Battle-Damaged Guy

So, this is what the talent of Luck is truly like?

Ren Yi quietly processed the waiter's words.

Luck certainly lived up to its name. Not only did it allow its owner to survive a Calamity, but it also seemed to ensure he thrived within this Entertainment City.

If this talent had remained in its original world, it would have undoubtedly triggered countless chain reactions and changed many things.

And yet, its owner still had to step into an Instance.

Indeed, Ren Yi didn't believe the God of Gamblers becoming trapped in the Xinglong Entertainment City was an accident; it was highly likely that the Alliance had taken specific countermeasures.

It was even possible that Instances like the Xinglong Entertainment City existed specifically to handle such top-tier talents in a systematic, low-cost manner.

The world wanted to use Luck as a defensive shield, but it forgot that the fate of an individual is never synonymous with the fate of the world.

While the waiter was chatting with Ren Yi, the dishes they ordered began to arrive one by one.

Ren Yi was still fully focused on the story, so he casually picked up a piece of food. It tasted good—steamed lamb.

He reached out with his chopsticks for another dish, but he couldn't budge it no matter how hard he tried.

He looked down and saw a massive bear paw resting quietly on a white porcelain plate, glistening with oil.

Ren Yi immediately fell into deep thought, his gaze sweeping subtly across the table filled with steamed lamb, steamed bear paw, and steamed deer tail.

"Come on, eat up. All the heavy hitters you like are here," Dr. Lin leaned in from the side to greet him. "Young people these days are so picky, liking such expensive delicacies at such a young age."

Ren Yi looked up at Ren Man beside him. His older brother was dangling a single piece of green vegetable from his mouth, chewing slowly and lazily. His gaze was indifferent, not even glancing at the mountain of delicacies on the table.

So, it was obvious who had actually ordered the steamed lamb, bear paw, and deer tail.

Ren Yi immediately clasped his hands together and made a "sincere" and tactful statement: "Thank you for the treat, Dr. Lin. You've spent a lot."

Dr. Lin's eyes widened instantly as he said with great exaggeration, "Didn't you order these? When did I ever say I was treating?"

"Don't tell me you don't understand the metaphor and are trying to scam me again." Ren Yi rolled his eyes, completely ignoring the man's twisted logic.

Unexpectedly, Dr. Lin acted like a man with nothing to lose, spreading his hands and adopting a shameless, "dead pig doesn't fear boiling water" attitude. "You already know I don't have the material means for this."

Just then, the waiter suddenly leaned in and whispered.

"Young gentleman, you can lend this gentleman some chips to settle the bill. Our Entertainment City can make an exception and provide a short-term contract service for the two of you."

"Is that really necessary?" Dr. Lin curled his lip and said to the waiter, "It's just the price of a meal. How much do you even make in a day, hey!"

Ren Yi's mouth twitched. He looked at the waiter, then at Dr. Lin.

Fine, fine, fine. The bickering had started again.

"No need, I'll pay," he rejected the waiter's "kindness."

No matter what, Dr. Lin was one of their own. Bickering was one thing, but he couldn't let the Entertainment City take advantage of the situation.

Ren Yi handed over two chips under the waiter's somewhat regretful gaze.

Just then, another commotion erupted from the God of Gamblers' side.

At that moment, Ren Yi suddenly noticed that Ren Man, who had been chewing his vegetable slowly with his head down, seemed to suddenly "flicker," appearing in a state with his head already raised.

Ren Yi blinked. When did his brother move?

The bickering at the table instantly died down. Dr. Lin was the first to drop his playful grin, and Ren Yi and the waiter followed suit in confusion, looking in the direction Ren Man was staring.

Ren Yi's gaze cut through the crowd and landed on the God of Gamblers' table.

He noticed that several people who looked somewhat out of place had appeared in front of the God of Gamblers at some point.

The others around the table seemed startled by these sudden newcomers and were pushing them away in dissatisfaction. This was the source of the commotion.

And among those few people, the leader was someone they had actually seen before.

It was the "Battle-Damaged Guy" who had ridden the same subway as them, wearing modern clothes and looking covered in wounds.

Currently, the Battle-Damaged Guy's injuries seemed a bit better, but he still looked somewhat bedraggled. Only his eyes remained calm and sharp.

Behind him were two teammates, a man and a woman. All three were dressed in similarly simple and efficient gear, looking like a classic squad that had spent years clearing Instances together.

Ren Yi's gaze swept over the three of them, and he suddenly noticed something wrong.

Unlike the other Participants in the room, the limbs of the Battle-Damaged Guy and his team showed no signs of transparency. The flesh on their necks and wrists looked exactly like that of normal people.

This meant they hadn't mortgaged themselves to the Xinglong Entertainment City, nor had they exchanged for any chips inside.

Seeing these three "normal people" standing among a group of "gelatinous figures" was quite jarring from an Anomaly's perspective.

But strangely, the man and woman behind the Battle-Damaged Guy looked quite pale.

Although they tried not to show it, their flickering gazes betrayed their unease.

The three were blocked by the crowd around the God of Gamblers, prevented from moving even half a step closer.

The Battle-Damaged Guy stopped. He didn't force his way through but instead lowered his voice and said something to the God of Gamblers sitting at the head of the table.

The distance was too great for Ren Yi to hear the specific content, but he could see that the man's expression was exceptionally earnest. His brow was furrowed, and he seemed to be saying quite a lot.

The God of Gamblers at the head of the table was a bit more sober than before, but he still looked somewhat bleary-eyed as he held his wine glass.

After listening to the Battle-Damaged Guy, his expression seemed to daze for a moment. However, after scrutinizing them for a few seconds, he seemed to discover something, and his expression suddenly turned cold.

The tone couldn't be heard, but the attitude of rejection was clear and unmistakable.

The Battle-Damaged Guy's brow furrowed even tighter, a flash of frustration appearing in his eyes.

But seeing the God of Gamblers' icy gaze, he eventually closed his mouth, sighed dejectedly, and waved his hand to his teammates.

They retreated to the entrance of the restaurant, and the faces of the two Participants behind the Battle-Damaged Guy turned even paler.

Ren Man lowered his head again. He seemed somewhat displeased, as if he were enduring something.

Ren Yi stepped forward and nudged him. Ren Man looked up and gave a faint smile but didn't speak.

However, Ren Yi could sense that his brother was a little unhappy.

Why?