her hand back.
“Hm?”
“This is too valuable!” Ning Zhu was no longer the clueless person she once was. She knew the value of a four-star card ring—it wasn’t just about money; it was something you couldn’t even buy even if you had money.
Li Suwen smiled, then pulled her left hand back again and said without allowing her to refuse: “This is a card ring I collected years ago. I originally planned to give it to someone, but later… well… as you can see, I don’t lack card rings, and I don’t want to sell it either. So you can use it for now, okay?”
“This…” Ning Zhu still felt it was inappropriate. It was like she was just a student in an ordinary high school, and suddenly the department head wanted to give her a car…
No, no, she couldn’t accept it.
Li Suwen didn’t wait for her to speak and said again: “This can also be considered as compensation for my negligence.”
Ning Zhu was even more confused by this.
Li Suwen let out a soft sigh, her tone carrying a hint of lingering fear as she said: “I already knew your identity, I also knew your aptitude, and I even knew that the seven-star card ring that originally belonged to you was stolen… but I was still careless. I let you use the 【Flame Card】 rashly, which caused your card ring to explode and injured your wrist.”
Ning Zhu listened, unable to decide whether to laugh or cry, and said: “Professor, this has nothing to do with you. It was just an accident.”
Li Suwen shook her head: “If your wrist had been ruined because of this, I…”
“No!” Ning Zhu interrupted her wild thoughts and said, “At that time you immediately took me to the medical room, and Doctor Ma quickly used a 【Pain Relief Card】 on me. I didn’t even feel anything before I recovered. And there was also the 【Scar Erasure Card】—in a few days, even this little mark will be gone.”
Her voice was clear, and as she spoke, there was a gentle warmth in her tone. That just-right warmth, instead, made the tip of one’s nose feel slightly sour. Li Suwen looked up at her and stared for a long time before saying: “Thank you.”
Ning Zhu: “Professor! This really has nothing to do with you!”
Li Suwen’s expression softened, and the small dimples at the corners of her mouth appeared again. She said: “Then accept this card ring, and I’ll take it as having nothing to do with me.”
Ning Zhu: “……”
Li Suwen blinked at her: “If you don’t accept it, then you’re blaming me.”
“I’m not!”
“Then accept it!”
Ning Zhu paused. She did indeed need a card ring. If Professor Li wasn’t using it… she asked again: “Can I buy it from you?”
“No!”
“Professor, this is really too valuable.”
“Oh, I got it!” Li Suwen’s eyes lit up. “I’ll lend it to you first!”
Li Suwen continued: “The Three Academies will hold the Freshman Cup in December. As long as you get first place, you’ll get a six-star card ring. Then you can return this one to me. How about it?”
Ning Zhu: “……”
The more Li Suwen thought about it, the more reasonable it seemed. She continued: “You don’t even have a proper card ring right now—how are you going to participate in the Freshman Cup? This isn’t just about winning a card ring. It represents the honor of our Spirit Card Academy!”
With that, Li Suwen stood up and tapped on the desk. A projection appeared in the air. She said: “You might not understand yet. In the card master world, there is a competition every four years. Hmm, it’s basically equivalent to the Olympics of the Pure Humans. We also have to win glory for our country!”
On the projection, a data chart appeared…
In 2022, the 27th Card Master Grand Competition was won by the Illusion Card Academy.
In 2018, the 26th Card Master Grand Competition was also won by the Illusion Card Academy.
In 2014, the 25th Card Master Grand Competition was won by the Secret Card Academy.
After the tables were listed one by one, Ning Zhu blinked in confusion: “What about us?”
Li Suwen said with regret: “Here—we won the championship in the 22nd edition, but it was the Libra system branch that took that victory.”
The 22nd edition was in 2002—exactly 22 years ago.
Li Suwen said: “In the last Card Master Tournament two years ago, we were utterly embarrassed. Those bastards from the Illusion Card Academy somehow found out that the character ‘two’ here can mean ‘idiot’ in our context, and they used it to mock us heavily.”
The champion of the 22nd edition was truly “two.”
The year 2002 was also very “two.”
And 2022 just happened to be exactly 22 years after our last championship…
All these “twos” stacked together were enough to bend the spine of the Spirit Card Academy, which had stood for thousands of years!
And then…
In the 2022 Card Master Grand Competition, the students of the Spirit Card Academy didn’t even make it into the top three—they lost miserably!
Li Suwen truly lived up to being a passionate Aries-type person, speaking with such fiery enthusiasm that in the end she grabbed Ning Zhu’s hand, looking like Liu Bei entrusting his orphan son: “In this Freshman Cup, you must win glory for our country!”
Ning Zhu: “……”
Li Suwen added another sentence: “Our Aries system… hasn’t taken first place for almost 30 years, sob sob sob.”
Ning Zhu opened her mouth and said: “But this is only the Freshman Cup…”
“If we win the Freshman Cup, will the championship of the Card Competition two years later still be far away?!” Li Suwen said with high fighting spirit. “Two years later, Li Jin still hasn’t graduated, and you’ll also be an adult by then. Our Spirit Card Academy might even sweep the top three!”
“Professor…”
Li Suwen suddenly changed tone, overflowing with passion: “Xiao Zhu, let this card ring begin your path of glory!”
Ning Zhu: “……”
She was so embarrassed she felt like she could dig out a three-room apartment with her toes.
She had already discovered it—Aries system people were generally possessed by chuunibyou, easily getting overly passionate and fired up.
Lai Leyang was like that, and so was Director Li.
Ning Zhu thought of the “old sheep” principal who looked only fifteen or sixteen years old, and suddenly understood.
Aries is forever a teenager.
This is not a metaphor. It is a statement of fact.
In the end, Ning Zhu borrowed this four-star card ring from Li Suwen.
The lender, Li Suwen, was even happier than the borrower, Ning Zhu.
After settling the matter of the card ring, Li Suwen said to her again: “Oh right, starting next, every Tuesday and Thursday at 7 PM, you’ll come to me to learn how to suppress spiritual energy.”
A four-star card ring was definitely much stronger than Ning Zhu’s previous one.
But she still had to restrain its use.
If spiritual energy overloaded again, with a four-star ring’s quality, the explosion would be even more dangerous.
At that point, it would no longer just be surface injuries—her entire arm might be blown off.
Ning Zhu understood the seriousness of the matter and said solemnly: “Okay.”
After everything was said, just as Ning Zhu was about to leave, Li Suwen suddenly patted her head and said: “There’s one more thing.”
“Hm?”
“Every Monday and Wednesday at 7 PM, you also have to go to Director Jiang’s place for remedial lessons.”
Ning Zhu: “???”
She froze completely, even her voice rising: “Why?!”
She had already managed to create a three-star 【Spiritual Energy Card】—why did she still need remedial classes?!
Help!
She did NOT want to be alone in a room with Jiang Binglun—it would be deadly!
Li Suwen said unwillingly and somewhat awkwardly: “It was the principal’s instruction. He said you need to develop in all aspects, not just cultivate the Aries sequence—you also have to cultivate the Libra sequence.”
Ning Zhu: “………………”
Li Suwen glanced to the side of her, as if searching for something, but it was obvious she couldn’t see Bai Ze. She could only lower her voice and say: “You need to be strong enough, otherwise you’ll be eaten by the Card Spirit Association!”
Bai Ze let out a cold snort.
Ning Zhu very much wanted to say: “No way, Bai Cat just wants to eat canned snacks.”
But no one would believe that.
Besides, this was the principal’s arrangement—Director Li was only relaying it. There was no need to make things difficult for her.
“I understand.” Ning Zhu thought about it and already felt her teeth ache.
Li Suwen patted her shoulder to comfort her and said: “Although Director Jiang looks like he was just pulled out of an ice cellar, actually… cough…” The comforting words turned awkward. Li Suwen coughed and said reluctantly, “Alright, fine—he is the ice cellar itself.”
Ning Zhu was instead amused by this and felt much more relaxed.
On Monday, the school forum released an announcement.
It publicly disclosed detailed information about the Three Academies Freshman Cup.
The Freshman Cup will be held on December 1st.
However, starting from late October, each academy will conduct internal selection. In the end, only four students will qualify—
Two from Aries, two from Libra.
These four will represent Spirit Card Academy in the Three Academies Freshman Cup, competing against a total of eight elite freshmen from Illusion Card Academy and Secret Card Academy in a month-long competition.
Unlike the Card Master Grand Competition, the Three Academies Freshman Cup has more rules—
First, only freshmen of the 24th cohort are allowed to participate.
Second, participants may only use cards they have personally created.
Third, the maximum star rating of usable cards must not exceed three stars.
Fourth, any student who qualifies for the Freshman Cup will automatically receive full credits for the semester, and their semester evaluation will be rated A+.