Hearing this astronomical figure, the money-obsessed Tong Xiangyu nearly fainted once again, fortunately caught just in time by Bai Zhantang.
Realizing that going there as a large group would attract too much attention, they finally decided to send Tong Xiangyu alone to the gambling den to place a thirty-five-tael silver bet on Mo Xiaobei to win, with the winnings to be split evenly among everyone later.
Seeing Tong Xiangyu bet such a large sum on Mo Xiaobei, the people at the gambling house didn't suspect a thing; instead, they were utterly delighted. In their eyes, Tong Xiangyu was simply doing this to save face for Mo Xiaobei.
Besides, she ran such a large inn that thirty-five taels of silver meant nothing to her, and they even regretted that she hadn't bet more, little knowing that this very wager would bring them to bitter tears.
In the blink of an eye, the day of the match arrived. Mo Xiaobei and Yue Songtao stood on opposite sides of the arena, while the area below was surrounded by a dense crowd—nearly half the residents of Qixia Town had turned out.
With no other choice, while none of them cared who became the Martial Arts Alliance Leader, they certainly cared about money. They were now desperately eager to see Yue Songtao defeat his opponent in a single move so they could rush home and count their cash.
Many people here had already figured out how to spend their winnings; they only wondered if they would still be smiling shortly.
After exchanging formal bows, Mo Xiaobei and Yue Songtao began their exchange of blows. Ling Yuwei had spent the past two days teaching her a few basic pugilistic techniques, so the fight actually looked somewhat convincing—at least to laymen ignorant of martial arts, the two appeared locked in an intense struggle. To any true expert, however, it was obvious at a glance that Mo Xiaobei's moves were merely flashy and lacked any real lethal force.
With one fiercely determined to win and the other utterly set on losing, the two of them cooperated with remarkable tacit understanding. A quarter of an hour later, Yue Songtao deliberately seized a moment to fake being struck by Mo Xiaobei's palm force, flying backward through the air to bring the match to a close.
To be fair, Yue Songtao didn't have an easy time losing. Mo Xiaobei's palm force was far too weak to inflict any actual injury, so he ultimately had to use his own internal energy to propel himself backward. To make it look convincing, he even forced himself to cough up a mouthful of blood. One had to admit that the loser put far more effort into the act than Mo Xiaobei, the winner.
Yet all his efforts were not in vain. At least to the onlookers, it appeared that Mo Xiaobei had defeated Yue Songtao, won the tournament, and become the first Alliance Leader of the Five Sacred Mountains.
Seeing such an outcome, the crowd below collapsed into utter despair, especially the owner of the gambling den, who now felt like dying on the spot. This single bet had wiped him out down to his last undergarments.
While wails of sorrow filled the audience below, the stage above was a scene of unbridled joy. Tong Xiangyu hugged Xiaobei, dancing around in excitement, while the rest of the inn staff genuinely rejoiced for Mo Xiaobei.
Amidst this joyous atmosphere, Yue Songtao walked up to them and said, "Congratulations to Sect Leader Mo on winning this match—no, I should say Alliance Leader Mo. I never imagined that someone as young as Alliance Leader Mo could achieve such mastery in martial arts; Yue is truly in awe. I have no doubt that under Alliance Leader Mo's leadership, the Five Sacred Mountains Sword Sects will only grow stronger."
Listening to Yue Songtao's shameless flattery with a completely straight face, everyone else felt their mouths twitch uncontrollably, thinking to themselves how he could say such things with a straight face. Only Mo Xiaobei took it all to heart, feeling immensely pleased with herself and thinking she was simply extraordinary.
"The waves behind drive the waves ahead. Rest assured, I shall manage the Five Sacred Mountains Sword Sects properly!"
Instead of dampening her spirits, Yue Songtao offered a cascade of further compliments, which utterly delighted Mo Xiaobei until Tong Xiangyu finally stepped in to interrupt their mutual flattery.
"Sect Leader Yue, thank you for showing mercy and letting Xiaobei win."
"Not at all, not at all. Yue certainly didn't throw the match; Alliance Leader Mo simply earned this through her own prowess."
After exchanging a few more rounds of polite pleasantries with Tong Xiangyu, Yue Songtao took his leave. Once he was gone, Ling Yuwei and the others cheered and danced in a circle.
It was no wonder they were so thrilled. Not only had this tournament made Xiaobei the Alliance Leader of the Five Sacred Mountains, but each of them had also won several hundred taels of silver. How could they not be ecstatic?
With this, the tournament finally came to an end. That afternoon, Tong Xiangyu took Ling Yuwei and Bai Zhantang to the gambling den to collect their spoils. The faces of the gambling house staff turned green at the sight of Tong Xiangyu, and their hearts bled. They were now suffering tenfold the joy they had felt earlier—this truly was a cooked duck flying right out of their hands.
At first, the owner of the gambling den attempted to renege on the debt, but a single cold glare from Ling Yuwei and Bai Zhantang frightened him into backing down, forcing him to hand over the money honestly.
For convenience, Tong Xiangyu specifically instructed the gambling den owner to give her thirty-five hundred-tael banknotes. Finally, the three of them strode away in high spirits amidst the envious and jealous gazes of the crowd.
Upon returning to the inn, Tong Xiangyu closed the doors, gathered everyone around, and began distributing the money. The shares were simple to divide—five hundred taels for each person. After putting away her own and Xiaobei's portions, she handed the remaining money to Ling Yuwei and the others to divide among themselves.
Everyone was overjoyed upon receiving their money. Li Dazui grinned so widely that his mouth practically reached his ears; wanting to verify that this wasn't a dream, he even bit down hard on his arm, causing a sharp jolt of pain. Seeing Li Dazui's silly antics, everyone burst into laughter.
Watching everyone's happiness, Ling Yuwei genuinely rejoiced for them. With this sum of money, they would surely all be able to live a little more easily hereafter.
Especially Wushuang—with this money, she perhaps wouldn't have to toil as hard as before. No matter whom she might marry in the future, this wealth would serve as her foundation, sparing her from having to live with such caution and trepidation as she did now.
"Master, are you unhappy? Xiaohua feels like you're a bit sorrowful."
Hearing Xiaohua's voice, Ling Yuwei paused for a moment before replying, "Indeed, I am feeling quite sad right now."
"Why? Wasn't Master just very happy a moment ago? Why the sudden sorrow?"
"Because I am going to leave this place and leave everyone behind."
"You're leaving? Why? Weren't you very happy here?"
Hearing Xiaohua's puzzled tone, Ling Yuwei smiled and explained, "All my dearest friends are here, so of course I am happy staying here. But the original owner's wish was to become a peerless heroine of jianghu. Qixia Town is far too small to truly fulfill that aspiration. Therefore, I must leave this place so I can serve the imperial court, protect the common people, and become a genuinely revered heroine."
Xiaohua fell silent upon hearing this; it knew that what its master said was true and found itself unable to refute her.
Sensing Xiaohua's thoughts, Ling Yuwei smiled and said, "There is no banquet in this world that never ends. People are fundamentally solitary creatures; you needn't feel sad for me. At the very least, I still have wonderful memories, do I not?"
"Master, Xiaohua will always stay by your side."
Ling Yuwei smiled at those words. Indeed, she still had Xiaohua—how could she ever truly be alone?
At dinner that evening, Li Dazui proposed asking Tong Xiangyu to grant everyone a three-day holiday to go out and celebrate. Seeing the eager anticipation on everyone's faces, Tong Xiangyu didn't want to spoil the mood and readily agreed to the suggestion. Furthermore, she generously offered to treat everyone to a group trip to Guangyang Prefecture.
Upon hearing this, everyone cheered instantly, and Mo Xiaobei jumped up and down with excitement.
Ling Yuwei had originally intended to bring up her departure, but at that moment she didn't want to ruin everyone's good mood, so she decided to wait until after they returned from Guangyang Prefecture to speak of it. She never expected that upon her return, even before she could say a word, an entirely unexpected person would arrive.