Chapter 67 [Wood Carving Spirit Blood]

Just as Gu Ye made up his mind to gift the Zhang Jiao card to Ning Shijun, a crucial issue suddenly surfaced in his mind.

Ning Shijun was a genuine Epic-tier powerhouse; ordinary cards simply could not be activated by him. Only a card that matched his power level would suffice.

If he, a Bronze-tier Card Master, were to craft the Zhang Jiao card himself, his current spiritual space would certainly not be able to withstand the pressure generated during the creation process.

"Then I'll just give the world background to Uncle Jun! Let him craft it himself!" Gu Ye lowered his eyes, his fingertips tapping lightly on the sofa armrest, and he quickly reached a decision.

For him, the Zhang Jiao card had no synergy with himself; even if he kept it, he wouldn't be able to unleash any of its power, so giving it away wasn't really a loss. Furthermore, he had countless world backgrounds hidden in his mind; one more or one less didn't matter.

More importantly, Zhang Jiao and Ning Shijun were too similar—both cared for the world, both were determined to resist the oppression of the powerful, and both harbored the ambition to change the old order and save the common people.

There was a generally accepted saying in the Card Master world: the higher the synergy between a Card Master and their card, the more terrifying the power the card could unleash, and the more significant the spiritual nourishment and improvement to the card itself would be.

Realizing this, Gu Ye looked up at Ning Shijun, his expression firm and his tone solemn: "Uncle Jun, I have a card that might be able to help you."

As soon as he spoke, both Ning Shijun and Bu Yao were stunned, their faces showing expressions of surprise. A flash of curiosity crossed Ning Shijun's eyes; he knew Gu Ye had considerable talent, but he had never heard of him having any accomplishments in card-making.

Bu Yao scoffed, her face full of mockery, her tone tinged with disdain: "Kid, stop bragging! You're just a Bronze-tier Card Master whose own strength hasn't even stabilized yet, and you want to pull out a card that can help Ning Shijun? I think you should focus on improving your own strength first instead of embarrassing yourself here."

A sly smile curled at the corner of Gu Ye's mouth as he said: "What? You don't believe me? How about we make a bet?"

Bu Yao was naturally proud and competitive, and she couldn't stand being provoked.

Upon hearing this from Gu Ye, she instantly bristled, stood up from the sofa with a 'whoosh', hands on her hips, staring daggers at Gu Ye, and said word by word: "Bet then! Who's afraid of who!"

"Good, then we'll bet on whether my card is truly helpful to Uncle Jun."

"Fine!"

Bu Yao patted her chest, looking arrogant as if victory was already in her grasp, "If you lose, you have to make me big meals for a year, every meal different, and it must be cooked by your own hands!"

In her view, it was impossible for Gu Ye to produce a card that could help an Epic-tier powerhouse; she was sure to win this bet.

"Fine, but what if you lose!"

Bu Yao retorted, "How could I possibly lose!"

"Don't worry about that, just tell me what happens if you do lose."

"Then what do you want?"

After speaking, Gu Ye's eyes swept over the petite Bu Yao. Seeing this, Bu Yao reflexively crossed her hands to hug herself.

"What... what are you looking at!"

"Tch! A pair of Aces, can't beat it." Gu Ye curled his lip, his tone full of disdain. That one sentence instantly ignited Bu Yao's fury.

"What did you say!"

Bu Yao's face turned red with anger, her eyes wide, and she lunged at Gu Ye, claws bared: "I'll fight you! How dare you mock me!"

"Don't... ah!"

Ning Shijun looked at the scene before him with a gentle expression. He had always raised Bu Yao as his own daughter. In the past, when she was at the base, she had always been a little troublemaker; the members of the Salvation Church were all afraid of her, and she had no friends.

Now, seeing her getting along so well with Gu Ye, Ning Shijun felt deeply gratified.

"A piece of Purple-tier card-making materials will do, stop pinching, I was wrong, my lady."

Bu Yao's small face flushed slightly, she sat up, huffed, smoothed out her appearance, and muttered: "Just giving you a lesson."

Ning Shijun was very interested in his idea. Seeing that the two had finished messing around, he smiled and said: "Let's hear it."

Next, Gu Ye told Ning Shijun about all the experiences and the life story of Zhang Jiao, although Gu Ye had adapted it.

Ning Shijun's eyes grew brighter the more he listened. Even after Gu Ye finished describing it, he still hadn't snapped out of it.

Seeing Ning Shijun's expression, Bu Yao couldn't help but curl her lip, knowing she had lost. She turned to look at Gu Ye, who was winking at her. Bu Yao couldn't help but roll her eyes and turn her head away, not wanting to see him; out of sight, out of mind.

The two waited for a while until Ning Shijun came back to his senses. He looked up at Gu Ye and said with emotion: "You have your mother's talent. This card of yours might just become my primary ace."

Hearing this, Bu Yao's eyes widened instantly as she stared at Ning Shijun.

Immediately, Ning Shijun changed the subject: "I won't take your world background for free. If you have any requests, feel free to ask."

Gu Ye shook his head and said: "Uncle Jun, I brought out this card not to trade with you. Otherwise, I might as well have sold it to those families to exchange for greater benefits."

Hearing this, Ning Shijun smiled faintly: "Alright, then I will accept it without being modest."

"Then I'm leaving. I'll go craft the card first." Ning Shijun's eyes were full of eagerness as he stood up to leave. It was the first time he had seen a card that suited him so well, and it was a gift from his nephew, which made him even happier.

"Oh, right, Uncle Jun!" Gu Ye suddenly called out to Ning Shijun, saying with a look of anticipation: "After you finish crafting it, can you bring it over for me to see?"

"Sure!" Ning Shijun said with a smile in his eyes, then walked out the door.

Seeing that Ning Shijun had left, Bu Yao looked at Gu Ye with curiosity: "I didn't expect you, kid, to have this kind of ability."

"There are still many things you don't know about me." Gu Ye looked proud. The two had been under the same roof for dozens of days, so they had gained some understanding of each other.

That was why Bu Yao was so surprised; she had thought Gu Ye was only great at cultivation and cooking, never expecting him to be equally skilled in card-making.

At this moment, a hand reached out in front of Bu Yao. "What are you doing?"

"What do you think? A bet is a bet!" Gu Ye said, holding out his hand provocatively.

"Here, you money-grubber!" Bu Yao took out a card and handed it to him.

Gu Ye chuckled, took the card, and immediately examined it.

card: [ Wood-Carved Spirit Blood ]

Quality: [ Purple ]

Description: Deep in a mysterious forest, there was an abandoned wooden hut where a beautiful flower grew. Beside it was a dust-covered wooden figurine. The two depended on each other for survival. After countless years passed, the flower withered, and the wooden figurine gained life. Its body contained the power of the flower, and its blood could allow inanimate objects to be born with a trace of spiritual intelligence, which, with the passage of time, could transform into natural life.