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nZhao Jishan and the others were absolutely furious, but there was nothing they could do.

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nWhat goes around comes around. Retribution came too soon.

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n“The amount of Immense Righteous Energy that the Source Consuming Pearl can contain is limited. Since we can’t hide, why don’t we let it devour as much as possible? After it exploded from absorbing too much, we will be safe,” Zhao Jishan said.

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nIt was the only way.

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nAfter discussing their countermeasures, at the start of the challenge tomorrow, they would all release their Immense Righteous Energy and destroy the Source Consuming Pearl .

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nThe atmosphere today was especially oppressive.

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nOf the Four Great Institutes, two had already lost all their battles. If the Dark Helianthus Institute lost again today, it would be a big humiliation for the Imperial Court.

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nWhen Xiao Ran and the other two arrived at the Dark Helianthus Institute, they proceeded to their perch on the roof.

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nShen Yiming said in a gloating tone, “A scholar from the Yin Incubation Institute has gone missing. They reported it to the Imperial Court and asked us to give them an explanation. His Majesty shot back at them, saying, “His own legs can take him anywhere he wants. How can we control him?”

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n“And then?” Little Zhou asked curiously.

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n“There’s no ‘and then’. They are on their own,” Shen Yiming replied gleefully.

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nRubbing his fingers together, looking visibly restless,

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nhe said, “Yesterday, I placed another bet of 100,000 taels in the black market on Dark Helianthus Institute. Do you think they can win?”

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n“My Lord, aren’t you out of money?” Little Zhou was puzzled.

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n“My secret stash!”

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nBoth Xiao Ran and Little Zhou were speechless.

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nThe battle had already begun. Xiao Ran took out the Source Consuming Pearl and began sucking up the Immense Righteous Energy of the Yin Incubation Institute again.

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nA tremendous wave of Immense Righteous Energy came rushing from several scholars and was absorbed by the Source Consuming Pearl.

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n“What’s happening?” Xiao Ran wondered.

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nHe activated his Spiritual Clarity Eye to scan over the crowd. A few scholars used their Immense Righteous Energy to block the suction power of the Source Consuming Pearl from their students, thereby protecting them.

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nMoreover,

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nthey even proactively release their own Immense Righteous Energy for the Source Consuming Pearl to devour.

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n“So they are trying to make my Source Consuming Pearl explode?” Xiao Ran smiled as the realization dawned on him.

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nIt was rare for others to be so kind. How could he let them down?

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nHe activated the Sanctifying Righteous Treasure Tome at full strength to absorb all their Immense Righteous Energy.

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nHe did not turn away anyone, but absorbed as much as he could.

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nZhao Jishan and the others observed this scene with an icy expression. When they saw that a few scholars were drenched in cold sweat and were about to collapse, their hearts froze with fear and their eyeballs almost popped out.

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nAll of them had developed such a dense concentration of Immense Righteous Energy. How could it be that they were struggling to remain standing in such a short time?

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nBesides,

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nthe Source Consuming Pearl had previously devoured so much Immense Righteous Energy. By their estimate, even if it could still absorb Immense Righteous Energy, the amount was very limited. That was how confident they were.

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n“What are we going to do? Their skills will become crippled if this goes on,” one of them couldn’t remain silent anymore.

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nZhao Jishan’s face clouded over. “The only way out for us now is to use the Great Dao Scripture.”

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nThe expressions on a few scholars turned pale. The Great Dao Scripture was the supreme numinous treasure of the Yin Incubation Institute. It had been passed down for hundreds of years, and the Immense Righteous Energy it had accumulated was very terrifying. It was the very foundation of their existence.

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nIf anything went wrong, they were finished.

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nAs if reading their minds, Zhao Jishan said with a stony expression, “Besides this, do you have any other ideas?”

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nHe retrieved the Great Dao Scripture. It was a book with a golden exterior.

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nWithout any outward signs, he rapidly propagated the Immense Righteous Energy and saved the few struggling scholars.

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nImmediately after that, he regretted his decision. He lost control of the Great Dao Scripture.

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nThe Immense Righteous Energy inside was quickly extracted out and devoured .

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n“W-What’s going on?” Zhao Jishan watched his plan fall apart in terror.

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n“Why don’t we just admit defeat?”

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n“Shut up!” Zhao Jishan glared at him ferociously.

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n“This mission can only succeed. Failure is not permitted! No matter what price we have to pay, we must take down the Four Great Institutes.”

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nThe rest remained silent, fists clenched in humiliation.

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nHe watched this scene unfold before his eyes, but he was powerless to stop it.

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n“How interesting! You are prepared to risk so much,” Xiao Ran mused out loud.

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nThe Sanctifying Righteous Treasure Tome unleashed its full power and devoured the Immense Righteous Energy with reckless abandon.

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nAfter the battle ended,

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nthe last wisp of the Great Dao Scripture’s Immense Righteous Energy was also devoured and it shattered into fragments.

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n“Damn it!” Zhao Jishan roared in his heart, enraged beyond words.

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nThe principal of the Dark Helianthus Institute threw a treasure down angrily and left in a foul mood.

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nShen Yiming was furious and cursed aloud, “F*ck! We goddamn lost again. What the hell have these people been learning?”

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n“My Lord, you still have money?” Little Zhou asked timidly.

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n“Shut up!” Shen Yiming stalked off fuming madly.

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nLittle Zhou shrugged. “Our Lord’s temper is too fiery. It’s so easy for him to get carried away. He’s also very fond of gambling. I’m afraid he won’t even be able to afford plain water with what he has left this time.”

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nXiao Ran patted his shoulder twice and reminded him, “The wealth of a Grand Master far exceeds your imagination.”

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nOnce they were out of the Dark Helianthus Institute,

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nLittle Zhou quickly caught up with him. “Brother Xiao, do you gamble?”

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n“Why, you can’t resist the temptation anymore, is it?” Xiao Ran asked.

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nLittle Zhou was also a passionate guy. “I don’t believe that the Four Great Institutes are all so useless that they can’t even win once.”

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n“How much are you betting?”

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nLittle Zhou counted with his fingers. “The reward I received these days, plus the money I saved, is about 30,000 taels.”

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nXiao Ran took out a stack of banknotes and handed them to Little Zhou. “Help me bet on the Dragon Lake Institute winning.”

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n“Brother Xiao, where did you get so much money?” Little Zhou was awestruck by the thick wad of banknotes.

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nIt was a total of 300,000 taels.

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n“I picked it up somewhere.” Xiao Ran replied without turning around.

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nWhen he passed by the Qingyuan Bookstore, he saw Chen Wenheng still standing guard at the door.

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nTomorrow was the competition between the Dragon Lake Institute and the Yin Incubation Institute. At this moment, he was as anxious as a cat on hot bricks.

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nAfter muttering to himself for a while,

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nhe also placed his bet with a big amount of 300,000 taels. Xiao Ran thought since he got along well with Chen Wenheng, he might as well lend him a hand.

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nBack home,

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nhe took out the Finishing Touch Sacred Brush and drew a long sword on the special art paper. Golden light flowed outwards, imbued with thick, dense Immense Righteous Energy.

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n“With this painting, the Dragon Lake Institute will definitely win this time,” Xiao Ran remarked with confidence.

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nAs Chen Wenheng exited through the door,

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nit was already dark. He glanced at the Qingyuan Bookstore as if he couldn’t bear to leave. The bookstore had also closed for the day and he went home with a strong sense of disappointment.

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n“Even without the Sacred Hand’s painting, I still have to win tomorrow’s competition.”

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nA dark shadow appeared out of nowhere behind him.

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nWith a hand chop to the back of his head, the shadowy figure knocked him out.

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n“You’re not too late,” Xiao Ran said to the unconscious figure.

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nDragging him into the alley, he tossed the newly completed painting in front of him and was about to leave when he suddenly stopped in his tracks.

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nXiao Ran remembered that he had a large sum of money on him because he wanted to buy his paintings.

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nNow that Chen Wenheng got the painting he wanted, shouldn’t he pay for it?

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nAlthough the transaction method was a little crude, it was still a valid transaction.

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nHe retrieved the banknotes from the unconscious man’s pocket.

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nGood lord, 500,000 taels!

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n“Where did he get so much money?” Xiao Ran was dumbstruck by his discovery.

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nThe amount seemed a little excessive. He felt as if he had taken advantage of him.

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nAfter unfurling the painting, Xiao Ran transferred some more Immense Righteous Energy into it before stopping.

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n“Fair trade, to young and old alike.”

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nHe woke him up and swiftly slipped off into the darkness, watching him intently from the shadows.

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nChen Wenheng groaned and woke up from his unconscious state. He absent-mindedly felt around his chest and discovered that the banknotes were gone.

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nHis groggy expression changed instantly to that of shock. He sprang up and yelled to no one in particular. “Give me back my money!”

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nThe painting that had been placed on him rolled to the floor as he jumped to his feet. It spread open as it rolled across the ground.

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nA burst of golden light shot out, and a dense powerful gush of Immense Righteous Energy rushed into the clouds, dispelling the darkness.

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nChen Wenheng was stunned by what he saw. Tongue-tied, he could only stutter incoherently, “The… the painting of the Sacred Hand!”

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nHe pounced on the painting and carefully picked it up. He cradled the roll in his arms, protecting it with his clothes, and ran with all his might towards the Dragon Lake Institute.

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