Chapter 2123 — Forfeit
The Blossom Guardian · Page 2 of 2
"Hmph. Fine, what if I give it to you?" Old Master Pi did not dare to cheat Wei Zhao of his due at this point. Old Master Pi was only an early Heaven Rank expert of the external school, and he knew he lacked the strength to challenge Wei Zhao. Originally, an early Heaven Rank of the external school, unless possessed of some special skill, could only match a peak late Earth Rank expert of the internal school one tier below. And even though the martial arts of Old Master Pi's family emphasized the divine fist, he could at best equal an early Heaven Rank expert of the internal school. But Wei Zhao had taken a full-power strike from an early Heaven Rank expert and emerged unharmed—Old Master Pi could not be sure of handling Wei Zhao, so he could only back down and honor the bet.
"Wonderful. Forfeit and still get a reward—not a bad deal at all!" Wei Zhao nodded in satisfaction, then nodded to You Panhu. "You all carry on with the alchemy contest. There's nothing more for me here..."
"I... forfeit as well..." You Panhu felt something was off. Seeing the contest rules, Wei Zhao seemed not in the least like a man who had been played for a fool, furious and humiliated—rather, he seemed to find it all perfectly natural, even to be gloating over it!
But You Panhu could not figure out where exactly the problem lay. And Old Master You, too, felt that something had gone wrong—only where, he could not yet work out.
With You Panhu declaring his withdrawal, there was naturally even less chance that anyone else could refine a tier-three elixir. Never mind these hidden families—even the ancient sects would find it well-nigh impossible to refine a tier-three elixir. This contest was, one might say, an impossible mission.
"Since everyone has forfeited, the contest is over. There is no victor. Will each family and sect please collect their stakes!" Old Master You announced.
Beaming, Wei Zhao took the body-tempering potion that Old Master You had sent for, along with the stakes he had wagered and now reclaimed, and departed cheerfully with Han Tianba and Han Xiaohu, leaving behind a crowd of people staring at one another.
"Grandfather, why does Wei Zhao look not the least bit sullen? He seems actually delighted by this outcome?" You Panhu could not shake the feeling that something was wrong.
"I feel the same. But that brat Wei Zhao is a cunning one—even if he were unhappy inside, he would never show it. His aim is to make the rest of us unhappy, so don't fall for it!" Old Master You said after a moment's thought.
"True enough. That brat is a master of playacting—otherwise he could never have swindled me out of both my elixir cauldrons!" You Panhu nodded.
"Old Master You, because of your one change to the rules, our hidden Pi family has lost a bottle of body-tempering potion. Surely this account can't be charged to us?" Old Master Pi said, rather displeased. He dared not wrestle with Wei Zhao, but he meant to seek compensation from Old Master You.
"It's only a bottle of body-tempering potion. No matter—I'll give you some ingredients later, guaranteed to be worth more than that potion!" The hidden You family had no shortage of spirit herbs, so Old Master You spoke with full confidence. And since it was indeed because of them that Wei Zhao had forfeited, he was generous enough.