Little Moustache said leisurely, "...Gentlen, it’s just a single Holy Word Stone. Why is everyone acting like we’re facing a great enemy? Who here hasn’t deciphered dozens, even hundreds, of them?"
Sang Hanhai’s expression was cold. "Tang Chen, is your reason for being here the sa as last ti? To make a professional wager?"
Tang Chen ignored Sang Hanhai’s coldness and chuckled. "Call it a friendly exchange. We’ll add a little sothing to make it interesting, have a bit of fun. Why be so tense?"
"After all, we should be learning from one another. We in Yuan Capital still have much to learn from Ying Feng."
His words sounded humble, but they only made the expressions on Sang Hanhai and the others grow darker.
That was what the man had said last ti, too. The result was half a year of public humiliation, forcing them to begrudgingly hand over the [Wise Man]. It was an utter disgrace.
"Gentlen..." Tang Chen put on a helpless expression. "So, are we doing this or not? It shouldn’t be such a difficult decision. It’s not as if I’m asking you to decide the fate of tens of thousands of lives."
The n behind him chuckled softly, while the mood on Sang Hanhai’s side grew even more somber.
"Sa as last ti? With the [Spiritualist] as the stake?" Sang Hanhai asked, his face expressionless.
Tang Chen nodded. "That’s right. Decipher it, and the profession it contains, along with the [Spiritualist], is yours. If you can’t... well, then I’ll trouble you to let have a look at the [Saint]."
Success ant trading one for two. The last ti, Sang Hanhai had been taken in by his words, accepted with full confidence, signed the contract for the wager, and was then driven half-mad by the result.
Sang Hanhai’s brow was tightly furrowed, but he did not agree.
"Alas..." Tang Chen sighed, his voice dripping with disappointnt. "The Ying Feng... Translation Departnt..."
The tone made Sang Hanhai’s brow twitch. The man had co here specifically to challenge them; refusing would be seen as an admission of fear.
Standing behind him, the younger Translators’ faces were already flushed with indignation.
Jin Yunxuan was among them, his face ashen, sharing in their righteous anger.
"Let’s accept it! What’s there to fear? We have—" He was cut off mid-sentence by Sang Hanhai’s sharp rebuke. "Be quiet."
’Have who?’ Tang Chen froze for a second, his eyes landing on the speaker. ’Pu Zhenghong?’
"Elder Pu..."
"Elder Pu..."
Just then, voices called out from the back. Sang Hanhai spun around to look. The crowd behind him automatically parted, clearing a path for Pu Zhenghong, whose hair and beard were snow-white, to walk through.
Sang Hanhai breathed a sigh of relief. ’Thank goodness Senior Brother wasn’t stubborn and decided to show up after all.’
Upon seeing Pu Zhenghong, the expressions of the other Translators relaxed considerably, as if their backbone had just arrived.
"Pu Zhenghong..." Tang Chen’s eyes narrowed slightly. "Old Pu, it’s been a while, hasn’t it? I was starting to think I wouldn’t see you on this trip."
"Let have a look?" Pu Zhenghong said, gesturing toward the Holy Word Stone.
Tang Chen hesitated for a mont. Sang Hanhai imdiately shot back, "What’s the matter? Hesitating?"
"Be my guest." Tang Chen gestured with his hand and sat up a little straighter, his previously relaxed posture gone.
Elder Pu took the Holy Word Stone, held it up before his eyes, and examined it closely.
It looked no different from any other Holy Word Stone. Countless symbols flickered incessantly across its surface, with no discernible rules or patterns.
On the surface, Tang Chen wore a solemn expression, but inwardly, he was quite relaxed. ’He acknowledged Pu Zhenghong’s mastery, but there was absolutely no way the old man could successfully decipher the profession on this Holy Word Stone.’
’Maybe three years ago, he would have had a chance...’ he added silently.
The seconds ticked by, and the great hall fell utterly silent.
CREAK—
The door to the room creaked open, and soone else entered. But no one paid any attention; all eyes were fixed on Pu Zhenghong.
"Old Jin..."
Jin Yunxuan was craning his neck to see the front when he heard soone call him softly from behind. He was about to ignore it, but the voice sounded vaguely familiar.
When he realized who it was, he quickly turned around. Sure enough, it was Su Chen.
"Lord Su Chen..." Jin Yunxuan said quickly. Su Chen glanced at the tightly packed crowd in front of them and asked in a low voice, "What’s the situation?"
"Elder Pu is here. He’s examining it now. It looks like he’s going to accept the wager," Jin Yunxuan explained, unable to resist another glance at Su Chen.
’Never mind Pu Zhenghong,’ he thought. ’With a Celestial-Appointed Translator here, the Translation Departnt’s victory is guaranteed. We can finally redeem ourselves.’
’The only question is whether Su Chen can resonate with the Holy Word Stone from Yuan Capital.’
’He’s already resonated with three other Holy Word Stones. He should be able to with this one too, right?’
He hesitated. There was no precedent for soone like Su Chen; it was impossible to say for sure.
Su Chen also saw Pu Zhenghong’s back. ’A reputation like Old Pu’s probably isn’t just for show,’ he thought. ’The [Spiritualist] should be in the bag.’
Though they kept their voices low, in the utter silence of the room, their whispering stood out like the buzzing of a mosquito.
Sang Hanhai frowned and turned his head. He was surprised to see Su Chen. ’What’s this kid doing here?’
Tang Chen glanced over nonchalantly. Seeing a new, younger face, he paid it no mind, assuming it was just so staffer from the Translation Departnt.
"This Holy Word Stone..." Pu Zhenghong murmured, his brow furrowing deeper the longer he looked.
He couldn’t put his finger on it, but he felt this Holy Word Stone was sohow different. With his years of experience, he could recognize so of the symbols that flickered intermittently across its surface.
This seed to indicate that he could decipher it, yet his intuition told him it wouldn’t be that simple.
"Senior Brother, what is it?"
As the seconds dragged on, Sang Hanhai watched Pu Zhenghong’s frown deepen, and a sense of unease began to creep into his heart.
’Don’t tell Senior Brother isn’t sure either?’
"This stone..." Pu Zhenghong hesitated before uttering a single word. "Strange."
Tang Chen’s heart skipped a beat. ’This Pu Zhenghong is a real monster,’ he thought. ’To think he could sense sothing was wrong.’
’If he had been here three years ago, he would have definitely figured it out.’
Outwardly, however, he put on a puzzled expression. "What do you an? Don’t tell you’re not confident you can decipher it, either? Is it really that difficult?"
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