Hidden within Irene’s woollen and furred coat was a large slab of stone that seemed incredibly dense. Sending a strand of her mana into the stone, Irene searched through the many mountains of gold and other treasures she had in storage.

Eventually, after searching through half of the piles, Irene recalled that she had burnt all the manuals she had collected. Recalling her mana from the slab, she followed Ovid, who was leaving for the lower floor. Her height was significantly shorter than Ovid’s, and the speed and distance her stride was far less, yet Irene had no troubles following Ovid.

After Ovid ordered a bowl of tasteless porridge, he realised that it was disrespectful to not offer food for the person sitting opposite of him, he asked Irene, “What you do want to eat?”

A saint has integrated mana directly into their body, abandoning the needs of their mortal body. This naturally included the digestion of food, an act only saints like Cai Hua and Julia, who still indulge in the five poison of life, would still find enjoyable. Those that are far more detached from the world, such as the Pope or Irene, have not consumed a single piece of meat or vegetable in thousands of years.

Irene responded after a brief pause, “Don’t eat.”

Ovid nodded to show his understanding. Waiting wordlessly for the bowl of tasteless porridge to arrive, the of Ovid’s ear twitched, but it was not because the servant had arrived with the bowl of porridge, but rather, it was due to the arrival of Cai Hua.

The difference in time between Cai Hua’s minor realm and the real world is honestly too amazing, Cai Hua, who appeared to be on his dying breath, now carries with him an air of liveliness that had been lost after the event at the silver river. Holding a folded fan, he kicked a wooden stool from across the room, shifting its position to that next of where Ovid was sitting.

Before Cai Hua sat, he first gave a half-bow toward Irene, afterwards, he said, “This should be the second time we met. While I did say some matters at the mountain ranges, all that I still believe in, I hope that our current relationship will not be one of hostility.”

Tightening his grip on his fan, Cai Hua straightened his posture, staring directly into Irene’s pair of cyan eyes, he said, “Although you have lived far longer than I have, the life and death situation I encountered is more than sufficient to match yours.”

Cai Hua’s meaning was quite obvious. Because of the similar combat strength of the two of us, a fight would benefit neither the two of us. While they can engage in isolated locations that had been long depopulated, dense urban settlements like the city of Straton is too fragile.

Irene lowered her head to avoid Cai Hua’s gaze, wondering if what the pervert meant by the words spoken at the mountain ranges was in regards to his harassment. “Won’t fight.”

Cai Hua was obviously unsatisfied with Irene’s answer, his eyebrows twitching as he said, “You aren’t mute, can’t you speak a few more words?”

Irene didn’t answer continuing to stare at her hand covered in glove, prompting Cai Hua to stomp his feet against the stone slabs that make up the floor. After venting his frustration, he sighed and sat next to Ovid.

Cai Hua sent Ovid a message with his spiritual essence, “My external injuries have been healed, but the internal ones have worsened since we first met. It would be better for you and I if you persuade her to leave us be.” While the message sent with the spiritual essence did not contain any pause, it was quite clear that Cai Hua had been hesitant as he said the next words, “I can’t defeat her. My five Zang and six Fu are still bleeding internally.”

If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

This one-sided exchange was an ability possessed by those that had cultivated to the stage of nascent soul. It did not require much mana to be expended and was far more efficient that the jade slips that would be used otherwise. Aside from its limited distance of only a few li, it was the preferred way of communicating in secrecy. Of course, a verbal exchange also had its benefits, the range of pitch and emotion was lost in the spiritual energy, and Ovid, who had yet to reach nascent soul, could not respond.

When the servant finally arrived with the porridge, she was somewhat shocked by the addition of a foreigner from the northern continent, a rare sight in the South of the empire, where little trade was conducted. After placing the bowl infront of Ovid, she felt a desire to touch the gentle featured face of Cai Hua. Eventually, she succumbed to his silent encouragement, reaching out to touch the jade-like features that were present on Cai Hua’s cool face.

Ovid lifted the bowl with his hand, covering the view with the sight of finely grounded grain. Only after the bowl had been emptied, did Ovid look at Cai Hua again.

Cai Hua was expecting Ovid’s actions, the edge of his mouth forming a smile, he stood up and said, “Follow me, I am going to teach you a lesson.”

Ovid stood up obediently, leaving the bowl on the table, he followed Cai Hua as he walked out of the wooden door that serves as the hospitium’s main entrance. Irene also followed suit, her thick boots shuffling among the stone slabs.

Cai Hua eventually arrived at the gates of the famous ‘Boat’s Side Casino’. Dusting his robe, he turned toward Ovid and said, “You have said before that gambling is bad, but what we will be doing is not gambling.”

Ovid stared at the image of dice and bowl painted in gold that boldly specified the purpose of the building, without looking at Cai Hua, he asked, “Then, why are we coming here?”

Cai Hua took out a few hundred hyperpyrons from his spacial ring, he then said, “When I was starting out my cultivation journey, I would use my spiritual essence to peek at the dice rolls at gambling dens to earn money that I desperately lacked. It was only later that I learnt that it actually helped with my ability to perceive spiritual essence.”

“These sorts of environments were actually even better than the ones undergone by people who stayed in their sect all day. The noise, smell and colour all disturb a person’s ability to focus, so the person’s talent would be shown in it’s rawest form. As someone I laid my eye on, I believe that even if you can’t manipulate mana, your ability to perceive it should be exceptional.”

Seeing Ovid was still hesitant, Cai Hua slid off one of his rings, hiding it from the sun beneath his fan, he said, “This ring contains one-fifth of the old emperor’s treasury, a few hundred of the southern currency is nothing in comparison to the wealth I hold. Also, resisting addiction is a form of cultivation as well.”

Ovid looked at the marble steps that led into the building and contemplated these words, finding no fault in Cai Hua’s reasoning, Ovid eventually nodded his head, and silently followed Cai Hua into the gambling den.

The Boat’s Side Casino was especially famous among the South for its high profitability and continued existence for more than two thousand years under the management of the Curtia family.

Despite its age, the gambling den showed no signs of decay, the polished marble floors and walls were devoid of scatch and filth, the professionally crafted furniture and candles made from beeswax showed that a high cost went into the maintenance of the building.

Ovid looked at the wooden walls that separated the different sections of the den, ignoring the occasional sound of exaggerated cries and screaming coming through its thin walls. When Ovid had lived in his previous world, his mother once took him to the worst gambling den to show the ugliness of the world, compared to those illegal gambling dens that operated outside the law, the Boat’s Side Casino were worlds apart.

Yet even the most luxurious gambling den is still a gambling den, where even the most innocent things such as the smell flora would be exploited so that people would further their stakes.

The people that lingered around the gambling den were all locals, so the sight of Ovid in his scholarly robes and Irene in her insulating fur coats was quite a weird sight. Although the gamblers seemed quite interested in the two, none actually left their crowded table, staring anxiously at the deck of playing cards, or the board containing several pieces of white and black coins.

Cai Hua was acting in an aloof manner in the gambling den, carrying the air only an idiot, or an expert possesses. He threw a couple of dozen pieces of coins onto the table that had a black bowl along with three six-sided dice, then he pulled Ovid onto the leather adored edge of the table.

Sending Ovid a message with spiritual essence, Cai Hua briefly detailed the workings of the game, which could only be described as quick and simple. Ovid, who greatly dislike the thick smell of flora in the air and the general atmosphere of the gambling den, was relieved at the simplicity of the game.

There was a total of three six-sided dice, which would be rolled under the cover of the black bowl. The scale of the gambling prize is based on the chance of a total number occurring, numbers such as 10 and 11 would be common, but they only garner the money initially bet, while the rarest number, 3 and 18, would result in double of the initial amount bet.

A gentle and faired skin woman looked at Ovid and flashed an encouraging smile, but was somewhat disappointed when the only expression present on Ovid’s face was that of nervousness. Believing that the kid was too immature, the woman sighed in her head.

Who knew at this moment, Ovid had concentrated all his mental prowess onto the dice that were yet to be hidden by the black bowl.