Chapter 1978: Rebetting

The Soaring Cloud Sword Pavilion is divided into many branches, each managed and controlled by its respective elders.

This gray-robed young man was Zhu Yanzhi, a disciple under Elder Han Yiqun of White Cloud Peak. He had hidden himself well, altering his appearance and voice, so normally, no one should have known. Yet, the person before him had instantly called out his name and even knew all his background details. How could he not be shocked?

"Not only do I know who you are," Zhang Xuan said calmly, lifting his eyelids slightly, "but you also have nine hundred seventy-three Sword Pavilion coins here. You lost six hundred, yet you claimed to have none. If you're going to lie, at least be more sincere!"

Taking a step back, Zhu Yanzhi felt a chill run through him. Only a few people in the inner sect secretly ran gambling operations. While the other party might uncover some information if they investigated thoroughly, the exact amount of money he possessed was a secret known only to himself – not even his closest friends were aware. How could this guy possibly know?

"Who are you?" he asked, "Are you specifically investigating me?"

He clenched his fists. If the other party hadn't known his identity, he could have simply left the Divine Hall, and they wouldn't have been able to find him. But now that his name had been called out instantly, fleeing was certainly useless.

"My name is 'I'm Very Low-Key'!" Zhang Xuan announced. "Investigating you... you're overthinking it. As long as you give me the money you lost, I couldn't care less who you are..."

"'I'm Very Low-Key'?" Zhu Yanzhi's vision went dark, and he felt dizzy. People usually chose nicknames they liked or that had special meanings. This guy's name, however, was simply absurd. Low-key, my foot! He just showed up and won over seven hundred Sword Pavilion coins from me in barely ten minutes. What connection does the word 'low-key' have with you? Could you please not insult those two words?

"I'll honor my bet," Zhu Yanzhi said, his voice filled with frustration, but finally clenching his jaw and looking seriously at Zhang Xuan. "Are you really going to do as you just said and not reveal my affairs?"

In the Divine Hall, even if he killed the opponent, it would only result in the loss of a Divine Jade Token. The opponent's main body would still be alive, and the news would still spread, which wouldn't solve the fundamental problem. The only way was to make some kind of agreement so that everyone could be at peace.

"Of course!" Zhang Xuan nodded. Whether the other party gambled or not had nothing to do with him; he wasn't the Sect Master or an elder. He just needed to quietly make money.

"Alright!"

Seeing the other party agree, Zhu Yanzhi breathed a sigh of relief. He took out a card and swiped it gently. Zhang Xuan immediately saw 600 Sword Pavilion coins added to his card. He nodded with satisfaction, then looked at Zhu Yanzhi with a happy expression. "If you want to gamble again next time, come find me... If anyone else wants to gamble, you can bring them too..."

"I'm quitting..." Zhu Yanzhi said, his face pale, as he turned and walked away. He truly dared not stay there, fearing that in a fit of rage, he might continue to gamble and then... lose even more miserably.

In a few steps, he reached the gray-robed young man he had been with earlier. The young man smiled slightly upon seeing him approach. "How was it?" he asked. "How much did you win from that big fool?"

"Big fool?" Zhu Yanzhi's mouth twitched, and he almost burst into tears. "I lost..." Just over ten minutes ago, he had been excitedly thinking he had found a soft target from whom he could make a huge profit. He never expected that he himself would become the big fool, losing everything, even his underwear.

"You lost?" Stunned for a moment, the second gray-robed young man listened to Zhu Yanzhi finish his story, his eyes nearly popping out of his head. "You mean this guy... not only guessed all the battle outcomes perfectly, without a single error, but also also knew your background details?"

"Yes!"

"He really has some tricks," the second gray-robed young man mused for a moment, his eyes flashing. "It seems he's been investigating us for a long time and deliberately came to disrupt us. Hmph! Does he think he can just take the money like that? It's too simple. Yanzhi, do you want to get your money back?"

"Of course I do," Zhu Yanzhi said helplessly, "but... how?"

"It's simple: gamble again!" The second gray-robed young man's lips curved upwards.

"Gamble?" Zhu Yanzhi's mouth twitched, and he was speechless. "How can we gamble when he can even predict a draw correctly?"

"Are you stupid?" the second gray-robed young man said. "If he can know the outcomes of the matches on stage, he must have clearer information than us. He might even be colluding with the people on stage to cheat!"

"This..." Zhu Yanzhi froze. In gambling, nine out of ten times you lose. Those who can always win are either cheating or are con artists. The opponent could even predict a draw perfectly, without any error. He hadn't noticed it before, but now that the other person pointed it out, he immediately understood—he was cheating! It was highly probable that the combatants had already made some kind of agreement with him! Otherwise, how could it be such a coincidence for a draw, which rarely occurred even once in several months, to be predicted by him?

"What do you suggest we do?"

Realizing this, his fear vanished, and Zhu Yanzhi was filled with anger. He had spent his life tricking others, but this time, the tables had been turned, and he had been tricked himself!

"He can manipulate the matches on stage, but he can't manipulate you or me!" the second gray-robed young man said. "We can challenge him to a duel. As long as we set the rules, the loser pays the money and keeps silent, not allowing the news to leak... that's all it takes! No matter how much you lost before, as long as we win one match, it will all come back!"

"This..." Zhu Yanzhi hesitated. "Are you sure he'll take this bet? And are we certain we can win?" If they really won, that would naturally be best, but if they lost again... they'd truly be left with nothing.

"Don't worry, he'll definitely take the bet!" the second gray-robed young man said with a faint smile. "We don't know his identity, but if he can collude with the people on stage to cheat... it won't be hard to find out! Threatening him with that, we won't have to worry about him refusing! As for whether we can win... there's even less to worry about! What's more, winning is certainly ideal, but even if we lose, we won't be at a disadvantage! Our swordsmanship, while not exceptionally strong in the inner sect, isn't weak either. If we go all out from the start, even if we can't win, we can force him to reveal his ultimate moves! Once his trump card is exposed, won't it be easy to guess who he is? Knowing his true identity... wouldn't it be very simple to get our money back?"

"This..." Zhu Yanzhi's eyes lit up. That's right! As long as the other party dared to bet on a duel, with their combined strength, it would be almost impossible for anyone of the same cultivation level in the inner sect to defeat them without using their ultimate moves! Once the ultimate moves were used, and considering their good relationship with Junior Brother Luo in white, it would be much easier to find out who it was! Once the target was identified, the other party's crimes would be even greater, not just gambling, but also manipulating normal matches, and he might even have his cultivation abolished. Threatening him with this, he surely wouldn't dare refuse! Not to mention the money they had lost, even if they extorted him dry, he definitely wouldn't dare resist!

"Let's do it then..." After pondering it in his mind and finding no problems at all, the more he thought about it, the more excited he became. Zhu Yanzhi, along with the second gray-robed young man, approached Zhang Xuan again.

"Friend," Zhu Yanzhi said, raising an eyebrow and lowering his voice, "I want to gamble with you again."

"How do you want to gamble?"

Seeing this guy lose so miserably, recover so quickly, and then come back to gamble again, Zhang Xuan's eyes lit up. As expected of a Sword Pavilion disciple, their psychological resilience was truly strong!

"It's simple," Zhu Yanzhi said. "My brother and I will each fight you in a match. If you can defeat us both, we'll concede and honor any amount you bet! But if we happen to win... we hope you'll return all the money I just lost and keep my identity a secret, not leaking it!" For safety's sake, they decided that the opponent would only truly win if he defeated both of them! Many in the inner sect could defeat them individually, but almost none of the same cultivation level could defeat them in successive matches. In other words, this way, as long as the other party dared to agree, no matter how they competed, they wouldn't lose!

"A duel? If I defeat both of you, you'll honor any amount I bet?" Zhang Xuan's eyes lit up, and he almost burst out laughing. This was truly a pillow delivered to a sleepy head. He was just thinking of making money, and they came running! As expected, there are still many good people!

"That's right," Zhu Yanzhi said. "If you don't agree, then the draw from earlier..." Fearing he would refuse, Zhu Yanzhi was just about to utter the threat he had prepared when he saw the young man in front of him nodding repeatedly with an excited expression.

"I agree!" Zhang Xuan exclaimed. "I'll bet all these 720 Sword Pavilion coins. If you lose, just pay me the same amount!"

"Uh..." They hadn't expected the other party to be so straightforward. Zhu Yanzhi and the second gray-robed young man had to swallow the words they had prepared, both feeling a bit stunned. However, as soon as they thought that there was almost no one in the inner sect who could defeat them in successive matches, they breathed a sigh of relief again. "Register then!"

Registration was quickly completed. All names submitted were nicknames. Zhu Yanzhi's nickname was 'Zaozao'. The second gray-robed man's was 'Into Night'. Neither was their real name.

Soon it was their turn.

"'Zaozao' versus 'I'm Very Low-Key'..."

"'Zaozao' is a bit strange, but at least it's bearable," someone commented, "but 'I'm Very Low-Key'? What the heck is that?"

"I don't know, it's really terrible!"

"Yeah, 'low-key'," another chuckled. "I want to see how 'low' this guy really is..."

Seeing the names of the combatants, there was an uproar below. Most people chose grand, ambitious nicknames. To be called "I'm Very Low-Key" was simply an anomaly!

"Begin!"

Both stood on the stage. Zhu Yanzhi's gaze turned cold. He shook his longsword, and in the blink of an eye, he unleashed eight sword thrusts, enveloping the surroundings. This was his unique ultimate move, One Sword of Xiao Xiang! When cultivated to its peak, this move could unleash nine sword thrusts at once, containing eighty-one variations. If truly cultivated to this level, almost no one in the inner sect could withstand it. Although he hadn't fully mastered it, unleashing eight sword thrusts at once, with sixty-four variations, was definitely worthy of a peak expert! Especially at the Ancient Sage 1-dan level, when executed, it was almost irresistible! Not knowing the opponent's cultivation level and with such a large bet at stake, he dared not be careless. Therefore, Zhu Yanzhi unleashed his strongest move from the very start.

Seeing how powerful this move was, Zhang Xuan couldn't help but nod. No wonder he dared to bet so much against him; he indeed had some skill! However... it was still a bit too weak to use against him. He did not dodge, but stepped forward. Sword light clearly flickered before him, and the opponent's sword seemed to have transformed into eight blades. Yet, not a single one landed on him; the thrusts passed by his side, as if deliberately evading, like passing through a field of flowers without touching a single petal.

"He... found the gap for the ninth sword?" Zhu Yanzhi's pupils constricted. "This... who exactly is this guy?"