The betting had reached its final stage, and each player now had two opportunities to exchange cards.
For the first time, Zhao Mu flipped over his hand and took a look.
After a single glance, a smile appeared on his face.
"It looks like luck is on my side today."
The moment Li Xiang and Qi Chengyu heard those words, their hearts sank.
Zhao Mu calmly exchanged his cards only once before confidently laying down his hand.
Three Kings and a pair of Tens.
A Full House.
Li Xiang and Qi Chengyu's expressions immediately turned grim.
Even after using both of their exchange opportunities, neither of them had managed to build a stronger hand.
This wasn't a movie.
A Full House with three Kings was already an exceptionally powerful hand. Four-of-a-Kinds and Straight Flushes weren't something that appeared every round.
More importantly, Zhao Mu had already calculated the odds.
The probability of either of them beating his hand was less than three percent, which was why he had played so decisively.
With this single round, Zhao Mu won back 20 million Xuanfeng Coins.
After losing such a huge amount, both Li Xiang and Qi Chengyu looked as if they had swallowed poison.
Seeing Zhao Mu smiling only made them even angrier.
That was the nature of gamblers.
When they won, they wanted to win even more.
But the moment they started losing, anxiety and frustration quickly took over.
Without hesitation, Zhao Mu pushed another 10 million Xuanfeng Coins into the center of the table.
This time, Li Xiang and Qi Chengyu accepted the bet without the slightest hesitation.
Of course, Zhao Mu didn't win every round.
He relied on mathematics and probability, and low-probability events would inevitably happen.
Even so, out of every ten rounds, he could usually win seven or eight.
As the game continued, his mastery of card play improved rapidly.
His decisions became increasingly smooth and precise.
Before long, he had recovered everything he had previously lost.
Not only that...
Li Xiang and Qi Chengyu now owed him more than 30 million Xuanfeng Coins.
---
The surrounding spectators, who had originally gathered to watch the young man embarrass himself, now looked at Zhao Mu with amazement.
"Young Master Zhao's luck is incredible."
"Every hand he plays is strong. Even two veteran players have been completely suppressed."
"I told you—luck is everything in card games."
"I don't think it's just luck."
"Young Master Zhao has been pretending to be inexperienced."
"Every exchange he makes is incredibly precise."
Most of the audience couldn't understand his decisions.
Sometimes Zhao Mu held two pairs while also having the possibility of building a Straight Flush.
Without hesitation, he would break up the pairs and gamble on drawing the remaining cards.
And somehow...
The cards always came.
Either he completed the Straight Flush or ended up with an extremely valuable Flush.
Of course, the spectators couldn't understand.
After all...
They didn't understand mathematics.
At that moment, Zhao Mu was like a living supercomputer.
Against overwhelming calculations, ordinary human intuition stood no chance.
---
The game continued.
Although Zhao Mu occasionally lost a hand, his victories vastly outnumbered his defeats.
Meanwhile, Li Xiang and Qi Chengyu had already lost over 50 million Xuanfeng Coins between them.
Their eyes had turned bloodshot.
Both Quenching Weapons Shop and War Hammer Weapons Shop were wealthy businesses...
But that money belonged to the companies.
Not to them personally.
If they had to cover these losses themselves, it would be devastating.
Seeing their miserable expressions, Zhao Mu smiled pleasantly.
"Gentlemen."
"You've lost quite a lot today."
"It seems the God of Wealth has chosen my side."
"So..."
"Would you like to continue?"
Bang!
Li Xiang slammed both hands onto the table.
His bloodshot eyes stared directly at Zhao Mu.
"We'll continue!"
"No one leaves until this game is over!"
Everyone present immediately realized...
Li Xiang had completely lost his composure.
It wasn't surprising.
Even for a medium-sized weapons shop, producing tens of millions of Xuanfeng Coins in cash at once would be extremely difficult.
How could he remain calm after losing that much?
Zhao Mu simply shrugged.
"I don't mind."
At that moment, nobody dared underestimate the two newcomers who had just entered Lujiang City's weapons industry.
Being able to completely dominate senior executives from two major weapons shops...
These people were clearly anything but ordinary.
Since the other side refused to admit defeat, Zhao Mu was more than happy to continue.
---
Less than half an hour later...
He had won another 50 million Xuanfeng Coins.
In a single day, his winnings had exceeded 100 million.
If he used that money to purchase Ember Remains...
He could afford two first-grade Ember Remains.
Even Zhao Mu felt slightly dazed.
Not long ago, he had considered the one million Empire Bank card Meng Qiuqiu gave him an enormous fortune.
Now...
He had casually won more than 100 million just by playing cards.
It truly proved one thing.
Wealth naturally gathered at the top.
The richer someone became...
The easier it was to earn even more money.
Of course, Zhao Mu also knew the truth.
Without Meng Qiuqiu backing him today...
He would never have participated in a game with stakes this high.
---
Li Xiang's hands trembled as he held his cards.
He alone had lost more than 60 million Xuanfeng Coins.
That was nearly his entire fortune.
He was merely a senior executive of Quenching Weapons Shop.
Although his annual salary exceeded 10 million Xuanfeng Coins, losing almost everything in a single day left him on the verge of collapse.
Qi Chengyu wasn't much better.
His eyes were bloodshot, and he looked as though he had gone mad.
Zhao Mu lightly tapped the tabletop with his fingers.
"Gentlemen..."
"Do you still wish to continue?"
"You've already lost more than 100 million Xuanfeng Coins."
"If you want to keep playing..."
"Please settle your debts first."
Qi Chengyu suddenly threw his cards onto the table.
"What are you rushing us for?!"
"We haven't finished yet!"
His scarlet eyes glared at Zhao Mu as though he wanted to devour him alive.
Zhao Mu merely chuckled.
Without saying a word, Huo Jun stepped forward.
"Sir."
"Please calm yourself."
He adjusted his glasses.
For only a brief instant, the aura of his 358 Combat Power was released.
Immediately...
Qi Chengyu sobered up.
It felt as though his entire body had fallen into an icy abyss.
The suited man standing before him could crush him as easily as an ant.
Cold sweat poured down Qi Chengyu's face.
He collapsed back into his chair.
Only then did he truly realize...
This gambling match had quietly stripped away nearly his entire fortune.
Zhao Mu continued rhythmically tapping the table.
"So..."
"Do you still want to continue?"
His calm voice sounded almost like the tolling of a funeral bell.
"If you wish to keep playing..."
"Please pay what you owe first."
Li Xiang and Qi Chengyu felt utterly hopeless.
If they refused to honor the debt in front of everyone from Lujiang City's weapons industry...
Their reputations would be ruined forever.
They would lose not only their positions but any chance of remaining in the industry.
Yet...
Paying more than 100 million Xuanfeng Coins felt even worse than death.
At that moment, Meng Qiuqiu walked over and quietly asked,
"Brother Xiao Mu..."
"Would you mind letting me handle this?"
Zhao Mu smiled.
"Go ahead."
When it came to handling people and delicate situations, Fatty Meng was indeed better than he was.
Meng Qiuqiu stepped forward with a warm smile.
"Gentlemen..."
"It's only a card game."
"There's no need to take things this far."
"I know both of you are respected veterans of Lujiang City's weapons industry."
"How about this?"
"Show a little sincerity."
"Just pay half of what you owe."
"What do you think?"
Advance Chapters avilable on patreon (Obito_uchiha)