Volume One, Chapter 46: Whispers
The next moment, a slightly flustered voice came from nearby.
In Qin Shang’s line of sight appeared a particularly disheveled middle-aged man.
The man had striking red long hair that didn’t look dyed but seemed more like a condition causing his hair to be naturally that color.
He sported a scruffy beard, his hair was tousled as if he had just woken up, and his plaid shirt was worn inside out.
He truly gave off an impression of having rushed over in a hurry.
However, beneath that long hair were a pair of bright eyes, small and darting rapidly as he scrutinized the two unexpected visitors— the Red-Clad Sect Leader and Qin Shang.
Upon seeing Qin Shang, the man paused briefly, then instinctively nodded in greeting.
Qin Shang immediately returned the gesture with a nod of acknowledgment.
Could this be the swindler the Red-Clad Sect Leader was looking for?
But… what was the relationship between this swindler and Grandpa Niu’s elder brother?
The Red-Clad Sect Leader nodded slightly upon seeing the newcomer;
“Three seconds left. Next time, be quicker.”
“I’m in no mood. Cut the nonsense…”
“Take me to find Chen Muzi.”
At these words, the swindler who had just arrived hesitated for a moment.
Chen Muzi?
The Red-Clad Sect Leader had come looking for someone?
At the same time, Qin Shang narrowed his eyes.
Chen Muzi?
Was this the name of Grandpa Niu’s elder brother?
Meanwhile, the doorman beside the counter awkwardly greeted;
“Boss, it’s this lady who wants to see you…”
“Nonsense, I know. We know each other… Don’t steal the spotlight, this doesn’t concern you anymore. Can’t you tell this lunatic is about to lose it?”
After speaking, the swindler glared at the Red-Clad Sect Leader with annoyance;
“Sect Leader, you know your Treasure House and my gambling circle don’t interfere with each other. Although we’re friends, there’s no tangled interests.”
“Before you explain why you want to see that person, I have to ask: what’s your relationship with him?”
“No relation.”
“He’s my friend’s brother. I’m just here to deliver a message. It won’t affect the debts between you two.”
Hearing this, the swindler relaxed and then pointed at Qin Shang.
“This friend of yours is also from the Treasure House?”
“Yeah.”
Upon hearing that, the swindler visibly relaxed, then nodded toward the doorman.
The doorman immediately pulled out a room card.
The swindler took it and walked straight across the hall to the elevator.
“You two together? That guy owes me over forty million, and he has no money to pay.”
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“And I’ve called everyone in his family. Either no one answers, or they tell me to call the police and have him taken in.”
“What a joke. The bastard owes me over forty million. You think I’d help send him in? That would be doing him a favor.”
The Red-Clad Sect Leader remained silent, simply nodding with downcast eyes.
The swindler, feeling awkward, said no more.
At that moment, Qin Shang, who had been watching silently, couldn’t help but ask instinctively;
“You… are a loan shark?”
“Kid, you can eat messy food, but don’t speak recklessly. What high-interest loan?”
“I run a casino. Red-Clad Sect Leader, is this your friend?”
“Yeah.”
The Red-Clad Sect Leader nodded indifferently.
The swindler responded with an “oh,” a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes, then smiled warmly as he appraised Qin Shang;
“Quite the luck with women, huh? I’ve never seen her bring any male around us. Don’t be fooled by her charm or extensive connections with the opposite sex. She’s genuinely virtuous.”
“Maybe you’re the first blood.”
With that, he gave a look mixing envy and teasing.
Qin Shang was utterly confused.
Did you misunderstand something?
“You two can have some fun here later…”
“Fun? And then give you dirt and videos on me?”
At that moment, the Red-Clad Sect Leader’s cold voice sounded nearby.
She glanced at Qin Shang, who looked full of suspicion, signaling him not to interrupt, then continued speaking to the swindler;
“Don’t think I don’t know the little tricks you pull. This crappy hotel is covered in surveillance, 360 degrees with no blind spots. If I weren’t too lazy to bother with you, this dump wouldn’t even be open.”
“If you want to die, just say it straight instead of beating around the bush.”
“One more thing: he’s not my guest…”
After saying this, the Red-Clad Sect Leader stared at Qin Shang for a long moment before narrowing her eyes.
“He’s a new member of the Treasure House!”
Upon hearing this, the swindler’s curiosity visibly faded.
Qin Shang could clearly feel it.
With the last words from the Red-Clad Sect Leader, the swindler’s previously keen interest and prying diminished significantly.
He must have thought the Red-Clad Sect Leader and I had some kind of relationship?
That’s why he was so enthusiastic at first?
Damn…
We have a big age gap, okay?
I look only about twenty-five or twenty-six, and the Red-Clad Sect Leader looks at least thirty.
Though still charming and radiant, the crow’s feet at her eyes don’t lie. What kind of look is that?
He can’t be thinking I’m some gold digger trying to shortcut thirty years of hardship, right?
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Ding!
Just then, the elevator arrived, and the three stepped inside.
The Red-Clad Sect Leader’s voice suddenly whispered in Qin Shang’s ear.
“Don’t speak. This is a hypnotist’s skill called Whispering; only you can hear it.”
“‘Grandpa Niu’s’ brother is here. The swindler is the boss of this place, a level five Order Realm trickster. Don’t provoke him.”
“A trickster at the Order Realm level is a headache even for martial artists of the same rank!”
“Though my Treasure House doesn’t fear his gambling domain, the gambling circle is his turf, and his network is vast.”
“After all, players on the Divine Path have points, which means their money is the easiest to make. For ordinary people, earning a million without special opportunities might take ten years.”
“But Divine Path players, just clearing any B-level dungeon guarantees five points as base rewards. With terrifying exchange rates between RMB and points, any player who survives the Divine Path won’t be poor.”
“So the swindler has many friends in the real world…”
“If a conflict breaks out, even I might not be able to protect you. Among his friends are many Order Realm players who benefit from mutual interests. If you provoke him, he wouldn’t even need to trouble himself; he could just send you back to the Divine Path.”
Back to the Divine Path…
This was the first time Qin Shang heard the phrase, but thinking about it, he understood its meaning.
When a Divine Path player dies, the Divine Path automatically recycles their character card.
Isn’t that essentially a forced return to the Divine Path?
“Don’t ask more. It seems this guy owes the swindler an astronomical sum. Don’t interfere later. I’ll deliver the message and leave with you.”
“Also, I don’t like your type. Don’t give me that look. Don’t flatter yourself. Saying you’re a Treasure House member is just to stop the swindler from kicking you out.”
Damn!
Upon hearing this, Qin Shang’s mouth twitched.
I didn’t misunderstand anything…
He wanted to say something, but sensing it might cause trouble, he swallowed the words.
Forget it. A brave man doesn’t suffer losses he can avoid.
I can’t beat the Red-Clad Sect Leader, so I’ll just admit defeat.
But her words did clear up a puzzle in Qin Shang’s mind.
The little girl ‘Grandpa Niu cosplaying as a maid to seduce Zhuang Zhuang’s mother’ had, during the final round of the Death Train, just before the Divine Punishment, specifically warned him to watch out for the ‘Eagle of Justice’ and the ‘Buddha’s Fate’ people.
If not for that, Qin Shang might not have so quickly sensed their ill intentions.
At that time, he felt it was probably a whispered message.
After all, he only saw the girl’s lips moving but saw no special reaction from the Eagle of Justice or Buddha’s Fate.
It seemed his guess was correct: it was a hypnotist’s skill.
Whispering was probably like the qi transmission technique in martial arts novels—
only a specific target could hear the voice!
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