Chapter 1954: Again Making a Bet

"Of course, there are levels!" the attendant explained with a smile. "If some masters keep winning, knowing that others are bound to lose, who would still want to compete against them? Furthermore, masters come here to hone their combat skills. If they just casually defeat someone, it doesn't help them improve. So, while the open competition seems fair, it's actually divided into multiple tiers."

Zhang Xuan nodded.

For someone like him, a competition at this level, where he was only focused on suppressing his cultivation, wouldn't offer any real training.

"Normally, it's divided into elementary, intermediate, and advanced levels," the attendant continued. "If you participate in challenges for the first time and win ten consecutive matches without a single loss, you can enter the intermediate level! Similarly, ten consecutive wins in the intermediate level allow you to advance to the advanced level..."

"You've now won eight consecutive matches, which means you're very close to the intermediate level. Most ordinary people probably won't compete against you. If you truly want to compete, you might need to issue a challenge in advance and place a wager. As long as someone accepts... and you win two more consecutive matches, you'll be qualified to enter the intermediate challenge and compete against stronger opponents!"

Zhang Xuan nodded.

Needless to say, this design made more sense.

"Then I'll issue a challenge..."

"Alright. How much would you like to wager?" The attendant looked at him again.

"5,500!" Zhang Xuan handed over his Spirit Communion Card.

He had spent over a hundred thousand coins he'd previously earned on medicine for the gourd, leaving him with only this small amount.

"5,500?" The attendant gave a wry smile and looked at him. "That's too little to wager; I doubt anyone will accept..."

Profits are enticing, but if the wager is too small, who would bother accepting?

Normally, such challenges require a minimum wager of fifty thousand.

In such cases, many people, even knowing they're likely to lose, would still come to try their luck.

Just over five thousand Spirit Communion coins... that really is too little!

Just as the attendant thought this master was too stingy, a young man strode over, and his voice rang out: "I accept!"

Beside the young man was a beautiful girl, appearing sixteen or seventeen years old, carrying a long sword.

It was precisely Huo Jianghe and Xue Qin, who had just entered.

However, both had altered their appearances, which was why Zhang Xuan didn't recognize them!

"You wish to challenge?"

Zhang Xuan was relieved that someone challenged him so quickly. He smiled faintly and asked, "Since you're challenging, are you willing to accept a wager?"

Hearing "wager" again, Huo Jianghe recalled his previous unpleasant experience and frowned. "What kind of wager?"

"It's simple. If I lose, I'll give you one hundred thousand Spirit Communion coins. If you lose... you give me one hundred thousand Spirit Communion coins!"

He had originally wanted to say five hundred thousand, but feared scaring the fellow off, so Zhang Xuan decided to state a smaller amount.

"One hundred thousand Spirit Communion coins? Can you even afford that?"

Huo Jianghe scoffed.

Although he was a master from the Lingyun Sword Pavilion, one hundred thousand Spirit Communion coins were nothing to him, but he didn't want to be taken advantage of.

"You don't need to worry about whether I can afford it. Do you dare to gamble?" Zhang Xuan waved his hand. "If you dare, we'll compete. If not, then forget it..."

Although he didn't know who the other party was, the sword qi swirling in his gaze and the woman beside him carrying a long sword strongly suggested that he was a disciple of the Lingyun Sword Pavilion, just like Yun Feiyang and the others he had defeated earlier!

Such people coming to challenge him were probably looking to vent their frustration for those who had lost. In that case, who else should he trick but them?

Besides, his purpose here was to earn money. He didn't have the luxury of engaging in a fight without financial gain.

After all, suppressing his cultivation to one-twentieth and being unable to use many of his ultimate moves was very difficult and frustrating.

It was like playing around with ants, constantly afraid of accidentally crushing them.

"How presumptuous! It's an honor for you that my senior martial brother wants to compete with you! How dare you have such an attitude?"

Seeing how arrogant 'Tianya' was, Xue Qin angrily rebuked him.

As the senior disciple of the Lingyun Sword Pavilion's outer sect, he was expected to become an inner sect disciple next year. For such a powerful expert to compete with him was a blessing cultivated over several lifetimes. Yet, this person was hedging and even proposing a wager...

He truly didn't know his place!

"Enough!"

Huo Jianghe interrupted Xue Qin and looked at Zhang Xuan coldly. "There's nothing wrong with a wager... However, if you lose, I don't want your one hundred thousand Spirit Communion coins. I want you to admit that your sword art is far inferior to the Lingyun Sword Pavilion's, and that you're willing to come back with me and become a disciple of the Sword Pavilion!"

"Alright!"

Zhang Xuan nodded.

Admitting inferiority wouldn't affect him in the slightest.

Moreover...

Lose? That's impossible!

He hadn't even learned how to write that word!

"Please!"

With the agreement made, the two walked towards the arena.

"Look, Tianya's here... He's about to compete again!"

"Excellent! We get to see his martial arts again; they're truly amazing..."

"Quickly, wake up those useless guys! If we don't tell them and they miss Tianya's match, they'll probably hate us..."

"Who's competing against him?"

"'One-Eyed River?' I don't know him... But the girl next to him, 'Playing the Zither on a Snowy Night,' I think I've heard of her!"

"Who is she?"

"It seems to be... the second daughter of the Lord of Xuanjiang City, named Xue Qin. She's an absolute beauty, and her sword art is extremely profound..."

Discussions buzzed all around.

Huo Jianghe's nickname was 'One-Eyed River.' Since he had never been to the Spirit Communion Hall in Xingyao City before, no one knew him.

Xue Qin, however, was different. As the city lord's daughter, she had entered this place long ago and made quite a name for herself. Because of this, many people recognized her name when they saw it.

It was similar to many internet celebrities and competitive gamers in a previous life, whose online handles were widely known, and their real identities were revered as idols. For example, 'One Autumn Leaf,' Ye Xiu; 'Dancing Rain,' Su Mucheng; 'Sweeping the Horizon,' Daniel Wu.

"Xue Qin?"

These words were not concealed, and Zhang Xuan heard them clearly. He couldn't help but be startled.

Could it really be such a coincidence!

He just came to earn money for a storage ring, and he runs into the woman he's supposed to un-marry?

If this 'Playing the Zither on a Snowy Night' was indeed her, then this 'One-Eyed River' wouldn't happen to be the one from the Lingyun Sword Pavilion who came to recruit disciples, would he!

Seeing the arena close by, Zhang Xuan suddenly turned around. He reached out his hand into the air towards Xue Qin, who was not far away.

His movement was incredibly fast. The girl hadn't expected him to suddenly attack. She instinctively raised the long sword in her hand to block, only to find that the other party had already retracted his hand, a faint smile playing on his lips.

"What are you doing?!"

Her delicate brows furrowed, Xue Qin was on the verge of exploding.

She had thought that a master her senior brother held in high regard would be more composed. She hadn't expected him to directly make a move on her.

"Nothing much, I just saw a mosquito on your head and helped you shoo it away..." Zhang Xuan said.

"You..."

Breathing rapidly, Xue Qin's chest heaved with anger.

"Mosquito? Mosquito your sister! This is the Spirit Communion Hall; we all enter with our consciousness. Where would mosquitoes come from? If you're going to lie, could you at least do it more convincingly?"

Ignoring her anger, Zhang Xuan smiled faintly. His gaze fell upon the library that had appeared in his mind. Upon inspecting it, he saw it was indeed densely filled with flaws, along with brief introductions.

"Xue Qin, the second daughter of the Lord of Xuanjiang City..."

After reading the information, Zhang Xuan's lips curved upward.

Although one could disguise their identity in the Spirit Communion Hall, it couldn't be truly concealed.

In other words, as long as the opponent displayed martial arts, their true identity would be revealed to the library, with nowhere to hide.

"Since it's her, this will be fun..."

Now knowing her exact identity, Zhang Xuan looked back at 'One-Eyed River,' who was not far away. He pointed at Xue Qin and said, "That woman just now was openly rude to me. How about this: if you lose, in addition to the one hundred thousand Spirit Communion coins, you lose her to me as a maidservant?"