Bai Zhu lifted his hand from the card and watched the lingering silver light fade from his fingertips.
"Just so we're clear, I'm running on empty right now. I can't make any cards."
Ging nodded. "I know."
But Bai Zhu still plopped down beside Ging. He stared at the new blank card on the table, then picked it up and held it to the light.
The golden patterns on its surface glimmered in the sunlight, like some sort of intricate circuit board.
"This thing..." Bai Zhu narrowed his eyes. "You said it's made of Nen. So what exactly is Nen's essence?"
Ging froze for a moment.
"That's a huge question. I could talk for three days and three nights."
"Then give me the short version."
Ging thought for a moment, then drew a simple diagram on a sheet of paper.
"Nen is essentially life energy, released through aura nodes and shaped by will. Its properties vary from person to person, which is why there are six categories."
Bai Zhu stared at the diagram, his mind racing.
Reiatsu was also energy, and it could also be shaped by will. It simply manifested differently.
If I could find a conversion interface between the two...
He picked up the Soul King's Pen and lightly drew a stroke along the card's edge.
The moment the tip touched the card, the golden patterns flared, as though something had activated them.
Ging's eyes widened.
"What did you do?"
"Just testing something."
Bai Zhu pressed the pen tip against the patterns, sending a tiny amount of Reiatsu through the pen and into the card.
The patterns on the surface began to writhe, moving through the card like living things.
Ging held his breath.
Three seconds later, the patterns stopped moving and gathered into a complex design at