Stars Clustered Around the Moon

At nine-thirty in the morning, Ding Liusan brought more than twenty followers through layers of quarter walls and arrived at the gambling house in the center of Qianliangfang. Dou Jiyan cupped her fists first to greet Ding Liusan. "Senior Brother, you're quite early." The two sides had agreed to start the contest at ten o'clock, but Ding Liusan had arrived half an hour early. Li Banfeng looked over Ding Liusan's appearance. The man was in his fifties, with thick eyebrows, large eyes, and a square face. He wore a black suit, a white shirt paired with a black bow tie, his hair slicked neatly back, and his back straight as a ramrod. Even the trim mustache on his upper lip had been meticulously groomed. Ding Liusan looked Dou Jiyan over. "Junior Sister, on such an important day, is this how you dress?" The weather was a bit chilly, and Dou Jiyan wore a blue padded cotton jacket with an asymmetrical front and frog buttons, looking both rustic and plain. She didn't feel anything was amiss. "Senior Brother, did we meet today to match wits at the table, or to pick a courtesan queen in a brothel? Putting other skills aside, whenever you and I open a match, have you ever beaten me? What use is dressing nicely?" Ding Liusan looked at Dou Jiyan, his eyes brimming with disappointment. "Junior Sister, I remember Master telling us never to treat affairs of our pathway like child's play. Every word, every deed, every single gesture has the rules of the pathway behind it. For all these years, whenever I step up to a gambling table, whether my opponent is a grandmaster or a raw beginner, I've never forgotten the rules. At the very least, one must wear decent clothes—because this is the dignity of our pathway!" Dou Jiyan gave a cold laugh. "Senior Brother, here on my turf, it's not your place to lecture on rules. Win this match first, then it won't be too late to preach to me." Li Banfeng looked around. Quite a few people were inside the gambling house to spectate, and just as many were outside waiting for news. Amid the whispers, many were discussing the attire of the two. Their voices were very low, but through the Qiansi earring, Li Banfeng could still catch some of it: "Boss Ding really dresses properly, and he speaks properly too!" "He's the Eldest Senior Brother of our pathway; he has to be particular in what he does." "This is a major affair for the pathway. I've heard our Eldest Senior Brother values the pathway's matters above all else." "Our Miss Dou's clothes aren't bad either. Clean and tidy looks plenty nice, doesn't it?" "True, that's fine too." Ding Liusan looked toward Li Banfeng. "This must be Seventh Master, right?" Li Banfeng nodded slightly at Ding Liusan. Ding Liusan stood and bowed in greeting. Li Banfeng returned the courtesy. "There is no need for formality between us. I am here merely to act as a witness for both of you." Ding Liusan said, "I am older than you, and I've tumbled and crawled through this pathway longer than you. The reason I bowed to you first is out of respect for the witness. This, too, is a rule of my pathway." The murmurs among the crowd grew louder. "Didn't they say Boss Ding is someone who can't bear to lose? How is it he follows rules so strictly?" "Whether he can bear to lose or not was all Miss Dou's words. Either way, he looks to me like someone who truly takes our pathway seriously." "Hey, stop your idle chatter. No matter how good Boss Ding is, he's an outsider. Miss Dou is one of our own." "That's true enough." When ten o'clock arrived, the first round began: dice. Dou Jiyan had immense confidence in all three contests. In her gambling cultivation, she was indeed higher than Ding Liusan. Moreover, Qianliangfang was her domain; the Gambling Cultivators of Qianliangfang would certainly give their full backing to their own local spirit. Relying solely on the technique Stars Clustered Around the Moon, Dou Jiyan held the absolute upper hand in luck. The two shook their dice cups and opened them to compare points. Dou Jiyan had three sixes. Ding Liusan also had three sixes. Li Banfeng didn't find this remarkable. There were only three dice in each cup; with gambling skills as high as theirs, both rolling three sixes should be completely normal. Yet Dou Jiyan felt something was wrong. While shaking the dice just now, Dou Jiyan had not only ensured her own roll was the highest, but had also sought to suppress Ding Liusan's numbers. She had used the gambling technique Overstepping to Take on Calamity, effectively manipulating Ding Liusan's dice for him. By rights, Ding Liusan should have had at least one die suppressed. Yet Dou Jiyan's technique had not worked. Failing was not entirely abnormal; all gambling techniques had probabilities, determined by two factors: one's own cultivation, and the opponent's defensive capabilities. Dou Jiyan's cultivation was naturally beyond question. Did the technique fail because Ding Liusan's luck was simply too good, or because his cultivation had improved? "Junior Sister, another roll!" Ding Liusan picked up his dice cup. Dou Jiyan naturally accepted the challenge. As they played the second throw, Dou Jiyan used the gambling technique Unpredictable Winds and Clouds. This technique was quite peculiar; it could cause an opponent's methods to veer in an unexpected direction. When comparing numbers, Ding Liusan would surely aim for sixes, but under the influence of Unpredictable Winds and Clouds, a slight slip of his hand could turn a six into a one. Both lifted their cups—Ding Liusan still had three sixes! Dou Jiyan's technique had failed once again! Could this truly just be luck? Dou Jiyan grew somewhat nervous. She reached for her dice cup and said, "Let's do another round." "Junior Sister, what are you saying?" Ding Liusan cautioned her not to touch the dice cup. "You have a six and two fives—sixteen points. I have three sixes—eighteen points. What next round could there be?" Dou Jiyan froze. She discovered that her dice cup did not hold three sixes after all. Ding Liusan had used a technique as well. He had manipulated Dou Jiyan's dice, and she hadn't managed to guard against it. She had lost the first contest just like that! Dou Jiyan had never dreamed she would lose the opening match. She surveyed the onlookers in the gambling house. Some sighed, some shook their heads, and some stomped their feet in frustration. Though some stood by indifferently watching the spectacle, most seemed to pity Dou Jiyan. The human presence was still there, which meant her luck was still there. Losing this match could only be blamed on underestimating the enemy. Dou Jiyan's mood remained fairly calm, but Li Banfeng heard the projector whispering in his ear: "Director Seven, I don't see the deep blue of pity here. Instead, I see quite a lot of red—from secret delight." Secret delight. Was that what these Gambling Cultivators truly felt? As Li Banfeng observed the crowd, Ding Liusan asked, "Seventh Master, how do you call this match?" Li Banfeng didn't need to ponder. He could only speak the truth: "First contest, Ding Liusan wins." The second contest was Pai Gow: ten chips per person, playing until one side lost everything. In the first hand, Dou Jiyan received her tiles and looked at them: a twelve-point Heaven tile and a ten-point Red Head Ten. The two tiles had no connection or special combination. Their point total was twenty-two, and according to Pai Gow rules, taking the last digit gave two points—a very small hand. Across the table, Ding Liusan placed a bet of five chips. Dou Jiyan certainly couldn't call. With such a rotten hand, she shouldn't even have looked; 'flowers bloom in their season,' and looking only ruined her morale. How could she have drawn such a terrible hand! Dou Jiyan looked at the crowd again; they all seemed anxious on her behalf. For the second hand, Dou Jiyan turned over her tiles. Still a rotten hand. For the third hand, Dou Jiyan felt her luck had turned, but when she opened them, it was still a rotten hand! All the way until the eighth hand, Dou Jiyan looked at every hand, and every hand was rotten—wretched beyond belief. She warned herself to stop checking her tiles prematurely, lest she keep flipping away her luck. But after drawing, she always felt her fortune had improved and couldn't resist sneaking a peek. With only two chips remaining, Dou Jiyan paid the ante and raised by one chip. Ding Liusan matched the raise. Dou Jiyan said, "Senior Brother, I want to borrow eight chips from you. I'm going all in on this hand." An uproar swept through the gambling house. They had agreed that losing all one's chips meant losing the match. Could chips even be borrowed now? Ding Liusan asked, "Junior Sister, I can lend you the chips, but if you lose, what will you repay me with?" Dou Jiyan replied, "If I lose, Qianliangfang goes to you, Senior Brother, and I'll forfeit my life along with it!" Ding Liusan frowned. "I want Qianliangfang so our fellows can live with dignity! What use is your life to me? To earn the shameful name of slaughtering my own sect sister?" Dou Jiyan shook her head. "I don't understand that. With Qianliangfang in my hands, are our fellow cultivators not living well?" Ding Liusan smiled. "You're living well enough, but whether they are, they know best. We Gambling Cultivators are a proper pathway. Our abilities were earned through cultivation, and our fortunes were earned through our own toil. What did we do wrong? What do we owe anyone? Why must we live lower than others?" Dou Jiyan frowned. "What do you mean by 'lower than others'? Please enlighten me, Senior Brother." Ding Liusan looked solemn. "Qianliangfang is the ancestral home of us Gambling Cultivators. When we come home and aren't even allowed to gamble, isn't that far worse than living lower than others?" Dou Jiyan gestured around. "Take a good look, Senior Brother. This is a gambling house. Qianliangfang has over thirty gambling houses. I never said gambling wasn't allowed; these gambling houses are places for cultivation." Ding Liusan sighed. "This is a place of deceit. You have Gambling Cultivators clutch a single silver dollar and rub their hands over it in a gambling house all day long. That is deceit. It's just like drawing a circle in a mill and having a Travel Cultivator push a grindstone round and round, then telling him he has traveled ten thousand li in a single day. Do you think that Travel Cultivator would accept it? What is the true temperament of us Gambling Cultivators? To sweep up all the silver under heaven in a single day—that is the daring courage of our pathway! You make them muddle through their days here holding a single silver dollar. If that isn't deceit, what is?" Every word rang out loud and clear, with such conviction that even Li Banfeng felt Ding Liusan was making a lot of sense. Yet did it really make so much sense? Li Banfeng possessed cultivation at layer three plus two above the clouds, along with the cultivation of a Fool Cultivator. He wasn't so easily fooled. There was a technique at play here; Li Banfeng could sense the subtle shifts in his own thoughts. However, the watching Gambling Cultivators might not sense it. Dou Jiyan tapped the table. "Senior Brother, no need for superfluous words. I'm borrowing eight chips from you. Are you lending them or not?" "Seeing as you're my junior sister and this is your domain, even knowing you're being unreasonable, I can only indulge you." Ding Liusan brought out eight chips and gave them to Dou Jiyan. Dou Jiyan pushed all eight chips in at once. "Senior Brother, we bet it all on this one hand. Do you dare match it? If you don't dare, stop competing with me and take your people and leave!" Once those words were spoken, whispers broke out in the gambling house again. Their voices were extremely soft, unintelligible to ordinary ears, but the Qiansi earring caught parts of it. "What's her point? Can't he just fold? Does he have to call?" "Was that rule ever mentioned before?" "Junior Sister, you're being unreasonable again," Ding Liusan said, taking all his chips and pushing them all in. "I know I might not beat you this hand, but a Gambling Cultivator never yields their spirit. Win or lose, I have to fight for that spirit." Dou Jiyan didn't want to hear Ding Liusan say more. She grabbed her tiles and opened them quickly. She could sense a wave of fortune that was fleeting. She could also sense that things were wrong today; the hearts of the people in Qianliangfang did not seem to be on her side. Dou Jiyan revealed her hand: a pair of Heaven tiles—two twelve-point tiles representing the twenty-four solar terms, the second-highest hand in Pai Gow. Under these circumstances, unless Ding Liusan drew the supreme hand—the Supreme Bao... The so-called Supreme consisted of the six-point Big Monkey tile and the three-point Little Monkey tile, totaling nine points. This combination was named Supreme Bao, which was where Ding Liusan's name came from. He had once used a Supreme hand to bankrupt a seventh-layer Gambling Cultivator, making his fame from that feat. Dou Jiyan was terrified that Ding Liusan held a Supreme. Yet when Ding Liusan turned over his tiles, they were a pair of Earth tiles, each worth two points. A pair of Earth tiles was also very high, but smaller than a pair of Heaven tiles. By winning this hand, Dou Jiyan had won back a match. "Senior Brother, thank you for humoring me." Dou Jiyan let out a sigh of relief. The gambling house fell into commotion until someone shouted, "Shameless!" and silence returned in an instant. Dou Jiyan's face turned pale. Ding Liusan looked around at everyone and said, "None of you may speak recklessly. I was the one who lent the chips to my junior sister, and I chose to call the bet myself. When you gamble, you must accept your losses!" Murmurs started up again in the hall. "Didn't she forbid us from borrowing and having dealings with Loan Cultivators? How does she have the nerve to borrow chips herself?" "Look at Eldest Senior Brother's magnanimity. Even with her throwing a fit like that, he doesn't hold it against her." Only the final contest remained: cockfighting. This was Dou Jiyan's specialty. It was precisely because of her skill in breeding fighting roosters that she had had the opportunity to enter the gambling pathway. She brought her meticulously selected gamecock into the gambling house. It was a black bird; except for its comb, beak, and feet, the rest of it was pure, solid black. Dou Jiyan perched the rooster on her forearm, fed it a little, and with a gentle lift of her arm, the fighting rooster flew to the ground. It cocked its head, eyeing Ding Liusan. Judging solely from its appearance, Li Banfeng would have thought it was a hawk. Listening to the discussions around him, this fighting rooster had defeated hawks before—and more than one. Before the fight even began, Ding Liusan spoke first: "This bird is sick." Dou Jiyan glared at Ding Liusan. "Senior Brother, to target a fighting rooster before the battle even starts—isn't that inappropriate?" Ding Liusan shook his head. "There is no need to fight. Can that even be called a fighting rooster? Look at the luster of its feathers, look at the tips of its claws, and look at the spirit in those two steps it took. How does it resemble a fighting rooster in the slightest? How is it any different from a common barnyard fowl raised for meat?" Jin Jinliang, who had originally been responsible for checking talisman tallies at the gate, was also spectating inside. He softly warned Dou Jiyan, "This is the Technique of Appraisal." One of the four supreme techniques of an Appraisal Cultivator: the Technique of Appraisal. Dou Jiyan had recognized it long ago. "What my rooster is like is no concern of yours, Senior Brother. Let us begin the fight at once." Ding Liusan furrowed his brow slightly. "In the previous round, when Junior Sister wished to borrow chips, your senior brother lent them. Now, when your senior brother wishes to speak a few words, will Junior Sister not even allow that?" Regarding the earlier matter, Dou Jiyan was indeed somewhat in the wrong, but not wanting Ding Liusan to deploy his technique, she could only change the subject: "If Senior Brother says my fighting rooster is poor, why don't you bring yours out, and we can compare and see?" Ding Liusan wore an expression of deep disappointment. "There is no need to look. Junior Sister was once a master of cockfighting; the roosters under your hand were veterans of a hundred battles. A single crow, a single step, and they could frighten an opponent half to death. Yet how long has this bird been away from the battlefield? On ordinary days, it might spar a couple of rounds with Junior Sister, earning nothing more than rice bran and grain to barely fill its belly. Just like our fellow disciples here in Qianliangfang, who wear down their fingers day after day for a single silver dollar. If they truly went onto a battlefield, they might not even match this rooster. When others show their methods, our people would probably wet their pants in fright." Jin Jinliang warned again, "This is the Technique of Induction." He was drawing the matter of the fighting rooster onto the Gambling Cultivators. Many Gambling Cultivators indeed resonated with his words. Ding Liusan looked at Jin Jinliang and said, "Old Jin, you are a disciple of our pathway. No need to hide in the shadows. Raise your head, stand tall, and speak! We Gambling Cultivators ought to stand tall and speak even more! We Gambling Cultivators are a proper pathway among Puluo's hundred sects! When one of us enters the battlefield, we dare match ourselves against the world's heroes! When a hundred of us take the field, we dare contest victory against ten thousand soldiers and horses! When we entered this pathway, it was to rely on our skill and courage to forge an estate, carve out a reputation, and win a world of our own—not to muddle away our days in a daze for a single silver dollar each day!" First appraising the fighting rooster, then drawing an analogy to the Gambling Cultivators present, and followed by reasoned discourse—before long, two definitive conclusions would be reached: First: under Dou Jiyan, the fighting rooster had degraded into a barnyard chicken. Second: under Dou Jiyan, the Gambling Cultivators would sooner or later become useless wretches. Appraise, Induce, Argue, Determine—the four supreme arts executed in one seamless flow. Dou Jiyan cut Ding Liusan off: "They could barely survive out there, and now you babble about conquering the world? Doesn't your back ache from talking so tall?" Ding Liusan was fully prepared and continued, "That's right. Our pathway has suffered plenty of bullying outside, and plenty of people are waiting to devour our flesh and blood. These grudges must be settled sooner or later. A single thread cannot make a cord; a single tree does not make a forest. Why did our pathway's founding patriarch leave us Qianliangfang? It was so we could gather together, fight back for our pride, and reclaim our world! Junior Sister, since you took over Qianliangfang, what have our fellow disciples become? What has Qianliangfang become? When I entered, I saw two Martial Cultivators dragging our people out. Is this the domain of Martial Cultivators, or the domain of Gambling Cultivators?" Dou Jiyan grew agitated, her words quickening. "No private gambling games is the rule of Qianliangfang! I made this rule clear long ago! Anyone is free to come and go in Qianliangfang. Whoever refuses to follow the rules can simply leave. I won't stop them..." Ding Liusan remained thoroughly composed. Neither rushed nor slow, neither subservient nor overbearing, his breath was full and his voice resonant, every syllable crystal clear: "Why should we leave? This is the legacy our patriarch left to Gambling Cultivators. By what right should an outsider be allowed to ruin it?" Li Banfeng was taken aback. This Technique of Determination was formidable—far more potent than the conclusion Li Banfeng had anticipated. With this single determination laid down, Dou Jiyan had become an outsider. This pathway truly was worth studying. Dou Jiyan grew more and more heated, while Jin Jinliang urgently pleaded from behind her, "Miss Dou, please don't argue anymore." It was obvious that arguing further with Ding Liusan would gain Dou Jiyan nothing. She realized this as well. "Senior Brother, no more talk. Bring out your rooster, and let us finish the third match and decide the victor." Ding Liusan shook his head slightly. "Junior Sister, if I used a real fighting rooster against this barnyard chicken of yours, it would be taking advantage of you. I bought a fat chicken at the market, originally intending to share a cup of wine with you after the three matches were concluded. Yet seeing Qianliangfang reduced to such a state, I have no heart to drink with you. Today, I will use this fat chicken to send your sickly bird on its way." Dou Jiyan gritted her teeth in fury. In Li Banfeng's impression, this woman was normally easygoing and unrestrained, but before this Appraisal Cultivator, she had lost her cool. Li Banfeng now wanted to see how potent Ding Liusan's appraisal techniques truly were—whether a common chicken bought from the market, according to the determination he had set, could really defeat Dou Jiyan's fighting rooster. Everyone craned their necks to watch, curious to see how a barnyard chicken would fight a gamecock. Yet only Dou Jiyan knew in her heart that what Ding Liusan brought out was no common chicken. This rooster looked plump and clumsy, resembling a common chicken on the surface, but in reality, it was an exceptionally sturdy and robust fighting rooster. Before the battle began, Ding Liusan raised the stakes once more: "Junior Sister, I stake my lifetime of reputation on this match! If I lose, I will never set foot in Qianliangfang again!" Gambling technique: Blood Stake Momentum! As soon as those words were uttered, the feathers on Ding Liusan's 'common chicken' bristled, its combat power soaring dramatically. If Dou Jiyan did not match the raise, both her fortune and momentum would be suppressed by Ding Liusan, and she really might lose this cockfight. "Senior Brother, I match your stake! If I lose, I will move out of Qianliangfang within a single day and never set foot in Qianliangfang again!" With the terms settled, the battle commenced immediately. Li Banfeng felt that deciding such a major matter through a cockfight was a bit too frivolous. If they were truly pitting gambling skills against each other, fine, but how much technical skill was involved in cockfighting? Dou Jiyan's rooster took a step forward, suddenly slipped, and stumbled awkwardly with its wings askew. Ding Liusan's "common chicken" charged forward and pecked out the fighting rooster's eyes in a single strike. Before Dou Jiyan's rooster could even regain its footing, the "common chicken" leaped into the air and slammed its talons down, bursting the rooster's head instantly. Chicken blood splashed across Dou Jiyan's face. The speed of this "common chicken" astonished even Li Banfeng. Lower-layer cultivators might not even be able to defeat this bird. Ding Liusan had made exceptionally thorough preparations for this cockfight. In truth, Dou Jiyan had also prepared well; her fighting rooster was by no means inferior to Ding Liusan's. Yet the rooster slipping right at the start was something Dou Jiyan could never have anticipated in a million years. Losing the contest like this was even further beyond her wildest imagination. Li Banfeng looked at Dou Jiyan. Dou Jiyan stood frozen in place, at a complete loss. Li Banfeng faintly heard someone cheering. Dou Jiyan's rooster might truly have been superior to Ding Liusan's. Yet before the fight began, the bird had suddenly slipped. For a well-trained fighting rooster capable of even serving as an assassin, what were the odds of such an accident occurring? The probability of such an occurrence depended on how many Gambling Cultivators had just channeled the technique Stars Clustered Around the Moon. Li Banfeng looked around at the Gambling Cultivators present and saw them struggling to hold back their smiles. Some didn't even bother holding back, letting out audible chuckles. And the moon they chose to cluster around today was clearly not Dou Jiyan. In their eyes, Dou Jiyan had become an outsider. Through a sequence of appraisal techniques, Ding Liusan had won over the hearts of the people. Dou Jiyan shook her head and looked at Ding Liusan. "Senior Brother, let's keep gambling." Ding Liusan sighed. "Junior Sister, you've lost everything. What do you have left to gamble with?" "No, I haven't lost everything. That last one doesn't count. My bird lost its footing. I'll switch to another one and go again, switch to another—" "Your senior brother cannot indulge you any further this time." Ding Liusan stood up and adjusted his suit. "Dou Jiyan, I give you one day. Leave Qianliangfang immediately and never return. The rules you established in Qianliangfang no longer apply. For anyone willing to follow you, I will not force them to stay; let them leave with you within one day." Dou Jiyan shook her head. "I won't leave. I can't leave." Ding Liusan's face darkened. "Accepting your losses is the duty of our pathway. If you abandon even your basic duty, our bond as fellow disciples ends here. If you insist on staying, I will find another way to send you on your way." Dou Jiyan still refused to leave, but Jin Jinliang urged her, "Miss Dou, we truly lost the gamble. Let's leave quickly. If we don't, it will be too late." Ding Liusan glared at Jin Jinliang. "Scum of the pathway! Whoever I might spare, I will never spare a traitor like you!" As he spoke, Ding Liusan made a move toward Jin Jinliang. Dou Jiyan quickly shielded Jin Jinliang behind her. "Senior Brother, this has nothing to do with him." Ding Liusan turned his gaze to Dou Jiyan, about to strike. Li Banfeng stepped between the two parties and called out, "Everyone, the contest is already over." Ding Liusan looked at Li Banfeng. "Seventh Master, since you came to bear witness, please speak a fair word." Li Banfeng's cultivation was by no means inferior to Ding Liusan's; in a one-on-one fight, his odds of winning were very high. Yet if he attacked now, he would fall right into Ding Liusan's trap. Ding Liusan clearly wanted to use the pretext of Jin Jinliang to eliminate Dou Jiyan. There were so many Gambling Cultivators present; Jin Jinliang was a constable hired by Dou Jiyan, and Gambling Cultivators harbored deep hatred for constables. Li Banfeng was an outsider whom the Gambling Cultivators had zero sentiment for. As for Dou Jiyan herself, the attitude of the Gambling Cultivators toward her was already glaringly obvious. Under Stars Clustered Around the Moon, all human presence was gathered on Ding Liusan. If a fight broke out now, it was hard to say what kind of predicament Li Banfeng might face—he might not even be able to execute his steps. He gained a newfound understanding of the Gambling Cultivator pathway: alone, they might not be formidable, but once gathered in numbers, no one would dare look down on them. "Mister Ding, I came precisely to speak a fair word: you won this contest," Li Banfeng said, then turned back to Dou Jiyan. "There is still a day left. Gather whoever is willing to go with you and leave quickly." Back at her residence, Dou Jiyan was devastated. Jin Jinliang led several constables to help Dou Jiyan pack her things. Several other constables hurried through the quarters, informing everyone that those willing to leave with Dou Jiyan should prepare to depart at once. Jin Jinliang comforted Dou Jiyan. "Miss Dou, while there is green wood, there is no lack of firewood. I estimate at least half the people in the quarters will be willing to follow you. You should think of a place for them to stay first." Dou Jiyan snapped back to reality. "I still have a plot of newland. I'll take them to settle in the newland first. I stored plenty of grain there, which should sustain us for a time. As for later, we'll think of something." What they could possibly think of later, Dou Jiyan had no idea. Perhaps she should follow Qiu Luoye's example and turn the newland into proper land. Yet starting everything from scratch was simply too difficult. Dou Jiyan still wanted to seize Qianliangfang back, but doing so would violate the gambling covenant. After agonizing for an entire day, when the next morning arrived, Dou Jiyan discovered she had worried over nothing. In the entirety of Qianliangfang, out of over a hundred thousand Gambling Cultivators, fewer than a hundred were willing to leave with her. Li Banfeng said, "That saves trouble, at least. No need to worry about lodging for a crowd." Walking along the hillside, Dou Jiyan looked back at Qianliangfang from time to time. She still couldn't understand the reason behind it all. "Brother Seven, did I do something wrong? I only wanted these Gambling Cultivators to live in peace and safety." Li Banfeng shook his head. "If they wanted to live in peace and safety, these people never would have become Gambling Cultivators in the first place." "What should we do from now on?" "From now on?" Li Banfeng asked her. "Where is your covenant deed?" "Still inside Qianliangfang." "You don't plan to take it with you?" Dou Jiyan shook her head. "I won't take it. Ding Liusan doesn't know where my deed is, either." "He'll find it sooner or later." "Let him search. If he finds it, let him dig it up. If I lose my status, I deserve it—I lost Qianliangfang." Li Banfeng shook his head repeatedly. "Saying this is useless. In a couple of days, I'll go to Qianliangfang and see what the situation is." Dou Jiyan gritted her teeth. "I want to go back right now. I never should have left!" "Now is not the time. The people of Qianliangfang are united in heart right now; going back is simply throwing your life away. 'Flowers bloom in their season' is a technique of your pathway. Even if you lost your head in defeat, you still remember the core principle, don't you? Wait until their hearts scatter; it won't be too late to go back then." Dou Jiyan's mind was in turmoil. "I truly don't know what Ding Liusan intends to do with them." "I don't know either," Li Banfeng said, looking down over the panoramic view of Qianliangfang, a faint worry lingering in his heart. These Gambling Cultivators were far too dangerous. If they were truly freed of all restraint from now on, they would become a threat to the entirety of Puluo Province. Alive, they were a threat; dead, they were also a threat. Such a thorny situation was truly difficult to deal with. Late at night, Qianliangfang was ablaze with noise and bustle from top to bottom. Everyone was gambling—some in the gambling houses, some at home. Ding Liusan had instituted new rules: from now on, within Qianliangfang, private gambling games were not restricted, nor were stakes capped; wins and losses depended entirely on skill and luck. In less than two days, over ten thousand people had lost everything they owned. These people performed hard labor in Qianliangfang to barely sustain their livelihood. Ding Liusan promulgated yet another new order: outsiders faced no restriction on entering Qianliangfang. Whether selling rice, selling vegetables, singing songs, selling bodies, or even lending at usurious interest—as long as they handed over half their income to Ding Liusan, anyone could do business in Qianliangfang. As for people wanting to gamble, Ding Liusan placed even fewer restrictions; every gambling house took a house cut, and the more people who came, the better. At a Pai Gow table, He Jiaqing drew a pair of Human tiles and was just about to raise his bet when he suddenly looked back. He saw a blond-haired, blue-eyed man standing at the entrance of the gambling house, smiling at him. He Jiaqing folded his hand, lit a cigarette, walked up to Critick, and asked in a low voice, "What gives you such great interest to come gamble here?" Critick smiled. "The biggest casino in Puluo Province—it would be quite a pity not to come experience it." He Jiaqing glanced to both sides, making sure no one was paying attention to them, and lowered his voice. "You'd better leave. Once you've seen it, consider it a gain." Critick shook his head. "I think the one who should leave is you. You've already won quite a lot, and that dealer is about to count the tiles. You swapped out so many tiles, you're bound to be exposed." He Jiaqing lowered his voice even further. "I'm here running an errand for a senior. That senior has immense backing." "What a coincidence." Critick arched his eyebrows. "I'm also running an errand for a senior. And my senior's background isn't small either."