33. Gamblers will eventually lose everything.

Xia Feng was lost in thought.

"Cheap Foster Father: To be honest, kid, this might be a great opportunity to make big money. You could be defeated any second within 3 to 300 seconds, so a total of 298 odds have been set. See if there's a chance you could lose at the 59-second mark. The odds at that point are as high as 10 times, the highest of the 298. How about I bet 2 million and share half the winnings with you afterward?"

Xia Feng: "???"

"Xia Feng: What about the agreement... Even if I'm to lose, I should lose standing, right?"

"Cheap Foster Father: Losing while standing and earning money while lying down aren't contradictory. We're all adults here, it's time for you to understand the truth of 'wanting everything,' kid~"

"Xia Feng: Heh heh (smile), I suggest you bet on my victory~"

"Cheap Foster Father: Not bad, it's good to be confident, but if you come to terms with reality, make sure you lose at the 59-second mark!"

Seeing this, Xia Feng couldn't be bothered to entertain him further. Bowing his head in thought, besides those 298 odds, there were two more, one for him winning and one for being beaten instantly, both with odds as high as one hundred times—an extraordinarily high risk but with a potentially high reward for everyone.

After a moment of contemplation, he sent another message to Wei Shutong.

"Xia Feng: Bet 100,000 on my win!"

"Cheap Foster Father: ...Are you sure?"

"Xia Feng: The money will be transferred to you after the fight; Old Wei, could you spot me for now?"

"Cheap Foster Father: A gambling addict will eventually lose it all."

"Xia Feng: Hurry up, stop the chatter, I'm perfectly clear-headed."

"Cheap Foster Father: ...Fine"

*

Meanwhile, in the referee's room.

The Justice Duel had become explosively popular due to the push of some unknown force behind the scenes, prompting the Holy Department to specially dispatch Squad Leader Chen Hangdao of Team Seven to maintain order at the scene.

"Sword Demon, why are you here?"

Chen Hangdao raised his eyebrows in suspicion, "The Director has assigned our Team Seven to handle this event."

Freya's expression was indifferent, and she smiled gently, "Master Chen, I have a student battling today. Is it a problem for me to come and watch?"

Student? Chen Hangdao narrowed his eyes with suspicion; it was the first time he had seen the Sword Demon take such an interest in a student.

Today, there were a total of four Justice Duels, and without a doubt, the most attention-grabbing was the showdown between the two geniuses, Yan Xujia and Xia Feng.

One was the son of the famed Marquis, and the other a freshman who had suddenly become famous these last few days.

Chen Hangdao didn't know much about the freshman, but he had thoroughly investigated the Marquis' son, Yan Xujia.

Top of his class during the first-year Spiritual Pressure test, undefeated in eighteen consecutive duels in the academy challenge, breaking the record; second year, exceptionally recruited into the Black Moon Church and made an unstoppable emergence once again in the Knight Corps. Promoted to Silver Armor within half a year, received the title of Guardian within one year, surely a seat amongst the Black Moon Holy Knights await him, and with his status as the son of a Marquis, his prospects were boundless.

After reading Yan Xujia's file, Chen Hangdao put it in his words: this young man was terrifying and should not be underestimated.

"Master Chen, who do you think will win the last duel?" Freya asked.

Although Chen Hangdao looked the part of a villain with his aquiline nose and slanted eyes, he was originally a Taoist and still preferred to dress like one after joining the Imperial Holy Department, earning him the familiar title of Master Chen from those who knew him.

Upon hearing the Sword Demon's inquiry, Chen Hangdao thought carefully for a moment and shook his head, "In my opinion, Xia Feng... seems more likely to encounter bad luck today."

"Is that so..."

Freya's eyelids drooped slightly as she sighed softly. She had heard about the wager between Xia Feng and Yan Xujia; the loser would be dispatched to the Southern Border. She couldn't fathom what went through Xia Feng's mind to accept such a bet—it was recklessly bold.

She had even made plans to take Xia Feng as her pupil. Now, it seemed the task would be even more difficult.

The only solution was for her to accompany Xia Feng to the Southern Border herself, which left her with great hesitance.

"Ding—"

The match clock rang out, marking the end of the third duel. A solemn announcement filled the arena:

"The fourth Justice Duel will commence in ten minutes. Contestants Xia Feng and Yan Xujia, please prepare. If you do not arrive at the battlefield within the specified time, you will be automatically deemed to have forfeited. The fourth Justice Duel will commence in ten minutes, please...."

S Block VIP waiting room.

Panda's plump figure stood before the floor-to-ceiling windows, he pushed up his reflective glasses and turned to say, "Remember to pull your punches; don't actually kill him."

The man lounging on the sofa set down his wine glass, patted his pant legs, and got up, stretching lazily with a playful smile, "Alright, alright, I get it. Just torture him until he breaks, right? I'm best at that kind of thing."

With that, he was about to head out.

"Wait." A voice came from a middle-aged man in the corner.

Yan Xujia turned around and asked casually, "What is it, President Zhao? Any advice?"

The middle-aged man was none other than Zhao Jie, the acting President of the Six-tailed Society.

"For the sake of our cooperation with Cha Naixue, I would remind you that the kid with the surname Xia is not so simple," Zhao Jie narrowed his scarred eye, his tone cautionary.

Yan Xujia curled the corner of his mouth, "President Zhao, you think I'm like your useless apprentice?"

Zhao Jie's brow furrowed slightly. Indeed, Qi Xiao and Yan Xujia were worlds apart. But Zhao Jie was a man who had crawled out from piles of corpses, having killed countless in his life and thus cultivated an ability to read people that far exceeded the average person's.

Therefore, when Qi Xiao died at the hands of Xia Feng, after the initial shock, Zhao Jie had pondered for several days and felt increasingly that Xia Feng was quite exceptional.

However, to what extent this 'exceptional' was, even he wasn't sure.

"If President Zhao just has this to say, then I'll be on my way," Yan Xujia said with a faint smile, pushing the door open to leave.

Zhao Jie's grey eyes, marked by a scar, remained impassive. As an ally, he had said all that needed to be said. Whether the other party believed it or not wasn't something for him to worry about.

Of course, it was more likely that he was overthinking. The 'exceptionality' of Xia Feng could merely be ordinary after all...

"Ding—"

The match clock chimed clearly again.

In the center of the bustling battlefield, the gates on both sides opened.

One man dressed in an elegant white priest's robe, his shoulder-length hair added to his roguishly aristocratic aura.

The other was clad in Weiyang Academy's standard blue-and-white uniform with disheveled black hair that looked as if it hadn't been tended to. With dead-fish eyes, he exuded an aura of a salted fish otaku at all times.

Yet, even so, his outstanding appearance still drew many people's attention.

"Oh my, so Xia Feng is actually that handsome!" Some girls' eyes shimmered.

"Tsk—look at that face~" Even some boys' eyes shimmered.

Mushroom, listening to the surrounding discussions, tightened his toes, feeling an awkward sense of seeing someone he knew show off on stage.

However, the crowd soon stopped focusing on Xia Feng's looks and started talking about how quickly he would lose.

"I bet he loses within thirty seconds, what about you?"

"Thirty seconds? Are you joking? I've studied both their profiles carefully. Xia Feng will be defeated within three moves! So, at most ten seconds!"

"Cough..." Someone said sheepishly in a low voice, "Actually, I also placed ten bucks on Xia Feng to win."

"Tch... you really dare to dream. Let me put it this way, if Xia Feng wins, I'll livestream myself eating shit!"

Hearing such scornful and disdainful remarks, Mushroom pursed his lips and clenched his fists in secret, muttering to himself, hmph, more bluffing and mooching!

"Ding—"

The match clock chimed again for the second time, the entire venue fell silent, and everyone's gaze turned toward the sky screen.