Chapter 158: Shizun's Wedding Wine

The wedding ceremony was held three days in a row. The first day was a welcoming banquet, held on the night before the wedding ceremony. As the name implies, it was meant to be a welcoming reception for the guests. However, the most lively part of the evening was not the tables, but the hunting grounds. According to the rules…

That evening, before sundown, a venerable elder would put three spirit deer in red silk into the garden, and the groom's father would select twenty-two unmarried men and women and send them out to the garden to chase the deer.

Three spirit deer, if the guests were able to hunt one, they would receive ten million gold coins. In the end, it was just a gimmick for Rufeng Sect and Guyue'ye sect.

The Shi Le Hall was a large hall, and looking down from the hall, one could see a hunting forest not far away shrouded in the afterglow of the setting sun.

The guests came in succession to greet Nangong Liu. Nangong Liu, regardless of whether they were high or low, politely returned their greetings and invited them to take their seats. They busied themselves for half an hour before all the guests took their seats.

The night banquet officially began.

"I wonder which guests Sect Leader Nangong will send to the forest garden to chase after the deer."

"Didn't you say to draw lots?"

"If you ask me, those who were chosen were all extremely lucky. Think about it, for the Spirit Deer, a bounty of ten million, other people who didn't have a Spirit Deer could also obtain other spirit beasts or immortal fruits. Is there anything better in the world?"

As the discussion was going on, the door of the hall suddenly opened and both Nangong Si and Song Qiutong walked up the balcony at the same time. Both of them came before the Sect Leader, the handsome man and the golden-red woman.

Nangong Liu stood up and smiled as he nodded, saying in a clear voice, "Esteemed guests, you come from all over the world. It is truly a great fortune you were able to visit the Rufeng Sect and attend my son's wedding."

The guests below all cupped their hands and said, "Sect Leader is really courteous."

"Young gongzi and young madam are a perfect match. Truly a rare pair."

"Yeah, yeah."

These flattering words were almost exactly the same as what his fans told him when he was married in his previous life. Mo Ran was annoyed by what he heard. His gaze subconsciously scanned the crowd and soon found Ye Wangxi, who was sitting beside Elder Shuanglin.

Ye Wangxi had his eyes downcast and was still dressed in simple attire. He was busy eating the food in the bowl and had not raised his head to look at Nangong Si at all.

His expression, his manner, everything was the same as usual, even calmer than usual, perhaps because he had been having a hard time all this time, and such a man already knew that he was powerless to fight for his life. Mo Ran looked at him and suddenly thought back to when he was young, he really liked lantern on sale at the night market.

The lantern was made in an exquisite manner. Every roof tile had been outlined, but the prices for the old artiste were not low. Thus, although the lantern was good, he could never buy it. Mo Ran naturally couldn't afford it, but almost every night, he would wait until the night market opened before running to the side of the stall to take a look.

However, one day, a young man and a young woman came to the scene. They were dressed in silk, and the young girl took a fancy to the lantern. She then gave the lantern to the man beside her with a coquettish expression.

The lantern was taken away. Mo Ran raised his head and watched as the old artist took it off the wooden shelf that had been hung for a long time. He handed it over to the girl, and the flickering light illuminated the face of Mo Ran.

At that time, Mo Ran felt very uncomfortable, but he was also very obedient and calm.

He was the same as the current Ye Wangxi. In fact, the moment he saw the lantern, he knew that such a luxurious item was destined not to belong to him. Every night when he were illuminated by the pagoda, the scene of him losing this ray of light had already been practiced countless times.

It wasn't something he could let go of, it was something he could be at ease with.

It was because from the beginning, he was very clear about what the outcome would be, so he had never dared to pick it up.

"Come, come, come, draw, draw —" The old servant of the Rufeng Sect held onto a bronze twined branch and walked to the seat of honor with a face full of smiles. He held it above his head and presented it to Nangong Liu, "Sect Leader, the time has come, please draw your lot, Sect Leader!"

"Good! Come! Sect Leader Nangong has come to capture one!"

Nangong Liu smiled and said, "Then we will do as you say. We will draw twenty-two lots and the young heroes that have been selected will have to show their respect and participate in the night deer hunting. If anyone is unwilling to go, I'll have to trouble you to inform me in advance. Thank you!"

After a while, there were a few girls from some small sects who had low cultivation bases and were too timid, so they asked their parents to go up and tell them their names, and had Sect Leader Nangong take their names away in advance.

Xu Shuanglin glanced at Ye Wangxi and lazily smiled, "Xiao Yezi, do you want to go play? If you want to go, I'll do it for you. Open a secret door."

"I'm not going." Ye Wangxi said, "Foster father, may I trouble you to inform the Sect Leader to remove my name?"

"How can we do that? What if we get lucky and get ten million gold?"

Ye Wangxi: "…"

Xu Shuanglin's personality was far more untamed than his adopted son. He thought for a while, his lips curling into a wry smile. "Then if you don't want to go, I'll go."

"Foster father… You are already in your forties this year…"

"Why, I look young. When I get all three deer back, I'll have thirty million gold. If we do not take the windfall, we shall destroy the heavens and the earth."

Xu Shuanglin was stubborn, not noticing his foster son's depression at all. He put on his shoes and went to find Nangong Liu with a smile. He whispered a few words beside Nangong Liu. The others would have thought that he was going to take away Ye Wangxi's lot. Who knew that he loved money so much that he wanted to go in and play with them himself?

Nangong Liu quickly picked out the guests for Zhulu.

"Shen Feng, Lin Sheng, Qu Yanran…"

Elder Shuanglin stood at the side and took the lot from the Sect Leader. He reported them one by one in a slow and unhurried manner, "Oh? This is a bit amazing, the proud son of heaven, Xue Meng."

Soon, all twenty-one people had been selected, leaving only one remaining. Elder Shuanglin was extremely thick-skinned and smiled as he raised his hand. "One more person is me. I'm old bones now. Please advise me." Nangong Liu knew his elder's personality and did not stop him. He only gave a helpless smile and gave everyone a fuse.

"Deerchaser, the fuse as evidence. After three messages, it means that all three Deer have been captured. The hunt will be over." Nangong Liu said, "At that time, we will personally welcome all of you back from the Moonhowl Courtyard. The winner will receive a reward of ten million gold."

Everyone applauded when they heard the commotion, cheering for their acquaintances.

Nangong Liu smiled and said, "In addition, under the instruction of my son, I will add another one. The person who gets first place will be rewarded with ten Demonic Wolves. Make a blood contract and bring it home!"

Demonic Wolf!

Even on the black market, such a precious spirit beast was hard to find, imagine ten of them!

The main hall was in an uproar, someone couldn't help but stand up and shout at his fellow sect members: "Senior Brother, it's up to you! If you take first place, I'll brush your boots for you for a year!"

The crowd burst into laughter.

A female cultivator was not convinced and shouted, "Senior brother, let's beat them all. If you win, I will agree to dual cultivate with you!"

"Waa— That's good. That's good. Hahaha, which girl is so spicy?"

For a moment, the entire Poetry Hall burst into cheers and laughter. Those who were initially uninterested had looks of anticipation in their eyes as they watched the grand show with glasses in hand.

Mo Ran left amidst laughter and said, "Shizun, I'll accompany Xue Meng to the hunting grounds. You sit and eat well, wait for me to come back."

Chu Wanning said, "Go on, pay attention to Xue Meng, he is too reckless."

"Alright."

Mo Ran walked down the brightly lit grand hall with the other 20 people. Chu Wanning watched the tall and straight stature of the young men and women disappear into the night, gulping down the red wine in his cup.

He felt that once he reached Sisheng Peak, he would have the money to build a spiritual energy stone path for himself in the cultivation world. He was confident in his disciple's abilities.

Thirty million gold was easily obtainable.

After entering the forest, before he could even send Xue Meng back, the first bright red firework exploded in the sky. Nangong Liu clicked his tongue in wonder and sighed, "Amazing, someone is hunting the first deer before I even finish my cup of tea. Who knows which disciple is it? Such courage is truly admirable!"

Li Wuxin from Bitan Manor sat beside Nangong Liu, and upon hearing that, he twirled his beard and laughed, "If everyone here is interested, why don't we make a bet? These twenty-two young talents, just who will die and who will win the prize money?

As everyone seconded him, twenty-two wooden sticks with names written on them were placed on the long table. Red silk was placed on the bottom, and those who wanted to bet quickly wrote down their chips and signed their names.

Xue Zhengyong turned around and whispered to Chu Wanning, "Why is the Bitan Manor giving out 50,000 credits? With so little money, is that Old Man Li very poor?"

"It's a small gamble, a big gamble that hurts the body," Chu Wanning replied.

Xue Zhengyong chuckled and asked Chu Wanning, "Then why don't we have some fun?"

Chu Wanning just stared at him, not saying a word. Xue Zhengyong felt goosebumps all over his body. He pulled back his neck and said, "Good, good, good. I know you don't like it, so—"

"What are you doing?" Elder Yuheng took off his money pouch and slammed it on the table, then said expressionlessly, "If you want to do it, then go on and harm your body."

"…"

Xue Zhengyong stared at him for a while as if he had seen a ghost. Then he asked, "How much do we bet?"

"Three hundred thousand."

"… So many? What happens if I lose?"

"We can't." Chu Wanning said, "Don't you want to cultivate spirit stones? If I gather more money, I can build a few more villages with especially heavy poverty-stricken people."

Xue Zhengyong: "You're really going? What if Xue Meng loses?"

"He won't lose, he is your son. You should know this better than I do."

"…"

Seeing that Xue Zhengyong was still worried, Chu Wanning said straightforwardly, "If you lose, so be it. If you win, so be it."

The names were all written on the paper, and the small sects who didn't want to bet felt their hearts itch. They couldn't help but spend a little bit of money to try their luck.

He stood up and was about to take a gamble when Song Qiutong called out to him. "Husband, why are you going as well?"

"I'll buy you some jewelry if I can earn some money."

Song Qiutong stopped talking. She lowered her head with her glossy face and a strand of black hair falling down her forehead. She looked especially shy and pitiful. Chu Wanning glanced in that direction and felt awkward seeing the newlywed couple's sweet expressions. He quickly turned his head back, so he didn't notice the faint trace of unease on Song Qiutong's face.

Suddenly, he heard a sharp sound behind him. In a split-second, his reaction was as quick as a lightning bolt, and he suddenly turned his body to the side, dodging the attack. A snow-white light flashed past his face, and then, "Bang!" With a loud sound, it struck the main pillar of the palace.

The powder scattered in all directions and entered into the three points of the tree!

"Who is it!"

"Assassins!"

"Watch out! They are blowing the martial law's entry!"

A sharp whistle sounded throughout all seventy-two manors, and just then, the singing hall that was filled with music suddenly became chaotic, and swords were pulled out in all directions.

Nangong Si's eyes were gloomy, a ruthless light could be seen flowing out of them. He suddenly wiped off the blood on his face and walked towards the pillar, lifting his head to take a look.

It was just an ordinary arrow, yet it was able to pierce deep into the hard Nan Mu.

Suddenly, his face greatly changed. His fingers clenched into a fist and he looked at the letter in disbelief. As he read the letter again, his entire body was trembling, and his fingertips had even punctured the letter.

"Qui, what's wrong?"

Nangong Si raised his head, his nose was wrinkled, and his face was ferocious, as if he had transformed into a leopard.

"This is simply a rumor!"

As he spoke, he prepared to destroy the letter.

But Nangong Liu was faster than him by a step. He raised his hand and used his spirit energy to trap his son, "Give me the letter."

"Father, you don't need to read it. It's just a piece of nonsense!"

However, Nangong Liu did not listen. Waving his hand, he got the letter from the paralyzed Nangong elder. He took the letter and scanned it, the color of his face turning extremely ugly in an instant. Before anyone could react, he had brought the letter into the fire and instantly burnt it into a greyish black, then laughed dryly, "My son's words are correct, it's really too absurd. I don't know who did this, but they made such a cheap joke, it's really…"

"What is it?"

Suddenly, a low and hoarse voice came from the corner of the eaves.

Everyone's expressions changed. Ye Wangxi drew his sword and stood in front of Nangong Si. Chu Wanning stood up and stared at where the voice came from.

One had to know that the Rufeng Sect hosted such a grand meeting. The disciples in charge of martial law were all senior disciples of their sect, yet this person had stealthily arrived at the top of the hall without anyone noticing. Moreover, no one noticed him when he spoke.

"Sect Leader Nangong, I kindly remind you not to let your son marry a woman with a lustful nature for no reason. Not only did you not listen, you even said that I am a fool. You truly opened my eyes."

Before he finished speaking, a shadow flashed past, and before the others could see clearly, he was already standing with his hands behind his back in the middle of the hall, in the middle of the crowd.

"AHHHHH!"

"Run, run!"

The people who were nearby instantly turned pale with fright. They fell down like the tide, scattering out a circle with no one around. The senior martial siblings protected the junior brothers and sisters, the Sect Leader protected the disciples, and the robust youths protected the younger ones.

The black clothed man wore a ferocious bronze mask and an ink-black cloak, and said indifferently: "Run away from what? If I wanted to hurt someone, this hall would have long been filled with blood. Just stand there."