Chapter 74. The King of Duel Gambling 1

I drank the Dujiang liquor while watching the duel gamblers.

‘These conscienceless bastards.’

One of them who hadn’t yet predicted the outcome must have asked about my background. Origin, school, and special techniques are all factors that can influence the outcome, so it’s normal to pay and ask.

I ignored the question and drank the Dujiang liquor, when a new customer approached me after asking the waiter something.

“You need to come outside.”

“Let me finish this drink first.”

“Drink and get up quickly.”

I lifted the Dujiang liquor and poured the remaining alcohol down my throat. As the Dujiang liquor gushed out, the alcohol splashed in all directions. After a long time of not visiting the duel gambling hall, drinking to my heart’s content made me feel refreshed.

I wiped the alcohol from my mouth with the back of my hand.

“Let’s go.”

I followed the guy who had urged me to come out and hit him on the back of the head with a bottle.

With a thud, the guy fainted.

The people who had bet on me all cheered and clapped.

After easily dealing with one guy, I went outside the inn. The Black Mirror Changguan had already brought his gang, so quite a crowd had gathered.

I asked Black Mirror, whose face was a mess.

“Unarmed?”

Black Mirror looked around, and a dozen people put down their weapons on the ground.

Black Mirror said,

“Yeah, unarmed.”

Black Mirror rotated his shoulders and said to his companions,

“Let’s beat him half to death.”

***

As I walked to the center with a smirk, a dozen people rushed at me without any declaration of the start.

I ran forward and kicked the chest of the first guy who approached.

With a thud, the guy fell straight and couldn’t get up after colliding with the spectators.

I responded without using my inner strength.

I struck someone’s head with the edge of my hand, grabbed and twisted the arm of someone who appeared in front of me, and stabbed the eye of the guy on my right with my index and middle fingers.

I attacked whoever I saw without time to identify them. I broke a guy’s nose with a punch and hit the face of another guy who approached with a spinning kick.

Suddenly, the guy I had kicked fell to the ground, grabbed a sword, and rushed at me.

“Huhuhu.”

They suggested fighting unarmed, but this is how it turned out.

I dodged the sword he thrust and twisted his arm in the opposite direction.

“Gah!”

The guy, holding his dangling arm, retreated, and the guys who had been spread out narrowed their formation and rushed at me together.

This is not a fight that can be won by these mediocre guys thinking.

Because I am not the same as before.

I easily dodged the punches and kicks of these guys, who were even worse than the subordinates of the Black Cat Gang, and broke one more arm to end the fight.

I didn’t get dirty, but I shook my hands once.

“Is it over?”

The waiter looked at Black Mirror and his group and nodded.

“Yes, it’s over.”

The waiter took a step forward with a table and a basket and started distributing the winnings.

If the distribution of the winnings was tampered with, the inn would go bankrupt, so the waiter distributed the money with his life on the line.

The gamblers also lined up very orderly and received their winnings. Most received a fair share of the 500 taels they had invested in the inn and the funds of the losers, but even this much was enough to cover the day’s drinking, so everyone was happy.

“I made some pocket money.”

“Let’s have another drink.”

While listening to the gamblers, I looked at my share in the basket.

I peeled off a corner with the edge of my hand and said,

“Give it to Black Mirror.”

“Yes.”

I took out two silver coins from the remaining and gave them to the waiter.

“You did a good job.”

The waiter’s face brightened.

“Thank you.”

“Put the rest in.”

The waiter took out a cloth from his waist and swept the winnings into it. The cloth immediately became heavy. The gambling here is structured so that the winner takes most of the pot. Since most people bet one silver coin each, it was a considerable amount of money.

The waiter smiled and asked me,

“Did you come to make some pocket money? Sometimes there are such experts. Where are you from?”

“Pay and ask. One silver coin.”

The waiter laughed awkwardly and said,

“I was just asking. Thank you.”

The waiter continued to pry.

“With your skills, you could participate in the duels.”

“Who is the one with the biggest bounty in the duels now?”

“It’s Dongfang Ran, who has never been defeated. But to challenge him, you need to bring at least 10,000 taels to be accepted.”

I smirked.

“Is that so.”

Dongfang Ran, whom I couldn’t even dream of facing in the past, is also known as the King of Duel Gambling. Even combining the funds given by the Wuwo Sect leader and the money I just won in the inn duel, I didn’t have 10,000 taels.

I came to settle my past, but I didn’t come to waste time here like other gamblers.

If I can gather 10,000 taels and face the King of Duel Gambling, my schedule will be neatly wrapped up.

I slung the cloth bag with the money over my shoulder and went to the next gambling hall.

***

In front of the wall, a row of people were sitting, sharpening their weapons on whetstones. They all looked like lunatics.

The world is full of such crazy people.

This place is where people wait to participate in a simple form of gambling where they clash their weapons to break them, determining the winner.

At the entrance are the mediocre ones, and in the center of the arched wall is the one with the sharpest weapon.

I walked to the center with the bag full of money and looked at the white-haired gambler. When I saw him in my previous life, his eyebrows were also white, but now they weren’t completely white. He still wore the ivory necklace, which was said to be hard to obtain, around his neck.

The leader of the weapon gamblers, Qiu Zongyue, looked at me and said,

“Are you challenging me?”

I simply replied to Qiu Zongyue, whom I hadn’t seen in a long time.

“Yes.”

“I’m a bit expensive. How much did you bring? Show me.”

I put the bag on the board. Qiu Zongyue checked the contents of the bag and lifted it slightly with his hand.

Qiu Zongyue still had no expression, as always.

“Can we do a one-to-one trade?”

“Sure.”

I took out a gold ingot and added some silver coins to the bag. Qiu Zongyue’s eyes flickered slightly.

“Are you pushing it too far?”

When I brought a rare amount of money, the other weapon gamblers also looked at us.

I simply replied,

“If you’re scared, back off. Let me have a seat. The King of Weapon Gambling, are you scared of this much?”

Qiu Zongyue raised his head and glared at me.

“I don’t know where you’re from. You don’t seem to be from the White Dao or the Three Families.”

Qiu Zongyue looked around and said,

“If anyone knows this guy, I’ll give you a gold coin.”

Everyone answered in unison,

“I don’t know.”

I said to Qiu Zongyue,

“No one here knows me.”

“Why?”

“I’m a first-timer.”

Qiu Zongyue crossed his arms and stared at me.

“Do you know the rules?”

“Explain them to me.”

“One attack, one defense. If it breaks before that, the match is decided. If it’s a draw, it continues. You can add more money in the middle. If you injure your opponent, the gamblers here will gather and stab you. Do you agree?”

“I agree.”

Qiu Zongyue pointed to the place where the weapons were placed.

“Put your weapon down first.”

“I can’t do that. Let’s clash while holding them. I’m a first-timer, but did I not do any research? Where are you trying to pull off a fake move? Old man, are you trying to make me look like an idiot by being polite?”

Qiu Zongyue smiled.

When a gambler smiles, it often means they’ve lost their composure.

Qiu Zongyue said,

“Young man, if you hold the weapon and clash, you’ll likely suffer internal injuries. I was trying to protect you. Isn’t your life more important than the weapon or the money?”

I drew Heimiao and extended it.

“Old man, stop the nonsense and let’s have a match. I’ll give you the first move.”

The defender holds the weapon extended, and the attacker swings. If there’s no winner, they switch roles.

It seems like a weapon match, but it’s also a battle of inner strength.

Qiu Zongyue had been the King of Weapon Gambling for a long time not only because his sword was solid and sharp but also because his inner strength was robust. He never lost in weapon gambling until I left.

Qiu Zongyue sighed and walked to the wall, looking at the weapons he had collected. He usually chose a weapon while watching his opponent, but this time he unhesitantly drew the sword on the far right.

Qiu Zongyue said,

“I’ll use the Xuantian Sword. If the sword flies, it might hurt innocent people, so hold it tightly. Are you ready?”

I held Heimiao with one hand and glared at Qiu Zongyue.

“I’m ready.”

Qiu Zongyue clicked his tongue.

“Speaking informally… damn brat.”

I smirked. In weapon gambling, timing is crucial. It’s common for weapons to clash when the breath is disrupted during conversation. Since I knew all the rules here, I wasn’t worried.

Qiu Zongyue, holding the Xuantian Sword, looked at Heimiao.

I infused Heimiao with Wood Qi. Naturally, there was no visible sign of Qi on the blade.

Qiu Zongyue glanced at me and swung the Xuantian Sword at the center of Heimiao. I confirmed that he was trying to hit the back of the blade and twisted my wrist.

With a clank, Qiu Zongyue’s Xuantian Sword bounced off.

Qiu Zongyue said with a complicated expression,

“Hmm, now it’s your turn to attack.”

This time, Qiu Zongyue extended the Xuantian Sword and, out of habit, touched the ivory on his necklace.

I reminded Qiu Zongyue of the gambling rules again out of caution.

“Old man, if you injure your opponent, you’ll get stabbed by the people here.”

“I know.”

“Be careful.”

“What...”

I swung Heimiao when Qiu Zongyue hesitated in his response. I switched the infused power from Wood Qi to Flame Qi. When Qiu Zongyue twisted his wrist, I did the same.

Clang!

The moment the blade of the Xuantian Sword broke...

Qiu Zongyue flicked the ivory he was touching with the Tendon-Striking Technique. The ivory, breaking the necklace, quickly rushed towards my neck.

I deflected the ivory with the Wood Tendon-Striking Technique and thrust Heimiao straight into Qiu Zongyue’s chest.

“Gah!”

With a thud, the blood-soaked Heimiao was pulled out. I didn’t intentionally stab deeply.

I looked at Qiu Zongyue, who was clutching his chest with a pale face.

“Daring to ambush me? Damn old bastard.”

Qiu Zongyue opened his mouth.

“Live...”

I grabbed Qiu Zongyue’s face and threw him to the center of the floor. With a thud, Qiu Zongyue rolled on the ground.

I took out gold ingots from Qiu Zongyue’s gambling fund box and said,

“What are you all doing? Bastards, the rule here is to stab the one who injures their opponent. Who started the ambush? If you have eyes, you all saw it.”

I threw the gold ingots into the cloth bag one by one while looking at the weapon gamblers who were watching. They had been afraid of Qiu Zongyue and were just watching the situation.

I smiled and continued to pick out the gold ingots.

“Damn bastards...”

Qiu Zongyue, still breathing, called for help. He shouted someone’s name, tried to negotiate, and repeatedly offered to share his wealth. I whistled while putting the gold ingots into the cloth bag.

“Why not just have a fair match?”

At this moment, a weapon gambler at the back drew his sword and stabbed Qiu Zongyue’s twitching leg. A scream and curses burst out simultaneously.

I watched the weapon gamblers follow the rules while moving the money.

“The rules are made to be followed.”

The weapon gamblers, holding their weapons, stood up and each stabbed the body of the man who had long been the King of Weapon Gambling.

Thud, thud, thud, thud, thud, thud, thud...

Now, Qiu Zongyue’s screams could no longer be heard.

I put all of Qiu Zongyue’s gold ingots into the cloth bag and stood up. I clapped a few times and said goodbye to the gang.

“I had a good time. You gambling addicts.”

As I moved past Qiu Zongyue’s body, a few people glared at me with killing intent. Reacting to the killing intent, I turned and opened my mouth.

“Do you want to die?”

The killing intent instantly disappeared, and they all returned to their places. I also moved on.

“Right. This is how good gamblers should be. Damn bastards...”

In any case, the gambling funds to challenge the King of Duel Gambling were thus prepared.