Serpent Ancestor

”Ma... Master Ma!”

Zhang Kuang’s face changed instantly. He never expected Ma Teng to discover them.

But thinking about the mid-Foundation Establishment elder beside him, he didn’t feel afraid. He smiled and asked, ”What brings you here, Master? Let me introduce you to Zhu, our manager at the Heavenly Dragon Casino.”

”I handle matters related to the Qi Refining Stage. Since you are a Foundation Establishment cultivator, Manager Zhu will take care of all your affairs from now on,” Zhang Kuang said, pointing to the elder behind him.

Manager Zhu nodded and smiled, ”Whatever Master Ma wishes to play, our Heavenly Dragon Casino can accommodate.”

He was speaking leisurely when suddenly his vision blurred.

”Retreat!” Manager Zhu’s face changed dramatically.

Just as he was about to summon his magical treasure, Xu Hei appeared before him with terrifying speed, almost like teleportation.

It was the Dragon Clan’s movement technique, the Ever-changing Fish and Dragon!

Even when performed by a human puppet, the Ever-changing Fish and Dragon was still more than enough to handle a mid-Foundation Establishment cultivator.”Crack!”

A pair of powerful hands clamped around Manager Zhu’s neck, lifting him off the ground.

Manager Zhu’s face turned pale with fear. He found himself completely immobilized, unable to activate his magical treasure or even circulate his True Qi. His entire body felt like it was being crushed.

It was nothing but the Gravity Technique.

Under the enhancement of black True Qi, Xu Hei’s Gravity Technique had reached an almost divine level.

Zhang Kuang, who tried to escape, was also caught by the Gravity Technique and dragged in front of Xu Hei.

”Anything you want to play? How about your lives?” Xu Hei said coldly.

Both Zhang Kuang and Manager Zhu turned pale, their scalps tingling with fear.

The opponent was clearly at the early Foundation Establishment stage, yet he handled them like they were mere chickens.

”Please, don’t be hasty. We can talk this out. If our Heavenly Dragon Casino has offended you in any way, just let us know your demands, and we can negotiate!” Manager Zhu said, trembling.

Xu Hei remained expressionless, glanced at Zhang Kuang, and said coldly, ”I have no demands. Since this gentleman kept urging me to gamble, let’s do as you wish. I’ll place a bet.”

Zhang Kuang was nearly scared out of his wits, his lips trembling and his body shaking. ”It’s a misunderstanding, a misunderstanding...”

Without another word, Xu Hei moved his mind, and a thin thread of True Qi entered Zhang Kuang’s meridians.

”Ugh...”

Zhang Kuang’s body convulsed, his eyes rolled back, and his consciousness began to fade.

Xu Hei sped up his movements, sending one thread of True Qi after another into Zhang Kuang’s body, connecting to his joints and fully integrating into his flesh.

Puppet Mechanism Technique, second level, Earth Puppet Art, which includes three techniques: Spirit Body Thread, Body Swap, and Hundred Puppet Array.

This move was the Spirit Body Thread!

Sun Jian had once used this move to deal with Xu Hei’s puppet, causing Xu Hei’s giant snake puppet to lose consciousness on the spot. Now, Xu Hei used it against a living person.

In no time, Zhang Kuang completely lost control of his body, becoming a living puppet under Xu Hei’s control.

His consciousness remained, but he couldn’t speak or make any expressions. He was like a wooden doll, at Xu Hei’s mercy.

”You, you...”

Witnessing this scene, Manager Zhu was terrified, a chill running down his spine, feeling an unprecedented fear.

”Heavenly Puppet Sect, a direct disciple?!”

Such a terrifying thought crossed Manager Zhu’s mind.

Initially, he had thought to use his status and the backing of the Myriad Treasure Pavilion to intimidate Xu Hei. But after witnessing the Spirit Body Thread, he was utterly hopeless.

The Heavenly Puppet Sect was a colossal power in the Qin Kingdom, the leaders of warfare, while the Myriad Treasure Pavilion was merely a business entity.

At this moment, Manager Zhu deeply regretted his actions.

They had speculated that Ma Teng had some great fortune, never imagining that he was a puppet all along.

Had they known, they wouldn’t have dared to provoke such a deadly figure even with a hundred lives.

”Master, it’s a misunderstanding. I didn’t know you were...” Manager Zhu said regretfully.

”Enough with the nonsense!”

Xu Hei used the Spirit Body Thread again, controlling Manager Zhu as well.

Manager Zhu’s cultivation was slightly higher, making it a bit more troublesome to control him. But with the enhancement of black True Qi and the fact that Manager Zhu had already lost all hope, Xu Hei managed to subdue him within half an hour.

In fact, a week ago, Xu Hei had considered whether to reveal that he was a puppet.

But for the sake of caution, Xu Hei hid his puppet identity, leading the Heavenly Dragon Casino to misjudge the situation.

This was a wise decision, as the identity of a Heavenly Puppet Sect disciple was too prestigious and would easily attract unwanted attention.

Now that he was about to leave, a bit of attention didn’t matter anymore.

Xu Hei dragged the two living puppets behind him, walking at the forefront as they headed towards the Heavenly Dragon Casino.

Passing through a bustling street, Xu Hei arrived at the center of Chuyang City.

This was the most prosperous commercial area under the Myriad Treasure Pavilion, with arenas, the Jiaofang Division, martial arenas, taverns... everything one could imagine.

The Heavenly Dragon Casino was among them, one of the busiest places.

It was the golden hour, and the streets were adorned with eternal lamps, making the night as bright as day.

The puppet Ma Teng walked in front, followed by Zhang Kuang and Manager Zhu, like two dogs on a leash, as they entered the Heavenly Dragon Casino.

The casino’s interior was luxurious, akin to a palace, filled with shouts and curses.

”Ah, isn’t this our esteemed guest, Master Ma? Welcome, welcome!”

A woman in a cheongsam approached, her face beaming with a smile. ”What would Master Ma like to play today?”

Clearly, this woman knew Ma Teng. Ma Teng was a notorious gambler at the Heavenly Dragon Casino, a well-known figure. Every hostess would vie to attach themselves to him, enticing him to gamble heavily for a substantial commission.

Xu Hei scanned the place with his Divine Sense, finding a variety of games.

There were the simplest dice and mahjong, and more advanced stone gambling.

There were also beast fights, slave fights, and insect fights.

As long as you had enough Spirit Stones, you could even call two people to the stage for a duel, with the house setting the odds and the guests betting on the outcome.

Whatever you wanted to play, you could play.

You could even grab a passerby for a game of rock-paper-scissors.

This was a gambler’s paradise, but also a gambler’s hell.

Countless people had lost everything here, selling their children and wives.

In just a brief scan, Xu Hei witnessed two people who had lost everything, crying in despair.

Because this was the inner city, the players were mostly cultivators, primarily at the Qi Refining Stage.

The lower the cultivation, the easier it was to get addicted.

Foundation Establishment cultivators were rarer; those who had broken through to Foundation Establishment naturally had extraordinary willpower and usually came just for fun, rarely getting addicted.

However, Foundation Establishment cultivators often played the biggest stakes, losing dozens of Spirit Stones without a care. They were the casino’s esteemed guests.

Xu Hei retracted his Divine Sense and looked at the cheongsam woman in front of him. ”Anything I want to play?”

”Of course, as long as you’re willing, anything is possible.”

The cheongsam woman giggled, subtly using her charm technique.

As a professional hostess, she was not only skilled in verbal persuasion and psychology but also proficient in charm techniques.

She had already arranged for Ma Teng to win a hundred Spirit Stones today.

Winning and losing could be manipulated in secret!

First, get him hooked, and there would be plenty of opportunities to slowly drain him in the future.

”Good!” Xu Hei nodded and said calmly, ”Today, I won’t play for Spirit Stones. I’ll play for lives!”

His words caused a brief silence around them.

Playing for lives was rare at the Heavenly Dragon Casino.

The cheongsam woman was momentarily stunned but quickly recovered, smiling, ”So Master Ma likes this kind of game. We have plenty of slaves and demonic beasts at the Heavenly Dragon Casino, all available for life-and-death games, as long as you...”

”Bang!!”

Before she could finish, Xu Hei slapped her, sending her head flying, blood gushing out.

”You misunderstood me. When I said playing for lives, I meant this.”