Jin Tianlu returned with the spirit stones they had won.

At 4-to-1 odds, Fang Hao and Jin Tianlu had each bet one hundred high-grade spirit stones, and in no time at all, earned four hundred in profit.

At least Fang Hao had gotten on the stage and put on a performance.

Jin Tianlu, on the other hand, had done absolutely nothing—and still profited handsomely.

With his winnings in hand, Jin Tianlu exclaimed generously:

"Let's go, little brother—to Mengyuxuan! My treat!"

Mengyuxuan was the brothel Jin Tianlu frequented, a place where many of Qilan City's cultivators lingered and returned to again and again.

But Fang Hao said, "Not so fast. Let's see who my next opponent is first."

He hadn't used much energy in the last fight—he was still at peak condition and could easily continue.

But since he'd already pretended to be exhausted, he had to keep up the act—posing as if he needed time to recover.

"Right, right! Almost forgot the important part," Jin Tianlu slapped his forehead, clearly still giddy from their big win.

While his income was normally decent, earning this much spirit stone used to require plenty of time and persuasion.

Now he just had to place a bet. It was way too easy.

Before even a quarter-hour had passed, Fang Hao's next-round opponent had already been posted.

He and Jin Tianlu went straight to the betting area managed by the City Lord's office, where they could view the matchup.

This time, Fang Hao's odds had risen to 6-to-1.

His opponent, Guan Min, was at the eighth tier of the Heavenly Palace Realm—two full levels above Fang Hao.

After the Upper Three Realms (Heavenly Palace and above), cross-tier victories became exceedingly difficult.

Many participants in the Hundred City Tournament preliminaries were already considered talented, and single-tier victories weren't unheard of.

But two-tier crossovers? Very rare.

Hence the extremely high odds for Fang Hao—and correspondingly low odds for Guan Min.

Without saying a word, both Fang Hao and Jin Tianlu's faces darkened at the same moment.

"Damn! You drew an eighth-tier opponent? Brother, your luck's taken a turn," Jin Tianlu muttered.

He believed Fang Hao could handle a one-tier gap, but two? That seemed too much.

He wasn't worried about Fang Hao's safety—he was worried they wouldn't profit like before.

Fang Hao's own grim expression wasn't faked—but it wasn't because he was worried about the fight.

He was thinking,

"I'm still acting."

After spending so much time around Fang Chu, he'd picked up quite a bit of his acting skill.

Most people couldn't tell he was faking.

"Yeah… got a bit unlucky. Looks like I'm going to have to bow out this round," Fang Hao said with a grim look.

"Sigh…"

Jin Tianlu patted his shoulder.

"No worries. With your cultivation, you're already doing great just participating. Winning or losing isn't everything—it's all about the experience."

"Besides, we already made a nice profit. Totally worth it."

Though what he said made sense, Fang Hao kept his head low and looked visibly frustrated.

Jin Tianlu grinned again, "Well then, let's go unwind at Mengyuxuan."

"Alright!"

Fang Hao lifted his head with a look of resigned surrender and followed him.

They arrived at the brothel, not far from the arena.

Fang Hao had visited brothels in Duanshan City before, but the ones in the Immortal Realm were on a whole different level—superior in every sense.

While Jin Tianlu went upstairs to listen to music, Fang Hao remained downstairs.

They spent nearly two hours there before finally emerging, clothes scented with wine and perfume.

Still in a daze from the indulgence, Jin Tianlu nearly stumbled into someone outside.

"Damn it! You can't even see a full-grown man?! Are you blind!?"

The man was massive—broad-shouldered, with a fierce face and thick beard.

He was a hulking brute of a man.

Jin Tianlu frowned, but quickly put on a polite smile and waved his hands.

"Didn't see you, didn't see you. My bad, my bad."

But the big man glared, eyes flashing.

"If I hadn't dodged, we'd have collided! You think a simple 'sorry' fixes it!?"

Still smiling, Jin Tianlu said, "So what do you want then?"

"Kneel and apologize. Then I'll pretend this never happened," the man sneered.

Jin Tianlu chuckled, waved lazily, and said,

"Brainless oaf."

He staggered forward, clearly not taking the man seriously.

The bearded brute, however, was now livid—on the edge of exploding.

"What the hell did you say!? Stop right there!!"

With a flash, he blocked Jin Tianlu's path, pointing a finger with murder in his eyes.

A drunken-looking Jin Tianlu raised his head and calmly said again,

"Brainless oaf."

The brute was about to erupt when—

"Ahem…"

A cough sounded nearby.

Seeing the uniform of the passerby, the bearded man froze—it was a city guard.

His hand, already raised, hesitated in midair.

His expression shifted several times before he glared at Jin Tianlu.

"You better watch yourself!"

Then he turned and stormed off—almost as if fleeing.

The reason for his sudden retreat?

In Qilan City, private fights are strictly forbidden—unless you're someone like Wu Yuqi.

If he dared make a move here, he'd be done for.

Even if he was stronger or braver, it wouldn't matter—he didn't dare risk it.

That was part of why Jin Tianlu was so bold.

Seeing the man walk away, Jin Tianlu clicked his tongue.

"Shame..."

He had actually hoped the guy would lose control and attack—one move and he'd be ruined.

But it was just a minor episode. Neither of them cared much.

They sauntered back toward the arena.

"Still betting this round?" Jin Tianlu asked, his drunkenness already gone.

Fang Hao put on a conflicted expression and hesitated.

Then he gritted his teeth and stomped his foot.

"Screw it! Let's go all in. Four hundred high-grade spirit stones. If I lose, I'll just pretend the last win never happened."

Jin Tianlu gave him a thumbs-up.

"That's the fire I like to see! I'm in too!"

Though he said that, Jin Tianlu didn't match the full amount.

He still placed a bet on Fang Hao to win—but not four hundred stones. He wasn't that confident.

After betting, Fang Hao headed toward his assigned dueling platform.

At that moment, his opponent appeared—and to their surprise, it was the same bearded brute from earlier.

Guan Min.

Guan Min was also startled, then broke into laughter.

"Hahaha! The heavens are just! My opponent is actually you two?!"

He'd already been furious from the earlier encounter.

Now that he could take it out on one of them on the battlefield, he was thrilled.

Neither Fang Hao nor Jin Tianlu expected this twist.

Fang Hao immediately put on a panicked expression, even showing hesitation—still acting.

Seeing this, Guan Min taunted:

"What's wrong, kid? You're not thinking of surrendering, are you?"

"Who's scared!?" Fang Hao shouted, clearly provoked. "We'll see who wins!"

"That's more like it. Let's settle this on the platform," Guan Min smiled—no longer so aggressive.

He feared scaring Fang Hao into surrendering. That would rob him of the chance to vent his frustration.

Fang Hao and Guan Min stepped onto the arena.

Jin Tianlu sent a message via divine sense:

"Brother, if it's not looking good, just surrender. Don't force it."

After all, someone at the eighth tier could easily crush someone two tiers below. He was seriously worried.

"Don't worry," Fang Hao replied calmly.

"I'll give it my all."