Chapter 2374 - 2097: Cheat the Rules (Part 2)

Zhang Fei stood aside and casually punched Xiahou Ba’s chest twice, producing a dull thud like a drum being hit. Xiahou Ba looked at his brother-in-law discontentedly, "You’re bullying me because I’m young, aren’t you?"

"Not bad, at least your bones are quite sturdy." Though Zhang Fei hadn’t used his full strength, Xiahou Ba managing to glare at him after a couple of casual punches was already impressive.

"Hmph, back in our day, we didn’t understand these things. After we achieved Inner Qi Manifestation, we realized the importance, while these youngsters have been nurtured properly from the start." Xiahou Yuan said with a hint of pride. It wasn’t boasting; his son Xiahou Ba was bound to achieve Inner Qi Manifestation someday.

"Go, sign up for the tournament, and don’t come back unless you make it to the top ten." Xiahou Yuan patted Xiahou Ba on the back, and Xiahou Ba nodded repeatedly, grabbing his heavy spear and heading off to register.

"Uncle, aren’t you sending anyone to participate?" Zhang Xiu asked curiously.

"The best fighters aren’t here." Hua Xiong grumbled. He had sent his top fighters to the Western Regions, and even though there were some Qi Refining to Gang level fighters left, most hadn’t even reached the peak of Qi Refining to Gang. Entering the tournament now would only be an embarrassment!

"Er, can I participate?" Zhang Xiu inquired, "By the way, how is this Qi Refining to Gang divided?"

"The upper limit of Inner Qi Cultivation is only Qi Refining to Gang." Hua Xiong casually explained.

Zhang Xiu rubbed his chin, "So, if General Dian comes over, he could technically participate too, right? His Inner Qi limit is also only at the peak of Qi Refining to Gang, though he recovers a peak level of Qi Refining to Gang each breath."

"..." Hua Xiong found himself unable to respond to that. If you put it that way, Zhou Tai would have even more reason to compete. Zhou Tai had zero Inner Qi, not even Inner Qi Condensation.

The problem was that with the caliber of Dian Wei and Zhou Tai stepping onto the stage, even if opponents joined forces, without Cloud Suppression, they wouldn’t stand a chance. These two, one having completely broken through, and the other unable to because he lacked Inner Qi but had a solid foundation, would be natural disasters on the platform.

Hua Xiong himself couldn’t defeat them; he would have to flee when encountering such adversaries. Entering a Qi Refining to Gang competition would be nothing short of bullying.

"Hu Che’er, come here!" Zhang Xiu suddenly remembered something. By this logic, his general Hu Che’er could join too.

Standing over two meters tall and carrying two arm-thick refined iron rods on his back, Hu Che’er came running over.

"By theory, you could participate too. If the rule is not surpassing Inner Qi Manifestation, you meet the criteria. Go sign up and take first place." Zhang Xiu chuckled, and the clueless Hu Che’er, carrying his two refined iron rods, went to register.

"Isn’t that cheating?" Hua Xiong said, his face darkening.

"How can you say that? His Inner Qi Cultivation isn’t high. Though he has Qi Refining to Gang, it’s definitely not Inner Qi Manifestation." Zhang Xiu replied righteously, "I’m absolutely not speaking nonsense. But why is Hu Che’er carrying two refined iron rods now?"

Zhang Xiu was unaware that Hu Che’er had been recruited by Dian Wei to carry weapons for him and was also a small role in nurturing weapons.

"Hey, isn’t that against the rules?" Zhou Yu pointed in Hu Che’er’s direction and sneered, "Don’t think I don’t know he has smashed Hu people possessing Inner Qi Manifestation with that big rod on the battlefield."

"Li Tiao, go pull Hu Che’er away. If someone like him can participate, why not call Dian Wei too? Where’s your shame?" Chen Xi also said with a sigh of resentment, everyone seemed to be trying to bend the rules.

"He can’t participate either, can he?" Zhou Yu pointed at Li Tiao’s back, "Bofu told me he once fought side by side with Bofu."

"I wouldn’t stoop so low as to rig the system." Chen Xi replied with exasperation, "But if you don’t mind the shame, feel free to join. I won’t stop you."

"What’s wrong with aspiring to Inner Qi Manifestation?" Zhou Yu grumbled. He knew he probably shouldn’t be entering such a peculiar contest, but the allure of Inner Qi Manifestation was strong, especially since if successful, he would become the first to achieve Civil and Military Dual Cultivation in history. Well, on second thought, maybe he should stop daydreaming.

"I suddenly noticed there are a lot of Qi Refining to Gang Peak chiliarchs on your side." Zhou Yu looked at the group wielding Mystical Weapons led by Huang Shao and asked casually.

"Hmm, without this level, surviving a thousand battles would be impossible," Chen Xi said, smiling. The Yellow Turban Commanders who had fought from the early years of the Yellow Turbans until now had endured countless battles. Saying they’ve survived a thousand battles without dying is truly no exaggeration; the slightly weaker ones died off long ago.

"The Yellow Turbans, huh?" Zhou Yu murmured with a sigh, "It feels like it was so long ago, almost like it’s from another era. But when I think about it, it’s not really that long. I even witnessed the Yellow Turban Rebellion myself. Yet compared to the prosperity now, the gap is massive, so great that it makes us overlook this reality."

"That’s a good thing too." Chen Xi finally responded after a pause, "It’s precisely because the gap isn’t too long that everyone can appreciate how hard life is now."

"It seems like the registrants fall into two categories: those full of confidence, and those just joining for fun." Li Youu and Jia Xu stood together, watching the military generals registering, and casually remarked.

"Wanna place a bet? I’m running the house, any takers?" Guo Jia waved a hand-drawn curtain around, trying to gather people to gamble. The major aristocratic families placed their bets rather carefreely while Fa Zheng hopped around nearby, obviously wanting to join but feeling short on funds.

"It feels like Fengxiao is dropping our prestige," Liu Ye remarked dryly with a hand to his forehead.

Mann Chong looked at the money in Guo Jia’s hands expressionlessly. As checks and bank drafts changed hands, Guo Jia gleefully counted his cash. Mann Chong turned to his escort and whispered a few words. Soon, two squads from the City Management Corps appeared behind Mann Chong.

"What’s up?" asked Guo Jia casually, glancing at the hand on his shoulder while counting money, "Who are you backing, and for how much?"

Receiving no response, Guo Jia turned to see Mann Chong’s dark face. He immediately tried to flee, but with Mann Chong’s hand pinned on his shoulder, there was no chance of escape.

"Large-scale, organized gambling; you’re under arrest." Mann Chong stated emotionlessly, and the City Management Corps surrounded Guo Jia, keeping him locked in the center.

"Mann Boning, is this how you play the game? You’re clearly fishing for lawbreakers, just waiting to nab me for making some pocket change. Wait till I report you to Zhongyu!" Guo Jia found himself surrounded layer after layer by the 1.8-meter-tall City Management Corps and was then taken away.

"Good thing I didn’t join Fengxiao," Fa Zheng muttered, pulling out a stack of bank drafts and counting them twice. "The major aristocratic families are indeed wealthy, especially when they gather in full swing. Even just for entertainment, they managed to wager so much. But they never expected the house to sweep everything this round — now that’s gambling."

"I..." Lu Jun watching Guo Jia being escorted away, scowled. He wanted to bail out Guo Jia; he’d bet ten thousand coins on Liu Bei’s side to take first place. Although the odds were small, he’d profit almost a thousand coins. But now the house has been shut down by the government!

This time, not only did he not make any spare cash, but he also lost his principal to government confiscation. Guo Jia’s actions were fraudulent; didn’t he say this was an official house? This isn’t an honest game!

"I..." Mi Fang watched Guo Jia being taken away by the City Management Corps with an awkward expression.

Mi Fang had placed a million coins betting that Guann Cheng from the navy would win, which could earn him around seven hundred thousand coins!

As a teammate who traveled to Fusang together, Mi Fang knew very well that Guann Cheng was definitely the closest military general to achieving Inner Qi Manifestation at the time, just a tiny step away from stabilizing at that level.

Even major aristocratic families made some bets, not for fun or small gains, but to show their support for Liu Bei and stay aligned with him. Altogether, over a hundred aristocratic families placed bets totaling over a billion coins, and then the casino was confiscated!

Wasn’t it supposed to be an official casino? How could it just vanish, and our money isn’t like leaves carried by the wind! Even throwing it into water would make a splash, but it’s just vanished. Who do we find for justice?

Find Guo Jia? With that guy’s shamelessness, would he even acknowledge it? What a joke!

Find Mann Chong? With that guy’s strict adherence to the law, it’d be suicide! Right, it’s just a bit over a million coins, not worth fussing over such a matter. The aristocratic families decisively decided to forget the incident, it’s not a big deal, just a few million coins anyway.