Chapter 16 Challenger's Arena

"Hey, have you heard of Ikasa's manuals?"

"Of course! Who hasn't heard about them? As long as you can get one, you can become a Cultivator for sure!"

Exactly a month had passed since Ikasa first auctioned his manual at the weekly Bazaar. Since then, he had become the talk of the town.

In the first week, people dismissed the claims of the witnesses as rumors and exaggerations. But most of them still went to the second auction at the weekly Bazaar, hoping they would get lucky.

In the Bazaar they became the spectators of the miracle. They saw a person they knew breakthrough on the spot after using the manual. They saw the rich bid thousands of silver to buy the other two copies of the same manual.

Any doubts they had were quashed and they became the mouth publicists of Ikasa's Cultivation Manuals.

In the subsequent weeks, Ikasa's manuals continued to be sold for exorbitant amounts. There was not a single person in the outer city who didn't know of Ikasa's Manuals.

They either believed in the testimonies of the spectators or discarded Ikasa as a conman but his manuals had indeed become renowned in the Sal City.

And yet none of the inner city dwellers thought highly of Ikasa's manuals. And the reason was obvious; Ikasa's disastrous debut on the Prosperity Street.

Even his income of about a thousand gold per week was not enough to prompt those truly powerful into action. Since Ikasa only sold three cultivation manuals per week, it was not enough to affect the business of the only official Cultivation Manual Store in the city.

But this status quo might change today. Because Ikasa had an announcement to make.

—

"Welcome everyone to the fourth Lucky draw of Ikasa's Manuals! Today's Grand Prize is a bit different. Not only can you purchase the Cultivation Manual, but also win a Battle Technique manual!"

Xin Ruo had lost her stage fright after hosting the Lucky Draw the first time. Since then she was becoming better and better as an anchor. It was as if she was born to be a host!

Her enthusiastic charisma infected the crowd. They were even more hyped by the prospect of receiving the battle technique manual for free!

Xin Ruo wisely let them enjoy the few brief moments of fantasy as there would be only one winner.

Meanwhile, Ikasa observed the proceedings from the side. He was proud of how much she had changed in just a month.

After a brief makeover, Xin Ruo now possessed both, beauty and charm. Combined with her improving skills, Ikasa had no doubt she would become the number one hostess as soon as she received a suitable platform.

As the crowd's excited whispers died down, Xin Ruo began to speak.

"I request all of you who are eligible to move to the designated area. I repeat only those who can use the manual on the spot and can pay 100 silver are eligible for this Lucky Draw."

Once everyone moved into the fenced area outside the market, Xin Ruo spoke the lines she had rehearsed a thousand times.

"As they say that the Bird's droppings bring wealth. So who better to choose a lucky winner for us than the said birds?"

"We will conduct the auction for the other two manuals during the next hour. Within that time, whoever the bird poops on first, will be the winner of this Lucky draw!"

This brilliant bird poop idea was of course the brainchild of Ikasa. During the first Lucky Draw, Ikasa wasted time and money writing the names of entrants on a piece of paper and then randomly pick one of them from the giant bowl.

Just the paper and ink used were worth nearly three gold coins! And even the wealthy merchants and mercenaries shamelessly registered as entrants!

During that contest, a bird pooped on Yan Xiao. While he was being made fun of by the other kids, Ikasa was reminded of the superstition back on earth.

'If a bird poops on you, it is considered to be your lucky day.'

And a light bulb was lit in his head. After the first Lucky draw was over, Ikasa surveyed the surroundings of the marketplace and found a few areas where there were lots of bird droppings.

One of these areas was a relatively large open space; a perfect venue for accommodating large crowds. When Ikasa asked around, he was informed of the flock of birds that passed over this area every evening.

And hence, the plan for the bird's poop lucky draw was formed.

Xin Ruo still remembered the day Ikasa had told her of this plan.

"Is this really a good idea? I know bird's droppings are good luck but still…?"

"Do you have a better idea?"

"...."

"Do you remember, I had to spend four hours writing the names of all the participants last time? Many of our big customers who were there for auction left during that period."

"Yes, I remember. I am sorry. I can take over the writing work this time?"

"That's not the point! It cost us 3 gold worth of writing supplies and our precious time. But if we use this method, it costs us nothing!"

"But still… Wouldn't those merchants and mercenaries feel offended if we use this method?"

"Tell me again who are we doing this for? Who is our target group for the lucky draws?"

"The uninitiated commoners?"

"Exactly! So if those merchants and mercenaries disdain to participate in this type of lucky draw, who will benefit?"

"The commoners? Haha, Ikasa you are a genius!"

And they both shared a big fat grin at the moment.

While Xin Ruo was lost in thoughts, Ikasa had taken over the auctioning procedures.

About an hour later, Ikasa had sold his manuals for 478 Gold and 503 Gold each. The Lucky draw winner was also chosen and it was time to award him the battle technique.

"Now I call Su Che, our winner of tonight's Lucky Draw contest, to the stage to receive his reward."

Ikasa had agonized over which technique to use as a reward. He had finally settled on the technique he printed this morning, [The Backhand].

A diminutive young man came to the stage. There was a large spot due to fresh pigeon shit on his balding forehead. But instead of wiping it, he wore it with pride.

Ikasa gave him two books, [Dumb Belle's Guide to Strength] and [The Backhand].

He wouldn't be a qualified merchant if he didn't advertise his wares. So he began to introduce his latest product, [The Backhand].

"This is the latest Battle technique we have come across. This is a Low-grade palm technique, but its energy utilization is not any inferior to a mid-grade path forging realm battle technique."

"While studying this technique, we have discovered that this technique is only one half of the whole. If it can be paired with its other half the, [The Forehand], its might will increase manyfold and even exceed the Mid Grade standard."

Ikasa then turned to Su Che and placed his right hand on his shoulder. In a voice filled with goodwill, he said, "I hope you can complete this technique."

After sending Su Che down the stage, Ikasa once again turned to address the audience. He tried to make himself look sad and his voice was infused with regret.

" With deep regret, I want to inform you that this will be the last time I auction these amazing manuals. As you know I found them in an ancient ruin and there were only a few of them, which I sold to you."

Ikasa took a brief pause to let his news sink in. He observed as the expressions of people changed from joy to dismay. Only the ones who managed to get the cultivation manuals had a smile on their faces.

He could even see the faces of their competitors turn red with anger. Before the enraged ones could take some drastic steps, Ikasa decided to throw in another piece of information.

"I didn't declare this news before the start of the auction because I wanted to sell my manuals at a fair price."

The merchants were not fooled but the mercenaries and Commoners looked at Ikasa with fond gazes.

"He truly cares about us."

"He even sold the manuals he obtained from the ruins to the commoners. Others would have sold them at the auction house to those nobles."

The merchants sitting in the back rolled their eyes. One of them wanted to shout at the people praising Ikasa.

"Nobles think these are fake, that's why he is selling them here, you fools!"

But since he was one of the beneficiaries of this misunderstanding, he kept his mouth shut.

Ikasa basked in the goodwill that people showered on him. When the people were done getting emotional, he dropped another bomb.

"Even though I don't have any Cultivation Manuals, I do have a few Battle Technique Manuals with me."

Ikasa's declaration caused the eyes of people to shine again. They had seen Su Che master the energy utilization method in an instant. So the worth of these Battle Technique manuals was not below the Cultivation Manuals.

"We have decided to hold a Challenger's Arena a month from now at the City Hall's training grounds."

He pushed Hei Ying and the other kids to the front.

"These five will accept challenges from anyone below the Stage 6 of the Path Forging realm. Anyone who defeats them will receive a Battle Technique of his choice!"

"I hope all of you come and win these fabulous prizes!"