Chapter 2441: The Bet

Heluo Mavis continued staring at the empty seat across from her.

Yunying Mavis felt her head ache. "He’s not asking for small amount of change this time."

"When has he ever borrowed a small amount of money? We gave him five billion last time, and this time, even 500 billion isn’t anywhere near what he’s asking," Heluo Mavis scoffed as she rolled her eyes.

Yunying Mavis sighed. "Truthfully, our Mavis family has never been obsessed with money. When we ruled over the Second Mainland, I'm certain that we didn't oversee the economy. Am I wrong?"

"We didn't," Heluo Mavis replied.

Yunying Mavis shook her head, "The reason why we control the economy here was all in order to repay the Lu family. The members of the Lu family consume absurd amounts of resources during their cultivation. After they were exiled, controlling the economy was something that had already become a habit for us. I never expected that all of our actions would still end up benefiting the Lu family anyway. Eh, I suppose it's fine."

Heluo Mavis turned to look at the divine tree and its enormous fruits. She did not care about the Fifth Mainland’s economy, but she was quite concerned about the cost that Lu Yin had mentioned. She yearned to stand on the same level as him once again, regardless of how remote the chances of that happening were. She refused to accept the status quo.

She had surpassed all others to become a Dao Chosen, so why should she be any weaker than him? During the Heavens Sect era, she had stood equal to Lu Tianyi, so why was she so far behind Lu Yin?

Helua Mavis was not alone. Chu Yuan and Sky Garan were both eager to have a rematch with Lu Yin as well. The day would surely come. Even if he did become a Progenitor before them, they would eventually catch up.

After leaving the Mavis family, Lu Yin rode the jiao towards the Technocracy. He planned to visit the New World to look for the star essence that Aeternus had left behind.

…

In the Perennial World’s Middle Realm, the Yinshan District had changed over the course of three years. Lu Yin's sixth stellular tribulation had transformed the entire district. The ground had become more solid, and it was also covered with a dense network of cracks that spread out from the Mother Tree's roots. There was a depression in the middle of the district that had since become a lake. At the moment, only the bottom had been filled, but over time, the lake would grow as the water level rose. Eventually, the entire Yinshan District might even be submerged underwater one day. If that happened, the Yishan District would become the largest inland lake in the Middle Realm.

At the moment, a huge crowd had gathered around the lake. Descendants of various major families, countless independent cultivators, and even members of the four ruling powers were all staring at two individuals who stood above the lake: the God of Food and Mr. Yu.

This was the third day of their duel. The battle had started in this same place three days ago, and the two men were engaged in a deathmatch that no one was allowed to interfere in.

Mr. Yu laughed as drops of red blood dripped down his arm and fell into the lake. Behind him stood the two-faced giant that was his inner world. The sacred face was shedding tears, while the enraged face roared with hatred.

Flames danced along the edge of the God of Food's butcher knife as he pointed it at Mr. Yu. "You've exhausted everything that you are capable of using: battle techniques, poison, and threats. What else can you do?"

Mr. Yu laughed bitterly. On the first day of their battle, he had tried to disrupt the God of Food's momentum by kidnapping Virtue Archive’s students and threatening the man with their lives. However, the God of Food had been prepared for such a thing, and all of the students were rescued.

On the second day, Mr. Yu had laced his inner world with poison, hoping to poison his opponent when he made contact with the inner world. The God of Food was too wily to fall for such a trick, and he never touched the giant.

It was the third day of their battle, and just a few hours ago, Mr. Yu had explicitly detailed how he had killed his junior sister, hoping to drive the God of Food into a rage. Unfortunately for Mr. Yu, even that had failed to faze the older man. The God of Food was determined to take revenge for his years of suffering and to end Mr. Yu's life once and for all. While the incident that Mr. Yu had recounted had developed into a mental obstacle that prevented the God of Food from ever becoming a Progenitor, it was no longer able to affect him.

Mr. Yu had made plenty of preparations for this day, but so had the God of Food.

It was a fair deathmatch that no one could interfere with, not even Progenitor Long.

"Master, are you enjoying getting your revenge? Junior Sister must be happily watching us from heaven." Mr. Yu laughed heartily despite the blood that trickled from his mouth. The two-faced giant had a huge burn wound on its back, matching a wound on Mr. Yu's own body.

The God of Food displayed no emotion whatsoever as he spoke. "I've waited a long time for this day. You're far weaker than me, yet you still dared to challenge me, believing that the support that you’ve gained from the White Dragon Clan and your various tricks would be enough to defeat me. Unfortunately, you’ve failed to realize that personal strength forms the foundation of victory. It's time for me to send you on your way."

Mr. Yu shook his head. "Master, you didn't expect me to kill Junior Sister, did you?"

The God of Food's eyes blazed with resentment and killing intent, but his expression remained terrifyingly calm.

"There's still so much you haven't considered. Junior Sister is dead. You couldn't save her. You'll soon be dead, as you can't save yourself either," Mr. Yu stated as he brought an eyeball out from his cosmic ring. The eye stared at the God of Food, seemingly alive.

The old man’s pupils instantly shrank. "Progenitor Long's power vessel!"

Anger erupted from the watching crowd, which included Ce Donglai and Headmaster Wen. "How despicable! He actually brought out a Progenitor-level power vessel."

Xia Ziheng shook his head with contempt. "Mr. Yu has the support of the White Dragon Clan. They won't let him die easily. Did the God of Food really believe that he could get revenge? What a fool."

Qing Chen frowned. Indeed, since the White Dragon Clan had already paid a price to bring Mr. Yu under their wing, they would not be willing to stand by and watch his life end. A Progenitor-level power vessel could easily reverse the situation.

"Senior," Wen Diyi said to express his concern.

Mr. Tang, Prof. Zheng, and the others from Virtue Archives all glared at Mr. Yu, furious and cursing him for such shamelessness.

The enormous eye stared at the God of Food from above Mr. Yu's head. "Master, do you have any more tricks that you’ve kept hidden? Virtue Archives might have Lu Xiaoxuan's support, but even Lu Xiaoxuan needs external items to fight against a Progenitor. Did he lend you any?"

Some distance away, Lu Yin had arrived, and he heard what Mr. Yu said. Subconsciously, Lu Yin touched his cosmic ring as his brows furrowed. He seriously considered tossing the slipper over to the God of Food so that the man could slap Mr. Yu to death.

"Do you want to help the God of Food?" Bai Xian'er appeared out of nowhere, her arrival startling Lu Yin.

"I thought that Bai Wangyuan or one of the others would come," Lu Yin commented casually. He had not hidden his arrival in the Perennial World, and he had merely ordered the jiao to retract its aura. Bai Wangyuan and others should have discovered Lu Yin the moment he entered the Perennial World.

Bai Xian'er replied, "They might have said that you can’t come to this part of the universe, but they can't stop you."

"Are you accusing me of going back on my word?" Lu Yin asked.

Bai Xian'er looked forward again and repeated her question, "Do you want to help the God of Food?"

"Long Er helped Mr. Yu, so what's wrong with me helping the God of Food?" Lu Yin retorted.

"There isn’t any problem, but the God of Food doesn't need your help."

"What do you mean?" Lu Yin grew puzzled. That eye possessed the power of the Progenitor, which was not something that the God of Food could endure. Lu Yin could not bear to just watch on as Progenitor Long blatantly assisted Mr. Yu.

𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶

Bai Xian'er calmly replied, "Brother Xiaoxuan, do you believe that everyone should rely on you for help?"

Lu Yin frowned.

"Everyone has their own path. Did the God of Food contact you before this battle?" Bai Xian'er asked.

Lu Yin stared off into the distance as Mr. Yu made his move. That eye had the power to obliterate even the void. While the God of Food could evade those attacks for the moment, he would only be able to do so for so long.

"Brother Xiaoxuan, let's bet on this fight." Bai Xian'er suddenly gave Lu Yin a sweet smile. He could see his reflection in her eyes.

Lu Yin met her gaze. "We might disagree on the results."

Bai Xian'er laughed. "Do as you like. You can choose to intervene, but-" She paused for a moment. "It won’t change the outcome. This fight will end in mutual destruction."

Lu Yin arched a brow. "If I act, the God of Food won't die. Long Er and the others won't have a huge falling out with me just because of Mr. Yu. I was able to stop their actions three years ago, and I can do so again."

"Then that’s all the more reason for Brother Xiaoxuan to accept this bet. It should be an easy victory for you," Bai Xian'er taunted.

Lu Yin stared at Bai Xian'er. "Did you see this outcome in the Book of Destiny?"

Bai Xian'er smiled, but she said nothing.

Lu Yin’s eyes narrowed. Ever since he had learned about Destiny, he had never stopped feeling uneasy. Between Xuan Jiu's attitude and the various myths about Destiny, the idea that a person’s entire life could be predetermined was unsettling. However, it truly did appear that Destiny had already scripted out the fate of every person.

While the Stargazing Deck had indeed helped Lu Yin force the four ruling powers to agree to a truce, he still could not accept that Destiny had already seen his future, let alone the possibility that she had directly interfered in it.

"Alright, I'll take your bet—the God of Food won't die. Even if Progenitor Long, Bai Wangyuan, and others try to intervene, I won't let him die. As for Mr. Yu, whether he lives or not, that has nothing to do with me," Lu Yin stated. His meaning was crystal clear: he wanted to intervene and end the duel, regardless of the grudge that existed between the God of Food and Mr. Yu. Lu Yin wanted to prove that the outcome that Destiny had foreseen could be changed.

Of course, Lu Yin already knew that the God of Food would hold a grudge against him if he interfered in the battle, which meant that Lu Yin would also owe the God of Food a favor in order to settle the matter.

Bai Xian'er's eyes lit up. "Brother Xiaoxuan, it’s a bet. What will you wager?"

Lu Yin did not hesitate in the slightest. "I want to know the truth behind the Lu family's banishment. The whole truth."

Bai Xian'er smiled. "Very well."

"What about you?" Lu Yin asked. Despite his confidence that he could keep the God of Food alive, Bai Xian'er's attitude left him wondering why she held such unwavering faith in the Book of Destiny. He was certain that he could change the results, so he had asked for what he wanted most. He was curious to hear what Bai Xian'er wanted most.

Bai Xian'er's gaze returned to the sky above the lake. She watched as the God of Food struggled to avoid being destroyed by the eye. "If I win, I want to combine two of the Books of Destiny."

"You want the Book of Destiny that I have?" Lu Yin was surprised.

Bai Xian'er shook her head. "I only want to take a look. Combining Books of Destiny can allow us to see the future. You won't suffer any sort of loss, and you can also take a look."

Lu Yin thought for a moment. "Alright, it's settled."

The God of Food's inner world had already collapsed, and he had lost his left arm. The eye was destroying increasingly larger sections of the void, and the destruction induced coughing fits that caused the old man to spit up blood. Mr. Yu's giant raised a hand and slammed it down. "Master, what are you doing? This is so pathetic! Hahaha, so pathetic! Junior Sister's mocking you from heaven right now. Aren't you going to avenge her? Come on, Master! Come on!"

The God of Food gritted his teeth and coughed up blood without end. He searched for an opportunity to retaliate, but none could be seen.

At the shore of the lake, Ce Donglai called out, "This isn't a fair battle! Hurry! End it now! Everything else can be dealt with later!"

"End it now!"

"Senior, please end it now, or else you'll die before you can get your revenge!"