Chapter 1861: Alchemist Zi Cheng, having a knack for good business
However, when Sun Dong led Zhao Qingfeng and Lu Xianming to the first level, they discovered that Ling Han had once again entered into the Time Cultivation Chamber.
“It’s all right, this person must have come to participate in the martial arts tournament,” Zhao Qingfeng said with a slight smile. “With his strength, he would definitely be able to emerge victorious from the first level. Then, I will just wait for him in the final rounds.”
He bared his teeth, showing two rows of snow white teeth, but his expression was as bloodthirsty as a wild beast’s.
Those who were not familiar with him would only think he was cold, proud, and detached, but those who truly understood him would definitely shiver in fear of him.
That was because his favourite hobby was slaughter!
Among the Four Heavenly Kings under Yan Xianlu, he was the most bloodthirsty. In fact, when he had been contesting for treasures in an ancient site, he had once killed several Holy Sons and Holy Daughters. If it were not for the fact that the Eternal Prosperity Palace was an Eighth heaven Celestial King Tier-force, he would probably have long since been apprehended, and paid with his life for his crimes.
Killing prodigies was his greatest hobby.
Why did he not kill Bao Cheng then?
It was not because he was afraid of the laws of Alchemy City… of course, this was also one of the factors. After all, he had come for the sake of the Dao Regulating Pill. If he was thrown out, how would he report to Yan Xianlu?
With how wide the world was, the only one he truly respected was Yan Xianlu. Otherwise, with his natural talent, he could become a Holy Son in any great sect, so why did he have to become someone else’s subordinate?
More importantly, Bao Cheng and his group could no longer be considered prodigies in his eyes, and there was nothing fun about killing them.
One look from Ling Han was enough to scare Sun Dong to collapse; this had incited his interest.
If he encountered him in the tournament, then killing him would be all right, wouldn’t it?
He showed a grin filled with cruelty. Killing a prodigy would endlessly stimulate his Dao Heart. If Ling Han was strong enough, then he would be able to open the doors to the fifth severance through him.
Hopefully, Ling Han would not disappoint him.
***
Because Ling Han temporarily could not go to the second level, he first went to find out the details of the Dao Regulating Pill.
It was very simple. Register first, and then fight, fight, fight, fight. Only four people would be sent from the first level, and then the people who won from the four levels would battle again. Finally, the champion would be able to win this Dao Regulating Pill.
…No one from the fifth level would be participating. Those who lived there were all the supreme elites of Alchemy City or great alchemists.
Every time Alchemist Zi Cheng concocted some kind of precious alchemical pill, the final destination would be decided through these battles, no matter what grade it was.
A few million years ago, there were even a great many Ascending Origin Tiers contesting here. Furthermore, it was not only limited to Alchemy City. As long as one had come to register himself, he could participate in the contest.
…This alchemist had this fondness, and enjoyed watching cultivators beating each other black and blue for the alchemical pills.
However, because Alchemy City had the usual practice of sealing the levels whenever there was a tournament, the competition in the first level was the largest. Those who had come from all over the world could only register themselves here, and then charge out of the masses as the winners.
There were only four spots available, so it would definitely be a fierce battle among giants.
Ling Han first went to register himself. This was finished very quickly because the registration period had already started over a dozen days ago. And now, though there were still more people coming to register, the state was completely different from how congested it had once been.
The tournament would begin 11 days later, and since he still had time, Ling Han went again to the Time Cultivation Chamber. This time, he naturally only rented one for 10 days’ time. After acceleration, that would be 50 days, which was not a short period, and definitely could not be wasted.
Without a doubt, the attempts he had made throughout these 50 days had all ended in failure. However, Ling Han’s assurance had increased more and more. With another five years, he would definitely be able to concoct his first cauldron of Celestial pills.
Then, if there was a five-times acceleration rate, the time would be shortened to a single year. If there was a 10-times acceleration rate, he would only need half a year’s time. If the acceleration rate was even higher than that, this real time could be shortened even further.
When Ling Han came out of the cultivation chamber, there was only one day left before the great tournament would begin.
The Heavenly Phoenix Divine Maiden came out of the Black Tower. She wanted to cheer Ling Han on, and see how her beloved man was completely invincible, defeating prodigies of all kinds. Meanwhile, the Empress was still in seclusion as she was at a crucial time in her attempt to break through to the fourth severance.
The two of them then headed to the arena of the first level.
This arena was used for battle, and could be available for spars. It could also be used for battles between man and Demonic Beast, Divine Beast, or Immortal Beast. Of course, there would also be battles between beasts and team battles.
Not only was the area for battle in the arena huge, the spectators’ seats were also overwhelmingly large, and could accommodate 1,000,000 people. In the case of the last row, it would be like watching the battle from atop a mountain, and even the arena would be pitifully small.
Thankfully, cultivators had very good eyesight. This little distance would not affect them much.
To enter into the arena, one would first have to buy tickets. Furthermore, the ticket price would be different at different times. For example, for a tournament contest like this, the ticket price for merely one day was a single Star Stone, but one could also purchase a through ticket, and watch until the entire tournament ended. That would require a price of 10 Star Stones.
The through tickets were extremely popular because ordinary people would not have the right to go to the fourth level normally, but after they entered into the final rounds, all the tournament battles would be held on the fourth level, and buying this through ticket meant that they could go up. As for single tickets… they could not buy them at all.
It was said that this arena was backed by Alchemist Zi Cheng.
He indeed did not sell pills, but earned great profits through this kind of method. Furthermore, he could also watch the excitement, and play around with innumerable prodigies and elites as he liked.
Additionally, not only tickets, Alchemist Zi Cheng also had a share in the gambling house. Every time, it would seem as if he was giving out the alchemical pill for free, but this was equivalent to having innumerable prodigies and elites give a free “performance” for this pill. This could completely compensate for the loss of giving away the alchemical pill.
Who said that Alchemist Zi Cheng was someone with more money than sense?
Because Ling Han had registered his participation, he was exempted from paying for a ticket. Meanwhile, the Heavenly Phoenix Divine Maiden had bought a through ticket, and it had been bought for a high price from someone else at that. The official channels for selling tickets had long since gone out of stock.
“What a rip-off, actually wanting 100 Star Stones!” Ling Han gritted his teeth. Though he did have that amount of money, and was not too concerned about it, either, a ticket that was initially priced at 10 Star Stones was now sold for 100. He was being completely treated like a cash cow.
“It is probable that these peddlers are related to the official authorities. Otherwise, it is not possible that all the tickets are in their hands!” Ling Han said in displeasure. “They have earned 10 times the profit in an instant, what a good knack for business.”
He really wanted to meet this Alchemist Zi Cheng. He seemed to be out of the ordinary, but actually his whole person was all about money.
The Heavenly Phoenix Divine Maiden covered her mouth and laughed softly. Her shoulders quivered slightly, presenting an incredibly beautiful scene.
“Let’s go in. Watch as your husband shows his divine might,” Ling Han said with a smile, entering into the arena with an arm wrapped around the Heavenly Phoenix Divine Maiden.
To earn money—that had to be the case, the preliminary rounds would finish only after 10 days. Every extra day of battles would mean that they could sell another day’s worth of tickets, which was also why the through tickets were popular. Though the price that had to be paid in one go was quite high, if they could watch the whole tournament from beginning to end, the through tickets were really cheap.
Ling Han shook his head. The preliminary rounds clearly could be finished in a single day, yet they were forcefully divided into 10 days, and that was why the through ticket appeared to be “cheap”. Alchemist Zi Cheng was really a very good businessman.
He definitely had to meet this person, and ask for some lessons in doing business because if he wanted to improve his Divine Demon Sword to the level of Celestial Tool, it was unknown how much more Godly metal he still needed. It all needed to be bought!
There were really too many people that had registered. The battles of the first level had also been divided into 16 major rounds, and one person would emerge from each round. Then, they would continue battling until eight were left, and then until four were left. When there were only four left, that was enough; they could head to the fourth level for the finals.
But even if it was divided into 16 major rounds, there were still too many people. They could only be divided again. For example, Ling Han’s set had as many as 100 people.
“Hehe, this position for advancement belongs to me!” a young man dressed in black said arrogantly and despotically. “Those who do not wish to be wounded, just obediently scram. Otherwise, even if you were killed, you would deserve it.”
Beside him, 11 people shockingly drew their weapons, standing guard around him. They were clearly intending to crush any opponent with an advantage in numbers.