Li Qingxian looked around. The other thirty-three participants’ Destiny Gentlemen appeared, standing on blank squares. Fog shrouded the areas both in front of and behind them.
At the same time, the heads of all the Destiny Gentlemen transformed into the beast heads of their masters.
His Deceitful Eyes scanned the area.
He could not see the Qi Fortune of twelve of the Destiny Gentlemen.
Clear omens of Qi Fortune materialized above the other twenty-one Destiny Gentlemen: swords, withered bones, graves, and a great expanse of emptiness. It was as if the four great evils—Defeat, Death, Tomb, and Ruin—were holding a convention.
Li Qingxian made a mental note of those twelve Destiny Gentlemen.
The Stone Giant Leader said, "The four steps of choosing a life are complete. Now, everyone, please roll the dice to begin the first trial."
"Why aren’t there any new squares?" a Fate Master asked.
"They must be blind squares. We need to use Fate Skill Inference," another Fate Master replied.
Li Qingxian looked ahead of his Destiny Gentleman. The white fog was originally thick, but under the power of his Spiritual Eye Deceitful Dragon, it slowly dissipated, revealing ten squares.
From front to back, they were: Ambushed by a Deceit, Demon Race Besieges a City, Oppressed by the County Magistrate, Encounter a Wandering Demon, Encounter Bandits, A Smooth Journey, Encounter a Wealthy Merchant, Encounter an Old Friend, Encounter a Heroine, and Discover Treasure.
Li Qingxian stared at the first two squares, his composure faltering.
’Who are you trying to call out?!’
He had only left the Divine Capital twice. The first time, he was ambushed by a Deceit. The second, he ran into the Demon Race besieging a city. The game was hitting a little too close to home.
’Am I just some low-quality Destiny Gentleman on this Promotion Map, destined to die in three steps?’
He glanced at "Encounter a Heroine." ’If it were me, I’d definitely want to chat with the heroine about life. But since it’s just my Destiny Gentleman, I’d better forget it.’
’As for the treasure...’
Li Qingxian fell into deep thought. ’The tenth blind square is definitely something good, but the question is whether my Destiny Gentleman is strong enough to compete for it right now.’
A thought struck Li Qingxian, and he looked at the paths in front of the other three Destiny Gentlemen with powerful Fate Grids.
He saw that the tenth square in front of each of those Destiny Gentlemen was also treasure, while the other nine squares varied depending on their destination.
He then looked at the other nine Destiny Gentlemen with good Qi Fortune; the last square on their paths was also treasure.
When he glanced at the Destiny Gentlemen with poor Qi Fortune, a doubtful expression appeared on Li Qingxian’s face.
The treasure squares for these poor-Qi-Fortune Destiny Gentlemen were all within the first three spots, making them very easy to reach.
’It’s a trap, just as I thought. If all these treasures are one and the same, won’t it trigger a massive free-for-all? I’ll watch and see first. Besides, there will be plenty more benefits to come...’
Li Qingxian feigned deep thought while secretly observing whether the others would go for the treasure.
No one made a move to roll their dice; they were all busy inferring the blind squares.
"Please make your choices quickly. After a quarter hour, the Fate Box will choose for you," the Stone Giant Leader announced.
Li Qingxian remained perfectly still.
The Fate Masters glanced furtively at one another.
After a long moment, the White Deer Head spoke up, "Constant hesitation will get you nowhere!"
With that, he threw his dice, which landed on a six. Then, a Jade Pendant at his waist fell, transformed into another die showing a four, for a total of ten.
His Destiny Gentleman leaped into the treasure square.
Li Qingxian smiled faintly. ’This White Deer Head is still too young, after all. Now he only has three Jade Pendants left.’
Having played games for so many years, Li Qingxian knew very well that when it came to pay-to-win, money spent in the early game was basically wasted. A light spender in the late game could easily crush a moderate spender from the early game... ’Wait, the White Deer Head is more like a whale who spends big from start to finish...’
’Since the whale has made his move, there’s even less reason for me to clash with him head-on.’
’The Deceit ambush and the Demon Race siege are squares I absolutely can’t land on. Clashing with the County Magistrate is also a huge trap. Killing a wandering demon might seem like a way to earn great military merit, but this is the Destiny Gentleman’s first time out. It’s better to use the bandits for practice.’
He rolled a five: Encounter Bandits.
The Destiny Gentleman flew high into the air and landed on the bandit square.
Then, it became motionless.
’Do I have to wait until the quarter hour is up to see the result?’ It was Li Qingxian’s first time playing Promotion Map, so he didn’t know what was happening and could only wait.
Time passed slowly. As the quarter hour was about to end, everyone rolled their dice.
The white fog ahead surged, and most people’s squares twisted and distorted.
Li Qingxian saw his square actually extend, becoming a path that stretched forward. His Destiny Gentleman began to advance along it.
At the same time, not far away, the path of another, wolf-headed Destiny Gentleman twisted and intersected with the end of Li Qingxian’s path.
Li Qingxian hurriedly looked toward the wolf-headed Destiny Gentleman. As it was halfway along its path, a scene materialized in the air above it.
In the scene, the wolf-headed Destiny Gentleman had originally remained in the Divine Capital but was framed by an enemy. To protect itself, it was forced to flee. It was severely wounded during the pursuit and eventually became a bandit to survive.
Before its serious injuries could heal, the wolf-headed Destiny Gentleman was forced to descend the mountain with the bandit leader to intercept a convoy heading for Beisha City.
The Cross-Eyed Dog Head Destiny Gentleman encountered the wolf-headed Destiny Gentleman.
The two Fate Masters exchanged a helpless glance.
The two paths intertwined, and a scene appeared above the two Destiny Gentlemen.
The two groups fought a great battle. At first, the Cross-Eyed Dog Head Destiny Gentleman only killed the minions while constantly observing. Finding an opportunity, it launched a surprise attack on the bandit chief, killing the fellow Ninth-Grade expert in a single strike, and then killed the wolf-headed Destiny Gentleman.
Afterward, Li Qingxian’s Destiny Gentleman led its men to storm the mountain fortress, wiping out the entire bandit nest. It seized gold, silver, and jewels, and even discovered a Thousand-Year-Old Ginseng, which it pocketed.
The wolf-headed Fate Master gave Li Qingxian a wry smile and cupped his fists. "Congratulations."
"Thank you for going easy on me," Li Qingxian said politely.
A beam of white light descended and carried the wolf-headed Fate Master away.
Li Qingxian then looked over at the White Deer Head.
He saw that the end of the White Deer Head’s Destiny Gentleman’s path actually intersected with ten other paths.
The other ten Fate Masters all panicked, including the one with the black lion head.
Eleven people had chosen the treasure.
On the Beast Bridge, numerous Fate Masters burst out laughing.
"It’s about time these little guys got a taste of how cruel a Life Play can be."
"As expected of Flower-Seeking Master Liuu. His Life Plays are always so insidious... I mean, tailored to each participant’s aptitude," Liu Laohu said.
Guo Xiang watched Li Qingxian, smiling and nodding.
Inside the Fate Box, eleven paths collided, and eleven Destiny Gentlemen met at the treasure.
A scene appeared above their heads. The White Deer Head’s Destiny Gentleman was a Ninth-Grade scholar with numerous Cultural Treasures. Unleashing an endless stream of Battle Poems, he slew the other Destiny Gentlemen one by one. Only the black lion-headed Destiny Gentleman, a Martial Cultivator, managed to escape with serious injuries.
In the end, at the cost of a minor injury—an arrow to the arm—the White Deer Head’s Destiny Gentleman seized the treasure: a Middle-Grade Cultural Treasure.
The White Deer Head frowned slightly. Trading an All-Purpose Jade Pendant for a single Middle-Grade Cultural Treasure was a loss.
Li Qingxian, a smile on his face, looked toward the Panda Head and witnessed an unbelievable scene.
The Panda Head’s Destiny Gentleman had inexplicably landed right on the "Demon Race Besieges a City" square. But not only did it not die, it held on until reinforcements arrived. With the help of a Daoist Sect master, it consumed an Elixir, transitioned from a martial path to the Dao, and became an Eighth-Grade Cultivator.
"People with such great fortune are truly terrifying," Li Qingxian said, shaking his head.
"The first trial is over," the Stone Giant Leader announced.
Of the thirty-four circles, only fourteen people remained.
The empty circles vanished. The remaining fourteen drew close, forming a single row.
"You really are something," the Parrot Head said with a grin.
The circle between them disappeared, leaving them adjacent to each other.
Li Qingxian looked ahead. His Destiny Gentleman had successfully reached Beisha City, and a new set of ten squares appeared before it. They too were shrouded in white fog, which was then dispersed by his Spiritual Eye.