Of course, Gong Liansheng wasn’t the only one puzzled by the North District. The people from the other three major districts, along with the various Palace Masters and Elders, were also deeply confused.
They couldn’t understand what gave the people from the North District such confidence.
"It seems some noteworthy figure has emerged from the North District’s candidates this year. Otherwise, their Chief Examiner and person-in-charge wouldn’t be so confident. But... even so, I’m still more optimistic about the East District. After all, their overall quality is quite good."
"I favor the East District, too. The North District has been in a slump for too long; I don’t see them turning it around so quickly. I wouldn’t dare wager all the Cultivation Resources and treasures I’ve worked so hard for on a district with no guarantee of success."
"I also don’t think the North District’s candidates will achieve the best results this year. This is different from just having a few outstanding disciples; it’s about the overall score. Even if the North District produced some excellent disciples, that’s just individual excellence. It has nothing to do with the collective. That’s why I’m betting on the West District."
"I’m betting on the South District."
"I’m betting on the West District. I have a good feeling about them."
When the various Palace Masters and Elders heard Gong Liansheng ask which districts they were betting on, they all pondered for a moment before starting to place their wagers.
The people from the four major districts, for subjective reasons, were a bit biased toward the candidates from their own district. Thus, they mostly bet on their own territories, hoping their district would achieve a good result.
The various Palace Masters and Elders, however, had a different mindset from the people of the four districts. As a third party, they held no bias toward any particular district and didn’t approach the issue with subjective views. When they bet, they did so objectively, simply gambling on the outcome.
However, the North District had been at the bottom for several consecutive years. Their probability of winning was too low, so basically no Hall Master or Elder would favor them.
The district that received the most favor was the East District, followed by the West District. After all, the overall quality of these two districts was excellent.
Even Hall Master Murong Liu of the Dui Palace didn’t place his bet on the North District, choosing the West District instead.
Previously, Murong Liu had seen Tang Yi display extraordinary strength, killing a Level 4 Demon Beast with a single punch without using any Martial Technique. It seemed incredibly impressive.
However, this was within Murong Liu’s expectations. After all, Tang Yi had opened the Six Spirits Gate, and his strength had increased dramatically. It would be strange if he couldn’t accomplish such a feat.
However, an improvement gained through external force didn’t mean Tang Yi’s Talent was good, nor did it represent the North District’s overall level. Therefore, he would never waste his resources on an uncertain district, instead choosing the East District, which was highly favored by the crowd.
’Following the crowd won’t necessarily lead to a loss, but choosing the underdog means you’ll lose ninety-nine percent of the time!’
’That one percent who don’t lose must have just gotten damn lucky!’
This was Murong Liu’s thinking.
’Besides, when Tang Yi tested his Spiritual Power, what the hell were those results?’
’An unenrolled candidate with over ten levels of Spiritual Power?’
’An unenrolled candidate opens the Six Spirits Gate and unlocks all Six Spirits at once?’
’Is that even plausible?’
Murong Liu himself found it ridiculous. He had mentioned this to several other Hall Masters and Elders afterward, but not a single one believed him. They all thought Tang Yi was just putting on an act.
Murong Liu thought so too, so he subconsciously disliked Tang Yi immensely. Now, there was no way he would favor the North District where Tang Yi was from!
You are who you associate with. A candidate who liked to put on an act must come from a district of show-offs. How could anyone have faith in a district like that?
... The various Palace Masters and Elders all placed their savings on the East, West, and South districts, believing that, just like in previous years, the district with the best overall score would certainly be one of these three.
Of course, there was an exception. Among the many Hall Masters and Elders of the Outer Mansion Eight Palaces, one person did bet on the North District.
And that person was an Elder of the Dui Palace, Fang Qingyang.
"Since none of the Palace Masters and Elders favor the North District, I’ll just be the one to liven things up and fill the empty spot," Fang Qingyang said, tossing his bet toward the White Paper in mid-air.
A moment later, another red circle appeared in the North District’s section on the White Paper. Within the circle, the number ’three’ was displayed.
Fang Qingyang had placed a bet on the North District worth three drops of Holy Liquid.
"Qingyang, have you lost your mind?!"
Seeing that Fang Qingyang had bet on the North District—and bet a significant amount at that—Hall Master Murong Liu, who was from the same palace and well-acquainted with Fang Qingyang, was utterly astonished.
"Has Elder Fang gone mad? The people from the North District are acting very confident, as if they’re sure to win, but surely you haven’t been deceived by their act?"
"Elder Fang of the Dui Palace, are you sure you’re sober right now? Have you lost all hope in life, and that’s why you bet on the North District?"
"I know things haven’t been going well for the Dui Palace lately, but there’s no need to degrade yourself like this, giving away the resources you’ve worked so hard to accumulate."
"No wonder the Dui Palace has been declining year after year... Sigh. There was a time when the Dui Palace stood as our Qian Palace’s equal, our strengths evenly matched. But now? They’re not even qualified to be our rivals anymore."
Seeing Fang Qingyang bet on the North District, the other Elders and Hall Masters from the various palaces were all astonished and began to mock him, thinking he was being incredibly foolish.
"Old Fang, are you alright? You actually bet all your savings on the North District? Are you in a bad mood? You can’t just act like this even if you are. Hurry and talk to Special Envoy Gong. Maybe he’ll even let you take back your bet."
"That’s right, Old Fang, don’t be impulsive! Don’t you know what the situation is with the North District? Don’t be fooled by those chief examiners and leaders from the North District acting all confident. They’re just putting on a show, don’t fall for it!"
"Elder Fang, it’s not like you don’t know the Dui Palace’s situation. Things are difficult for everyone. You’ve taken out all your savings now, what will you do in the future? The path of the Martial Dao is long. Without Cultivation Resources, without protective treasures, how will you be able to persevere?"
"Hurry and take back your bet. We’ll plead your case for you."
Not only did the Hall Masters and Elders from the other palaces think Fang Qingyang’s actions were foolish, but even some of the Hall Masters and Elders from the Dui Palace itself began to earnestly persuade him otherwise.
But after hearing everyone’s words, not only did Fang Qingyang not go to Gong Liansheng to plead for his bet back, but with the defiant air of someone with nothing to lose, he said, "Don’t worry, I’m fine, and there’s nothing wrong with my head. I won’t retract my bet and make things difficult for Special Envoy Gong. Although none of you favor the North District, I have a feeling that they will give us an unexpected surprise this year."
As he spoke, Fang Qingyang glanced at the Light Curtain in mid-air. Although Tang Yi’s image had already disappeared from it, his figure remained imprinted in Fang Qingyang’s mind, refusing to fade.

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