He and Dong San were not on the same level.

When Shao Lin saw Xing Ye, he raised his wine glass in a toast before continuing his conversation with Ning Xinyao.

Yan Hebi whispered to Xing Ye, "Boss, I think that Shao Lin is up to no good. I want to go remind Xin Xin. Is that okay?"

Xing Ye asked, "Have you used your initial skill yet?"

Yan Hebi shook his head, "I only used it once on Mrs. Lin's secretary earlier. Later, I realized that these noblewomen are all quite pleasant, so I didn’t waste it anymore."

"Use it on Ning Xinyao," Xing Ye instructed.

Yan Hebi hesitated, "Xiao Yezi, you know I don’t like using this skill on players. I didn’t use it on you earlier, otherwise, I would have found out that you’re actually..."

Seeing Xing Ye glare at him, Yan Hebi wisely shut his mouth.

Xing Ye said, "I’m asking you to find out what Shao Lin has done to her. I suspect he’s been feeding her some harmful ideas."

Earlier, Shao Lin had told the two of them that he hoped their team didn’t have any "lucky" players, as they would be the biggest threat to the team. Later, Shao Lin borrowed some passenger chips from Dong San. According to Lu Mingze’s speculation, Dong San was an "unlucky" player.

This indicated that Shao Lin was capable of turning against his own teammates, so Ning Xinyao might also have been influenced.

Xing Ye whispered a few more instructions to Yan Hebi, who listened with a serious expression before immediately going to talk to Ning Xinyao.

Xing Ye stood in the corner, watching Yan Hebi and Ning Xinyao converse. Meanwhile, Shao Lin walked over to Xing Ye and said with a smile, "You seem to have some prejudice against me."

Xing Ye replied, "Whether it’s prejudice or not, you know the answer."

Shao Lin took a sip of pomegranate juice and asked, "Is Xing Ye your real name?"

Xing Ye looked at him but didn’t answer directly, "Does it matter if it’s real or not? We’re just strangers passing through in this game."

"True," Shao Lin admitted, "The name I know might not be real either."

A hint of melancholy flashed across his face, but it quickly disappeared. He said to Xing Ye, "Since I’m in a good mood today, I’ll give you a friendly tip. The key is player chips. The chips you earn through hard work in other worlds are the most effective. Everything else is just an illusion. Exchanging player chips for passenger chips is unwise."

Hearing this, Xing Ye suddenly understood.

The dealer had said that as long as you participated in three gambling sessions with stakes exceeding 10,000 points each day, you could waive the ship fee. However, despite playing numerous rounds of "Big or Small," Xing Ye’s session count remained at zero.

This was because the dealer had specified 10,000 points, not passenger chips.

Yan Hebi’s gambling sessions counted because the chips he lost to the noblewomen were exchanged with his own points, while Xing Ye had only used 2 player chips throughout, with the rest being passenger chips he had won.

Shao Lin observed Xing Ye’s expression and smiled faintly, "It seems you’ve figured it out."

Xing Ye asked him, "Why are you telling me such a crucial clue?"

Shao Lin pointed at Ning Xinyao, who was chatting with Yan Hebi, and said, "Do you think a player like her deserves to be in an advanced world?"

Although Yan Hebi kept explaining to Xing Ye that Xin Xin’s personality had only changed after entering the game world, Xing Ye knew that human nature was hard to change. It was just that the pressures of real society had forced Ning Xinyao to put on a facade, and the ease of the game world had slowly stripped that facade away.

Shao Lin’s point was likely that players like Ning Xinyao, who relied on luck to reach advanced worlds, didn’t deserve such high points and strength.

"This world isn’t about deserving or not deserving; it’s about succeeding or failing," Xing Ye refuted Shao Lin’s viewpoint.

Shao Lin thought for a moment and said, "You have a point, but it doesn’t align with my thoughts. The reason she can reach advanced worlds is simply because she’s lucky, always finding clues and QR codes. Lucky players easily form teams, and weak individuals band together, relying on luck to break into advanced worlds. But why should they continue to progress?"

Xing Ye said, "If you have the strength to seize resources from them, that’s your ability. But don’t forget, while you can take from others, others can also take from you."

At this point, Xing Ye saw that Yan Hebi and Ning Xinyao had finished their conversation. He politely bid farewell to Shao Lin and walked over to Yan Hebi.

Meanwhile, Lu Mingze, who had secretly moved to a mirrored wall decoration to observe Shao Lin, saw him finish his pomegranate juice in one gulp and toss the expensive wine glass into the trash.

On the other side, after Xing Ye and Yan Hebi regrouped, Yan Hebi said, "Xin Xin has been completely brainwashed by Shao Lin. She wouldn’t listen to a word I said. She told me that we’re now on different teams and will eventually have to compete, so in this world, we’re no longer friends. Thankfully, I listened to you and used my initial skill, otherwise, she wouldn’t have told me anything."

"What did she say?" Xing Ye asked.

"Their team is now basically under Shao Lin’s control. There are five members: four following Fate players and one Fate-defying player. Shao Lin first rallied the lucky players, telling them not to associate with the Fate-defying ones. He said that in a gambling world like this, the Fate-defying player’s bad luck would eventually harm everyone. Rather than letting Dong San, the Fate-defying player, harm the team, it was better to eliminate him first. After that, the four lucky players would dominate the casino.

"So, after the three players besides Shao Lin obtained duel cards, they each dueled Dong San. After three matches, Dong San was stripped of all his points by his own teammates.

"Shao Lin also said that after dealing with Dong San, they shouldn’t confront the Green Team right away, as they didn’t know what initial skills the Green Team had. Instead, they should gamble with passengers. The passengers were all easy targets, and by using their luck to win large amounts of passenger chips, they could later exchange them for points and then money. Everyone would strike it rich.

"After Xin Xin and the others worked together to eliminate Dong San, they became like zombies, blindly following Shao Lin’s orders and going around the casino to win passenger chips. She now looks down on us Fate-defying players, saying that today was the last time she’d talk to me, and the next time we meet, it’ll be on the duel field."

Yan Hebi sounded dejected as he spoke, his tall frame now slumped like a child’s. "I know we’re not on the same team in this world, and I’m a Fate-defying player, so I don’t have the right to rely on her luck. But I always thought we were friends. Xiao Yezi, do you think what they’re doing to their teammate is right?"

He bowed his head, and his 1.85-meter height made him look like a primary school student in that moment.

Xing Ye said calmly, "I think their behaviour is a bit like elementary school kids forming cliques and excluding the underachievers."

Sometimes, the simplest methods are the most hurtful.

Hearing Xing Ye’s words, Yan Hebi’s dim eyes brightened slightly, "I knew it, Xiao Yezi! You’re not that kind of person! Back in the hospital world, you tried to save Ge Kuangyi until the very end, and you succeeded. I still prefer your way of handling things!"

Xing Ye: "If you call me Xiao Yezi again, I’ll team up with the other Green Team members to ostracize you."

Yan Hebi: "..."

It just slipped out...

Xing Ye pondered Yan Hebi’s words, recalling how Shao Lin had taken Dong San to get the IOU earlier. It was likely that the teammates had already stripped Dong San of his chips by then. Yet, Dong San still trusted Shao Lin, the mastermind behind it all, which suggested that Shao Lin hadn’t personally participated in the duels. Instead, he had orchestrated his teammates to do it.

But why would Dong San, after being betrayed by three teammates, still trust Shao Lin? What made Dong San let his guard down and borrow money from Shao Lin?

As Xing Ye thought this over, he caught sight of Liu Yi winning a pile of chips at the roulette table out of the corner of his eye. Suddenly, it all made sense.

Just as he had told Liu Yi that he was a following Fate player, Shao Lin must have used the same tactic. He first sent three following Fate players to defeat Dong San, then stepped in to comfort him. He would have claimed to be an Fate-defying player, using the resentment against lucky players to easily gain Dong San’s trust, making Dong San willing to borrow money from him.

Xing Ye pulled Yan Hebi into the men’s restroom and, inside a stall, used a projector to show him Dong San’s face. "Keep an eye on this person in the casino later. See how he’s doing now."

After Yan Hebi memorized Xing Ye’s instructions and Dong San’s appearance, the two walked out of the same restroom stall, only to run into Shao Lin entering the restroom.

Xing Ye: "..."

Shao Lin: "…"

Yan Hebi immediately explained, "You’ve got it all wrong! We’re not that kind of relationship!"

Shao Lin replied expressionlessly, "I’m not mistaken. You were in the restroom stall discussing how to deal with me, weren’t you? It’s the quietest place here, and there’s no surveillance."

Yan Hebi: "..."

Xing Ye sighed, stopping Yan Hebi from further embarrassing himself, and pulled his teammate out of the restroom.

As Yan Hebi washed his hands, he whispered, "Boss, what do you think Shao Lin is really thinking? I feel like I can’t figure him out at all."

"Me neither," Xing Ye shook his head. "I can’t even tell if he’s a following Fate or Fate-defying player."

The two walked out of the restroom deep in thought, searching the casino for Dong San.

At that moment, the little mirror on Xing Ye’s phone vibrated. He glanced at the phone case, which now displayed: Chip Exchange Counter.

It seemed Lu Mingze had already found Dong San. Xing Ye and Yan Hebi hurried to the chip exchange counter, where they saw Dong San frantically saying to the clerk, "I’ve lost all my points and QR codes! I want to exchange my initial skill for chips!"

The clerk tapped on the keyboard a few times and then said, "I’m sorry, sir. The system has detected that you have an outstanding debt. You cannot exchange for more chips until it’s repaid."

"But I’ve already lost all my chips! What will happen if I can’t pay the 10,000 points tomorrow?" Dong San asked, panic written all over his face.

"You’ll be asked to leave the cruise ship," the dealer, who had appeared out of nowhere, said to Dong San. "Mr. Dong, you’ve already lost."

"No!" Dong San shouted. "At least I can still borrow chips! I’ll win back my losses with borrowed chips!"

"You can’t borrow anymore," Shao Lin, who had also arrived at the exchange counter, said with his usual smile. "The basis for borrowing is that you have sufficient collateral. You no longer have any collateral. Even if someone pities you and gives you chips for free, the system won’t recognize it."

Earlier, the passenger chips Xing Ye had given Yan Hebi hadn’t been recognized by the system either.

Only then did Dong San realize, "You set me up! You did this on purpose!"

With that, he rushed forward and punched Shao Lin in the face. Having no points left to use his initial skill, he could only resort to his fists.

Shao Lin didn’t dodge or resist. After being hit, he turned to the dealer and said, "Violent behaviour incurs a fine of 100 chips, right?"

The dealer smiled, "Yes, Mr. Dong, please pay 100 chips."

"I... I don’t have any..." Dong San was restrained by security guards who had rushed over, preventing him from reaching Shao Lin again.

The dealer said, "Then I’m very sorry. Since Mr. Dong cannot pay the 100 chips, this is considered a violation, and violators must be asked to leave the cruise ship."

With that, he waved his hand, and Dong San was dragged away by the security guards, presumably to be dealt with somewhere.

Shao Lin then took out the IOU he had signed with Dong San and said, "Mr. Dong has been confirmed to have no ability to repay. The seven-day period hasn’t expired yet. What should be done with his initial skill?"

"Although the seven days aren’t up, Mr. Dong has already left the game. His skill will be transferred to you, Mr. Shao. How would you like it transferred? As a skill, points, or chips?" the dealer asked.

"His skill isn’t very useful. Convert it into points. Points can be exchanged for money, so it’s not a total loss after being hit like this," Shao Lin said, wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth.

He had intentionally let Dong San hit him, deliberately provoking him into violating the rules. Since Dong San was scheduled to leave the game at 9 a.m. the next day during the points settlement, Shao Lin was worried that waiting too long might lead to complications. By exploiting the rule about fines for violent behaviour, he had secured Dong San’s initial skill ahead of time.

He had truly pushed the rules to their limit.

Xing Ye watched Shao Lin, who smiled back at him, tapped his temple with a finger, and flashed a disdainful smirk.

He was saying that he and Dong San were not on the same level.

 

Translator : DarNan