Even a clever housewife can't cook without rice!
Zero Egg thought talking to Wen Jiang was a complete waste of time. "You don't even have spiritual power, so what's the point of all this fuss? If you had spiritual power and could become a Spirit Card Master, I'd have a whole different set of serial tasks lined up for you." My Abusive Female Protagonist Drawing System might as well be renamed at this point, it mused.
Only then did Wen Jiang show any interest in engaging with it. "A different set of tasks? By the way, I still haven't asked what your requirements for me are. What if I never earn any Points?"
"I will disengage from the binding within a month at the latest," the System declared.
Zero Egg said meaningfully, "I advise you to do the tasks. I can tell you quite clearly, if I leave, you won't survive."
Wen Jiang narrowed her eyes.
Her Remnant Soul, though extremely weak, was far more than Wen Jiang's fragile body could handle.
Strangely enough, it had actually fused with this body.
Was this the System's doing?
The System, originating from a higher-level world, possessed enormous energy, as evidenced by those cards.
Useless though they were, it was very possible that the System had entered this body before Wen Jiang. It might have provided the body with energy, allowing Wen Jiang to merge into it only then.
The previous Wen Jiang had been a being on the verge of godhood, yet the System hadn't detected the change in souls.
The body is currently weak, so it's best to lay low for now.
As for the energy it required, Wen Jiang had already devised a solution.
Wen Jiang checked this body's assets. Very good—the grand total was just over 2,000.
The current living conditions weren't bad, after all, Song Yingchen had arranged them.
Since she was planning to break ties with that idiot, she obviously couldn't stay here anymore.
Wen Jiang was decisive. There wasn't much in the room she used regularly, so she just grabbed two sets of spare clothes and her ID before leaving.
Based on her memories of that idiot Song Yingchen, Wen Jiang deduced that if she didn't run, she'd very likely be trapped here. Song Yingchen wouldn't let her leave, which would severely disrupt her plans.
She had just awakened. Normally, this body wouldn't even be able to get out of bed; she was forcing it.
She had to unblock the power channels of her Remnant Soul.
"As a System, you can block signal tracking, can't you?" she asked.
Zero Egg sounded quite troubled. "I *can* do it, but... you want to run? If you don't meet the male lead, how are the tasks supposed to progress?"
Wen Jiang's tone was resolute. "That's none of your concern. You just want energy. We're tied together in this; you have no choice but to trust me. When the time comes, you'll have as much energy as you want."
Zero Egg was skeptical. "Really?"
Wen Jiang didn't use the apartment's main entrance, instead leaving directly through the underground parking garage. As she moved quickly, she added, "Or you can ignore me. If he catches and confines me, we both die in a month."
She had guessed right away that the System needed a certain kind of energy to sustain itself. If the mission failed, she would die, and the System would take a serious hit too.
Otherwise, seeing Wen Jiang refuse to cooperate, it could have simply disengaged and found another host.
The fact that it hadn't done so proved it couldn't.
Zero Egg was speechless. "..."
Such a ruthless Host! It felt completely outmaneuvered.
Zero Egg disabled the surrounding surveillance, allowing Wen Jiang to escape without worry. Still anxious, it chattered incessantly, "What are you trying to pull now? Are you trying to make the male lead feel guilty?"
Zero Egg didn't know what had gone wrong. The Wen Jiang before it didn't match its data, so it could only choose to trust her.
Wen Jiang waved her hand, rather impatiently. "Stop chattering about that brat. Just give me directions to a Spirit Card Master appraisal. Whether or not you get your energy depends on this."
Zero Egg was incredulous. "You actually dare to go for testing? Do you even have spiritual power?"
Besides, spiritual power was something ordinary people couldn't sense without a Spirit Card testing device.
Spirit Card Master Appraisal Institutions were everywhere and affiliated with government departments.
The System provided directions, and Wen Jiang didn't delay, heading straight to a Spirit Card Master Appraisal Institution.
Unless Song Yingchen used his own influence to investigate, he would never imagine Wen Jiang going directly to an Appraisal Institution.
As for directly bypassing the System's surveillance to track her movements... Wen Jiang reckoned that the current Song Yingchen wasn't capable of that.
He had only just returned to the Song Family. Although he was an S-Rank Spirit Card Master, the Song Family also had an equally outstanding S-Rank heiress—his sister. His influence wasn't as vast as imagined, merely enough to easily control the formerly weak Wen Jiang.
But now?
For a while, at least, he could only rage impotently. By the time he found Wen Jiang, it would likely be too late.
「At the entrance of the Spirit Card Master Appraisal Institution」
The security personnel were idling. When they saw Wen Jiang, they gave her several curious glances.
Wen Jiang had a knife scar on her face, mostly hidden by a mask, yet her wretched state was still discernible.
It was rare for a Spirit Card Master to show up for testing under normal circumstances. Most who came for detection usually had a special sensitivity to Spirit Cards. Major universities also organized annual tests, and anyone identified as a Spirit Card Master would be recruited by various associations. Independent Spirit Card Masters were truly a rare sight; most people who came were just ordinary folks trying to join in on the excitement.
The security guards thus assumed Wen Jiang belonged to the latter group.
There weren't many people at the front desk, with only one staff member on duty. Wen Jiang approached to ask how to test a Spirit Card Master's spiritual power. The staff member looked up, appraising Wen Jiang with some surprise at her appearance. However, maintaining professional composure, she didn't ask further questions and said with a smile, "Please, follow me."
She led Wen Jiang to a spacious room, where a massive wall of cards stood directly ahead.
Each card was a perfect rectangle, two meters tall and one meter wide, presenting a truly shocking sight.
These cards radiated light of different colors. The top row contained only five cards, shimmering with a vibrant, magnificent iridescence—not overly ostentatious, yet clearly conveying their preciousness and beauty.
Below these, in descending order, were cards with purple, green, blue, and finally colorless surfaces, their emitted light gradually diminishing to almost nothingness.
The further down the wall, the more cards there were.
This starkly demarcated the ranks of the cards.
Just like the money-grabbing art style of pay-to-win games, Wen Jiang thought, only this is the real-life version.
In front of this card wall stood a similarly rectangular pedestal, resembling a glass display case, its surface occasionally rippling with multicolored light.
Noticing Wen Jiang's gaze lingering on the card wall, the staff member smiled and explained, "The different colors of the card faces represent their ranks. From top to bottom, they are SSR, S-Rank, A-Rank, B-Rank, and R-Rank. If you usually follow card competitions, I believe you'll be familiar with these."
Wen Jiang nodded and simply asked, "How is the test conducted?"
The staff member led her to the rectangular platform and said, "You just need to place your hand here and calm your mind. This instrument will then detect your spiritual power potential. Different ranks will display different colors. Even the lowest R-Rank will show a beautiful white light. Conversely, if you have no spiritual power, the instrument won't react at all."
Wen Jiang nodded, indicating she understood.
She didn't delay, her eyes narrowing slightly in focus as she placed her hand on it.
An instrument capable of testing spiritual power potential... what principle is it based on?
Beneath this platform, Wen Jiang seemed to sense a familiar aura.
The surface felt warm and smooth to the touch, like fine jade.
The instant her palm made contact, the Remnant Soul within her body surged, as if it had found a suitable outlet for its power.
Zero Egg, completely oblivious, was still exclaiming in her mind, "You really dared to come!"