(Ahem! Nothing I could do about it — the power went out at my place yesterday. It was out for most of the day and didn't come back until after eleven at night, so I only just managed to rush this chapter out. Please forgive me! Even during the Olympics, things like this happen — I'm truly depressed!)
"Look over there!"
"What is that?"
"I can't believe it!"
A pile of spirit herbs had suddenly appeared on the ground, and several sharp-eyed people cried out in alarm!
Their exclamations immediately drew everyone's attention, including Ancestor Li and Daoist Fuyunzi.
However, once the two of them got a clear look at the spirit herbs at Han Li's feet, the Daoist's beaming expression froze instantly. Ancestor Li, after a brief moment of stunned silence, burst into a delighted laugh. This windfall that had fallen from the sky filled him with joy beyond measure.
Once Ancestor Li realized he was being a bit too carried away and stopped laughing, he fixed Han Li with a squinting, appraising gaze, finding the young man more and more pleasing to look at no matter how he stared. The Daoist, on the other hand, was green in the face, still unable to believe he had actually lost, and his look toward Han Li was naturally none too friendly.
"Brother Daoist, what is the meaning of this? Surely you wouldn't bully a junior, would you?" Ancestor Li snorted upon seeing Fuyunzi's expression and stepped forward with a quick stride to shield Han Li behind him, his face stern.
Now that Han Li had just rendered him a tremendous service, there was no way he was going to let this junior be intimidated by Fuyunzi in front of so many people. Otherwise, where would his dignity be?
The Daoist, addressed so pointedly by Ancestor Li, finally realized how inappropriate it was for someone of his standing to glare at a Qi Condensation stage disciple like that. Others might mistake it for petty retaliation against a junior, so he hastily shifted his gaze and forced a smile at Ancestor Li:
"Don't misunderstand, Benefactor Li. This poor Daoist simply finds it truly remarkable that a young cultivator of this junior's level could gather so many spirit herbs. I merely wished to take a closer look!"
The Daoist tried hard to maintain a nonchalant expression, but every time he thought of that Bloodline Floodwyrm Inner Core, he felt as though his heart was bleeding. No matter what, his face simply wouldn't return to normal.
Ancestor Li gave two cold "heh heh" laughs and said nothing further, not pressing the matter. After all, he had won the bet decisively and had no desire to further needle the other party with words.
That said, he too was puzzled by how Han Li had managed to obtain so many spirit herbs. However, with so many people from other sects watching, Ancestor Li wasn't about to interrogate Han Li about it and simply let the matter slide. More importantly, his mind was ablaze with excitement — if he could also beat the people from the Hidden Moon Sect, then this trip to the forbidden grounds would be an enormous windfall for him, and he couldn't be bothered with trivial matters like these. As long as it helped him win the bet, he didn't care one bit how Han Li had obtained those spirit herbs through whatever schemes or tricks.
The Daoist, seeing Ancestor Li's expression, understood perfectly what the man was thinking. Fuming and aching inside, he could only accept his role as the one eliminated and continue watching to see who would win between the other party and Old Freak Qiong.
But Old Freak Qiong's expression was no better than the Daoist's. The spirit herbs submitted by the earlier Hidden Moon Sect disciples had all been rather ordinary, hardly enough to make him crack a smile.
Just as Ancestor Li was reveling in his triumph, the situation suddenly took an unexpected turn. The last few Hidden Moon Sect disciples each submitted over a dozen spirit herbs, and in an instant their combined total exceeded that of both the Clear Void Sect and Yellow Maple Valley by five or six stalks, snatching the final victory in the bet.
This blow stunned Ancestor Li on the spot, while Old Freak Qiong let out a long, relieved breath and burst into his characteristic odd laughter.
"Hand it over, hand it over! Give me that Bloodline Floodwyrm Inner Core! I've been meaning to refine a batch of quality pills, and an inner core like that is the perfect catalyst!" Old Freak Qiong demanded the wager from Fuyunzi right then and there without any courtesy.
Upon hearing this, Daoist Fuyunzi forced a thin smile and opened his mouth as if to say something, but in the end no words came out.
Old Freak Qiong's eyes narrowed in displeasure.
"What's this? The great Fuyunzi of the Clear Void Sect — could it be you're trying to renege on a bet?"
"Reneging? Would I dare renege on a debt to you, Old Freak Qiong?"
Fuyunzi wasn't truly trying to go back on his word and refuse to hand over the inner core. It was simply that such a precious treasure left him in tremendous anguish, and his reluctance was merely instinctive.
But with Old Freak Qiong putting it so bluntly, his face flushed red and white in turns. He stomped his foot, then flung a pale white sphere at the other party before turning his head away, his face twisted in pain of parting with a treasured possession. That sphere was none other than the Bloodline Floodwyrm Inner Core.
Old Freak Qiong caught the inner core with a casual raise of his hand, examined it carefully, and then beamed with delight — though he still grumbled under his breath:
"The quality seems a bit lacking, doesn't it? The spiritual energy isn't exactly abundant anymore. I suppose it'll have to do, more or less."
Hearing this, the Daoist on the other side flushed crimson and nearly spat blood on the spot, so furious that he hurriedly moved far away, afraid that if he stayed any longer, his Dao heart would be utterly thrown into disarray.