Chen Lie said, "This is far enough. You can head back."
"Okay."
Yang Xixi hesitated for a moment, then bit her lip. "Senior, can I add you as a Green Bubble friend?"
"Sure!"
Chen Lie took out his Communicator and added Yang Xixi as a friend.
Just then, a Flying Bus pulled up at the bus stop, and Chen Lie boarded it.
Yang Xixi watched him go and waved gently. "Goodbye, Senior!"
The Flying Bus rose into the air and flew off. Another airship landed nearby.
Its door opened, and a beautiful young woman and an exceptionally lovely girl with an elegant air stepped out.
"Classmate Lu? Hello, Classmate Lu!"
When Yang Xixi saw the elegant girl, she immediately greeted her.
The girl saw Yang Xixi too and replied, "Hello, Classmate Yang."
The beautiful woman behind the girl followed her over and asked, "Qingchan, is she your classmate?"
The girl nodded. "Yes. We're both in Elite Class 1. She's my classmate, Yang Xixi."
The girl was Lu Qingchan, and the beautiful woman behind her was her mother, Xu Yunyan.
Standing behind Lu Qingchan, Xu Yunyan greeted Yang Xixi. "Hello, Xixi."
Yang Xixi returned the greeting. "Hello, Auntie."
"Classmate Lu, I remember you were looking for an Army-Breaking Fist Martial Arts Crystal Card some time ago, weren't you?
There's a crystal card shop at the third store east of the market. It belongs to my dad. If you need one, you could go take a look."
"An Army-Breaking Fist Crystal Card?"
Lu Qingchan asked in puzzlement, "I've checked with so many crystal card shops, and none of them had one. How could that place have any?"
"I think a Divine Sense Master asked my dad to sell them on his behalf.
You wouldn't believe how young that Divine Sense Master is. He's our age, and even more unbelievably, he goes to our school."
Yang Xixi explained.
"There's a Divine Sense Master at our school?"
Lu Qingchan sounded utterly incredulous.
"It's true. We even had a meal together just now, and that Divine Sense Master gave me some pointers on my martial arts."
Lu Qingchan was stunned. When had their school become such a place full of hidden talent?
First, there was a mysterious expert who had mastered a B-Rank martial arts movement technique. And now they even had a Divine Sense Master.
She had lived with the Lu Family as a child, so she knew just how rare and precious Divine Sense Masters were.
"If he can give you pointers on your martial arts and is our age, that Divine Sense Master must be a martial arts prodigy too, right?" Lu Qingchan asked.
"I thought so too, but that senior said his strength was ordinary. I think he was just being modest, so I didn't believe him."
Xu Yunyan spoke up. "A Divine Sense Master your age? Then he must be an Apprentice Divine Sense Master. But even if he's only an apprentice and his current strength isn't that impressive, his martial arts potential is no less than that of the members of the Provincial Youth Genius Group.
If you get the chance, Xixi, you could introduce him to Qingchan. You're all around the same age, so you should have plenty to talk about."
"Well..." Yang Xixi hesitated for a moment. "I'll see. I'm not that familiar with that senior Divine Sense Master yet."
Xu Yunyan smiled gently. "All right, then. Qingchan and I will wait for good news from you."
Yang Xixi said, "I have to go train at the Martial Arts Hall, so I'll head off. Goodbye, Auntie. Goodbye, Classmate Lu."
"Goodbye!"
Lu Qingchan waved to Yang Xixi.
After Yang Xixi left, Lu Qingchan couldn't help complaining to Xu Yunyan. "Mom, how could you do that?
I haven't even met that Divine Sense Master, and you're already asking my classmate to introduce us.
Yang Xixi and I are just ordinary classmates. We don't even spend that much time together."
Xu Yunyan smiled. "Qingchan, do you understand what it means for someone your age to be a Divine Sense Master?"
"No!"
"Then let me explain. A seventeen-year-old Divine Sense Master has a better chance of becoming a Martial Arts Grandmaster in the future, barring unforeseen circumstances, than a member of the Provincial Youth Genius Group.
The members of the Dongchuan Province Youth Talent Group are called Grandmaster Seeds, but only a small number of them actually become Grandmasters. Yuan Hao is a good example."
"But... how can that be?" Lu Qingchan asked, confused.
"Once Divine Sense Masters awaken their Divine Sense, their comprehension, insight, and ability to learn are ten times better than other people's.
An ordinary person might need ten months to learn a martial art, while a Divine Sense Master might need less than one. How could you compete with that?
More importantly, once a Divine Sense Master reaches the first rank, they can project their spiritual power at any time to observe their body and their martial arts training. With timely adjustments and corrections, there's little chance of anything going wrong with their training.
A seventeen-year-old Apprentice Divine Sense Master is sure to reach the first rank within a few years. Martial arts training and spiritual power cultivation complement each other. Once a Divine Sense Master awakens their Divine Sense, their martial arts training becomes twice as effective."
"Are you saying that even Brother Hao, with his martial arts skills, can't compare to that Divine Sense Master?" Lu Qingchan asked.
Xu Yunyan nodded. "Yuan Hao has only laid the foundation for becoming a Grandmaster. You have to understand, a foundation is just a foundation. Who can guarantee that nothing will go wrong in his future training?
Let me give you an example: Zhao Jinglan, the CEO of the Sunlight Group in Dongchuan Province. Have you heard of her?"
"Of course," Lu Qingchan replied.
"Zhao Jinglan was a Divine Sense Master who awakened her Divine Sense at seventeen. The moment she did, the Zhao Family decided she would be their heir and began grooming her for the role.
Zhao Jinglan was barely in her twenties when she began managing the enormous Sunlight Group. That was because she was a Divine Sense Master who had already reached the first rank.
Zhao Jinglan is only ten years older than you, but her martial arts cultivation is already close to that of a Grandmaster. In the Zhao Family, she has the final say. Even many of the family's elders have to mind her mood and avoid crossing her.
By comparison, although Yuan Hao is a martial arts prodigy and has joined the Provincial Youth Genius Group, the Xu Family only values him. They're nowhere near deciding he'll be their heir.
That's the difference between a Divine Sense Master who awakened their Divine Sense at seventeen and a martial arts prodigy. Do you understand now?"
"Then... then..."
"Enough with the 'then.' Didn't you say there was a mysterious expert at your school who had mastered a B-Rank martial arts technique?
That person was probably this Divine Sense Master.
Only a Divine Sense Master could guide a first-year student and help her learn to use the movements of a B-Rank martial art with ease.
If you got to know this Divine Sense Master and had him give you some pointers, wouldn't you save yourself a month—or even several months—of hard training?
I'm doing all this for your sake."
Lu Qingchan couldn't help saying, "But I don't even know him."
"Your mother will teach you. Ask around indirectly through this classmate of yours, or through another classmate's younger sister. You'll get some news eventually."
Lu Qingchan fell silent. She really couldn't bring herself to do what her mother suggested.
"Come on. Let's check out that crystal card shop your classmate's family owns."
As she spoke, Xu Yunyan took Lu Qingchan by the hand and led her into the Martial Artist Market.
Following Yang Xixi's directions, they found the crystal card shop.
As soon as Xu Yunyan and Lu Qingchan walked in, Yang Shen immediately stood up.
"Hello. Are you looking for a Martial Arts Crystal Card?
We have a lot of different kinds in the shop. Take your time looking."
Xu Yunyan nodded slightly. "Shopkeeper, do you have any Army-Breaking Fist Crystal Cards?"
Yang Shen replied at once, "You came at just the right time. We just got a few sets of Army-Breaking Fist Crystal Cards in stock, along with the much-sought-after Void-Breaking Fist Crystal Cards. I'll get them for you!"
As he spoke, Yang Shen took the Army-Breaking Fist Crystal Cards and Void-Breaking Fist Crystal Cards from behind the counter.
Xu Yunyan examined them in her hands. "Shopkeeper, both kinds of cards are in short supply. I've visited a lot of crystal card shops, and none of them had any. How come you have them here?"
Yang Shen laughed. "To be honest, I have a special source."
Xu Yunyan opened the packaging and inspected the cards. Suddenly, she said, "The packaging on your cards looks different from the packaging at other shops."
"Does it? I hadn't noticed. But these are all Psionic Crystal Cards made by Lingfeng Group in Yunchuan Province. They came through legitimate channels, and all the paperwork is in order," Yang Shen said.
"Qingchan, take a look. Shall we get two sets of Army-Breaking Fist Crystal Cards?"
Xu Yunyan looked over at Lu Qingchan.
"Sure!" Lu Qingchan replied.
Xu Yunyan turned to Yang Shen. "Shopkeeper, we'll take two sets of Army-Breaking Fist Crystal Cards."
"Sure. Would you like Void-Breaking Fist Crystal Cards too? They're even more sought-after than the Army-Breaking Fist ones."
"No, just the two sets of Army-Breaking Fist Crystal Cards."
"All right, I'll pack them for you."
Yang Shen took a shopping bag from beside the counter, packed the two sets of cards, and handed it to Xu Yunyan.
"That'll be 240,000 Star Dollars."
Xu Yunyan nodded and took out a Star Dollar Card to pay. Just then, she remembered something and asked, "Shopkeeper, do you have any movement technique Martial Arts Crystal Cards here?"
"Movement techniques?"
Yang Shen thought for a moment. "We don't, but we do have leg technique cards. Would you be interested in those?"
"No, I'll pay for these," Xu Yunyan said, shaking her head.
"Wait, I do have one Cloud Shadow Steps C-Rank Martial Arts Crystal Card. It's a single card, not a set, and it's already been used once. If you want it, you can have it for 20,000 Star Dollars."
Yang Shen suddenly remembered and spoke up.
"Cloud Shadow Steps?"
Xu Yunyan's interest was piqued. "Bring it out and let me see!"
Yang Shen quickly took out a pale yellow crystal card and set it on the counter.
Xu Yunyan picked it up, then turned to Lu Qingchan. "Qingchan, I remember your Cloud Smoke Steps have hit a bottleneck. Movement technique cards are hard to come by, and Cloud Smoke Steps cards are impossible to find on the market.
Try this Cloud Shadow Steps card. Maybe it'll give you some more experience with your Cloud Smoke Steps."
"Okay!"
Lu Qingchan took the card, pressed it close to her chest, and focused on it.
Suddenly, inspiration struck her.
She saw herself standing in a pure white world, where she began practicing a movement technique.
Lu Qingchan, whose consciousness had entered the crystal card, was shocked to discover that the movement technique she was practicing from a first-person perspective in the card's world was none other than the Cloud Smoke Steps she had been training in all along.
Suddenly, her steps shifted and her figure blurred. She saw herself split into dozens, even hundreds, of afterimages surrounding her.
Then the dozens, even hundreds, of afterimages moved toward her, taking the same steps as the Cloud Smoke Steps, and merged with her one by one.
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