Wei Zhuxan was the first to leap to his feet, his face twisted in fury as he jabbed a finger in Wei Jin's direction.
"Y-you cheated!" he bellowed, his voice cracking with indignation. "How dare you defile the sanctity of this competition?!"
Wei Jin tilted his head, his expression calm but his fingers tapping a steady rhythm against his thigh—a subtle sign of his growing impatience on this annoying distant cousin of his.
"Cheated?" he said, his tone laced with mockery. "Just because you're too incompetent to understand my methods doesn't mean I cheated. What's next, Zhuxan? Are you going to blame the heavens for your lack of talent too?"
Wei Zhuxan's jaw clenched, a vein pulsing at his temple as his fists trembled at his sides. He opened his mouth, with a retort on the tip of his tongue, but Wei Rutong's raised hand stilled him mid-breath.
"Enough, Zhuxan," Wei Rutong said in a calm yet stern voice. His eyes were cold as they fixed on Wei Jin.
"While I agree that your performance was…unexpected, Wei Jin, the Wei Family does not take kindly to dishonesty. If you have used some underhanded method, you'd best confess now and save yourself from disgrace."
But Wei Jin chuckled, though a flicker of something unreadable crossed his eyes—just for a moment—before the smirk returned, broader than ever.
"Underhanded method?" he repeated, crossing his arms and raising an eyebrow.
"You think I'd go through all that trouble just to hear you whine about cheating? Seriously? Just because you don't want to pay up doesn't mean you get to ignore what I've accomplished. Honestly, how pathetic can you two get?"
Murmurs rippled through the crowd, eyes darting between the two accusers and Wei Jin.
Wei Zhuxan's fists clenched, nails biting into his palms as his frame quivered with barely contained rage.
"You expect us to believe that you did it without tricks?!" he shouted. "You even borrowed Void Stones from Rutong to make it seem like you couldn't afford any schemes! It was all part of your plan, wasn't it?!"
Wei Jin rolled his eyes dramatically, letting out an exaggerated sigh.
"Oh, sure. Borrowing from Rutong was all part of my genius scheme. Maybe I hired an invisible beast or conjured a phantom army? Do tell, Zhuxan, I'm dying to hear this."
As the tension thickened, the old soul floating beside Wei Jin finally spoke, his spectral eyebrows raised in curiosity.
"So, tell me, kid—what did you do? Even I couldn't see it clearly with all that dust. What trick from the system did you use to take down that Hippostral so easily?"
Wei Jin turned his head slightly, his face deadpan as he looked at the old soul. "...Secret," he said flatly.
The old soul blinked. "Secret?!" he exclaimed. "You're not even going to tell me?!"
"Yup," Wei Jin replied casually. "You're going to have to live—or float—without it."
But then, an idea struck him. His lips curled into a sly smirk as he looked back at the crowd.
"Alright, alright, alright," he said, holding up his hands in mock surrender. "If you all really want to know how I did it, I'll tell you. But…" He paused dramatically, his eyes gleaming with mischief. "You're gonna have to pay me."
The crowd fell silent, their expressions turning to confusion.
Wei Rutong frowned. "Pay you? For what?"
Wei Jin suddenly staggered slightly, clutching his side and letting out an exaggerated groan.
"Ugh… I'm injured, obviously. Taking down that Hippostral wasn't exactly easy, you know. And explaining or—heavens forbid—doing it again would be so taxing on my poor, battered body."
He placed a hand over his forehead, as if fainting was imminent, while peeking slyly at the reactions of those around him.
He straightened slightly, brushing imaginary dust off his shoulder, and added with a serious yet utterly shameless tone,
"If you really want to know my secret or see me beat that beast again, you'd better make it worth my time. Spiritual Void Stones, rare pills, cultivation techniques—take your pick. But let me be clear: I don't work for free."
The crowd gasped at his audacity, while Wei Zhuxan looked like he was about to combust from sheer rage.
"You're injured?" one voice from the crowd piped up incredulously. "You're standing there like nothing happened!"
Wei Jin sighed dramatically again, shaking his head. "Ah, the blissful ignorance of mortals," he said with a theatrical sigh, though his eyes sparkled with mischievous delight.
"You wouldn't understand the inner pain of someone who's just performed a miracle. It's a burden only geniuses like me can bear."
The audience erupted into chaos, some laughing nervously, others shouting in frustration. But Wei Jin stood his ground, his smirk never wavering.
"So, what's it going to be?" he asked, spreading his arms wide. "Pay up, or keep doubting me. Either way, I win."
Wei Zhuxan and Wei Rutong exchanged frustrated glances, their teeth grinding audibly.
The indignity of the situation was almost too much to bear, but the nagging curiosity—and the collective humiliation—left them with no choice.
Gritting their teeth, they finally relented, tossing Void Spirit Stones toward Wei Jin with visible reluctance.
Wei Jin pocketed the stones, his fingers brushing against the cold surface. He counted them slowly, a small, secretive smile playing on his lips.
These stones weren't just a prize—they were a key. To what exactly, Wei Jin kept close to his chest, but the glint in his eyes hinted that this was only the beginning.
"Ah, finally, some compensation for my unmatched brilliance," he said, drawing a collective groan from the crowd.
After confirming he had received ninety stones, he turned toward Wei Rutong, holding out thirty with a casual shrug. "Here, I'm paying you back."
Rutong stared at the stones for a moment before shaking his head. "Keep it," he said coldly. "I don't need your charity."
Wei Jin raised an eyebrow, then nodded in mock solemnity.
"Oh, so noble of you," he said, but his deadpan tone made it impossible to tell if he was sincere or mocking. He turned back to the rest of the crowd, his smirk widening.
"Well, if that's settled…" He suddenly gestured grandly, not just to Wei Zhuxan and Rutong, but to everyone gathered.
"So, who else wants to see it? Hm? I mean, it was extremely hard beating that beast, and the strain on my body…" He touched his chest dramatically, feigning weakness. "...is just unbearable. But if you really, really want to see me do it again, I might be persuaded. For a price, of course."
The crowd of cultivators collectively froze, their expressions a mix of disbelief and indignation.
One bold voice finally broke the silence.
"Didn't you just say that beast was nothing but a chicken?!"
"And now you're acting like it almost killed you?" another added incredulously.
Wei Jin held up a hand, silencing them with exaggerated authority. "Ah, such simple minds," he said with a pitying shake of his head.
"Let me educate you: just because something looks easy doesn't mean it is. What you saw was the result of unparalleled skill, raw talent, and, dare I say, divine intervention."
The crowd's curiosity began to outweigh their skepticism. One cultivator finally grumbled, "Fine! Here's fifteen Void Spirit Stones. Show us how you did it."
Another quickly followed suit. "I'll pay twenty! I have to see this up close."
"Twenty-five from me!" shouted someone in the back.
The floodgates opened, and soon, the cultivators were tossing their stones at Wei Jin, each trying to outbid the other.
"Here, take thirty!"
"Forty from me!"
"If you pull it off again, I'll throw in fifty!"
"You'd better show us something worth the price!"
The crowd's frenzy grew as stones piled up at Wei Jin's feet. Some shouted their doubts even as they handed over their contributions.
"If you're scamming us, I'll personally wring your neck!"
"I don't even like this kid, but I need to see how he did it!"
"He's arrogant, but damn if he isn't intriguing!"
As the Void Spirit Stones piled up, Wei Jin's grin widened, a glint of triumph in his eyes. By the time the last stone clinked onto the growing heap, the tally had reached a staggering seven hundred and ninety.
He held his hands out, motioning for silence. "Ah, the generosity of you fine people warms my heart," he said mockingly. "Don't worry, your investments are in good hands. Literally."
As the crowd buzzed with anticipation, Wei Jin glanced down at the pile of stone. His lips curled as he thought, this haul will turn a few heads from the ladies.
Who knew cultivating charm was this lucrative? Finally, he has a few more of this to spend on maidens.
He tucked the thought away, while savoring the feeling of having a lot of stones.
However, his smug musings were interrupted by a realization. "Wait a second," he mumbled, frowning slightly. "I don't even have a storage ring for all this…"
Suddenly, an attendant approached, bowing deeply before him. "Wei Jin, on behalf of the Grand Beast Hall, we congratulate you on achieving the impossible. As a token of our recognition, please accept this."
The attendant handed him a glimmering storage ring, its surface engraved with intricate runes.
Wei Jin blinked in surprise as he took the ring. "What's this?"
The attendant straightened. "Inside, you'll find a thousand Void Spirit Stones and a random technique scroll as an additional reward for your unprecedented victory. The Grand Beast Hall thanks you for providing such a spectacle."
For a moment, Wei Jin was speechless, his eyes darting between the ring and the attendant.
"Wait, wait, wait," he said, a grin spreading across his face. "So you're telling me I now have…" He began counting on his fingers.
"One thousand… plus seven hundred and ninety… That's one thousand seven hundred and ninety Void Spirit Stones! This is the best day of my life!"
The crowd's grumbling grew louder, their impatience boiling over.
"Show us the fight already!" someone shouted.
"Yeah! We didn't pay you to count your money!"
"Hurry it up, you smug bastard!"
Wei Jin's expression immediately shifted to one of exaggerated annoyance. "Alright, alright, you damned maggots, calm yourselves! Let me rest first, or are you planning to exhaust me to death?"
The crowd groaned but fell silent as Wei Jin finally pocketed the ring.
Inwardly, he smirked. I'll check out that technique later, he thought. For now, let's show these fools how it's done—again.