by Translator: BornToBe; Author: Ordinary Magician (平凡魔术师); Licensed From: 17k
According to this gambling theory, he had already won. He had won resources, he had won wealth, and he had also won some new friends.
But those fallen brothers were forever gone. Each time Long Chen recalled the scene of Lu Fang-er’s death, he was filled with indescribable pain.
What he had felt for Lu Fang-er had not been a romantic love. And Lu Fang-er had always been joking when she said she was an extra for when he married Meng Qi, a so-called buy one get one free.
Although it was just a joke that they were together, Long Chen was truly unable to accept the fact that she had died just like that.
He had killed Feng Xiao-zi. He had destroyed the Wind Spirit Pavilion. But so what? Would that revive Lu Fang-er? What was lost was lost. Even if you won back your chips, they wouldn’t be your original chips. Those would be forever lost.
“The higher your accomplishments become, the more chips you’ll have. Then, because you worry about how much you’ve gained, you’ll lose the courage to gamble any more. As a result, you’ll slowly find your chips slipping out of your grasp while you stay hesitant on what to do. So if you want to win more, you have to maintain the heart of a barefoot gambler. You have to be able to take out your chips to gamble, because only this attitude will allow you to keep more chips.” Mo Yi looked at Mo Nian.
“Grandfather, I understand,” said Mo Nian.
“Your life is your own. You can bet it as you want to. The Heavenly Daos are emotionless. There are countless Daos. There are many types of gambles, many types of games. You shouldn’t care whether or not you will be the final winner or loser. What you should cherish are the emotions that you feel while you gamble. Hehe, that’s what’s truly stimulating!”
Mo Yi laughed and seemed as if he had become many years younger. His eyes shone like an obsessive gambler who had held back for millennia and finally had a chance to gamble.
“Ten years I wandered with my bow, my arrows causing heaven and earth to shake. The nine heavens, ten lands, and all the universe will revolve around me. Only I, Mo Nian, will rise to glory. Hehe, the battle today will mark the day that I, Mo Nian, begin my rise!” exclaimed Mo Nian high-spiritedly.
Obviously, in this particular situation, Mo Yi’s words had been exceptionally stirring to Mo Nian. They had allowed him to clearly see his path forward.
If even Mo Yi, the leader of the huge existence known as Mo Gate, could keep the mindset of a barefoot gambler when facing all predicaments, then in comparison, Mo Nian’s worries were as groundless as being worried the sky would fall.
“Old man, you really are wise,” praised Long Chen.
“Hehe, I’m not wise at all. Our Mo family has countless ancestral teachings, but there is one kind of teaching that is not passed down: how to keep Mo Gate alive forever.
“Isn’t that very curious? It was our Mo Gate’s ancestors that were the truly wise ones. They were the ones who said to live freely, repaying kindness and enmity. Their goal was for us to maintain our core heart.
“As for whether or not Mo Gate can continue surviving, it is not something up to man. It is up to destiny. Whether or not Mo Gate’s inheritance is cut off has nothing to do with us.
“What we need to do is to continue passing on the essence of the Mo family to our descendants. In the future, even if the Mo family is eradicated, we will still have the face to see our ancestors.
“But if we were to have our essence destroyed by this chaotic world in order to maintain our inheritance, then there would be no need for Mo Gate to exist. We’d have no way to face our ancestors.
“So Mo Nian, remember, maintaining the inheritance of Mo Gate isn’t important. What’s important is that even if you have only one breath left to you, you still have to use that breath to show your spine,” said Mo Yi.
Mo Yi had only just finished speaking when a large mass of people appeared ahead. They had arrived at the Scorched Earth Forest.
The Scorched Earth Forest was south of Qingzhou City. According to legend, a fire attribute divine beast had undergone nirvanic rebirth here in the immortal era, causing all the ground here to be scorched black.
But what was inconceivable was that this scorched ground possessed limitless life energy and had given birth to a flourishing forest.
In front of the forest was an open space. Since ancient times, this area had been a sacred battleground for decisive battles near Qingzhou City.
Over countless years, many experts and powers would choose to have their decisive battles here, battles that determined life or death.
Today, there were thousands of experts present. They were standing there, icily looking at Mo Yi’s group.
Long Chen examined them and his heart sank. There were over two thousand Xiantian experts, several times what Mo Gate had.
Of those experts, there were over two hundred that were wearing violet robes; the Yin character embroidered on their chest.
As for the remaining ones, their robes had the ‘Lin’ character on them. There were two elders with extremely powerful auras at the front, and at the same time, Long Chen noticed another familiar person: Yin Wushang.
Yin Wushang’s expression was exceedingly gloomy, killing intent surging in his eyes. He stood at the front, glaring at Long Chen with hatred.
“Mo Yi, you were actually still alive?” asked one of the elders at the front.
[1] This expression means that someone with nothing, not even shoes, is not afraid of fighting someone else, because they have nothing to lose.
Chapter 596 Killing Intent Soars Into the Sky
That elder was tall, had white hair and a pair of eagle-like eyes. His aura was like the sea, giving people a feeling of boundless pressure. Seeing how icily this elder glared at Mo Yi and his tone, it seemed he was acquainted with him.
Mo Yi narrowed his eyes upon seeing this elder. “Lin Chengdian, it really is a bit surprising that you’re alive. Ah, that’s right, with the Lin family acting as other people’s dogs, the master will definitely pity the dog when it’s injured and heal it. Looks like your master’s treatment of you really is not bad. Congratulations on having such a master!”
Long Chen’s heart shook. As expected, these two knew each other, and it seemed they had once exchanged blows. It should have been Mo Yi who had been stronger though and heavily injured him. Now, for this Lin Chengdian to have come back, he was definitely prepared.
Lin Chengdian sneered, “Mo Yi, last time, all you managed to do was take advantage of an opening to just barely win. But this time, I’ve come to take your head. And not only will I take your head, but I’ll also eradicate your Mo family. This world will no longer have an existence known as the Mo family.”
“Hahaha, good, how courageous! You really have improved. If you want to destroy my Mo family, you can come to try at any time. Of course, the precondition is that you have enough strength to do so,” said Mo Yi.
He then turned to the other elder standing beside Lin Chengdian. “What? Does your Yin family also want to join in?”
This elder was bald. He rubbed his shiny head lightly. It seemed as if the reason his head was so shiny was because he was in the habit of rubbing it like that.
“Hehe, our Yin family doesn’t care the slightest bit about your Mo family. However, there’s one thing your Mo family has done that is overboard,” said the bald elder.
“Oh?”
“That brute Long Chen obtained some kind of poisonous soil from somewhere and by using the Huayun auction house, he intentionally entrapped my Yin family. As a result…”
The bald elder suddenly waved his hand, and a pile of rotting wood appeared out of his spatial ring.
“As a result, my Yin family’s Meridian Opening Spirit Cliff Trees were all poisoned to death, with not one of them surviving! Long Chen and my Yin family can no longer live under the same sky. If your Mo family dares harbor this criminal, then it seems we really do have to join in!”
Seeing this withered wood, even Mo Yi was shocked. The small
branches had already rotted, and even the roots had decayed. All that remained was the main trunk. If this elder hadn’t said this was a tree, no one would have been able to tell. They would have just assumed it to be a rotting log.
“Did you get so used to wiping your head that you not only managed to make your head so shiny, but you also wiped away your brains? Did you personally see me give that divine soil to the auction house? Do you have any proof? How could a big figure like you open his mouth and talk crap like this? Is this the style of you ancient families?” said Long Chen disdainfully.
When it came to lying, perhaps there would only be a few people that could compare to Long Chen. It had clearly been done by him, but he could still righteously curse a person for accusing him.
Long Chen trusted Zheng Wenlong. He definitely wouldn’t sell him out. The Yin family was definitely just making up an excuse.
The death of all their trees was something completely within his expectations. No one was more aware than him about how terrifying that black soil was.
At the same time, Long Chen now saw through some clues to see just what the Yin family was planning. Now that all their trees had died, they had lost the majority of their income.
They had wanted to get compensation from the Huayun auction house, but they had stood on the side of reason and weren’t afraid of them at all. It was impossible for them to get any benefits from the Huayun auction house.
But no matter how strong a power was, without any income, they would decline. How were the experts of the Yin family supposed to cultivate without any resources?
Although this was the cultivation world, not the secular world, it was still impossible to survive without money.
The Mo family was extremely powerful in Qing Prefecture. They controlled a great deal of this prefecture’s resources. The Yin family’s target was those resources.
If they worked together with Lin Chengdian to destroy the Mo family, they would take over the Mo family’s businesses. Although that wouldn’t be as easy as when they had made money from selling Meridian Opening Spirit Cliff Fruit, and it would also be less in profit, it was better than nothing.
Falsely accusing Long Chen of having sold the divine soil was just an excuse. That was because just the enmity between Long Chen and Yin Wushang was not enough for them to join in on such a huge battle. So they had to slander Long Chen.
What they didn’t know was that their slander was not wrong in the slightest, because this matter really had been done by him.
“Hmph, quibbling has no use. We already have absolute proof it was you. Severing a person’s livelihood is like killing their parents. Mo Yi, for you to protect Long Chen like this, you are clearly declaring war against my Yin family. What, do you think my Yin family is a soft persimmon?” roared the bald elder.
Following his roar, his aura also erupted, causing the void to shake and rumble. Long Chen was shocked. This elder was actually a true Sea Expansion expert. The Yin family truly had a powerful foundation.
“Hahaha, interesting, really interesting. Your Lin family is after my Mo family’s top treasure, while your Yin family wants my Mo family’s businesses. Why don’t you just say it openly? There’s no need to beat around the bush” Mo Yi laughed, his voice full of disdain.
He truly was worthy of being an old monster that had lived for so many years. In just a moment, he saw through their intentions and why they had managed to cooperate.
“Well? Do you want a battle between the peak fighters, or a chaotic battle? It’s up to you. My Mo family’s men will accept either way,” said Mo Yi.
Seeing that Mo Yi still had this much confidence despite facing him and the bald elder, Lin Chengdian couldn’t help feeling less assured. He was just about to ask what the bald elder wanted to do when Yin Wushang suddenly walked out.
“Long Chen, do you dare battle me?”
Yin Wushang’s aura exploded and locked down Long Chen, icy killing intent filling his eyes.
It could be said that Yin Wushang’s hatred could not be washed away even with all the water in the world. Not only had his hatred seeped into his bones, but even into his soul.
Outside the Scorched Earth Forest, on the distant mountains, countless experts had long since found the high ground to watch from. Their photographic jades had long since been prepared.
These experts were all focused on the battlefield. Seeing Yin Wushang walk out, they smiled. Yin Wushang had come for revenge.
The death of his clone was a devastating blow to the true body. Not only had it severed his path of advancing to a rank two Celestial, but it had also left a deep stain on his soul.
If he didn’t personally kill Long Chen, that stain could never be washed away. Then Yin Wushang’s cultivation path would very likely halt at his current level.
Either he had to maintain his current cultivation base, or he had to risk being invaded by his heart-devil when he attacked the Xiantian realm, and then he would very likely die.
Celestials might be the favorites of heaven and earth, but the existence known as a heart-devil was something outside forces were unable to remove. You had to rely on yourself.
It could be said that if Yin Wushang wanted to continue cultivating, he had to kill Long Chen. This was his only chance. And he had to do it personally.
“For a loser to ask me like this, it really is embarrassing.” Long Chen shrugged helplessly as if he couldn’t bear seeing Yin Wushang embarrass himself again.
This reply caused countless people to almost laugh. How would Yin Wushang receive such a sharp reply?
As expected, Yin Wushang turned ashen. But he then icily said, “Hmph, Long Chen, I trust that you’ll receive this challenge.”
“Your trust is useless. The main point is, why would I receive your challenge? You are no longer a match for me.
“The first time, you were at your current realm when you sent your clone chasing after me. But if it hadn’t been for Yin Qing, you would have died.
“The second time, you were still in the same realm, while I had advanced to Meridian Opening. Your clone was killed by me.
“Now it’s the third time, and you’re still in the same realm, once more challenging me. Are you trying to get me to kill your true body?” asked Long Chen.
Yin Wushang’s fists creaked and his body quivered. Long Chen was too arrogant.
“Long Chen, I’ve already said that you’ll definitely accept this challenge. Just like last time, you’ll definitely accept,” said Yin Wushang.
Long Chen’s expression suddenly changed as he thought of Mu Xue. A bad feeling caused his heart to clench.
“Let me show you something.”
Yin Wushang suddenly threw out a saber that was still in its scabbard. A phoenix had been carved into the scabbard, one that seemed to be in the midst of letting out a bird cry.
Long Chen’s eyes turned red, and killing intent erupted from him. He roared, “Bastard, where is my father?!”
This saber was his father’s. Long Tianxiao’s old saber had been broken by the white-robed man back in the battle of the capital.
Later, Long Tianxiao had gone to ask a craftsman to make him a new, identical saber. This carving on it was the mark of Phoenix Cry.
Long Chen really hadn’t expected Yin Wushang to be this contemptible as to kidnap his father. It had to be known that the cultivation world’s struggles were not permitted to interfere with the matters of the secular world. This was an iron law of the cultivation world.
But seeing this saber, as well as Yin Wushang’s confident gaze, Long Chen’s entire body trembled as boundless killing intent filled his heart.
“Hm, what are you talking about? I just wanted to show this random saber and have you appraise it. How unexpected for you to get so excited over just some saber.
“I only just obtained it a while ago. Because its quality is so low, it’s basically garbage, and I might feel like destroying it at any moment.
“Haha, ah, sorry for getting s
idetracked. Let’s talk about our battle instead. Let me say it again, do you dare battle me?” Yin Wushang felt incredibly pleased upon seeing Long Chen’s current state.
“Alright, I’ll battle you.” Long Chen tightly clenched his father’s saber.
Chapter 597 Divine Ring Shakes the Firmament
“You can’t Long Chen! That’s his true body. The clone you killed before only had fifty percent of his strength.”
Mo Nian knew that the difference between a true body and a clone was immense.
On the surface, it might seem like a clone possessed fifty percent of the strength of the true body, and so the true body’s combat abilities would only be double of it. But in reality, the true body would be able to fight ten such clones.
That was because each increase in strength led to immense changes in combat strength. Such a thing could not be calculated by numbers, which was why Mo Nian hastily tried to talk him out of it.
“Long Chen, did he kidnap your family?” guessed Mo Yi.
Long Chen didn’t reply. Putting away his father’s saber, he walked out toward Yin Wushang.
“Do you know, you really shouldn’t have infuriated me. Because you did, I’ll do something frightening.”
“Hahaha, frightening? Just how frightening? You’re just a damnable ant that should have already died. You killed my clone, so today, you’ll definitely die. Hehe, and I’m not afraid to tell you that not only is your father in my hands, but even your mother. And of course, that little girl is also present.
“You know, your little sister really is not bad. She’ll definitely grow up into quite the beauty. Hehe, once you die, I’ll help you to accompany her letting her be my slave. I’ll take your place to-”
Suddenly, Long Chen’s hand viciously slapped across Yin Wushang’s face. That terrifying strength practically caused space to explode.
Originally, Yin Wushang had just been quietly communicating with Long Chen, and in doing so, he had walked closer so that their words could be more private. As a result, this slap across his face was truly quick.
