Chapter 8

Wu Lei sat in the gambling den, a dumbfounded look on his face.

"You win, granpa Ti".

The man in front of him pulled the chips he just won towards his side of the table, his face expressing a look of superiority.

"Look, kid, I am an old gambler, you thought you could bluff me here? I counted the outer chips, I had a seven in ten chance of winning, why would I not take it?"

"We played like what, thirty chips, how did you count them? Is this a joke? Some cultivation method? No wonder I lost."

Thirty four, actually. You aren't the only one who can count, old fart. 

"It's actually thirty four, kid. You are good at laying structures, but your strategy is easy to exploit if two people gang up on you. We aren't letting you multiply!"

"That's right. But can you both please shut up and draw again?" - A younger man with a simpleton's face urged them to return to playing.

"Fine, but I am running out of money. Still, I like this table, think I can at least get even if I gamble big."

"Let's see. You draw." - Uncle Ti tried to look reserved, but he could barely hide his excitement.

"Alright, I draw, you take one out of the pool then." - Wu Lei gambled big. Last round didn't go as he wanted. In fact, last round was too good, his next action might look suspicious.

"Look, I will build. FUCK." - Lei slapped the table. His chip was "blank".

"No way, kid, maybe you should double?"

"No, if he doubles, I add." - The "simpleton" added.

"Shit, why are you ganging up on me now, you already ruined it! Now it's just petty, no way I will play with you two ever again!"

"Nothing personal, you are losing, I want to eliminate you and choke the granpa out." - The simpleton smirked.

"Fuck. Fine. No double, I'll build a second instead. Let me roll."

Several people around them were excited by the risky way Lei played, it was fun watching him for these past few hours, he made it entertaining even when he lost.

Lei rolled. A larch tree!

Nice. 

"Kid, don't even think of putting this larch tree there, I might have the beak!"

"What a stupid bluff, you don't have a beak."

"According to my calculations, it's fifty-fifty whether or not I have it."

"Nan Tei, you going?"

The "simpleton" shrugged. 

"I pass. Looks dangerous."

Lei put the larch into a second row, and as soon as he did, the man slapped the beak chip on top! It's over!

"Shit. How much do I even owe you?"

"Hahaha, set! I won. You are out. Three spirit stones."

"Shit, seriously? I don't have that many."

Lei looked at the guardian amulet on Ti's neck.

"You sure it's not some cultivation trick, this sort of luck?"

The voice from behind called out, it was a den master:

"Nah, I can detect these, it was a clear win. Frankly, you should consider playing better. You

played like a drug junkie."

"Fine, master Ti, let's come out for a bit, I need to discuss my debt with you."

They went out into a secluded back alley. This place smelled like greasy street food, bodies and 

piss.

"Kid, you owe me and you'll pay me back. I am a cultivator, remember." - Fire path, Foundation stage. Why else would I be targeting you?

"I respect you just for your age, no need to pull that card, the gambling debt is sacred to us merchants anyway, so don't worry about that."

"So, what did you want to talk about?"

"I had my birthday several weeks ago, right? I burnt through most of my money, and I already lost the remnants to you an hour ago. But I know how to repay you, if you would consider an alternative payment."

"No bullshit, kid. I am listening."

"First, I was gifted some dust. Qi active cactuses, or cacti, whatever, really potent stuff."

"It's been ages since I did any drugs. How much?"

"Two stones worth."

"I am not taking this dust for market price. Let's say I take the dust and forgive one and a half. What else can you offer?"

"Cha Dai gifted something truly remarkable, something that I am not willing to part with truly."

"What's that?"

"A threesome."

"Huh? Is that your offer? You and Cha Dai? Hahaha. You aren't THAT pretty, and that guy smells."

"Nice one, I mean the brothel. An elite establishment, 'Yellow Elephant'. You know about the twins? They are so captivating, these two. Eyes like embers, skin like jade, slender but opulent in all the right places. Heard they make the men faint. Regularly."

"No way..." - The man forgot to close his mouth. Being tipsy made him quite impressionable.

"So, I still haven't used my night with them, wanted to save them for a sad day, you know?"

"Fine, so are you offering them? That's a good one, kid, I'll take it."

"No, actually I am only offering one. It's an expensive gift, and I am not parting with it. But just one of them should be enough to repay the debt. Take it or wait till I earn more money, I won't barter here!" - Lei was firm.

"You scoundrel, consider my wisdom. Twins are a childish fantasy, you only need one good woman to have fun, so I'll take it. Give me the dust, too."

"Hey, let's go to the brothel now, just thinking about them made me all hot and bothered."

"My sister wants me to help with some concoctions, you know?"

"Look, you already made me sad, at least save me some face and be my company today! You'll be home soon, I doubt you'll last long." - Lei furrowed his brows playfully.

"Fine, kid, let's go. I'll prove you wrong, hehe."

In the establishment, that looked like an elite drinking house from the outside, with live music and dancers, Lei argued with a manager for some time. He tried to prove that two men sleeping with two girls is the same as a threesome in terms of work, yet the manager said "But it's more work for the girls this way!".

Lei countered this with "So why does a threesome cost like three normal visits, huh? Please, it's important for me to impress my employer, give me face, beauty, I'll come again with some sweets to thank you later!" 

"Fine" - The manager sighed. She was a woman in her fifties, that he knew, but she looked pretty young.

A cultivator? Used some alchemy? Irrelevant.

A few minutes later, the pair entered a room where two beautiful young women were humbly sitting on their knees, waiting for the future clients. They were twins indeed.

"Make your choice, Ti!"

"It doesn't fucking matter, man, they look the same! I already robbed ya a bit today, you pick first!"

"Fine." - Lei smiled with a demon's grin. He approached one of the women and lifted her into his 

arms, carrying her into his room like a captive concubine. He put her onto the bed and started taking his clothes off.

The girl asked: "You sure it will work?"

"Yes. Groan. Moan. Jump on the bed, punch the wall sometimes. Laugh. You know how to simulate this stuff, just make it look like I was here."

He dressed into his gray cloak, wore his coat on top and prepared his bag of holding. Now, for the hardest part.

Lei entered the Eastern quarter of the city by masterfully cutting through one back alley after another, emerged on the main road and rapidly moved through the crowd, not hesitating to move the people away or cut in front of them. This left many people angry, but he made sure not to provoke anyone who looked actually important. He was experienced enough to make a judgement in such matters pretty rapidly. 

He also climbed some buildings to elevate himself and skip some turns, using old boxes and the market stalls that were closed for the evening to help himself up. Even with a wooden arm, he was strong and agile enough to traverse the city vertically if needed.

Eventually, he entered an old street, eclipsed by a newer merchant quarter and a road, which basically choked it from the customers and made it into a ghetto. The commoners called it "The Appendix". There was an alchemist shop here, run by Ti's sister, usually guarded by Ti himself. Took some time to lure him away, but these amulets they had were really bothersome for thieves, alerting the users if someone triggered the house alarms, and also if the second user got hurt.

Lei went behind the alchemist shop, and stood behind a tree there. He was then approached by some little boy, with a dirty face and ragged clothing. He was an islander foreigner, probably why he was so poor.

"Mister, I come where you say. What do?" 

"Go knock on that door. Strongly. Ten times or so. Then walk away. If you get caught - say that you were bored. Here is your food."

The boy took a rice pouch from Lei and left.

Lei climbed a tree pretty swiftly, it was trivial for such a skilled, trained climber like him, even with his arm. The window is just within the jump's reach! (Which wouldn't be true for a regular human, it was quite far, but Lei had qi powers, after all.)

Knock. Knock. Eight knocks more.

An irritated person was walking downstairs.

"Whatcha need, fucktaaaard?! I violated your nine generations of ancestors!"

Lei could hear the door open with a creak. 

Focus the qi. The child will respond, and this is the furthest she will ever get from this window today, as she almost never comes out. The old woman was agoraphobic.

Lei infused his legs with the fire aspect, and he could feel his body temperature rise. A leap! He covered a significant distance with his flea-like jump, yet he also had to avoid the loud sounds as he landed!

His hands grabbed the outer cornice of the window frames, and he could hear them crack a bit. His wooden arm almost slipped, but he swung back and used the tips of his feet to stop the inertia of the backswing, and landed safely on the window sill, restoring the grip.

Could she hear that? Probably not. I think no alarm was triggered. My hands hurt. It's bearable. Keep going.

"You fucking islander spawn! You and your bearded midget people will be the end of us, you dimensional invading fucks! Scram before I gut you like a fish!" - He could hear the woman scolding the child, and this killed the remnants of guilt that he had. It was always important for a thief to discredit his victim. Clears the consciousness. Cognitive dissonance was one of the most powerful tricks in the criminal's arsenal.

He didn't waste a breath and used her shouting to climb the mezzanine of her room, above the door, and pulled a dagger out of his bag of holding. Don't want to work dirty, but I'll use it if I need to. Better not to use my voice to threaten her, too, this can be used to identify me later. He pulled a wrap above his nose, concealing his face even more.

The woman climbed the stairs with a menacing, irritated walk.

"Damn inbreds, them and their 'pranks'. Cancer upon his little hungry stomach!" - She entered the room, and Lei was bent in half just above her.

"Huh?" - she sniffed the air.

Lei's heart jumped, he might lose the surprise advantage.

"What's that?" - She walked a bit forward towards the window, past Lei, and kept sniffing. Her perceptive nature played a trick on her! If she didn't notice the window being wide open and kept sniffing, her boosted perception could probably allow her to detect Lei, but it was already too late!

Lei's body rebounded like a spring, and he performed an explosive horizontal jump through the whole room, kicking the old woman in the back of her head! Yet she didn't faint! So she didn't just perceive well, but also had defensive methods? 

Lei didn't hesitate. He grabbed her by the hair and hit her face on the windowsill, again and again. She groaned and tried to manifest some blue qi in her right hand, but Lei threw her on the ground and kicked her in the nose. He grabbed her neck and choked her, his knees on her collarbones, while hitting the floor with the back of her head.

As the woman finally fainted, he noticed that her guardian amulet vibrated. Not good at all. Lei was breathing heavily, terrified of what he was doing, but regained his composure. Imagine that this is a young man, you wouldn't pity him that much, right? She can kill grown men with her bare arms, probably, being a cultivator of Foundation stage!

Lei poured some sleeping milk into her mouth, being careful not to overdose her. She won't wake up now. Still, there was a bigger problem. She detected his smell, and he had no idea how powerful this technique of hers was. What if she is like a hound, and she'll remember his smell, which can later be used to detect him? Shit.

Lei hesitated. His next move could expose him, but it could also save him. Fine, no hesitation. He opened his pouch and rubbed a smelly herbal remedy into her nose. This will create a mix of smells that will confuse her later, right?

No, it might not be enough.

Lei heated two of his fingers with qi, stuck them into an old woman's hairy nose and waited! The unconscious victim was squirming beneath him, but unable to wake up or gather any strength to push him away, and he left her with severe burns in her nostrils. 

Wu Lei's arms shook, what he just did was too much even for him. After wiping his snotty fingers, he swiftly tied the woman and put a cloth in her mouth, then rushed towards her laboratory, pulling the thieving instruments out of the bag of holding. Lei was also confident he didn't expose his wooden arm, as she had no line of sight towards it at any given moment.

He carefully entered a separate room near the kitchen, and was truly astonished. It had a bunch of expensive alchemical equipment: silvered vessels, distillation glasses, filters, that sort of thing. There was even a collection of knives and other instruments hanging on the wall on top of it! Lei carefully put it all into the bag of holding with some polished moves, except the biggest stuff that wouldn't fit. It wasn't his first time stealing, far from it, yet he never felt that badly about it.

There were also pouches with powders, several different elixirs, ointments and a pill pouch. He looted it all.

That's it for the laboratory.

Lei ran back into the kitchen, grabbed all the silverware, a bronze statuette and a few porcelain cups and dishes. The bag is almost full.

He ran back into the living room upstairs. The woman was still unconscious, and had a trouble breathing. Lei took a cloth out of her mouth, and she started breathing with it like a tired dog. 

Lei exhaled. They should have a chest somewhere here. I still have plenty of time, Ti won't arrive quickly, hopefully he is also stoned on dust, but the cityguard might be notified by the guardian amulet. Probably not, this district is protected by the Tongue's gang, no one is paying two protection fees at once.

Lei looked under her brother's bed, and found a chest, chained to a wall, with a protective alarm on top of it. This time, he had no copy of the key and his right arm was a prosthetic, it would be much harder to break it. Lei played with the chest, constantly paying attention to the woman. You never know with these cultivators.

First layer of the lock. 

Hooked, slipped. Hooked, slipped. Hooked, halfway there.

Hooked, click. 

Hooked, click, second layer, slipped.

Each layer was more complex than the last.

Lei spent several more minutes breaking the lock, cursing the heavens for having to do this without a proper right hand. It took three times as long as it should, and he felt lucky that the woman didn't wake up, but the chest finally opened.

His spirit soared, as he saw a bunch of spirit stones, twenty or so, and a big bunch of coins nearby. His thief's gaze allowed him to quickly calculate, this bunch was worth around twelve spirit stones! 

Lei greedily grabbed it all, there was also a bunch of legal documents, but he decided against taking them. There was no light to read them properly, and he didn't want to spend qi to try and channel night vision, so he decided to let it go and abandoned them. No need to permanently cripple them, I already ruined their business. Lei stood up and looked at the unconscious woman, unaware of his "caring about her", climbed out of the window and sprinted out, disappearing into the night.