Chapter 248 Betting on Stars
"Come here, everyone." Sun Zecheng called Nie Ying and the others over and pointed at the thirteen-leaf spiritual herb:
"This grass is called the Colorful Grass. It also has another name, the Demon-Luring Grass. When its leaves unfold, demon beasts will be lured to it, so it is called the Demon-Luring Grass."

"So when does it open?"

"It is said that only one leaf blooms every 100 years, but I don't know if it is true or not."

"But I called you here mainly because I want to tell you another secret about this colorful grass."

"This grass can be used to feed monsters and promote their reproduction."

"Then let's pick more and take them back to feed the white flying horse!" Chen Qiaoqian started picking excitedly, and Xin Ruyin also helped.

"This thing is for sale. The price is very cheap. It won't cost you more than 100 yuan to buy a big bag. You don't have to pick it yourself." Sun Zecheng said with a smile.

"Then, why didn't the monster eat it?" Nie Ying asked.

"It's mainly about the age. These are less than a hundred years old and the efficacy may be much worse, but I think it's enough to feed the first-level monsters in Spirit Beast Mountain. When we go back, we can buy ten or eight bags in Tianxing City and bring them back."

Speaking of vintage, I can't help but envy Han Erlangzi's cheating bottle.

The thousand-year-old elixir or various pills you take depend on the bottle.

The colorful grass that is used to feed strange insects and monsters relies on bottles.

Whether you are using the Golden Thunder Bamboo or the Xuantian Fairy Vine, you still rely on the bottle!
The women liked the beautiful scenery of the Red Coral Island and stayed there for two more days before returning to Tianxing City.

At this time, it was less than ten days away from the Star Picking Conference in Tianxing City.
The cultivators from the entire Chaos Star Sea were all heading to Tianxing City to join in the fun.

The number of monks maintaining order in the Star Palace has obviously increased, and there must be a white-robed Star Palace monk within a hundred feet.

Tianxing City was crowded and overcrowded, and the teahouses and inns were full.

There were monks everywhere who could not find inns and could only meditate and rest in the streets and alleys. As for the teahouses and guild halls, there were countless small-scale private trade fairs and exchanges going on.

Of course, these have nothing to do with Sun Zecheng and his people.

Speaking of residence, Sun Zecheng has a cave in Tianxing City.

Speaking of private exchange fairs, Sun Zecheng didn't know anyone except Hao Yuantian, and things at the level of Jindan could be bought in Xingbao Palace. Sun Zecheng's demand was for large quantities, not just one or two treasures.
Therefore, these had nothing to do with Sun Zecheng. Sun Zecheng and his companions went straight back to their residence and continued their group practice, doing whatever they wanted.

……

The much-anticipated Star-picking Conference will begin tomorrow.
The ring is located at the foot of the holy mountain.
Twenty arenas correspond to twenty-four outer islands.

The first thing to do is the qualifying round to decide who is eligible to challenge.

In order to make the competition more interesting, Xinggong stipulated that the group of contestants with the lowest cultivation level among the registered contestants would go on stage first.

This is done to prevent many people from realizing they are no match for the strong players and retreating temporarily, causing the star-picking competition to become a dull occasion.

On a huge bulletin board on the side of the ring with "Silver Shark Island" written on it, Sun Zecheng and Hao Yuantian were looking for their ranking order of appearance.

As expected, the combination of Hao Yuantian in the middle stage of Jindan, Sun Zecheng in the early stage of Jindan, and Dong Xuaner in the early stage of Jindan became the first players to take the stage.

The opponents are one in the middle Jindan stage and three in the early Jindan stage.

In theory, the combination of Hao Yuantian, Sun Zecheng and Xuan'er has the same cultivation level as the master of Kuixing Island.

Who would have thought that they would be the group with the lowest cultivation level in the battle to seize Silver Shark Island!
Could it be that the secret of the spiritual stones on Biling Island has been known to others?

However, Sun Zecheng immediately denied this speculation.

If there really is news about a spirit stone mine, the one who will come is at the Nascent Soul stage rather than the late Golden Core stage.

After all, the Chaos Star Sea has no shortage of monster resources, but it is very short of spirit stones.

It is probably because Silver Shark Island is on the edge of the open sea, with abundant monster resources and convenient hunting, so it attracts some desperate criminals.

After reading the order of appearance, Sun Zecheng returned to the inn where Hao Yuantian rented. He gave Hao Yuantian twenty intermediate talismans and six advanced talismans.

This touched Hao Yuantian deeply.

All twenty intermediate talismans were made from the skin of a sixth-level glazed beast and commissioned to Wanmiao Temple. They are all defensive shields.

Although it is an intermediate talisman, there is a big difference between the intermediate talisman made from the skin of a sixth-level monster and the intermediate talisman made from the skin of a fifth-level monster.

"The protective shield created by this talisman cannot be broken in one or two strokes, even if one is in the late Jindan stage." Sun Zecheng relayed Cang Songzi's original words to Hao Yuantian.

"That's great!" Hao Yuantian said excitedly.
With this talisman, there is still a chance for me to fight against a late Jindan cultivator.

"Don't save it. Put on the shield when you go on the field. This way you can save mana and attack with all your strength."

"After you take over the island, I will give you a high-level talisman to guard the island."

"Hao will follow the lead of Brother Sun!" Hao Yuantian said hurriedly.

"Okay!" Sun Zecheng nodded: "I'm going to place a bet on myself to win, where's Brother Hao?"

"Hao is going too."

……

Whenever there is a fight in the ring, there is always a shortage of betting odds.

Gambling is a very profitable business.
However, gambling is the most likely to cause various problems and troubles.
Like manipulating the results, like the dealer running away after losing, etc.
Therefore, Xinggong stipulated that only Xinggong was allowed to accept bets on the Star Picking Conference.

Sun Zecheng and his companions came to the betting station of Xinggong.

The betting point of Xinggong is located in Xingbao Hall.

When Sun Zecheng arrived, it was naturally Manager Ling who received him personally.

"Manager Ling, we want to place a bet. Are there any rules?" Sun Zecheng went straight to the point.

"Brother Sun, do you want to place a bet? Let me introduce you." Shopkeeper Ling, dressed in white, was all smiles.

It turns out that Xinggong's betting odds are open and transparent.
Twenty-four large jade plaques more than ten feet high were erected outside the Star Palace, each plaque corresponding to an island.

"It's very simple, just buy whichever team you like."

"What about the odds?" In Sun Zecheng's impression, many gambling games have odds like this.

"Oh, the odds change at any time, there is no limit on the bets, the winner takes all."

After Manager Ling explained again, Sun Zecheng finally understood.

Winner takes all, which means the winner takes all the losers' bets, deducts Xinggong's 3% commission, and the rest is divided equally according to the betting ratio.

Xinggong makes its money from this 3% commission. Of course, Xinggong will also place a bet if it is particularly optimistic about something.

The total amount of money won by buying any group will be reflected in the announcement jade card in a timely and dynamic manner, making it clear at a glance.

To prevent match manipulation, betting is divided into stages.
Take betting on qualifying matches as an example.

The first stage is the blind betting before the game starts, which means that everyone places bets before they know the strength of each team. It is a blind guess.

The deadline is tomorrow morning, which is 15 minutes before the start of the game.

When the time comes, the market will be closed and no more orders will be accepted.

At this stage the bets and odds are fixed.

The second stage is from the start of the game to the halfway point of the game.

At this time, all the registered teams have appeared, and everyone can tell which group of players is stronger by observing their performance in the ring.

The qualifying round is currently open, and the island finals will be opened separately.

Sun Zecheng quickly figured out this gambling method. Now there was only one last question, "Can I buy myself?" Sun Zecheng asked Ling.

"Sure, there's no restriction on who can buy it."

"Fellow Daoist Sun also signed up to seize the island?" Shopkeeper Ling asked in surprise.

Sun Zecheng pointed to the jade announcement plaque of Silver Shark Island, and only then did Manager Ling see Sun Zecheng's name behind Hao Yuantian.

"Excuse me, I'm sorry. It turns out that Fellow Daoist Sun is a Jindan senior."

"Manager Ling, you are too polite. I, Sun, have just formed a pill not long ago."

Not wanting to dwell on this topic, Sun Zecheng asked, "Do I need to come to the Star Palace to see the bets?"

"Oh, no need. We have special jade pendants in Xingbao Palace. They are for Daoists who place large bets to keep abreast of the betting market. They are 100 yuan each. Ling will give two to Daoist Sun."

Shopkeeper Ling took out two small jade pendants. The jade pendants were square, about an inch in size, and a bit like a mirror, with one side smooth and shiny.
Shopkeeper Ling cast a spell into it, and it became one foot in size, a miniature jade notice.
"Silver Shark Island?" Shopkeeper Ling asked

"Yeah." Sun Zecheng nodded.

Shopkeeper Ling cast another spell, displaying the betting situation on Silver Shark Island.

There are 19 teams trying to capture Silver Shark Island.

Currently, most of the funds are placed on two teams.
One team is composed of two late Jindan and one middle Jindan. The names they gave are obviously pseudonyms. They are called Shark Boss, Shark No. 2, and Shark No. 3.

The other team consists of one late Jindan, three middle Jindan and one early Jindan. The name of this team is normal, and the five people are named Zhang, Yu, Le, Xu and Li.

Each of these two groups has more than 10,000 spirit stones on bet.

Apart from this, there are very few other teams, with only a few hundred or so.

Hao Yuantian and his grandson were the worst off, currently they only had one spiritual stone.
I don't know which smart person is speculating.

After all, no one is betting, so he throws a spirit stone. If Hao Yuantian wins in the end, his one spirit stone can be used to cover all the other bets, which is about 20,000 to 30,000 yuan at the moment, a standard profit of ten thousand times the investment!
"Haha, someone actually wants to steal our chicken and put a spiritual stone on us!"

Sun Zecheng saw it and laughed.

"Come on, Shopkeeper Ling, first bet me three million to buy the group of Hao Yuantian, Sun Zecheng, and Dong Xuaner."

"Okay!" Shopkeeper Ling took the order quickly.

On the billboard, Hao Yuantian's group instantly became a big hit!

Hao Yuantian was stunned. He had thought that Sun Zecheng was very rich, but he was still dumbfounded by the fact that he casually spent three million.

"Friend Hao, it's your turn." Sun Zecheng said to Hao Yuantian after he finished playing.

"Well, I won't bet the ten thousandth time." Hao Yuantian smiled awkwardly.

"?" Sun Zecheng looked at Hao Yuantian in confusion.

"There are less than 1 bets on Silver Shark Island in total. You bet million, and now the odds are less than to . He bet , but he can't win yuan, so naturally he doesn't want to bet anymore."

Shopkeeper Ling explained in a considerate manner.

"No, no, no, you can't think like that. We bet three million, and when others see the odds, a weak team bet three million! There must be a lot of people who want to take advantage of this three million."

"Silver Shark Island will soon become a hot spot of attention. By then, most of the funds will come to Silver Shark Island to gamble!"

"Similar to fishing and hunting?" Hao Yuantian instantly remembered the scene where Sun Zecheng rushed into the group of fish monsters, angered them, and then hunted them in large numbers.

"That's right! It's fishing and hunting, and the three million is the bait." Sun Zecheng said with a smile.

"Friend Hao, listen to me. The profits are the highest in the first stage. As the situation becomes clearer, the profits become thinner. The less capital you have, the earlier you should place your bets."

"Okay! I believe you!" Hao Yuantian gritted his teeth and took out 20,000 yuan: "Manager Ling, bet all of it on the group of Hao Yuantian, Sun Zecheng, and Dong Xuaner."

"Manager Ling, we have been friends for many years. I suggest you follow my lead and place a bet. I promise I won't cheat you!"

"Thank you, Brother Sun, for your care." Shopkeeper Ling smiled but didn't say whether he wanted to follow the bet or not.

"There is no need to keep secret the news that I bet on myself to win." Sun Zecheng said to Shopkeeper Ling.

"Okay, thank you!" Shopkeeper Ling said with a smile, which meant that he had Sun Zecheng's permission to sell the news!
……

"Fuck! The betting odds for the Silver Shark Island qualifiers show that a humble team has been bet on a huge sum of three million!"

All the major forces gathered in Tianxing City, and the big gamblers were excited when they saw the information in the jade pendant in their hands.

Who is Hao Yuantian?
Someone with inside information soon found out about Hao Yuantian's situation:

Hao Yuantian has been hunting on Ningcui Island for a long time. He is a warm and hospitable person. He is a good hunter with cultivation level in the middle stage of Jindan. He is good at hunting monsters and often goes to Fan Xiaozi's purchasing point on Ningcui Island to sell monsters and monster pills. He is quite famous on Ningcui Island. He doesn't know the other two, Sun Zecheng and Dong Xuan'er, but it is said that they got acquainted with Hao Yuantian when they were hunting monster pills on Ningcui Island.

Such a big bet is no small matter. The major forces further investigated and the news became more detailed:
It is said that this Sun Zecheng and Dong Xuan'er are the owners of a magnificent beast carriage pulled by four white flying horses in Tianxing City. They are surrounded by many beautiful women and are quite wealthy. Their origins are unknown, but they are not the descendants of the known old monsters in Chaos Star Sea. They were in the foundation-building stage before, and the golden elixir was only recently.

Soon, the bribed Xinggong monks learned that the person who placed the three million bet was Sun Zecheng himself!
A combination of information: a rich man had just broken through to the Golden Core stage, and out of overconfidence, he placed a huge bet on himself!
The blind betting in the first stage, which was originally quiet, suddenly became lively.

The bets started to increase. The shark brothers and the five-man team placed bets of a few hundred yuan each. The bets of the two groups soon rose to around thirty thousand yuan.

The five-person group has more, 32,000.
The three shark brothers have a little less, but there are still 29,000.

At this moment, suddenly, the three shark brothers and the five-man combination raised the bet at the same time!

Each side increased by ten thousand!
Obviously, a smart person appeared and knew that there was no way to know which of the two groups would eventually get the right to challenge, so he simply bought both groups!

If any one of them wins, it will correspond to more than three million in bets, and nearly a quarter of the proportion can be divided into seven or eight hundred thousand!
Of course there won't be just one smart person.
Everyone can do the math.
"Shopkeeper Ling, the three Shark brothers and the five-man group will buy 50,000 each. Every other group, except Hao Yuantian, will buy 500 each!" said a Jindan elder wearing the uniform of the Six-Link Palace.

This is to buy all the members of the group except Hao Yuantian, Sun Zecheng and Dong Xuaner, to prevent any accidents.

……

Silver Shark Island quickly became a hot spot before the start of the game.

Various large and small bets also came in,

Soon, the bets on the three shark brothers and the five-member group exceeded 100,000 and were still rising.

quickly,

two hundred thousand,
Three hundred thousand,
Five hundred thousand,
……

The next day, when Sun Zecheng woke up, he saw that the five-member group had bet more than 1.5 million, and the three shark brothers had also bet 1.2 million.

Including other combinations, except Sun Zecheng's spirit stones, there are more than three million spirit stones pressed on Silver Shark Island.

It’s okay, Sun Zecheng is in a good mood.

When we arrived under the arena, Hao Yuantian had already arrived and was meditating in the tent specially prepared for the competition teams.

Have a little chat,

There is still a quarter of an hour left until the Mao hour, which means the market will be closed in a quarter of an hour.

Chen Qiaoqian, who was holding a jade pendant and watching the bets, suddenly shouted, "Wow!"

Sun Zecheng and the others looked at Chen Qiaoqian.
"Just now, the bet amount on the three shark brothers increased by five million!"

Chen Qiaoqian explained.

Three million is not a small sum. To suddenly get it like this is definitely not an uncertain gamble, but a reflection of Sun Zecheng's extreme confidence in himself!
It seems that there are other powerful forces behind these three shark brothers!

(End of this chapter)