Chapter 29: Will Extortion Get Us Caught?
The passage from the entertainment city to the upper floors was not located in the lobby of the bottom three floors, but rather in a separate, independent lounge.
After confirming the chips accumulated by Luxianbei and handing over the “Chaotic Parallel Space-Time Blossom” she had exchanged to her, the bunny girl invited her and Ahua into the lounge.
The interior of the lounge was exquisitely decorated, with many intricate styles visible on the beautifully carved white marble columns, and the walls around were filled with murals wherever it was possible to paint.
Bunny girls moved back and forth carrying silver trays, the drinks in the glasses sparkling under the bright lights.
At the end of the lounge was a huge bronze mechanical door, etched with intricate patterns.
The bronze patterns intertwined to depict several fearsome giant wolves traversing through a jungle filled with thorns.
Giant wolves? Could this be connected to the boss of this entertainment city in some way?
Luxianbei frowned slightly, and before she could recall any apocalyptic legends about wolves from “A Hundred Little Stories of Legends,” the gentle voice of the bunny girl interrupted her thoughts.
“Guests, shortly, other staff will lead you upstairs. During the waiting period, you two can freely enjoy the refreshments in the lounge.”
“If there’s nothing else, I’ll take my leave now.”
After saying that, the bunny girl waited for a moment, and seeing that Luxianbei and Ahua had not spoken, she respectfully bowed and exited the lounge.
Once the bunny girl left, Ahua quieted for a moment before finally unable to contain her curiosity and tilted her head to ask Luxianbei, “What about this figurine you have…”
“This is a Bai Xiaohua misprinted figurine, you can’t buy it on the market! Isn’t it awesome?” Luxianbei replied proudly, “It only cost 5,000 chips. Super worth it, right?”
“Only 5,000?” Ahua’s mouth dropped, her expression darkened as she said angrily, “Aren’t you afraid that because of these 5,000 chips, you’ll be late to the upper three floors and miss seeing the lady?”
“Of course I’m scared!” Luxianbei hugged the figurine tightly, seriously saying, “But I’m even more afraid of missing this opportunity! By the time I come back, my Bai Xiaohua might have been exchanged by someone else!”
I see you don’t understand at all!
Jiang Li barely counts as a brother; Bai Xiaohua is an absolute wife.
What’s more important than a brother, right? Luxianbei thought.
Ahua, “……” Normally, in an entertainment city, how could a guest spend 5,000 chips on something like this?
After a brief silence, she rolled her eyes and said impatiently, “Forget it. After all, it’s your chips that you won. Tell me, how did you manage to win so many chips in such a short time?”
Even though Wang Buliu wasted a round of chips, as long as he could maintain this kind of efficiency, he should soon be able to reach the upper three floors and find the lady, right? Ahua thought.
Luxianbei was just about to pop a delicate dessert into her mouth when she heard Ahua’s question, put down the dessert, and pouted.
“I observed others playing the slot machines and picked up some tricks, plus a bit of luck, so I won this much!”
Hearing this, a hint of disappointment flashed in Ahua’s eyes, and she muttered, “So it’s all about skills and luck… So it really is like this? This complicates things.”
“Huh? Why?” Luxianbei tilted her head.
“First of all, there are no gambling machines in the middle three floors, and secondly, almost all the gamblers there have some special means.” Ahua said seriously.
“So, it’s impossible for you to continue winning chips with those little tricks and luck you learned.”
“You have to be proficient in at least one or two card games, plus have some special means to win chips from the entertainment city or other guests.”
“Wait…” Luxianbei pondered Ahua’s words and realized what she meant, gasping lightly, “Wait! Are you saying that in the middle three floors, everyone is cheating?”
Ahua nodded, “That’s basically the idea.”
“What the hell! Is there no justice here?” Luxianbei said angrily, “Aren’t they going to manage this? Didn’t they say the games here are absolutely fair?!”
Ahua glanced at the bunny girls walking back and forth nearby and whispered, “Can you keep your voice down?”
“They definitely manage it; there’s even a group of people disguising themselves as guests mixed into the crowd, specifically to catch those who cheat.”
“In fact, using any means to win games is tolerated in this entertainment city, as long as you don’t get caught.”
“As long as cheating goes undetected, it’s not considered cheating, right?”
“…”
Luxianbei fell into silence for a moment, looked at Ahua, and said seriously, “Well, how about we don’t go up? I’ll just stay here and play the slot machines.”
“Although it’s a bit slow, I should still be able to accumulate 100,000 chips to go to the upper three floors, right? Maybe just in four or five days.”
In fact, in the past three hours or so, Luxianbei had been in a heightened state of concentration to use her predictive ability, and she was already feeling a bit fatigued now.
Based on her estimates, with no deviation in predictive results, she could maintain that kind of intense concentration for a maximum of seven hours before needing a long break.
Plus, she could only ensure consistent small wins and couldn’t guarantee the frequency of hitting high multiplier patterns. According to Luxianbei’s conservative estimates, it would take at least three or four days to win 100,000 chips.
If, as Ahua said, there were a group of people disguised as guests within the entertainment city specifically catching gamblers who cheat, this time frame might be even longer.
After all, winning 100,000 chips constantly through gambling machines is an outrageous task and hard not to attract attention.
“That’s not going to work.” Ahua shook her head, “In a few days, the lady will probably have accumulated enough chips to find the big boss for a gamble.”
“Once she enters Nowhere Land, when she can come out is uncertain, and whether we have the chance to see her is an unknown.”
Thinking about the possibility of Jiang Li never being able to come out after entering Nowhere Land darkened Ahua’s gaze, and she lowered her head.
“Then…” Luxianbei thought for a moment and said seriously, “How about we go back for now? I’ve heard that your Siye Society has welfare burial grounds; shall we go help her arrange it?”
“You…” Ahua’s chest heaved violently, and she exclaimed, “You infuriate me! All that while, our lady valued you so much! Do you have a conscience at all?”
“Uh…” Luxianbei said awkwardly, “I was just suggesting; if you don’t agree, we’ll just have to go up then?”
“By the way, let me confirm, in this ghost place, besides being full of cheaters, there aren’t any dark duels or anything like that, right?”
“What are you talking about?” Ahua looked confused.
Luxianbei rolled her eyes at Ahua, “I mean, it only involves gambling money, not life, right?”
If there were any deadly poker games, life-and-d*ath mahjong, or deadly chess among the activities, then I’d rather stay down and play the slot machines, win more money to send to Jiang Li, Luxianbei thought.
“Um, no.” Ahua nodded, “At least in the middle three floors, they’re all standard card game projects.”
“Alright!” Luxianbei snapped her fingers, full of confidence, “As long as there’s no life danger, leave the rest to me to figure out!”
Ahua’s eyes lit up slightly at this moment; she suddenly felt that Luxianbei was reliable.
She grabbed Luxianbei’s hands and nodded vigorously, “Okay, I’ll leave it to you to find my lady!”
Faced with this scene reminiscent of a mother entrusting her child, Luxianbei’s cheeks reddened slightly, and she awkwardly avoided Ahua’s fiery gaze, mumbling shyly, “Uh, this is my first time doing something like this. I’ll do my best…”
Noticing Luxianbei’s unusual reaction, Ahua seemed to realize that her excited words had ambiguities, and a flush crept onto her face as she quickly explained, “What I mean is, finding my lady is what I’m entrusting to you; I mean nothing else.”
“Yeah, I know.” Luxianbei replied quietly.
“Oh, um…” Ahua nodded.
So, until the other two guests heading to the middle three floors appeared, neither Luxianbei nor Ahua spoke another word.
Three minutes later.
Accompanied by the gentle sound of high heels tapping against the ground, two bunny girls led two guests from a distance.
From afar, Luxianbei heard a cheer, “Hehehe, little girl, didn’t expect to run into you here. Fate, huh?”
Looking over, a finely dressed old man came into view.
He wore a white three-piece suit, a black bowtie, and very clean shoes, not a speck of dust on them, even his two little mustaches were trimmed meticulously, plus he sported a pair of black-framed glasses.
He looked just like Colonel Sanders from the KFC commercials.
Luxianbei stared for a moment until she recognized that the old man was Liu Banxian.
“What the heck, how did you get into this state?”
“Hehehe!” Liu Banxian chuckled proudly and replied, “I was broke before, hadn’t changed clothes in a long time. After winning enough chips, I went to take a nice bath, changed into a new outfit, and exchanged for an image design package.”
“How do I look now? Am I handsome?”
“……” Luxianbei looked at Liu Banxian with a straight face and said, “You look alright, just that there’s inexplicably a smell of fried chicken.”
Liu Banxian, not caring about Luxianbei’s sarcasm, reached into the pocket of his fitted jacket and pulled out a chip, placing it in her hand.
Although Liu Banxian wasn’t very serious, he was a man of his word; when he borrowed chips from Luxianbei before, he promised to pay back tenfold and not only did he keep his word, but he also returned more than he borrowed.
“Oh right, the chips I borrowed from you earlier, I’ll pay you back here!”
After finishing, he cupped his hands in front of Luxianbei, then strutted over to the mechanical door at the end of the lounge, ordered a glass of red wine from the bunny girl, and started savoring it.
Once Liu Banxian walked away, Luxianbei looked at the 1,000-chip token in her hand, pondering for a moment, then turned her head and quietly asked Ahua, “Ahua, will lending people money at high-interest get us caught?”
Lending Liu Banxian a few chips and transforming them into a thousand in just over three hours is a lucrative deal!
“Theoretically…” Ahua started but widened her eyes at Luxianbei, “Wait! You aren’t thinking about going upstairs to make loans, are you?”
“Please don’t think of these shady methods! At least fifty percent above are high-level spiritual ability users and urban legends; if they can’t repay the money, what will you do?”
“Even if they can’t beat you, they can still manage to slip away from under your hands, right?”
Hearing this, Luxianbei pouted in disappointment, “I was just asking! I wouldn’t take risks without a way to ensure they’d repay me!”
“However, from what you’ve said, it seems that the entertainment city doesn’t prohibit guests from engaging in activities other than gambling? How about loan sharking? Fundraising fraud? Extortion?”
Ahua, “……” Wasn’t she just thinking about illegal activities without considering anything else?
She didn’t answer Luxianbei’s question, but Luxianbei’s mind was already racing with ideas.
Just as Luxianbei was deep in thought, Ahua sighed and said, “I told you, as long as you’re not caught, any means can be used.”
Although Ahua didn’t know what shady ideas Luxianbei was contemplating, judging by the stories Jiang Li had told her about Luxianbei, those shady ideas usually worked quite well.
So… why not let her have a try? Ahua thought.
“Oh?” Luxianbei raised her eyebrows, several bold ideas flashing in her mind, and the glint in her eyes gradually became sinister.
Ten minutes later.
The final guest going to the middle three floors arrived in the lounge, led by the bunny girl.
He was a tall man, his dark face looked weathered, with razor-like brows and eyes, exuding a sharp aura that made people reluctant to approach.
He walked past Luxianbei and Liu Banxian as if they didn’t exist at all, his gaze and footsteps never pausing as he headed straight for the mechanical door.
At that moment, a bunny girl dressed in red approached gracefully, bowed to the guests in the lounge, and gently reminded, “Dear guests, the passageway is about to open. Please gather around me; I will lead everyone to the middle three floors.”
After that, she waited a moment until Luxianbei and Liu Banxian gathered at the mechanical door before she turned around, pressed the mechanical keypad lock on the door, and turned it hard.
With a series of mechanical whirs and the sound of gears turning, the mechanical door suddenly slid open, and a puff of white steam escaped from the crack.
Once the steam dissipated, the mechanical door completely opened, revealing a wide semicircular platform in front of everyone.
The walls of the platform were made of smooth floor-to-ceiling glass, and the ceiling was adorned with colorful, intricate patterned glass.
Luxianbei and Ahua exchanged a glance, then got onto this elevator-like transport tool with the crowd.
Once all passengers were on the platform, the red-dressed bunny girl pressed the keypad lock inside the mechanical door once more, turning it firmly.
Thus, the mechanical door closed, and a sense of weightlessness struck as the platform slowly ascended, providing views of the city shrouded in night.
One minute later, the platform arrived at the lobby of the middle three floors of the entertainment city.
At the moment the mechanical door opened, the tall man stepped out first, quickly disappearing from sight.
Liu Banxian followed closely, and as he passed by Luxianbei, he paused slightly, lowering his voice to remind her, “Fellow countryman, did you see that person just now? He’s most likely one of the entertainment city’s dark lanterns. When you’re playing inside, avoid him a bit.”
Luxianbei was taken aback, confused, “Dark lantern? What’s that?”
“Tch!” Liu Banxian spat, quickly explaining, “Dark lanterns are informants disguised as guests hired by the entertainment city to specifically prevent cheating.”
“Based on my experience of playing here for so many years, that guy just now has a 70% to 80% chance of being a dark lantern.”
So that’s what they call dark lanterns… Luxianbei nodded thoughtfully, cupping her hands in thanks to Liu Banxian, “Thanks, Banxian, I’ll be careful.”
After finishing, she took a furtive glance at the bunny girl beside her, noticing she had no reaction at all and seemed completely indifferent to Liu Banxian’s conversation with her.
“Nothing to thank me for!” Liu Banxian casually said, patting Luxianbei on the shoulder, “We’re fellow countrymen! Besides, thanks to you lending me chips, I got a chance to turn things around.”
As he said this, he leaned closer to Luxianbei, lowering his voice, “To be honest, when I left today, I did a fortune calculation, and it showed I have noble people helping me; I’ll have great luck today, definitely going to sweep the tables and make a fortune!”
After that, Liu Banxian stretched and shouted, “Wuhu, I Liu Hansan am back again!” and dashed toward the lobby.
Luxianbei, “……”
This guy is all calm and collected when doing fortunes for others, but for himself, he’s shouting about great luck. No wonder he used to get beaten up!
————
On the other side.
While Luxianbei and Liu Banxian were briefly chatting, the tall man had crossed the lobby, reached the third floor, and barged directly into the elegant room facing the staircase.
Just as Liu Banxian had guessed, this tall man named Nan Hao was indeed a dark lantern.
Nan Hao pushed open the door to the elegant room, and just as he entered, a skinny, pale boy rushed over, shouting excitedly, “Boss, I caught a few big fish today; you have no idea…”
“Shut your mouth!”
With a harsh reprimand, Nan Hao scared the boy’s jubilant words back.
“……”
The boy fell silent, scrutinizing Nan Hao; seeing his fierce and intimidating gaze, he understood that Nan Hao was furious, a look he only displayed when he was extremely angry.
“That bunch has been playing here for over ten days, almost winning every day.” Nan Hao fumed, “I just went outside to check their backgrounds, and found absolutely nothing; I’m afraid they’re not good news.”
An entertainment city wouldn’t fear guests winning; even someone like Jiang Li who won a massive number of chips continuously wouldn’t bother them. But they feared guests using unorthodox methods to win, especially those methods that made other guests suspicious but couldn’t be caught.
In other words, they weren’t afraid of guests cheating; what they were afraid of was guests cheating and being noticed by other guests, but their dark lanterns could never catch those cheaters.
At this rate, the reputation of the entertainment city could be affected.
“Boss, are you talking about those two guys from the other day?” The boy furrowed his brow, “Le Er and Ma Bing are already watching them.”
“Just those two? Sending them is just giving away money!” Nan Hao said angrily as he paced to the window of the elegant room.
There was a giant floor-to-ceiling glass sealed with a fixed spell, through which he could almost overlook all the gambling tables in the middle three-floor lobby except the mahjong rooms.
Nan Hao stopped in front of the window, gazing through the glass, locking onto a poker table in the corner on the first floor.
There were five people seated at the poker table: two dark lanterns, two suspected cheaters, and one unfortunate bystander.
Among those two suspected cheaters, Nan Hao was particularly focused on the middle-aged man.
He had two scraggly eyebrows that looked as messy as a broom, the left brow appeared cut as if struck, and beneath his disheveled bangs, his deep blue eyes bordered on black, with a high nose bridge and a pale, unhealthy-looking gaunt face covered by thick stubble.
As Nan Hao observed the middle-aged man, the boy stepped over to his side, forcing a smile as he said, “Boss, today Le Er and Ma Bing are keeping a close watch on those two; they’ve already won back quite a bit of money. I think…”
Nan Hao glanced at the boy over his shoulder and interrupted, “Won back quite a bit? How much is that?”
“About…” The boy considered the data his companions relayed back and replied, “Around forty to fifty percent?”
“Forty to fifty percent…” Nan Hao murmured to himself, refocusing his gaze on the poker table in the corner, narrowing his eyes. The next moment, upon noticing his subordinates’ expressions subtly shift, his face changed slightly.
“Oh no! Le Er and Ma Bing are about to lose!”
With that, he rushed out of the elegant room, sprinting toward the corner poker table.
However…
When Nan Hao reached the poker table, the round had already ended, and the two suspected cheaters had long since left, leaving the unfortunate bystander slumped in a chair like a salted fish, with his two subordinates hanging their heads in shame.
Seeing this, Nan Hao quickly approached them, pulling both of his subordinates to a secluded corner, and asked in a low voice, “What’s going on? Any discoveries? Le Er, you speak!”
The boy called Le Er was his capable assistant and had previously helped him catch numerous cheaters.
“They, they…” The boy stammered for a while and sighed deeply, “I’m sorry, Boss; I didn’t notice either.”
“They were losing at first; both of us and that guest won quite a bit.”
“It’s just that for some reason, during the last hand, our luck suddenly turned particularly good, we were dealt very high cards, and we couldn’t resist betting a bit more, then…”
“Enough, you don’t need to explain further; I get the general idea.” Nan Hao interrupted, looking at the two retreating figures, his eyes narrowing as his gaze grew deep.
————
Meanwhile, in the corner of the second floor.
Luxianbei stood in the corridor, glancing at the glum-faced Nan Hao, then back at the two suspected cheaters leaving, nodding thoughtfully.
Then…
She turned back, her tone serious, “Ahua, let me confirm again, extortion won’t get us caught, right?”
