The story of how Firewing acquired this Clow Card was itself a happy accident.
She had been chasing another Clow Card when, forced to turn back by Zhao Feng's interference, she returned to the Vantora City Spiritual Energy Bureau — only to find this card already lounging in her office.
It had manifested in the form of a mirror. But there wasn't a single mirror in Firewing's office.
Anyone entering during her absence would have left documents requiring her attention — not a mirror.
After Firewing saw through the Mirror Card's disguise, it showed no intention of leaving. Instead, it shifted and took on Firewing's form — though unlike Firewing herself, this doppelganger carried an unmistakably… gentle disposition?
Firewing shook her head. Looking at the Mirror Card's copy of herself made her deeply uncomfortable.
Perhaps the difference in temperament was just too great.
It was like the Mirror Card's manifestation of Sakura from the anime.
Same appearance on the surface, but those who knew her well could easily tell the difference from the inside out.
"Hopefully after this, they'll stop with these meaningless games."
"Peace since the beast tide lasted how long, and already they're at it again."
—
Time drifted forward, and the outside world gradually caught wind of the Spiritual Energy Bureau's plans to select an Esper Leader.
This so-called Leader wasn't merely a title — the position carried enormous real authority.
From any city, the Leader could arbitrarily mobilize local Spiritual Energy Bureau personnel to provide cooperation.
The status was second only to the Director of the Imperial Capital Spiritual Energy Bureau itself.
What's more, the Leader could cultivate their own subordinates — people who answered only to their commands.
In a sense, this person could build their own faction, and the authorities above would even support it.
Such being the case, one could only imagine how vast the power of this position was.
The overt benefits alone were significant enough; the covert ones could only be more extreme.
But a position this important had equally stringent conditions for selection.
As the Leader of华夏's Espers, this person ought to be the most outstanding of all Espers — otherwise, on what grounds could they command obedience from others?
Anyone without First Sequence-level esper talent didn't even qualify to enter this competition.
And even First Sequences merely possessed the qualification to participate.
Without an Imperial Arm, a Five Element Armor, a Devil Fruit, a Clow Card, or other external enhancements beyond raw talent, it would be difficult to stand out among such a group.
Beyond strength, the Leader also needed sufficient military merit.
Merit encompassed many areas.
The number of mutant creatures eliminated. How many civilians were saved. How many critical missions were executed — all factors weighed into military evaluation.
For now, the information circulating publicly was limited to what had leaked. The specifics still awaited official announcement.
But the topic had already ignited fierce debate online.
"Esper Leader? Does this even need to be decided? Is there any choice besides White Emperor? [Doge.jpg]"
"Yeah, yeah, is there really anyone with strength greater than White Emperor's?"
"LMAO there they go again, deliberately bringing it up here when they all know perfectly well White Emperor won't be participating."
"What can you do? Even though our information is lacking, there's a ninety-plus percent chance that the disturbance last time was caused by White Emperor — he's already become a god."
"If White Emperor truly wanted the position, nothing about this would ever surface online, because no one could compete with him!"
"So… White Emperor isn't interested?"
"How could a god seek a human's seat?"
The conversation then spiraled outward into a full-fledged discussion of White Emperor — Brandon White. It took considerable time before the derailed topic slowly pulled itself back on track.
"Okay okay, does anyone have the analysis chops to figure out who else besides White Emperor could take this General position if it really comes to fruition?"
"Without question — Dragon Emperor!"
"Setting White Emperor aside, among Ice Emperor, Flame Emperor, and Dragon Emperor, Dragon Emperor is clearly the strongest!"
"I'm not joking here. If you know anyone working at the Spiritual Energy Bureau, ask them. This isn't some classified secret — they're all aware of it."
"The man's talent is top-tier even among First Sequences, paired with the Fire Dragon Armor — one of the most compatible of the Five Element Armors. I genuinely can't imagine anyone besides White Emperor who could defeat Dragon Emperor."
Setting White Emperor aside, they didn't believe Dragon Emperor could lose to anyone.
He possessed the apex talent among beast-type abilities — Dragon!
He bore one of the Five Element Armors — the most balanced and the most powerful: Fire Dragon Armor.
His esper ability had even evolved alongside the Fire Dragon Armor into Fire Dragon — the compatibility between them had to be extraordinary.
Under those circumstances, why would they ever think Skyler Quinn could lose?
"This is genuinely hard to call. If Dragon Emperor could overpower absolutely everyone except White Emperor, then no one would be building momentum for this selection in the first place."
"Beyond the Four Emperors, there have to be First Sequence prodigies cultivated in secret — possibly even on par with Dragon Emperor."
"At the end of the day, if that weren't the case, they'd just name Dragon Emperor directly. There'd be no competition."
"We're just not in a position to know. Everything we know has already been laid out on the table. There have to be geniuses and powerhouses still being developed under wraps that we're completely unaware of."
"Maybe this is precisely the moment they emerge from hiding."
At present, the online sphere had split into two camps. One believed the Leader's seat was destined for one of Dragon Emperor, Ice Emperor, or Flame Emperor — because all three's strength and military merit were simply beyond question.
The other camp argued that the true protagonists of this contest were unknown prodigies secretly cultivated — and that Dragon Emperor, Ice Emperor, Flame Emperor and the others were merely stepping stones for them.
Both sides held fast to their positions, neither willing to yield, waiting only for the final result.
But there was one point both camps agreed on.
If White Emperor harbored any desire to compete, there would be no contest — it would hold absolutely no meaning.
No matter how strong, a human was still a human. How could one contend with a god?
—
Meanwhile, in the Small World.
At this moment, Brandon White was not paying attention to the changes in the outside world. Or rather — he had anticipated all of this long ago.
The Book of Fate had already recorded it, and even images of the future had already surfaced.
This was not some decisive turning point in history for him. Whether it happened or not made no meaningful difference to the future — naturally, it could not command his attention.
Right now, there was something far more demanding of his focus.
The transformation of the World Tree, advanced through the cooperation of Brandon White and Zixin, was gradually nearing completion. Because the World Tree itself was a mystical creation — a partial manifestation of the World Will — the process of modification was far easier than they had anticipated.
In Zixin's eyes, the World Tree could almost be described as a celestial body born naturally into existence.
And unlike Kai'Sa's Sacred Vault or Karl's Great Clock, the World Tree was capable of growth.
(This chapter is complete.)
———
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