"How's your luck? I must say mine is impeccable."
At the center table that captured everyone's attention, the lavish golden ambiance poured down, illuminating Eliana's gentle smile.
Like a warm morning sun, her silky white hair was accompanied by a sea of clouds.
"Luck is on my side."
Alister casually leaned on the table, his fingertips swiped across the row of cards, causing them to shuffle together with a rustling sound.
The gold-masked attendant looked over, indicating whether both sides wanted to proceed to the card exchange phase.
"Change all five cards."
It was Eliana who spoke indifferently, even though she already had the highest-ranking straight flush in her hand.
—Guided by "Lucky King."
As the words were spoken, a sound of ethereal incantations followed suit.
The five golden poker cards trembled briefly, then dissipated into golden particles.
"Games should be played freely, and of course, I must be the ultimate winner."
In the next moment, new golden poker cards were dealt, shimmering brilliantly around Eliana.
Three, four, five, six, seven, another straight flush.
Eliana's good luck remained unchanged.
Alister knew that his chances of winning weren't here, so he didn't think too much about it.
Just be yourself.
A confident peak player.
With a tilt of his lips, "Shadow" drew a poker card as if he had everything under control and said:
"Change one card."
Only exchanging one card meant that the other four formed a certain combination, either two pairs or a four-of-a-kind...
Or...
...Pursuing a straight flush and discarding the excess card.
The old vanished, the new arrived; only the audience behind Alister knew what cards he held.
In the opulent world of gold and jade, white and black confronted each other at the two ends, while the gold-masked attendant continuously shuffled the cards in the center.
The remaining spectators, who hadn't anticipated the emergence of a deity, were high-level players watching the game.
"Shadow" was content; he got the best result he could hope for.
Gathering the cards from the first round, setting them aside, he waited patiently for the final stage...
Poker, the second round began.
The deck from the first round was discarded, and the gold-masked attendant dealt a new set of five cards to both sides from a fresh deck.
Eliana blinked her silver eyes and smiled as she watched the five cards drift to her.
Raising her hand, she grasped them, as if seizing control of her destiny.
Six, six, six, six, six.
A four-of-a-kind with five sixes, one rank lower than a straight flush.
"Ah, would you like to guess what my hand is?" She held her five cards like a fan, half covering her smile as she spoke to Alister.
"More than that..."
Alister also held five poker cards and responded to Eliana's question with a calm question of his own:
"...Would you like to guess how I'm cheating?"
He was openly admitting to cheating, exuding a sense of superiority.
Extreme confidence.
Confident that even if he confessed to cheating, Eliana would never figure out how he did it.
Thus, he couldn't trigger "Rule Four."
A violation of order without evidence couldn't lead to Alister's elimination.
"Hehe."
Eliana smiled slyly, gazing at Alister for a while as if she had seen through his cheating method.
But Alister knew he would never be found out.
A 100% certainty.
The second round of poker, the card exchange phase.
Eliana fanned her five poker cards as if she were getting tired of playing, then said lightly:
"I'll keep them this way; I won't exchange."
After speaking, she suddenly became serious, observing Alister's next move.
Either it was a bluff or a genuine display of skill...
"It has always been me seeing through you; there's no way for you to see through me."
—This sentence from "Shadow" struck Eliana's heart like a heavy blow.
Because she truly couldn't see through him.
Eliana's smile at this moment was like that of a mischievous elder sister from the neighborhood, someone who was ready to take a kidney from a shadowy child at any moment.
"Change all five."
Alister confidently discarded all his cards.
In the next moment, the opulent golden poker cards sheathed themselves like sheathed swords, obediently resting in his hands.
"With a friendly reminder, it's a royal straight flush."
Alister left behind words without any basis; whether they were true depended on individual judgment, a profound mystery.
Gentle Eliana remained unchanged.
No one knew whether she believed or not.
Poker, the third round began.
The deck from the second round was discarded, replaced by a new deck for the final round.
Eliana once again welcomed her Lucky King fortune, obtaining a powerful hand with incredibly low odds.
Eight, eight, eight, eight, eight.
A four-of-a-kind with five eights.
So what exactly was his cheating method?
Eliana's gaze shifted from the gold-masked attendant to the drifting poker cards, then to "Shadow."
As a servant of the casino, not to mention she was also the queen, there was no reason for the gold-masked attendant to betray her.
"Shadow" remained calm as he met Eliana's gaze.
During the card inspection earlier, were the cards tampered with?
Or...
Eliana denied one suspicion after another.
Ultimately, she didn't want to think about it anymore; everything was baseless speculation.
In the casino, she was the deity.
"Did you get the highest-ranking straight flush again?" Eliana half-covered her smile.
"You can think that way."
"But I don't believe you."
Even though she couldn't see through "Shadow's" cheating, Eliana didn't think her luck would let her down.
Nothing could be that unlucky...
Poker, the third round, the card exchange phase.
Eliana gathered her cards, glanced at the gold-masked attendant, and said:
"No exchange."
Alister gave the same response:
"No exchange."
Not exchanging a card indicated that their hands were already perfect; there was no need to gamble on probabilities anymore.
With this, the three rounds of dealing were complete.
The gold-masked attendant stared at Eliana emotionlessly and told the casino's queen:
"Please place your bets."
"One million." Eliana pushed a small stack of chips forward.
Next, all eyes turned to "Shadow," waiting for his bet.
So, what was Alister's response...
"Let's end this in one go."
The calm words echoed through the first level of the casino.
Himizuki and Shinguya Tetsu had pooled all their chips, a colossal fortune of 9.3 billion, and went all in!
In an instant, the room was awash with a surge of emotion!
It wasn't shock, but numb fear that pervaded the atmosphere!
Because they knew exactly what cards "Shadow" held and understood every move he had made from the start.
Eliana could clearly sense that everyone was terrified due to "Shadow's" hand, rather than underestimating or doubting it.
Even if he was bluffing with a weak hand, there was no way there wouldn't be doubts. After all, no audience wanted a deity to be born.
In this world, only strength rendered one speechless.
Rule Four: Both sides must bet equal amounts.
Now, Alister had put everything on the line, his entire fortune, so Eliana also had to wager her entire wealth.
Either believe in her "Lucky King" and immediately determine the deity.
Or opt for the prudent choice, abstain from raising, and declare defeat for this round.
Do you dare to follow?
"Shadow's" black pupils resembled the abyss of the underworld as he provocatively challenged Eliana, a chilling sensation gripping the hearts of the onlookers.
The chief who cheated through unknown means, the unanimous shock of the audience, and the all-or-nothing invitation...
"Hehe..."
Eliana's smile grew even gentler.
She knew she would ultimately become the deity, so she chose with a smile on her face.