Chapter 12: Secretly Documenting the Protagonist's Humiliations as They Are Hunted by Spirit Beasts, to Use as Leverage

“Crack! Crash!”

The sound of shattering glass rang out.

Ye Hui’s bicycle weaved beneath the cherry blossom trees, but he couldn’t avoid the occasional falling shards of glass.

“Swish!”

Ye Hui flicked out a talisman paper, and a faint glow instantly enveloped him.

Diamond Talisman!

Though his spiritual power was currently weak, his skill as a talisman master allowed this defensive talisman to last for a considerable time.

The glow of the talisman could also be controlled freely.

“What the heck! Could this be the backlash of the Moe King’s luck?” Ye Hui grumbled.

He had just left Sakura’s house, and his good fortune seemed to have abandoned him.

Now misfortune was chasing him.

Is this the power of the Heavenly Dao protagonist?

At first, Ye Hui was worried that the giant bird might destroy his villa and injure those inside.

But as soon as he summoned the Diamond Shield and pedaled faster, the giant bird flapped its wings and soared back up high.

It seemed the bird had only briefly landed.

Ye Hui was about to breathe a sigh of relief.

Unexpectedly, the giant bird flew back in his direction!

Ye Hui was stunned!

[Ding! After stealing the secret treasure of the Immortal Talisman Sect, you haven’t had time to use it before being chased by a passing spirit beast, forcing you into a desperate flight…]

Glancing at the system log, Ye Hui cursed the system.

“Hey, system, explain why the Tree Card I put into the system backpack can still be detected by the bird?”

You’re an Immortal Cultivation System!

Where’s your prestige?

Where’s your power?

If not now, then when?

[The secret treasures of the Immortal Talisman Sect possess a shared source power; even if shielded from the heavens, they still attract each other.]

What?

That’s possible?

They attract each other? What is this, a stand-in envoy?

The system was acting up again!

The secret treasure of the Immortal Talisman Sect is the Clow Book, right?

And it was already taken by the Heaven-Rooted disciple, Sakura Kinomoto, the so-called “Heavenly Protagonist” recognized by the system.

The Clow Book is the secret treasure.

Are all the dozens of Clow Cards inside also secret treasures?

This ancient sect’s treasures are like wholesale goods!

Surely this must be the backlash of fate?

When the Little Wolf snatched a card, no other Clow Cards suddenly came crashing down at his doorstep!

“Come to think of it, the flying card appearing prematurely is strange. I remember it’s supposed to be after seven o’clock, when it’s dark, Sakura and Touya have finished dinner and washing up, then the monster bird formed by the flying card arrives around here…”

That was one of Sakura’s rare rushed outings, wearing pajamas to fight monsters. Ye Hui remembered it clearly.

But now, it’s not even seven in the evening.

“Could Sakura’s tutorial stage be turning into mine? Wait a minute, is there a possibility that the flying card is actually searching for Sakura...?”

Ye Hui suddenly realized something.

Could he be taking the bullet for Sakura?

The monster bird appeared early.

The system said it was due to the “secret treasures” attracting each other.

But the Tree Card was already in Ye Hui’s backpack.

Even if the system’s cognition was flawed and prone to glitches, its description had some relevance and could prove something.

---

Besides him, only Sakura had cards in her possession.

In other words, the monster bird formed by the flying card might originally be searching for Sakura.

It’s just that his conspicuous backpack jumped out now as he cycled along this empty street!

And why was there no one else on the street?

Shouldn’t it be rush hour?

Where were the office workers and students of Cherry Blossom Country?

Actually, thinking about it, it made sense.

Even if ordinary people couldn’t see the monster bird in the sky, no one would stroll outside on such a windy day.

But the complete absence of people was still eerie...

Ye Hui didn’t have time to dwell on whether the guess was right or wrong.

Maybe the flying card had no such function, and the system’s description was pure nonsense!

The bird just disliked his conspicuous backpack!

“Do I have to stop my bike now and shout ‘Ta-ta go away’ three times at the enemy?”

The thought flickered for half a second before he suppressed it.

What a joke!

His talisman master and spirit chef side professions had just started, both at beginner level, with no time to level up or significantly boost his attributes.

His spiritual power was pitifully low, and he hadn’t had time to make more talisman papers.

Once the Diamond Talisman wore off, he’d have to fight barehanded...

He shouldn’t have taken the talisman paper with him!

“No, I still have the Tree Card!” Ye Hui paused.

Even though he hadn’t written his name on it, the Tree Card was usually docile, and if he used talisman techniques to activate it, maybe it could still be used...

Ye Hui had originally brought it back for research because of its docility.

Even if the system played tricks, this card wouldn’t cause serious problems.

As long as he didn’t write a name on it, he could return it to Sakura later.

Could this “Heavenly Dao” that had torn him apart do anything about that?

Unexpectedly, this card might now help him!

Though the trouble might have been caused by the card’s side as well...

Ye Hui put his bike away in his backpack.

“I’ll try to dodge first. If this card is really after Sakura, she will notice the flying card’s appearance and come over. Then the aggro might be drawn away...”

To be safe, Ye Hui took out the Tree Card, ready for battle.

“Moe King above, let your lucky aura bless me once again!”

Ye Hui shouted loudly, his fighting spirit rising!

“Shriek!”

At that moment, the giant bird above him let out a wild cry.

Then...

It didn’t attack Ye Hui at all.

Instead, it slowly flew past right above his head...

(⊙ˍ⊙) - [THE WOOD]

Huh?

It just... flew away??

Ye Hui stood by the wall, gripping the Tree Card, his lips twitching.

Well, turns out he was overthinking.

But...

At least his guess was correct.

The flying card wasn’t after him, and the system backpack was probably very secure.

Since that’s the case... if not now, then when to run?

Ye Hui summoned his mount bike and decided to leave quickly.

“Anyway, with Touya around, Sakura definitely won’t be in danger!”

---

But after riding for a while, Ye Hui suddenly stopped.

“If I observe first, will I trigger some system reward?”

Since the flying card wasn’t targeting him, maybe he didn’t need to run so fast.

Besides, if the system dropped some good loot or skills, that would be a huge gain!

That damn bird’s claws had already smashed his window glass; if he didn’t get some reward, he’d feel miserable.

“Even if there’s no reward, it’s just wasting a few minutes, and I can get close-up footage of Moe King’s first battle!”

That would be a souvenir for him. Giving the footage to Tomoyo might help improve his “defection” progress!

Ye Hui lifted his hand, turned the bike’s handlebars around, and chased after the damn bird.

Getting closer!

At this moment, Ye Hui better understood the overwhelming power of the Clow Cards.

This was just a flying card for the tutorial.

Compared to the Wind Card — one of the four elemental cards in Sakura’s hand — it was much weaker.

Yet, this ordinary “FLY,” just by flapping its wings from afar, could shake the surrounding buildings.

If it weren’t for the houses in Cherry Blossom Country being built with earthquake and fire resistance in mind, many would have been blown down.

The glass shattered continuously with loud crashes.

“It’s the mysterious power of magic that makes people subconsciously ignore these creations, thinking it’s just the heavens acting up again. Otherwise, besides the world’s top ten unsolved mysteries, Tomoeda Town would have hundreds of puzzles and be the most mysterious town globally.”

In this era, the internet wasn’t well-developed.

The communicator Tomoyo gave Sakura in the anime looked like a small “brick phone.”

Smartphones only appeared later.

So even if strange things happened here, no one would think about it, nor could it be widely broadcast.

“Crack! Crack! Crack!”

Ye Hui took out a camera, snapped a few photos of the monster bird in the sky, then started recording.

At that moment, Sakura’s voice suddenly came from ahead.

“Why did I come out wearing pajamas?”

Moe King Sakura arrived at the tutorial stage, about to begin her first Clow Card capture battle!

Ye Hui held the camera in one hand and the bike’s handlebars in the other, speeding up...

Turning the corner, he saw Sakura skating to an abrupt stop in the middle of the road, facing the monster bird.

“It’s so big, what can I do?”

“You’re still talking nonsense!”

Hearing Sakura’s complaint, Touya scolded her angrily like a driving instructor berating a nervous new driver!

Ye Hui quickly dismounted and stored his mount in his backpack.

“Just in time!”

He observed carefully, clutching the Tree Card.

He didn’t know where Touya was hiding, but guessed he was nearby.

[You escaped the cave but saw the Heaven-Rooted disciple Sakura Kinomoto being chased by the spirit beast you attracted; your despicable heart is satisfied…]

[Knowing the protector’s strength is formidable, you decide to spy secretly and plan to record Sakura’s embarrassing moment being chased by the spirit beast to blackmail her…]

“What the hell!”

Ye Hui closed the system log and adjusted the camera angle.

This rare footage would surely earn him plenty of attitude points from Tomoyo!

He hoped the Destiny Gift Pack would drop soon!

Just then—

“Ah!”

A scream rang out.

Sakura was blown into the air by the fierce wind!