NOVGO.NET Chapter 2564 - The Lucky Die
Chapter 2564 – The Lucky Die
Su Yi glanced at the silver-robed man. “What kind of bet?”
The silver-robed man laughed. “Let’s gamble on what kind of exchange the Heaven-Trampling Chaos King wants to make with you.”
“Boring.” Su Yi shook his head slightly. How could he possibly concern himself with that? He was going to Heaven-Trampling Palace purely to save the Heaven-Swallowing Toad Ancestor.
The silver-robed man said, “Then how about we bet on whether or not they’re determined to kill us or not?”
“That’s boring too.” Su Yi shook his head once more.
The silver-robed man pondered briefly, then said, “Then how about…”
But before he could finish, Su Yi asked, “Do you really love gambling that much?”
The silver-robed man laughed and shook his head. “You’ve misunderstood, Fellow Daoist. I just heard that a Taboo Treasure known as the Lucky Die exists somewhere in the Heaven-Combating Hidden Realm.
“The die is supposed to be incomparably mystical and manifested of the ‘luck power’ of the primordial chaos. As I’m sure you’re aware, Fellow Daoist, luck is connected to destiny and fate. All things have their inherent principles, and all living beings are subject to fate.
“A taboo treasure like the Lucky Die touches upon the workings of destiny. It’s naturally quite mystical and terrifying.”
“Oh?” said Su Yi, instantly intrigued. “And is this treasure used for gambling?”
This was a taboo treasure connected to luck and fortune, and it was a die, too. One look at the name, and it seemed obvious that it was used for gambling!
The silver-robed man laughed. “The die can, through the act of gambling, steal others’ luck. Of course, if you win your bet against it, you can seize its innate luck, too!”
“And the Heaven-Trambling Chaos King controls this treasure?” asked Su Yi.
“That’s right.” The silver-robed man inclined his head. “I can say with certainty that the Heaven-Trambling Chaos King is going to want to gamble with us.”
Su Yi couldn’t help but take another look at him. This guy sure knows an awful lot.
The silver-robed man smiled. “I suggested a bet with you out of sheer boredom, but that doesn’t apply to the Heaven-Trampling Chaos King. You’d best be careful, Fellow Daoist.”
Su Yi pondered briefly, then said, “And what did you come to the Heaven-Combating Hidden Realm to do, anyway?”
“I…” The silver-robed man’s gaze was rife with meaning. “If I said that I wasn’t here for the Lucky Die or for the Fragment of Heaven’s Will, would you believe me?”
Su Yi’s brow furrowed, but he said nothing. The silver-robed man didn’t bring it up again, either.
……
Heaven-Trampling Palace was built atop a hill shrouded in chaos qi.
From a distance, the flow of chaos qi was like a crouching tiger or hidden dragon interwoven with lights of the Grand Dao, as if this were the place the Grand Dao had arisen.
If the chaos qi was a dragon, then the palace was built precisely at the location of its head.
A mountainously fat man sat at the center of its grand hall. His skin was smooth and fair, and his eyes were long and narrow. He looked no different from an ordinary human.
This was the Heaven-Trampling Chaos King. He was the leader of the Seven Chaos Kings and the de facto ruler of the entire Heaven-Compating Hidden Realm!
He wasn’t the only one present. The seats on both sides of the room were packed with people.
All of them were Undying Realm Master Gods. Their ranks even included several Nine-Tribulation Master Gods famed throughout the God Domain!
These included the Heaven-Swallowing Toad Ancestor, as well as Hong Taiyu of Five Lightning Temple.
The atmosphere was tense. The Master Gods watched with bated breath, their gaze focused on the center of the room.
A die the size of an infant’s fist floated there, spinning rapidly.
Strangely, as the die spun, wisps of a mysterious, inscrutable power of the Grand Dao fell like rain.
“Is everyone ready?” At the center of the room, the mountainously fat Heaven-Trampling Chaos King smiled, looking as friendly as could be.
“Excellent. Then let’s begin!” The Heaven-Trampling Chaos King raised his hand and tapped.
The die rapidly spinning at the center of the room instantly froze, then fell, one side facing up.
Whoosh!
All eyes focused on its surface.
“Three!”
Many of the players’ taut nerves relaxed, and they sighed in relief.
“Three!?” But some of them suddenly looked as nervous as if they were seated on a bed of needles, and they slumped in despondency.
“Everyone, when you gamble, you have to accept the consequences. You have no one to blame but yourselves,” the Heaven-Trampling Chaos King said warmly. “Especially since the Lucky Die is a naturally formed chaos treasure. No one can control it, and no one can possibly cheat.”
“I… understand….” A gray-robed old man said bitterly. “I’m willing to pay the corresponding price in good fortune to neutralize this terrible luck.”
He’d only just said this when the die spun, then arrived above the old man’s heart. A strange power enveloped the old man completely.
The old man let out a muffled grunt. He felt as if something were somehow missing from his vital source energy, but he couldn’t quite tell what it was.
An almost translucent wisp of misty golden light surged from his head, and the die quickly swallowed it up.
Everyone watched it happen. Their expressions shifted.
That streak of misty, ethereal golden light was “good fortune” from the man’s vital source, part of his natural luck.
In the mundane world, they often spoke of “an abundance of good fortune.” The phrase referred to a type of blessing of fate.
But those who cultivated the Grand Dao knew that luck was part of one’s vital source energy. Anything that affected it would affect their luck going forward.
And the strange Lucky Die could seize people’s luck!
“I… I want to use my supreme fortune to neutralize this terrible luck,” said a pale-faced middle-aged man in black. His expression was bleak.
Many of the others sighed to themselves.
The middle-aged man in black had lost practically every time prior to this. His good and great fortune were practically used up, but he had no choice but to sacrifice what remained to stave off the calamity of terrible luck.
The middle-aged man had only just said this when the Lucky Die appeared over his head. Before long, it had extracted a wisp of ethereal red light, which it quickly devoured.
The middle-aged man in black let out a muffled grunt. His spirit seemed to wither, as if he’d lost much of his vitality.
The onlookers’ hearts shook. All of them fell silent.
That ethereal red light represented life force. Supreme fortune was connected to one’s vitality. Damage to it meant damage to one’s life origin.
To cultivators, the consequences of damaged vitality were severe. The man in black could forget about recovering any time soon!
It was even entirely possible that he’d never recover, and that this would shake his very foundations in the Grand Dao!
But… Compared to suffering the punishment of terrible luck, losing a little supreme fortune and vitality was getting off easy. Everyone present would have done the same thing.
Because the “terrible luck” of the Lucky Dice was far too terrifying. Earlier, an Eight-Tribulation Master God had steeled himself and accepted his punishment. In the end, despite having just sat there, all of his life force fled his body, reducing him to a dried-up corpse!
Before long, all of the Master Gods who’d lost their bet offered their good, great, and supreme fortune to the Lucky Die.
When it was over, the Heaven-Trampling Chaos King smiled warmly and said, “Shall we continue?”
It sounded like a question, but in truth, no one could refuse him. The Lucky Die had already started spinning.
A new round of betting had begun.
“Again? Can’t we… end things here for today?” someone suggested in a quavering voice.
This was the ninth round of the day. Each time, some people lost, while others won. Some celebrated, and some rejoiced.
Although a few were lucky enough to win, gambling like this made their hearts quiver with fright and put them under immense pressure.
Because a single bad bet could force them to pay an utterly grievous price.
“Don’t be in such a rush. Let’s keep playing for now. Others will be arriving soon,” the Heaven-Trampling Chaos King said warmly. “Let’s all wait for the newcomers.”
Everyone exchanged glances, but none of them dared to argue. The Heaven-Trampling Chaos King might have seemed amiable, benevolent, and harmless, but he was the type to turn on you at a moment’s notice!
Even added together, these Undying Realm Master Gods were no match for the Heaven-Trampling Chaos King.
“The old rules hold. Everyone can guess a number. This play style is a bit plain and dull, but it’s… quite exciting in its own way, don’t you think?” laughed the Heaven-Trampling Chaos King. He pointed to one of the Master Gods. “You first.”
The Master God gulped with great difficulty. His hands were hidden in his pockets, his fingers shifting rapidly as he tried to perform a divination.
“Hah. If it were so easy to divine the outcome of the Lucky Die, what would be the point of gambling?” The Heaven-Trampling Chaos King laughed and shook his head. “Be quick about it.”
The man took a deep breath, then made a decision. “I’ll guess… two!”
The Lucky Die was quite distinctive. Only two of its faces had numbers: one, two, and three, respectively. They were dotted in black, and they represented poor luck, bad luck, and terrible luck.
The other three sides were blank.
According to the Heaven-Trampling Chaos King, the Lucky Die’s fortune and disaster went hand in hand, but its disasters were out in the open, while its fortune was hidden away.
The three blank sides represented good fortune, great fortune, and supreme fortune.
Thus, the die had “three lucks” and “three fortunes!”
Anyone who guessed right could receive the corresponding benefits.
Placing a bet was quite simple. All you had to do was speak your guess out loud.
However, no one would bet on good, great, or supreme fortune.
This was because they’d placed this game over a hundred times over the past few days, but the sides representing good fortune had only come up six times in total.
They were pitifully rare!
More importantly, if you guessed one of the three fortunes and got it wrong, you’d have to face the corresponding punishment.
If you guessed “great fortune” but the die landed on “poor luck,” you’d be punished in the same way as those who’d guessed “one” in the first place, but if you guessed “two” or “three”, you’d neither win nor lose.
In the earlier roll, a three had appeared, but only those who guessed “three” lost.
Those who guessed “one” or “two” neither lost nor won, but everyone who bet “three” or on any kind of good fortune lost.
Who’d dare to even hope that they could win under these circumstances? Simply holding steady was cause for celebration!
“I guess one.”
“I guess three.”
Everyone went on to place their bets.
When the Heaven-Swallowing Toad Ancestor’s turn came, his expression shifted erratically. In the end, he smacked the table and said, “How is this fair, dammit? By this point, who here hasn’t been exploited? You’re obviously just using this Taboo Treasure to squeeze us dry, you old bastard!”
The Heaven-Swallowing Toad Ancestor’s eyes bulged with fury. He’d obviously thrown all caution to the wind. “Even if you kill me, I’m not playing anymore! Do whatever you want with me, but I’m not doing this!”
His voice boomed throughout the hall.
Everyone’s heart shook. Several Master Gods had refused to play earlier, too, but the Heaven-Trampling Chaos King had killed every last one of them, no exception. Even their corpses and souls were tossed into the Chaos Fiend Blood Pool as sacrificial offerings!
It was for this reason that, despite knowing full well that the game was unfair, they had no choice but to hold their noses and endure. None of them dared to act up.
But now, the Heaven-Swallowing Toad Ancestor was refusing to participate!
Over in the centermost seat, the Heaven-Trampling Chaos King smiled heartily at him and said warmly, “Don’t let your anger get the best of you. I heard that you’re close friends with the God Domain’s Su Yi, and I’m extremely interested in Su Yi. I naturally don’t want to kill you.”
He waved. “Quick, sit back down and cool off. It’s just a game. Why lose your temper? Take it… as giving me face.”
“Feh!” The Heaven-Swallowing Toad Ancestor jumped to his feet, pointed, and cursed the Heaven-Trampling Chaos King out. “Drop the benevolent act! I’ve had it with you, you damned fatso! If you’ve got the balls, just kill me! See if I so much as furrow my brow!”
The Heaven-Trampling Chaos King frowned, and his warm smile faded.
The onlookers’ hearts shook, and their expression shifted. They were suddenly as quiet as cicadas in winter.
Over the past few days, they’d gotten a clear sense of the Heaven-Trampling Chaos King’s temperament. When his smile faded, it meant his murderous intent had taken hold of him!
The atmosphere in the hall was instantly incomparably stifled.
Only the mysterious Lucky Die seemed unaffected. It was still spinning rapidly in midair, unperturbed.
But it was then that a voice suddenly resounded from beyond the hall. “Your Excellency, Chaos King Jin Xiao has arrived with a group of outsiders!”