- Tie clan - Rock Gambling Den -
The moment Xie Ling made it inside the Rock Gambling Den, the owner standing at the closest table to the entrance could be seen inspecting rocks. A bead of sweat rolled down his forehead, indicating that he had been running not long ago. To hide his tired form, he rested slightly against the table, slowly recuperating himself so as not to embarrass himself in front of the elders and their guest.
After recovering his energy, he turned around to face Xie Ling. "Greetings, esteemed gue..." The moment he began to speak, out of the corner of his eyes, he noticed all the elders behind Xie Ling crossing their arms in a waving motion, signaling for him to not speak any further.
The elders didn't want Xie Ling to be referred to as a 'guest', as their goal was for his time within Tie clan to be more of a permanent employment.
While the owner didn't know why the elders of the clan wanted him to shut up, who was he to question their orders? Giving a quick bow while stepping to the side, he opened up the path for everyone to walk in.
As his eyes scanned the tables, Xie Ling felt many faint wills. Along his journey to Tie clan's capital, he often found rocks with Gu inside them; however, at best, he only found rank-4 Gu worms. The reason was simple: a Gu worm hibernates only when they are so weak from malnourishment that they will die if they don't hibernate. This means they will first fall a rank or two, or three, or four to reduce their food consumption before they hibernate. Meaning finding a rank-5 Gu in the middle of hibernation will only happen if someone forcefully induces hibernation.
This time around, Xie Ling didn't come with any rocks containing hibernating Gu. First off, he was more than skilled enough to do it himself. And secondly, it was incredibly suspicious. It worked in Shang clan because his skills were of incredible value to Shang Yan Fei; however, this was Tie clan, while it was possible and even likely that Tie Mu Bai would agree to something akin to mass hypnosis on the dregs of society, it wasn't a guarantee. He needed more time to judge Tie Mu Bai's character.
One of the elders walked forward to a table, his eyes carefully scanning each of the rocks before settling on one.
The rock had a black outer shell with grooves shaped like a water stream. "As Tie clan's number one Water Path Gu Master, I pick this rock!" Being a cultivator of Water Path, he felt his luck would be higher if he picked this rock.
Withholding the urge to shake their heads at the obvious disillusionment of their elder, the many surrounding Gu Masters placed any rocks that they were going to buy back down onto their tables, as their luck would be less with someone like this in their midst.
Carefully watching the attitudes displayed by the surrounding Gu Masters, a small smirk escapes Xie Ling's lips. This smile didn't come from the idealized thought process of the elder or even the irony that the rock in the elder's hands emanated the strength of will commonly found in rank-2 Gu worms. No, his smile came from the fact that he had just gained a hint on Tie clan's current internal struggles.
There is a saying, 'There are two sides to every coin.'
A brave warrior will fight and kill the dragon, while a fool will misjudge their own strength and die to the dragon.
A proper scientist conducts rigorous research and experiments to gain deep insights into complex problems. Whereas a pseudo-scientist will use impressive-sounding jargon to give credibility to baseless claims, often even deceiving themselves into believing the lie just to hold onto some fleeting hope that it might be true.
A child who respects their father for his wisdom and guidance will often seek his advice when facing important decisions. But a child will also follow their father's orders out of fear of his wrath, only complying with his demands to avoid punishment.
Based on the reactions of everyone here, Xie Ling concluded that the respect from these Gu Masters was not out of reverence but rather out of fear. He would make sure to exploit such feelings in the future, but for now, his goal was to get the respect of the elders, not the common populace.
Of course, their reactions could be related to only this specific elder; however, the reactions of the other elders showed otherwise.
"I expect nothing less than a rank-3 Gu out of this one!"
"Tie Shui, isn't our clan's number one Water Path Gu Master for nothing!"
Internally rolling his eyes at their blindness to the situation, Xie Ling speculated, "I would have assumed this was all an act if I couldn't feel their emotions. For a clan used to solving the schemes of their enemies, they seem oblivious to the judging looks of their own people... Wait, there's something slightly off. It isn't that they are oblivious, but rather that they don't care. But that doesn't add up; why wouldn't those on top care about what those under them think? If the resentment of those underneath gets too high, then surely they know that a revolt will happen. No, it isn't that they don't care, but rather that they don't need to care. This isn't earth where the mob can take down the tyrant."
As thoughts went through his mind, he had a sudden realization, like dominoes hitting one another to form a line, reaching an endpoint to create an idea! "That book perfectly encapsulates the nature of the humans in this world!"
"'The Legends of Ren Zu' a book designed around this world's humans. What type of culture is produced when the power of a single individual trumps that of the mob? What happens when a single person gets to decide what they want the culture to be?" At first, he dismissed the book as a piece of history, then a piece of fiction, and now he sees it for it's true nature, a piece of this world's human nature. If he was to understand all the cultural differences between this world and Earth, that book was the first key.
As this realization began to set in, the elder, with a gambling rock, activated a Gu, summoning a bubble of water.
Floating in the air, the elder pushed the rock into the water bubble. Quickly, from all directions, tiny bubbles of water somehow separate from the primary water bubble surrounded the rock before they began chipping away at the rock bit by bit.
Rapidly, little pieces of a Gu worm began to peek out from the rock. First some legs, then wings, before quickly revealing the parts of an exoskeleton, garnering gasps from the surrounding Gu Masters.
When every last piece of stone dissolved away, a Gu worm could be seen wriggling weakly. After a few short moments, the Gu let out a weak cry for help as it revealed the aura of a rank-2 Gu worm.
"Ripple Trace Gu!"
"Truly a marvelous find!"
"The heaven's must be smiling upon our Tie clan today!"
"At rank-3, it is called Water Trace Gu and will increase one's speed to that of a Vinaceous Boar. While the Gu worm is rare, the recipe is actually well known. In other words, gaining the Ripple Trace Gu is no different than holding the Water Trace Gu, a rank-3 Gu. I must commend you on your luck, Tie Shui." Xie Ling said as he patted him on the back.
Tie Shui felt a sense of pride swelling up within him. To be complimented by a rank-5 expert was no different than a king complementing one of their lords. But before he could let it get to his head, he noticed the elders looking at him with gazes, expecting him to return the compliment. Immediately, he returned the compliment. "It couldn't possibly be my own luck." Then he raised his hand to his chin to fake a pondering look before snapping his fingers to give off a look of realization. "That's it! It must have been your luck rubbing off on me today! I must apologize in advance if this reduces your success at Gambling Rocks."
All the elders nodded their heads as they gave a thumbs up to Tie Shui for his performance. Naturally, they knew that there was no way Xie Ling wouldn't see past such an act; however, that didn't matter as their goal was to form a bond, and what better method than playful banter?
People play fun games like this all the time, whether it's Two Truths and a Lie, bluffing in poker, or decoding a message sent from a friend. Just because the person you were complementing knew it was all empty words didn't mean they couldn't play along and enjoy it.
This was also a test from the elders; naturally, they would want to know how receptive Xie Ling was to these types of games, as that would tell them how adept his social skills, or rather, his political skills, were.
Now Xie Ling wanted to give off an open persona; however, not too open, as that would make others think they could pull the rug over his eyes, so he kept his reply short. "No, no, no, the credit for finding a Gu in a rock belongs entirely to you and your discerning eyes. I must humbly ask you to help pick a rock for me."
Walking over to a table, Xie Ling beckoned for Tie Shui to follow him while pushing will into Tie Shui to guide his eyes and heart to a specific gambling rock with the will of a dying Gu worm on the precipice of death. This would add a high-low effect; first everyone would shout, 'what luck!' as they saw the Gu get slowly revealed, only for it to die, making everyone offer condolences. The normal Gu Master's here would feel a sense of pain at the loss of Gu as they had all seen it before, and the elder's would offer condolences because they were to rope him in.
A gust of wind blew through the entrance as a message-type Gu flew into the hands of one of the elders.
Pouring in his primeval essence, the elder spoke, "A large feast has been put together in celebration of the deaths of five demons! Tie Mu Bai himself has also stated that he would be honored if Sir Xie Ling joined in the celebration."
"It's a shame that I can't display an aura of humility, but considering how long I will likely be staying here, there's always tomorrow." Xie Ling thought.
Patting Tie Shui on the back, he turned to the rest of the elders and shouted with energy, "We should really get going then!"