“Alliance’s specially designed explosive rounds can deliver a headshot at close range, even to an A-grade ability user.”
Lin Cheng lifted the elegantly crafted revolver from the table. This wasn’t standard Alliance equipment but a piece of black market merchandise obtained by Litchi. Alongside it, Litchi had placed a bullet on the table.
The atmosphere grew palpably tense.
Every sound in the room became sharply pronounced in Xu Wanyue’s ears. Lin Cheng’s deliberate, slow movements as he loaded the gun seemed almost exaggerated. After he finished, he placed the revolver on the table.
“The rules are straightforward. It doesn’t matter if you shoot first or if I do; there’s no limit to the number of shots. Each time you shoot, you can take 20 million chips from the table, with no upper limit. When you finish shooting, it will be my turn, and the game continues until all six shots are fired and the game is over.”
“Do you want to go first, or shall I?”
At this moment, Lin Cheng’s voice, now gently laced with an unsettling calm, felt like a death knell to Xu Wanyue. She was convinced that she had finally received a response from “luck,” yet sweat continued to trickle from her forehead. Her legs, pressed tightly together under the table, were trembling uncontrollably.
She raised her hand, but her pale arm began to tremble as well.
Lin Cheng’s voice broke the silence again, “If you’re afraid, I can go first.”
“Do you prefer… for me to go first, or for you to?” Xu Wanyue asked, her gaze fixed on Lin Cheng.
“I’m fine with either, but out of kindness, I suggest you go first,” Lin Cheng replied with a smile.
Xu Wanyue suddenly recalled that from the moment Lin Cheng had sat at this gambling table, he had never lied to her.
He had offered her the best advice—to leave with the 100 million chips. Yet she hadn’t heeded it… She had reasons she couldn’t leave. Now, she stared into Lin Cheng’s eyes, searching for any sign of deceit or truth. His calm, unwavering gaze oddly steadied her fraught emotions.
She pressed the muzzle of the revolver against her temple, her fingers trembling violently. Cold sweat continued to bead on her forehead, and even her smooth shoulders and delicate collarbone were slick with perspiration, as if she had just completed a grueling workout.
She closed her eyes and pulled the trigger.
“Boom.”
The deafening shot echoed through the private room.
In an instant, Xu Wanyue collapsed into her chair, her legs splayed open involuntarily. Her body began to tremble and spasm uncontrollably, but when she opened her eyes, she was unharmed.
The earlier “boom” had only been Lin Cheng’s exclamation.
“Twenty million,” Lin Cheng said, pushing the chips toward Xu Wanyue. He looked into her eyes and asked, “Do you want to continue?”
It took Xu Wanyue a moment to regain her composure. Slowly, she straightened up, feeling as if “luck” had enveloped her entirely. This had been her source of security for years, but now she began to doubt it. Her trembling body and rapid breathing placed her in an inexplicable state of heightened excitement. Facing Lin Cheng’s smiling face, she suddenly smiled back, but her smile appeared almost deranged compared to Lin Cheng’s playful grin. “I don’t, I don’t believe luck would abandon me!”
She pressed the revolver’s muzzle against her temple once more and pulled the trigger—once, twice, three times!
Three clicks of the empty chamber.
By now, she had pulled the trigger four times and could no longer summon any strength. She slumped back into her chair, unable to fire a fifth shot.
Litchi, ever considerate, took a towel and began to wipe the sweat from her forehead.
At the same time, the “suggestion” lingering in her mind was lifted.
“Is it my turn now?” Lin Cheng asked, pushing 60 million in chips toward her. He then picked up the revolver from the table, aimed it at his own temple with no hesitation, and pulled the trigger.
The expected bloody scene did not unfold.
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A single click.
Lin Cheng smiled. “Only one shot remains, and it’s your turn.”
He aimed the revolver at Xu Wanyue’s forehead, adjusting the aim to her brow. Xu Wanyue’s eyes widened in fear. “No... please... don’t...”
“The chance of the revolver misfiring is one in a million, much like the odds of winning 30 million at the casino in three days.”
Lin Cheng’s smile gradually faded, and his eyes grew serious as his finger rested on the trigger.
“I suspect you lack the courage to make this shot, so... I’ll help you.”
“No... please... I beg you...”
Lin Cheng pulled the trigger.
……………………………………
Xu Wanyue, slumped in her chair, felt the warm dampness on her body. She clearly heard the gunshot this time; it was not an empty click.
However, the bullet merely grazed past her head, striking a painting on the wall. The private room’s wall was reinforced with special metal, preventing a direct crack. But Litchi instinctively exclaimed, “My painting!”
“Ah?” Lin Cheng looked up at her.
Litchi’s gaze was heavy with sadness. “This painting was purchased for 800,000.”
“… Make her cover the cost,” Lin Cheng said, setting down the revolver and pointing at Xu Wanyue, who was now completely exhausted and unable to move. Her eyes were hollow, and she was gasping for breath, unable to speak.
“The game is over. My shooting skills remain as poor as ever. If you want to take the 80 million, you’re welcome to it.”
Xu Wanyue remained silent, looking utterly defeated.
Lin Cheng rose, stretched lazily, and a smug grin spread across his face as he addressed Litchi. “So, what do you think? Wasn’t I impressive? I called it, and I won.”
“…” Litchi removed the cracked painting from the wall and looked at Lin Cheng with a hint of resentment. “But my painting is ruined, so… you don’t get to touch it either.”
Lin Cheng’s face fell instantly, and he looked at Litchi with a mixture of hurt and disbelief. “How can you do this? I protest!”
“Protests are futile.” Litchi crossed her arms over her chest.
“Yuyu, Zisha.” Lin Cheng picked up the revolver from the table, reloaded it with a bullet, and fired four blank shots at himself. He set the revolver down again and muttered, “Such a dull ability.”
“How did you win against her?”
“It’s a secret,” Lin Cheng said, his expression turning smug once more.
“Tell me.”
“Alchemy operates on the principle of equivalent exchange,” Lin Cheng said with a playful glint in his eye.
“I’ll let you touch it later,” Litchi said in a lowered voice, her curiosity barely contained.
……………………………………
“Her ability is luck,” Lin Cheng said, glancing at Xu Wanyue, who was still lying in the chair, trying to recover. “Can luck truly be considered an ability?”
“It’s quite complex. Her ability is of an exceptionally high tier. Think of it this way: she’s the kind of person who, if she consistently wishes to win the lottery, would at least win second prize. And as long as she believes, she can continue to be lucky.”
“So that’s why you…”
“Yes, exactly. So I gave her a psychological suggestion that her ability would malfunction for a few minutes each month. In truth, her ability didn’t fail; she merely thought it did. As a result, she lost her luck and lost to me. Her ability is inherently subjective.”
Litchi’s power lies in the psychological domain, especially advanced branches of it, one of which includes psychological suggestion. When she and Xu Wanyue were heading upstairs earlier, Litchi pretended to trip and unintentionally touched Xu Wanyue’s hand, subtly planting the idea that her ability would temporarily fail for five minutes within the next ten minutes. This led Xu Wanyue to believe that her luck had abandoned her, making her think she was no longer fortunate. Consequently, when the dice game ended, she mistook the timing as her luck returning, which encouraged her to continue with the revolver game.
“So how did you manage to win against her?”
“When she doesn’t believe in her own luck… she is left with nothing but misfortune. That’s the hidden rule of her ability.” Lin Cheng’s smile was enigmatic. “So I didn’t really do anything; it was all thanks to you.”
Litchi seemed to grasp part of it but was still uncertain, then suddenly reached out and pulled Lin Cheng out of the room.
She slammed the door shut behind them.
……………………………………
In the corridor, Litchi folded her arms and looked at Lin Cheng with a scrutinizing gaze, while Lin Cheng’s expression remained innocent.
“Did I inadvertently help you flirt with women?”
“I had no intention of flirting with her.”
Litchi’s lips curled into a skeptical smile. “I don’t believe that.”
“Once suspicion is raised, the accusation sticks. But at least give me a reasonable cause for your suspicion,” Lin Cheng said with a resigned smile.
“You don’t usually… treat people like this. Was this a bit… excessive?” Litchi hesitated, her tone revealing concern.
Though not particularly demure, she understood that Lin Cheng was generally a kind-hearted person who wouldn’t normally act this way toward a woman.
“You’ve overlooked two things,” Lin Cheng said softly.
“What are they?”
“First, why did she dress so extravagantly when she came here a few days ago? It wasn’t to distract the man she was gambling with because she knew her luck would guarantee her victory. Her flamboyant attire was meant for someone specific. Can you guess who?”
“Second, why did she choose to stay and try to win the remaining 30 million from me, even though she could easily have taken the 100 million and left? Money is just a number; whether more or less doesn’t make much difference to her. She’s not a real gambler, so she should have chosen the safest route.”
Litchi’s eyes narrowed with growing suspicion.
Lin Cheng’s meaning was becoming increasingly clear, and Xu Wanyue’s identity as an Alliance Judicator was no secret.
“Perhaps she isn’t concerned with winning or losing. Maybe she came here just to draw our attention. An ability user with luck is a coveted asset for major organizations. Our progress in the Alliance has been closely monitored, and it’s natural to feel uneasy. And we… definitely need someone with her abilities.”
“We don’t need turncoats,” Litchi scoffed.
“No, we need her,” Lin Cheng sighed in resignation. “Her ability could be beneficial for Lemon.”