Jing Shanshan felt around in his pocket. Of the allowance Spirit Hall had given Soul Masters like him when they left Spirit City, only a few silver coins remained after all the miscellaneous expenses along the way!
If a dignified future king came across something he wanted to buy, only to find he could not pay for it, how would that sound if word got out?
Jing Shanshan strode inside without hesitation.
When the gambling house guard saw a little brat with slicked-back blond hair walk in, his listless expression instantly turned to disgust. He stood in front of Jing Shanshan, waving him away!
"Shoo, shoo! This is no place for a kid like you! Go home and play in the sand!"
Jing Shanshan stopped, his gaze turning cold. With no intention of speaking, he silently took three silver coins from his pocket!
The guard curled his lips in a disdainful grin at the sight. Just as he was about to keep driving Jing Shanshan away, a staff member from inside the gambling house immediately stopped him.
"Anyone with money is a customer. Why are you meddling so much? Just watch the door!"
The staff member harshly reprimanded the guard. After listening, the guard merely clenched his fists in silence and lowered his head, saying and doing nothing.
"I'm the nephew of this gambling house's manager. My apologies, young customer. Our guard had eyes but failed to recognize Mount Tai and nearly offended an honored young guest like you. Here, please accept this chip worth one silver coin as my apology!"
Three silver coins could be considered a considerable fortune for an ordinary household, but they were nothing in a gambling house.
But a child with three silver coins in pocket money? That meant his family must be reasonably well-off!
If he lured the child along with a few tricks, he might be able to follow this little lead and hook the big fish behind him!
The manager's nephew worked his little abacus with a clatter in his mind, all smiles as he bent down and offered the chip.
Jing Shanshan stared at the chip for a moment, then flicked a finger, sending a silver coin straight into the manager's nephew's hand.
The meaning was clear.
I don't need your charity. I have money to exchange.
Half an hour.
"Little brother, are you picking big or small?"
A gambler excitedly tried to take Jing Shanshan's hand, but remembered how someone who had done that not long ago had remained asleep on the floor ever since, and suppressed his excitement.
Jing Shanshan did not even open his eyes. Looking rather uninterested, he pushed all the chips in front of him onto big out of boredom.
At that push, the gamblers behind Jing Shanshan, who had been relatively quiet, all flushed red, veins bulging. Without a thought, afraid they would place their bets too late, they pushed all their chips onto big too!
"I'm following too!"
"Move, move! Don't block me from betting on big!"
"Everything on big! All in!"
The gambling table instantly erupted. Every gambler gathered around Jing Shanshan's table was beside himself with excitement.
The tableful of chips formed a dense mass piled entirely over the word "big."
The dealer's hand hovered above the dice cup, not daring to descend. Beads of sweat rolled down his forehead one after another. Looking at the tableful of chips, he swallowed involuntarily, still struggling to step on the switch secretly beneath his feet.
"Open it!"
The gamblers' eyes had gone red. Money was beckoning to them, and they all leaned forward, wishing they could see straight through the dice cup.
The dealer gritted his teeth and lifted the cup!
"Big!!!"
"We won! We won again!"
"Follow this little brother, and money climbs into your pockets all by itself!"
"Exactly! Exactly! Little brother, you're incredible! How is your luck so good? You win every time!"
The heated cheers from the gambling house's first floor reached the manager on the third floor without obstruction. They were unbearably grating!
The manager slammed his hand on the table, his eyes as red as those of the excited gamblers below. He pointed at the man before him, the one who had let Jing Shanshan inside, spittle nearly spraying his face.
"Look what you've done! If you hadn't let that kid in, would our gambling house have lost almost half a year's profits?!"
"I told you to scheme against the big fish behind him, and look what you did! You didn't catch a fish-you drained our own pond dry! Did you put every scrap of your petty cleverness into digging a pit for your uncle?"
As he went on, he still could not vent the anger inside him. Only after kicking the man did the manager feel a little better.
"If you weren't my nephew, I'd want to kick you to death!"
The manager's nephew rubbed his stomach, apparently not badly hurt. With his neck hunched and grievance written all over his face, he muttered quietly.
"I... how was I supposed to know this kid's luck would defy the heavens...?"
"So you think you're in the right now?!"
The manager was so furious that his mustache bristled. He pointed at his nephew and roared!
"He wins every bet, and he's been winning nonstop with that single chip you gave him! You call that luck? He's a living ancestor!"
Another round of cheers rose from downstairs. The manager's face instantly went as black as the bottom of a pot, and his nephew lowered his head even farther.
"How about..."
The nephew raised his head and made a throat-slitting gesture. The thought crossed the manager's mind for an instant, but he quickly shook his head.
"With him winning like this, those people on the second floor will turn green with envy. We don't need to act ourselves."
"Then..." The nephew glanced down at Jing Shanshan, who had just won again, and said with a face full of reluctance, "we're not taking back those nearly ten thousand gold coins?"
The manager said nothing, merely watching the floor below in silence.
By the time Jing Shanshan walked out of the gambling house, nearly ten thousand gold coins had been added to his Gate of Babylon. Those gold coins were the one thing in this boring diversion that could stir his interest.
He had only just entered a sparsely frequented alley when a group of red-eyed gamblers grinding their teeth blocked its entrance behind him.
"Kid, stop!"
"You're the little cheat!"
"Leave the gold coins we lost!"
Jing Shanshan did not even pause. The little black cat lying on his shoulder twitched its ears, fixed its red pupils on the gamblers, and lightly leaped down, all four paws landing soundlessly.
Jing Shanshan showed no sign of stopping the little black cat. It pushed off with all four limbs, its body flashing like black lightning. Within a few breaths, the gamblers blocking the way lay sprawled all over the ground, their faces unnaturally pale. They looked as though most of their vitality had been drained away, leaving them half dead.
Another group surged out at the harbor. Leading them was the gambling house's middle-aged manager, who hurried over with a broad smile, hoping to smooth things over.
"Little brother, please ask your pet to show mercy!"
Jing Shanshan said nothing. His icy gaze settled on the middle-aged man.
The manager glanced at the people lying on the ground, then at the little black cat curled up on Jing Shanshan's shoulder again. A trace of wariness flashed in his eyes.
Anyone who could tame such a powerful Soul Beast as a pet must have a formidable force behind him.
He had originally intended to play the oriole waiting behind the mantis as it stalked the cicada, but now it seemed he needed another approach.
"You're all honored guests of my gambling house. There's no need to spoil our harmony over such a small matter. Why not come inside for some tea so we can talk?"
Jing Shanshan watched him for a while, then finally nodded.