As Bai Liu grasped Spades' wrist, the surrounding players—those who had just fled moments ago—stared in stunned silence.
Mu Sicheng and Liu Jiayi choked mid-breath, while Muke, who had never officially met Spades, remained oblivious but instinctively sensed that the man before him was not someone to be trifled with. Meanwhile, standing beside Bai Liu, Tang Erda's forehead twitched twice before he wordlessly reached out, attempting to pry Bai Liu's grip off Spades.
At that moment, everyone was thinking the same thing: Why are you provoking him?
But before Tang Erda could intervene, Bai Liu released Spades' wrist, casually shaking out his hand behind his back. He took a small step backward, widening the distance between them, and smiled, composed and courteous. "Apologies for pulling you in so suddenly. I just wanted to introduce myself."
Spades turned slightly toward him, water trailing from his soaked hair down to his pale lips. He parted them slightly, his voice low and steady. "Spades."
"Bai Liu," he introduced himself in return.
Spades, his eyes obscured by damp strands of hair, seemed to assess him for a moment. Then, with a slight nod, he said, "I know you. You said on the forum that you wanted to put your name on me."
Bai Liu: "..."
He had completely forgotten about that.
An awkward silence settled over the scene. Bai Liu pursed his lips before asking evenly, "And? What do you think?"
"Just win against me." Spades' tone was light, almost elegant. "I don't mind your name. It sounds nice."
A collective gasp came from the onlookers.
Where the hell is this conversation going?!
Bai Liu's breath caught for just a second. The hand behind his back curled slightly, fingers clenching, though his face remained unreadable. He forced the conversation forward with a smile. "Can I put it anywhere on your body?"
Spades, unfazed, met his gaze with complete sincerity. "Anywhere. If you have a particular preference for any part of my body, you can let me know in advance."
Bai Liu: "..."
Onlookers: "..."
HELP!!! Should we really be listening to this?!
"All of that assumes you can beat me." Spades continued calmly. "But you don't have the strength to do that right now."
Bai Liu's eyes flickered, avoiding direct contact with Spades' unwavering gaze. He blinked once, then stated, "I'm going to beat you in this game."
Spades gave the smallest nod. "Then you can put your name on me all you want."
Bai Liu: "..."
He's really not built for this...
With that, Spades gathered his whip and walked away without a second glance. The players standing in his path instinctively stepped aside, making way for the cold and formidable presence that had just so effortlessly met Bai Liu's bold confrontation with what could only be described as... harmonious.
Liu Jiayi silently sidled up to Bai Liu, glancing at his face, then at his ears—pitying him. "You couldn't resist, could you? The moment Spades actually responded to you, you had to keep talking."
"That guy has no human common sense whatsoever. He's immune to provocations, flirtations, and any kind of sentimental theatrics. He doesn't even realize he's bouncing them back unconsciously—just look at you, getting completely reverse flirted by him..."
Bai Liu reached out and pushed Liu Jiayi's head down. "What did you just say?"
Liu Jiayi quickly corrected herself. "I meant—Spades totally broke out in a cold sweat at your provocation! You were amazing!"
Mu Sicheng couldn't hold back any longer. "Seriously, why did you mess with him?"
Bai Liu looked in the direction Spades had disappeared. "To confirm something."
Muke hesitated. "And? Did you confirm it?"
Bai Liu suddenly smiled, easy and relaxed. "Sort of."
Apart from that person, there was likely no one else in this world who could shake him like that on their first meeting.
Why Spades didn't remember him—that part wasn't clear yet.
But that was fine.
Some memories... weren't meant to be shared.
Bai Liu withdrew his gaze and turned back to the glowing game pool, the swirling lights reflecting in his dark eyes.
"Let the training begin."
"Yes!"
--------
Day 7 of Training.
Charles sat down, folded his arms on the table, and leaned forward. "We're getting closer to the tournament. Your guild members and I are handling the support for now, so you don't need to worry about that. But I called you here today because there are two important things you need to decide personally."
He held up two fingers with a smile. "Team badges and weapon modifications. You'll need a collective team badge, just like every other battle group."
He started listing them off. "The top-ranked guilds all have theirs. The first guild, Killer Sequence, uses a Reverse Cross. The second, King's Guild, has a Crown. The third, Golden Dawn, has Seven Strings with Wings. The fourth, Kabbalah, is marked by the Leaves of Life. And the fifth—my own Gamblers Club—bears a Chip."
Charles flicked his fingers, and a silver-rimmed chip badge appeared in his palm. He placed it on the table, smiling as he continued.
"The Deer Hunters, ranked sixth, use a Deer Head. The Masons of Paradise, ranked seventh, have a Folding Cloak, and so on."
He glanced at Bai Liu. "Your guild's original badge was a Zombie Tusk, but let's be real—that doesn't fit your group anymore. So, after a week of discussion with the design team I hired, we've come up with something new."
Charles pulled a small valuables box from a nearby drawer, flicked it open with a gloved hand, and pushed it toward Bai Liu. "Take a look."
Inside, a gleaming circular medallion rested on dark velvet. A diamond-encrusted platinum hexagram framed a half-opened Werewolf's Eye, with a blood-red gemstone the size of a pigeon's egg set in the center.
Bai Liu studied it for a long moment before speaking. "The Hexagram is a symbol of Satan, and the Werewolf's Eye is commonly seen in Werewolf Kill game cards. It represents the Werewolf Card."
He lifted his gaze to Charles. "My team is called the Wandering Circus. Neither of those things have anything to do with us, do they?"
Charles chuckled, his smile deepening as his eyes flickered toward the Reverse Cross hanging from Bai Liu's collarbone. "You're good at uncovering hidden connections. But there was a better symbol for you—the Reverse Cross. Unfortunately, that's already the badge of Killer Sequence, so we had to pick something else."
Bai Liu's gaze lingered on Charles before dropping back to the glowing red badge.
"If you choose to accept this design," Charles continued, "it'll cost you 10,000 points—which translates to about—"
"—10 million," Bai Liu finished smoothly. He picked up the badge with a light smile. "Thank you, Mr. Charles. This will be the badge for the Wandering Circus."
Mu Sicheng, Muke, Liu Jiayi, and Tang Erda: "..."
You could have just refused! 10 million points, and you folded?!
Without missing a beat, Bai Liu gestured for Charles to continue.
"And," Charles steered the conversation back, "more important than the badge—weapon modifications."
He leaned back in his chair and snapped his fingers. A system screen unfolded in midair, void-projected. But, of course, that didn't suit Charles' taste, so he had the projection cast onto a deep wooden panel instead.
Liu Jiayi stared at the ridiculous setup. This guy even added a gold frame to the projection?!
On the panel, three-dimensional models of various weapons rotated—whips, playing cards, guns, bows—each one belonging to a major guild leader.
"There are two ways to modify your weapon in this game," Charles explained. "The first is through a change in one's core desire—like Muke's dagger."
His gaze flickered toward Muke before shifting to Liu Jiayi, his lips curling into a smirk.
"And the second—through someone else's skill."
He turned to Liu Jiayi. "Hearts gave you a skill-storing playing card. That's my ability at work. I can store someone else's skill into a physical object, allowing others to use it."
Liu Jiayi's head snapped up in surprise. She knew Charles' skill, Phantom Devourer, allowed him to store abilities—but she'd never realized that was how her playing cards had been created.
Because Hearts and Charles never got along. She wouldn't have willingly worked with him.
"My skill is well-suited for weapon modifications," Charles continued, "so you could say I'm something of a… subtle weapon craftsman. Let me show you."
He rose from his chair and walked over to Bai Liu, bending slightly as if performing a magic trick for an audience. With an easy smile, he extended a hand.
"For example—Mr. Bai Liu, may I borrow your skill weapon for a moment? Your old wallet?"
Bai Liu arched a brow but pulled out the battered wallet from his system panel and handed it over.
Charles bowed theatrically, took the wallet, wrapped his hands together—and flipped them over.
In an instant, the wallet had transformed into a pair of aged, yellowed leather gloves. Holding them between his thumb and forefinger, Charles presented them to Bai Liu.
"Wallet gloves," he explained. "Your soul notes are encased inside. They're more discreet than carrying a wallet and much easier for you to use in trade." He opened the glove's inner compartment to show Bai Liu. "Your primary weapon is a long whip. Gloves are a better match—they'll protect your hands during combat."
He placed the gloves back in Bai Liu's palm in an inviting gesture. "Try them."
Bai Liu slid them on. They fit perfectly—neither too tight nor too loose. Testing them, he easily pulled out a soul note and a points coin.
With a flick of his fingers, he hooked a coin from the inner compartment, making it appear as if by magic. And when he moved his hand, the gloves made handling the whip feel effortless.
Mu Sicheng and Muke watched in fascination—it was their first time witnessing a live weapon modification.
Liu Jiayi remained silent.
Tang Erda, however, stared at the gloves with complicated emotions. His gaze then shifted to Bai Liu's face.
He had seen this before.
Bai Six—from another timeline—had also used gloves made from a wallet. But his were different. Expensive. Polished black leather, sleek and refined. The Wandering Circus Guild spent millions of points each year maintaining them…
Bai Liu flexed his fingers, glancing at Charles. "I don't have to pay for this modification, do I?"
For a split second, Charles' smile faltered. But he quickly recovered. "For my chosen betting horse? Consider it a gift."
His gaze lingered on Bai Liu's battered gloves. With a sigh, he pointed out, "But—you really should take better care of your skill weapon. I've never seen one more worn than yours."
Bai Liu blinked. "How much does maintenance cost?"
Charles straightened. "It varies by guild leader, but the average for the top ten is around 630,000 points per year. The most expensive? Spades' Lizard Bone Whip. That one cost 1.26 million points last year alone."
Bai Liu paused. Then, incredulously—
"Is he seriously that much of a big spender...?"