Serpent Ancestor
Chapter 499: A general's success comes at the cost of countless bones

Luo Gang explained the tasks of a guest official, which were quite simple. Most of the time, there was nothing to do, and only when help was needed would he be called upon.

For instance, the last time Xu Hei was buried underground, Luo Gang had called a group of guest officials to assist.

This was undoubtedly a great job.

Xu Hei didn't agree immediately, he just said, "Let me think about it for a few days."

"No problem, let me know anytime when you've decided," Luo Gang replied with a smile.

Xu Hei left the City Lord's mansion, still pondering the warning from the Nine-Headed Worm.

From his own observations, there seemed to be no issues with Liefeng City. Staying for a while, or even truly joining Liefeng City, didn't seem to have any downsides.

As for other cities, Xu Hei had only been to Sansha City, where anyone could kill you as long as the price was right.

If he left Liefeng City, where could he go?

Would anywhere else really be better than here?

Unknowingly, Xu Hei walked to a courtyard, which was Chen Zimo's residence.

This place had long been thoroughly investigated, with no clues found.

A guard captain stood at the courtyard entrance and, seeing Xu Hei arrive, respectfully said, "Ah, it's Senior Xu. What brings you here?"

"Just looking around," Xu Hei replied.

"The City Lord has instructed that Senior may freely tour any part of Liefeng City!" the guard captain said respectfully.

Xu Hei nodded and entered the courtyard, spreading his Divine Sense to observe his surroundings.

In the yard, many traces of formations were left behind, all remnants from Chen Zimo's lifetime.

Xu Hei found nothing suspicious. Even if there were clues left behind, the City Lord's mansion would have already discovered them.

He walked into a pavilion, focusing intently on the ground.

There was a formation left by Chen Zimo here, which had no special effect, but the complex lines of the formation formed a sentence.

"One general succeeds, ten thousand bones wither."

Xu Hei stared at this line, lost in thought.

But when he looked again, the line had disappeared.

Xu Hei concentrated for a long time, but never saw that line again, as if it had all been an illusion.

"What hidden truth lies behind Chen Zimo's escape?"

Xu Hei shook his head, unable to figure it out, and left the courtyard.

On the street, the usually quiet road suddenly became lively, with many people heading east, discussing animatedly.

"Gongsun Bo has brought in a new batch of goods again!"

"Haha, it's said to be high-grade stone from Meteor City, containing rare treasures from the Upper Realm. If you uncover a treasure, you'll make a fortune!"

"The stones he picks are sure to have treasures. We can't miss this chance!"

Hearing the discussions, Xu Hei followed the crowd, heading east.

To the east of Liefeng City was the largest gambling house in the East District, where Gongsun Bo was the master.

When Xu Hei arrived, an Earth Boat was parked at the entrance, loaded with a large batch of stones being moved inside piece by piece.

These stones were pitch black and oddly shaped, resembling meteorites from the heavens.

"Oh, Fellow Daoist Xu is here too. Want to try your luck?" Gongsun Bo said with a smile upon seeing Xu Hei.

Xu Hei understood what he meant and asked, "Where did these stones come from?"

"Dug up from Chaos Star City. A new outer stone mine was discovered there. I used all my assets to buy a batch of stones. These are the latest finds, not yet appraised!" Gongsun Bo said enthusiastically.

"Chaos Star City!"

Xu Hei had heard of Chaos Star City, the largest city in the eastern wasteland! It was said that a meteor disaster occurred there, with numerous meteorites falling from the sky, forming a resource-rich city where many people made their fortune by mining stones.

All of this was rumored from the Outer Battlefield.

And in Huangfu Duanlong's memories, there were more detailed descriptions of Chaos Star City.

Chaos Star City was one of the main battlefields of the ancient war, with countless participants, and many senior experts perished in that battle.

Someone used supreme divine abilities to summon meteorites from the heavens, which fell on that area, killing everyone. Their belongings were buried with the meteorites.

There are even rumors that the reason the Outer Battlefield detached from the Upper Realm is closely related to that battle.

Therefore, the stones dug from Chaos Star City might contain materials from the Upper Realm, making them extremely valuable.

However, stones are still stones, and not every piece can be precious. To maximize profits, unscrupulous merchants would hype the stones and sell them at high prices, regardless of what was inside.

"Fellow Daoist Xu, interested in trying your luck?" Gongsun Bo asked with a smile.

"Let me take a look first," Xu Hei replied calmly.

Before long, all the stones were transported into the stone house, filling the courtyard.

Xu Hei glanced over, seeing a total of three thousand stones, varying in size and shape, each marked with a price by Gongsun Bo.

The cheapest cost thousands of Spirit Stones, while the most expensive were over a million.

The courtyard was surrounded by over a hundred people, all drawn by the commotion, intending to watch the excitement even if they didn't buy anything.

"I'll take this stone!"

An old man at the Elemental Infant stage bought a piece of stone worth ten thousand and cut it open in public.

Inside the stone, the color turned crimson, and the old man exclaimed, "Scarlet Refined Gold, the size of a fist, worth at least two million!"

"My heavens! This stone contains Scarlet Refined Gold, a top-grade material for artifact refining!"

"No wonder Old Yuan has such sharp eyes!"

The crowd praised him, and Old Yuan squinted his eyes in satisfaction.

He had heard of Gongsun Bo's stone shipment and traveled a long distance to get a bargain, and his first stone yielded a treasure.

"Scarlet Refined Gold, a good thing! If I refine it into a Spirit Beast Ring, it could imbue the ring with fire Spiritual Qi. If integrated into the True Dragon Sword, it could enhance the sword's power," Xu Hei thought to himself.

He had underestimated the value of these stones; they could indeed yield treasures!

Especially artifact refining materials, which, for a master like him, could maximize the value of the materials.

Gongsun Bo noticed Xu Hei's interest and smiled, "Fellow Daoist Xu, I'll give you three stones. As long as their value doesn't exceed a million, pick any you like, as a token of gratitude for the spiritual liquid you gave me."

This was a common casino tactic, offering free plays to get you hooked, then earning back the cost with interest.

However, Gongsun Bo had no ill intentions; he genuinely wanted to repay Xu Hei.

"Then I won't refuse, but I have a question," Xu Hei said, looking at Gongsun Bo. "Since you bought the stones, why not open them yourself?"

Gongsun Bo didn't explain, instead smiling and asking, "Guess how I earned the title of the world's greatest gambler?"

Xu Hei pondered for a moment and shook his head.

Gongsun Bo chuckled and transmitted, "There's no such thing as a sure-win gamble in this world. The true winner is the one who never bets."