As the Rat General’s enormous head rolled to the ground, the entire cavern fell into a brief, dead silence.
Everyone stood stunned for a moment, seemingly yet to recover from the lightning-fast beheading.
A moment later, someone let out a cry, and it was immediately followed by a burst of thunderous cheers.
"We won! We really won!"
Zhang Shan, so flushed with excitement that the veins on his neck bulged, fiercely pumped his fists, heedless of the wounds still oozing blood on his body.
Wang Qingli and Lü Qing exchanged a look, each seeing the shock and lingering fear in the other’s eyes.
The battle had seemed to last only a few breaths, but it had been fraught with peril.
If not for Chu Bai’s precise guidance to break its defenses at the last moment, and that stunning, fatal Pupil Technique... forget slaying the Rat General; their group would have likely paid a heavy price just to escape with their lives.
The battle ended, and it was time to tally the spoils.
Although the two teams had cooperated, the wager had been made first.
Without a doubt, whether it was their earlier efficiency in clearing the monsters or landing the final, decisive blow, Wang Qingli’s team had won.
Or, to be more precise, Chu Bai had single-handedly carried the team to victory.
"I’m convinced! I am truly convinced!"
Lü Qing walked over, laughing heartily without a hint of airs. Ignoring the bloodstains on his hands, he clapped Chu Bai hard on the shoulder, the force of it making Chu Bai sway slightly. "Junior Brother Chu, if it weren’t for that Divine Eye of yours today, we would’ve been in for a tough fight. The drinks are on me!"
With that, he personally swung his sword, carefully cutting off the Rat General’s pair of hardest and most valuable scimitar-shaped tusks, and presented them to Chu Bai with both hands.
"A bet’s a bet. We’ll handle the dirty work of cleaning up the battlefield.
Take this pair of tusks. You can trade them for Daoist Merit or use them to craft a Dharma Artifact; they’re worth at least fifty points! The main credit for killing this Rat General belongs to you. I doubt anyone here would disagree."
Lü Qing’s gaze swept over the crowd like lightning.
Everyone around, from his own teammates to the members of Wang Qingli’s squad, looked on with admiration. Not a single person objected.
In the Cultivation Realm, whoever has the strongest fist and makes the biggest contribution has the right to take the largest share.
With this one battle, Chu Bai had thoroughly won the respect and acknowledgment of these arrogant senior students.
"Then it would be rude of me to refuse."
Chu Bai didn’t stand on ceremony, graciously accepting the faintly gleaming tusks and tucking them away.
For the next hour, Lü Qing and his teammates honored the bet, cleaning the battlefield and collecting the Demon Beast Materials without a single complaint.
Once the cavern was completely clean, the two teams rested for a while and tallied their final spoils.
"We’re rich..."
Zhang Shan’s hand, holding the ledger, was trembling. The smile on his face was so wide it looked painful—a clear sign of being overwhelmed with excitement. "This time, our squad killed a total of twenty-seven first-layer demon rats and eighteen second-layer Elite Rats. And that’s on top of our share from taking down the Rat General together..."
"By a conservative estimate, we’ve earned at least six hundred Daoist Merit from this trip!"
Six hundred points!
Even split five ways, that was still a massive reward of over one hundred and twenty points for each person!
Even for a third-year veteran student like Wang Qingli, this was a huge sum—enough to trade for a decent Middle Grade Magic Technique or several months’ worth of Cultivation Resources.
Everyone deftly cut off and packed the rat tails as proof of their kills. After a quick cleanup, they left the now utterly silent cavern, reeking of blood but filled with the joy of their successful harvest.
"Let’s go! Time for some Hundred Flowers Brew!"
The moment they stepped out of the mining area, their spirits were soaring, even though every one of them was injured.
Lü Qing didn’t mince words. He stopped the others who were preparing to head back to the Daoist School and, with a grand wave of his hand, led the two mighty squads to descend upon the most famous Cultivator tavern in the Outer City District.
Inside the private room, the lamps burned brightly.
"Shopkeeper! Bring us ten of your best signature dishes! And two bottles of Hundred Flowers Brew! The aged stuff!"
Lü Qing slapped a bag of Spirit Stones onto the table with heroic bravado.
Before long, the table was laden with a dazzling array of Spiritual Cuisine. The Hundred Flowers Brew was especially fragrant; just a single whiff seemed to quicken the flow of Spiritual Qi in their bodies.
As the drinks flowed and the meal progressed, Lü Qing, emboldened by the alcohol, repeatedly toasted Chu Bai, his words clearly showing his intent to befriend him.
"Younger Brother Chu, if you run into any trouble in the future, or if you want to take on a high-difficulty task, just come find your big brother! I might not be good at much else, but this sword of mine can still put up a fight!"
"Thank you, Senior Brother Lü." Chu Bai accepted every toast, raising his cup and drinking heartily.
Over the course of the meal, Chu Bai got to know each member of Lü Qing’s squad.
They were mostly third-year students, all at the Qi Cultivation Third Layer, though there were varying levels of strength even within the same stage.
Lü Qing, for example, was one of the elites among them, only a Receiving Talisman away from reaching the Qi Cultivation Fourth Layer.
Although they couldn’t be considered close friends just yet, this meal, combined with having fought side-by-side, had laid the foundation for a life-and-death trust.
Once everyone had eaten and drunk their fill, they finally began the journey back.
「By the time they returned to the Daoist School, it was already the evening of the following day.」
The entire trip, from departure to return, had taken just over a day. If word of such efficiency got out, it would undoubtedly cause a huge stir in the Task Hall.
「At the entrance to the Daoist School.」
"I have all the items for the task. I’ll go to the Task Hall first thing tomorrow morning to turn them in for verification. Once the Daoist Merit is distributed in a few days, I’ll notify everyone."
Although Wang Qingli had also had a few drinks and her pretty face was slightly flushed, her mind was still clear.
"Um... Captain."
Zhao Gang, who had been quiet for most of the trip, suddenly spoke up. "About dividing the Daoist Merit... I don’t think we can split it evenly."

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