"Are you scared?" a voice asked from beside Ning Xuan.

Ning Xuan glanced at the young man to his right. If he remembered correctly, his name was Lin Yun. His grandfather was the very same old man he and Zang Peng had encountered the night before.

"No stake, no interest," Ning Xuan replied with a smile, meeting his playful gaze.

Lin Yun’s smile vanished. A moment later, his voice rang out again. "We’ve discussed it amongst ourselves. There can be a stake."

"Zang Peng, do you know about this stake?" Instead of answering, Ning Xuan suddenly asked Zang Peng, who was standing beside him.

This wasn’t a whispered message, but a question asked loud and clear. This caught not only Zang Peng by surprise but two others as well, all of them revealing looks of confusion.

Lin Yun’s face darkened. This damn Ning Xuan is truly a cunning bastard!

After Ning Xuan’s little stunt, Lin Yun naturally couldn’t pester him any longer. However, the friendly competition would be just fine without Ning Xuan. If he refused to join, they wouldn’t force him. In fact, Lin Yun suddenly thought of an excellent idea.

When this guy finds out later, he’ll definitely be kicking himself!

Anticipation swelled in Lin Yun’s heart. He now wished the revival tournament below would end immediately.

When only eight people were left in the revival tournament, Elder Lin Zhongqi suddenly asked Ning Xuan, "Ning Xuan, who do you think will win?"

At this question, everyone turned to look at Ning Xuan.

"What does the Elder think?" Ning Xuan tossed the question right back to Lin Zhongqi.

"Teng Zhenjie, Zhang Yang... even He Ang could be possible!" Lin Zhongqi answered without hesitation.

Had it been anyone else, they surely would have taken the bait. After all, He Ang had not yet made an appearance. Hearing such an answer, others would certainly have been curious why he included He Ang.

But Ning Xuan didn’t play by the rules.

"Oh," Ning Xuan responded with a single word, and that was the end of it.

Lin Zhongqi was left speechless. Seeing his bewildered expression, several people wanted to laugh but didn’t dare.

It was Lin Yun who reacted quickly. "Grandfather, He Ang is severely injured. Why did you include him?"

"Have you forgotten the ancestral techniques of the He Family?"

Realization dawned on Lin Yun. He then turned hastily to Ning Xuan. "Brother Ning, you should leave quickly! He Ang will definitely show up! What’s more, he’s certain to claim one of the two remaining spots! If he makes it into the top ten, he will definitely come after you!"

"Many thanks for the reminder, Young Master Lin Yun!" Ning Xuan declared loudly, clasping his fists.

By the time Lin Yun recovered his senses, Ning Xuan was nowhere to be seen.

Several people in the spectator stands also left, only to return shortly after. They all shot Lin Yun unfriendly glares.

I’m so screwed! Lin Yun felt utterly miserable.

He had intended to provoke Ning Xuan with reverse psychology. But not only did Ning Xuan refuse to take the bait, he even took the opportunity to turn the tables on him.

However, when he saw that Ding Heyan had also disappeared, he felt a bit better.

Ning Xuan might be able to evade the others, but there’s no way he can escape Ding Heyan! It isn’t just Ding Heyan’s Swordsmanship that has reached a sublime level; his Tracking Technique is unparalleled in the world! Ning Xuan can’t possibly escape his pursuit!

Lin Yun cursed Ning Xuan in his heart. You bastard, let’s see how you die now!

Unfortunately, he couldn’t see the scene outside. If he had, he would have been enraged.

Ding Heyan was injured!

And the person who had injured him was not Ning Xuan, but Zang Peng.

As for Ning Xuan, he had vanished without a trace.

"Why are you blocking me?!"

On the long street, Ding Heyan and Zang Peng were in a standoff. Ding Heyan’s expression was extremely grim. The man in front of him seemed to be made of something other than flesh and blood. Just now, his twin blades had clearly struck true with every hit, yet his opponent was completely unharmed. Instead, it was he who, due to a moment of distraction, had been nearly killed.

"Ning Xuan is mine. If you want to kill him, you’ll have to go through me!" 𝗳𝚛𝚎𝚎𝘄𝕖𝕓𝕟𝕠𝚟𝚎𝕝.𝗰𝕠𝐦

Hearing these words, Ding Heyan was completely undone. When he had set out, he had clearly seen this man making a move on Ning Xuan. It was definitely not an act; he genuinely wanted to kill him. This was one of the reasons he had been caught off guard. After all, the enemy of my enemy is my friend, right? It turned out the man he’d considered a friend had almost taken his life.

"So you’re in this together! Great, I’ve been fooled by you both!" Ding Heyan grew serious.

"Who’s in it together with him? He’s the one I have to capture, so of course, I have to be the one to do it!"

It would have been better if Zang Peng hadn’t explained. With this explanation, Ding Heyan couldn’t hold it in any longer.

"Then why are you stopping me? Go after him!"

Zang Peng responded without a second thought, "I reacted half a step too slow. I can’t catch up to him anymore."

PFFT!

"Are you saying I’m easier to deal with than he is?" Ding Heyan stared at Zang Peng, reeling from the critical blow. The damage was immense, and the insult was extreme.

"That’s not an incorrect way to put it," Zang Peng said with utter sincerity, actually agreeing with Ding Heyan’s statement.

"Fine! Very fine! I’d like to see just how..."

Before he could finish, he struck. The light from his blades interwove like a curtain of rain.

...

While Zang Peng and Ding Heyan were clashing on the long street, Ning Xuan had quietly arrived at a massive complex of buildings. This was the Lu Family’s estate.

Ning Xuan didn’t risk alerting anyone and headed straight for the deepest part of the Lu Family compound. His destination was the Lu Family’s Secret Vault. The seemingly ordinary wooden fish had proved its worth numerous times, and Ning Xuan wanted to see if Lu Jing’s Secret Vault held any other treasures.

By himself, it would have been impossible to find the Lu Family’s Secret Vault. After all, he didn’t even know where the Lu Family’s main gate was.

Ning Xuan was just about to ask a kind soul for directions when, unexpectedly, a streak of golden light flashed before his eyes. Immediately afterward, he saw a fishtail swish through the void. The golden carp had suddenly appeared, its tail sweeping through the void and opening a portal.

A feeling stirred in Ning Xuan’s heart, and he followed the fishtail through.

The next moment, he was inside. "Holy moly!" Ning Xuan breathed. Before him lay a mountainous pile of treasures, including both Divine Crystals and Magic Artifacts.

The golden carp was already plundering the hoard. Ning Xuan paid it no mind, immediately activating his Cultivation Technique to absorb the energy first. This golden carp was incredibly mystical, and ordinarily, Ning Xuan would have gladly let it absorb the energy first. But just moments before, Ning Xuan realized that the tens of millions of Divine Crystals he had just acquired had vanished.

This thing is a bottomless pit! If I let it continue to squander resources like this, my own Cultivation will never improve.

The golden carp, which was leisurely absorbing energy, suddenly turned its head to look at Ning Xuan. Its already round fish eyes looked as if they were about to pop out of its head. It had never seen a human absorb energy so quickly!

I’ve met my match this time!

Instantly, it brought its full focus to bear.