The Mysterious Card Maker: Starting with Zhang Jiao's Deification

"A decoy?" Su Wanqing frowned slightly, clearly not quite understanding. "What's his motive?"

Lin Fan looked at Su Wanqing and slowly said, "Hide the rest of the things."

Lin Fan paused, then continued, "Think about it, there must be members of the All Souls Society in your foundation. If Zhao Zhong suddenly had such a rare item, wouldn't they have known at all?"

"Once this news reaches the ears of the All Souls Society, it's only a matter of time before they target Zhao Zhong."

Upon hearing this, Su Wanqing's expression changed, clearly indicating that she understood the implications.

"So my uncle deliberately spread the news that there was a talisman and put it up for auction to prevent the people of the All Souls Society from noticing it."

"Yes." Lin Fan nodded. "Because this way, everyone's attention will be drawn to the auction."

"That way, even if the All Souls Society finds out that Zhao Zhong obtained the talisman, they won't investigate further, because they'll assume that Zhao Zhong has already put the only talisman up for public auction."

Su Wanqing remained silent for a few seconds, seemingly surprised by Lin Fan's guess.

She continued, "So this auction was essentially a cover for him; my uncle actually possessed more than one of these talismans!"

But after thinking for a moment, she shook her head. "But if it's really as you say, why did my uncle keep it from me? He could have waited until the All Souls' Guild members weren't around before telling me."

Lin Fan chuckled. "The fewer people who know about important things, the safer it is, especially since there are All Souls Society spies within your foundation. In this situation, it's safest to deceive even your own people."

Su Wanqing gently bit her lip, wanting to say something more, but in the end she didn't speak.

"However... these are all just my guesses. Only Zhao Zhong himself knows whether he has any other talismans."

As Lin Fan spoke, his tone appeared calm, but inwardly he desperately hoped that Zhao Zhong had more than one talisman.

Given the current popularity of this talisman, not only the members of the All Souls Society, but also forces from other places will likely get involved.

After all, those who stand at the top have more high-level cards in their hands, and those cards of the Purple Domain level or even higher level cannot be discarded so easily.

Therefore, when the auction day actually arrives, the little money I have probably won't even qualify me to bid.

But if Zhao Zhong really has extra talismans, then I might be able to get them from him.

As Lin Fan was thinking, Su Wanqing's phone suddenly rang, breaking the silence in the room.

"Beep beep beep"

Su Wanqing glanced down at the caller ID, and her previously relaxed expression immediately became more serious.

"Okay, I understand, I'll be right there."

She responded several times, hung up the phone, briefly spoke with Lin Fan, and then quickly left.

Just as Su Wanqing left, Da Niu immediately squeezed in from outside.

"Mr. Lin, why is Miss Su leaving in such a hurry? Did something happen?" Da Niu peeked out and glanced in the direction Su Wanqing had left.

"I don't know either."

Da Niu didn't stand on ceremony at all; he went straight to the dining table after entering the room.

"Mr. Lin, come and have some! I saved these especially for you!"

Lin Fan followed his hand and saw several exquisitely plated dishes sitting alone on the table, with pitifully small portions.

As for the other items in the large plates...

It's basically already been swept up by the big shots.

Lin Fan's lips twitched slightly, too lazy to expose him. After eating a few bites, he picked up the box Su Wanqing had brought and headed to the card-making room on the third floor.

After pushing open the door to the card-making room, Lin Fan was clearly taken aback. This place was completely different from any card-making room he had ever been to before.

Several defensive cards are also embedded around the perimeter, clearly placed there specifically to prevent the cards from going berserk if the card-making process fails.

"That's quite a generous gesture..."

Lin Fan sighed softly, then placed the box on the table and slowly opened it.

He laid out the cards one by one.

[Guardian Sword Blood Pact] (Blue)

[Sword tassel woven from blood-red hair] (Blue)

【Dawn's Corroded Iron Sword Embryo】(Green)

[The Slaughtering Ghost General] (Purple)

[The Unfaithful Ghost General] (Purple)

[The Bloodstained Edict at the Palace Gate] (Blue)

【Rotten Flesh Seal】(Blue)

【Shadowless Bones】(Blue)

【The Lament of Yitian】(Purple)

Upon seeing these materials, Lin Fan's gaze gradually became serious, especially towards the two most crucial Summoning Material Cards.

Both the "Slaughtering Ghost General" and the "Unfaithful Ghost General" are of the Purple Domain level.

This also means that the "He Jin" that Zhao Zhong wants to create will start as a Purple Domain level card, since the level of the summoning materials almost determines the lower limit of a summoning card.

"It seems Zhao Zhong has higher expectations for this card than I imagined. My plan to make a blue card to get by is probably not going to work."

Lin Fan muttered to himself, "Fortunately, my mental strength was enhanced in the first level of the underworld. Otherwise, I would probably have needed mental recovery fluid to make a purple card of this level."

Lin Fan didn't rush to start making cards. He sorted the cards out. The ones with some connection to He Jin were [Slaughtering Ghost General], [Palace Gate Blood Edict], and [Rotting Flesh Seal].

He Jin was originally a butcher, so the title "Ghost General of the Butcher's Gate" fits him. The "Rotten Flesh Seal" is also a good symbol of his power. As for the "Blood Edict at the Palace Gate," he died because he was summoned to the palace, which also fits the description.

However, the others seem a bit lacking. Cards like [Guardian Sword Blood Pact], [Blood-Haired Sword Tassel], [Dawnlight Corrupted Iron Sword Embryo], and [Heavenly Lament] are more like weapon-type cards.

As for the remaining [Unfaithful Ghost General] and [Shadowless Bone], they are not currently of any use.

"Oh, right!" Lin Fan seemed to remember something, took out all his material cards, and went through them.

He took out the [Blood-Rusted Butcher's Knife], [Hanging Skull Palace Lantern], and [Shadow-Eating Ghost Box] that he had kept in his pocket for a long time.

He put them together with the cards Zhao Zhong gave him, and two more card-making formulas instantly appeared in his mind.

[Bloodstained Butcher's Knife] + [Hanging Skull Palace Lantern] + [Ghost General of the Slaughtering Clan] + [Rotting Flesh Seal] = He Jin

He put the [Palace Gate Blood Edict] back into his pocket; it seemed there was a better place for this card.

[Sword Pact] + [Blood-Haired Sword Tassel] + [Dawnlight Corrupted Iron Sword Embryo] + [Shadow-Eating Ghost Box] = Cheng Ying

The Blood Pact of the Sword is the foundation of wielding the sword. The Sword Tassel woven from blood-red hair uses the hair of drowned corpses at dusk to distort light, making the sword's edge difficult to discern as real or illusory.

The [Dawnlight Corrupted Iron Sword Embryo] provides the sword body, enabling it to become semi-invisible, while the [Shadow-Eating Ghost Box] completely erases any remaining shadows of the sword, making Cheng Ying invisible and shadowless when it is unsheathed.

This was Lin Fan's first time designing a weapon card, and he didn't know if the formula was applicable to the same way as the summoning card.