Chapter 1074
Chapter 1074 - 160: Lucky One
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8 min read
"That’s great, although that Emcee was stubborn and wouldn’t admit it, at least the bet was acknowledged,"
Lu Ping’an’s "victory" seemed effortless, but in fact, it was the only possibility of "victory" amidst insurmountable odds.
Because he truly couldn’t defeat... Now, facing a Rule-level who had advanced far, a genuine Quasi-God prospect, there was no chance of victory.
If the opponent had a clear character flaw, or was arrogant and looked down on others, Lu Ping’an might still wager on a fight, to see if some killstreak could be effective... but his opponent was Fei’er, "the perfect person," who went all-out even when fighting rabbits as a lion.
Stall for time? Even if we don’t mention that the opponent might have mastered rules involving time, and that the ultimate deadline is mostly lies (ha, Contractor’s talk), even if we truly waited until that moment, it might be a Rule-level’s all-out burst for self-preservation... If Fei’er really fought desperately, Lu Ping’an could be instantly defeated.
Throwing her out of the Secret Realm, leaving this fight unresolved, was the best outcome Lu Ping’an calculated repeatedly.
"...you, truly have no possibility of killing her?"
"...All things are possible. But I do not expect such a future, I am not you, I have had enough of cleaning up your messes..."
This time, Lu Ping’an, too, was angered.
Why? Probably because of love... cough, it was likely due to his rare affection for Xiao Mu, and the subsequent interactions were going to be a big hassle.
Although the origin of this friendliness was also quite delicate, turning from two rare friends to suspected mortal enemies in just a few days, even Lu Ping’an felt frustrated by fate’s play and was somewhat annoyed.
"Why hasn’t she come back? Re-entering this Secret Realm should not stop her, right?"
"Fei’er, very cautious, has always been very cautious..."
This time, Lu Ping’an understood.
Clearly, the state Fei’er was in could be considered a "super move" in some sense, and such abilities naturally required extra expenditure, probably a lifesaving move, not something she could use consecutively.
So, since her identity was already exposed, Qian Xiaomu would naturally need to recover before changing back into Fei’er to return.
"...Don’t worry, she won’t let you go."
"Even though what you’re saying is true, Big Cat, at this moment, it seems better to say less."
With a twist of his mouth, Lu Ping’an snapped back at Big Cat, annoyance in his tone; he still needed to consider the major trouble at hand.
"However, this Martial Destiny is really extravagant..."
This time, in the assessment of the Secret Realm, Lu Ping’an again claimed victory.
And because of Lu Ping’an’s mid-fight tempering-level disadvantage, many who hadn’t placed bets bet on Fei’er at the last moment... Although earnings from mid-fight betting were drastically reduced, it was better than nothing.
Thus, the betting rate this time was terrifyingly high, and with more people losing everything, Lu Ping’an accumulated even more "Martial Destiny."
𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶
In fact, along the way, his judgements were almost entirely correct, and the vast Martial Destiny was constantly converted into actual enhancements to his combat power.
With the support of the enormous Martial Destiny, under the pressure of formidable opponents, he could continuously squeeze out his own "potential." That "Extinguish Void," he had practiced it in secret who knows how many times, without a single success.
Yet this time, his own powerful "Blessing of Good Luck" faced the opponent’s limitless "Bad Fortune," and he just happened to achieve a breakthrough, succeeding that one time... With this first successful "lucky" attempt, even though the several reproductions right after failed, mastering it completely was now just a matter of time.
"This is Martial Destiny, or rather, fate. The Son of Destiny is just so unreasonable..."
In this regard, Big Cat was quite persuasive, not only with her success stories, like her "dimensional sisters," each one being a destined talent with potential for growth and experiences that seemed as if they had activated cheats... She also possessed a profound "experience of failure."
The Ceremony of Martial Fight granted both sides Martial Destiny, continuously unleashing potential and advancing in actual combat, thus demonstrating the charm of the "Fighting" system.
And the victor would keep assimilating the Loser’s chips, marching on to the end.
"...Is Fei’er really that unlucky?" Lu Ping’an suddenly asked.
"What do you mean?"
"Look at her being thrown out by me, while she took on the extra Martial Destiny (from others’ bets, plundered from other competitors), it became my spoils of war, but more importantly, her own Rule-level Martial Destiny wasn’t taken away... Gan Qianyun also said that she took the Blessing of Good Luck that should’ve been lost to me."
The fighters, battling each other with the victor entitled to enhance their "luck" with the rare Divine Grace, originally, no matter whether Lu Ping’an or Fei’er won, the victor would receive this reward, yet now Fei’er took it directly... In reality, all the Divine Grace the Loser was stripped of was taken by her, and once she left the Secret Realm and returned, it was impossible to be stripped again; she had already made a killing.
"Look, she didn’t even lose the financial Luck she bet on... No, she is quite likely to become the biggest winner."
When Lu Ping’an heard about the contents of Fei’er’s bet, he could not understand for a long time... how could someone make such self-contradictory bets, and what’s more absurd is that she seemed to still have a chance to win.
Now looking back, Fei’er must have bet on her own victory, while Xiao Mu bet that Lu Ping’an would break through.
Now that Fei’er is out there, and this fight hasn’t concluded in time, she naturally hasn’t lost. And if Lu Ping’an truly breaks through, Qian Xiaomu naturally wins her bet.
"A self-contradictory bet that can’t lose doesn’t seem like bad luck. Perhaps, it’s not bad luck, but like her ability, a ’Balanced Fortune,’ which is both ’misfortune disguised as good luck’ and ’good luck disguised as misfortune,’ alternating turns."
Saying this, Lu Ping’an kept nodding, seemingly very confident in this guess.
Initially, Big Cat wanted to tell Lu Ping’an to stop guessing, claiming he knew Fei’er better than she did.
But she stopped mid-sentence, and thinking about it, it actually seemed probable, the more she thought about it, the more it made sense.
Fei’er’s initial situation was tragic, but in the end, she managed to avoid a series of potential crises... After a series of hardships, she now seems much stronger, and it’s a transformational breakthrough of a different caliber.
Her "coincidental" encounter with Lu Ping’an led to Lu’s "mercy," and it’s tough to say whether it was a good or bad thing.
"Forget it, let’s not speculate anymore. The more you dwell on destiny and prophecy, the more you take it seriously, the more it will trip you up."
Big Cat seemed to let it go, perhaps, forcibly so.
"Focus on strengthening as soon as possible. Having an extra day of recovery time is already a big win. Those who wish for your demise, none of them have forfeited, clearly indicating they still have something to rely on, and you’ve revealed too many of your cards already."
Lu Ping’an shrugged, acknowledging the truth in this, but from another perspective, he was far stronger than when he first entered the Secret Realm, and his improvement "overnight" would be quite considerable.
The reason for the extra night of rest was actually due to a "BUG" in the Secret Realm, not only the parts dismantled by Lu Ping’an but also because the original process was disrupted by the absence of Fei’er’s groundwork, causing a missing link... For the Secret Realm and the ceremony to proceed seamlessly is easy, but maintaining a stable progression with parts missing, to ensure the remaining battles remain a climax of the ceremony, required High-level forces’ upkeep, checks, and adjustments.
Obviously, this all required time, and given that Lu Ping’an was clearly not in the best shape, in order to make the forthcoming "matches" more thrilling, he was granted a night’s reprieve.
And a single night... for Lu Ping’an and his team, might equal three or four days of integration and progress, naturally yielding remarkable benefits, especially now as Lu Ping’an had just received the inspiration for Advancement and needed only time to refine it.
Even Lu Ping’an suspected that his overwhelming Martial Destiny might have caused such development of events...
"Alright then, regardless, power is the undisputed truth. The difference between fourth-tier Fighters, Fourth Order Runners, and third-tier peers on the same path is not a small matter. Rush to advance, and tomorrow, provide those killers who think they’ve seen through you and are nearly certain of victory, with a little unexpected surprise!"
— End of Chapter 1074 —