The only regret was that, having ultimately incorporated a strange object, it still had a negative flaw. Lu Zhishen was prone to sudden rages and wouldn't obey orders.
This sort of flaw was actually very acceptable;
After all, Lu Zhishen was a Fighter Card. He could just charge recklessly and be done with it, going straight in with an A. There was no need to control him. What mattered was that he kept charging forward without hesitation.
But as a Card Master, Lin Chen still had a responsibility to explain the strengths and weaknesses of Lu Zhishen's card to Chen Xiao Diao.
He first explained Lu Zhishen's flaw of being too reckless to rein in, then wanted to hear Chen Xiao Diao's opinion;
Chen Xiao Diao replied, "You finished explaining the strengths. What about the weaknesses?"
Lin Chen: "??? I was explaining the weaknesses!"
Lin Chen remembered that what Chen Xiao Diao wanted was precisely an all-out charge and endless fierce attacks.
Then there was nothing to worry about. It was flawless.
Besides, Chen Xiao Diao didn't have any delicate micro-control commands. She only knew how to mindlessly shout, "Charge, charge, charge, charge!" Indeed, Lu Zhishen was better off fighting to his heart's content on his own.
Another thing worth mentioning was that Lu Zhishen actually possessed a precious self-recovery ability.
That was the Wine and Meat Pass Through the Bowels trait. As long as he was provided with good wine and meat, Lu Zhishen's endurance would be unrivaled, greatly reducing the Card Master's burden of spiritual power.
So Chen Xiao Diao had better prepare an Item Card related to wine and meat as well.
After explaining every detail, Chen Xiao Diao was happy but also troubled. This card is such a perfect match for me. How much more money should I give Brother Chen?
She once again skillfully wrapped herself around Lin Chen's leg.
"Brother Chen, I really don't have much money right now. Just count it as me owing you. I'll pay you back slowly once I get my salary!"
Lin Chen came to his senses. He had made a Blue Card for Chen Xiao Diao, which counted as an exceptional performance, so the card-making fee should indeed be increased.
The original 150,000 had been the default price for making a Green Card.
Lin Chen waved his hand, indicating that it didn't matter, and let Chen Xiao Diao continue owing him a favor.
Besides, this girl was quite likable. In this strange world, where the pressure to survive was immense, she possessed a rare innocence and sunny disposition.
Lin Chen himself was also very happy. He had made another distinctive card, and it was one he had created himself.
There was just one matter Lin Chen had to agree on with Chen Xiao Diao.
The card known as the Crazy Zen Demon Monk of Xiangguo Temple—Lu Zhishen belonged to Lin Chen in terms of copyright. Lin Chen had also registered the card's copyright on the Card Association's official website.
He had also set up information encryption.
Chen Xiao Diao couldn't reproduce it casually, nor could she sell the information to other Card Masters for research.
This was a rule of the card-making industry, and Chen Xiao Diao naturally understood it.
As the joy of successfully making the card faded, Lin Chen began recalling the strange phenomenon involving the stars at the time.
When making Wu Song, Lin Chen hadn't sensed anything obvious, but this time, he had clearly detected the support of a force of starlight from somewhere beyond.
Wu Song and Lu Zhishen both possessed the hidden trait Fallen Evil Star.
Lin Chen took out the Qinghe County Exile Fighter—Wu Song and the Crazy Zen Demon Monk of Xiangguo Temple—Lu Zhishen, placed them side by side, and began studying them carefully.
The borders of both cards shimmered with the silver radiance of starlight.
Could it be that these two cards had truly stirred the stars in the heavens?
Or did this world indeed have historical legends of a Demonic Star descending to earth? Had he simply happened to echo them?
That would also make sense. After all, in different mythological cultures, there were legends of stars descending to earth and taking form as heroic spirits—the classic Western twelve zodiac signs and the Eastern Twenty-Eight Mansions, for example.
Observing and worshiping the stars in the heavens had been a habit of humanity from ancient times to the present, combining science with romantic contemplation.
Combined with the formula for faith power in this world that Lin Chen had previously deduced, as long as human belief was projected outward, a massive amount of spiritual power would be generated, even giving rise to gods.
Then it was entirely reasonable for the stars to possess spirits as well.
Put that way, Wu Song and Lu Zhishen, as Star Spirits descended to earth, both had the potential to become God Cards!
The future was promising!
Suddenly, the two cards, Wu Song and Lu Zhishen, produced a faint, indistinct connection. The weak starlight on the two cards converged like a tiny galaxy.
The cards trembled, and both Lin Chen and Chen Xiao Diao sensed the card spirits' spontaneous urge to manifest.
Chen Xiao Diao looked helpless, while Lin Chen nodded, indicating that it was fine.
The starlight flickered, and Wu Song and Lu Zhishen were both summoned.
The two heroes stood together in Lin Chen's Card Making Room. One was as powerfully built as a tiger, the other as burly as a bear, making the room seem cramped.
One was the Human Tai Sui God, the other the Buddhist Drunken Devil Lord. When the former grew angry, he brandished his ringed staff and swept away the world's filth and corruption; when the latter laughed, he swung his monk's staff and battled the heroes of the world. Even Vajras would have to clasp their hands in respect, while Dharma-protecting deities would furrow their brows.
The two heroes exchanged a glance and both found the other extremely familiar, mighty, and extraordinary.
They stepped forward, clasped their fists to each other, and actually began conversing.
The two card spirits had actually ignored their Card Master and started socializing on their own!
The two Water Margin Heroes found themselves more and more like-minded as they talked. In the end, they even became sworn brothers.
"If you do not disdain me, I would gladly become sworn brothers with you!"
Lin Chen stared in stunned silence, but once he recovered, he began celebrating wildly. The heroes of the Water Margin series had formed a team-up!
In Water Margin, Wu Song and Lu Zhishen had a deep relationship. Before joining Mount Liang, they had already settled together at Two Dragon Mountain.
And since both card spirits were Star Spirits descended to earth, it was only natural that they would cherish one another.
"This is so touching, Brother Chen! It makes me feel so fired up too!"
Chen Xiao Diao watched from the side with tears of emotion in her eyes.
"Why don't the two of us become sworn siblings too, Brother Chen?"
"Ah?"
Lu Zhishen makes his entrance! The new book is now available. The author has brought Master Lu to ask for follows and monthly votes—it's extremely important for the exposure of the chapters to come!
Lu Zhishen: "Give this monk a vote, and I'll repay you all tenfold someday!"
Chapter 18: Do Not Bully the Poor Young Man! Chen Xiao Diao Issues a Challenge!
"Why don't the two of us become sworn siblings too, Brother Chen?"
The hot-blooded girl Chen Xiao Diao insisted on dragging Lin Chen into kneeling and bowing together.
"Aren't we moving a little too fast?" Lin Chen couldn't help complaining.
Chen Xiao Diao declared righteously, "When there's wine, drink it today; all I ask is that we die on the same day, in the same month!"
Lin Chen was speechless. "How are those supposed to form matching lines?! Take a look—does that even work?"
While the two "siblings" were entangled in a ceaseless quarrel, they felt the starlight on the cards flash.
An additional entry had actually appeared in the card information for Wu Song and Lu Zhishen!
Bond: Sworn Brothers—Wu Song and Lu Zhishen hit it off at first sight, cherished one another, and became brothers. When both are present, their power and momentum increase, and they apply a Shared Hatred, United Enemy mark to their enemies. The two deal critical damage to marked enemies.
Chen Xiao Diao's mouth fell open again. "Even a Bond appeared!"
This card-making session had refreshed her understanding countless times.
Lin Chen asked in confusion, "Are Bonds very rare? I looked through the card compendium. In the mainstream Holy Light Sequence, don't the Nun and Holy Knight also possess the Holy Blessing Bond?"
Chen Xiao Diao spoke rapidly in her excitement. "Yes, but as you said, Brother Chen, that's the mainstream Holy Light Sequence!
It has the support of the officially recognized Benevolent God, the God of Light!
Card combinations qualified to possess Bonds have all been researched by generations of Card Masters over many years, slowly explored step by step.
And you got one from two cards made casually! Do you understand what that means?!"
After Chen Xiao Diao finished explaining, all that remained was worship for Lin Chen.
"Brother Chen, you can keep making cards in this direction. I have a feeling that this series of cards you create will certainly shine brilliantly in the future!
"When that time comes, perhaps I, Chen Xiao Diao, will even have my name recorded in card history because I was the first user of the Lu Zhishen Card!"
The Water Margin Heroes series possessed abundant spirituality and immense potential thanks to the support of the Star Spirits;
Moreover, the heroes had powerful connections with one another. They were naturally combinations suited for Bonds.
It was indeed worth developing in depth. He could make several more and first build a card formation for a Water Margin Sequence!
Lin Chen continued thinking. The scarcity of Bonds in this world was likely due to breaks in the transmission of historical legends, which had caused the connections between cards to become lost.
Only card sequences like the Church of the God of Light, which had been passed down into the present without interruption, possessed a mature Bond system.
Once Chen Xiao Diao got started, she couldn't stop, and she continued imagining aloud.
"Brother Chen, since our cards have a Bond, they're perfect for operating as a team! Why don't you join our Patrol Team at the Security Bureau? Then we siblings can team up and be invincible!"
This was already the second person from the Card Association Security Bureau to invite Lin Chen to join. It seemed that the Security Bureau truly lacked talent and was desperately eager to recruit worthy people.
But Lin Chen was still hesitating over the God Card matter. At present, he had no ironclad proof that the Door God was a Benevolent God.
Lin Chen planned to wait until the Door God faith had spread on a small scale and its protective effects had become evident before revealing the Door God's existence to the authorities.
This trump card had not yet reached the time to be revealed to the world.
So he still refused Chen Xiao Diao's invitation.
Chen Xiao Diao didn't mind. She knew that all she had to do in the future was cling tightly to Lin Chen's thigh.
After making a Blue Card, Lin Chen had expended an enormous amount of mental power, so he planned to rest early, and Chen Xiao Diao took her leave as well.
Once he was alone and quiet, Lin Chen again felt the feedback of mental power after successfully making the card, and his spiritual awareness had been strengthened once more;
He was now able to control three Green Cards simultaneously. According to the Card Master mental-power grading system, he had barely crossed the threshold into becoming an intermediate Card Master.
He continued burning incense and praying before the Door God statue every day. Together with Uncle Qin's faith power, Lin Chen could clearly feel wisps of incense power flowing into the card and refining the Door God's spirituality.
Although this incense faith power was extremely faint, without the gathering of little streams, no river or sea could ever be formed.
Lin Chen briefly reviewed the day. His greatest gain today—Chen Xiao Diao's 150,000 transfer.
Satisfied, he closed the ledger. With this 150,000, Lin Chen could add at least one more card.
With money came more choices.
Should he make another card to perfect his card formation?
Before you continue