When Bubai arrived upstairs, what greeted him was a standoff between a cold jade gatekeeper and a crimson hottie.

  Like opposing sides of a chess game, their curves were hugged by white versus black.

  Quiet patience versus the sharp tapping of high heels.

  Xiao Lan versus Xiao Hong.

  There was no fight, but there was already a clear sense of territory.

  The outsider only stared down the lady of the house a bit longer before whipping her gaze over to the man.

  A single lock of fiery red hair swayed over her face as her sharp eyes gave him a once-over.

  "You tell me to come early in the morning, made me wait so long, and this is the look you show up with? Tsk. Tsk. What are you, a beggar?"

  Her snide remark slid off Bubai like rain on stone, and he smoothly shot back, “Don’t question my choices. Just know there’s a reason behind everything.”

  “Tsk.” Miss Hong blew the rogue lock of hair away from her face.

  “I don’t care if you have a reason or not. Just don’t embarrass yourself on stage, or the old master won’t let you off so easily.”

  The pressure she tried to exert had no effect, and instead, Bubai’s eyes wandered toward the silent figure beside him.

  The frosty-faced sword maiden hadn’t spoken a word, but her presence was impossible to ignore.

  When her icy eyes met his, she finally took the chance to seek confirmation.

  “Dinner for…” She cast a quick glance at the qipao-clad woman, then back to him. “Three?”

  Bubai nodded, leaning in to give her a quick peck. “We’ll talk later.”

  Without missing a beat, Bubai strode past the two women and made for the exit. “Time waits for no one. Let’s go.”

  The peacock’s red lips quirked like that of a winner and strutted away, leaving a frozen statue in the cold, lonely tower.

  Outside.

  Today, the special date finally arrived.

  A dense flow of disciples were all streaming in one direction like rivers converging toward a singular point: the Central District.

  To be more precise, all of their paths bled into the heart of the southern end of the district.

  Here stands a monumental structure cast from white jade and sandstone.

  The coliseum where the Inner Sect Exchange shall be held.

  Standing in the paved open-air court surrounding his destination, Bubai got a good view of the area.

  The atmosphere was loud, chaotic, and buzzing with excitement.

  There were throngs of disciples eagerly surging through the arched entrance.

  Many others escorted their female companions over to one of the many trains in chains, handing them over to the seedy-looking gang members keeping off the crowd.

  On elevated sandstone podiums rising like islands amidst this chaotic sea, callers barked out bets, trying to lure in more participants.

  "This is your chance to win! Gold, spirit stones, beauties, they’re all yours!"

  "Come cop a feel at what you will be bringing home tonight!"

  "Any gentlemen placing a bet with us can enjoy a free cup of complimentary tea!"

  What kind of free tea is available? There wasn’t even a need to guess.

  After all, there were men happily brewing tea in the temporary stalls and even right under the lascivious eyes of everybody!

  Heck, some unscrupulous men were even publicly inspecting the wagers deposited by others!

  Their brazen behaviors left Bubai almost speechless.

  "These guys… Don’t they know that’s really bad for their image? Do they not know how to do business properly?"

  Beside him, Miss Hong scoffed, "Proper business? Can there be any such thing here? You men only know how to do business with your lower halves."

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  Bubai shot her a glance, unimpressed. "Don’t speak like you women are any better."

  Like embers fanned into flame, her eyes flared, and the thorny rose snapped back.

  "Do you think we’d lower ourselves if we had a choice? Don’t think for a second you men are worth a second glance just because we kneel to you!"

  Bubai grinned, enjoying her defiance. "Whether I’m worth it or not doesn’t matter. Just remember, you’re mine now, and I only care if you’re useful."

  “Tsk.” The irritated beauty clicked her tongue and didn’t bite back, but the fire in her gaze never wavered.

  Unbothered, Bubai’s gaze drifted back over to the sea of people, observing the different groups of gamblers milling around.

  "Tell me. Which groups are the best."

  He spoke again, his tone now more businesslike.

  "Hah?" A hard edge flashed in Miss Hong’s eyes. "You actually want to bet? Save it."

  "Problem?"

  She shot him a disdainful look. "And here I thought you were smart. You can’t even see through these little tricks?"

  Her snarky remark prompted Bubai’s eyes to search around, finding the female law enforcers patrolling the area.

  Despite the blatant chaos, none of them intervened.

  Bubai knew why. Anyone who has read the sect rule book did.

  Starting a betting pool was a legal activity in the sect.

  As long as the fixed taxes were paid to the sect, any organizers that had the necessary background or muscle to uphold their end of the deals can start their own betting pool for anything.

  Of course, whether they paid out winnings fairly or pulled the rug… that depended on whether they cared more about reputation or their profit.

  Unscrupulous? Perhaps. But that’s just the way things are here.

  All gamblers were basically betting against the house… betting they won’t default and offend the masses.

  Big risks. That’s why the callers go to such lengths to draw in more gamblers.

  Despite knowing the risks, Bubai still pushed for answers.

  "Don’t worry. You have better places to be than in those chains. I just want you to point out the big players for me."

  This only earned a glare from the woman, "All you men are full of lies."

  The warmth drained from Bubai’s face, and he shot her a sharp look. “Will you do as you’re told or go back to your old master?”

  “You!” Miss Hong’s jaw clenched, her teeth grinding together, but her defiance soon wilted like a flower beneath the sudden frost. "Fine. Do whatever you want."

  "Go on."

  Crossing her arms, Miss Hong’s sharp eyes swept across the crowd, picking out the more prominent betting groups and began pointing out the key players.

  “That’s the Blood Fang gang from the sixth district. Backed by a few inner disciples under the Jia Clan. Decent reputation, but don’t bet too much unless you want to wake up locked up in some dungeon.”

  “That lot over there is the Sand Dune crew from the eleventh district. A clean-up business operated by the Wu Clan. Don’t just look at their high rewards because they won’t hesitate to clean up their own.”

  “The Collector Gang from the fourth district. They’ve got ties to a goods smuggler ring manned by some core disciples. But don’t think for a sec any in their collection of beauties are fresh. What’s here are just leftovers and don’t expect any women left there to return untouched.”

  "And those dolls being used over there can’t be any more obvious. Just know that should be the most reputable betting group here."

  “Eh?” Bubai blinked in surprise. “Hei Hua Lou? Reputable? Are you pulling my leg?”

  Miss Hong perked her lips.

  “Believe it or not, that place is as reputable as it gets in this sea of thieves. Just know those fancy doll refiners want to keep harvesting every year. So, they won’t disappear overnight. At least not anytime soon.”

  "But if you're a lone wolf, don't bother sticking your hand out. If you know what’s good for you, that is."

  Of course, Bubai is not foolish enough to hand over his wealth for nothing.

  In fact, he never even intended to bet against such shady businessmen.

  No, his real aim was just to remember faces. Why?

  Well, just imagine how heavy the pockets of these gangs would be after this event.

  As a “good Samaritan”, he didn’t mind going on a little tour of creative redistribution to help them... lighten their burden. Ahem.

  While Bubai was busy mentally mapping out the easy pickings, a dandy swaggered up to them.

  Waving a fan as thought trying to fan away the stink of his arrogance, the dandy’s eyes raked all over the curves hugged by the black qipao and whistled.

  “Well, well, what do we have here? An outstanding woman like you certainly deserves better. Come with Grandpa, and I’ll let you live a good life.”

  Birthing a face oozing with smugness and lust, his folded fan reached out to lift her chin like a hunter toying with prey.

  But before he could make contact, the tigress fiercely slapped the fan away and snarled, "Even garbage like you dares to have ideas about me? Keep looking, and see if I’ll dig your eyes out!"

  Seeing the face of his master souring, his loyal dogleg lackey erupted like a lit fuse.

  "Insolent! You should feel honored to earn my sixth young master Wu’s favor! Hurry up and kneel, or don’t blame me for being rude!"

  The dandy raised his fan as if it were a shield and waved off his henchman’s aggression. "Now, now, no need to be so hostile."

  He set his gaze on the thorny rose, eyes glinting with predatory hunger. "You know, all the women who’ve spurned me never met a pleasant end. But... it’s rare to meet a gem of your standards."

  “Tell you what, if you blow my load right here, right now, this young master might be magnanimous enough to forgive your earlier offense.”

  The thorny rose didn’t flinch. Instead, she sneered, a wicked light sparking in her eyes. "Your mother, I, said scram!"

  Her spiritual pressure flared.

  Both the dandy and his poor dogleg finally realized they had just stepped into the wrong garden.

  But obviously, this lady’s hot temper wasn’t just going to end with a little scare.

  Qi gathered in her palm and it was already blasting out!

  Just when the punishing blow was about to land, a firm hand shot out and locked her wrist in place.

  Seeing her blow barely ruffling the dandy’s robe, she glared over at the hand’s owner, only to meet Bubai’s cold eyes.

  “Did I give you permission to beat any random dog?”

  “Tsk.” Miss Hong turned away, grumbling under her breath. “Spineless worm.”

  Seeing it was all bark no bite, the frightened dandy regained enough of his bravado to stutter out a final threat.

  "J-Just you wait! M-My brother will hear about this! A filthy beggar like him won’t be able to protect you forever. Once you're on the stakes, you’ll wish you had begged for my mercy!"

  With that, he scampered off, his dogleg scurrying after him like a shadow fleeing from the light.

  Bubai knew beauty plus poor beggar was a recipe for disaster, yet he did nothing to stop them.

  Why stop them? In fact, Bubai was so happy he almost cried!

  He thought everybody was spineless worms, but… finally! Seriously, finally!

  Cliché arrogant, cannon fodder dandy hooked +1.

  Oh heaven’s above, he can’t wait to see what happens next!