Tianxia House

The fourth-ranked gambling house in North Li, and also its largest, Tianxia House was surpassed only by the Thousand Gold Platform in Tianqi City, the Beauty Manor in Sangu City, and the Carefree City of Qingzhou’s Hundred Cities. Unlike the other three gambling houses that primarily served nobles and merchants, Tianxia House’s main difference was its clientele – mostly people from the martial world.

Behind Tianxia House stood the renowned martial city, the Matchless City.

“Young master, you wish to go to Matchless City?” A short, stout man in a money-patterned robe fanned himself as he hurried forward, sweat pouring down like rain.

Following behind him was a tall, thin man carrying a paper umbrella and a sword at his waist, wearing a white mask. He looked around at the noisy gambling tables and said quietly, “Yes. But to enter Matchless City’s territory, one needs a Matchless Token.”

“Indeed. There’s only one road for ten miles, with over ten checkpoints. They’ll only let you pass if you show a Matchless Token,” the stout man wiped his forehead with a handkerchief. “But Matchless Tokens aren’t easy to obtain.”

“I heard from a friend that there’s a way to get one here?” the masked man asked.

The stout man stopped, putting away his handkerchief, and smiled proudly, “Naturally.”

The masked man nodded, “Manager, name your price.”

The stout man’s expression changed instantly, his smile vanishing. He said quietly, “This is Tianxia House. Things here can’t be bought, they can only be…”

“Oh?” the masked man raised his head slightly.

“They can only be won through gambling.” The stout man’s eyes flicked to the sword at the masked man’s waist. “Bet something valuable from your person. Win, and the Matchless Token is yours. Lose, and your item stays with us.”

“Gamble?” The masked man looked at the betting tables. “Like them?”

“Them?” The stout man laughed dismissively. “Their stakes are too small, merely gambling for silver. If you want a Matchless Token, naturally it can’t compare to their games. Follow me.” The stout man led the masked man deeper inside, pushing open a black lacquered door to reveal a tea room. Inside sat an expensive-looking antique table with an incense burner, where an alluring woman in purple sat.

The stout man closed the door: “This is where your game belongs, young master.”

The masked man took out a banknote from his robes: “I’m not skilled at gambling. But since I’ve come to Tianxia House, I’ll follow the rules here. This is a thousand-tael note – is it sufficient?”

“I said earlier that you must bet something valuable from your person, but this banknote isn’t.” The stout man pointed at the sword at the masked man’s waist. “We want that.”

“You want my sword?” The masked man’s voice suddenly turned ice-cold as his blade flashed from its scabbard, its cold gleam pressing against the stout man’s forehead.

“How dare you draw your sword in Tianxia House!” The woman in purple drew her blade and prepared to leap forward.

“Stop!” The stout man caught the sword’s tip between two fingers. “Friend, it seems you no longer want the Matchless Token.”

The masked man took out a blue-glowing pearl from his robes and sheathed his sword: “Since the manager wants something precious to bet, would this Dragon’s Tear Zhenzhu qualify as valuable?”

“Dragon’s Tear Zhenzhu?” The stout man stared at the pearl, greed flickering in his eyes as he licked his lips. “They say this pearl has extraordinary spiritual energy. If one carries it while practicing internal arts for half a year, remarkable changes occur in the body…”

The masked man put away the pearl: “Manager has good eyes. This is indeed a Dragon’s Tear Zhenzhu, though the rumors are somewhat exaggerated. The pearl is extremely cold – ordinary people carrying it risk being harmed by its cold energy. However, for martial artists, wearing it forces their internal energy to constantly fight against the cold, naturally strengthening their power over time.”

“I see. A fine item, worth gambling for,” the stout man nodded. “Though I prefer your sword, a swordsman shouldn’t be parted from their blade – that’s understandable. However, if you lose the Dragon’s Tear Zhenzhu and wish to continue gambling, you might have no choice but to offer up your sword.”

“How do you want to gamble?” the masked man asked.

The woman in purple spoke again, her earlier killing intent replaced with charm: “At Tianxia House, the guest decides how to gamble. We have equipment gambling and creature gambling – which do you prefer?”

The masked man asked, puzzled: “Equipment gambling refers to what’s at the entrance?”

“Yes, dominoes, horse racing, high-low betting – those are all our specialties. For creature gambling, we have cockfighting, dogfighting, cricket fighting, horse racing, pigeon racing, dog racing – take your pick,” the woman in purple smiled seductively. “If the guest feels one round is too hasty, we can do best of three.”

“Cricket fighting? Do you have spider fighting?” the masked man asked.

The woman in purple started, exchanging glances with the stout man before smiling gently: “The guest is testing Tianxia House’s capabilities. Cricket fighting, cockfighting, dogfighting – those can be found anywhere. Spider fighting is something only people from Western Ridge would know. But Tianxia House embraces all under heaven, so naturally…”

“Whatever you desire!” the stout man laughed.

The woman in purple clapped her hands: “Then let’s fulfill our guest’s request – bring out the creatures!”

As soon as she finished speaking, the door behind her opened and two bare-chested strong men set down two small wooden boxes, each containing a black spider several times larger than normal, nearly the size of a palm.

“Eight-eyed Wolf Spider,” the masked man said calmly.

“Oh? The guest is quite knowledgeable.” The woman in purple lightly brushed her hand over the two boxes. “Which one would you like to bet on?”

“Must I choose between these two?” the masked man asked.

The woman in purple paused: “Oh? Does the guest have another option?”

The masked man took out a small box from his robes, barely large enough to hold a pill, and placed it on the table: “I also have a spider. I’ll pit it against both of these at once. If it wins, I win – how’s that?”

The stout man stepped forward, looking curiously at the box in the masked man’s hand: “Eight-eyed Wolf Spiders aren’t ordinary spiders. Young master’s box looks less than half the size of one spider, yet you want to fight two? You’re quite confident.”

The masked man shrugged: “Let’s give it a try.”