A Windfall of Profit
Just then, the curtain at Jade Terrace was suddenly swept aside.
A girl with a slightly babyish face walked in slowly.
Du Ying had more than a thousand top-grade Spirit Stones in her Qiankun bag, and she was practically shaking as she walked.
As far as she knew, Yan Jue had never shown the slightest interest in gambling.
Yet somehow, just a moment ago, Yan Jue had suddenly gone mad and handed her over a thousand top-grade Spirit Stones.
And not only that—she’d even come to Jade Terrace to bet on herself winning this afternoon’s match.
She really had gone crazy……
Du Ying slowly made her way to the betting table. The disciple beside it hurriedly stood up and asked with a smile, “Fellow Daoist, are you here to place a bet too?”
“Only one table is open today. This afternoon it’s Watercloud Sect’s Yan Jue versus Muyin Sect’s Duan Luxi…… are you betting on Duan Luxi, or……”
Du Ying: “Ah, I’m betting on Yan Jue.”
Because so few people were betting on Yan Jue, the odds for this round were unusually high.
Bai Chuli snorted. “How out of touch are you, exactly? I suggest you still bet on Senior Sister Duan, so you don’t end up with nothing left when you lose.”
“Yeah, Yan Jue has already had two strokes of insane luck. She’s not going to keep getting lucky.”
“And you don’t know this, but Senior Sister Duan Luxi broke through to the Fusion Realm just yesterday.”
Du Ying: “Ah no, I still want to bet on Yan Jue.”
Du Ying quickly placed more than a thousand top-grade Spirit Stones on the side marked with the character for “Yan,” went over to finish the registration, and then left in a hurry.
-
Soon it was the third round of the Five-Dragon Summit in the afternoon.
The sun was bright overhead.
Yan Jue, dressed in a bluish-gray dao robe, arrived at Five Dragons Square very early.
Right now, she had all her wealth riding on herself……
Actually, when Yan Jue had asked Du Ying to place the money, there had been an element of gambling on her side too.
When she woke up this morning, she had received a short note from Duan Luxi saying that Duan had already broken through to the early Fusion Realm.
Yan Jue felt that if she were up against Senior Sister Duan, it wasn’t as though she had no chance at all.
In short, she just had to give it her all.
The golden formation overhead began to ripple. Yan Jue quickly made her way to her arena.
Just as Yan Jue reached the front of the platform, someone suddenly patted her shoulder.
She turned around and saw Duan Luxi in a greenish-blue dao robe, her hair tied high, looking refined and gentle as she smiled at her. “Junior Sister Yan, today the two of us have finally been matched against each other.”
Yan Jue had still been thinking about the bet she’d just placed at Jade Terrace, but she immediately put on a smile. “To run into you, we really are fated.”
“……”
Duan Luxi: “Junior Sister Yan, I want to apologize to you.”
Yan Jue: “Hm?”
Duan Luxi: “Because I broke through to the Fusion Realm this morning…… I felt that my chances of winning were especially high, so at noon I went to Jade Terrace and placed a bet of 50 top-grade Spirit Stones on myself winning.”
Yan Jue: “……Oh, it’s fine.”
Duan Luxi: “Do your best. Fight well.”
Yan Jue: “I don’t actually feel that much pressure.”
After a round of mutual flattery, Yan Jue and Duan Luxi stepped onto the platform together and quickly took their places on the north and south sides.
The sunlight overhead was dazzling; the hem of Yan Jue’s robe fluttered in the wind. She looked at Duan Luxi in front of her, dressed in greenish-blue dao robes, and cold sweat broke out on her forehead.
It would be a lie to say she wasn’t nervous……
She had put more than a thousand top-grade Spirit Stones on Jade Terrace.
Golden waves of light appeared one after another in the sky over Five Dragons Square, slowly spreading outward.
The crowd below was roaring.
Because Yan Jue could already be considered a big name in the Five Dragons Sect, countless people had also placed bets at Jade Terrace today.
So Yan Jue’s match was drawing especially much attention.
“Just standing down here, I can already feel Senior Sister Duan’s aura.”
“Fusion Realm versus Foundation Opening Realm; I can already guess how Yan Jue will end up.”
“Let’s just hope Yan Jue doesn’t die too miserably, hahaha.”
Soon after, the clear sound of a bell rang out, and the match began.
Duan Luxi raised both hands and instantly summoned her immortal sword, Mu Xi.
The dark-green bronze giant sword drifted slowly through the air, carrying a hidden, terrifying burst of power.
Yan Jue narrowed her eyes slightly.
She had seen Duan Luxi’s Mu Xi before.
It was a very large sword, its blade heavy and sharp; Yan Jue knew just how terrifying its power was.
Duan Luxi frowned faintly, formed hand seals with both hands, and shouted, “Violent Wind Sword Art!”
The bronze giant sword suddenly swept through the air. In its wake came a gale; dark-green sword qi spread outward like dim, hidden flashes.
Yan Jue shifted aside, barely avoiding the sword qi. The bronze giant sword whirled through the air; Yan Jue leapt up into midair, her figure threading through the overwhelming sword energy.
By noon, Yan Jue had already analyzed very clearly where her advantage lay against Duan Luxi.
The advantage of Duan Luxi’s bronze giant sword was its immense power; once it struck, there would be no surviving unscathed.
Her own advantage, however, was movement skill.
The bronze giant sword Mu Xi came shrieking toward her. Yan Jue activated Instant Thousand Miles, her figure instantly retreating several dozen steps; the hem of her robe snapped in the gale.
Bai Chuli stood below the platform, biting her lip as she watched nervously, and couldn’t help shouting, “Senior Sister Duan, come on! Senior Sister Duan, come on!”
Yan Jue: “……”
Duan Luxi formed hand seals with both hands and said softly, “Shake the Earth!”
A faint layer of green light spread from around Mu Xi and suddenly swelled to the height of two people in the air. The thunderous roar was like rolling lightning as it fell straight down from the sky.
The disciples below were instantly shaken and staggered side to side, buffeted by wind so strong they could barely keep their footing.
Yan Jue was stunned. She had once seen Qi Xianqing use this sword technique, so she immediately summoned the Northern Sea Black Iron around her neck. “Myriad Sword Art!”
The golden-black iron split into countless small swords in midair, forming a protective barrier that firmly blocked in front of Yan Jue.
“BOOM!!” A deafening crash rang out.
Under the sunlight, Mu Xi launched attack after attack, blasting huge pits into the platform.
Yan Jue rolled aside to dodge; dark-green sword light flashed through the air.
The sunlight was blindingly brilliant. Sweat slid down her cheeks, and several tiny red marks gradually appeared on Yan Jue’s pale face; blood mixed with sweat and fell away.
The spectators below quickly noticed that something was wrong.
The girl onstage had a steady expression, her slender body flipping through the air, but she wasn’t rushing to attack!
Mu Xi’s sword light and sword qi flowed together. Whenever they nearly reached Yan Jue, they were blocked by a burst of golden radiance. Duan Luxi stepped forward, stamping one foot hard against the ground. “Dragon Soaring Sword Art!”
……
The Dragon Soaring Sword Art fell; Mu Xi directly transformed on the platform into a gigantic swimming dragon, charging toward Yan Jue with a roar like a dragon’s cry.
Yan Jue rolled on the ground, formed hand seals with both hands, and Mu Xi and the Northern Sea Black Iron clashed again. The earth-shaking impact made Yan Jue’s chest ache.
Half a cup of tea had passed since the match began, and Duan Luxi was still standing in place, brows tightly knit as she chanted sword formulas and controlled Mu Xi to attack and retreat in turn.
Mu Xi’s movements had already slowed considerably.
Actually, there was another very important reason Yan Jue had dared to place a bet at Jade Terrace.
Duan Luxi also didn’t seem to care much about training her stamina……
Attacks consumed spiritual power; Duan Luxi’s spiritual power should already have been nearing exhaustion.
Yan Jue knew her movement technique was much lighter and more agile than Mu Xi’s attacks. Watching Mu Xi’s movements in the air gradually slow, after the Dragon Soaring Sword Art fell, Mu Xi directly froze in midair!
Yan Jue knew the moment had arrived!
In an instant, everyone below the platform widened their eyes.
The girl, her face covered in blood, suddenly rose from the ground. Pushing off with both feet, she used Instant Thousand Miles; her figure turned into a strange afterimage in the air and suddenly broke through Mu Xi’s defense.
She leapt up into midair and directly stepped on Duan Luxi.
Senior Sister Duan, forgive me……
Yan Jue crouched slightly, twisted her waist, and tossed the other party out.
At the same time, when Bai Chuli saw this scene, her heart almost stopped on the spot.
Duan Luxi’s body was sent flying off the platform…… it looked just like her several thousand top-grade Spirit Stones had flown off with it.
A cry of shock suddenly burst from below.
“Ah!!”
Bai Chuli, who had just been watching the match properly from below a moment ago, somehow rolled her eyes and fainted.
-
After Yan Jue finished her match, she went to a small stall around the edge of the square and bought Duan Luxi a skewer of blazing grilled meat.
After all, she did often trouble Duan Luxi in ordinary times; kicking her opponent off the platform during the match was really rather embarrassing.
As Duan Luxi ate the grilled meat, she said aggrievedly, “Are you even human? I remember that the last time we took on a mission together, you were only at the early Foundation Opening Realm. Your progress is way too fast. Why is it that even though I’m already in the Fusion Realm, I still can’t beat you……”
Duan Luxi turned to stare at her, her expression somewhat disbelieving. “Don’t tell me you’ve already reached the Fusion Realm too……”
Yan Jue gave an awkward laugh. “I’m also at Fusion Realm level now; I was rather rude just now.”
Duan Luxi: “It doesn’t matter. In fact, that just let me see my own weakness more clearly. My Mu Xi has great attacking power, but its speed isn’t enough. I’ll think about how to strengthen that when I go back.”
-
When Yan Jue returned to the Watercloud Sect dormitory, she saw Du Ying walking toward her carrying a pile of glittering Spirit Stones.
Du Ying: “Come on, Yan Jue, let’s go into the room and count the money.”
Yan Jue smiled and went into the room with Du Ying, counting the top-grade Spirit Stones in her hands.
The top-grade Spirit Stones were stored in a special magical artifact, emitting a faint golden glow.
Because so few people had still bet on Yan Jue for this third round, the odds were extremely high.
Yan Jue had bet over a thousand top-grade Spirit Stones, which was almost all her assets; now, it had become more than ten thousand top-grade Spirit Stones.
Yan Jue put all of the Spirit Stones into her Qiankun bag, then took out some for Du Ying as a runner’s fee.
Du Ying: “Good heavens, Yan Jue, how did you know you’d definitely win?”
Yan Jue didn’t really have any secret trick for that.
Being good at analyzing the battle situation was always a benefit and never a drawback.
The sky had gradually darkened. After Du Ying left, Yan Jue took out the “Spirit Candle Fruit” frozen in ten-thousand-year cold ice and went out.
-
Yan Jue walked up the mountain path and soon reached the back mountain.
Last time, when she and Qi Xianqing had been drawing blind boxes in the room, Qi Xianqing had said that this kind of Spirit Candle Fruit could increase spiritual power; however, only long-term consumption would produce that effect.
Yan Jue had an idea in mind.
Holding the Spirit Candle Fruit, Yan Jue crossed a steep mountain path, parted the grass, and came to an open area.
It was already very dark, and a cool mountain breeze brushed over her face.
This was where she had once undergone her tribulation.
Because it had been struck by heavenly thunder, the spiritual power here was extremely abundant.
Yan Jue first thawed the ten-thousand-year cold ice, then took out the Spirit Candle Fruit and bit into it.
Juice burst out in a flood; the Spirit Candle Fruit tasted both sour and sweet, and was especially delicious.
After Yan Jue finished eating it, she indeed felt a trace amount of spiritual power being quietly infused into her body.
All that remained was the core.
Yan Jue buried the core underground, then formed a Rain Control Art seal. A huge water ball instantly appeared in the air, and streams of water poured out endlessly to irrigate the seed.
Yan Jue then took out the Spirit-Nourishing Marrow she had bought earlier at the Five Dragons Market and sprinkled the pale blue powder over the soil.
She stepped back and began to wait quietly.
About half a cup of tea later, a tiny pale-green sprout emerged from the earth.
Time continued to pass slowly. The spiritual power infused by the Spirit-Nourishing Marrow grew more and more, and gradually the entire plot of land began to exhale white mist.
The little sprout struggled its way out of the soil and gradually grew into a small tree about half a person tall.
It kept on growing with great effort; about the time it takes to burn an incense stick later, it had become a mature tree.
Yan Jue couldn’t help but sigh that the Five Dragons Market’s fertilizer, Spirit-Nourishing Marrow, was really useful; it had basically shortened the crop growth cycle by a full year.
One after another, plump, bright-red Spirit Candle Fruits hung from the tree. Yan Jue picked a few and ate them with relish, then collected the cores and took out a hoe from her Qiankun bag to start tilling the ground.
After some rearranging, Yan Jue buried all those cores in the soil.
Medicinal herbs had a particularly strong corrosive effect on the ground, which was why medicinal items like Spirit-Nourishing Marrow couldn’t be used repeatedly.
After using medicinal fertilizer once, she would have to wait at least another seven days or so before she could use it again.
So Yan Jue simply planted the seeds here and let them do whatever they would.
Yan Jue looked at the results with satisfaction, picked the remaining Spirit Candle Fruits from the tree, put them into her Qiankun bag, and left the clearing.
-
Late at night, on a cliff.
Inside the cave, behind the waterfall curtain, a ball of blue light flickered on and off. “Bastard! Useless trash!”
“Didn’t I tell you to keep watch over this cave? Do you know how many treasures I’ve hidden inside?! ”
“Where are those treasures?!”
Chu Fu cursed silently in his heart that this Demon Lord was an idiot, but he still knelt on the ground and said, “You yourself said you needed to recuperate for a few days and told me not to come to this cave.”
After all, the Demon Lord’s treasures being stolen was a huge loss for him.
Because this cliff was extremely hidden, the Demon Lord had believed that absolutely no one would discover this place.
But now not only his treasures, but even the thousand-year qilin egg had been stolen!
Yet he had only just occupied a new body; he wasn’t familiar with the spells of those righteous immortal sects yet, and his vitality hadn’t recovered either! He hadn’t even mastered the immortal art of seeing through heaven and earth to its essence, so naturally he couldn’t detect every little thing happening in the cave at every moment.
Just who was it……
Could it be that someone had accidentally discovered traces of Chu Fu when he came here before?
Forget it. Fortunately, these weren’t all of his savings……
The Demon Lord: “Don’t come here again in the future. I’ll tell you a new place; if you need to find me later, just go there directly!”