Chapter 15 A Bet's a Bet

The fog of war once created by the Demon Race was dissipating at a speed visible to the naked eye.

Even the view across the Cang Plains became somewhat clearer.

The three-hour deadline had arrived. Yun Bai temporarily ceased the fighting. Just a moment ago, he had received a message from Supervisor Zhou Shengtai.

Yun Bai piloted his flying boat and landed on an unnamed mountaintop on the Cang Plains.

At this moment, Supervisor Zhou Shengtai stood on the mountaintop with his hands behind his back. The mountain wind whistled, causing his Confucian robes to flap loudly.

Seeing that Yun Bai had arrived upon receiving the message, Supervisor Zhou Shengtai turned around and beckoned to him.

"Young Yun, tell me the truth, did you do this on purpose?" Supervisor Zhou Shengtai looked indignant.

Yun Bai was taken aback. He did not yet understand the situation.

"Brother Zhou, why do you say that?"

Seeing Yun Bai's blank look, Supervisor Zhou Shengtai grew annoyed; he stepped forward and patted Yun Bai's shoulder hard.

"You—" Supervisor Zhou Shengtai wanted to admit that Yun Bai had won, but the words stuck in his throat, and he found he could not say them.

As a dignified Second Realm Cultivator, he had actually lost to a fledgling junior. It was truly difficult to speak of.

Seeing Supervisor Zhou Shengtai's hesitation, doubts arose in Yun Bai's heart.

He asked, "Brother Zhou, have you encountered any trouble?"

Supervisor Zhou Shengtai's expression shifted.

"Ahem." A flash of inspiration struck Supervisor Zhou Shengtai. He suddenly turned his back to Yun Bai, clasped his hands behind his back, and looked down at the vast Cang Plains.

By now, the sun had set behind the mountains. The sunset had completely vanished below the horizon. Only a few wisps of orange-red clouds remained in the sky.

In the dim light, a Cultivator could still rely on their vision to see things a thousand meters away.

Various squads from the State Religion's Xinyue Hall were still operating on the Cang Plains. Looking down from the mountaintop, they resembled tiny, moving black dots.

"After the battle, the blood in the desolate village has not yet dried; the setting sun and the stench of fire chill the heart." Supervisor Zhou Shengtai recited mournfully.

"Yun Bai, you are an outstanding member of the new generation of our Human Race. In the future, the task of eradicating the demon threat will belong to your generation."

Seeing Supervisor Zhou Shengtai like this, Yun Bai already had a partial guess in his heart.

Could Brother Zhou already know his own battle results? Yun Bai realized. It must be that Brother Zhou encountered some urgent matter or accident midway, and his number of demon kills was not as high as his own.

Yun Bai then recited a poem in response to Supervisor Zhou Shengtai.

"The demon tide has not ceased, and the wails of the suffering fill the air; today, I shall test my Flying Sword for all to see!"

Supervisor Zhou Shengtai: "Hmm?" Hearing this, he turned his head to look back at Yun Bai. He saw that Yun Bai's expression was as calm as ever, gazing off at the remnants of the sunset in the distance. Seeing Supervisor Zhou Shengtai turn around, Yun Bai cast a questioning look.

Their eyes met. Supervisor Zhou Shengtai saw the calmness in Yun Bai's eyes.

Supervisor Zhou Shengtai said, "You can write poetry?"

Yun Bai nodded, saying somewhat embarrassedly, "It is just a small private hobby of mine; it is nothing worth showing off. It was originally a trick to pass the time and relieve sorrow when I was in dire straits before. Compared to a Cultivator like Brother Zhou, who is well-versed in the classics and proficient in Confucian arts, it is merely showing off in front of an expert."

In truth, this was a hobby Yun Bai had developed while in his home Universe. During long, endless voyages through the Universe, one always needed a few hobbies to pass the time. Reciting and chanting poetry was one of Yun Bai's hobbies.

"Tsk, I give up. I am truly impressed, kid. I admit defeat in this bet, I, Zhou Shengtai, accept it!" Supervisor Zhou Shengtai was speechless for a long moment, then shook his head.

It was not that Yun Bai's poem was particularly good—if one were to judge the poem itself, it was common fare—but the confidence revealed in Yun Bai's poem moved him.

Supervisor Zhou Shengtai studied under the renowned master of the age, Huang Shouren. However, the Disciples under Huang Shouren were numerous, and there were countless outstanding individuals among them.

Although Supervisor Zhou Shengtai had decent talent, he could not be called truly exceptional. Do not let his youthful appearance fool you; he was actually over forty years old.

He only became a managing Elder at a National Temple in a small Northwest city at the age of thirty, and his cultivation was only at the Peak of the Second Realm. While in the capital, his combat prowess was inferior to his peers, and his progress in Confucian cultivation was also stagnant.

That was why he had volunteered to come to the Northwest border to take charge, hoping to find other Opportunities.

However, at this age, he knew deep down that he had few chances left to rise to prominence.

Do not be fooled by the fact that Cultivators can extend their lives and live for centuries; their period of rapid advancement and great ambition is still limited to their first few decades.

While late bloomers do exist, they are as rare as Phoenix feathers and unicorn horns.

Now, seeing the person before him revealing his sharp edge and displaying an unstoppable momentum, Supervisor Zhou Shengtai finally realized his own decline. The waves of the Yangtze River push forward the ones behind.

"A bet is a bet. I will fulfill everything I promised before. Hand over the demon corpses and demon cores you hunted; I will exchange them for Spirit Stones for you," Supervisor Zhou Shengtai said.

"Very well." Yun Bai handed two Storage Pouches to Supervisor Zhou Shengtai. "This one contains the demon corpses, and this bag contains the demon cores. There are one hundred and forty-nine demon cores in total."

One hundred and forty-nine? Hearing this number, Supervisor Zhou Shengtai's eyelids twitched. He had only heard from Elder Yin Xin that he had lost to Yun Bai. When he actually heard Yun Bai say the number himself and hand over the corresponding items, he still felt a wave of shock.

Supervisor Zhou Shengtai had hunted a total of one hundred and thirty-eight demons. Only the parties involved knew the difference between the two numbers.

"Very well, I will notify you once I have taken them back to the National Temple and counted them one by one," Supervisor Zhou Shengtai said. After speaking, Supervisor Zhou Shengtai summoned a flying boat and departed first. He was the manager of the State Religion in Chu Prefecture and had many things to attend to.

The wind was strong on the mountaintop. By now, the sunset was no longer visible, only the faint, glowing clouds remained on the horizon. Visibility was poor at night, which was usually more dangerous, and furthermore, hunting demons required maintaining a good state. Thus, Yun Bai found a sheltered spot on the mountainside to rest.

Yun Bai took out his communication Formation Plate. He held the plate in his left hand and tapped it several times with his right. A moment later, he successfully connected to the communication channel with his sister, Yun Qian.

Yun Bai also took out a projection Formation Plate and linked the two plates together. Yun Bai had left in a hurry and was worried that his family would be anxious, which was why he had taken this precaution.

The moment the Formation Plate connected, Yun Qian's cute face appeared before Yun Bai. "Brother!" Yun Qian called out excitedly.

"Qianqian." A soft expression appeared on Yun Bai's face.

"Brother, why is there blood on your face? You didn't get hurt, did you!" Yun Qian noticed the bloodstains remaining on Yun Bai's face and immediately became nervous.

"Ah?" Yun Bai used the projection Formation Plate to examine his face and discovered that, at some point, it had been stained with demon blood. He hurriedly explained everything to his sister. It took quite a bit of effort to put Yun Qian at ease. Yun Bai smiled bitterly.

"An Elder from the State Religion has already sent someone to notify us, Brother, don't worry, we are all doing well in the city," Yun Qian said. Brother Zhou's work was truly thorough; Yun Bai praised him in his heart.

"Right, I remembered something. The letter I delivered to Shen Qi on behalf of Young Master Huang Yue last time, did she read it?" Yun Bai asked.

"Sister Shen has already read it," Yun Qian nodded and said.

"Oh, how are they?" Yun Bai asked. Yun Qian said, "It's just that... Sister Shen's mood seemed a bit poor after reading the letter."

"What did Young Master Huang Yue say in the letter?" Yun Bai frowned. Chu Prefecture City had become increasingly unstable recently. The terror that the Demon Race had just created in the city made Yun Bai harbor strong doubts about the security in the city.

As a member of the "Capital Officials" sent to Chu Prefecture from above, it was truly strange that Young Master Huang Yue was so interested in Shen Qi. Moreover, this Young Master Huang Yue spent all day hanging around with people from the Chen family. Could anyone involved with the Chen family be a good person? The more Yun Bai thought about it, the more wrong it felt.

"I don't know what was written in the letter either. Sister Shen didn't say. I have a feeling it wasn't anything good," Yun Qian said.

"Alright. Pay more attention to this matter. I still need to stay on the Cang Plains for a few more days, until the spirit connection platform is built, before I can return," Yun Bai reminded her. "I always feel that the Chen family will not let this rest, so you must be extra careful in the city. If you have any problems, you can always ask the State Religion for help; do not try to be a hero."

"Mm-hmm." Yun Qian nodded repeatedly. "Brother, Teacher Gao said that tomorrow he is going to Huangyang Town to consult on the layout of a major formation, and he hopes to take a few students from the academy along. I want to go and gain some experience."

Yun Bai knew that Huangyang Town was the main thoroughfare from Chu Prefecture City to the Cang Plains. It was also an important camp for various squads on the Cang Plains to rest and resupply. Many matters, such as the construction of the spirit connection platform, were handled through Huangyang Town.

Since Teacher Gao dared to take students from Qingya Academy, he naturally believed that Huangyang Town was safe enough. With the elites of various departments now gathered in Huangyang Town, Yun Qian would surely see a lot of the world if she went. After the siblings chatted a bit more, they ended the call.