Translator: CKtalon
“With the bull’s gait, it should arrive at the nearest city around seven or eight in the evening. If Zhou Wen doesn’t wish to sleep in the wilderness, the chances of him spending the night there is very high. It makes sense to guess seven,” Zhang Chunqiu said with a smile.
“I can’t compare to Brother Zhang’s clairvoyance. It’s just a random guess,” Xia Liuchuan said with a smile.
“Then I’ll make a random guess too. 7:01,” Zhang Chunqiu said in all seriousness.
“Since you are guessing 7:01. Then I’ll guess 6:59,” Dugu Ge added.
“Hey hey, aren’t you guys going overboard?” Xia Liuchuan said unhappily.
Zhang Chunqiu replied with a smile, “Actually, it’s too easy to guess the time. Why don’t we change what we are betting on?”
“What else can we guess other than time?” Xia Liuchuan couldn’t think of anything else.
“Let’s guess which city he’s taking that piece of wood to. What do you think?” Zhang Chunqiu said.
“Alright, let’s bet on that. I’ll let you guys guess first this time,” Xia Liuchuan said.
“There’s no need. Let’s write it on paper and open them together.” Zhang Chunqiu handed paper and pen to Xia Liuchuan and Dugu Ge.
The three of them gave their answers and opened them together.
After looking at each other’s answers, the three of them looked at each other in dismay. Among the three of them, two of them wrote the Imperial Capital, while Xia Liuchuan wrote the Capital.
However, the Imperial Capital and the Capital were basically the same. It was just that the locals of the Imperial Capital were more used to calling it the Capital.
“It looks like we can’t bet on this either.” Xia Liuchuan smiled.
“Why don’t we make it simpler? We’ll bet on whether he can reach the Imperial Capital alive,” Dugu Ge said.
“There are only two answers—yes or no. How are the three of us going to bet?” Xia Liuchuan said.
“That’s simple. Reaching the Imperial Capital alive, reaching the Imperial Capital after he’s dead, and not being able to reach the Imperial Capital. Isn’t that three options? The time limit is a month. What do you think?” Dugu Ge said.
“That makes sense. Who will choose first?” Xia Liuchuan looked at Dugu Ge.
“Since I was the one who suggested the rules, I’ll make the final choice,” Dugu Ge said.
Zhang Chunqiu wore a heavy expression as he did some calculations. After a while, he said, “If no one wants to snatch the option from me, I’ll choose the option that he reaches the Imperial Capital after he’s dead.”
“I won’t vie with you for that choice. I’ll choose the option that he reaches the Capital alive,” Xia Liuchuan said.
“Then the remaining choice is mine. I guess he won’t be able to reach the Imperial Capital,” Dugu Ge said.
“In that case, let’s travel together and follow him. Let’s see the outcome,” Zhang Chunqiu suggested.
“Fine with me.” Dugu Ge stood up.
The three of them left the cafe and chased after Zhou Wen.
Zhou Wen carried the wooden log and left the city. Although he was riding the Great Might Vajra Bull, he still needed to expend a lot of stamina to carry the wooden log. When he left the city, Zhou Wen’s forehead was already beading with sweat, and his clothes were drenched.
Helpless, Zhou Wen could only switch to the Ancient Sovereign Sutra and fuse with the Defy Ancient Sovereign Life Soul. With the augmentation of the powerful lifeforce, he could continue while carrying the log.
The Great Might Vajra Bull wasn’t having an easy time either. It slowed down significantly and its speed was nothing like usual. It ran like an old bull dragging a cart.
Not long after leaving the city and entering the mountains, the sky suddenly darkened. Dark clouds covered the sky as lightning bolts flashed like divine dragons. Occasionally, ferocious shadows would appear in the dark clouds.
Is it going to rain? Zhou Wen couldn’t help but frown when he heard the thunder. He stared at the thick, dark clouds.
Dugu Ge, Zhang Chunqiu, and Xia Liuchuan followed behind Zhou Wen from afar. They didn’t chase too closely. With Zhang Chunqiu, who was clairvoyant, there was no need to be afraid of losing him, nor did they need to get too close.
At that moment, they also saw the dark clouds and lightning that filled the sky. However, they weren’t as optimistic as Zhou Wen.
“Chunqiu, what do you think?” Xia Liuchuan stared at the dark clouds in the sky with a serious expression.
Zhang Chunqiu did a simple divination and said, “An ominous omen...”
“Don’t try to fool me with those charlatan methods. I want to hear the truth.” Xia Liuchuan interrupted Zhang Chunqiu.
“To be honest, a break-out creature is about to appear. Furthermore, it doesn’t look too weak. From the looks of it, you will be busy,” Zhang Chunqiu said with a smile.
Among the three of them, only Xia Liuchuan needed Zhou Wen to reach the capital alive to win the bet. He naturally wouldn’t let Zhou Wen die here. As long as he could win, Xia Liuchuan didn’t mind helping Zhou Wen.
As they spoke, Zhou Wen sped up, hoping to reach the city earlier.
Unfortunately, the log was too heavy. Even if the Great Might Vajra Bull ran with all its might, it couldn’t run fast.
Zhang Chunqiu pinched his fingers, divining as he walked. He looked around and suddenly, his expression changed as he shouted, “That’s not right!”
“What’s wrong?” Xia Liuchuan asked curiously.
Before Zhang Chunqiu could answer, he heard an explosion in the sky. A bolt of lightning descended from the sky and struck a nearby forest.
Strangely, when the lightning struck the forest, there were visible electric arcs. The forest that was enveloped by the lightning only flashed with lightning, but there was no fire.
And this was only the beginning. Large swaths of lightning kept striking the forest, covering all the plants with a layer of lightning. However, the plants didn’t die. Instead, they became more spirited.
“Thunder-trigram above, lake-trigram below. It’s Sister Return Lightning Pool. It looks like things aren’t looking good,” Zhang Chunqiu said as he did the calculations.
After spending some time with Zhang Chunqiu, Xia Liuchuan had a basic understanding of divination. Upon hearing that, he said, “I don’t think it’s a dangerous divination, right? I remember hearing you say that Sister Return Lightning Pool means that in order to obtain greater benefits, one needs to pay a certain price in exchange. It’s just like marrying off one’s sister.”
“Although what you said isn’t entirely correct, it’s not too far off. However...” Before Zhang Chunqiu could finish his sentence, he suddenly saw the plants that were covered in lightning seem to come alive. Their leaves and branches trembled as they shot out bolts of lightning.
Instantly, the criss-crossing lightning enveloped Xia Liuchuan and company.
This level of lightning naturally didn’t affect them much. Xia Liuchuan shattered the lightning with a wave of his hand.
Thunder boomed in the sky again. This time, the thunder was especially loud, causing the entire mountain range to tremble. And in the dark clouds in the sky, a ball of green lightning fell like a meteor.
Boom!
A large area of the forest was destroyed as a figure emitting lightning appeared in the ruins.