novelraw Chapter 1720 1224: Can't Even Afford the Stakes
Chapter 1720 1224: Can't Even Afford the Stakes
"Why are we leaving? Hey, you haven't checked your ranking yet!" Zhang Menglong still planned to look around more, but Long Sen was already starting to gently push his way through the crowd.
"I forgot to tell you earlier," Long Sen said, "When checking your ranking, make sure nobody notices you. Your actions just now were too conspicuous, and you've probably already caught someone's attention. If we don't leave now, we won't be able to!"
Long Sen seemed a bit annoyed. He should have told Zhang Menglong about such an important detail earlier. The looks they were getting from the surrounding people were already signs that trouble was on its way.
"Whoa, where's the genius ranked 1881 rushing off to?"
Sure enough, before Long Sen could finish speaking, a voice dripping with sarcasm sounded from behind Zhang Menglong.
A youth whose face looked like it was dusted with flour squeezed through the crowd, walking toward Zhang Menglong, followed by five lackeys resembling the hoodlums Zhang Menglong used to see hanging around the school gate in his middle school days.
"Brother Gu, don't pay attention to him. Let's get out of here!" Long Sen whispered. Even though he didn't know the youth's background or identity, anyone who could be here, let alone provoke others, wouldn't be a simple figure!
"Although super sects forbid all Heavenly Prides from bringing bodyguards, private fights among them are allowed and even encouraged, since they want to select the best among these people. Private fights can help in some preliminary filtering to some extent."
"Okay." Zhang Menglong nodded. He wasn't afraid of trouble; he just didn't like the hassle.
"What's this, is the great genius chickening out? Looks like your 1881 ranking has a bit of water in it."
"I thought you were someone impressive, turned out to be just an Onmyoji?" Zhang Menglong was never one to back down from a taunt. He immediately stopped, "Long Sen, don't worry about it. I'll handle my own matters. Even if we dodge today, when the selection starts, it's inevitable. Might as well warn a few people off today."
"But…" Long Sen glanced at the youth, whose aura was no weaker than his own. Just the lackeys alone had nearly Divine Breath Sixth Grade strength, while the powder-faced youth's aura faintly showed signs of a breakthrough to Divine Breath Seventh Grade!
Among all those who received the Heavenly Pride Order, a Divine Breath Seventh Grade is as rare as a phoenix feather. Barring any mishap, they could almost secure a spot in the selection. This youth was definitely a strong contender in the superpower selection tournament.
"Wait for me!" Zhang Menglong patted Long Sen on the shoulder and then walked out of the crowded area.
"Wow, look, here comes some excitement!"
"His aura is so strong! Close to Divine Breath Seventh Grade, such strength might already be very advanced, right?"
"This guy is impressive. I just saw him; he's ranked over twenty thousand on the Pride of Heaven Stele, from Wushuang Empire!"
"People from Wushuang Empire? No wonder, they're very strong even among the Ninth Grade Empires. It's said the empire's two founders are Dao Realm experts who came out of super sects and have all sorts of ties with the Starry Sky Pavilion."
"What? Why is his opponent a nobody? I can't feel any Divine Breath fluctuation from him at all; what's going on?"
"Shh, don't underestimate him. There's no one easy to deal with here. I just saw his Heavenly Pride Order ranking; it's 1881, much higher than that guy from Wushuang Empire. He might have some trump card."
"Aren't you overthinking? There are plenty like him. With a bodyguard, they've accumulated a good deal of fortune. In reality, they're just trash, this situation isn't the first or second time. Just a few days ago, didn't someone ranked over 700 get beaten by a nobody?"
"Hahaha, I know that incident. That pretty boy charmed an Empress beyond the Divine Cultivation Realm, and lived off her. But his skill, well…not impressive!"
"Hahaha, being able to live off someone like that is a skill too. If you could do it, you would!"
...
"Do you need something?" Zhang Menglong walked up to the youth, looking him in the eye and asked.
"I am Qin Tianyou from Wushuang Empire. I unintentionally saw your ranking just now and want to spar with you. Would the genius be willing to give me some face?"
"Sorry, I'm busy," Zhang Menglong shrugged.
"Is the great genius really busy, or just scared?"
"Hah," Zhang Menglong showed a disdainful look, "What's the point of sparring if I gain nothing from winning? It's just a waste of my time. What's worth sparring for?"
Qin Tianyou hesitated for a moment. This guy was really ignorant; didn't he know that winning a spar could earn half of the opponent's fortune? It made him even more certain Zhang Menglong had achieved this ranking through some sneaky means, maybe even underhanded tricks.
Qin Tianyou didn't want to let such a good opportunity slip by.
"If the great genius feels there's no wager, I am willing to put something up for a bet." Qin Tianyou took out a scroll of martial arts from his person, "The Stormy Starry Cloud Split, a Divine-level martial arts created by my Wushuang Empire's predecessors based on Xingyun Sect's Starry Cloud Splitting Technique. If you win, it's yours!"
"Oh my gosh! Created based on the Xingyun Sect's techniques? Wushuang Empire is indeed formidable!"
"A Divine-level martial arts, he's really going all out just for fortune."
"Anyway, he can't lose, what's there to worry about?"
"Hmm? This person looks familiar. Isn't he Gu Tianle?"
"What, brother, you know him?"
"I'd recognize him even if he turned to ash! It's him, he used a Dao-level bodyguard to extort all of us who entered from the Skyless Realm!"
"A Dao-level bodyguard? This guy is indeed something to have a Dao-level expert at his command!"
Long Sen heard some information about Zhang Menglong. As it turned out, Zhang Menglong wasn't bluffing; he really had a Dao-level bodyguard.
But then, he heard more revelations.
"Not at all special. The bodyguard isn't normal, but a puppet summoned with an artifact. Each attack costs ten trillion Divine Crystals."
"Is that so?"
"Hahaha, so many of you were fooled by this?"
Many people even began mocking the Skyless Realm folks for their weakness. If it were just a powerful puppet, it would take only a few lives to exchange blows, then wouldn't it be easy?
"Damn!" Long Sen's expression drastically changed, having a Dao-level bodyguard versus having such a puppet was a completely different concept! Zhang Menglong's background suddenly became more mystifying.
Was he truly from a mighty Ninth Grade Empire? Was he genuinely a deeply concealed super-genius? As he worried about Zhang Menglong, Long Sen even entertained the thought that if he had acted sooner, he might have secured that fortune!
"I'm not interested in your stuff," Zhang Menglong shook his head, "The Stormy Starry Cloud Split? Have you watched too much Rainbow Butterfly? I have the Dragon Emperor Alternate Dimension and Mount Tai Meteorite Pendant!"
Zhang Menglong smiled slightly, "If you really want to fight, it's not impossible. How about we bet something more substantial, like one trillion Divine Crystals per match, how about it?"
Qin Wushuang's face immediately showed an embarrassed expression.
One trillion Divine Crystals? Is that an amount a normal person would carry? Even with his background, he only had a few tens of billions of Divine Crystals at most.
"What? You can't afford it?" Zhang Menglong immediately adopted a mocking expression, "You can't even cover the bet and want to spar with someone? That's really pointless!"