123 Perception (2/2)

Nightfall Mao Ni 55120K 2022-07-20

Then the sound of a tiny and clear clash between dice was heard again, unveiling a new round of gambling. The big dicebox rolled up and down in the fair hands of the pretty dealer and then fell on the table.

”Please bet.” The dealer looked at those gamblers beside the table with a smile and repeated the regulations of Star-Picking Casino just as what she had done before each new round: ”Those who failed to bet within the time limit after the dicebox settles, please wait for the next round.”

The table for betting ”big” or ”small” was shaped like a semicircle, whose wild surface was separated into several regions by thinly-sliced white cloth. Besides piles of chips and several teacups, a cute and lovely hourglass stood in the very middle of the table to time the game, which would be reversed by a specially assigned person after each rolling of the dicebox ended.

Taking a glimpse at the fast-flowing fine sand in the hourglass, Ning Que found the time was a bit limited, so he quickly concentrated on the big, heavy black dicebox. He was so concentrated that an especially focused and nervous look appeared on his face. Then somebody beside the table burst into laughter and jokingly said, ”Whose kid should come to gamble here? Maybe he thinks his longtime of staring can penetrate the dicebox?”

Ning Que showed no interest in the joke because he was greatly strained at the moment. Furthermore, could he have told those guys who gambled for fun that he indeed could perceive the big, heavy black dicebox?

As he had said to Sangsang at the gate of the casino, he had never fought without the confidence that he would win during his lifetime. To win over all the others today, he had spent the whole night yesterday on testing his ability.

He practiced feeling how deep the water was in the bucket through the bucket; feeling how many taels of silver were left under the bed through the bedplate; and feeling whether Sangsang, who squatted below the window, had opened her eyes or not through the window. After repeated practices, he felt assured that he could control that trace of the Qi of Heaven and Earth, which, though could not be used to shake Mount Tai, would have no problem to be used to perceive it. Such confidence had encouraged him to go to the Star-Picking Casino. His practice in meditation for the entire night had greatly upgraded his speed and proficiency of mobilizing the Qi of Heaven and Earth, which was a benefit to him beyond his expectations.

Based on the operation plan they previously made at Lin 47th Street and their miserably few practical experiences, Ning Que imagined that when he looked at the black dicebox, the subtle Qi of Heaven and Earth controlled by the Psyche Power in his brain could easily penetrate the thick wall of the dicebox and help him to feel the fine concaves and convexes on the surface of the dice. Yet things had gone astray. The Qi of Heaven and Earth he controlled just entered the surface of the thick wall and could not go an inch further!

All of sudden Ning Que stiffened, staring at the big black dicebox in great shock, not knowing what had happened.

At that point, the upper part of the lovely hourglass standing in the middle of the table was almost filled with sand, and some short-tempered gamblers began to urge him harshly upon seeing his reaction. He looked at the black dicebox painfully at a loss, trying to figure out what was wrong with it.

Following his usual practice, he should have given up in such a situation. However, he actually insisted, not knowing if it was because of the harsh pressure of the hourglass and the urges or his strong unwillingness to resign. He tightly gazed at the dicebox with his eyebrows frowned, striving to upgrade the intensity of his Psyche Power which mobilized the Qi of Heaven and Earth to poke into the impregnable dicebox!

Poke into it!

The Qi of Heaven and Earth extremely condensed by Psyche Power finally perceived the wall as if it were an intangible fine needle!

Feeling that fine tactile sense, which was like a heated knife being inserted into butter or fingers sticking into cream, and looking at the three settled dice on the bottom of the dicebox, Ning Que suddenly felt relaxed, his frowning eyebrows gradually stretching.

Before all the sand leaked into the lower part of the hourglass, he took out that small star-folded note and gently put it on the side of ”big”.

The good-looking dealer looked at him with a smile and slowly raised the dicebox.

”Four, five, six.”

”Big.”

That star-shaped note was elegantly unfolded by that female dealer and put in the middle of the table as a way of publicity to other gamblers. Then Ning Que pushed the silver that he won toward himself with a thin bamboo ruler.

It was rare to see a gambler using a note of 200 taels of silver to bet on ”big” or ”small” at the dicebox, even in the Star-Picking Casino. Besides the chips from the other gamblers, the banker of the casino was also required to pay a big amount of silver. Those chips, big or small, were all pushed to Ning Que, which were in fact layered on high one by one, making them really attractive.

Then a middle-aged man at the table said with a smile, ”I seldom see a lad at such a young age that can play with such a big stake. Moreover, you didn't look complacent. It's really precious to see a lad with such calmness.”

Ning Que raised his sleeve to wipe off the sweat from his forehead and shook his head with a smile, saying no more words. He thought to himself, ”If you owned the ability to perceive the dicebox like me, you could also be as indifferent as those who are disillusioned with the mortal world are towards gambling.”