The outcome of the duel was obvious: Yang Haoyu was dead, and Zou Feng had won.
The vast majority of the audience had placed bets, and as one would expect, most had wagered on Yang Haoyu to win.
So while they were surprised by this outcome, most were more distressed by the loss of their Immortal Fate.
After all, which of the Outer Disciples would dare say they had enough Immortal Fate?
In an instant, a torrent of curses and denunciations rained down on Yang Haoyu.
"Trash! You couldnât even beat a Martial Artist whoâs only been in the Immortal Sect for a few days! And you spent all your time acting so high and mighty. Ptooey!"
"And I actually thought that piece of trash was something special. No reason he should have lost to a Martial Artist from the Outer Realm..."
It was a classic case of kicking a man when heâs down, but Yang Haoyuâs usual conduct had certainly earned him the resentment of many.
However, even as they cursed Yang Haoyu, they certainly werenât going to look kindly on Zou Feng.
On the contrary, while killing Yang Haoyu seemed like a show of forceâa powerful response to being exploited upon joining the Sectâthe problem was... hadnât he just deeply offended the Purple Cloud Association?
The tallest tree attracts the wind. Even if he didnât understand the value of forbearance, there were surely safer ways to handle the situation...
And what of the Talent and strength Zou Feng had displayed?
Hundreds of thousands of new disciples joined the Pinnacle Celestial Immortal Sect every year. The one thing it never lacked was geniuses.
To put it another way, what kind of genius hadnât the Pinnacle Celestial Immortal Sect seen before?
Of course, the ones predicting Zou Fengâs downfall were mostly those who had lost money on the duel.
As for those who had taken a long shot and bet on Zou Feng, the more they looked at him, the more they felt he had the makings of a Great Emperor.
Su Qingyu and the rest of the original Biyou Palace crew were smiling so much their faces hurt.
Furthermore, since coming to an agreement with Zou Feng yesterday, Su Qingyu had deliberately refrained from washing her feet, waiting to give her former subordinate his âauthenticâ reward.
"Weâre rich, Brother Feng! Weâve struck it rich!" Teng County was the first to leap into Zou Fengâs arms, clinging to him like a sloth.
Although Zou Feng knew they had earned a decent amount, he wasnât particularly moved.
Including his own five points, the total wager had been 185 Immortal Fate.
At five-to-one odds, the payout was 925 Immortal Fate.
From that, Su Qingyuâs group, who had invested 100 Immortal Fate, would take 300.
Of course, this method of splitting the profits had been proposed by Zou Feng himself from the start.
Of the remaining 525 points, he would proportionally give Gongsun Jinghong 240 and Teng County 60.
In the end, what he could pocket with a clear conscience was just over 200 Immortal Fate.
Of course, since the two women were practically his, he could have temporarily requisitioned the funds heâd just given them without much issue.
But Zou Feng wouldnât do such a thing. Besides, there was no need for it at the moment.
And a little over 200 Immortal Fate was actually a considerable sum in the Outer Sect.
But in the context of the entire Pinnacle Celestial Immortal Sect, it was still just pocket change, nothing to be taken seriously.
Zou Feng never planned on staying in the Outer Sect for long, so his sights were already set on the Inner Sect.
Therefore, this amount of Immortal Fate was hardly enough to send him into a state of ecstasy.
He was even a little disappointed that he couldnât "loot" Yang Haoyuâs Immortal Fate.
But there was nothing to be done. Immortal Fate wasnât like Gold Coins; it only existed as data recorded on oneâs Token.
The databaseâs source was the Celestial Dao Cauldron, making it impossible to seize someoneâs Immortal Fate by killing them.
Some rejoiced while others mourned. Qiu Lan, who had been in a complete daze, now stood on the Dao Discussion Platform, staring blankly at Yang Haoyuâs corpse.
The sight of him bleeding from all seven orifices, his eyes wide open in death, was particularly horrific.
Qiu Lanâs feelings were a complicated mess.
On the one hand, her backer in the Outer Sect had just kicked the bucket, leaving her own future uncertain.
Having been so proactive in handling various matters for Yang Haoyu, she had certainly made her fair share of enemies...
On the other hand, with Yang Haoyuâs demise, Qiu Lan no longer had to worry about being forced to give herself to a man she didnât particularly respect.
At this thought, Qiu Lan instinctively glanced toward Zou Feng.
âSo Zou Feng was acting the whole time. He was certain he would win, which is why he put on that unhinged display, insisting on fighting Yang Haoyu on the Dao Discussion Platform.â
âIn contrast, Yang Haoyu had faced everything, from start to finish, with his usual arrogance...â
Qiu Lanâs analysis was correct. If Yang Haoyu hadnât underestimated his opponent and had treated Zou Feng as an equal from the beginning, he might have still lost, but he certainly wouldnât have given Zou Feng such an easy victory.
He might have even had a chance to surrender and save his own life.
But unfortunately, there were no "if onlys" now...
Over on his side, Zou Feng saw Su Qingyu gliding toward him, her feet practically twitching with eagerness. He quickly said, "Palace Master, not here! Too many people!"
Only then did Su Qingyu pull her half-extended foot back into the shroud of poisonous mist.
The poisonous mist surrounding Su Qingyu was much fainter than before.
This indicated that after coming to the Pinnacle Celestial Immortal Sect, she had gradually learned how to better control her Calamity Body with the help of the appropriate Daoist Arts.
Zhong Zhe, Liang Shunan, and other acquaintances from Biyou Palace came forward one by one to offer their congratulations, and Zou Feng responded to each of them politely.
After a round of pleasantries, Teng Countyâs delighted voice rang out again. "Itâs here!"
She was, of course, referring to the Immortal Fate they had won.
A gambling match like this couldnât be set up based on personal credit alone.
It was bound by a contract.
And the binding power of that contract came from the Celestial Dao Cauldron...
In short, backing out of the bet was impossible.
As soon as the Immortal Fate arrived, Teng County transferred all of it to Zou Feng.
Zou Feng immediately distributed the winnings, leaving everyone involved beaming with joy.