Cultivation: Start From Simplifying Martial Arts Techniques

Editor: Dragon Boat Translation

“Originally, there were seven or eight betting pools, with almost every branch setting up one. However, as the number of bettors increased significantly, these seven or eight pools were merged into one, so now there’s just one.”

Chen Fei was on the road and had just stopped someone to ask for directions when the person, recognizing him, enthusiastically started introducing him.

“It’s right there; no matter which branch you place a bet at, the outcome is the same.” Jia Hongwen pointed to a courtyard ahead.

“This is the courtyard where the top experts of the Sun Moon Realms live, isn’t it?” Chen Fei glanced around and said.

“Yes, that’s right. With such a large betting pool, only organizations at the peak of the Sun Moon Realms have enough merit points to handle it.” Jia Hongwen nodded, looking at Chen Fei.

The entire Qiankun Mansion had become lively due to Chen Fei’s challenge.

Whether Chen Fei ultimately wins or loses, everyone has remembered his name.

Of course, if Chen Fei ends up winning very little or not winning at all, his reputation might not be great for a while, if not outright damaged.

“Yes, they’ll accept. The twelve people you are challenging have placed their own bets,” Jia Hongwen nodded and led Chen Fei into a courtyard.

“This courtyard is currently owned by Hua Zhijun. I heard he’s preparing to challenge the Stone Tower recently,” Jia Hongwen said quietly.

Chen Fei nodded and said nothing.

At this moment, the courtyard was quite lively, with many people gathered, discussing matters related to Chen Fei.

“Hey, the main person has arrived.”

Suddenly, someone exclaimed in surprise upon spotting Chen Fei.

Hearing this, everyone in the courtyard turned their gaze towards him, with looks of scrutiny and curiosity.

Chen Fei nodded slightly to the people and walked into the main hall of the courtyard.

“Chen Fei?”

As soon as Chen Fei and Jia Hongwen entered, a gaze landed on Chen Fei. Looking up, Chen Fei saw a burly man with a beard—Hua Zhijun, the owner of the courtyard.

“Here to place a bet?” Hua Zhijun stood up, looking at Chen Fei with a faint smile.

“Exactly,” Chen Fei nodded in confirmation.

“Good. Here is the betting board. Which one would you like to bet on?”

Without further ado, Hua Zhijun presented the betting options.

Chen Fei looked down and saw the odds ranging from one win to twelve wins. The higher the number of wins, the higher the odds, due to the inherent difficulty.

In addition to betting on wins and losses, there was also a betting option on whether Chen Fei would die in the arena.

Although Chen Fei had no personal grudge with the twelve challengers, it was not unusual for intense fights to end in death.

However, the odds for this bet were very low. Whether betting on death or survival, the payout was minimal.

A correct bet would only yield a little over ten percent, while an incorrect one meant losing all the merit points.

“Can I place the bet on credit?” Chen Fei looked at Hua Zhijun.

Chen Fei only had one hundred fifty-eight merit points on him, with two of them earned just today.

“No credit,” Hua Zhijun shook his head.

Merit points were precious, and accumulating them was not easy. Moreover, the first round of eliminations would start in a few months. If credit were allowed, it was uncertain whether the bettor would still be in Qiankun Mansion by then.

Therefore, Hua Zhijun did not offer credit.

“How about using a Celestial Treasure as collateral?” Chen Fei took out the Tianling Pendant.

The Tianling Pendant, once having its spiritual essence erased by Chen Fei, was now considered a bottom-tier Celestial Treasure.

Nevertheless, being a Celestial Treasure, it still held some value.

“No collateral,” Hua Zhijun glanced at the Tianling Pendant and shook his head again.

A low-grade Celestial Treasure, from the perspective of those at the peak of the Sun Moon Realms, cannot be considered worthless.

In other places, selling a low-grade Celestial Treasure for some premium origin stones wouldn’t be an issue at all.

However, to exchange it for the precious merit points, Hua Zhijun wouldn’t consider such a losing deal.

Chen Fei raised his eyebrows slightly in disappointment. The peak Sun Moon Realms are troublesome; they offer no opportunity to leverage.

People like Sikong Jun are much better, knowing he was short on merit points but still accepting his challenge.

“Really can’t you advance some merit points?” Chen Fei couldn’t help but ask again.

Hua Zhijun looked at Chen Fei, hesitated for a moment, and then shook his head.

Given Chen Fei’s displayed combat power and talent, it’s unlikely he would be eliminated from Qiankun Mansion, so there’s no worry about not getting the merit points back.

But Hua Zhijun knew the details of Chen Fei’s challenge. If Chen Fei lost several matches, the merit points would have already been allocated.

If merit points were advanced to Chen Fei, it was uncertain when he could repay them.

Chen Fei nodded, understanding Hua Zhijun’s concerns, and looked down at the betting board before handing over his jade token.

“All in on twelve wins!”

Chen Fei’s voice wasn’t loud, but everyone in the courtyard, being from the Sun Moon Realms, heard it clearly.

Twelve wins had odds of twenty times.

In other words, if Chen Fei won, not only would he recover his one hundred fifty-eight merit points, but Hua Zhijun would also have to pay an additional three thousand one hundred sixty merit points.

Defeating twelve people would earn only two thousand four hundred merit points, but the payout from this bet was higher than the rewards from a formal challenge.

“Good!”

Hua Zhijun accepted Chen Fei’s jade token without saying much more. They signed a contract that would be recognized by Qiankun Mansion, so there was no concern about a breach of contract.

Most of the Sun Moon Realm experts placed their bets on this challenge.

The brokers, including Hua Zhijun, had the Qiankun Mansion authenticate their payment capabilities, using this as a selling point to assure other Sun Moon Realm experts that they wouldn’t end up winning but not receiving merit points.

This is what professionalism looks like—seamless operation.

“Safe travels!”

Hua Zhijun sent Chen Fei and Jia Hongwen out of the courtyard and watched them disappear.

“Truly confident, betting on twelve wins for himself!” someone nearby chuckled.

“Hua, it seems Chen Fei is the only one betting on twelve wins,” someone asked curiously.

“At the moment, yes,” Hua Zhijun nodded.

Even those who had great confidence in Chen Fei didn’t place bets on twelve wins.

Currently, the highest number of wins bet on Chen Fei was seven.

People who bet on this number did so not only because they believed in Chen Fei’s extraordinary ability but also because the odds were quite high, tempting them to place a bet.

Such betting is challenging; if Chen Fei ends up winning eight matches, those who bet on seven wins would still lose.

In the end, the winners are always the brokers.

“I’m quite looking forward to the match two days from now to see how Chen Fei will fare,” someone murmured with a smile.

In the arena, if someone gets injured, Qiankun Mansion won’t provide free treatment like in the courtyard competitions.

To recover from injuries, one must spend merit points. If you’re unwilling to spend them, you’ll have to recover slowly.

Chen Fei’s scheduled challenge was set entirely for two days later.

One reason why people were not optimistic about Chen Fei was this.

It was practically a war of attrition; if injuries were severe, he might run out of merit points before recovering.

News of Chen Fei betting on twelve wins quickly spread within Qiankun Mansion.

Discussions about Chen Fei heated up once again.

It was clear to everyone that Chen Fei seemed genuinely confident in himself.

However, in battles among peers, confidence alone is not enough. If there is a real disparity in strength, confidence won’t resolve the issue.

Amidst the noise outside, Chen Fei continued his routine of focusing on training and daily life.

In the two months at Qiankun Mansion, Chen Fei’s progress had indeed been significantly faster than outside.

Aside from the merit points, the natural energy and spiritual essence in the premier courtyard, combined with the resonance of the Qiankun Cauldron, provided Chen Fei with substantial benefits.

The spiritual essence in the natural energy directly enhanced his comprehension.

In such an environment, the proficiency of his cultivation methods and divine abilities advanced much quicker.

A month and a half ago, his divine ability, Indestructible Vision, reached the mastery stage, resulting in a direct increase in combat power by over twenty percent.

Currently, the proficiency of Indestructible Vision had progressed by thirty percent within the mastery stage, further boosting his combat power.

Compared to his strength during the courtyard competition, Chen Fei’s power had increased by at least thirty percent in just two months.

At this rate, in about four more months, Chen Fei could perfect Indestructible Vision.

This achievement was accomplished without using merit points for rare materials or special training rooms.

It can be said that the Qiankun Cauldron truly lives up to its reputation as the greatest treasure of humanity, producing remarkable results when combined with his abilities.

However, the resources consumed daily to operate the Qiankun Cauldron are astronomical.

Such measures are only taken in critical situations; humanity wouldn’t use them otherwise.

As time passed, the two days went by slowly.

Before the hour of Chen’s time, thousands of Sun Moon Realm experts had already gathered in the public area.

Although Qiankun Mansion prohibited flying, the public area was large enough that even with everyone gathered there, it didn’t affect the viewing experience.

As time went on, more and more Sun Moon Realm experts gathered around the arena, the number surpassing ten thousand, and still increasing.

During the last comparison between the top experts of two branches, there hadn’t been so many spectators.

Approaching the hour of Chen’s time, even a dozen Sixth Stage Rule Integration Realm elders appeared, floating in mid-air.

“Sikong Jun has arrived, and the one beside him should be Shen Yongding.”

Two figures approached from a distance, appearing at the edge of the arena. They were Sikong Jun and Shen Yongding.

Sikong Jun glanced at the sky, noting that it was almost time.

As Sikong Jun and Shen Yongding settled in, ten more figures appeared beside the arena—early-stage Sun Moon Realm experts from other branches.

Many sharp-eyed observers noticed that several of these individuals had unstable auras.

Clearly, as rumored, these few had reached the threshold of the early Sun Moon Realm and could break into the mid Sun Moon Realm with a bit of seclusion.

Sikong Jun withdrew his gaze from the sky, stepped back with his right foot, and appeared in the arena.

“Sikong Jun is here. Where is Chen Fei?”

Sikong Jun’s voice rang out across the entire public area.

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