Chapter three, seeking subscriptions and monthly votes~~~

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Qin Fang's One-Handed Weapon Mastery might not seem as dazzling as Ye Ming's Qianmen Illusion Technique, appearing quite plain and unadorned—it was like comparing a pampered and privileged young miss from the city, fed with silk and spoon, to an honest village girl who had never seen the world beyond the mountains. The difference was so vast and clearly discernible.

Nevertheless, there were those with keen eyesight, especially the gambling house management and the veteran gamblers. Seeing Qin Fang's seemingly clumsy technique applied to such a peak level of performance, he immediately received a lot of praise.

Even Qiao Zhenfei and Li Yang felt a glimmer of appreciation upon witnessing this; Qin Fang's display was almost in no way inferior to Ye Ming's Qianmen Illusion Technique.

Of course, Ye Ming's Qianmen Illusion Technique was just at a beginner level, incredibly lavish in its motions, but quite ordinary in substance.

Qin Fang's One-Handed Weapon Mastery, however, approached the realm of being awe-inspiringly skillful. The cards flipped quickly in his hand, not dazzling, but exceedingly practical.

Plus, Qin Fang deliberately adjusted the position of the undealt cards, leaving Ye Ming utterly baffled.

After that thorough reshuffle, the deck was completely disorderly. At least Ye Ming had left some cards that might come in handy, placing them in somewhat strategic positions.

One could say that Ye Ming had crafted his deck himself, ensuring that even if he didn't get a perfect 9 points, he still had the means to play his cards to score a 9 and secure victory—that's the dealer's advantage.

But this time, Ye Ming had met his match. Qin Fang's card shuffling was disorderly and unpredictable; the poker cards were rapidly scrambled in his hands, then taken out and reshuffled repeatedly, many times over. No one could discern the final arrangement of the cards—not even Qin Fang, who was shuffling blindly.

Qin Fang's unique way of shuffling surprised everyone present, but most didn't care too much about it; what they were interested in was who would win or lose, and whether the process was thrilling.

The beautiful croupier began cutting the deck, then picked the smaller portion of the poker cards.

It was then that Qin Fang cast his Scouting Skill past, a case of "the right tool for the right job." Even without deliberately stacking the deck, Qin Fang still had methods at his disposal.

However, when Qin Fang saw the result, his face showed signs of astonishment, followed by a wry smile, leaving the opposing Ye Ming completely in the dark, his eyes nearly freezing in place, not understanding what Qin Fang was suddenly thinking, and it seemed eerily unsettling.

Qin Fang, not in any rush to reveal his hand, simply gestured for the croupier to continue dealing.

Soon, the dealer and player's cards were dealt. It was Qin Fang's turn to play the dealer. Just like the previous round with Ye Ming, if he could score 9 points, he would win.

"How...how is this possible?"

Ye Ming looked incredulously at Qin Fang across from him. He had thought of Qin Fang as nothing more than a hedonistic scion, a second-generation rich kid, yet he hadn't expected...

On the table, Qin Fang's hole cards were precisely a 4 and a 5, which added up exactly to 9 points, and with Qin Fang being the dealer, it was without a doubt another dead hand. Just like the first round, Ye Ming had no option but to watch helplessly as Qin Fang won the second round.

"This vengeance is..."

Seeing such a scene left many people dumbfounded, then expressions of amusement spread across their faces—as the situation became increasingly captivating. These first two rounds of the duel, one win each, with neither giving any chance for retaliation.

"Finally won..."

Qiao Zhenfei and Li Yang couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. After a long wait, they finally clinched a win in the second round. If they hadn't won this round, the situation would have been truly perilous.

Ye Ming's display of Qianmen Illusion Technique made it clear that he held a considerable advantage having mastered such a secret art; Qin Fang was now on the back foot, feeling the pressure.

Even though this second round was won, just like Ye Ming before, it was mainly due to better luck. To see real results, the performance of both in the upcoming rounds was what really mattered.

Naturally, Jiang Li was another person breathing a sigh of relief, sitting silently on the side, not taking the initiative to interact with Li Yang and Qiao Zhenfei. However, she listened attentively whenever they spoke, closely following Qin Fang's progress. If Qin Fang won, she would be very happy; if Qin Fang lost, she would appear very worried.

After two rounds, the score was tied at one to one, temporarily presenting a well-matched situation. Despite everyone feeling that these two rounds were won by luck and didn't reflect any real strength on either side.

The third round began, with it being Ye Ming's turn to deal again, sticking to his Qianmen Illusion Technique. This was what Ye Ming was relying on to defeat Qin Fang, so naturally, he wouldn't give it up. Especially since Qin Fang's performance with the shuffling technique had dazzled many—an astonishing revelation.

Qin Fang's gambling skill was there, not yet for Ye Ming to judge, but based on that unconventional shuffling alone, Qin Fang seemed no less formidable than him.

Soon enough, the deck was shuffled, and the beautiful croupier once again cut and dealt the cards.

This time, unlike the previous two, the dealer wasn't given an assured victory hand, finally introducing some disputes.

Qin Fang's hand was a 2 and a 5, which added up to exactly 7 points.

Ye Ming's hand was a 1 and a 6, also adding up to exactly 7 points.

Both men had the same number of points, 7, but since Ye Ming was the dealer, in the event of a tie, the loser would ultimately be Qin Fang.

Therefore, facing such a situation, Qin Fang was required to choose to draw an additional card.

Starting with 7 points, he could only increase by 1 or 2 points, bringing the total to 8 or 9 points with three cards, which were the only scores that might lead to victory.

Of course, if the third card drawn was over 3 points, then Qin Fang would have to accept the situation of busting, and would thereby directly lose the match.

Compared to Qin Fang's frustration, Ye Ming had it much easier.

"Dealer has 7 points, player has 7 points, dealer wins, it's your call!"

Ye Ming wasn't stupid; he shuffled the cards, so he had a rough idea of how the latter half of the deck was arranged. Unless a 1 or 2 was drawn, the round would be lost.

According to the rules, in such a situation, both sides could choose whether to continue drawing cards or not.

7 points were already quite high. Among the ten numbers from 0 to 9, only two could beat Ye Ming, while the remaining eight meant a loss, translating to only a one-in-five chance of winning, which was not very high.

If you also consider that the J, Q, and K cards count as zero points, it means that out of thirteen cards, only two could lead Qin Fang to victory, seemingly an even slimmer chance.

"No more..."

With the advantage in this situation, Ye Ming would certainly not foolishly draw another card and risk busting. Hence, he chose to abandon drawing and fought with his 7 points against Qin Fang.

Glancing at the roughly twelve or thirteen cards left in the croupier's hand, Qin Fang's expression grew solemn, as the next card was a 4. If Qin Fang were to draw it, he would undoubtedly bust...

"Cut the deck!"

However, at this point, everyone still had the opportunity to cut the deck once.

Having seen the remaining twelve cards, Qin Fang knew that three were either a 1 or a 2. There was a one-in-four chance, and if he cut at exactly the right spot, he could beat Ye Ming and win the third round.

The croupier promptly cut the deck again, but the result slightly disappointed Qin Fang. His luck was not good enough, as the croupier cut to a card that was too high in points, not the 1 or 2. Qin Fang still lost the round...

He drew a random card, and unfortunately, there was no way out of it, Qin Fang lost the third round, and the situation turned increasingly grim.

"Round three, Mr. Ye wins!"

With the third round, Ye Ming won again, making the score 2 to 1, with Qin Fang currently behind.

However, Qin Fang wasn't in a hurry. Just like in the second round, it was his turn to shuffle, and he still employed his One-Handed Weapon Mastery Skill, shuffling the cards into a complete mess. Even though Ye Ming studied them very carefully, he ultimately shook his head in resignation, unable to discern any pattern.

It had to be said that Qin Fang played this hand beautifully. With his Thousand Skills and One-Handed Weapon Mastery against Ye Ming's Qianmen Illusion Technique, they were evenly matched, neither able to gain an advantage over the other.

After the shuffle, the croupier began to cut the deck, her movements as calmly executed as ever, though Qin Fang knew that on the inside, the croupier might not be as calm as she appeared.

Once the deck was cut, the croupier dealt the cards, four in total, two each for Qin Fang and Ye Ming. The outcome of win or lose would depend on what those two cards were, and whether they could allow Qin Fang to defeat Ye Ming and once again even out the score...

Qin Fang was slightly stronger than Ye Ming, because he possessed the Scouting Skill. With his Advanced Detective Skill, he could acquire much more information than with the Intermediate level. In fact, he didn't need to turn over the cards to know what they were, meaning he effectively knew the outcome in advance and therefore had nothing to fear.

"2 + 6, 8 points!"

Ye Ming was the first to flip his cards, revealing a 2 and a 6, which added up to 8 points, just one point short of the highest score of 9, and nearly stepping through the threshold of victory.

"3 + 5, 8 points!"

Qin Fang also immediately revealed his cards, a 3 and a 5, which, astonishingly... also totaled 8 points!

Tied with Ye Ming at 8 points, but with Qin Fang as the dealer, his score was effectively higher. If neither side drew another card, Qin Fang would once again triumph over his opponent, tying the score at two to two. (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to vote for it on Qidian (qidian.com). Your support is my greatest motivation.)

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