Chapter 28: Chapter 24: The Young Gambling God (I)
Translator: 549690339
Back in the Battle Hall, Tang Luo was now disconnected from the outside clamor.
Convinced that the Mi Clan wouldn’t confront him over the destruction of their house by his battle chariot, he just had to deal with the current situation.
“Instructor Bo Shan, perhaps you should go to the herbal hall to examine your injuries?” Tang Luo suggested, looking at Bo Shan’s pale face. He admired Bo Shan’s bravery for daring to fight against three opponents who had broken through the Mortal Realm, not changing his expression even when injured. What a real man.
The real man shook his head.
“No need, I need to get back to the cultivation ground.” Bo Shan replied. As the instructor of Cultivation Ground No. 7, he couldn’t abandon his position. He had already erred by leaving his post, and since he was back, he should return to the cultivation ground first.
“Alright then.” Seeing Bo Shan’s stubborn resolve, Tang Luo stopped persuading him and turned to Pang Yan, “Remember, this is the only time. If you get into trouble again, I will not help you even if you die out there. Do you understand?”
“I understand, Instructor Tang!”
From the moment he was rescued from the Lunjiang Martial Arts Hall, Pang Yan had been filled with gratitude towards Tang Luo. As an insignificant Mortal Realm warrior, he was deeply moved that Instructor Tang had sent a battle chariot for him, which stirred his emotions.
“I will never forget your great kindness in this lifetime.” Pang Yan said emotionally, and he was about to kneel before Tang Luo again.
Again? It’s making me uncomfortable. Tang Luo, who disliked kowtowing to others and being kowtowed to, stopped Pang Yan and instructed, “Enough. You are covered in wounds, hurry to the Herbal Hall. Remember, no matter who asks, you must say it was me who sent you to participate in the martial arts competition. Understand?”
“I understand, but…” Pang Yan hesitated, his eyes filled with fear. He gritted his teeth and asked, “What if someone from the clan asks?”
Tang Luo looked at Pang Yan and marveled. At this moment, he somewhat admired the Tang Clan’s loyalty education, given that despite the grave mistake he made, he was still pondering whether he should tell the truth to the clan’s people.
“If you want to put me in danger, then say it.” If only Fang Han was half as loyal, Tang Luo lamented.
“I swear I won’t say a word.” Pang Yan stated solemnly, a determined look in his eyes.
“Then be off.” Tang Luo casually waved him away and left.
A short while later, Tang Luo arrived at the First Cultivation Ground.
Carrying a huge food box with a wide grin on his face, he approached Tang Bin, “Uncle Bin, I bring you a gift.”
Tang Bin looked Tang Luo up and down, his eyes filled with incredulity.
Tang Luo felt that Tang Bin’s gaze was eerily eerie and asked curiously, “What’s wrong, Uncle Bin?”
Tang Bin remained silent, continuing to assess the thirteen-year-old boy. After a while, he heaved a sigh and said, “I didn’t see it coming.”
Does he always talk this cryptically? Tang Luo muttered a retort under his breath, not understanding what Tang Bin’s sigh was about.
Feeling that Uncle Bin was not quite himself today, Tang Luo planned to deliver the gift quickly and leave.
Decided, Tang Luo nudged the huge food box forward and said, “Uncle Bin, let’s not discuss other things for now. Try the Master chef’s craftsmanship in my house and improve your meals.”
Only then did Tang Bin notice the item in Tang Luo’s hands, a very large food box.
Tang Bin took the food box and asked with a weird expression, “Is this a bribe? But I am not the clan personnel responsible for Battle Hall discipline. Giving me a gift is useless.”
The information in the Tang Family travels this fast?
At the same time, Tang Luo understood why Tang Bin had such a facial expression, it seemed his “illustrious” deed had been relayed back to the Battle Hall.
At least people of Tang Bin’s ranking knew about it. His act of gifting must have made Tang Bin think he was trying to curry favor and avoid punishment. Damn it!
“Discipline, what discipline. I just came back today. How could I have violated any Battle Hall discipline?” Tang Luo waved his hand with an innocent look, indicating that he didn’t understand Uncle Bin’s words.
“Playing dumb is not going to work, you kid.” Tang Bin nonchalantly placed the stone box aside and said with a half-smile, “The sight of a quadruped beast with golden hubs tearing the Lunjiang Martial Arts Hall in half, what do you think of that?”
How do I see it? I just lay back and watched.
“The Battle chariot getting out of control, this sort of thing happens from time to time.” Tang Luo said, spreading his hands in helplessness.
What a crafty little rascal.
Tang Bin startled, bursting into laughter, “The chariot’s out of control? Ha-ha-ha-ha.”
The youngster probably thinks everyone here is a fool.
Er, you’re making me feel awkward with your laughter. Tang Luo said with a troubled expression, “Well, Second Uncle, you can continue laughing; I’ll just leave first. Don’t forget the food box, our family’s chef is truly amazing!”
Back in his room, Tang Luo changed into a pure white training outfit. As he looked at himself in the mirror, he thought he was quite the handsome youth.
With a cloth bag fastened to his waist, Tang Luo swaggered out of his room, his stride defiant.
Because, under the reminders from Pang Yan and Du Ze, he’d found a paved path to wealth.
What’s the most profitable occupation in all of Xiling today?
And what’s the biggest wager in Xiling? Betting on martial arts competitions.
With its centuries-old history as a stable city-state, Xiling keeps attracting both large and small clans. There are also myriad individuals who, although born in poverty, have built empires through their own efforts.
Now, Xiling is a super city with a population of three million and hundreds of noble families, and it continues to expand.
Of the three million inhabitants, everyone practices martial arts—to varying degrees of success. This makes martial arts tournaments the most popular form of entertainment in Xiling. After all, everyone understands it, can discuss it intelligently or even learn some techniques.
Even when enjoying yourself in a brothel, after the initial excitement passes, you still have plenty of time to kill.
Therefore, the martial arts assembly became the best destination for the people of Xiling. Just imagining two martial arts masters battling against each other on the stage, sweat and blood flying around, is enough to excite people.
Having experienced peace for hundreds of years, for the many hedonistic descendants of these clans, pleasure is now the main theme of their lives.
That’s why there are more than a dozen martial arts venues in Xiling where martial arts competitions take place daily.
Mortal Realm, Shedding Mortality, Mixed, Hand-to-hand, Weapons, Armored, Unarmored. All kinds are there.
And the most exhilarating? Gambling on the outcomes of the matches.
Everyone has a gambling streak. Betting heavily on the contestant you favor not only validates your eye for talent but could also make you rich. How could anyone resist?
Even if one’s martial arts skills aren’t up to par, one can still gauge who’s strong and who’s weak, right?
With this mindset, the gambling pools around the tournaments always turn a hefty profit for the organizers.
As for gambling, where is there assurance? It’s normal to win and lose.
However, those who win in this sort of betting will all brag about how excellent their discernment is, claiming to have picked the champion upon first glance. Such vain glory is intoxicating.
Even a small venue like Lunjiang Martial Arts Hall, when organizing a Mortal Realm competition, could attract hundreds or thousands of people to watch and bet. The amount wagered could reach tens of thousands of gold in just one match.
As for higher-level Shedding Mortality tournaments, the numbers of spectators and wagers are even more astounding. To a world where everyone practices martial arts, who wouldn’t be of Mortal Realm?
Playing with what one finds most appealing always results in satisfaction.
Because the Mortal Realm martial arts competition merely offers a spectacle of punches and kicks.
But the Shedding Mortality realm is different. For many martial artists, this is the endgame of their journey.
And the magnitude of power difference within the Shedding Mortality realm is astonishing, which makes its competitions unpredictable and the gambling games wilder.
In the Shedding Mortality realm, it’s rare for anyone to determine a martial artist’s strength based on their aura. To the naked eye, everyone’s aura is robust. Even a Shedding Mortally realm martial artist can’t accurately gauge strength through sensing aura, let alone across the large arena.
At this point, a good eye and luck become critical.
There are plenty of accounts of people getting rich overnight or going broke instantly.
But Tang Luo is different; he feels indifferent and even slightly amused.
These people all have numbers above their heads; how is telling the strong from the weak not easy as pie?
“Starting today, call me the Gambling God!” Tang Luo squinted in satisfaction. Let’s not worry about anything else for now; I’m going to win a hundred million first..