Chapter 147 (2): This is Night Demon?

"I can only put a third of a Soul Fusion Divine Crystal Heart on the line at the very most!" Yan Nan conceded through gritted teeth. "If you win, that'll be enough for Yu Tianqi to make half a recovery. Given his cultivation base, it won't take long for him to recover fully through his own cultivation!"

"I want half!" Dongfang Sansan countered.

"No! This is already a completely lopsided bet! A third is all you're going to get!"

"Fine, you have yourself a deal!" Dongfang Sansan declared.

"......"

Yan Nan was left in a daze.

That's it? It actually worked? This suddenly feels like a dream...

"So let me just clarify the rewards. It'll be one small ore vein for the Warlords, one large ore vein for the Kings, and a hundred thousand divine crystals against a third of a Soul Fusion Divine Crystal Heart for the Emperors. Is that all correct?"

"Yes," Dongfang Sansan replied. "Isn't this what you wanted? Why do you seem so surprised that I agreed? I couldn't just leave you hanging now, could I?"

Yan Nan could feel his blood pressure rising again.

You couldn't just leave me hanging? Then what have you been doing this entire time?!

It was clear that Dongfang Sansan had absolute confidence in securing victory in the Emperor tier friendly matches.

Otherwise, given how much of a stingy miser he was, there was no way he would've been willing to put even a single divine crystal on the line, let alone a hundred thousand!

Yan Nan took a deep breath to compose himself, and he was feeling quite pleased.

No matter how brilliant a tactician you are, there's no way you could've seen through my plan! The immediate victory at hand is of no significance to me at all. Instead, I'm playing a long game that'll only bear fruit many years down the line!

"Are you not afraid that we're plotting something now?" Chen Gu chuckled.

"Even if you are, I have to tackle it head-on," Dongfang Sansan replied. "Besides, I don't think you two are capable of coming up with a ploy that can fool me. I'm just curious to see what you have planned."

"You have a lot to look forward to then," Yan Nan chuckled.

Dongfang Sansan turned to Yun Du and Yin Xiao as he asked, "Would the young disciples of your two sects like to spar with the young warriors of our two factions as well?"

The two grand elders were clearly tempted by the proposal, but they were rather hesitant.

"I'm saying they can spar together after the friendly matches are over. It'll be an unofficial thing, just for the young people to get to know each other and gain more battle experience."

𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ𝓋𝑒𝑙.𝑐𝘰𝑚

The two grand elders were eager to accept this proposal.

"We'll speak to everyone else once we get back, and we'll see how many sects are willing to take part before we decide on the specific details."

"Sure."

"So that's it then? We're all in agreement here?"

"Yes."

Pleased smiles appeared on the faces of both Yan Nan and Chen Gu, while Xue Fuxiao was standing off to the side with a cold and stoic look on his face.

He had no idea what everyone had been arguing about just now, and as far as he was concerned, this may as well have been a bunch of monkeys arguing over some bananas.

However, he didn't have to understand anything when he was with Dongfang Sansan.

Why would I use my brain when I can just use my saber instead?

The reason why Dongfang Sansan had decided to propose the unofficial sparring matches at the end was because of Fang Che's presence.

Perhaps someone else would be incapable of capitalizing on an opportunity like this, but Fang Che definitely could.

He had single-handedly recruited thousands of disciples from the Frost Sword Sect, and Dongfang Sansan was sure that he would be able to repeat such a feat here as well.

Despite this, he feigned a grim and contemplative expression, as if he were still feeling quite confounded and uneasy.

As the meeting drew to a close, he pretended to heave a forlorn sigh as he took a glance at Chen Gu.

There he goes, looking at me again! Why does he keep looking at me? Could it be that he can't see anything from Brother Yan, so he's trying to see if he can find any telltale signs from me?

With that in mind, Chen Gu looked back at him, his face as expressionless as stone, determined not to give him anything.

***

Finally, the six men emerged from the domain, and everyone outside was eagerly awaiting the outcome of their meeting.

As Dongfang Sansan emerged from Yan Nan's domain, he took a glance at the opposing spectator stands, then said with a warm smile, "It's been so long since we last saw each other, Deputy Pope Yan. Don't you think there's too much distance between us? It makes it difficult for me to catch up with you when we're so far apart."

"You just want to try and goad me into revealing my plans, don't you?" Yan Nan chuckled.

"If you were so easy to trick, then my job would be much easier. I just want to ask you about the young prodigies from your side. I'm not overly familiar with them, and the more information I can get, the better."

"As you wish then," Yan Nan chuckled. "Come! Bring my chair and put it next to Chief Strategist Dongfang's, then put a tea table in the middle! It's not every day that I get to spectate some riveting battles with Chief Strategist Dongfang, and I'm sure this will make for a good story to be told for years to come!"

"Indeed, not to mention that these will also be the first-ever friendly matches between the young prodigies of our two sides, so this is an even more commemorable occasion," Dongfang Sansan chuckled.

The chairs were quickly brought together as instructed, and all of the leading figures of the Guardians and the Church of the Self-Righteous also had their chairs moved over to join Dongfang Sansan and Yan Nan.

They were all seated in pairs across from each other, with a tea table inbetween each pair.

All of a sudden, all of the tension in the air had completely faded, and it was beginning to feel like a tea party between old friends.

Duan Xiyang had chosen to sit at the same table with Yu Tianqi, and he was very warm and insistent about it.

Yun Du stood up, then rose up into the air with his hands clasped behind his back as he declared, "I hereby announce the official commencement of the friendly matches between the young prodigies of the Guardians and the Church of the Self-Righteous! For these friendly matches, each side will be represented by nine Warlords, nine Kings, and nine Emperors.

"The prizes for the top three finishers in each tier are as follows... In addition, there will be extra stakes being wagered for each tier. For the Warlord tier, the victorious side will receive a small spirit crystal ore vein. For the King tier... I will be the main referee, and I will be joined by three other referees, namely... Seeing as these are all friendly matches, the battles will end when a clear outcome has been reached, and there will be no unnecessary bloodshed. Referees, please take your positions."

A figure immediately appeared in each of the four directions, and they were Yun Du of the Celestial Palace, Yin Xiao of the Infernal Palace, Mei Han of the Snowflake Palace, and Lang Jiu of the Purple Robe Palace.

Dongfang Sansan and Yan Nan were both quite amused by the sight of this incredibly formidable lineup.

These four warriors were all worthy of spots on the Cloud Weapon Archive, and it was complete overkill to have them serve as referees for a bunch of Warlords, Kings, and Emperors.

With the four of them overseeing proceedings, it was next to impossible for anything to go awry.

"First up will be the Warlord tier matches. All combatants, get ready," Yun Du declared.

The entire venue instantly fell silent.

Each side consisted of nine warriors, with those representing the Guardians dressed in white and their Church of the Self-Righteous counterparts dressed in black.

As soon as their eyes met, the tension and animosity in the air instantly became palpable.

After both sides had drawn lots, the battle commenced right away.

Even though these were just friendly sparring matches, all combatants were brimming with killing intent, and they had all drawn their weapons.

Dongfang Sansan was seated on his chair, listening to the rosters of names for both sides as he picked up his teacup before taking a sip.

His eyes instantly lit up as he remarked, "This is some exceptional tea, Deputy Pope Yan."

"Only the finest for you," Yan Nan chuckled. "This is a special tea that can help enhance the drinker's cultivation base and allow one to better understand the Great Dao. You can take some back with you if you want."

Yan Nan was speaking a rather facetious tone, clearly mocking the Guardians for their poverty, but Dongfang Sansan wasn't bothered at all.

Instead, he gladly nodded in agreement as he replied, "That would be great! How much can you give me, Deputy Pope Yan? I'm sure you won't be too stingy."

Yan Nan shook his head internally in dismay. He should've known that he could've never bested Dongfang Sansan in a war of words.

Dongfang Sansan was completely shameless when it came to trying to secure resources from the enemy, and even the opportunity to secure more of this tea was not something that he would pass up on.

"How about five kilograms? Will that be enough?"

"Sure," Dongfang Sansan replied with a smile. "You have my thanks. Please send someone to fetch the tea now. We're all old men now, so we could forget if we're not careful."

Yan Nan rolled his eyes in exasperation as he gave a casual wave, and one of his servants instantly vanished before returning with a large bag of tea leaves in the blink of an eye.

Dongfang Sansan accepted the bag with a smile, then handed it off to Yang Luoyu, who had to suppress a smile as he stowed it away into his spatial ring.

Dongfang Sansan was in a very good mood after securing the five kilograms of tea, and he was already considering how best to allocate them for the best outcomes.

For certain warriors who had been stumped by bottlenecks for centuries, this tea was nothing short of a priceless treasure!

Any tea drunk by Yan Nan had to have been among the most premium spirit teas in the world, and to Dongfang Sansan, the value of these five kilograms of tea leaves already exceeded that of a small spirit crystal ore vein.