That evening, Lian appeared at Azrael's house right on schedule.
Azrael had grown indifferent to the fact that NPCs essentially refreshed in his home like clockwork. Without paying much attention to Lian, Azrael went to the kitchen to pour himself a glass of water.
"You're quite murderous," Lian said from the living room, her voice carrying a note of surprise.
He hadn't expected Azrael to be bold enough to kill Daniel and his entire gang directly.
As chairman of the Nirvale District Cardian Master Association, Lian knew what had happened in the abandoned factory after the lone survivor reported the incident.
After taking a sip of water, Azrael curled his lips. "He didn't agree, so why keep him?" Besides, everyone at the scene heard my recruitment offer. It was better to eliminate them all."
Lian looked at Azrael meaningfully. He knew that Azrael had spared a woman passing by in the factory; otherwise, the matter of Daniel wouldn't have spread.
But that was a minor detail, easily overlooked. After all, Azrael hadn't revealed his identity. This incident could be used to distinguish between the high school student and the Crimson Oath Society member.
Azrael was particularly cautious when conducting his darker business.
"Have you used the materials that Memphis gave you a few days ago?" Lian asked Azrael curiously, thinking of the woman's report.
"Yes," Azrael admitted straightforwardly, though he didn't intend to summon anything for Lian to examine.
Lian didn't mind but was shocked anew by Azrael's talent. Fortunately, the young man was now on his side.
"By the way, what is 'Iron Man'?" Suddenly, Lian remembered the woman's testimony and asked Azrael.
"Iron Man?" Azrael was stunned but then reacted with helpless understanding. "It's Iron Man."
"I couldn't exactly say my real name."
Azrael needed a persona for his Crimson Oath Society work. Since he had Mark III, he had casually chosen Iron Man as his alias. Unfortunately, there was no Iron Man in this world, so no one understood what Azrael meant.
Coincidentally, in Iron Man's first appearance, Tony Stark had also been forced by an evil organization, finally escaping by secretly building Mark 1 with materials provided by his captors. Azrael's situation was similar, except his margin for error was much higher.
Lian couldn't dwell on such a meaningless issue and immediately took out a piece of paper from his pocket. "This is the reward for your mission."
Bronze Level Ghost (Gold).
Azrael calmly took the material, though he was secretly delighted. Was there anything more enjoyable than getting something for free?
Seeing Azrael accept the material, Lian smiled and continued making grand promises. "You did well this time. Keep working hard, and there will be more rewards from the organization."
"All right, I have other matters to attend to, so I'll leave first."
Azrael didn't pay him much mind, settling back onto his sofa.
"Talk about perfect timing," he murmured, looking at the material in his hand. Azrael now had a chance to test out the idea he'd conceived the previous night.
He just needed a few more props first.
Azrael acted on his decision immediately. The next day, he requested several days off from Silverbrook High School. For a student of his caliber, attendance wasn't a concern, and the school wouldn't obstruct him over such a minor matter.
Upon arriving at the Cardian Master Association branch in Nirvale District, Azrael went straight to Lian's office.
Dareth had promised him the opportunity to choose a bronze-level secret realm and mentioned that he could contact the local Cardian Master Association directly.
Now that Lian was in the same position, it was best to take advantage of their relationship. The branch president would definitely know more about secret realms than ordinary staff members.
"Why are you here?" Lian asked without raising his head while handling documents. "We've been meeting so frequently lately. If they didn't know my wife was in poor health, they'd probably think you were my son."
Azrael rolled his eyes at this comment. "You've been the one coming to me the last few times. If you don't care about appearances, why should I?"
Hearing this, Lian looked up and laughed. It would be wonderful if he really had such a genius son. Unfortunately, his wife's health had deteriorated from the early years of card making, and he felt too bad to ask her to have more children.
His expression grew serious as he asked why Azrael had come. "Tell me, what brings you here?"
In Lian's experience, Azrael never visited without a specific purpose. This time, he must have serious business.
"Didn't the Elite Elite Talent Cup Association reward me with entry to a bronze-level secret realm? I came about that," Azrael said, pulling out a chair.
Lian was stunned. "So soon?"
In his opinion, Azrael had already created three bronze cards, so there was no need to be so hasty.
"No money, brother." Azrael's expression showed a trace of helplessness.
His account currently held only 600,000 Empyrean dollars.
Lian hadn't expected such a reason but replied with a wry smile immediately. "Last time, the organization wanted to give you cash directly. It just wouldn't be easy for you, a student, to explain the source of a large sum of money." In the end, we chose to give you materials instead."
Lian was referring to the reward for yesterday's mission.
Azrael understood the reasoning, and a lack of money was just an excuse anyway. He couldn't say that he was trying to improve his strength in order to break free from the Crimson Oath Society as soon as possible.
Although he was content working with the organization for now, it wasn't a long-term solution.
"I understand, which is why I came to you," Azrael said, nodding slightly to indicate that he grasped Lian's difficulties.
Seeing that Azrael understood, Lian stopped explaining and asked directly, "What are your requirements for the secret realm? I'll help you find something suitable."
"It's best to find a secret realm with abundant sword materials."
Lian began searching on his computer upon hearing this.
Azrael had never encountered any item materials in the secret realms he had entered. These materials are usually generated when Cardian Masters approach special items within the secret realm and place them on blank cards.
Azrael had never encountered such opportunities in his previous secret realm experiences.
This time, the search for a secret realm with abundant sword materials was for Yoriichi's advancement. He just wasn't sure if it would succeed.
After a while, Lian found several secret realms that met Azrael's requirements. He turned the computer screen slightly to face Azrael and motioned for him to examine the options himself.
Azrael took control of the mouse and began reviewing the information Lian had provided.
The bronze-level secret realm, Sword Casting Villa, mainly produced bronze-level material, Dynasty Standard Sword.
The bronze-level secret realm, Sword Lake, mainly produced bronze-level material, Conscience.
The bronze-level secret realm, Demon Sword Chaos, mainly produced the bronze-level material Sword of Rebellion.