Before his arrival, Wan Lei had naturally inquired about the Heavenly Array Pavilion, for knowing oneself and the enemy ensures victory.
He was aware of Feng Zhenzi's reputation as an old miser, so he deliberately intended to fleece him, to make him hurt, and thus provoke him into a wager.
Perhaps sensing Wan Lei's intentions, Elder Mingji provided divine assistance.
"Hey, you old thief Feng Zhenzi, your Heavenly Array Pavilion is so rich, and this is how you entertain guests? Pathetic, isn't it? You've embarrassed all of us from the Four Great Heavenly Pavilions. Hurry up and slaughter a few of those Nascent Soul realm spirit beasts you raise in the back mountain for us to eat."
Beside the somewhat meager banquet, Elder Mingji bellowed, appearing ready to overturn the table at the slightest disagreement.
Upon hearing this, Feng Zhenzi's beard bristled with anger.
"It's good enough that we're feeding you, and you're still picky? Why don't you go slaughter the spirit beasts of your Heavenly Mechanism Pavilion?"
"Our Heavenly Mechanism Pavilion is so poor, we don't even have a single fortune teller all year round; we're barely making ends meet. How can you have the gall to eat our spirit beasts? We only have a few, while your Heavenly Array Pavilion could host a beast trading market. Hurry up."
"So, you're poor and that makes you righteous?"
"Yes, you're rich and you deserve it. Since we have this rare opportunity today, how can we not fleece a rich patron like you? Hurry up, lest outsiders laugh at us."
"Fine… Fine, you Mingji, I'll do it if you insist!"
Feng Zhenzi snorted coldly and ordered his subordinates to prepare more dishes.
Of course, slaughtering Nascent Soul realm spirit beasts was out of the question. Spirit beasts of this caliber were treasures and foundations for any sect or power; they could never be used for food.
If one were to actually attempt to slaughter the Heavenly Array Pavilion's Nascent Soul realm spirit beasts, Feng Zhenzi would likely stand in your way and tell you to take a knife and cut his own flesh to eat instead.
At the banquet, everyone clinked glasses and chatted merrily, especially those from the other three pavilions. They had often been exploited by the Heavenly Array Pavilion in the past, and today, they finally got to exploit the Heavenly Array Pavilion, which made them incredibly happy, and their appetites improved significantly.
Although these dishes were far inferior to those from the Fang family yesterday, due to the psychological effect, everyone ate them with greater relish.
As for Feng Zhenzi's face, which had turned the color of a pig's liver on the side, everyone used their imagination, likening that face to pig liver to further stimulate their appetite.
Finally, after the meal, Feng Zhenzi breathed a sigh of relief. Just as he was about to invite Wan Lei to discuss the profound mysteries of arrays, Wan Lei suddenly stood up.
"Oh my, the Heavenly Array Pavilion is truly warm and hospitable. I am impressed. Well, I've eaten and drunk my fill, so we'll be heading home now."
Feng Zhenzi was stunned for a moment. So, you came here just to eat and drink for free, and now you want to leave without doing any work? That's not how it works.
"Um, young friend Wan Lei, have you perhaps forgotten something important?"
"Something important? Is there anything more important than eating?"
Feng Zhenzi forcefully suppressed the urge to slap Wan Lei to death, forcing out an awkward smile.
"Didn't we agree to a competition of arrays?"
"Oh, a competition of arrays? I forgot, I forgot. Look at my memory, it's not good when one gets old. Senior Feng, how much spirit stone are you planning to stake?"
"What? What spirit stone?"
"If I'm going to discuss arrays, I can't teach you for free, can I? Don't I need to get some tuition fees?"
"Tuition fees? We learn from you? My Heavenly Array Pavilion has been passed down for thousands of years, and our mastery of arrays is ancient and brilliant. We still need to learn from you?"
"Oh, it seems like Pavilion Master Feng is very confident. Then let's just wager directly. According to the rules, both sides will set up an array, and whoever breaks it first wins. There must be some prize money for the bet, right? How much spirit stone should we wager?"
"Gambling is a bad behavior."
Feng Zhenzi clearly intended to get it for free.
"No country's law can reach your Heavenly Array Pavilion. Everyone is watching. If we discuss the profound mysteries of arrays, shouldn't we give them something to enjoy? Otherwise, they came all this way just to watch? That's not appropriate. Our array competition isn't something they can understand anyway, so let's place a bet. It's not much money, just for fun, isn't it?"
"Then… then let's wager two thousand spirit stones."
Feng Zhenzi felt extreme heartache.
"Twenty million spirit stones? Pavilion Master Feng is so generous, truly worthy of the Heavenly Array Pavilion, which makes a fortune every day. Your generosity is indeed different from the other three minor pavilions…"
"Wait, wait, wait. I said two thousand spirit stones, not twenty million spirit stones."
"No way, did I mishear? The Heavenly Array Pavilion, a competition of the highest-level arrays, only offers two thousand spirit stones? I must have misheard. Back then, when I was at the Wan family, my monthly allowance was one hundred and fifty thousand spirit stones. Lately, I've been spending a lot, and it's really not enough. I need my father to increase it to two hundred thousand."
Little Sister Yu, standing nearby, covered her mouth and giggled. Her eyes curved into cute little crescents as she laughed.
What he said sounded so familiar. Wasn't this exactly what she had said to Wan Lei before? Wan Lei, having learned his lesson, applied it directly here.
Feng Zhenzi, meanwhile, was so angry his beard was practically flying. Your Wan family gives you a monthly allowance of one hundred and fifty thousand spirit stones? And you want it increased to two hundred thousand? It's still uncertain whether selling your entire Wan family would be worth two hundred thousand spirit stones.
Hmph, what a blowhard.
Wan Lei, completely unfazed, continued to brag… or rather, to provoke.
"Even my small Wan family can easily produce so much money. Can the Heavenly Array Pavilion, the number one power in the Central Domain, as rich as the universe, not even afford this small sum?"
Look at that, in Master Lei's mouth, the Heavenly Array Pavilion had suddenly become the number one power in the Lei Feng Realm.
However, Feng Zhenzi was self-aware and was not blinded by the flattery.
"You need to provoke me. Twenty million spirit stones is indeed too much. Back when the Yin Yang Sect and the Kui Lian Sect came to us for help in setting up teleportation arrays, we only charged ten million spirit stones without considering the materials. Money isn't that easy to earn."
Damn it, I was taken for a sucker. I did ten million worth of work for one million spirit stones!
Young Master Lei, realizing this, regretted it deeply, wishing he could fly back to the Yin Yang Sect immediately to demand money from the old fox Ji.
But not now. He had to deal with them one by one.
"Oh my, wasn't Pavilion Master Feng so confident just now?"
Wan Lei mimicked Feng Zhenzi's earlier proud tone, perfectly.
"My Heavenly Array Pavilion has been passed down for thousands of years, and our mastery of arrays is ancient and brilliant. We still need to learn from you? Why do you lose confidence when it comes to money? Of course, you'll lose twenty million spirit stones if you lose, but your Heavenly Array Pavilion has been passed down for thousands of years; surely, you won't lose to a young man in his twenties like me? This is equivalent to twenty million spirit stones for free. Sigh, it would be a laughing stock if word got out that the Pavilion Master of the Heavenly Array Pavilion issued a challenge to a child, and when the child arrived, he dared not compete. And it's not even a fight, it's a competition of the Heavenly Array Pavilion's strongest asset, arrays, and you don't even dare. Tsk, tsk, tsk, I have a premonition that from today onwards, the Heavenly Array Pavilion's reputation will be ruined."
Wan Lei's words made everyone in the Heavenly Array Pavilion, including Feng Zhenzi, turn pale with anger.
"Can you afford twenty million spirit stones?"
Feng Zhenzi asked with a cold face, his eyes fixed on Wan Lei, filled with both anger and greed.