By his reckoning, it was nearly time for his scheduled fight with Lei Long.
Seeing this, Yu Tianheng called Mu Qing over and said, "I've taught you the Martial Dao for three months. Overall, you've done well and haven't disappointed me."
"You've now reached the ninth level of the Skin Refining Realm, equivalent to a level 19 Soul Master. With your current strength, defeating a Soul Master of the same level wouldn't be difficult, provided your opponent doesn't use their First Soul Skill. But if they do, things will get a little troublesome."
"What should I do, then?" Mu Qing looked worried.
Yu Tianheng said, "Besides cultivation realms, the Martial Dao naturally has its own means of combat. I call them Martial Skills. They're similar to Soul Skills, but different, too. The biggest difference is that a martial artist must cultivate a Martial Skill before using it. However, there's no limit to how many Martial Skills one can learn. With enough dedication, one could theoretically cultivate dozens or even hundreds of them."
"Martial Skills come in different grades. From lowest to highest, they are low-grade, middle-grade, high-grade, and top-grade. There are even higher grades above those, but with your current strength, you can't master them yet, so there's no need for you to know about them."
"Next, I'll teach you a Martial Skill." With that, Yu Tianheng used the Soul Seizing secret technique, just as he had before, to transmit the Martial Skill directly into Mu Qing's mind.
The Martial Skill he taught this time was a middle-grade skill called Dragon Claw Hand. Yu Tianheng had cultivated it himself, and it was quite powerful. Once mastered, a single claw strike could tear through a tree or a rock without difficulty.
After a moment of disorientation, Mu Qing found the cultivation method for Dragon Claw Hand in his mind.
Overjoyed, he immediately cupped his fists and bowed to Yu Tianheng. "Thank you, Master!"
Yu Tianheng nodded slightly and instructed him, "I'll be away for a while. Cultivate diligently and don't slack off. Wait for me to return."
"Yes!" Mu Qing replied.
After leaving some money for Mu Qing and the others to live on, Yu Tianheng left the slums and rode a swift horse toward the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan.
Several days later, Yu Tianheng finally returned to the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan. His main purpose in coming back was to ask for money: a hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins to use as a wager.
When the clan members saw Yu Tianheng return, they came forward to greet him.
"Young clan leader."
"You're back, young clan leader."
Yu Tianheng nodded to each of them without stopping, striding toward the study where his father, Yu Xiaolong, was.
Yu Xiaolong was reviewing clan affairs in his study. When he saw his son enter, he put down the bamboo slip in his hand and looked up. "Tian Heng, why have you come back?"
Yu Tianheng strode up to Yu Xiaolong, his expression earnest. "Father, I have a favor to ask. I hope you can lend me five hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins."
Yu Xiaolong frowned, his gaze turning as sharp as an eagle's as he studied his son. "Five hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins? That's no small sum. What do you need so much money for?"
Yu Tianheng told Yu Xiaolong about his scheduled fight with Lei Long and the wager, explaining that he planned to seize the opportunity to bet on himself and make a killing.
After hearing him out, Yu Xiaolong's expression grew grave.
Even Heaven Dou City knew what had happened at Heaven Dou Royal Academy. As one of the Upper Three Sects, the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan naturally had its own channels of information and knew about it too.
As Yu Xiaolong saw it, the scheduled fight between Yu Tianheng and Lei Long was nothing more than a clash of pride between young Soul Masters, hardly a major matter. He himself had gotten into plenty of fights in his youth, so when he heard about it, he had merely smiled and paid it no further attention.
But he had never imagined that Yu Tianheng would play for such high stakes, starting with a wager of five hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins.
That was five hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins! It was worth the entire fortune of some minor nobles. Even a clan as wealthy and powerful as the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan couldn't spend so extravagantly.
After all, they weren't a rich sect like the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, able to spend money without batting an eye.
Seeing Yu Xiaolong hesitate, unable to decide,
Yu Tianheng said, "Father, I understand this isn't a small sum. But this fight concerns both my honor and the clan's. After all, I'm the young clan leader of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan. I'm confident I can win this fight and spread the clan's renown far and wide."
"That may be, but the clan's wealth belongs to all its members, not to me personally. I can't let you take it to show off your courage on a whim!" Yu Xiaolong said, troubled.
"I know!" Yu Tianheng promised. "Father, if I lose, I'm willing to accept any punishment the clan gives me. I'll also cultivate desperately and earn merits in the future to make the money back. Please trust me this once!"
Yu Xiaolong stared at Yu Tianheng for a long time, torn with indecision. In the end, he let out a long sigh and sat back down. "Very well, I'll give you the money. But remember, you must win this fight. You cannot lose. If you do, you'll be held fully responsible for both the clan's honor and these five hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins!"
Yu Tianheng nodded solemnly. "All right."
Yu Xiaolong then handed Yu Tianheng a purple-gold card containing five hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins.
After taking the purple-gold card, Yu Tianheng didn't linger. He immediately left the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan and traveled swiftly toward Heaven Dou Royal Academy.
Finally, after several days of rapid travel, Yu Tianheng arrived at Heaven Dou Royal Academy the day before the scheduled fight.
Upon arriving at the academy, Yu Tianheng immediately found Song Guan, handed him the purple-gold card containing five hundred thousand, and asked about the current state of the wager.
Song Guan said, "Brother Tian Heng, things aren't looking good for you. No one thinks you'll win, and they're all betting their money on Lei Long."
"The reason is simple. Lei Long has broken through the level 40 bottleneck for Soul Masters, raising his strength to another tier. Even without a fourth Soul Ring, he can deal with Soul Masters below level 40 with ease. Your talent is good, but you haven't cultivated for long enough. As those people see it, you're still no match for Lei Long."
After hearing this, Yu Tianheng wasn't angry. Instead, he was excited. He wished for as many people as possible to bet on Lei Long. The more people there were, the more Gold Soul Coins they would wager, and the more he would win by defeating Lei Long.
It looked like he was going to make a fortune this time!
Seeing how excited Yu Tianheng was, Song Guan cautioned him, "Brother Tian Heng, let me remind you: the money wagered on your fight with Lei Long has reached ten million Gold Soul Coins. If you win, everything will be fine, but if you lose, we'll suffer a crushing loss. We'll have to pay out at least tens of millions of Gold Soul Coins!"
"Are you really confident?" Song Guan looked worried. At this point, it was too late to back out, and they could only follow this path into the dark.
Yu Tianheng glanced at Song Guan and said coolly, "Lei Long is nothing but a clown hopping about. Never mind that he hasn't obtained his fourth Soul Ring. Even if he had, I'd still defeat him."