"If you hadn't intervened today, my Lin family would likely have perished!"
Lin Miaoke stated directly, "From now on, Mr. Lu is our Lin family's great benefactor. Our Lin family will be eternally grateful!"
Lu Fan shrugged his shoulders, a wry smile playing on his lips. He felt rather uncomfortable with such praise.
"Actually, you don't need to thank me!"
Lu Fan waved his hand. "If you hadn't guided me, I might not have known there was a path to Baishui City within the Qingyuan Mountain Range!"
"Regardless, it was Mr. Lu who helped me!"
Lin Miaoke said directly, "Does Mr. Lu require any further assistance? The Lin family is duty-bound!"
"Actually, I do have an impertinent request!"
With seriousness in his eyes, Lu Fan stated directly, "I wish for ten taels of silver. Would that be acceptable? If not, just pretend I didn't say anything!"
"Ten taels of silver?"
Uncle Biao's expression shifted slightly, and he immediately burst into laughter. "That's as easy as raising a hand. If Mr. Lu doesn't mind, I can produce it now!"
Uncle Biao directly produced a silver ingot and said, "With Mr. Lu's skills, no matter what he sets his mind to, he will be of great use. Let alone ten taels of silver, even a thousand or ten thousand taels would be trivial!"
Lu Fan accepted the ten taels of silver and then cupped his fists. "Thank you. These ten taels of silver are very important to me!"
"True cultivators don't seem to care for silver!"
Lin Miaoke commented, "Furthermore, in the cultivation world, the true currency is spirit stones. However, you seem to have a particular fondness for silver!"
"That is natural. I owe someone ten taels of silver!"
Lu Fan nodded. "Otherwise, I wouldn't be so concerned."
"So that's how it is!"
Lin Miaoke suddenly understood and didn't say more. It was no wonder Lu Fan had asked if the Lin family needed guards earlier; it was all for the sake of the silver.
After leaving the Qingyuan Mountain Range, they parted ways. Lu Fan, following the map's directions, headed towards Baishui City. Once he returned the silver, he planned to gain experience and also seek out Long Yi and the others.
He had no idea where Long Yi and his companions had gone, nor did he know how they were faring.
Baishui City was located at the northernmost tip of the Bailong Dynasty. It was merely a tiny corner of the dynasty, and many people didn't even know of its existence.
However, within Baishui City, carriages and horses flowed incessantly, and the influx of people was endless. There were many powerful individuals whom even Lu Fan could sense.
"Is this Baishui City?"
Lin Ke exclaimed, "I never would have guessed. It's quite imposing!"
"The cities in the Spirit Realm are indeed quite prosperous!"
Lu Fan nodded slightly. "Compared to our Earth, they are much better!"
"It's certainly much better than Earth!"
Lin Ke stated, "But in this Spirit Realm, the intent of slaughter is too heavy. I don't particularly like it!"
"It's alright. Once you recover your true form, we can return to Earth to live!"
Lu Fan smiled. "After all, we came to the Spirit Realm for a purpose!"
Lin Ke nodded slightly and didn't say anything more. In fact, he felt quite content just being hidden within the Tai Xu Sword, accompanying Lu Fan.
"The Five-Star Arena is about to begin its matches! Come quickly and place your bets!"
A shout rang out, and everyone in Baishui City hurried towards the arena, their speed astonishing, as if something grand was about to unfold.
At that very moment, on the arena not far away, stood two men. These men held weapons and were preparing for their duel. Below, many people were placing bets, their excitement fueled by spirit stones.
"What's going on here?"
Lu Fan stood to the side, quite curious.
"Young man, who do you think will win, the fat one or the skinny one?"
An elder asked, looking towards Lu Fan.
"It should be the skinny one!"
Lu Fan said, "Although he appears lean, his overall aura seems slightly stronger!"
"In that case, I'll place my bet on the skinny one this time!"
Saying that, the elder placed one hundred spirit stones, appearing quite bold. Spirit stones were quite precious in the Spirit Realm, and one hundred was a considerable amount.
"Old Zhao, are you sure about betting one hundred spirit stones?"
A man asked, "That fat guy is huge. Dealing with the skinny one would be like blowing away a feather. Everyone else is betting on him, yet you're going against the trend."
"I believe the skinny one will win!"
Old Zhao asserted confidently. "Besides, in this Five-Star Arena, fate is determined by life and death. Since I've placed my bet, there shouldn't be any issue."
The man didn't say much more. As Old Zhao put it, once a bet was placed, one had no right to interfere.
Lu Fan stood aside, observing silently. He realized then that the Five-Star Arena was merely like a casino, but one where the outcome depended on the combatants' strength.
Arenas like this were quite interesting. It was a pity Lu Fan had no spirit stones, otherwise, he would have joined in.
After a moment, the two on stage immediately engaged. Despite the fatty's apparent resilience, he was ultimately defeated, causing many outside the Five-Star Arena to cry out, with some suspecting foul play.
However, the rules of the Five-Star Arena were strict, and generally, they wouldn't engage in fraud.
"I won, I won!"
Old Zhao's face was beaming with joy, quite excited. This was all his savings, and now he had broken even, which made him feel quite pleased.
"Young man, your earlier advice was spot on. Otherwise, I would have lost everything!" Old Zhao said, taking out ten spirit stones. "Consider these ten spirit stones my reward!"
"I was just speaking casually!"
Lu Fan replied sheepishly, "I had no idea it would actually be correct!"
"Even if you said it casually, you helped me win these ten spirit stones, and you must accept them!"
Old Zhao said with a solemn expression. He was a man of integrity when it came to gambling and knew the importance of sharing with others.
"Then thank you!"
Lu Fan gave a shy smile and accepted the spirit stones. In this Spirit Realm, having a few spirit stones was not a bad thing.
After all, spirit stones were far more precious than gold and jewels. If he ever found himself without money to eat, he might be able to exchange these spirit stones.
"Excuse me, old sir, I'd like to inquire about the location of the Bai family in Baishui City?"
Lu Fan's expression was serious as he looked at the elder.
"It's right in the center of Baishui City!"
Old Zhao replied, "Why are you going to the Bai family? The Bai family is a prominent clan. Don't tell me you've taken a liking to their young lady? If so, there's no hope!"
"Of course not!"
Lu Fan chuckled sheepishly. "I'm just going to return money. I owe the Bai family's young lady ten taels of silver, and I dare not be negligent!"
"Would the Bai family care about ten taels of silver!"
Old Zhao waved his hand. "However, it's quite extraordinary that you were able to receive money from Miss Bai!"