Chapter Ten: The Gambler's Curse

  Bai Jin's sleeves fluttered as he caught Mao Fei in mid-air, his voice cold as he said, "Zhou De Nuo, get out here!"

  "Ah! So it's Second Master!" Along with the exclamation, a thin old man rolled and crawled out of the cave.

  He was seen with his clothes in disarray, his hair disheveled and dirty, his eyes red from crying, bowing repeatedly to Bai Jing, "I didn't know Second Master had arrived, I've been rude just now, please forgive me."

  Bai Jin glared at him: "You've been living here for almost thirty years and still haven't broken through to the late stage of Qi Refining. Today is the day new disciples enter, I'm acting on Master's orders, please make way for the new disciples."

  "What? It's already the day for new disciples to enter again?" Zhou De Nuo glanced around at the young men and hastily begged: "Second Master Brother, please be flexible with me, I'm willing to pay another 100 spirit stones according to the old rules, just let me stay here!"

  "No way! Get out of here!" Bai Jin's face sank as he let out a cold snort and waved his sleeve.

  In an instant, a fierce gust of wind struck Zhou De's face, knocking him to the ground, and a trail of blood ran from the corner of his eye to the corner of his mouth.

  Zhou De Nuo struggled to get up from the ground, his face covered in blood making him look very ferocious.

  He swept his fierce gaze slowly over the crowd of young people, making everyone feel a chill all over their bodies, involuntarily lowering their heads.

  Shi Dong just exchanged a glance with him, and it was as if he saw a wounded wolf, his eyes filled with endless resentment and malice, hastily shifting his gaze away.

  But little did he know that Zhou Denuo suddenly flipped over and jumped up, rushing straight to Shi Dong's side, grabbing his left hand with a loud shout: "I have a copy of the 'Gambler's Scripture'! I'll make sure you win every time you gamble! You...you give me the cave mansion, and I'll give you the 'Gambler's Scripture'!"

  As soon as the stone moved, it felt like his palm was wrapped in a steel hoop, being pinched and making a crackling sound. Suddenly, something appeared on his palm, scorching hot, burning his palm with an unbearable pain.

  "Ow, ow! Master Zhou, please let go, my hand bones are almost broken! Second master, save me! Save me!" Shi Dong yelled in pain.

  "Get out!"

  A dark shadow flashed before his eyes, a strong gust of wind swept by, and Zhou De's body was knocked out with a loud crash.

  Shi Dong felt the pressure on his palm suddenly disappear, but he was still in so much pain that tears were streaming down his face. He vaguely saw Bai Jin standing in front of him with a cold expression, and for an instant, there was a flicker of something unusual in his eyes.

  Look again at Zhou Denuo, who fell one zhang away, and suddenly spat out a big mouthful of fresh blood.

  "Think about it, we're from the same school, leave on your own, otherwise... you can stay here forever!" Bai Jin raised his palm, coldly staring at him, and with another strike, he would take his life.

  Zhou De Nuo spat out a big mouthful of blood, gasping violently as he crawled up from the ground. His eyes radiated intense heat as he stared at Bai Jin and trembled with his voice: "Second Brother, it's... really great! Thank you... thank you for sparing my life."

  Whether intentionally or unintentionally, he glanced at Shi Dong again and burst out laughing: "Haha! Haha! You kids will all die here sooner or later! Haha! All of you will die! Unless... the Gambler's Scripture..."

  "Roll!" White Jin's palm struck heavily, and a more severe gust of wind rushed towards Zhou De Nuo.

  This time Zhou De Nuo was well-prepared, his figure fluttering as he dodged backwards, running all the way out, leaving behind echoes of "Haha! You're all going to die! Haha... you're all going to die..." The crowd of young men were shocked and looked at each other in dismay.

  Bai Jin's face turned ugly, and instead of chasing after him, he coldly snorted and summoned two senior disciples. He ordered them: "You two follow him and see him out, drive him out of the sect's protective mountain barrier, and let him fend for himself in the underworld's dark winds!"

  The two old disciples shivered with fear and bowed their heads in obedience before leaving.

  Bai Jin shook his head and sighed, "This person is infatuated with gambling, wasting so many years of cultivation. I didn't think he'd become so obsessed that he's now delusional about having a 'Gambling Ghost Scripture'. Hmph! He's truly crazy!" Suddenly, he looked at Shi Dong, "Shi Dong, what did he give you just now?"

  "Yes, Second Master is indeed wise. He did put something in my hand." Shi Dong hastily stepped forward and opened his left palm to present it.

  A delicate little book appeared in the palm of his hand, only about half the size of a palm, just enough to be grasped tightly in his fist.

  Bai Jin's eyes flashed with a strange color, and he stretched out his hand to take it. He flipped through it for a few moments, then sneered: "Hmph! This is the so-called 'Gamble Ghost Classic'? It's truly absurd, a wild fantasy!" With a press of his hands, a rub, and a flick, the pages instantly turned into scraps of paper that fluttered about.

  "Don't be fooled by his deceitful words, thinking that there's some kind of gambling ghost's true scripture. If such a secret book really existed, he should have made a fortune in spirit stones and his cultivation would have advanced rapidly, so how could he still not break through to the later stage of Qi Refining after over 30 years?"

  Glancing at the young men, Bai Jin solemnly warned: "Listen up, for the next year, you all need to focus on your cultivation and strive to break through the first layer of Qi Refining as soon as possible. Otherwise, you'll end up like that crazy old man, being eliminated and driven out by the sect!" As he spoke, he deliberately cast a sinister glance at Shi Dong.

  Shi Dong couldn't help but shudder, the meaning conveyed in his eyes was very clear: "Little ghost, listen up, otherwise the next one to be kicked out will be you!"

  The faces of many young people changed, and they nodded in obedience one after another.

  Bai Jin said, "As for the matter of gambling, one should act according to their abilities. As long as they don't gamble excessively and recklessly, to the point where they can't even afford spiritual stones for cultivation, our sect's rules don't oppose it. After all, as the saying goes, 'big gambles harm the body, small gambles delight the heart'! Haha, haha!"

  He chuckled twice, then walked alone into Zhou De's cave to search carefully and arranged for Mao Feifei to move in, driving away two old disciples with white hair before settling all the new disciples.

  Looking at the two old disciples hunching their backs, with a terrified and desolate expression as they left, Shi Dong suddenly felt an unspeakable bleakness, deeply knowing that the two men's cultivation was not high, entering the Ghost Mountain was truly a journey of no return.

  Can't help but feel a pang in my heart: "This demonic sect is really too evil! Human life is truly cheaper than grass... Sigh... I hope I can live to see the day when I reunite with Mother and little sister..."

  The sadness of Shi Dong only lasted for a short time. When he entered his own cave, his mind was immediately occupied by another matter.

  That was his own left hand, which had been throbbing with pain since Zhou Denuo pinched it, and he didn't dare to check it in front of Bai Jin, so he endured until now.

  He carefully looked around the room, seeing that it was only about two square meters in size. There was a stone bed, a stone table and several stone stools, which were all the furnishings. The roof had a small opening, casting a dim light, adding a touch of warmth to this cold and quiet space.

  Originally from a poor background, Shi Dong was quite satisfied with such simple but clean furnishings.

  He crouched at the doorstop, listened for a moment, confirmed that there was no one else moving outside, and quickly raised his left hand to examine it carefully under the light.

  His left hand was smooth and clean, but what made him strange was that the palm of his hand was constantly burning with pain. He touched it with his hand, but didn't see anything unusual, just feeling like the burning pain was his own illusion.

  Shi Dong An called out, "This is not good!" He knew that this strange occurrence must have been caused by that madman Zhou De Nu. He felt that the words Zhou had spoken before he left, as well as the glance he had given him, were hinting at something.

  "Hahaha! Hahaha! You dolls will all die here sooner or later! Hahaha! All of you will die! Unless... the Gambler's Scripture..."

  The earlobe once again recalled Zhou De's crazy laughter, Shi Dong couldn't help but shiver, and cursed in his heart: "Damn it, this old madman could have found anyone else, why did he have to find me? What does he want me to do?"

  Suddenly, a white light flashed in his mind and an unusual color appeared in his eyes. The first time was when he heard Zhou De mention "Gambling Ghost Scripture", the second time was when he took "Gambling Ghost Scripture" from his own hands.

  Now thinking back carefully, it was a mixture of tension, excitement, anxiety, and fear that the secret would be accidentally revealed.

  "Could it be... that this Gambler's Divine Technique is actually real? Can the Gambler really hit every shot, even remembering the Green Turtle? Thinking of this, Shi Dong felt a chill run down his spine for no reason, as if he had stumbled into some big trouble."

  "What the heck is this crazy old man hinting at?" Shi Dong cursed inwardly, clutching his sore palm and looking left and right, but no matter how long he looked, he couldn't figure out what was going on. And before he knew it, the pain in his palm had disappeared.

  After a tiring day, first flying into the Ghostly Mountains through clouds and mist, then opening up his meridian points, listening to Master's teachings, and experiencing the events of the Gambling Ghost Building and Zhou De Nuo... facing so many life-and-death trials, at this moment when he relaxed, Shi Dong quickly fell asleep.

  Lying on the stone bed, he fell into a deep sleep without realizing it.

  After waking up from a nap, I still feel physically exhausted and mentally tired. I know that this time I'm really worn out, and it will take three days and nights of good sleep to recover.

  At this time, his stomach was growling with hunger, Shi Dong was thinking of finding something to eat, and when he swept his gaze around, he saw a food box placed at the entrance of the restricted area. Only then did he remember that Bai Jin had mentioned before that there were some strong servants inside the Mo Sha Men who were responsible for delivering meals and washing clothes, and they would come at fixed times every day.

  Shi Dong hastily jumped down to the ground, opened the food box and took a look. Inside, there was actually a large bowl of white rice, a large can of clear water, a dish of green vegetables, and a portion of meat dishes.

  The food was much better than before, Shi Dong cheered and drank several big gulps of water, then buried his head and started eating. He didn't know if he was hungry or if this was a special meal for cultivators, but the taste was very good, and after eating, his stomach felt warm and full of energy.

  After eating a few mouthfuls, he suddenly stopped his chopsticks and tears flowed down, thinking of his mother and sister who were left alone at home, where they had never tasted such delicious food, while he was here enjoying himself, it was really unfilial.

  Suddenly he lost his appetite, he pushed the food box to the side and leaned against the stone bed, staring blankly at his thoughts, and before he knew it, he fell asleep again.

  When he woke up again, Shi Dong had thoroughly thought it through. Since he was forced to join the Demon Sect, his primary goal was to survive, and secondly, to cultivate a decent magical technique, at least reaching the level of Bai Jin, so that he wouldn't be afraid of the Ling Xiao Sect's cultivators, and then have the opportunity to find his mother and sister.

  Shi Dong was a carefree person, once he made up his mind, he wouldn't think about it anymore. He simply relaxed and ate his fill, slept when he was full, and ate again when he woke up, for three days and three nights.

  On the fourth day, Shi Dong woke up again in the morning and felt refreshed and full of energy. He knew that he had finally recovered. Overjoyed, he began to examine himself.

  He carefully examined the palm of his left hand in the bright light, but it didn't hurt or itch, and he didn't see anything unusual. He pondered for a moment, thinking that this matter was quite suspicious, and perhaps there would be another opportunity to appear, so it's better to wait and observe quietly for now, and temporarily put it aside.

  He stripped off his clothes again and examined himself carefully, but saw that his skin was smooth as usual, with no sign of the seven major meridians appearing. Moreover, the burning sensation caused by soaking in the black water for a long time had also completely disappeared.

  For these seven major meridians, he didn't dare to be careless in the slightest, this was the foundation of his next cultivation. If there were any mistakes and he couldn't break through the first layer of the Qi Refining stage within a year, his own life would be over!

  "Alright, let's first try practicing 'Mojie Zhuan Sha Shen Gong' and see if there's any problem with the mojie on my body?"