Li Haoran nodded slightly. "We can only explain the stability through direct demonstration so that everyone can see it clearly and have a good understanding of it.

The so-called stability is the stability of the energy structure.

This is about the condensation of the Original Card!

Of course, the most direct way to perceive it is through the lines on the Original Card! The energy must be very stable in order for the lines to be more stable and more solid! If it is not stable, if there is any fluctuation in the Original Card, the lines will dissipate, or worse, the Original Card will be affected!

In that case…

Let's seal a simple ability in the Original Card and collide the Original Cards against each other…

Let's demonstrate it to everyone."

Li Haoran went on to say.

Sealing?

Collision?

Lu Ming was surprised. Was he serious?

"Forget it."

Lu Ming felt a little embarra.s.sed.

Although Li Haoran was not considered a good person, he was not like others who committed crimes. It did not feel right to put him in a difficult position…

The characteristics of his Original Card…

It would not even be fearful of the Sword Embryo of a four-star Swordsman!

Collision?

Hey, I'm worried that something bad might happen!

"It's okay."

Li Haoran put on a smile. "Look, all the Card Creators are waiting. You should not keep them waiting."

"Or let me do it?"

One of the Card Creators stood out from the crowd.

"No need."

Li Haoran waved his hands. "Do you know why I didn't talk about this in other places but here? I hope that there will be more four-star cultivators in the Qing Ming branch!

There is a reason why I chose Lu Ming. It is because he has a strong foundation!

As for you…

I am worried that your Original Cards won't be able to withstand it!

Do you understand?

Lu Ming has beaten my father. Does anyone have a stronger foundation than him?"

Li Haoran went on to say.

Everyone glanced and faced each other.

Strong foundation!

Beat his father!

Since he had said this, there was nothing that the other people could do.

Lu Ming was speechless.

A—alright.

Li Haoran kept insisting on him, there was no way to say no.

This child…

He had changed for the worst!

Lu Ming gave a deep sigh.

He remembered that back then Li Haoran was suffering from eighth-grade syndrome (This is typically used to describe early teens who have delusions of grandeur, who so desperately want to stand out that they have convinced themselves they have hidden knowledge or secret powers), and had low IQ, he was not considered as a bad person.

But right now…

Look.

Although he said that he had a so-called strong foundation, if anything happened after the collision of the Original Cards, Li Haoran would definitely say that he was sorry, he did not expect that his Original Card would be so brittle…

Wasn't this being very unfair?

"Alright."

Lu Ming said in a low voice, "I can do the demonstration, but there is something that I have to say beforehand."

"Don't worry."

Li Haoran seemed very amicable. "This is merely a small collision, a demonstration for everyone."

"No."

Lu Ming shook his head. "Didn't you say that I have a strong foundation in my Original Card? That's what I mean. My Original Card's foundation is way too strong…

Don't blame me if anything happens."

Pfft!

Li Haoran almost burst out in laughter. This fellow must be dreaming.

Hence…

Li Haoran chose Lu Ming to go on stage.

"It's better to place it on the table. It will be safer when sealing," Lu Ming reminded.

"Okay," Li Haoran agreed.

He remembered that Lu Ming was not as strong as him. It was possible that he might fail when sealing it.

Hence…

Both parties summoned their Original Cards and placed it on the table, the back of the Original Card facing up. The a.s.sistant took out Fireball Cards and released them into each card.

The sealing was complete!

"Come.

Will everyone look at the lines?

These are the standard lines of Fireball.

Now, the lines on the back of Lu Ming's and my cards are the same. If we collide the cards together, we will be able to see its stability!"

Li Haoran explained to everyone.

"The quality of the energy is very important.

It is like props made from different materials!

It is the same for the Original Card!

However, as we can't tell the stability from the naked eye, therefore, we will demonstrate to everyone…

When two Original Cards collide…

The lines of the Original Card that has a weaker stability will be distorted. Under certain serious situations, it will even dissipate directly!

The greater the impact, the faster it will dissipate.

Everyone, take a closer look…"

Li Haoran explained while he manipulated the Original Card carefully.

Right now…

Everyone fixed their gazes on the Original Cards.

Those who were dozing off woke up and stared intently on the table.

Stability…

Whoos.h.!.+

Li Haoran made the Original Cards collide with each other.

Click!

There was a crisp and clear sound.

The Original Cards collided.

The lines on Li Haoran's Original Card dissipated at an incredible speed. They disappeared without a trace as if they were being steamed dry! The most frightening thing was that a fine crack appeared and spread on Li Haoran's Original Card. His Original Card had cracked!

Click!

Click!

There were cracks on Li Haoran's Original Card.

And on the other side…

Lu Ming's Original Card was still intact.

"How can that be possible?!"

Everyone stood up in shock.

It cracked?

It directly cracked!?

How could that be possible?!

The Original Card was very strong. Ordinary people would not be able to destroy it!

Why would it split?

On the stage.

The people from the Chong Yang a.s.sociation went crazy.

Li Haoran was their talented representative! Why would his Original Card crack after colliding with a two-star Card Creator's card?! Previously, he said that the worst scenario was that the lines would disappear!

"My Original Card…"

Li Haoran trembled.

His mind had gone blank. That was his lifeblood!

Why would it crack?

Could the Original Card crack?

He had never heard of it!

Rumor had it that the Original Card could only be destroyed when under attack by the most powerful Swordsman who had high combat skills and who destroyed it by force. He had never heard of the news that the Original Card would be destroyed through collision!

T-this…

All the presidents crowded around the table. They had never seen a cracked Original Card!

Sigh.

"You said that I have a strong foundation."

Lu Ming gave a deep sigh.

Everyone was confused. Had this to do with a strong foundation?

"Why would this happen?

Come.

Everyone, please come over here.

This was because Li Haoran's Original Card was not as stable."

Lu Ming continued the conference from where Li Haoran had stopped. "Although he condensed his Original Card to be a four-star cultivator, he must have condensed it by force even when it was not as stable. Therefore, it resulted in the Original Card being even more unstable! Please bear this in mind, stability is the key to breaking through to a four-star!

Anyway…

Stability is far more important than breaking through.

Many people feel that being a four-star is instant success. However, if one's foundation is not as strong, there will be problems after breaking through. One's future might be ruined, for example…

Do all of you get it?"

Lu Ming highlighted the main points.

Everyone finally knew what was going on.

That was right.

If one was unstable, what was the point in breaking through?

Look.

Li Haoran broke through by force.

But, look at the outcome?

He was almost rendered useless by a two-star Card Creator!

Everyone seldom placed importance on the foundation. They were occupied with cultivation and increasing their energy level. They began to take it more seriously after Li Haoran's mishap!

There was no other option…

A four-star Card Creator had almost destroyed his own card. They had to take this lesson seriously.

Right now…

All the Card Creators had sobered up.

Foundation!

Stability!

These were what they should be concerned about.

Pfft!

Li Haoran almost spat a mouthful of blood.

He…

He had become a textbook example of what not to do.

In order to make things difficult for Lu Ming, he told everyone his secret to breaking through. He knew very well that no one would really listen to this kind of conference.

In particular a so-called learning conference!

There were many lectures at the Card Creators a.s.sociation every year. Everyone would forget about it right after the talk.

Because they did not care.

Four-star!

He had achieved instant success!

Who would really waste time on the foundations?

Who would really hold off breaking through to a four-star in order to have a strong foundation?

No one!

Therefore, he talked about the main point right away—stability.

It was just that…

He did not expect that through his demonstration to the Qing Ming branch about the importance of stability, the Card Creators would realize the seriousness of the matter.

Look, if one did not work on the foundations, one would get into serious trouble when one reached four-star!

Why did things turn out to be like this?

Li Haoran stared blankly at the cracks on the Original Card, taking a long time to come to his senses.

…

In the afternoon.

The learning conference had ended.

The people from the Chong Yang a.s.sociation went back defeated. They had canceled all the remaining schedule. They wondered whether this would have any impact on Li Haoran's future…

"Come, Lu Ming, can you help me to take a look?"

Zhang Yang secretly showed a video to Lu Ming.

Oh?

Lu Ming felt energized.

He never expected that there would be this type of video.

Shus.h.!.+

Li Haoran's face could be seen as soon as the video started.

Lu Ming was speechless.

Oh.

So this was the recorded video of the conference just now.

However…

The video had been edited.

At the start of the video, Li Haoran mentioned that the theme of the conference was 'Foundations and Stability', he then began his lecture and did a personal demonstration, using various striking and grand examples to explain why one must have a strong foundation!

At the moment when the Original Card cracked…

The first shot zoomed in on the sullen expression on Li Aiguo's face.

The second shot showed how ghastly pale the president of the Chong Yang branch looked.

The third shot showed the shocked expression of the Qing Ming City members.

…

Finally, the video showed the dumbstruck expression on Li Haoran's face.

This was a Penta Kill!

Everyone was wiped out!

A high-beat music was added to the video deliberately, accompanied by very large subt.i.tles!

In the end…

The video concluded with Lu Ming's perfect ending.

"This…"

Lu Ming stared at Zhang Yang who looked excited while seated in the wheelchair, as he wondered if the president of the Card Creators a.s.sociation was indomitable. He was not frightened despite being beaten!

He had just been beaten, but he went on to provoke the other party!

He was simply asking for another round of beatings!

"Don't give in."

Zhang Yang had strong morale. "I can't possibly be beaten for nothing!"

"Does the higher-up agree with what you are doing?"

Lu Ming's head was aching.

"Of course."

Zhang Yang pursed his lips. "After editing the video, I deleted all the source files. The a.s.sociation won't be able to find any files. This is the only version."

"Isn't it the higher-up's wish to reinforce the values of a 'strong foundation'? This video is the perfect example of that…

And it is much better than boring courses and teachings!

There is a plot!

There are conflicts!

There is a twisted turn of events, featuring someone who did themselves in!

This will leave an impression on the Card Creators who watch the video. It is much more meaningful than one hundred boring tutorials!"

Zhang Yang was very proud of himself.

Lu Ming was speechless.

What else could he say?

He could only pray that Zhang Yang would not be beaten to death the next time he ventured outdoors! This fellow's behavior…

Would indeed provoke the other party.

Buzz—

His wristband vibrated.

Lu Ming took a look and was shocked.

"Dear member of the Card Creators a.s.sociation, 'Stability and Foundation of the Original Card—Qing Ming Branch Counterattack' has been uploaded. This video focused on the key to breaking through to a four-star from a three-star, as well as the grievances between the two a.s.sociations… Please stay tuned."

"P.S. Must-watch for three-star peak members. Three-star peak members are required to write a one-thousand-word reflection on this article."

Lu Ming was dumbstruck.

What did this mean?

For that instant…

He seemed to have returned to his previous life.

Back then when he was a programmer, when he was dispatched to a relatively large state-owned enterprise for a short-term testing and maintenance, and the sequel to a movie happened to be showing in the cinema, all of them were dragged to watch the movie… The movie was good, however, it was too much that they had to write a one-thousand-word patriotic reflection…

And now…

It was the same situation!

And…

What was the subt.i.tle about?

"I was the one who came up with it."

Zhang Yang proudly admitted while sitting on the wheelchair. "Don't you think that it is very impressive?"

"How can this be approved?" Lu Ming exclaimed.

"Of course it can."

Zhang Yang pursed his lips, turning silent briefly. "Let me ask you if the t.i.tle was 'Stability and Foundation of the Original Card', would you look at it?"

"Yes."

Lu Ming did not hesitate at all.

He knew very little about being a card Creator. If there was a thesis that he could have free access to, he would definitely read it, so as to have a better understanding.

Why couldn't he show his support?

Cough, cough.

He coughed slightly. "Anyway, for the average person, if the t.i.tle is 'Stability and Foundation of the Original Card', they might not look at it. However, if the subt.i.tle is added and the new t.i.tle is 'Stability and Foundation of the Original Card—Qing Ming Branch Counterattack', it would be more eye-catching."

Lu Ming was silent.

Apart from being eye-catching, the subt.i.tle will offend people!

"President. Have you considered buying personal accident insurance?

If you have yet to fill in a beneficiary, I don't mind being one…"

Lu Ming gave a sincere suggestion.

"Get lost!"

Zhang Yang rolled his eyes.

He would not easily be killed.

"Don't worry. I am alright."

Zhang Yang said calmly, "If it was Li Haoran from before, he would definitely take note of it. But now… now that his Original Card has cracked, it will take a very long time to repair it… I don't think he will have time to make trouble. Instead, it is more likely that I will send someone to beat him."

Oh?

Lu Ming was surprised.

Cough, cough.

Zhang Yang coughed. "Do you remember that there was a four-star a.s.sa.s.sin who was reluctant to accept the a.s.signment? After he heard of Li Haoran's recent situation, he is very sincere in taking the job to give him a beating…"

Lu Ming was rendered speechless.

Were the a.s.sa.s.sins so pragmatic now?

"I am fine. You must be careful though," Zhang Yang reminded him.

He was not worried for himself. It was Lu Ming who had destroyed Li Haoran's Original Card. He had to be careful.

"Don't worry."

Lu Ming was very calm.

"That's good."

Zhang Yang surmised that Lu Yan must have given her brother some trump cards to use in dangerous situations, therefore he was no longer worried.

…

After saying goodbye to Zhang Yang…

Lu Ming went to the testing area.

However…

To his surprise, the a.s.sistant brought him to the four-star and above testing area personally. In Qing Ming City, this place was exclusive to the president and vice president.

"Thank you."

Lu Ming expressed his thanks.

Zhang Yang, the president sure knew what to do.

The a.s.sistant was relieved. "It's good that you are satisfied. This is the st.u.r.diest place in the a.s.sociation."

Lu Ming glanced at him.

That was a brilliant use of the word "st.u.r.dy".