Free Web NovelChapter 188: Chapter 188: The Prizes
Although she didn’t know the specific reason, Zhang Jiu Yi’s loss had been too suspicious. The only reasonable explanation was that he, too, had been deliberately trying to avoid first place.
The two of them, unaware of each other’s thoughts, were both putting on an act. But due to a moment of carelessness from Lu Sangjiu, she was the first to reveal her intentions.
Then, she got greedy and tried to make her act even more perfect. And so... Zhang Jiu Yi seized the opportunity and ruthlessly surpassed her.
Before she could even react, he’d completely outplayed her, and she dazedly found herself in first place!
Lu Sangjiu wanted to cry but couldn’t shed a tear. What was done was done. No matter how unhappy she was, she had to face this outcome.
Her eyes met Xie Ningyuan’s in the audience, and Lu Sangjiu managed a smile that looked worse than crying.
Xie Ningyuan raised an eyebrow. While he too found the result rather exasperating, his priority right now was to console her.
He sent a voice transmission to Lu Sangjiu. "It’s alright. Even though you got first place, those old foxes aren’t so easily fooled. They must have all seen that something was off with this match. What you’re worried about won’t happen."
"The level of skill you two showed... forget the finals, it wouldn’t even qualify for the top ten."
"If only you were faking, you might have been able to get away with it. But with both of you doing it, it was just too obvious."
Lu Sangjiu thought so too, but no one seemed to mind.
Even when she was led onto the stage for the award ceremony, no one from the Gold and Silver Gate raised any objections about the match.
It was Lu Sangjiu, however, who couldn’t contain her curiosity. As Zhang Jiu Yi came on stage to accept the second-place prize, she secretly sent him a voice transmission. "Why?"
She didn’t need to say more; Zhang Jiu Yi naturally knew what she was asking.
He shot her an apologetic look and replied via voice transmission, "My apologies, Fellow Daoist Lu. I also needed the prize for second place, so I had to resort to such a measure."
Lu Sangjiu: "..."
Hearing his explanation, Lu Sangjiu realized that Zhang Jiu Yi had mistakenly thought she wanted second place and was also after its prize.
’But... I don’t even know what the prize for second place is, okay?!’
The information she’d bought from Xiang Qian had been very vague about the prizes.
It only said that the first-place prize was one custom-made top-grade magic treasure crafted by a Gold and Silver Gate Artifact Refining Master. Second place was a single Fifth-rank Elixir refined by the Gold and Silver Gate. Third place was a Low Grade Array set.
’How was I supposed to know what that Fifth-rank Elixir specifically was?’
Of course, the prizes were handed out soon enough, and Lu Sangjiu found out.
What she received was another Magic Treasure Creation Coupon. This meant that if she wanted a top-grade magic treasure crafted, she still had to provide the materials herself; the Gold and Silver Gate would only supply the labor.
Getting something for nothing—the Gold and Silver Gate were true masters of the craft!
In contrast, the second and third-place prizes were actual, finished products. If it weren’t for their slightly lower grade, they would have been far better than the first-place prize.
When the prize was awarded to Zhang Jiu Yi, Lu Sangjiu, out of curiosity, paid close attention and discovered that the Fifth-rank Elixir was actually a Fire Bomb Pill.
This elixir was unlike ordinary Elixir Pills; it was a rare type of offensive pill.
Of course, "rare" didn’t mean "priceless." On the contrary, since its offensive effect only activated upon being consumed, it was quite a useless item.
No wonder the Gold and Silver Gate was willing to offer a finished product as a prize. It turned out the thing itself wasn’t worth much money. The name "Fifth-grade Elixir" just sounded impressive.
Lu Sangjiu could guess why Zhang Jiu Yi wanted it, though. It was most likely for his Flame Beast.
A human couldn’t withstand consuming the Fire Bomb Pill, but if that mutated Flame Beast ate it, it could absorb power from it—as long as its body could endure the resulting damage.
The item was practically tailor-made for Zhang Jiu Yi.
Now that Lu Sangjiu understood the truth, all she could do was chalk it up to bad luck.
’But on second thought,’ she mused, ’even though I took first place, all the High-level cultivators present must have seen *how* I won. That doesn’t conflict with my original plan.’
’Plus, I got a creation coupon for a top-grade magic treasure. If my Six-sided Exquisite Dice is upgraded into a top-grade magic treasure, I’ll save a huge amount of money. So it’s... not so bad?’
Lu Sangjiu’s mind wandered with these thoughts as she went through the award ceremony, at the end of which she received a one-time-use token for entering the Sword Tomb.
"Everyone, return and rest. In three days, the top three from the Foundation Establishment Group and the Golden Core Group, along with the lucky cultivators, will gather here. I will personally lead you all to the Gold and Silver Gate’s Sword Tomb."
"At that time, you will all have one hour to enter the Sword Tomb and choose a sword. Be sure to maintain your peak condition, as that will give you the best chance of being acknowledged by a Spirit Sword within. Understood?"
Lu Sangjiu and the others nodded in acknowledgment. With that, the Sword Seizing Conference officially came to a close.
After stepping down from the stage, Lu Sangjiu walked over to Xie Ningyuan. "Let’s go... Come with me to see Master Wei at the Gold and Silver Gate."
’I can’t let this new Artifact Refining Coupon go to waste,’ she thought. ’I’ll go check on the modifications to the Six-sided Exquisite Dice. With so many good materials invested, it should be close to reaching top-grade, right?’
Xie Ningyuan didn’t say much, simply following beside her as they left the venue.
Once they were alone, he asked out of curiosity, "What were you saying to Zhang Jiu Yi on stage?"
Lu Sangjiu was taken aback. "How did you know I was talking to him?"
"I could tell from your expression. Hmm... that look of dawning realization mixed with exasperation."
Lu Sangjiu: "..."
She explained what had happened to Xie Ningyuan. He stroked his chin. "Now that you mention it, that really is fate... I can’t tell if your luck is good or bad."
Lu Sangjiu waved her hand dismissively. "Don’t even start. ’Good luck’ and I are complete strangers!"
She figured the damned Heavenly Dao was probably trying to screw her over. But as it happened, everyone’s acting was so subpar that even though she won, it wasn’t a spectacular victory, so she still didn’t arouse any suspicion or fear.
The two continued talking as they arrived at a courtyard halfway up the mountain of the Gold and Silver Gate.
Although Lu Sangjiu had been staying nearby recently, this was her first time visiting Wei Lingyun’s residence.
The moment Wei Lingyun saw her, he rose with a smile. "Congratulations, Lu, on winning the Foundation Establishment Group of the Sword Seizing Conference."
Lu Sangjiu returned the polite gesture. "Thank you, Senior. It was all just luck."
"I was wondering, Senior, how are the modifications to my Magic Treasure coming along? Is there a chance it could become a top-grade magic treasure?"
Wei Lingyun proudly stroked his beard. "But of course. Thanks to your high-quality Refining Materials, everything is progressing smoothly. You should be able to retrieve it in two days."
Lu Sangjiu was pleasantly surprised. "Really? Thank you so much, Senior!"
Wei Lingyun just gave a faint smile. "I take it you’ve come to use your new coupon?"
Lu Sangjiu nodded quickly and handed over the coupon for the top-grade magic treasure. "It seems you’re already confident, Senior. I’ll have to trouble you to continue, then!"
