Chapter 12: Placing Bets? Who Should I Back?
The voice of the mountain headmaster, Gao Qingyu, continued unabated, each name flowing steadily from his mouth.
All the students in the school listened intently, committing every name to memory.
They all knew that among these one hundred individuals lay over ninety percent of the future leaders and luminaries of this cohort.
“Second place, Huo Churan. Two hundred eighty-five points.”
“Third place: Ding Jieran! Two hundred eighty-one points.”
“Fourth place, Qiu Yunshang! Two hundred eighty points.”
“Fifth place, Xie Gongping, two hundred seventy-nine points.”
“Sixth place, Mo Ganyun, two hundred sixty-nine points.”
“Seventh place, Ximen Xuri, two hundred fifty-one points.”
“... Tenth place, Jing Shuanggao, two hundred forty-two points!”
“... One hundredth place, Kang Zijian. Two hundred and one points.”
Fang Che was somewhat surprised.
Of all people, Kang Zijian was the one at the very bottom of the list.
One by one, Huo Churan and the others took to the stage and stood beside Fang Che. The looks they gave him were complex.
Especially those who ranked near the top, like Ding Jieran and Huo Churan, their gazes brimmed with hostility.
“Is it this guy who won against us by cheating?”
“You might be able to cheat when collecting points, but when it comes to the real fight, how can you cheat then?”
“I must make sure to disgrace you publicly!”
This was especially true for Huo Churan.
His face was rough, pockmarked and plain, falling far below average—on the fringes of unattractiveness.
He clenched his teeth and vowed silently: “When we fight, I won’t hit anywhere else.”
“I’ll focus on this face!”
Some murmured thoughtfully.
“The names of this cohort’s students all share something in common with those of previous years.”
“What?”
“The ones at the top don’t necessarily have beautiful names, but their names carry a special charm, a unique resonance, uncommon and distinct.”
Those who heard this pondered carefully, only to realize that it was indeed true.
Fang Che, Qiu Yunshang, Ding Jieran, Huo Churan, Xie Gongping, Mo Ganyun...
Their names compared to the luminaries of previous years, such as Jun Hefang, Hua Kaixie, Dong Yunyu, Wu Zhibing...
Thinking it over, one couldn’t help but inhale sharply.
“Now that you mention it, it does seem to make some sense.”
“But isn’t this a bit metaphysical? Can just having a good name really...?”
“Not necessarily.”
“...”
As discussion unfolded below, the proceedings above continued as usual.
“The rules for the top one hundred newcomers competition are as follows,” said the dormitory supervisor, Lu Jiaoshan.
“There will be five arenas. Battles occur in rotation to determine the top three and top ten. The rest are uniformly ranked within the top one hundred.”
“Those in the top one hundred receive a high-grade soul pill for martial artists, ten high-grade energy accumulation pills, and ten academic credits.”
“From fourth to tenth place, the reward includes an exquisite soul pill, ten exquisite energy pills, a high-grade meridian expansion pill, a high-grade true essence pill, and thirty academic credits.”
“Second and third place receive one soul pill, ten energy pills, one meridian expansion pill, one true essence pill, all exquisite grade. Plus fifty academic credits.”
“The champion receives two exquisite soul pills, twenty energy pills, two meridian expansion pills, two true essence pills, one hundred academic credits, and the ‘Champion’s Gold Medal’.”
“From the day the champion is declared, any fellow student from the same year may challenge him. If they win, they take the gold medal!”
“Whoever holds the gold medal becomes the target! If they remain undefeated for a month, they receive a reward! Every month, there is a reward! If undefeated for half a year, the reward doubles! After a year, it doubles again! If they remain undefeated until graduation, they are enshrined in the school’s hall of fame.”
The newcomers below were thrown into uproar.
The rewards were undeniably substantial.
But they also carried a burden.
Of course, some viewed the champion’s gold medal as a heavy responsibility, while others yearned fiercely to claim it!
And there were many in both camps.
To each their own.
Finally, the supervisor made a statement that left many puzzled.
“Gambling is prohibited within the academy, but for arenas like these, betting is allowed. However, bets can only be placed using academic credits!”
At these words, all eight thousand newcomers erupted in astonishment.
There was such a thing?
Academic credits—how precious!
One academic credit could be exchanged for a high-grade vitality pill at their current level!
Outside, such a pill for a martial artist rank cost nearly fifty thousand silver taels—and might not even be available for purchase!
Betting with academic credits was nothing less than a high-stakes gamble!
Each person started with ten academic credits from the day they enrolled.
From then on, within the martial academy, neither gold nor silver was recognized, not even core spirit crystals.
Only academic credits were accepted!
This included all expenses for meals and training. If you couldn’t earn enough credits, you could take a loan: borrow one credit, repay two after graduation.
That amounted to a resource equivalent to one hundred thousand silver taels.
Of course, one could also borrow from others willing to lend.
Senior students with heavy debts immediately had their eyes gleaming.
Their chance to recover losses had come!
In an instant, all the materials for the top one hundred were piled up in a mountain at the front.
“The arena battles begin tomorrow morning. There will be designated places and staff for betting. I advise everyone to bet cautiously!”
Supervisor Lu Jiaoshan said this with a knowing look.
But the gamblers were already red-eyed with greed.
After the meeting adjourned, even before the hundred on stage had left, the booklets below had already been snatched up.
“Give me one!”
“Give me one too!”
“Damn, I’m going to get rich!”
“...”
Lu Jiaoshan watched the scramble below with a blank expression.
He sighed inwardly.
This seemingly refined headmaster was actually so cunning.
On the very first day of enrollment, he had laid such a massive trap for all the new students!
This time, the betting would be recorded in their files!
In other words, anyone caught gambling would bear a mark.
For small-time players, it might end inconsequentially.
But those who bet heavily and lost terribly would be documented by the academy after review.
No matter how capable they were upon graduation, they would never be assigned lucrative positions!
Because here, their nature had been defined.
They were compulsive gamblers!
Thus, elimination at the academy effectively began from the very first day.
Inevitably, many would lose all their credits; such people would need credits for food and training, so they would be forced to struggle fiercely from that moment on.
This, in turn, had benefits for cultivating martial arts.
All in all, the measures had pros and cons.
But even if beneficial, it could not conceal the headmaster’s cunning nature. That was certain!
...
When Fang Qingyun’s classmates wanted to find Fang Che to chat, they found he had long since disappeared.
They felt a little downcast.
Then excitement surged.
“Qingyun, Qingyun, who do you think we should bet on?”
Everyone eagerly asked Fang Qingyun.
His honest, upright face betrayed difficulty.
“You all know I never gamble. I didn’t bet even once last year.”
“So you had it easier than us this year!”
Everyone sighed in resignation.
“Didn’t you taste hardship last year? And you want to gamble again this year?”
Fang Qingyun said, “Old Du, Old Wu, Old Liu, you three just finished paying off a year’s worth of debts a few days ago.”
“No problem!”
The three shook their heads like bobbleheads.
“As long as we win this year, we can recover all losses!”
Fang Qingyun shook his head.
“I won’t give you advice. Decide for yourselves.”
He said this and strode away.
In recent days, he had felt his memory improve greatly, and his cultivation speed had accelerated. Previously elusive, obscure techniques now came easily to hand.
His enthusiasm for cultivation surged, leaving no energy for other matters.
Fang Qingyun left.
The others huddled together to discuss.
“Who to bet on?”
“Of course our cousin!” six girls said in unison.
As the beauty faction, they were straightforward!
The boys hesitated.
“But cousin... first place means he cheated to win. We haven’t seen his true strength.”
“What cheating? Without strength, could you cheat?”
“But it’s still taking shortcuts.”
“Exactly!”
The girls suddenly burst out, “That’s at most taking shortcuts, not cheating! Can you even speak properly?”
The boys immediately cowered.
“Right, right, it’s taking shortcuts, not cheating.”
They exchanged glances.
“We’ll discuss separately, not with the girls. No point arguing!”
“Exactly! Exactly!”
“Let’s go!”
“Let’s go!”
...
Fang Che returned home.
Sun Yuan was already there.
In recent times, Sun Yuan had traveled nearly ten thousand miles.
Within several thousand miles, Sun had robbed, stolen from, and extorted more than a dozen prominent families!
The apprentice’s aptitude was unquestioned, as were his attack techniques, cultivation methods, and training resources.
What was still lacking?
Precious pills to aid soul cultivation.
Precious pills to assist physical cultivation!
As a king-level expert, Sun Yuan understood these well. His greatest regret was that in his youth, during his foundational training, he had nothing—resulting in his lifetime achievement capped at king-level.
Since he placed all hope on his apprentice, Sun Yuan spared no expense to make up for these deficiencies!
For this purpose, Sun Yuan had nearly ransacked the small families affiliated with the One Heart Sect!
These families were obedient, convenient, and easy to rob.
Yet, raiding them risked retaliation and was a personal endeavor. With the sect embroiled in frequent crises, he could not afford any mistakes.
Thus, this time, Sun Yuan had only robbed his own people!
While he was robbing the fourteenth family, he received news from the sect: the martial academy competition was about to begin. What were you doing?
Sun Yuan hurried over anxiously.
...
“Master, you’re here. Please come inside. Ye Meng, make some tea.”
As Ye Meng complied, the master and apprentice entered the study.
“Che’er...”
Sun Yuan’s heart swelled with pride.
“You’ve reached the fourth level of martial artist. I couldn’t be happier. I came this time with a teaching purpose...”
“Master!”
Fang Che interrupted, turning to Ye Meng who was carrying tea.
“You may leave now. I’ll serve Master myself. Please close the door.”
“Yes.”
Ye Meng lowered her gaze and left obediently.
“Better that she knows less. It’s dangerous for her and for us. Best to be cautious.”
Fang Che said.
Sun Yuan was deeply gratified by his disciple’s caution—so much so that he didn’t even allow the close attendant to be informed.
He patted Fang Che’s shoulder.
“With you this careful, I can rest assured. After the report is sent up, the sect leader will surely be more confident in assigning your next mission.”
...