He glanced at the silent George Carter in the crowd, then leapt onto the stage and laughed loudly: "A challenge like this should be open and aboveboard—using poison is obviously not appropriate. I, Charles Turner, on behalf of my The Turner Family, agree to oversee this match. However, I have one condition."

Butcher Bolton showed an expression of wild joy and asked urgently, "What condition do you have?"

Charles Turner said, "In a ring match, life and death are left to fate. But Young Master Clark still owes me something, so you cannot kill him—you must spare his life."

"This..."

Butcher Bolton hesitated for a moment, then steeled himself inwardly. If he couldn't kill, so be it. But this damned bastard had made him a laughingstock and swindled so much blue silver from him—he had to cripple him, make him suffer as much as possible.

And also...

Butcher Bolton glanced at Henry Clark's chest—the banknote he had given away was now inside that shirt. Since he was going to take revenge, he had to make this damned bastard cough up what he'd swallowed.

"I agree, but a match without a wager is just too boring. You, Ye, I'll put up another seven hundred taels of blue silver as a bet—do you dare to match me?" Butcher Bolton shouted harshly.

"Bet with him!"

"Those seven hundred taels of blue silver were free anyway, so even if you lose, it doesn't hurt—go for it!"

"Exactly! What's the point of a fight without a wager?"

"This show today is really something! Bet with him—even if you lose, it's no loss, and if you win, that's fourteen hundred taels of blue silver."

"......"

Around the ring, the onlookers waved their arms and shouted, the classic crowd that loves a spectacle and isn't afraid of trouble.

Henry Clark wasn't sure of Butcher Bolton's strength, but as a butcher, he probably wasn't that formidable. Although he himself was only at the third level of Qi Refining, with his past combat power and experience, even if the opponent was at the fourth level, he could still put up a fight.

At that, Henry Clark smiled at his opponent and said, "I haven't even agreed yet, and you're already eager to raise the stakes?"

Butcher Bolton's expression changed, and he said harshly, "Think carefully—if you refuse my challenge, you'll lose all face and have no place in Hanshan City in the future."

Henry Clark said bluntly, "Butcher Bolton, you really are shameless. You're already so old, yet you challenge a sickly youth like me—aren't you afraid people will laugh their teeth out?"

At these words, Butcher Bolton did feel a bit embarrassed, and he knew the other was right. His own son wasn't much younger than the opponent, and yet he was challenging him. Even if he won, it wouldn't earn him a good reputation.

But!

He couldn't care about that now!

He'd already lost enough face today—even if he didn't get a good name, as long as he could thoroughly humiliate and take revenge on the other, and get his blue silver back, it would be worth it.

Butcher Bolton looked at Charles Turner, as if asking him to make the decision.

"Ahem..."

Charles Turner coughed lightly a few times, then looked at Henry Clark and smiled: "Young Master Clark, you offended him. If you don't dare accept his challenge, then you should kneel and kowtow to apologize, just as you humiliated him. I think you should accept the challenge—a man can be killed but not humiliated! Besides, he's already promised me he'll spare your life, so just treat it as gaining some real combat experience!"

A chill flashed in Henry Clark's eyes, and he made a mental note of Charles Turner.

Then.

He deliberately put on a timid look and said, "Are you sure you want to challenge me? Although I'm sickly and weak, I do have some strength—I'm a first-level Qi Refining expert, a real cultivator."

First level of Qi Refining?

Butcher Bolton couldn't help but sneer and said, "I'm sure."

He was at the third level of Qi Refining, and after years of swinging a cleaver and chopping meat, his physical strength was excellent. Facing this underage first-level weakling, he was fully confident he could make him wish he were dead.

In the crowd.

Several experts who had broken through to the Innate Realm all showed strange expressions. They were very sensitive to the aura of cultivators, and earlier they had keenly sensed the aura emanating from Henry Clark—that was definitely not something a first-level Qi Refining cultivator could possess.

This guy was feigning weakness to mislead the enemy.

Cunning!

Several people secretly sighed in their hearts.

Henry Clark hesitated again for a while, then seemed to muster his courage and gritted his teeth: "I accept your challenge. But we have to keep our word—no killing."

"This lord's word is as good as gold—I absolutely won't kill you."

Butcher Bolton's fan-like hand slapped his own chest with a loud smack, but the killing intent in his eyes was even stronger than before.

In an instant.

The crowd fell silent, and the hundreds of onlookers looked at Butcher Bolton with especially odd expressions.

As good as gold?

How familiar those words were!

Before Butcher Bolton's son had his match with that little girl, he had also slapped his chest and made the same "as good as gold" promise, but in the end, he was beaten like a dead dog.

"Like father, like son."

The old saying really is true!

Chapter 0009: Too Easy