Chapter 633: The Moon's Phases

Qi Xia walked up to Di Hou and knocked on the counter.

Only then did Di Hou seem to hear something, slowly opening his murky eyes.

"Damn, welcome. Just put two 'Dao' here, and we can start gambling..."

His words came out before he was fully awake, the greeting already reaching the ears of the group.

After hearing this, Qi Xia threw two 'Dao' onto the table and said, "Not only can we start gambling, but you can join in too."

"Hmm...?" Di Hou opened his eyes and rubbed them, glancing at the two 'Dao' on the table as if pondering the meaning of the words.

"Take the entry fee, and let's begin," Qi Xia said.

Hearing the voice, Di Hou slowly lifted his head, meeting Qi Xia's gaze exactly.

What followed was a silence lasting over ten seconds.

The silence was perfectly timed—whether due to Di Hou's lingering drowsiness or some other hidden reason, he simply didn't speak for a long while.

"I... gamble too?" He stared at Qi Xia for a long time before finally uttering those four words.

"Is that a problem?" Qi Xia asked, furrowing his brow.

"Ha... ha ha ha..."

Di Hou suddenly broke into an ugly smile, which Qi Xia felt was somewhat similar to the one he had seen on Chen Jun Nan the first time they met.

"Of course, we can gamble..." Di Hou slowly stood up, then shook his head helplessly.

He walked straight past the group and headed to the entrance, shutting the door firmly.

"We've got special guests today, so the shop's closing for a private gamble," he said, turning back to size up the six people in the room. "Are all of you, men and women, young and old, going to gamble with me?"

"There's no such thing as men and women, young and old," Qi Xia replied calmly. "Do you really think the people standing here are all weak?"

"The strength of a team depends mainly on whether the 'leader' is powerful," Di Hou said with a smile. "I have complete faith in this team's capabilities."

Di Hou's words carried an underlying meaning, which Qi Xia picked up on.

But it was hard to tell right now whether this man had some connection to him or to "Tian Long."

When Qing Long had given him the map, he had clearly expressed hope that Qi Xia would meet the eight "Sheng Xiao." Yet, the first "Sheng Xiao" he encountered seemed to have some ties to him.

"'Leader'...?" Qi Xia nodded. "Interesting. Shall we begin?"

"Then I need to carefully choose the gambling game... heh heh." Di Hou kept his gaze fixed on Qi Xia, his eyes unusually deep.

"You're choosing?" Qi Xia countered. "This is your venue, with your equipment, and yet you're the one picking the game? Doesn't that seem a bit unfair?"

"You can't put it that way..." Di Hou smiled slightly. "All of you are a team, and I find it hard to believe you don't have plans to cheat. It's one against six—I'm definitely at a disadvantage, so I have to select the game myself."

Qi Xia slowly furrowed his brow after hearing this.

"You should know, right? The key to winning or losing a gamble is the 'game' itself," Di Hou said as he slowly walked back to the table, then bent down to rummage through something. "But the most important thing in gambling... is clearly the 'people.'"

In no time, he pulled out a wooden box from under the table.

This exquisite wooden box stood in stark contrast to the messy environment of the place.

It was square, with a deep brown finish and clear wood grain. Each edge was inlaid with gleaming gold lines, and the top was carved with subtle patterns of the sun, moon, and stars. In the center, it was stamped with gold lettering in regular script.

The inscription read "Shuo Wang Yue."

The surface of the wooden box was spotless, as if it were wiped daily, yet Di Hou still reached out and gently wiped it before opening it in front of everyone.

As the box opened, a faint woody fragrance wafted out. The group leaned in to see that inside, soft velvet lined the bottom, holding a stack of cards face down. The back of the cards was printed with the words "Nv Wa You Xi."

"For many years, I've been waiting for someone to gamble a round of 'Shuo Wang Yue' with me," Di Hou said, staring at the box with a distant expression. "But unfortunately, no one's been up to it. Those with gambling skills lack knowledge, and those with knowledge lack the guts."

"Is that so?" Qi Xia replied ambiguously. "In a city with tens of thousands of people, not a single one caught your eye?"

"This city...?" Di Hou chuckled. "I was assigned from 'Wo Cheng' to 'Yu Cheng,' and then from 'Yu Cheng' to here... Not a single person in any of those three cities impressed me."

"Oh? That's quite something." Qi Xia smiled back. "So you 'Sheng Xiao' get job transfers too?"

"Of course." Di Hou nodded. "When those two cities lost their 'participants,' the 'Sheng Xiao' there had to take their games and get reassigned. It's not just me—many 'Sheng Xiao' get orders from 'Tian Ji' and have to move around."

"How fortunate, then." Qi Xia glanced down at the wooden box on the table. "Fate brought us together here."

"'Fate'...?" Di Hou slowly narrowed his eyes. "Let's hope it's fate."

"Oh?"

"Have you ever thought... if all the other cities fall, and all the 'Sheng Xiao' end up gathering in one place, is that a good thing or a bad thing?"

Di Hou's words seemed loaded, but Qi Xia didn't answer right away. He just stared into his eyes for a long time before saying, "Let's go over the rules."

The group slowly gathered around, all eyeing the exquisite deck of cards on the table.

"The rules..." Di Hou said, slowly grinning. "What are you thinking?"

Qi Xia slowly furrowed his brow.

"The rule for my game is: two 'Dao' to enter, ten 'Dao' to leave." Di Hou flashed a sly smile, making Qi Xia feel that something was off. "As for how to play this deck... that's for you all to figure out."

"Figure it out?"

Di Hou picked up the wooden box and headed toward the large round table in the distance.

The group exchanged glances, realizing Di Hou was starting to play his mind games. Strictly speaking, the rules for playing this deck didn't count as part of the "Di Ji game" rules, so he could keep them hidden. After all, in this gamble, he was their opponent and had no reason to make it easier for them to win.

After a few seconds of silence, the group followed him to the round table. Chen Jun Nan remembered that yesterday, Di Hou had dominated at this very table, winning at least several dozen 'Dao' and even a life in the process.

Qi Xia walked a few steps, shook his head to clear his thoughts, and then sat down in front of Di Hou. He watched as Di Hou took out the deck and placed it on the table.