Pai Gow, if played with a banker, isn't terribly vicious. But this version without a banker—this is vicious.

At that moment, Lu Yuan heard a telepathic message in his ear from the Vice-Lord of the Confucian Civilization: "Lu Yuan, right now, Tong Yun-Chou, the Desolate Scion, the Martial Movement Scion, the Moon-Dwelling Buddha, and the Son of the Sword are all communicating. It seems quite interesting. Are you interested in listening in?" "Of course I want to listen," Lu Yuan replied. If the Vice-Lord of the Confucian Civilization found it interesting, something genuinely significant must be happening. "Let me transfer the connection for you." The Vice-Lord of the Confucian Civilization didn't even move a hand, and Lu Yuan immediately picked up the private communication among the five of them.

In truth, a private communication among figures at the peak of the World Realm, like Tong Yun-Chou, especially when using covert methods, was nearly impossible for even others at the same peak to eavesdrop on. Thus, Tong Yun-Chou and the others were completely at ease. However, the Vice-Lord of the Confucian Civilization was a Civilized Realm powerhouse, and a formidable figure even among those at the rank of Vice-Lord. Such a person could effortlessly capture every word of their discussion with the slightest movement.

Lu Yuan listened in.

"Later, we shouldn't rush to win; let's lose a few rounds first," Tong Yun-Chou's voice was exceedingly magnetic. It lacked any distinct feature, yet it was inherently pleasing to the ear. "Oh? Why?" the Desolate Scion asked. "We'll let the Tyrant-Rage Scion and Li Taishi win a bit first. We won't make a move initially, letting them believe their luck has arrived and they can sweep the floor. When they're fully committed, we'll strike with a massive play, and then we can utterly crush them," Tong Yun-Chou explained. "Oh? What's the purpose of doing this?" the Martial Movement Scion inquired. "The Tyrant-Rage Scion recently acquired a treasure map of great significance; I want that map. The Tyrant-Rage Scion is impatient; playing a round like this won't make acquiring his map difficult," Tong Yun-Chou said. "As for Li Taishi, judging by his bones, he is quite young. Having such strength at such a tender age suggests immense potential. However, youth is also his critical weakness. We should let him lose everything he can lose in one go, make him heavily indebted to us, and accumulate that debt of favor. The more he owes us, the more I can ensure he works for me."

This was Tong Yun-Chou's objective. Forcing the Tyrant-Rage Scion's treasure map out of him—that was the first. Gradually controlling Li Taishi—that was the second. Of course, there was a third point concerning the Tyrant-Rage Scion: Tong Yun-Chou wanted leverage over him. But for someone from the Copper Civilization, leveraging might be difficult, as their civilization was too weak. That was why he called upon the Reed-Field Scion, the Martial Movement Scion, and the Moon-Dwelling Buddha. Having the pressure of the three ancient civilizations together would be significant. Once they had leverage over the Tyrant-Rage Scion, they could gain numerous benefits later—benefits that couldn't be openly declared, but which would ultimately be the greatest gains. "Agreed," the others readily concurred.

As for the Son of the Sword, he naturally listened to Tong Yun-Chou. The Son of the Sword was currently following Tong Yun-Chou to learn his methods. Of course, someone like the Son of the Sword could never truly submit internally. If the opportunity arose, the Son of the Sword would undoubtedly strike Tong Yun-Chou down without hesitation to secure greater benefits. This demonstrated the Son of the Sword's ambition, immense talent, and vast potential. Unless he perished, he was destined to become a major figure in the cosmos. However, the Son of the Sword concealed this very well; the killing intent resided only in the deepest recesses of his heart because he feared Tong Yun-Chou might discover it. The longer he spent with Tong Yun-Chou, the more he realized how terrifying the man was.

Lu Yuan, standing by, was quite amused. These people planned to let him win initially, only to crush him later. Ah, excellent. Originally, he hadn't intended to win at the start; he only planned to win later. After all, his Gambling Character Clone was still fusing, making early wins difficult. But since they were offering him wins, it would be rude not to take them. Later, when they wanted to win, it would be impossible, as his Gambling Character Clone would be fully merged, allowing him to crush them effortlessly.

Lu Yuan suddenly realized that Tong Yun-Chou was truly a good person. Naturally, the Desolate Scion, the Martial Movement Scion, and the Moon-Dwelling Buddha were also good people. The Son of the Sword was a good person too. A group of great philanthropists! Lu Yuan felt genuine gratitude.

The Battle of the Gods of Gambling had begun. The dealer was the Godless Puppet.

First round. Tong Yun-Chou smiled: "Let's not bet too high for the first round. Just a hundred Spirit Stones." Lu Yuan smiled and pushed forward a hundred Spirit Stones: "I'll match with one hundred Heavenly Grade Spirit Stones." He currently held five thousand five hundred Heavenly Grade Spirit Stones. Playing with one hundred first was fine; he had a considerable edge to start with anyway. The others placed their bets, mostly around a hundred stones each.

Lu Yuan looked at his hand. His first card was a seven, the second was a one, totaling eight points. Eight points—quite high. His Gambling Character Clone was temporarily out of commission, yet he drew an eight immediately. What excellent luck, Lu Yuan praised inwardly. In fact, Lu Yuan's luck was extraordinary. As the Eighth Son of Fortune, few in the world possessed greater pure fortune, and even fewer among the younger generation surpassed him in luck.

Since the first round only involved one hundred Spirit Stones, no one raised the stakes, so everyone revealed their hands. Most others had two or three points. The Son of the Sword held seven points, quite high. Lu Yuan's hand was eight points, exactly beating the Son of the Sword's seven. This greatly displeased the Son of the Sword. In the beginning, no one used tricks; it was purely based on luck.

The Son of the Sword thought to himself: Could my luck really be worse than his? He had already been annoyed when he saw Li Taishi, who had just broken through to the seventh heaven of the World Realm, manifesting forty-six bridges of light, surpassing the Son of the Sword. Many had said that another young talent on the level of the Seven Sons of Fortune had appeared—there was Lu Yuan, and now Li Taishi. It seemed the original Son of Buddha and the Son of the Sword might be superseded. The Son of the Sword had been irked then, and even though he was following the plan to lose to Lu Yuan now, he still felt some displeasure.

Tong Yun-Chou noticed the Son of the Sword's displeasure and nodded slightly. It was better if the Son of the Sword showed his annoyance. A performance required a complete act. The Son of the Sword showing such unwillingness made the display more genuine. If their group seemed too happy even while losing Spirit Stones, their hidden motives would easily be exposed. The net was now cast, targeting the Tyrant-Rage Scion and Li Taishi.

He waited for these two to walk into the trap.

The first round ended, and Lu Yuan instantly earned seven hundred Spirit Stones. Indeed, this was faster than playing outside the Island of the Gambling Immortals, and this was only the beginning.

The second round started immediately, also with a base bet of one hundred Heavenly Grade Spirit Stones per person. However, after receiving his cards, the Son of the Sword raised the bet. He wanted to duel Lu Yuan. He immediately raised by one hundred Heavenly Grade Spirit Stones. Lu Yuan looked at his hand—he now possessed six thousand two hundred Heavenly Grade Spirit Stones, excluding the initial five hundred; all the rest was profit. Therefore, he cared little: If they want to play, let's play.

Those who didn't raise the initial bet naturally folded. That was the rule: if someone raised and you didn't match, you conceded defeat immediately. The Son of the Sword raised another hundred Heavenly Grade Spirit Stones. Lu Yuan followed suit, matching the bet with another hundred Heavenly Grade Spirit Stones. The stakes between the two soon escalated to a total of one thousand stones.

Finally, it was time to reveal the hands. The Son of the Sword held nine points, specifically a Terrestrial Nine—a very high card. Everyone looked at Lu Yuan, this "Li Taishi." They saw "Li Taishi" slowly reveal his hand: shockingly, a Heavenly Nine. The Heavenly Nine was just slightly higher than the Terrestrial Nine. The Son of the Sword was so angry he nearly spat blood.

Although the Son of the Sword was immensely wealthy, one thousand Heavenly Grade Spirit Stones was a considerable sum even for him. To lose it all in one go was devastating. Essentially, one thousand Heavenly Grade Spirit Stones constituted the Sword Sect's total assets. He had just lost the entire treasury of the Sword Sect in one turn; how could the Son of the Sword not feel the pain?

Lu Yuan, on the other hand, was ecstatic. What was satisfaction? This was satisfaction. He instantly jumped to seven thousand eight hundred Spirit Stones, earning one thousand six hundred Heavenly Grade Spirit Stones this round. Of that, one thousand came directly from the Son of the Sword. The most satisfying part was winning from the Son of the Sword. Watching the Son of the Sword's expression of loss as he forfeited one thousand Heavenly Grade Spirit Stones, Lu Yuan felt immensely pleased. Is not the enemy's pain precisely my joy?

"Thank you kindly, Son of the Sword," Lu Yuan smiled faintly. The Son of the Sword took a deep breath, his expression settling. Don't get smug. Aren't you about to step right into the trap? What you lose now, you will earn back later.

In the third round, Lu Yuan lost. The winner was the Tyrant-Rage Scion. Lu Yuan drew a zero point—yes, zero point. One card was a four, the other a six, summing up to zero points. This was as small a hand as one could get. Being the Son of Fortune didn't mean winning every hand; it just meant a higher probability of winning. The Tyrant-Rage Scion, having lost two rounds straight, finally won one and burst into loud laughter.

As round after round passed, among these games, the biggest winner was "Li Taishi," followed by the Tyrant-Rage Scion. These two were winning. The Copper Heart Scion broke even, neither winning nor losing much. The other five were losing significantly overall. Of course, the five would occasionally win a round, but losing was the norm.

The Heavenly Grade Spirit Stones before Tong Yun-Chou and the other four dwindled, while the piles in front of "Li Taishi" and the Tyrant-Rage Scion grew larger. The Tyrant-Rage Scion clapped Lu Yuan on the shoulder: "It seems today is our lucky day! We two are going to sweep the board today. I’ll treat you to drinks afterward!" Lu Yuan noticed that the atmosphere at the gambling table was heating up, genuinely becoming more fervent. Lu Yuan observed calmly and realized this heightened enthusiasm was being controlled by Tong Yun-Chou and the others, aiming to drive the mood of the entire table to a fever pitch for their final strike. Therefore, Lu Yuan cooperated, feigning an equally excited demeanor.

While gambling, Lu Yuan noticed a change occurring within his Sword Space. Coincidentally, the hand he held in this current round was minuscule: a six and a five, adding up to one point. Thus, Lu Yuan didn't follow the ensuing betting, allowing the two Scions, the Tyrant-Rage and the Martial Movement, to contest the pot while he slipped into his Sword Space to check on the status of his Gambling Character Clone.