Why is my Hundred Lifetimes Book different?

"We won! We won again!"

"Hahaha, seventeen consecutive wins!"

"Bet! Keep betting! All in!"

Curious, I walked toward the nearest arena to the city gate. In the crowd, an old man with white hair shouted excitedly. His withered face was ruddy and he was extremely excited.

Someone nearby laughed and chimed in.

Some people beat their chests and stamped their feet, as if they had lost their parents.

In addition, the spectators in the arena were also drawn to this area.

The person in charge of accepting bets in the crowd was a female cultivator dressed in gold robes. The well-tailored fairy robes accentuated her exquisite curves, exuding a strong allure that attracted many covetous glances. However, no one dared to make any rash moves.

"Absolutely right!"

"This is a casino!"

"Sexy dealers have come out!"

Ren Qingshan was both amused and exasperated. It had to be a Foundation Establishment family; their background was astonishing, allowing them to open a place like this.

Beside it, on a jade tablet with a texture like white jade, information about this arena appeared.

[Fifth Arena]

[Victory: Xiao Wanjian, Great Perfection of the Second Level of Qi Refining, Sword Cultivator. Imprisoned in the Immortal Prison for failing to repay debts, serving a three-year sentence. Currently on a 17-game winning streak.]

[Current Odds: Next opponent to be determined]

Ren Qingshan: ?

His pupils contracted slightly, revealing a somewhat absurd and laughable expression.

The Great Perfection of the Second Level of Qi Refining?

Refusing to pay back debts?

How could these two seemingly unrelated short sentences be combined so aptly?

But upon further reflection, I understand.

Previously, when chatting with Fang Shouyi, a sword cultivator from Baiyang County, he mentioned that sword cultivators consume a huge amount of resources, and his master incurred a massive debt to the Immortal Sect. As a last resort, he chose to enter the Heavenly Ruins to seek a chance to get rich quickly, but unfortunately, he perished there.

Wealth, companionship, law, and land.

Money should always come first.

This Xiao Wanjian probably also borrowed money from the Immortal Sect and couldn't repay it, so he had no choice but to enter the Immortal Prison.

As for the current betting battle, it's easy to understand.

—Doesn't the Celestial Prison incur costs for keeping prisoners?

Why not bring them out, let them have a showdown, and generate some revenue? Wouldn't that be wonderful?

The main idea is to make the best use of everyone's talents and resources.

……

"Has this fellow Daoist just arrived?"

A clever and well-behaved boy approached Ren Qingshan with a grin and struck up a conversation.

"What is it?"

Offering unsolicited favors is either suspicious or presumptuous; Ren Qingshan, however, remained nonchalant and asked questions.

"Fellow Daoist, would you like some insider information?"

"Compiled over many years by a master cultivator at the ninth level of Qi Refining, this book covers information on all prisoners in the Immortal Prison, and includes hidden killing moves. It is detailed for each case and combines the prediction results of the Zhou Tian Liu Ren technique. One copy is priced at only one spirit."

The boy lowered his voice and spoke quickly.

"Guaranteed?"

Ren Qingshan smiled and played along.

"I dare not say it's guaranteed to be accurate, but it's at least 90% accurate. If you don't believe me, you can just buy the data and not the prediction. It's only 1,000 taels."

The boy smiled shrewdly.

Having done business here for a long time, I naturally won't speak too definitively, for fear of being ripped off.

He waited expectantly for a reply, but after a moment, he only heard the young master, accompanied by two beautiful maids, laugh and say, "Are you short-staffed here? Are you advertising for hire?"

"You introduced me to this job, and when I sell the products, you get a share."

"Or I can just sell them for you, and I only want half."

I'm new here, so I won't gamble for now.

Even if I wanted to play, I didn't have enough capital.

Selling shovels is a more secure way to make a living than panning for gold. There are many cultivators here, making it an ideal place for me to cultivate.

It's better to find a job first and then figure things out.

The boy paused slightly, seemingly conflicted, unable to quite grasp the situation.

Someone come along to steal my job!

But you can share it with yourself!

"No rush, think about it again, or ask your boss. I'm right here, easy to find."

Ren Qingshan didn't rush him. He wanted to see how things went first. Among so many cultivators, there might be more than just one selling insider information.

After saying goodbye to the boy who sold insider information, Ren Qingshan went to check out the other arenas.

The contestants fighting on the arena were all sinful cultivators, ranging from the lowest level of Qi Refining to the highest level of the third level of Qi Refining.

The charges were varied, but surprisingly, "debt" was the most common!

There are also charges such as "murder and robbery", "extortion of taxes", "colluding with evil cultivators", "seizing female cultivators", "raising henchmen", "stealing spirit mines", "neglecting duties" and so on.

It seems that being a guardian immortal master isn't so easy.

After all, there are law enforcement celestial envoys above, providing layer-by-layer supervision.

The Immortal Sect has astonishing control; those who dare to play with fire will generally not escape punishment.

As for...

Ren Qingshan guessed that the reason there were no sinful cultivators above the fourth level of Qi Refining was probably because they had entered the Heavenly Ruins.

After all, the threshold for Tianxu is the fourth level of Qi Refining.

Even if one becomes a sinful cultivator, there might still be opportunities to adventure and fight in the Heavenly Ruins. But once one enters the Immortal Prison, it's purely a ranking system, with battle after battle, as if one were in a gladiatorial arena.

There is another rule in this arena: if outside cultivators wish to hone their Dao techniques and combat skills, they may choose to enter the arena and compete with sinful cultivators.

However, it requires applying to the city and paying a considerable amount of spirit stones.

Ren Qingshan was particularly interested in this rule.

However, at the moment, I am short of money and need to carefully look for suitable candidates.

I've seen the ring.

Ren Qingshan entered the city.

The streets were bustling with activity, befitting the gambling city's character, with gambling dens and restaurants of all sizes, brothels and taverns, and crowds of people.

Seeing the signboard in front of the building called Yuxianlou (Desire Immortal Pavilion) clearly stating that female cultivators were available to entertain guests, Ren Qingshan took a deep breath and made up his mind.

This is it!

A perfect place for adventurous adventures!

We cultivators, when we are down on our luck, will surely venture into Zhenbei City!

……

Time flies.

More than a month has passed in the blink of an eye.

"Fellow Daoist, are you new here?"

"Would you like some inside information?"

Outside the city walls, below the arena, Ren Qingshan, dressed in a blue robe and a small hat, was selling his wares to a richly dressed cultivator.

There are three companies in this city that sell insider information, and all of them have intricate connections with the Liang family.

Ren Qingshan carefully counted the flow of people, observed other people's transaction volume, and learned about the intensity of competition among his peers. He also used some persuasive tactics and social skills to finally secure this small job.

There is no "base salary"; it all depends on commission.

For every item sold, I'll keep 10%.

They do have daily income, so they won't just sit around and do nothing.

The two maids, Linglong and Ruyi, volunteered to go out and do distribution, and they sold even better than they did themselves.

However, Ren Qingshan knew perfectly well that this was just a temporary measure, merely to make a living.

How could my ambition be limited to being a newspaper vendor?

He observed the cultivators in various arenas every day, studying their combat techniques while searching for his "destined one".

……

"We lost!"

"Xiao Wanjian actually lost!"

"Twenty times the odds!"

"My money! My spirit stones! The spirit stones I borrowed!"

"It's a cover-up! There's something fishy going on!"

"That piece of trash Xiao Wanjian is so weak! He's supposed to be a sword cultivator at the peak of the second level of Qi Refining, yet he was killed by a mere beginner at the second level of Qi Refining!"

This day.

In the fifth arena, Xiao Wanjian, a swordsman who had won thirty-seven consecutive matches, was defeated and killed.

Many cultivators who had placed heavy bets suffered a shattered Dao heart and nearly fainted.

Xiao Wanjian has an extremely high win rate, and during this period he has almost always made a profit, giving outsiders extremely strong confidence.

But unexpectedly, they suffered a crushing defeat today against an unknown nobody!

The sickle fell unexpectedly, reaping countless spirit stones.

Ren Qingshan witnessed the entire battle and was equally astonished.

Xiao Wanjian's opponent was named Zhou Rong, a frail-looking old man.

however……

Zhou Rong's methods were extremely strange and his speed was so fast that it was impossible to see him clearly. He killed Xiao Wanjian in a single move!

Such speed is unheard of for cultivators at the second level of Qi Refining!

Ren Qingshan paid special attention to his identity. The jade tablet showed that he was a sinful cultivator, and his crime was failing to repay his debts.

"Zhou Rong?"

"Either they possess an extremely rare spiritual root, or they possess a rare treasure!"

"In the long run, there will be no winners. It's also possible that the Liang family set up the scheme, fattening up the bookies for days before reaping the profits in one fell swoop..."

"Is this my destined one, or a trap?"

……

……