Doomsday Jigsaw Puzzle

Chapter 147: Chapter 147: Strange Chips

"So it’s a casino..." freeweɓnovel.cѳm

Bai Wu wasn’t smug about having the "I, Bai Wu, do not cheat" eyes.

He was still unclear about the specific rules of the casino’s interior.

As they drew closer to the resplendent building, the four figures in the shadows finally became clear.

Everyone noticed that there were six members from the Outside Investigation Corps and four from the Garrison Corps of Gao Ta Town.

Although Wu Jiu was famous, people wouldn’t think of Wu Jiu the moment they saw a dwarf. Bai Wu and Wu Jiu had recently gained notoriety, but not many truly recognized them.

Especially since these four members of the Garrison Corps were newcomers.

"Huh...you’re from the Investigation Corps? Why are you here? That’s impossible..."

Wu Jiu and the others were also puzzled as to why there would be members of the Garrison Corps in this area.

"Why would the Garrison Corps be here? And why only four of you?"

"Wait, is that an Evil Fallen? Why is it completely different from what we were told?" The people from the Garrison Corps were horrified.

They were new recruits on their first outing from the tower. Suddenly seeing a humanoid Evil Fallen, they were frightened.

The Garrison Corps, the Evil Fallen, and the Investigation Corps were all gathered inside the lift, yet the Evil Fallen appeared calm, seemingly unaffected by the humans’ fear.

This scene made Bai Wu feel even more puzzled.

"Human negative emotions are the raw materials that the Evil Fallen use to enhance themselves. They are also delicacies that many Evil Fallen crave... Its ability to resist such temptation must not be solely due to fear of the captain. Perhaps there is something inside the casino that can process ’raw materials’, and it can obtain something more valuable from us."

Combining the earlier remarks he had seen, Bai Wu speculated that this casino, established by Little Octopus who aspired to become the King of Merchants and was the Lord of Black Gold Island, had enigmatic stakes for sure.

"Bai Wu, have you discovered anything?"

"Captain, do you remember the heart of Jing Si, the simulated merchant? The little octopus that could let us gain strength and upgrade our items."

"I remember."

Bai Wu whispered:

"What we encountered in the heart of Jing Si was just a replica, but this time, we might meet the real thing, or maybe one of its direct spokespeople."

Wu Jiu was moved.

Did this mean they might all be able to upgrade if they handled it right?

Bai Wu wasn’t so optimistic. The eerie atmosphere in the elevator gave him a feeling of strangeness.

"We are headed to a casino."

"A casino?" Lin Wurou and Wang Shi were unexpectedly interested.

"A High Tower Era casino beyond the tower. Your opponents are clearly not human."

"And what’s the deal with those four from the Garrison Corps?" Yin Shuang suddenly asked.

Bai Wu paused before saying:

"Perhaps... we are about to uncover a major secret about the Garrison Corps."

"What secret?" Lin Wurou still hadn’t caught on at that point.

But Wu Jiu and Yin Shuang exchanged a surprised look.

This was a casino.

As Bai Wu said, a High Tower Era casino set up beyond the tower. The stakes inside were definitely not things like Tower Currency.

Why does the Garrison Corps see the emergence of some unique and strange new powerhouses every year?

The previous two military exercises had seen the captains of the Garrison Corps even suppressing the Investigation Corps. This year, for some unknown reason, even the ordinary soldiers of the Garrison Corps had begun to grow stronger.

If it hadn’t been for the anomaly Wu Jiu, the Investigation Corps would have been no match for the Garrison Corps during regular exercises.

Both Yin Shuang and Wu Jiu had guessed this point.

At this time, the elevator also arrived at the entrance of the casino, as grand as a palace, via a transparent glass tube.

What presented itself before them was the magnificent entrance to the casino, and above it, six golden characters that stood out prominently—Deep Sea Royal Casino.

"Welcome, dear guests," a voice boomed with a series of hearty laughs, "apart from Mr. Evil Fallen Black Bone, all the others are new faces."

At the entrance of the casino was an Evil Fallen, with a seahorse body, floating mid-air.

This Evil Fallen was of level six. It had no rare or perfect Entries, but its familiar tone reminded Bai Wu and Wu Jiu of the merchant from Xuanhui City.

"Really copying everything. This strange laughter."

Bai Wu thought to himself with an internal sneer.

The seahorse kept blatting incessantly like a suona horn, explaining the rules of the casino:

"All our new distinguished guests, please remember what I am about to say. Our Deep Sea Royal Casino features many interesting entertainment options. You can gain numerous resources, skills, interesting memories, or Talent Sequences, Mutation Entries, lifespan, luck, or perhaps... control over a certain loser? And many strange chips and wagers—you can find anything you wish for here." ƒгeewebnovёl.com

"But upon entering the casino, you must follow the rules of the house. Starting now, you will randomly lose something every hour, and this kind of loss will happen once an hour. It might be a memory, it might be lifespan, it might even be luck, or one of your Sequences? If you are unlucky, you might just forget how to beat your opponent, so remember the timing of your ’loss,’ and don’t pick a particular time or opponent to bet against."

"Ho ho ho ho, doesn’t it sound fun? But let me warn you, if you have nothing left to lose, then we will take charge of your soul. So gamble to your heart’s content! Why not win over what belongs to others? Please understand our difficulties as a conscientious casino—we are not drooling over your belongings, we just~ hope you can unleash your true nature."

"Moreover, pledges are very important here. When you make a pledge in this place, the great Lord of Black Gold Island will act as overseer, ensuring you hold to your promises. Thus, you can trade with anyone here and as long as you swear a pledge, there is no need to worry about the other party defaulting."

"That’s all, I wish you all a pleasant time. Remember, sometimes time is more important than chips. Ho ho ho ho. Ah yes, I almost forgot the Island Master’s last words: The final interpretation right of this casino belongs to the great Lord of Black Gold Island."

Bai Wu listened carefully to the seahorse’s speech, his first reaction was:

"Can we abstain from participating?"

Even if they had Prayle’s Eye, even if the secret to the Garrison Corps’ ability to regularly produce strong fighters lay within, Bai Wu instinctively sensed danger.

Losing something every hour, who knows what might be lost here? Bai Wu decided not to participate in the gambling.

Customers who make such a request are usually smarter, like those four from the Garrison Corps thinking about something rather unrealistic—wouldn’t they be stronger than Wu Jiu if they kept winning by the time they went back?

Lin Wurou and Wang Shi also felt it seemed quite challenging.

Men are naturally attracted to high risk, high reward ventures.

"Oh dear, respected guests, your feet have already stepped into the domain of the casino, the rules are already in effect. You’re welcome to leave at any time, only... are you sure you don’t want to take back what’s yours?"

Bai Wu frowned.

At that moment, Prayle’s Eye popped up with a note:

[Under the effect of the Legendary Tier Mutation Entry: Disassemble Everything, all the resources you carry enter a state of disintegration. And you are quite fortunate, as you’ve been stripped of a portion of your memory. Before you lose more, consider leaving this place, or do you decide to loot to your heart’s content?]

Since the memory had been stripped and turned into the chips of the casino, it meant he could no longer recall it.

Bai Wu was a person with an exceptionally strong memory. He thought carefully... and seemed to have forgotten some memories of time spent with his father.

If someone knew about Bai Wu’s childhood, they might think this lost memory wasn’t of great consequence.

But Bai Wu, contrary to his usual poise, declared:

"I’ve decided to participate."

"Why are you flip-flopping like this?" Lin Wurou wanted to blurt out.

But suddenly, she couldn’t speak.

Her eyes wide, she looked around, trying to open her mouth, but just couldn’t.

To Yin Shuang’s horror, Lin Wurou’s mouth was gone.

"Yo-ho-ho, it seems our casino boss thinks the mouth of a guest is sharp enough to be considered a chip,"

This was, of course, a very sad affair, yet for some reason, Wu Jiu, Bai Wu, and others felt like laughing.

Indeed, a troll’s mouth is definitely a sharp weapon.

Yin Shuang lost a Sequence; Bai Wu noticed that Yin Shuang’s healing Sequence was gone, but the one that the sixth floor was interested in was still there.

Wang Shi’s Innate Force directly took away two levels. And Wu Jiu aged.

The former captain was young and handsome, albeit a bit short.

But the current captain seemed weathered, bearing a charm only forty-year-old men possess.

A portion of his life had been taken away.

Clearly, the people from the Deep Sea Royal Casino had engaged in a sort of inducement fraud. These rules should have been explained before the elevator reached the casino’s bounds.

In that case, people like Bai Wu could leave without any worries.

But now it was different; the Deep Sea Casino obviously had a clear grasp on the gambler’s psychology. Since everyone had come in without any losses, they naturally did not wish to leave with any.

For Bai Wu, some memories were painful, but important.

Moreover, he didn’t want to face a forty-year-old Dwarf; privately calling him ’Dwarf’ would feel awkward, and calling him ’Dwarf Uncle’ seemed like a loss.

Lin Wurou’s mouth was gone; could this still be called Lin Wurou?

Compared to them, the losses of Yin Shuang and Wang Shi didn’t seem too significant; they could be made up for after exiting the Tower.

Wu Jiu drew his sword in an instant, placing the upgraded Evil Fallen Must Die on the Seahorse’s neck.

Panic-stricken, the Seahorse laughed and said:

"Yo-woo-woo-woo-woo, my respected guest, why trouble me? Killing me won’t make you any younger. Why not try to win back what you’ve lost? If you kill me, you’ll anger the casino’s owner."

"Who’s the casino owner then? Isn’t it the Lord of Black Gold Island?"

"The Island Master is a director; this is his property, but the great Island Master would never grace this place personally."

The Seahorse’s words gave Bai Wu some clues.

It seemed there was a Guardian with a Legendary Tier Entry here. Perhaps it’s from the merchant Little Octopus.

That is to say, this place was originally a blue area, but maybe with Little Octopus’s constant expansions, the danger level had long surpassed that of ordinary blue areas?

This damned constitution.

Bai Wu said:

"So, will the casino boss allow us to leave with our bowls full?"

"I am not the boss; I am just a seahorse responsible for receiving guests. How would I know? Yo-ho-ho-ho-ho."

The boss might be a fragment holder; perhaps this is another special piece of the Doomsday Puzzle.

At that time, the one called Black Bone, an Evil Fallen, barged in and said:

"Cowards can roll back now while you haven’t lost everything."

Black Bone wasn’t summoned to the casino for the first time; before, it was only a level six Mutant.

But fortune in the casino twice in a row allowed Black Bone to become a level nine Evil Fallen at a staggering rate and even win several powerful Entries.

It was known as the lucky Black Bone.

After all, most guests, after coming to this casino once, can never leave again.

Bai Wu looked at the four members of the Garrison Corps and said:

"And you? You’ve lost something too, haven’t you?"

The four Garrison Corps members were clearly smug; they said:

"We are nothing like you lowlifes."

Lin Wurou was ready to burst out; open your damn eyes and see clearly, you are speaking to the top ace of the Investigation Corps!

But... a muscle beneath his nose twitched, and in the end, only some indiscernible noises came from his throat.

"Damn it!"

Lin was inwardly fuming; it was his first time exiting the Tower with Bai Wu, and he had been infected with pessimistic thoughts, leaving apologetically as a human being.

On his second time exiting with Bai Wu, he had almost become a girl and barely avoided a psychological scar.

This third time exiting with Bai Wu, now he couldn’t even speak.

This brat must be my nemesis!

Bai Wu patted Lin Wurou’s shoulder; since they had decided to give the gambling a shot, why not lighten the mood and crack a joke about Lin:

"Am I not radiant like a father to you? If you don’t speak, I’ll take that as a yes."

Lin Wurou glared at Bai Wu.

Wu Jiu said:

"Let’s go in."

Everyone’s mood hadn’t lightened; Bai Wu thought maybe in the next hour, he might be at risk of losing Prayle’s Eye, so he must figure out a way to get as many chips as possible to redeem what he had lost.

"I have a question; are we not supposed to be without chips?"

Passing through the grand doors was a long corridor; Bai Wu walked beside the Seahorse, asking in a low voice:

"Is it true that as long as we have no chips, something will be stripped from us to exist as chips?"

"Smart guest! Yes, as long as you have extra chips, you can redeem what’s yours, don’t worry, there’ll be no markup~"

"What about the conditions for leaving?"

"Those who come to the casino have to gamble for at least twenty-four hours."

"After twenty-four hours, can we safely leave even if we hold a lot of chips?"

"Of course, it’s usually the case."

"Usually?"

"I am just a path guide and greeter; as for everything about the casino, guests themselves should explore, please rest assured, our casino is quite regular, you can inquire about the reputation of Black Gold Island."

Regular?

The word ’regular’ didn’t answer any questions.

Following the Seahorse’s lead, Bai Wu and the others quickly reached the interior of the casino, this was the first floor, the doors sealed. As the Seahorse opened the doors—

Bai Wu saw the remark:

[Is there a quicker way to get rich than crimes and gambling? But what awaits you might be sudden death. You are now lv1, and only by increasing the number of chips and raising your level can you uncover more secrets of this casino, enter higher-level gambling rooms, and join more advanced games.]

The doors slowly opened, and raucous noise filled the air.

The giant chandelier at the top made the whole casino bright, as if being in an indoor sports stadium.

In this casino...there were humans working inside the casino, Evil Fallens, and over a hundred gamblers!

"Enjoy to your heart’s content, honored guests."