46: Chapter 46 Hidden Dangers

As the video finished, everyone fell into silence once again.

Qi Yuan's roar still echoed between the magic arrays of the dome: "Did that cat eat the law of conservation of energy?!"

But no one answered him, because everyone was thinking about the same thing.

Tier 1 Rainbow Card, independent combat system, causality weapon, an eighth-tier puppet jumping nine levels to shake the ninth-tier law barrier head-on...

Any one of these terms, if taken out individually, would be enough to make the cover of the "Card Creation Journal." Yet, they were all stuffed into the same card. A Tier 1 card.

"Ahem."

Heavy Armored Dharma Emperor Armored Mage Emperor Lu Chen was the first to break the silence. He picked up a new pure titanium water cup from the table, filled it with water, took a sip, and then placed his hand on the table—his fingers were trembling slightly.

It wasn't a geriatric disease. It was fear.

"Everyone," his voice was very low, "can we calm down first and clarify the practical significance of this card?"

"Clarify? Do we still need to clarify?"

Phantom Sovereign sneered. She crossed her arms and leaned back against the chair, her ageless, well-maintained face filled with a complex expression between excitement and panic.

"Legion-scale, universal application, mass production."

She tapped the table with her knuckles for every word she spoke. "Are these three terms clear enough?"

Armored Mage Emperor Lu Chen's hand trembled even more violently.

Legion-scale—the annual casualty rate on the Abyss Front is thirty-seven percent. If every soldier could turn into a Magical Girl before dying and continue fighting in an immortal shell—

That wouldn't be an army. That would be a perpetual motion machine.

Universal application... what is the cost of this card? Two million and fifty thousand. After mass production, it's seven hundred thousand. Seven hundred thousand for a Tier 1 card. Compare that to casualty pensions, equipment wear and tear, and the consumption of high-tier potions—

Seven hundred thousand. It's not even enough to equip a heavy shield guard with a set of Tier 3 armor.

Mass production—production lines, template replication, material supply chains. The Lin family is already doing it.

"Wait a moment."

Qi Yuan took off his glasses and wiped the lenses with his cuff. His hand was also trembling, but he tried his best to make his voice sound calm.

"What you've said is all correct, but this card has three problems. Three very serious problems."

He held up a finger. "First. The Monthly Exam was broadcast live across the entire network. Thirteen million seven hundred and twenty thousand online viewers. All of Su Bai's information has been seen by hostile forces and Abyss infiltrators worldwide. Do you know what this means?"

No one spoke. But everyone knew the answer.

"It means he is now a walking strategic weapon," Qi Yuan said, enunciating every word, "and. He has no defense."

He held up a second finger. "Second, who is going to use it? What is the cost of this card? Abandoning the physical body to become a puppet driven by a soul gem—the cross-dressing is fine, but the key is that it changes one's gender..."

He looked around. "Everyone here, who is willing?"

Silence. For ordinary people, changing gender might not matter.

But for experts... sorry, the strong must look like the strong!

Turning into a bunch of lolis to go fight? What kind of thing is that? Is there really anyone willing to fight while staring at a childlike face?

Wait, a childlike face... Thinking of this, everyone looked at Li Qingyue simultaneously.

Isn't there a silver-haired, red-eyed loli right here?

Li Qingyue seemed to realize something and glared back: "What do you mean?"

"Ahem, ahem..."

Armored Mage Emperor Lu Chen looked down at his titanium water cup. Phantom Sovereign shifted her gaze to the ceiling. The other elders began to study the patterns on the table in unison.

"See," Qi Yuan's tone grew a bit bitter.

"If a low-tier professional uses it, the combat power return isn't enough—that causality thing is important, isn't it? High-tier experts—who is willing to abandon their tempered divine body to become a doll? It's a matter of face, and a matter of dignity. If a ninth-tier Sword Saint turns into a Magical Girl, how will he show his face in the martial world in the future?"

"And—" Phantom Sovereign added a finishing blow, "that transformation, I watched the live replay. Gothic Lolita dress, absolute territory, white stockings, ribbons—this outfit is fine for women; at least it wouldn't look out of place on me. But if I let Armored Mage Emperor Lu Chen wear it—"

Her gaze swept over the Heavy Armored Dharma Emperor. Armored Mage Emperor Lu Chen's face turned as black as abyss sludge.

"I didn't say I would wear it."

"I was just making an assumption."

"Your assumption is extremely rude."

"I was just making an objective analysis from a marketing perspective."

"Heh, old woman, that kind of outfit is outdated on you too."

"What did you say?"

"It's just a fact. Try wearing one and see."

"Do you believe I'll hang you at the front gate?"

"Bring it on!"

"Bring it on!"

The two stared at each other for a full three seconds, but neither moved an inch, and the air was filled with a subtle smell of gunpowder.

Qi Yuan coughed and continued by holding up his third finger.

"Third, Su Bai himself."

His voice finally dropped, not with the academic calmness from before—but a truly chilling coldness.

"A Tier 1 Card Creator, seems to be Level 1, blank profession, no combat experience, doesn't know how to use any combat cards, lives in the academy dormitory—and the defensive barrier of that dormitory is, for f*ck's sake, only Tier 2 level. Any random Tier 3 assassin could crush him into playdough."

"And now—" He glanced at the card projection floating in mid-air. "He is the only person in the world who knows the complete circuit of this Rainbow Card."

As his voice fell, the hall was silent for a full three seconds.

Then Phantom Sovereign stood up abruptly, her chair letting out a harsh screech against the floor.

"Li Qingyue. When did you register his name for copyright protection?"

"Immediately after the Monthly Exam ended."

Li Qingyue leaned against the window, her long silver-white hair shimmering in the aurora light, her voice as flat as if she were stating the weather for the day.

"His Spatial Circuit has already been filed with the Card Creator Association, but copyright protection is on a legal level; assassins won't care about that."

"Then send people to protect him," Armored Mage Emperor Lu Chen decided. His voice regained the big-picture perspective expected of a ninth-tier expert.

"The Sanctuary will send people directly, at least one guard above Tier 7, stationed near the academy twenty-four hours a day. Also—" He paused.

"We need to find a way to make high-tier experts truly realize the value of this card. A puppet clone alone isn't enough, and our endorsement isn't enough either. That death row prisoner is indeed Tier 8, but she is a refined soul, not a living person. We don't know how the effect of her turning into a Magical Girl manifests in a living person."

In fact, the standard of Sanctuary Card Creators themselves is extremely formidable, but unfortunately, they don't act like human beings. Often, people exaggerate card effects to accumulate wealth, which leads the outside world to think they are just advertising whenever they see the Sanctuary promoting a card as extremely powerful.

However, this is unavoidable; Card Creators naturally need to consume a large amount of materials, and these things can no longer be measured by money. Especially for high-tier Card Creators—they are indeed wealthy, but when they really start top-tier card creation, no amount of money is enough to fill the void.

"Correct," Qi Yuan nodded. "We need a living one. A high-tier one. Someone who can make other high-tier experts convinced after seeing the effect—"

He stopped, because Li Qingyue suddenly spoke.

"There is a candidate."

Everyone turned to look at her.

Li Qingyue was still leaning against the window. The corners of her mouth curled up slightly, and a curve appeared on that porcelain-doll-like face that made everyone present feel a chill down their spine. It wasn't cold. It was playful.

"High-tier, living. And—" She paused. "His physical body is already ruined."