pertwk Chapter 24 "Brotherly Conflict"
Chapter 24 "Brotherly Conflict"
The academy's decision was quickly communicated: the upgrade assessment would be postponed for three days until the soul beasts in the arena recovered.
During these three days, most trainees weren't entirely focused on the upcoming assessment. After all, the assessment was only a matter of time; what truly ignited public discussion within the academy were two major events.
The first thing, naturally, was the shock caused by Huo Yuhao.
It is said that Yan Shaozhe, the dean of the Martial Soul Department, and Qian Duoduo, the dean of the Soul Guidance Department, argued fiercely in the office over Huo Yuhao, and even went so far as to the Sea God Pavilion, directly triggering a meeting of the Sea God Pavilion!
For a mere second-year student to alarm the Sea God Pavilion is an extremely rare occurrence since the founding of Shrek Academy!
Huo Yuhao's potential and importance were instantly elevated to an unimaginable level. This was followed by a subtle shift in how people viewed Dai Youheng.
Previously, many people secretly mocked Dai Youheng as Huo Yuhao's "lapdog," behaving humbly and without dignity. But now, public opinion has actually begun to reverse! Many people are starting to marvel, saying that Dai Youheng has "a discerning eye" and "foresight," having long seen Huo Yuhao's extraordinary potential and thus investing early, clinging to this future golden thigh!
Hearing these comments, Dai Youheng was utterly dumbfounded. What kind of nonsense was this? Was it a case of "one generation plants the trees, another enjoys the shade"?
How could that sycophant's awful actions have somehow earned him a reputation for being "visionary"? It's utterly absurd.
The second major event that has garnered much attention is the ever-escalating and astonishing bet between Huo Yuhao and Dai Huabin. Some even set up betting odds on top of their original wager, betting on who would ultimately win.
Huo Yuhao's recent outstanding performance has attracted the attention of the two deans, while Dai Huabin is currently the highest-ranking offensive-type Soul Master in the second year, whose strength should not be underestimated. As a result, the odds on the betting odds are not much different, showing a balanced situation.
Upon learning of this betting opportunity, Dai Youheng's eyes lit up. How could he resist such a sure-fire way to make money? He immediately contacted the bookmaker and, without hesitation, placed a bet of one million gold soul coins on Huo Yuhao to win!
This huge sum of money immediately caused a sensation. Everyone was once again amazed by the extent of Dai Youheng's support for Huo Yuhao, which had reached the point of almost risking everything!
The label of "simp" seems to be firmly established again, but combined with the previous argument of discerning talent, it becomes even more perplexing.
Dai Youheng paid no attention to the gossip around him. Why not bet on a gamble he knew he could win?
If he could go back to his original world, back to the 2014 World Cup semi-final before the Germany vs. Brazil match, he would definitely bet everything he owned on a 7-1 victory for Germany over Brazil! Even if he didn't like Germany, why wouldn't he take the money that was being given away for free?
When he finished his cultivation and returned to the dormitory entrance that evening, he found Zhou Sichen standing alone outside the door, looking somewhat uneasy, without going in.
"Sichen, why aren't you going in?" Dai Youheng asked.
When Zhou Sichen saw him, it was like seeing a savior. She quickly lowered her voice and said, "Youheng, you're finally back! A senior came in. He has such a strong aura and seems to be in a bad mood. I couldn't stand it, so I came out for some fresh air."
Dai Youheng raised an eyebrow slightly and pushed the door open to enter.
Inside the dormitory, a tall, handsome young man, whose face was now clouded with gloom, sat on his bed, exuding a suppressed anger.
It was his "elder brother," the eldest son of the White Tiger Duke, Dai Yueheng!
As soon as Dai Yueheng saw Dai Youheng enter, he immediately stood up, his gaze sharp as a knife, and spoke in an icy tone, "Youheng, you're finally back. Shouldn't you give me an explanation regarding your bet with Hua Bin and what you did this afternoon?"
He approached step by step, the oppressive feeling he brought far exceeding Zhou Sichen's. "I heard you staked another million gold soul coins on that Huo Yuhao? Who exactly is he? Why do you repeatedly favor him, even at the cost of damaging the interests and reputation of our Dai family?"
Dai Youheng instantly understood that this was a case of being confronted and questioned.
Clearly, news of Dai Huabin losing the soul bone and kowtowing to Huo Yuhao, as well as his subsequent huge bet on Huo Yuhao, had reached Dai Yueheng's ears.
In Dai Yueheng's view, Dai Huabin was the true loyalist, one of his own, while Dai Youheng had always sided with outsiders, helping an outsider to slap his own people in the face.
A thousand-year-old soul bone and some gold soul coins might not mean much to the Dai family. But what would other noble families think if word got out?
They would think that the White Tiger Duke's mansion was in discord between the legitimate and illegitimate sons, and that the brothers were fighting amongst themselves! This would be a disgrace to the entire Duke's mansion.
It's important to understand that the Dai family of today is no longer the family that possessed the Star Luo Throne and practiced ruthless, scheming internal competition, ten thousand years ago.
As the eldest son, Dai Yueheng valued the stability of the family and its public image. He hoped that Dai Youheng would be sensible, return the soul bone to Dai Huabin, apologize to him, suppress the storm, and maintain the superficial harmony of the Dai family as "brothers in love and respect."
Faced with Dai Yueheng's questioning and implicit command, Dai Youheng merely smiled lightly, a smile laced with undisguised sarcasm. "An explanation? What kind of explanation do you want? Discord between the legitimate and illegitimate children? Do you need others to believe it? When have the legitimate and illegitimate children of the Dai family ever truly been at peace?"
He looked calmly into Dai Yueheng's somewhat bewildered eyes. "You, Dai Yueheng, at least manage to maintain some semblance of elder brother decorum, at least in appearances. But Dai Huabin? You know how he's always viewed me and Luo Li, don't you? That undisguised contempt and bullying, isn't that a disgrace to the Duke's mansion?"
"What?" Dai Youheng's tone turned cold. "You feel ashamed now that the filth that used to be hidden in the shadows has been exposed? But Dai Yueheng, what's the essential difference between losing face by speaking the truth and never having it at all? It's nothing but self-deception."
"As for me returning the soul bones?" He scoffed. "You're not qualified. I advise you, instead of wasting your time worrying about me, you should prepare a few more soul bones for your good brother Dai Huabin. With his powder keg temper, he can't stand being provoked. He'll gamble anything in a moment of passion. Even if you give him a hundred soul bones today, believe me, he could lose them all tomorrow because of another bet."
"You...!" Dai Yueheng's face turned ashen with rage at these merciless, even defiant, words, his chest heaving violently. He never expected that his half-brother, who was usually somewhat timid and even fearful of him at home, would dare to talk back to him like this today!