Whispers

The next moment, a slightly flustered voice came from not far away.

Immediately afterward, a particularly disheveled middle-aged man appeared in Qin Shang's line of sight.

The man had an eye-catching head of long red hair. It did not look dyed; it seemed more as if some illness had caused his hair to grow that color naturally.

He had a full beard, messy hair, and looked as though he had just woken up. He was even wearing his checkered shirt inside out.

He really did look like he had rushed over in a desperate hurry.

However, hidden beneath his long hair was a pair of bright eyes. His small eyes darted around as he sized up the Red-robed Cult Master and Qin Shang, the two unexpected guests.

When he saw Qin Shang, the man paused slightly, then instinctively nodded in greeting.

Qin Shang immediately followed suit, nodding back at him.

Is this the swindler the Red-robed Cult Master was looking for?

But... what relationship does the swindler have with Grandpa Niu's brother?

Only after seeing the newcomer did the Red-robed Cult Master give a slight nod.

"Three seconds late. Remember to be faster next time."

"I'm in a bad mood, so cut the crap..."

"Take me to find Chen Muzi."

At those words, the swindler who had rushed over froze.

Chen Muzi?

The Red-robed Cult Master had come to find someone?

At the same time, Qin Shang narrowed his eyes.

Chen Muzi?

Is that Grandpa Niu's brother's name?

At the same time, the bellhop behind the nearby counter awkwardly greeted them.

"Boss, this is the young lady who wants to see you..."

"Obviously, I know. We know each other. Don't steal the scene; you're not needed anymore. Can't you tell that this lunatic is about to lose it?"

After saying that, the swindler looked at the Red-robed Cult Master with displeasure.

"Cult Master, you know that your Ten Thousand Treasures House and my gambling world leave each other alone. Although we're friends, we have no interests tied up with each other."

"Before you explain why you want to see that person, I have to ask you first: what's your relationship with him?"

"No relationship."

"He's a friend's brother. I'm only here to deliver a message. It won't affect the debt between you two."

Hearing this, the swindler sighed in relief, then pointed at Qin Shang.

"Is this friend also from the Ten Thousand Treasures House?"

"Mm."

Hearing that, the swindler visibly relaxed, then lifted his chin toward the bellhop.

The bellhop immediately pulled out a room card.

The swindler took it, walked straight through the lobby, and stopped beside the elevator.

"You two coming together? That guy owes me more than forty million, and he has no money to pay it back."

"I've called all his family members too. Either no one answered, or they told me to call the police and have him sent to the station."

"What a joke. This bastard owes me more than forty million damn yuan. Do you think I can send him in? Wouldn't sending him in just let him off easy?"

The Red-robed Cult Master ignored him completely, merely lowering her eyes and nodding.

The swindler, having received no response, said nothing more.

At that moment, Qin Shang, who had been watching from the side, could not help blurting out,

"You... lend money at exorbitant interest?"

"Young man, you can eat whatever you want, but you can't say whatever you want. What do you mean, lend money at exorbitant interest?"

"I run a casino. Red-robed Cult Master, is this your friend?"

"Mm!"

The Red-robed Cult Master nodded indifferently.

Only then did the swindler say, "Oh," a flicker of surprise passing through his eyes. He then looked Qin Shang up and down with a beaming smile.

"Quite lucky with the ladies, aren't you? I've never seen her bring any other man to meet us. Don't let her excellent rapport with men and extensive connections among them fool you—she's genuinely a woman who keeps herself pure."

"Maybe you're even her first!"

After saying that, he gave Qin Shang an envious yet teasing look.

Qin Shang: ???

Did you misunderstand something?

"You two can also have a little fun at my place later..."

"Have fun, then give you leverage and intimate videos of us?"

The Red-robed Cult Master's cold voice suddenly rang out from nearby.

Then the woman glanced at Qin Shang, whose face was full of suspicion, signaling him not to interrupt before continuing to speak to the swindler.

"Don't think I don't know about those little tricks of yours. Your lousy hotel is covered in surveillance cameras, with three hundred and sixty degrees of coverage and no blind spots. If I weren't too lazy to deal with you, this lousy shop of yours wouldn't still be open."

"If you want to die, you can say so directly. Why beat around the bush?"

"There's one more thing. He isn't my lover..."

After saying that, the Red-robed Cult Master stared at Qin Shang for a long while before suddenly narrowing her eyes.

"He's a new member of the Ten Thousand Treasures House!"

Only then did the swindler shift his curious gaze away.

Qin Shang could clearly feel it.

As soon as the Red-robed Cult Master finished speaking, the swindler's curiosity and probing toward him diminished by a great deal.

Did this guy think the Red-robed Cult Master and I had that kind of relationship?

Was that why he had been so enthusiastic at first?

Damn...

There's a considerable age gap between us, all right?

I look only twenty-five or twenty-six, while the Red-robed Cult Master looks at least thirty.

Although she still had plenty of charm and remained strikingly beautiful, the crow's-feet at the corners of her eyes didn't lie. What was this guy looking at?

Could he think I was trying to cling to a rich older woman so I could avoid thirty years of hard work?

Ding!

At that moment, the elevator arrived, and the three of them stepped inside.

The Red-robed Cult Master's voice suddenly sounded beside Qin Shang's ear.

"Don't speak. This is the hypnotist skill Whisper. Only you can hear it."

"'Grandpa Niu's' brother is here. The swindler is the owner of this place, a level-five Order Realm fraudster. Don't provoke him."

"An Order Realm fraudster can give even a martial artist of the same level a headache!"

"Although my Ten Thousand Treasures House isn't afraid of his gambling world, the gambling world is the swindler's territory, and his network of connections is equally vast."

"After all, Divine Path players have points, and that means this group's money is the easiest to earn. For ordinary people in the real world, without some extraordinary opportunity, it would take ten years to save a million yuan."

"But for Divine Path players, even clearing any random B-rank dungeon guarantees at least five points as a basic reward. Combined with the terrifying exchange rate between RMB and points, that means any player who can return alive from the Divine Path won't be poor."

"So the swindler has quite a few friends in the real world..."

"If a conflict really breaks out, even I might not be able to protect you. Many of the people with whom the swindler exchanges benefits are Order Realm players. If you provoke him, he won't even need to trouble himself. He can send you back to the Divine Path."

Return to the Divine Path...

This was the first time Qin Shang had heard that phrase. But after thinking about it, he understood its meaning.

When a Divine Path player died, the Divine Path automatically reclaimed their Character Card.

Wasn't that essentially returning to the Divine Path?

"Don't ask too many questions. For now, it seems someone owes the swindler an astronomical sum. Don't meddle later. I'll deliver my message, then leave with me."

"Also, you're not my type. Don't let your eyes wander all over me like that. I hope you won't flatter yourself. I called you a member of the Ten Thousand Treasures House merely to stop the swindler from running his mouth and keeping you out..."

Damn!

At those words, the corners of Qin Shang's mouth twitched.

I didn't misunderstand anything either...

He wanted to say something, but felt that the consequences might be enormous, so he swallowed the words back down.

Forget it. A wise man doesn't fight when the odds are against him.

He could not beat the Red-robed Cult Master, so all he could do was admit defeat.

However, the Red-robed Cult Master's words also resolved a doubt in Qin Shang's heart.

During the final round of the Death Train, just before Little Loli—"Grandpa Niu cosplaying as a maid and seducing Zhuangzhuang's mother"—was about to receive Divine Punishment, she had specifically warned him to be careful of "Eagle of Justice" and "Buddha Saves the Predestined."

If not for those words, Qin Shang truly would not have noticed the ill intentions of those two so quickly.

At the time, Qin Shang had felt that it might have been a whisper.

After all, he had only seen the young girl's lips moving, yet he had not seen any special reaction from Eagle of Justice or Buddha Saves the Predestined.

It seemed his guess had been right. This was a hypnotist's skill.

Whisper was probably similar to the transmission of true qi in wuxia novels, right?

Only the intended target could hear the speaker's voice!