(Today is the May Day holiday, so there will be four updates! Have a wonderful holiday, everyone!)
In the end, unable to resist the temptation, Li Huayuan agreed to the wager proposed by the Qingxu Sect's Daoist.
The two agreed to follow the same rules as last time: first, compare how many medicinal herbs their disciples gathered; next, compare their quality; and finally, count how many people emerged from the Forbidden Grounds alive!
Delight spread over the Daoist's face, and he reached out to seal the wager with a slap of their palms.
Smack!
Two palms met.
The Daoist had indeed struck someone's palm, but there was not a trace of happiness on his face. Instead, he looked ready to cry.
The palm he had struck was not Li Huayuan's outstretched hand, but another filthy hand that had appeared out of thin air.
That hand had materialized eerily between the two of them, covered in grease and grime. Who knew how long it had been since it was last washed?
The disciples of both sects, who had been watching their Core Formation Stage elders converse, stared at this uncanny sight in stunned disbelief.
Only Naruto raised an eyebrow. It reminded him of what happened when he used the Flying Thunder God Technique and the Mangekyou Sharingan's Kamui.
"Senior Qiong!"
The Daoist and Li Huayuan cried out together, their faces turning ashen.
"What do you mean, senior? I wouldn't presume to accept that title. I'm at the Core Formation Stage, just like you. I only reached it a few years earlier!"
A languid voice sounded between them, and then an oddly dressed man gradually appeared there.
He wore a blue robe with several patches and had short hair a few inches long. A green cloth bag, washed almost white, was tucked