The academy ranking competition has begun.
The previous year's champion academy has the privilege of not participating in the preliminary rounds.
The remaining ninety-eight academies are divided into forty-nine groups for two-on-two matches, with the losers being directly eliminated.
Each academy can send five students to compete individually, using a best-of-five system. If there is a tie, a team match will decide the winner.
Of course, under the arrangements of the Tang family, the preliminary rounds generally pit the strong against the weak, avoiding strong-on-strong confrontations.
Academies with lower rankings, it can be said, have almost no chance of an upset, often being eliminated in the first round.
This is, after all, a world where the strong are respected, and the weak have little say.
To the surprise of many, Langya Academy, the perennial underdog, stumbled upon incredible luck and won without a fight.
Due to the absence of Yifan Academy, Langya Academy received a walkover victory, which was unexpected by everyone.
Many lamented Langya Academy's good fortune, but their impression of Langya as weaklings remained unchanged.
This was evident as Langya Academy brought only three students to the competition, clearly indicating a defeatist attitude.
Some academies sent representatives to congratulate Song Weixi, these being academies from the lower ranks, fellow sufferers with Langya.
With Yifan Academy's withdrawal, they naturally "secured" the last place in advance.
The rankings of these academies, unprecedentedly, improved by one position.
Furthermore, having been bullied by Yifan Academy to varying degrees, they felt a sense of catharsis, putting them in high spirits.
"I heard that a few days ago, the Tang family's gambling house opened odds for Langya to win, with a payout of one to ten thousand. If I had known Langya was this lucky, I would have placed a bet and made a fortune."
An elder from one of the academies expressed his regret.
"Yes, I heard only one lucky person placed a bet. That kid is truly fortunate. However, I heard he only bet ten taels, missing out on a golden opportunity to become rich overnight."
Someone sighed, remarking that such an opportunity was rare, and once missed, it would never come again.
"Well, our academy has always been lucky, and we should continue to win. If anyone is interested, feel free to bet on Langya to win in the future. I guarantee you'll make a fortune."
Ji Mo kindly reminded them.
These were fellow academies, and they could share in the spoils.
However, these people merely smiled and paid no heed.
After all, they knew the situation of Langya. With only three underlings, how could they compete with other academies?
"Everyone, you can really bet on my Langya."
Song Weixi reminded them again, but the others laughed it off, considering it a joke.
They were unaware that they were missing out on a heaven-sent opportunity to become rich.
Later, they would regret it deeply.
In the distance, Zeng Qiyan secretly observed the Langya Academy group, his expression somewhat complex.
Due to a bet with Ji Mo, if Shenglin Academy's ranking lost to Langya Academy, he would have to kneel at the gates of Langya Academy and call himself a scoundrel ten thousand times.
This concerned his honor, so he cared immensely. Originally, he was full of confidence, as Shenglin Academy was led by him this time, and the participating students were exceptionally outstanding, possessing the capital to contend for first place.
But for some reason, after seeing Ji Mo, his confidence suddenly wavered.
"I must be overthinking. Although Ji Mo's three students are excellent, perhaps with good luck, they might break into the top ten, but they are definitely no match for Shenglin."
Zeng Qiyan shifted his gaze, forced a smile, and walked towards a noble-looking young man nearby.
He felt that Shenglin Academy's pond was too small, and perhaps, if the opportunity arose, he could venture into other domains. Therefore, he intended to curry favor with this holy son from another region to pave the way for the future.
"As expected, a ungrateful wretch. He hasn't been at our Shenglin Academy for long, and he's already harboring wicked thoughts."
Liu Song, witnessing this scene, sneered. If Zeng Qiyan failed to lead Shenglin Academy to first place this time, the dean would surely not spare him.
The Langya Academy group, having no matches, did not linger in the central plaza.
Firstly, they disliked the subservient demeanor of the Southern Domain cultivators, who constantly fawned over outsiders.
Secondly, they did not wish to see some people who could not stand Langya Academy's success, constantly mocking and belittling Langya to assert their presence.
Song Weixi did not want to argue with these people, wasting her breath. She only wished to crush these academies underfoot in future matches.
Ji Mo, thinking that Langya Academy had already won, led the group to the Tang family's gambling house.
"You are the first person in many years to dare to fleece the Tang family's gambling house."
Tang Sanqin did not renege on his debt and promptly paid Ji Mo one hundred thousand taels of silver.
Clearly, he had already understood the truth, knowing that Ji Mo's group was from Langya Academy, and that Yifan Academy's inability to participate on time was due to Langya crippling them halfway.
One hundred thousand taels of silver was merely a thousand taels when converted to gold. The Tang family's gambling house, being wealthy and powerful, naturally did not care about it.
Moreover, they could use this as a gimmick to publicize widely, thereby attracting more people to gamble.
"What do you mean by fleecing? I won this legitimately."
Ji Mo, holding the silver notes for one hundred thousand taels, felt a slight thrill. This was the first time he had earned so much money in his life.
Of course, it was still far from enough. He had vowed to win until the Tang family had nothing left but their underpants.
"I want to bet on Langya Academy to win again. Do you dare to open the odds?"
Ji Mo inquired.
This time, it was Tang Sanqin's turn to be stunned.
The day's matches were not yet over, and it was unknown which academy Langya Academy would face next. Why did the young man before him have such great confidence?
Did he truly believe that after defeating Yifan Academy, Langya was invincible?
"Brother, it's best to know when to stop. From what I know of Langya Academy, this was just good luck, encountering Yifan Academy's absence. Otherwise, they would have certainly lost. If you bet on Langya to win next time, you will surely lose all your capital."
A gambler nearby advised him kindly.
He felt that betting on Langya to win was like throwing money into the water, extremely foolish.
And almost all the gamblers around held the same view.
"Brother, listen to me, Langya will be a dark horse. If you bet with me, you'll definitely earn a lot."
Ji Mo, seeing that the gambler was quite decent, invited him to get rich together.
However, the other party naturally did not believe him.
"Are you sure you still want to bet on Langya to win, regardless of the opponent?"
Tang Sanqin said with a cold smile, "The odds are still one to ten thousand. I'll accept any amount you bet."
The Tang family was responsible for the overall coordination of the competition and could influence which academies Langya Academy would face. In the next match, they would arrange a stronger academy for Langya, directly sending them back home.
Ji Mo wasted no words and placed the one hundred thousand taels he had just earned.
Song Weixi, Lin Mengmeng, and others also bet a considerable amount of silver.
After issuing receipts to them, Tang Sanqin mocked, "Your Langya Academy is truly arrogant. If you lack travel expenses for your return journey tomorrow, you can come to me to beg, and I might grant you some."
"You'd better prepare your money in advance, lest you can't produce it when we come to collect it tomorrow."
Ji Mo looked at Tang Sanqin and said calmly, "I will continue to bet on Langya to win tomorrow. Don't you dare back down."