Wu Zhouxu’s speech was like an old woman’s bound feet—long and foul. He droned on until the disciples in the arena were all drowsy, and even the five consecrated elders on the stage had their heads tilted, dozing off. Only then did he finally come to a slow end.

When Wu Zhouxu said: “Alright, that concludes my speech. Next, I’ll hand the time over to Chief Chen.”

Instantly, the drowsy disciples below snapped back to attention, and the five consecrated elders on stage all raised their heads and began applauding at the same time. Zhang Xiaohua found it baffling—weren’t these people all asleep just now? How were they still listening?

Chen Fengxiao listened with a smile and said loudly: “Many thanks to Wu Dalang for his wonderful speech, explaining in great detail the importance and necessity of this gambling match. As for me, I won’t say much more—just two additional points regarding initiative and proactiveness…”

In an instant, the disciples below returned to their drowsy state, and the consecrated elders on stage resumed nodding off. Zhang Xiaohua also lowered his gaze, observing his nose, his mind turned inward as he contemplated the rabbit talisman within his Niwan Palace… Who knew how much time passed before he finally heard Chen Fengxiao say, “Alright, I’ll stop here. I wish this gambling match a complete, smooth, high-quality, and high-value conclusion!”

“Alright~~~~” Everyone in the arena became lively again.

“Wow~” Only now did Zhang Xiaohua understand—these people were already used to it!

Then, Chen Fengxiao and Wu Zhouxu exchanged a glance, both narrowing their eyes slightly. Each took out a brocade pouch from their robes and walked toward one of the five consecrated elders, handing the pouch over. The elderly consecrated elder solemnly stood up and accepted it. Afterward, Chen Fengxiao and Wu Zhouxu stepped down from the stage and returned to their respective sides—the Herb Division and the Pill Division.

At this moment, a disciple approached from the side carrying a sealed box and placed it on the table before the consecrated elder. The elder carefully placed the brocade pouch into the box, looked around, and then raised his voice with a smile: “The order of the ten matches has been determined. All of you may now place your bets!”

“Place bets?” Zhang Xiaohua couldn’t help but be startled.

By now, Chen Fengxiao had already sat beside Zhang Xiaohua and explained in a low voice: “The stakes of the gambling match are provided by the two participants themselves. Whoever wins takes the other’s stake. But the disciples below don’t gain anything from that, so a betting pool is opened for them. They can take out their own pills and choose which side to support. If the side they support loses, their pills are forfeited. If they win, they can take the pills from those who lost.”

Zhang Xiaohua somewhat understood, but immediately asked curiously: “Chief Chen, with so many people here, wouldn’t placing bets be very troublesome? And if I alone bet on the Herb Division to win with just one pill, while everyone else bets on the Pill Division, each also with one pill—when the result is decided, how are the pills divided?”

Chen Fengxiao pointed at the many people in the arena who were running about with cloth bags, paper, and brushes, saying: “Look, these are all disciples responsible for recording and collecting the pills. They’re all quite experienced, so it’s not troublesome at all. As for the situation you mentioned—if you win, then you take all the pills from everyone else. But if you lose, your single pill will be divided among the others. As for how it’s divided, we have our own method. It’s been used for a long time, and everyone trusts it.”

Zhang Xiaohua understood. The eyes of the masses were sharp—if he alone bet on winning, then nine times out of ten he would end up losing, and even if others won, the returns on their investments would certainly be small.

At this moment, looking again at the many people running about below the stage, they had already reached the end of the line of disciples. It seemed the tallying was nearly complete. Suddenly thinking of something, Zhang Xiaohua asked softly: “But before the list of matches is announced, no one knows who will fight whom. How can one choose a preferred participant?”

Chen Fengxiao shrugged. “It’s either the Herb Division or the Pill Division—only those two choices. Leave it to fate!”

Zhang Xiaohua was speechless. It seemed that was indeed the only way. If they knew in advance who would be fighting, everyone would already know their relative martial strength—who would bet on a certain loss?

Sure enough, after the disciples gathered all the detailed records of everyone’s bets, they brought them directly onto the stage. Among the five consecrated elders, the one seated at the far left also picked up a small wooden box from the ground, solemnly stored the records inside, closed the lid, then took out a lock from his robe, carefully locked it, and placed it on the table.

Zhang Xiaohua asked curiously: “Chief Chen, don’t these five old consecrated elders place bets?”

Chen Fengxiao looked at the five solemn, proper-looking elders on the stage and said with a smile: “They are the arbiters of the gambling match. Naturally, they can’t let their personal preferences affect its fairness, so they… hehe… even if they want to participate, we can’t let them. Of course, every time there’s a gambling match, they take a cut. Do you think they’d work for nothing?”

Zhang Xiaohua also chuckled and said nothing. Who would be willing to work for nothing?

When all preparations were complete, the entire arena fell silent, every gaze fixed on the consecrated elder in the center. Chen Fengxiao said in a low voice: “This consecrated elder is surnamed Lei. He’s the oldest among the five, and his pill-refining skills are also the best. He’s fairly impartial as well, so both our Pill Division and Herb Division agreed to appoint him as the chief arbiter.”

That Elder Lei took a sip of tea, cleared his throat, and solemnly opened the small box in front of him. He picked up a brocade pouch, drew out a slip of paper, glanced at it, and loudly announced: “For the first match, the Pill Division’s participant is—Yao Ping.”

At once, a burly man stepped out from the Pill Division’s disciples. He strode into the arena, swaggered about as if to show off, flexed the muscles in his arms, and then shot a provocative glance toward Zhang Xiaohua. Unfortunately, Zhang Xiaohua didn’t even look at him, so the glare was completely wasted.

Zhang Xiaohua turned his head and asked Chen Fengxiao: “Chief, who is this muscle-brained fellow?”

Chen Fengxiao looked at the high-spirited Pill Division, then at the wildly gesturing Yao Ping, and said with a smile: “That guy is the second among the Ten Vajra. He’s quite skilled—you’d better be careful if you face him.”

Zhang Xiaohua nodded, then frowned slightly and said: “Chief, I suddenly thought of something. The Ten Vajra of the Pill Division and our Herb Division’s Six Arhats—are they ranked by strength or by age?”

“Of course by strength!” Qiu Weicheng answered before Chen Fengxiao could speak. “This Yao Ping used to be the top among the Nine Vajra, but later Zou Shuming came along. They fought for three hundred moves before Yao Ping was defeated, and Zou Shuming took the top spot. Yao Ping had no choice but to drop to second, and the other eight were all pushed back accordingly.”

“Hehe, only that Cheng Shi—his name already means ‘honest’—so he naturally ended up as number ten.”

Chen Fengxiao chuckled.

“And our Six Arhats are the same?”

“Yes, most of them were recruited from other peaks of Tianmu Peak. They’re all the kind who refuse to submit to anyone—how could they not compete? Little brother, now that you’ve arrived, you have the strength to contend for the title of Great Arhat. Look—about a zhang to your left, that short and shrewd one is our Herb Division’s Great Arhat, Lü Fengmeng. Ever since he heard about your arrival, he didn’t sleep at all last night, afraid you’d come challenge him.”

Hearing this, Zhang Xiaohua released his divine sense. Sure enough, Lü Fengmeng was watching the stage, but from time to time, the corner of his eye flicked toward Zhang Xiaohua, clearly observing him all along. Zhang Xiaohua asked curiously, “Is this title of Great Arhat really that important?”

“Hehe, little brother has just arrived at Tianmu Peak, so you don’t quite understand yet. Although our Incense Spreading Sect rarely ventures into the jianghu, the disciples’ benefits can’t be lacking. While worldly gold and silver are of little use here, things like medicinal pills are indispensable—otherwise, how would everyone have the strength to work? Ordinary disciples of Tianmu Peak each have their own benefits, and the Vajra of the Pill Division and the Arhats of the Herb Division naturally enjoy treatment far beyond ordinary disciples. Moreover, depending on rank, the difference in treatment is quite large. If Lü Fengmeng were to have his title of Great Arhat taken by you, his daily provisions and pill supply would be reduced considerably. Do you think he wouldn’t take issue with you?”

“Oh, so that’s how it is.” Zhang Xiaohua immediately understood. He then said to Qiu Weicheng: “Senior Brother Qiu, I have a message—please pass it on to Lü Fengmeng.”

“Is it a challenge?” Qiu Weicheng asked. “Junior Brother Ren, if that’s the case, after this gambling match, let the Chief arrange it for you. With your martial skill, that title of Great Arhat will surely be yours.”

“That’s right,” Chen Fengxiao added half-jokingly. “If you hadn’t spoken frankly with me this morning, I’d even be afraid you’d drive me away.”

“That’s not it.” Zhang Xiaohua shook his head. “Please tell Lü Fengmeng that I will not compete with him for the title of Great Arhat. In fact, I won’t contend for any of the Arhat titles at all.”

“Oh? Why is that?” Qiu Weicheng was puzzled.

Chen Fengxiao, however, said with confidence, “Is it because little brother disdains it?”

Zhang Xiaohua shook his head again. “Not exactly disdain. As for the real reason… you’ll understand after some time.”

Chen Fengxiao and Qiu Weicheng exchanged glances, both somewhat confused.

At this moment, Yao Ping from the Pill Division had already shown off enough. He stood in the open space without moving, striking a stance as he quietly awaited his opponent. Seeing that the atmosphere in the arena had been sufficiently stirred, Elder Lei finally rose again unhurriedly. He opened the sealed box, took out another brocade pouch, and drew a slip of paper from within.

But when he saw the name written on it, his expression changed drastically. He immediately looked up toward Chen Fengxiao in the crowd.

Chen Fengxiao seemed to have anticipated this situation. Meeting Elder Lei’s gaze, he gave a slight nod. Receiving his confirmation, Elder Lei sighed inwardly, then glanced toward Wu Zhouxu, who was looking at him in confusion. Clearing his throat once more, he raised his voice and announced: “For the first match, the Grass Division’s participant is… Liu Quan!”

“What? Liu Quan??”

“How could it be Liu Quan?”

“The sixth among the Six Arhats—the weakest in the Herb Division, Liu Quan?”

Not only Wu Zhouxu and Yao Ping, but even the disciples of both the Pill Division and the Herb Division burst into an uproar, shouting all at once…