Flower Butterfly Immortal shook her head slightly, not answering the question.
When Mu Lingyao pressed further, Qiānlíng said, "This wager, regardless of win or lose, is all harm and no benefit for Flower Butterfly Immortal and Young Lady Mu. For Liu Shuangyan, however, it is all benefit and no harm."
Mu Lingyao didn't quite understand. "Why?"
"Young Lady Mu, if you and Flower Butterfly Immortal were to win this time, would you truly make Liu Shuangyan kneel?"
"Well... Sister Flower Butterfly definitely wouldn't. As for me..." Mu Lingyao thought carefully. She understood Flower Butterfly Immortal's character; even if she truly broke the record, she would absolutely not make Liu Shuangyan kneel and kowtow. But if she herself were to win, Mu Lingyao really didn't know if she would make Liu Shuangyan kneel and kowtow.
Although her personality was fiery and she hated Liu Shuangyan to the bone, she could absolutely bring herself to give Liu Shuangyan a vicious beating. But making Liu Shuangyan kneel and kowtow—that was something Mu Lingyao probably couldn't actually do.
"I imagine neither Flower Butterfly Immortal nor Young Lady Mu would make Liu Shuangyan kneel and kowtow. However, if the situation were reversed and Liu Shuangyan won, she would definitely make both of you kneel and kowtow."
"If that's really the case, then this young lady will also go all out and make her kowtow."
Qiānlíng shook her head. "If you two truly made Liu Shuangyan kneel and kowtow, you would likely fall right into Liu Shuangyan's trap. Afterwards, she would definitely spread it everywhere, saying that you and Flower Butterfly Immortal are petty, nitpicking, and bullying others too far. And she would claim her wager was just a joke, but you took it seriously..."
"That way, not only would Young Lady Mu's reputation be affected, but Flower Butterfly Immortal's reputation would be even more..."
"Oh no! So I really did fall for her trick after all!"
Upon hearing Qiānlíng's words, Mu Lingyao finally realized she had indeed fallen for Liu Shuangyan's scheme, and a major one at that. She clearly understood that Qiānlíng wasn't exaggerating at all. Knowing Liu Shuangyan, that vile woman would absolutely pull such a disgusting stunt. This was precisely the kind of underhanded tactic Liu Shuangyan was best at. The reason Mu Lingyao hated Liu Shuangyan was precisely because Liu Shuangyan had secretly slandered her and Flower Butterfly Immortal more than once.
"That vile woman Liu Shuangyan! She's truly despicable! Damn it! Why didn't I think of this!"
Mu Lingyao cursed herself for being too stupid. She had fallen for Liu Shuangyan's tricks so many times, yet still hadn't learned her lesson, actually stumbling into it again. She said angrily, "If Liu Shuangyan really makes us kneel and kowtow then, this young lady will also say it was just a joke, call her petty and nitpicking... and ruin her reputation too..."
Mu Lingyao originally wanted to give her a taste of her own medicine, but then she thought: Liu Shuangyan's reputation was already bad to begin with; doing this would be of little use.
"As the saying goes, a gentleman does not fight with a petty person. There are some things that Flower Butterfly Immortal and Young Lady Mu cannot bring yourselves to do, but a petty villain like Liu Shuangyan can do them. Moreover, within our Dual-Pole Celestial Domain, almost everyone who has heard of Liu Shuangyan knows what kind of person she is. Even if Young Lady Mu gives her a taste of her own medicine, it won't have any effect on her."
Pausing briefly, Qiānlíng continued, "Also, even if all three of you fail to break your own records, the one most affected will still be Flower Butterfly Immortal. After all, Flower Butterfly Immortal has a reputation, and holds the record of once reaching the nineteenth layer. If she challenges the Tower of Stolen Gold, she will inevitably attract much attention. Furthermore, Liu Shuangyan had already proclaimed earlier that Flower Butterfly Immortal would break her own record today. Even though Flower Butterfly Immortal never said such a thing, many people believed it. If Flower Butterfly Immortal fails to break her record this time, Liu Shuangyan will inevitably seize the opportunity to mock and ridicule her extensively..."
"But Liu Shuangyan herself will not be affected by this. Not only will she not be affected, it will actually benefit her. After all, her fame is far inferior to that of Flower Butterfly Immortal and Young Lady Mu. Wagering with you, regardless of win or lose, allows her to borrow your influence to boost her own fame. I think the fundamental reason she has been deliberately targeting Flower Butterfly Immortal is precisely to use Flower Butterfly Immortal's influence to hype herself up."
After listening to Qiānlíng's analysis, Mu Lingyao finally realized she had not only fallen for Liu Shuangyan's trick, but had also been used by her. She angrily cursed Liu Shuangyan for being shameless and despicable.
Gu Qingfeng laughed beside her. "Don't just curse here. Learn to be smarter in the future, learn from Sister Ling'er here. When you encounter something, calm down and think it through first. Now you're in a bind, aren't you? Fell right into her trap, didn't you?"
"You still have the face to say that to me!"
Mu Lingyao was already full of regret, and now Gu Qingfeng was here laughing at her misfortune. She said angrily, "It's true that this young lady fell into that vile woman Liu Shuangyan's trap, but at least I still have hope of winning. At worst, if I win, I just won't make her kowtow. Even if I lose, it's just a kowtow, no big deal. Besides, even if I don't break my own record, Liu Shuangyan might not necessarily break hers either."
Bringing up the wager Gu Qingfeng had just made, Mu Lingyao's anger flared anew. "But you! You just had to brag and show off! Making a wager is one thing, but wagering on the twenty-seventh layer? Betting on ten million kowtows? Just see what you'll do then!"
"Girl, I'm different from you. When I make a bet, I'm always sure to win. A mere twenty-seventh layer? I can climb it with my eyes closed. Don't forget, I'm still planning to go up to the eighty-first layer to win that ten trillion prize."
"You're still dreaming about that ten trillion now? Good heavens! You're about to die and you're still bragging! This young lady really can't be bothered with you!"
"Whether I'm bragging or not, I know in my own heart. You'd better think of a way yourself, lest when she breaks her record and you don't, you really plan to kneel and kowtow to her?"
"Kowtow to that vile woman Liu Shuangyan? I'll kowtow to her ancestral grandmother's leg!"
To the side.
Flower Butterfly Immortal looked at Qiānlíng with praise. "Ling'er, I didn't expect you to be able to analyze things so thoroughly."
"You flatter me, Flower Butterfly Immortal. I know you had also long seen through Liu Shuangyan's intentions, but I don't know why you agreed in the end."
"Yes! Yes!" Mu Lingyao also asked, "Sister Flower Butterfly, since you already saw through that vile woman Liu Shuangyan's scheme, not only did you not stop me, but how come you ended up agreeing yourself? Our great master here has a problem with his brain, does yours have a problem too?"
Flower Butterfly Immortal said softly, "This time, I also wanted to force myself."
"Force yourself? What do you mean?"
Flower Butterfly Immortal gazed intently at the Tower of Stolen Gold and said solemnly, "Actually, some of the things Liu Shuangyan said were not wrong. Since I was eliminated on the third layer of the Tower of Stolen Gold last time, I truly have been very disheartened deep down. Not only disheartened, I also began to doubt myself. Since Liu Shuangyan has made this wager with us this time, I decided to simply accept it, cut off my own retreat, force myself onto the Tower of Stolen Gold, and break my own record."
"Wanting to cut off your own retreat is fine, forcing yourself is fine too, I can understand that. But what if... you don't break your own record?"
"There is no 'what if.' This time, I must break my own record!"
"I'm saying what if..."
"There is no 'what if'!"
Mu Lingyao was utterly speechless. She looked at Flower Butterfly Immortal's firm and resolute expression, then at Gu Qingfeng's nonchalant, 'I'm definitely going to win' face. She said, torn between laughter and tears, "Have you both gone mad?"