Chapter 396 I“m Not a Kiddie Ride!

Tian Du City.

Sword Card Master a.s.sociation.

The a.s.sociation was still in the midst of the evaluation yet Li Haoran had already carefully selected a batch of reviewed disciples. This was the pleasant surprise that he was referring to.

32 cultivators!

Excellent talent!

Superb resources!

“Are you sure that there is nothing wrong with these people?”

“There is nothing wrong with them.”

Li Haoran was certain.

Both he and Xiao-Xiaoshé had reviewed these disciples. Furthermore, they came from various a.s.sociations and almost none of them were from the same a.s.sociation. In general, there should not be any problem.

“Very good.”

Lu Ming was very satisfied.

Finally…

This was the moment that he had been waiting for.

32 cultivators was more than what he had imagined!

What about the Influencer a.s.sociation?

If it could bring in enough disciples for the Sword Card Master a.s.sociation, he would rather continue with that!

“When can they join us?”

“Anytime!”

“Very good.”

Lu Ming was very satisfied.

Now that he had gathered enough disciples, he could finally carry out the Art of Equalization! If he could succeed this time, he would be able to reach five-star in one go!

Lu Ming had long been waiting for this moment.

“Xiao-Xiaojian!

“Yes.”

“Prepare to deduce.”

“Yes.”

Xiao-Xiaojian drifted to him. It was wobbling and not flying steadily. Lu Ming took a glance. It seemed that he had been dealt with miserably by the black cat yesterday.

Well…

It deserved it!

“You have to control yourself.”

Lu Ming smiled faintly.

Xiao-Xiaojian rolled its eyes madly. If it was not for Lu Ming, would it have been beaten up that badly?

d.a.m.n it!

Sooner or later…

“Are you feeling very indignant…”

Lu Ming smiled faintly. “Do you want to know more secrets?”

Xiao-Xiaojian instantly cowered.

“Deduce obediently.”

“Yes.”

Xiao-Xiaojian was ready.

Whoosh—

Lu Ming took a deep breath.

The Art of Equalization…

This was a technique that could change his future!

He had already reached peak four-star for a period of time. He could not break through due to his talent and could only depend on this mysterious technique to change his talent!

Although the conditions were strict and hars.h.!.+

Of course.

There were some slight problems in casting the Art of Equalization.

Although the method and ability was complete in the legacy and the Breeze Pavilion had also pa.s.sed it down thoroughly, the current problem was…

There was no user manual!

Lu Ming understood the major function but he had to depend on Xiao-Xiaojian to deduce the minor functions!

For example…

How does one judge who is a disciple of the Sword Card Master a.s.sociation?!

Lu Ming was very curious.

“I'll give it a try,” Xiao-Xiaojian said.

Buzz—

Lights and shadows flashed.

After a long time…

Xiao-Xiaojian completed the deductions and was shocked to discover that besides the spirit body department and the [evaluation] department, the rest of the disciples were within the scope of the Art of Equalization.

Which meant…

The spirit bodies were not counted.

Those who were pending for evaluation were not counted as well.

The rest of the disciples could be included in the scope of the Art of Equalization!

Well…

Lu Ming pondered deeply.

Therefore…

The judging of the Art of Equalization was that simple and crude?

If that was the case…

Shus.h.!.+

Lu Ming dismissed Li Ergou from the a.s.sociation and told Xiao-Xiaojian to deduce again. They were shocked to discover that Li Ergou was no longer included in the scope of the Art of Equalization!

Afterward, he recruited Li Ergou again.

Well…

Xiao-Xiaojian made another deduction and Li Ergou was counted!

It actually worked!

Lu Ming was astonished.

Therefore…

The judgement of the Art of Equalization was done in this way! If that was the case, Lu Ming would have a lot of room to control it!

Anyway.

At the preparatory phase of the Art of Equalization, Lu Ming could experiment with many things. The remaining things could be tested when the Art of Equalization began!

The next day.

The 32 disciples turned up as scheduled.

As usual, Lu Ming gave them a simple round of interviews and then recruited them formally into the Sword Card Master a.s.sociation!

At this moment.

The conditions for the Art of Equalization had been met!

“Get ready to start.”

Lu Ming was slightly excited.

“Understood.”

Xiao-Xiaojian was ready.

However…

Just as he wanted to cast the Art of Equalization, Lu Ming suddenly paused for a moment. After counting the number of disciples, he was deep in his thoughts.

“The Art of Equalization is dynamic, right?”

“Yes.”

“This means I can cast the Art of Equalization on all the disciples. Alternatively, I can cast it on some of the disciples and then include the rest of them later on. Right?”

“Yes.”

“That's good.”

Lu Ming felt very satisfied.

Afterward, he accessed the a.s.sociation system and conveniently dismissed Li Ergou, Li Haoran, Xiaobai and so on from the Sword Card Master a.s.sociation.

“Master?”

The disciples messaged him.

“I'm doing a system test. Please don't mind that,” Lu Ming replied.

“Understood.”

The disciples busied themselves with work again.

Verification, natural endowments and ident.i.ty were especially important to other people. However, for the majority of the people from the Sword Card Master a.s.sociation, these were merely ornaments…

The a.s.sociation was established at a later stage!

Who cared about all those?

“What are you doing?”

Xiao-Xiaojian asked curiously.

Who would dismiss his own people during a test?

“Testing.”

Lu Ming felt somewhat excited.

He seldom had such a good opportunity. Of course, he had to do a proper test! He had to figure out the Art of Equalization in the shortest time possible! Therefore, he had to test it.

Well…

Besides…

The 32 new disciples were already enough!

Li Haoran had estimated their talent before. The average score was 9.2. If they were to equalize with him, the lowest score would most likely be 8.5!

Well…

When the time comes, he could then include Xiaobai and look at the effect.

Hence…

Lu Ming began to cast the Art of Equalization!

Bang!

A beam of light shone.

Lu Ming could only sense an endless glow enveloping him. A streak of a strange and intriguing aura flashed and a certain thing in his body cracked open quietly!

Click!

There was a crisp and clear sound.

A bust of energy emerged!

Powerful and familiar energy began to appear.

These were…

Five-star!

Five-star powers!

“True enough, I have attained a breakthrough!”

Lu Ming was overjoyed.

As expected…

Lu Ming clenched both his fists. He had attained a breakthrough the instant that his talent changed! In that case, his talent was not that poor…

Buzz—

Lights and shadows circulated before their eyes.

The mysterious aura seemed to be circulating between heaven and earth.

It surrounded Lu Ming.

It was in the Sword Card Master a.s.sociation.

In the end…

It transformed into a faint radiance and a number — Three.

Lu Ming looked bewildered.

The three…

What did it mean?!

Afterward, a thought transmitted clearly from the Art of Equalization — Under the influence of the Art of Equalization, the cultivator's current talent score is three.

Lu Ming was completely dumbstruck.

Talent?

Wait a minute

His talent was three?

Was this a joke?!

These were 32 cultivators with respective scores above nine? Even if Lu Ming had a talent score of zero, he should have a score of at least 8.8 after the equalization? How did they derive three?!

This was impossible, alright!

“Is it possible that… Your original talent score is negative?”

Xiao-Xiaojian pondered deeply.

Lu Ming turned sullen.

d.a.m.n it. Was that possible?!

However…

Taking into consideration that ridiculous cultivation speed of his, there was really such a possibility!

Therefore, Lu Ming looked at the disciples' talent score immediately. Well…

It was better not to elaborate further!

Lu Ming alone had dragged down the average score of all the 32 disciples… Therefore, the joke that he had made previously had come true.

A—alright.

Lu Ming gave a deep sigh.

Regardless of whether he was a burden or not, he had already reached five-star! At most… At most, he would s.h.i.+eld himself normally and cast the Art of Equalization again when he attained a six-star breakthrough in the future!

Well…

There was nothing wrong with that!

Lu Ming pondered carefully. This would do as well!

Anyway, he had a hundred thousand points of energy in his body and did not know how long it would take to break through at a normal cultivation speed. Therefore, Lu Ming had been using special methods to increase his energy during cultivation. He had never utilized his talent before!

Therefore…

His talent was only used to attain a breakthrough.

Well…

He would get some items that could s.h.i.+eld the Art of Equalization soon.

Lu Ming was slightly troubled.

He did not expect that he had to s.h.i.+eld himself the moment he changed his destiny and attained a breakthroug and the purpose was to avoid dragging down his disciples…

It was really…

It was hard to explain in a few words.

“Is there no other way?”

Xiao-Xiaojian protested.

Of course, it's fine for you. d.a.m.n it, you're not the one cultivating!

I'm the one cultivating normally! Do you know how it feels to cultivate with such an inferior talent?! It feels like being constipated!

It's very upsetting.

I like the smooth and effortless feeling…

“I don't think so.”

Lu Ming poured over the Art of Equalization.

The only way not to drag his disciples down was to s.h.i.+eld himself. After s.h.i.+elding, he could include Xiaobai and the rest of the disciples again. This would not impact them then.

Well…

He had no choice. The impact was too huge now!

The talent score was too low!

Even if Li Haoran and the rest were included, their talent score might also decrease!

Therefore…

Lu Ming had no other choice!

However…

Just at this moment, a new idea came into Lu Ming's mind. What if he were to dismiss these disciples? The Art of Equalization would lose its effect?!

Afterward…

He would have a chance to re-do it again?

Although in theory, the Art of Equalization was everlasting. Nevertheless, if the a.s.sociation was gone, they would be able to bind and cast it again?!

Hence…

Lu Ming felt energized. He dismissed one of the disciples on the spot. However, nothing happened.

There was no movement?

Lu Ming scratched his head.

This was not logical. In theory, even if this disciple was not affected, the number of people had been reduced and it would cause a change to the talent score. After all, it was dynamic equilibrium.

However…

There was no movement.

Hence…

Lu Ming dismissed another disciple and there was no movement. His talent score was still three.

“What is happening?”

Lu Ming and Xiao-Xiaojian glanced at each other.

They faced each other.

“Try it again?”

Xiao-Xiaojian suggested.

Hence…

Lu Ming had been checking his talent level and dismissing his disciples continuously. Afterward, nothing happened!

His talent score was still three!

Lu Ming froze completely.

Xiao-Xiaojian was also baffled.

“What is happening?”

A man and a card were puzzled.

They had a feeling that the usage of the Art of Equalization seemed to be quite different from their imagination and deductions…

It seemed that…

Unless the Sword Card Master a.s.sociation were to fold someday, become completely dissolved and struck off the list of a.s.sociations, the Art of Equalization would never disappear!

“Why don't you try recruiting them again?” Xiao-Xiaojian suggested.

“Okay.”

Lu Ming pondered for a moment and then messaged the disciples. “Can you apply to join the Sword Card Master a.s.sociation again?”

Ding—

The other party responded instantly — “Sorry, you are not a friend of the other party.”

Lu Ming tried to contact the rest of the disciples and the response was the same — “Sorry, you are not a friend of the other party.”

Lu Ming was silent.

d.a.m.n!

He had been blacklisted just like that?

How did they know that he was the one who did this?!

Hence…

He brought Xiao-Xiaojian and specially went to the dormitory of the 32 disciples. He then discovered that all of them were gone, leaving behind only an empty place!

Right then…

Somewhere.

The 32 disciples were crawling in the sewers.

“Hang on!”

“We will be able to escape soon!”

“d.a.m.n it! How did Lu Ming discover us?!”

“I don't know.”

“I have a feeling that Lu Ming has attained a breakthrough to five-star!”

“It's terrifying! Lu Ming can fight Yan Suya head-on at four-star… Five-star… This means that he will be able to defeat a seven-star?! It's no wonder that he discovered us!”

“Seven-star… d.a.m.n it!”

“Quickly, let's leave! We have to inform them about this!”

The few of them were filled with fear and terror.

She was being serious about it,

They could feel the mysteriousness of the Sword Card Master a.s.sociation at this moment.

They came from an a.s.sociation alliance. An alliance of 32 a.s.sociations. They were totally unrelated and their sole purpose was to come to this place and steal the secret skill from the sword spirit department of the Sword Card Master a.s.sociation!

They had tried to shove the spirit bodies into their vocation cores too.

Afterward…

They self-destructed!

Therefore, they were certain that besides the incantation that was leaked, the Sword Card Master a.s.sociation had other secret skills!

If they could master them, they would definitely become the next Sword Card Master a.s.sociation!

However…

Just as they joined the a.s.sociation and settled into their dormitory, they sensed a horrifying aura landing on them and then their cultivation speed was greatly affected!

There was no other reason!

Their cultivation speed had reduced significantly.

Afterward, just as they were trying to figure out what happened, they had been dismissed from the Sword Card Master a.s.sociation right then, one after another.

In that instant!

They knew that their ident.i.ty had been exposed!

Therefore…

They blacklisted Lu Ming immediately and then used the special technique ‘Eel Transformation Reagent' from their alliance and escaped through the toilet bowl to the sewers…

“Hang on!

“We will be able to leave once we get out of the Sword Card Master a.s.sociation territory!”

At this very moment…

Sword Card Master a.s.sociation.

Under Xiao-Xiaojian's deductions, Lu Ming finally figured out what had happened. All the 32 disciples were in fact undercover agents!

All of them!

Hence…

He gathered everyone from the Sword Card Master a.s.sociation and told them about this.

Shus.h.!.+

Everyone glanced at Li Haoran together.

“I'm sorry.”

Li Haoran felt very ashamed. “The information for this group is the most complete. Therefore, they were reviewed and approved most quickly. I didn't consider this aspect.”

“Please check if we have suffered any other damages?”

“Yes.”

Li Haoran did a round of quick investigation. “No, you've discovered them in time and they escaped immediately! Therefore, we didn't suffer any loss for the time being!”

Li Haoran felt some lingering fear.

He was being serious about it,

32 disciples!

All of them turned out to be spies!

If someone had a malicious intention, that would be too terrifying!

And this… was the outcome of his evaluation!

At the thought of this, Li Haoran felt extremely guilty. He had never done such management work before and therefore did not consider the prospect of being undercover!

“Sorry, Master. It's my mistake,” Li Haoran said earnestly.

“It's okay.”

Lu Ming shook his head.

An innocent man's only crime is to carry the gem that everyone is coveting…

It was very normal for the Sword Card Master a.s.sociation to be targeted and he was not surprised by this. However, the issue now was how to prevent this from happening again.

“There seems to be someone who is an expert in management from the spirit body department,” Xiao-Xiaojian suddenly spoke up.

“Oh?”

Lu Ming's heart stirred slightly.

After a long time…

Xiao-Xiaojian recommended someone… It was a female spirit body that was gorgeously dressed.

“This is?”

“A monkey spirit.”

“… Why is it dressed in this way?”

Lu Ming sighed.

“Since Senior Xiao-Xiaojian made its speech, it became like that.”

The monkey spirit bowed respectfully.

It even cast a curious gaze at Lu Ming. It was uncertain what its thoughts were.

Lu Ming was speechless.

Shus.h.!.+

He glanced at Xiao-Xiaojian coldly and Xiao-Xiaojian felt extremely guilty.

“Do you have any management experience?”

Lu Ming looked at the monkey spirit.

“Indeed.”

The monkey spirit said excitedly, “When the spirit tiger is not around, I'm the one in charge of management. I even helped in two fights against the spirit bodies at the legacy site next door.”

Lu Ming was silent.

The spirit bodies nowadays were very experienced…

Hence…

He simply told the spirit monkey to evaluate the applications with Li Haoran. This spirit monkey had sharp eyes and could tell many things. It was very formidable.

The undercover situation had been temporarily resolved.

Afterward…

It was Lu Ming's problem.

He glanced at his talent score and did not come to his senses for a long time.

Why…

He had already dismissed 32 disciples and this talent score was still three?! He was the only one left in the entire Sword Card Master a.s.sociation now!

It was still three points?!

“Tell me…

“Is it possible that…”

Xiao-Xiaojian suddenly said, “Talents that have been bound could not be removed! I remember from the earlier records that it would be over only when one dies!

“So…”

“Due to the Art of Equalization, their talents are already bound to you!

“However…

“Since they left the Sword Card Master a.s.sociation, they could not benefit from the dynamic equilibrium of the Sword Card Master a.s.sociation and could only leave with the current talent…

“It became like that afterward.”

Lu Ming pondered deeply for a moment.

It seemed logical. However, if that was the case, this was too tragic for these spies…

On the day itself.

It was very late at night.

Thirty-two unkempt figures returned to a certain bas.e.m.e.nt.

“Why did you guys come back?”

A member of the alliance was shocked.

“Master!

“Save us!”

“The Sword Card Master a.s.sociation is too terrifying!”

“Oo… We were discovered on the first day and were almost beaten to death!”

“Yes! Lu Ming has already attained a breakthrough to five-star and his powers increased tremendously. He discovered us in that instant. We would have long died if we didn't escape fast enough!”

The disciples cried.

“Impossible!”

One of the big shots was enraged. “All of you have a normal ident.i.ty. What could he discover? I only left behind a seven-star aura. How could he sense that?!”

“Well…”

“We suspect that…

“After Lu Ming attained a breakthrough to five-star, he gained a seven-star combat ability!”

The disciples were teary-eyed.

“Seven-star…”

Some big shots finally turned serious.

They were that bold and fearless toward the Sword Card Master a.s.sociation because this was a small a.s.sociation and also because there was no seven-star in the a.s.sociation!

But right now…

Lu Ming…

He had a seven-star equivalent combat ability?

“Let's rea.s.sess the ability of the Sword Card Master a.s.sociation.”

“Yes!”

“As for you guys, although this plan was not successful, we didn't lose anything either. You've even successfully attained information about Lu Ming. It's also considered a great contribution. I'll teach a secret surmounting skill which is uniquely for six-stars. It's not restricted to any vocation and everyone can use it!”

“Yes!”

The disciples were excited.

A surmounting ability…

Finally!

They had waited it out!

With this, all their suffering was worth it!

“I'm only imparting it once.

“Look carefully!”

Upon finis.h.i.+ng his words…

The big shot began to cast the skill.

Shus.h.!.+

Shus.h.!.+

Lights and shadows flashed.

The disciples were immersed.

After a long time…

The big shot stopped. “Have you guys figured it out?”

The disciples were silent for a long time. They glanced at one another and felt puzzled.

They completely… could not figure it out!

As a group of cultivators with top-notch talent, they had long been used to a photographic memory. However, they completely could not figure out this ability!

Were surmounting abilities that profound?

Hence…

The atmosphere was a little awkward.

The various presidents looked at one another and pretended that they did not see anything.

“None of you picked this up?

“Forget it.”

The big shot sighed. “I'll do it again.”

Hence…

He cast the skill again.

After a long time…

He stopped. “Have you guys figured it out?”

Shus.h.!.+

There was also total silence.

The big shot was speechless.

He glanced at the higher-ups of the various a.s.sociations with a strange look in his eyes.

d.a.m.n it. Are these the so-called most outstanding disciples with shocking talent from your a.s.sociation?

“Do it again. I didn't understand it either.”

One of the presidents said with a low voice, “Perhaps they have not come into contact with this before.”

“Alright.”

The big shot took a deep breath.

Shus.h.!.+

Shus.h.!.+

He cast the skill again.

The disciples were speechless.

“Again…”

Shus.h.!.+

Shus.h.!.+

He finished casting the skill.

“Again…”

Shus.h.!.+

Shus.h.!.+

He finished casting the skill.

“Again…”

Cras.h.!.+

The big shot kicked the table and sent it flying.

He had suffered from a mental breakdown.

“I quit!

“d.a.m.n it! Who is willing to learn this?!

“This is just a secret skill that is applicable to all six-stars and it's that difficult for you guys to learn it! I've cast it so many times. Even a pig would have remembered it by now?!

“Again…

“That's bulls.h.i.+t!

“I am not a kiddie ride. Do you think I will repeat as long as you insert coins?!

“Good-for-nothings!”

“A group of good-for-nothings!”

The big shot left furiously.

The disciples who had been chided badly were trying hard to recall the secret skill earlier but were sorrowful to discover that they still had not figured it out…

What is wrong with me?