“So, you guys finally came out. The three of you sure have grown a lot.” Jian Beiyun paused as he looked over the three young men’s height. “How is Sima Xue doing? Has she hit a growth spurt as well?”
“Um, you could say that,” Li Lang replied. “She’s been busy preparing to take the next major step.”
“Well, I’m thankful Tang Yulian is in there with her. Otherwise, I would think she would’ve rushed her attempt a long time ago. Anyway, you guys did a lot better than most expected. I hope you made use of this opportunity to your fullest and have no regrets.”
“Of course. We wouldn’t dare to waste any opportunity given to us,” Li Lang smirked. “I see you have also taken advantage of this opportunity here.”
Seeing Li Lang direct his gaze toward the gambling table, Jian Beiyun cleared his throat.
“It’s not as much of an opportunity as it is a way to prevent disputes between the distinguished parties here.”
Li Lang silently nodded as he surveyed the people around them. He wasn’t knowledgeable about the ways those from famous organizations within the Luminescent Domain dressed, but he could read between the lines. A brief exchange of glances with Wei Ping confirmed it.
However, one person among them was completely clueless. Long Yi made no attempts to hide his intrusive gaze as he tried to identify the other people within the teahouse. That lasted until a timely elbow from Wei Ping.
It was Li Lang’s turn to clear his throat this time.
“Anyway, I see that you have all these names listed on the table. Are you guys betting on who remains the longest?”
“That is the most basic way to bet, yes. You can also bet on individuals, go for a trifecta or even a superfecta. If you prefer something more unorthodox, you can practically bet anything you want as long as you find someone to bet with. We can act as the middlemen in that case.”
Changing the subject quickly, Li Lang’s eyes swiftly honed in on the gambling. He had made a small fortune during his previous hand at it, and he smelled an opportunity to do so again. He spotted most of the names crossed out, with the exception of five. They represented the final five cultivators who remained within the pocket realm.
Previously, Li Lang had asked the Blue to send everyone out of the realm with them, except for the top five. This was purely based on their remaining trial points.
Blue, Orange, and Green may have been able to make a more precise judgment regarding who had more potential, but that wasn’t important. Li Lang decided it was better to go with the method that the external parties could quickly figure out. After all, enough strange events had taken place, and they would definitely investigate everything in detail afterward. He wanted to keep up the appearance of the artifact spirit executing simple old instructions.
The point was to weave a clear narrative, so they wouldn’t investigate too much into it.
Unbeknownst to them, the organizations within the Luminescent domain were already pulling their hair out due to all the recent developments. They were already investigating in full force. The pocket realm had somehow ceased ejecting people after the three-year mark before kicking a majority out two years later.
“Can a-anyone place bets?” Wei Ping asked, having seen Li Lang’s expression.
“Of course. On Nightmoon Valley’s name, we will ensure the fairness of any bets while Myriad Bones Pavilion’s financial capability will ensure the pay should you win.”
Jian Beiyun then continued by explaining the various rates listed. The ones for betting on individuals were simple, but the trifecta and superfectas had more complicated ways of calculating payouts.
Li Lang’s greed was easily stirred upon hearing those numbers. His upcoming future was expected to be costly. Few ever complained about having too much wealth. It would even be earned under the auspice of Nightmoon Valley, making it almost impossible for any organization to get away with targeting his earnings. It was the perfect opportunity for Li Lang to make a fortune.
The question was if it was worth it.
It shouldn’t give away anything, would it? It’s just pure luck. Guessing the correct order for all five cultivators should come out to zero point eight-three percent chance. Just around one percent. It’s not too outrageous…
Having spent years together, it only took one look before Wei Ping understood his intentions.
“Are t-there any minimum or m-maximum bets, Senior Jian?”
“Don’t worry about it, you three. Bet as much as you want. Let me do warn you, though. Only bet what you can afford to lose. You don’t want to experience what poverty feels like.”
This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it
“O-of course. I think w-we should just place a b-bet to commemorate our t-time at the pocket realm. How a-about it, Boss?”
“Sure.”
Taking the lead, Wei Ping quickly placed his bets. He then urged Long Yi next. They each used their own money, betting only a few Qi stones.
When it was Li Lang’s turn, he showed much deeper pockets.
“Li Lang, are you serious? You want to bet a thousand Qi stones? Your companions only bet a few. Shouldn’t you show some restraint?”
“Senior Jian, it’s fine. I’ve saved up some money from refining pills. After our experiences in the pocket realm, all three of us should have no trouble earning this amount back.”
“Li Lang…You do realize the higher cultivation you have, the more expensive the things you’ll need will be? A thousand Qi stones are equal to ten red spirit crystals. That’s enough to purchase some basic Earth-grade resources.”
“I understand. I won’t regret it, senior.”
“As long as you understand, very well then.”
Jian Beiyun no longer bothered to convince the young man. He had tried his best and sometimes it was best for youth to learn a lesson. Sometimes, one had to touch the steaming kettle to learn it was hot.
From his point of view, ten red crystals were not a lot. A regular Foundation Establishment cultivator may not agree, but his background was extraordinary.
While he realized it may be worth a lot to mortals, it was a great opportunity for the three youngsters to experience some setbacks.
With the bets finalized, Li Lang’s party didn’t spend any more time at the teahouse. They didn’t exactly fit in, and there was an important job of relaying some vital information to the pocket realm to be done.
Just like with Ruby, Li Lang lost contact with his new artifact spirits as soon as he got out of range. Unlike Ruby, Blue and her two companions had enough strength to travel to Li Lang’s side. However, with all the experts around, they didn’t even fathom performing such a stupid move. That meant Li Lang needed to approach the pocket realm once more to fix the results.
With their Skyrunner left behind in Emberglow, the three used their own two legs to navigate toward the four pillars that acted as the entrance to the pocket realm. They had previously passed through the same spot, entering the center part in between the four pillars before being teleported inside.
The location was right at the center of all the different encampments, so it was harder to lose sight of it than not.
Numerous cultivators noticed the approach of the youngsters, but none really cared. More than several young disciples would approach the entrance once more in an attempt to find a way back into the pocket realm. It was such a common occurrence that it was practically tradition.
This allowed Li Lang’s party to come into contact with the four mysterious pillars unhindered. Placing a hand on the finely carved beam, Li Lang managed to establish a telepathic line to his three new artifact spirits. It didn’t take long for him to convey his new instructions.
“Master, are you sure you want to allow this Gui Tianzi to come out last?” Orange inquired. “I thought you were closer to Sima Xue and Tang Yulian?”
“It’s fine. There isn’t that big of a difference in time. They should all know the pocket realm is acting strangely, so they shouldn’t even take it as a real defeat.”
Now that money was on the line, Li Lang wanted to finish this affair and put it behind him as soon as possible. There were a lot of things waiting for him to do. Not to talk about his research into mass-producing talismans via printing, he also had an errand he promised Liang Po.
There’s also buying tofu pudding for Sima Xue, but that can wait. Maybe she’ll even forget once she breaks through.
He couldn’t wait to return to Emberglow City and report to his mentors. All the new knowledge he gained meant the guidance of a mentor was even more valuable. Instead of stumbling around himself to figure out enchantment, he could just ask Yi Lin.
With that in mind, he had set the dates of the last five cultivators’ return to be within the week.
Compared to five years inside the pocket realm, a week passed by in a flash. For the older cultivators who lived over centuries, it felt even shorter.
Two days after Li Lang’s group had exited the pocket realm, people began appearing with an interval of one day.
“Hei Qiu from the Fang Garden has returned!”
Li Lang didn’t fix the results to the highest payout. That would be too suspicious. That was why the three geniuses came next.
“Liang Po from the Myriad Bones Pavilion is the next to return!”
“Tang Yulian…”
How swiftly they came out caught the various organizations off-guard. They expected the five remaining disciples to remain inside for a special reason. Chance encounters normally wouldn’t be this quick. Seeing them come one after the other after only a few days made them unable to deduce the reasoning behind it.
The most surprising of all, the last one to return, wasn’t one of the three famed geniuses. Everyone had thought it would be Tang Yulian, as she was confirmed to have broken through first. If the other two geniuses broke through in time, they may also have a chance due to their other advantages. They were completely flabbergasted when they saw Sima Xue’s return.
“Who is this Gui Tianzi? How come we’ve heard so little of him before?”
“I don’t know much either! I only know he’s from the Eroding March Pavilion, and those guys are—you know. Not the most pleasant bunch to be around.”
“Then quick, go talk to Elder An. Despite everything that’s happening, we can’t falter when it comes to keeping track of geniuses. Who knows when they’ll realize their potential and change up the landscape of everything!”
Amidst all this hype and confusion, a lone boy exited out of the pocket realm under the hungry eyes of all the spectators. He knew he would draw attention when he realized he was the last one remaining, but he was completely oblivious as to why. Everyone stared at him like a hawk. Cold sweat built up on his brow as numerous figures of authority scrutinized every inch of his body.
Everyone thought the same thing.
“This is him?”