Chapter 364: Astounding Bet

It had been over a month since Ye Fan left the Divine City. Returning now, he felt a sense of familiarity with this vibrant metropolis.

He returned quietly, thinking no one would notice. However, soon after he entered the city, several people with eager gazes approached him, greeting him warmly.

"Little Brother Gu Feng, you're finally back!" they exclaimed. "We've been eagerly awaiting your return, hoping to witness your Origin Techniques once more."

"There's nothing more to say," another chimed in. "Little Brother Gu, let's go to the Drunken Immortal Pavilion. I'm treating tonight, and we won't leave until we're thoroughly drunk!"

"The Divine City has been so lonely without Little Brother Gu," yet another added. "Many of us have been hoping for your early return, hahaha..."

Many people eagerly tried to win over Ye Fan. In the Northern Region, rich in Origin Stones, Origin Technique Masters hold extremely high status, often becoming honored guests of major sects.

Ye Fan smiled. Although he didn't know most of these people, he still responded to each of them.

He wondered what expressions these people would show when his identity as the Desolate Ancient Sacred Body was eventually revealed.

Perhaps some would fight fiercely to seize a sacred object, others might help him escape, and some might even kill him to gain favor with a Holy Land.

"Little Brother Gu, you're finally back!" someone else exclaimed. "You wouldn't believe it, some people have challenged you to an Origin Technique duel. With you gone for so long, they've been saying you were scared and ran away."

"They said a lot of unpleasant things," another added. "I think they were deliberately provoking you. Now that Little Brother Gu is back, thoroughly defeat them in Origin Techniques to shut them up."

"That's right," yet another chimed in. "Some people are incredibly arrogant, claiming they'd 'trample' Little Brother Gu in Origin Techniques. You really need to teach them a good lesson; we couldn't stand it anymore."

Ye Fan smiled, thanked them, and with some difficulty, managed to pass through the crowd and leave. Not long after, he arrived at Li Heishui's residence.

Li Heishui laughed loudly, his dark face filled with great satisfaction. "Little Ye, you guys are incredible!" he exclaimed. "Capturing a Saintess alive – that really blew me away!"

"Has Old Daoist Red Dragon left the Divine City?" Ye Fan asked, needing strong backing and sensing that this visit would likely cause some disturbance.

Li Heishui chuckled. "All the old geezers in the Divine City hope he leaves. Many people are uncomfortable with him here, but he has no intention of leaving at all."

"Excellent!" Ye Fan was overjoyed. If anything went wrong, he could ask Daoist Red Dragon to intervene; he believed the other party wouldn't stand by idly.

"You're finally back, and today is worth celebrating!" Li Heishui chuckled mischievously, naming the Divine City's three pleasure holy lands. "Shall we go to the Convent of Desire, Water Moon Cottage, or Guanghan Pavilion?"

"Let's skip those places," Ye Fan said, shaking his head with a smile. "We should keep a low profile."

"You've subdued two Saintesses, so naturally, you wouldn't care for these three holy lands," Li Heishui retorted. "But don't underestimate them; for example, An Miaoyi is no less impressive than a Saintess."

"You're always so improper!" Ye Fan said, playfully punching him.

"Little Ye, which one of us is improper?" Li Heishui shot back. "You're carrying two Saintesses with you, and you dare to call *me* improper?"

"Those two Saintesses are nothing but illusions," Ye Fan sighed. "If they were released, it would be a huge disaster."

Li Heishui chuckled, "Then let's go to the Drunken Immortal Pavilion or the Illusory Food Mansion."

Ye Fan nodded. "We've already been to the Drunken Immortal Pavilion, so let's go to the Illusory Food Mansion to celebrate. Today, I'm going all out; I'll treat you to an Immortal Feast."

"Even Holy Lords barely order Immortal Feasts," Li Heishui countered. "They cost tens of thousands of catties of Origin Stones. Let's just forget about it."

"No matter," Ye Fan insisted. "Let's go experience it for ourselves."

The two ascended into the air, soaring high into the sky, flying towards the Illusory Food Mansion. It was a vibrant, multi-colored jade realm, with each celestial palace having a different color, built from green jade, purple jade, white jade, and more.

From a distance, it appeared to be nestled among the clouds, shimmering brightly, as if one had arrived in an immortal realm. Precious herbs and immortal flowers filled the grounds in front of each palace, and spirit birds soared in the air.

"Little Brother Gu Feng, you're back!" As soon as they arrived, an acquaintance spotted them. From a white jade palace in the distance, Yao Yuekong emerged, laughing loudly. "I have guests here, but after I'm done, I'll come find you. Save a seat for me!"

"Alright, see you later!" they replied with a smile. "We'll drink to our hearts' content today."

The Illusory Food Mansion was naturally backed by major powers, one of which was the Great Xia Imperial Family from the Central Plains. They consistently had people stationed in the Divine City and ultimately participated in establishing this complex of palaces.

Eighteen young women, all with considerable cultivation, dressed in five-colored feather robes and with sweet smiles on their faces, led the way for the two, guiding them into a purple jade immortal palace.

"What a small world!" Li Heishui mumbled. "I think I just saw a bunch of bastards in a palace not far from here."

"What's wrong?" Ye Fan asked.

"They're all here because of you," Li Heishui explained. "Last time, you unsealed a fragmented Primordial Divine Medicine, a Dragon-Patterned Black Gold Sacred Spirit Sword, and a Divine Silkworm, which shook the Divine City and the news spread throughout all the Origin Technique families."

Last time, Ye Fan's shocking gamble resulted in a decisive defeat for Tuoba Chang. This time, not only did experts from the Tuoba family arrive, but extraordinary figures from several other ancient Origin Technique families also came to the Divine City.

Ye Fan didn't care. This time, an even greater stir was bound to occur. To obtain ten million catties of Origin Stones, he couldn't possibly keep a low profile!

"Many Origin Technique experts have come to the Divine City," Li Heishui continued. "They're just a portion of them, but they've been truly outrageous. During the days you were gone, to force you out, they publicly claimed they would 'trample you to death' in Origin Techniques."

"I look forward to them 'trampling' me," Ye Fan said. "But without a million catties of Origin Stones, I won't accept their challenge. If they want to come knocking, they should first weigh their own abilities."

Ye Fan and Li Heishui entered the purple palace. They didn't order an Immortal Feast; it would have been too ostentatious and would likely displease many important figures.

Outside the palace, the lotus pond was shrouded in mist. Several women danced gracefully, as if they were in the Jade Pond, creating an intoxicating atmosphere even without alcohol.

The two drank cup after cup. Before long, a young maiden approached, saying, "Esteemed guests, His Royal Highness, the Great Xia Prince, has learned of your presence and will be arriving shortly. He hopes you can wait a little longer."

"Don't worry, we won't be leaving anytime soon," Ye Fan said, nodding.

The Great Xia Imperial Family was one of the backers of the Illusory Food Mansion, so it was not surprising that the Great Xia Prince knew of their arrival.

Not long after, another maiden approached, bowing gracefully, and said, "Esteemed guests, the guests in the Green Palace opposite request your presence."

"The people in the Green Palace?" Li Heishui sneered. They were precisely the Origin Technique family members he had just mentioned.

"Did they *demand* we go over, or *invite* us?" Ye Fan asked the maiden with a smile, noting her artful way of speaking.

The other side must have said something disrespectful, and the maiden, when relaying the message, deliberately avoided using the word "invite," subtly indicating the situation by using "request."

"Yes," the maiden nodded.

They often saw important figures here and were accustomed to such situations. Although not very old, they were very worldly.

"Who do they think they are, to just summon us over casually?" Li Heishui scoffed. "Tell them we're busy!"

"But..." The maiden looked troubled but dutifully retreated.

Although the people in the Green Palace received a softened report, some were still indignant. The fact that the two didn't come over clearly indicated their refusal.

"How arrogant!" someone scoffed. "With seniors from the Origin Technique world present, they were told to come over and toast, yet they put on airs. Do they really think they're Origin Heaven Masters?"

"They don't put these seniors in their eyes at all!" another chimed in. "They're utterly arrogant and have no manners!"

Several young people all sneered, stood up, and looked towards the purple palace.

Ye Fan and Li Heishui, looking through the misty lotus pond, saw people staring from the opposite side. They paid no attention, continued to clink their cups, and enjoyed the graceful dancing of the maidens.

"They're coming over," Ye Fan noticed, as several young people approached, about to enter the purple palace.

"You two certainly put on airs!" the person at the front sneered as soon as he entered the purple palace. "Respected elders of the Origin Technique world are here, and you won't even move an inch to go toast them."

Ye Fan looked up at them and said, "What do you mean by 'toasting'? You arrogantly summoned us over. Does that even count as 'respect'? Why should we respect you?"

Li Heishui put down his chopsticks, glanced at them, and said, "Who are you? Are we very familiar with you? Why should you summon us to toast you?"

"Don't you know who we are?" another person sneered. "We've been waiting in the Divine City for over a month to challenge Gu Feng to an Origin Technique duel."

"Oh, it's you," Li Heishui said, taking another sip of wine after a casual glance. "For days, I've been hearing people say that you boasted you'd 'trample Gu Feng to death' in Origin Techniques. You made such harsh threats, and now you arrogantly demand us to come toast you?!"

"We did say some things," one of the young people retorted, "We just wanted you to come out quickly, instead of always hiding and not showing your faces." These young people were quite disrespectful.

"Where are these flies coming from, buzzing around?" Li Heishui said, waving his hand as if swatting flies. "It's really affecting my mood. If you don't leave, I'll call the Illusory Food Mansion staff to kick you out."

"Alright, alright, alright, you're arrogant," they retorted. "Then we'll see you at the Holy Land Stone Workshop!" They wanted to act but abandoned the idea after remembering where they were.

"Who are you? Do I know you? Do I just accept a challenge from any random nobody who pops up?" Ye Fan said, picking up some food and putting it in his mouth, then sneered, "You want to duel in Origin Techniques? Fine. Prepare divine Origin Stones in advance. If their value is less than a million catties of pure Origin Stones, don't even bother gambling with me!"

Everyone was stunned. A million catties of Origin Stones – this was an astronomical gamble! There had almost never been such a large stake.

"Each of you is full of arrogance, shouting orders at us, yet you can't afford the Origin Stones?" Ye Fan said coldly. "If that's the case, then don't boast shamelessly, don't be so arrogant, and go back where you came from!"

"Do *you* even have a million catties of Origin Stones?!" one of them retorted.

"Do you really know us?" Li Heishui scoffed. "Go inquire about Gu Feng's achievements. Just your Origin Technique family members alone have given us a divine Origin Stone the size of a human head!"

The few people were immediately silenced, not knowing what to say. It was impossible for them to produce a million catties of Origin Stones.

"You're from different Origin Technique families, aren't you?" Ye Fan said fiercely. "Since your elders are here, go tell them: if they want to make a grand gamble with me, bring a million catties of Origin Stones. Otherwise, don't provoke me!"

Beside them, the maidens were all stunned. A million catties of Origin Stones – such an astronomical sum was truly astonishing.

Distinguished guests in many palaces were disturbed. An earth-shattering gamble—a million catties of Origin Stones! To dare to make such a declaration was truly shocking.

Not far away, several people passing by happened to see Ye Fan and Li Heishui. One sneered, "Who do we have here? So it's you two young upstarts who don't know your place. As arrogant as ever!"

Ye Fan glanced over quickly, recognizing Li Yishui, the Grand Elder of the Illusory Demise Palace. They were certainly old adversaries.

"We're dueling in Origin Techniques and stating our stakes," Li Heishui said, completely fearless. "How is that any of your business?" He had long wanted to throw that black iron token in Li Yishui's face.

"Ignorant youngsters, are you speaking to me?" Li Yishui's face darkened.

"Who do you think you are?!" Ye Fan and Li Heishui exclaimed simultaneously. This stone gambling session was destined to cause a huge stir, so rather than that, it was better to first intimidate those who dared to step forward.

"You two youngsters don't know what's good for you!" Li Yishui roared.

"Old man, don't act superior just because you're old!" they retorted, utterly fearless.

Just then, the Great Xia Prince and the little nun in white arrived. Xia Yiming laughed loudly from afar, "Brother Gu Feng, you're finally back!"

Ye Fan was surprised to see that the little golden sprite had also appeared, clinging to the little nun's shoulder, and was angrily waving its tiny claws at him.

"Is there really going to be an earth-shattering gamble?" Yao Yuekong laughed loudly as he walked in. "A million catties of Origin Stones – that's enough to shake the entire Northern Region!"

"What a grand gesture!" In other palaces, some elder figures heard the commotion and all exclaimed in surprise.

"Is Little Brother Gu Feng about to make another world-shaking move?" A soft laugh came from nearby, and the dreamily beautiful An Miaoyi appeared. She was also in the Illusory Food Mansion.