A Wager with Xiao Wu

"Bang." Qian Yu fired a shot with casual ease, and Tang San and Xiao Wu both jumped in fright.

"Little brother, I'd advise you to calm down. Everything I did was for your own good. You should know that Spirit Beast just now was 1,200 years old. Think about what would happen if you absorbed it."

Seeing the murderous looks on Tang San, Yu Xiaogang, and the others, Qian Yu spoke unhurriedly.

Now that Qian Yu had regained his original strength and reached level 30, he wasn't afraid of these nobodies in the slightest. Besides, with Spirit Detection, every move Tang San and the others made was visible to him.

"Bullshit! I, Yu Xiaogang, have roamed the continent for decades, seen countless beasts, and possess unrivaled theoretical knowledge. How could I fail to judge the age of a mere Ghost Vine?" Yu Xiaogang gritted his teeth as he retorted.

"No wonder this place stinks so badly. You're that famous good-for-nothing Soul Master, the one with the foul mouth—the Yu Xiaogang who's over fifty and still only a level 29 Soul Grandmaster?" Qian Yu pretended not to know who he was, fanning away the smoke as he spoke.

Yu Xiaogang was so furious that he nearly attacked, but then he remembered that although he had level 29 Soul Power, he had no real offensive abilities.

All he could do was turn to Tang San and Xiao Wu.

"I won't let you insult my teacher." Tang San was every bit the devoted disciple. The moment he heard Yu Xiaogang insulted, he leaped forward, ready to attack Qian Yu.

"I'm telling you to apologize to my teacher. Otherwise, you've already earned your death." As he spoke, Tang San prepared to take a Hidden Weapon from Twenty-Four Moonlit Bridges.

"What, did I say something wrong?"

"Open your damn eyes and take a good look at the age of my Second Soul Ring."

Hum. Two Spirit Rings, one yellow and one purple, rose from around Qian Yu.

"Purple? It's actually purple!" Tang San couldn't help feeling a pang of fear. He hurriedly looked to Yu Xiaogang for an explanation.

Yu Xiaogang's face turned livid, but he stubbornly insisted, "How do I know whether that Spirit Ring came from the Ghost Vine just now?"

"Besides, how could a normal person absorb a Spirit Ring that quickly?"

The more Yu Xiaogang spoke, the more convinced he became. "That's right. That's right."

"No matter what, we can't admit we were wrong today."

"This kid is strange. How could a normal person absorb a Spirit Ring so quickly? Unless..." Yu Xiaogang couldn't help letting his imagination run wild.

"My teacher's right. Unless you're not human?" Tang San felt Yu Xiaogang's reasoning made sense.

Xiao Wu stood off to the side, her face pale.

Qian Yu found it ridiculous. He gave a cold laugh, then pulled the pitch-black Torso Bone from his clothes. "Hmph, a bunch of frogs at the bottom of a well. Take a look at this."

"A Spirit Bone."

"And a Torso Bone at that?" Yu Xiaogang trembled all over.

What was the most valuable thing on Douluo Continent? Spirit Bones, of course. They were priceless, let alone the finest kind of Spirit Bone—a Torso Bone.

"A Spirit Bone? A Torso Bone from a Ghost Vine. It carries the Ghost Vine's aura. There's no faking that." Tang San was bewildered. He looked from Yu Xiaogang to Qian Yu and back again.

"Kid, I don't know what method you used to make a 600-year-old Ghost Vine produce a purple Spirit Ring, but you stole our Spirit Ring and Spirit Bone. You've already earned your death." Yu Xiaogang still stubbornly tried to argue his case.

Yet his greedy gaze never left the Spirit Bone in Qian Yu's hand.

"That's right! You used some kind of sorcery to steal the Spirit Ring that should have belonged to me, and now you want to steal my Spirit Bone too." Tang San's expression hardened as he stared at the Spirit Bone in Qian Yu's hand.

Qian Yu laughed.

He was laughing at the shameless master and disciple.

"Divine Eye, how's the absorption going?" Qian Yu contacted Divine Eye. He really didn't want to keep arguing with the shameless pair.

"Kid, what's the rush? Do you think a hundred-thousand-year source is that easy to devour? Long-distance devouring is slow, you know. Unless you can get close to them." Divine Eye teased him languidly.

"Shut up, you glutton." Qian Yu bantered back, not in the least pleased.

"La la la, this feels amazing! This is the best meal I've had in years. A hundred-thousand-year source isn't that easy to absorb, you know. I wish I could keep eating forever. Kid, think of something! If I recover my level, you'll get more in return too, won't you?" Divine Eye happily swam about in the Sea of Consciousness within the Devouring Eye.

Qian Yu felt that continuing to bicker with the shameless master and disciple over this little bit of source would take years off his life.

Just then, Tang San and Yu Xiaogang exchanged a glance.

Tang San whispered to Yu Xiaogang, "Teacher, I can challenge him to a duel. If I win, I'll kill him and take the Spirit Bone. If I lose, pretend to accept him as your disciple, and then..."

Yu Xiaogang nodded repeatedly at Tang San's suggestion. Thinking of his disciple's miraculous Hidden Weapons, he decided the plan was feasible.

"Kid, we can let you have the Spirit Ring for now. I can see you're a Soul Master too, so why don't we follow the rules of Soul Masters and have a duel? If you lose, leave the Spirit Bone behind. If you win, I can reluctantly accept you as my disciple."

Yu Xiaogang was indeed Douluo Continent's most shameless man. No matter who won, they stood to gain.

"Hmph, you've got it all figured out. Either way, you win. I'd have to hand over the Spirit Bone for nothing and become your disciple too."

Qian Yu snorted in displeasure.

"Then what do you want?" Tang San cut in.

"Fine. I won't make things difficult for you. If I lose, I'll give you the Spirit Bone."

"If I win, she'll serve me for six years." As he spoke, Qian Yu pointed at Xiao Wu.

"Me!" Xiao Wu felt as if she were floating. When she heard Qian Yu wanted to make her the wager, her rabbit temper flared, and she was ready to bite anyone in sight.

The moment Tang San heard Qian Yu wanted the girl he had set his heart on, he jumped forward. "No!"

Hearing the firmness in Tang San's voice, Xiao Wu immediately calmed down and called to him tenderly, "Third Brother."

"If you won't agree, then forget it."

Qian Yu turned as if to leave.

"One."

"Two."

"Three."

"Wait. We can agree to your terms, but Xiao Wu is still studying. Even if you win, she'll have to continue studying with me. As for you, you can stay by her side." Yu Xiaogang's expression shifted several times. Torn by greed and desire, he finally had a flash of inspiration and proposed what he thought was a brilliant solution.

That way, Xiao Wu and Tang San would remain by his side, and Qian Yu would also stay with him by following Xiao Wu.

"Hmph, kid, after you sit through a few of my lectures, I don't believe you won't want to become my disciple. Then your Spirit Bone will be mine to do with as I please." Yu Xiaogang thought smugly.

"Master." Xiao Wu was frantic.

Yu Xiaogang gestured to Xiao Wu. "Xiao Wu, don't you trust your Third Brother?" His words struck like a thunderclap, and Xiao Wu staggered backward.

"But..." Xiao Wu looked at Tang San, then at Qian Yu across from her. Finally, she gritted her teeth and nodded, tears welling in her eyes.

Yu Xiaogang then turned and patted Tang San on the shoulder.

"Xiao San, it's up to you."

Greatly encouraged, Tang San immediately used the Mysterious Jade Hand and activated the Purple Demon Eye. His Hidden Weapons were ready too, and he looked certain of victory.

The battle was about to begin.