Empire of Shadows

At the end of the month, the weather was so hot that people wished they could peel off a layer of their skin.

Like an oven, Goldport City was still full of tourists from all over the world.

The beaches in the bay area and along the coast were packed with people, and some bold girls wore even more revealing swimsuits, attracting the attention of the young boys.

They would occasionally tease the boys, and watching them make fools of themselves seemed to be their greatest pleasure.

The long coastline was practically turned into a giant public bath by these tourists, if they even knew what a public bath was.

The city streets were also full of tourists. This might be the last peaceful summer in the "world", as the Federation's plans to join the war became increasingly clear, and several countries near the Federation seemed to be considering which side to take.

This was also why, in addition to conscripting the navy, a large number of ground troops were also being conscripted.

Perhaps Congress and the President were more ambitious than people thought.

But no matter what, people were seizing the last moments of this peaceful summer, indulging in everything here!

Crazy Goldport City, crazy beaches, crazy casinos, and… crazy bars!

From a glass of "naturally fermented grape juice" with ice to "grain-fermented beverages", unrestrained revelry had become the only theme of this city this summer!

In such a "midsummer", some people from Yalan and Honshu gathered in a hotel above the Goldport Casino.

With more than an hour before the meeting, Zabri sat at a "Lans Poker" table, participating in a game.

There were already many Lans Poker tables here, but they still seemed insufficient, as people's enthusiasm for winner-takes-all exceeded everything!

Win only once out of eight times, and you won't lose!

This had become the reason almost all gamblers used to convince themselves to participate in the game!

This time, they weren't gambling against the dealer, or the casino, but against other gamblers. The casino wouldn't participate heavily, and naturally wouldn't cheat when dealing cards.

They had never trusted the dealers to be so honest, and naturally, they were willing to believe that they could win.

Taking a look at the cards in his hand, Zabri's gaze lingered on the faces of several other inscrutable players.

Now, the players who could consistently sit at the Lans Poker tables in the casino had all understood the essence of the game—

Intimidation, deception, and traps, that was the essence of Lans Poker.

As some gamblers who traveled here brought the game of Lans Poker back to where they lived, more and more people began to understand this game suitable for three to fourteen people, and some places even called Lans Poker "Cheating Poker".

But no matter what, it had become popular, very famous, and Goldport Casino had also become a sacred place in the minds of many Lans Poker masters.

A casino that could nurture such a wonderful game must have the strongest players in the Federation, and even the world.

Many people came here to participate in the game with a pilgrimage mentality, and naturally, this also made the level of players at the tables higher and higher.

Zabri threw a twenty-dollar chip onto the table. A new round of selections began, and he stared intently at everyone, watching their expressions and eye movements.

Except for a few people, most people had expressionless faces, as if they were wearing a human skin mask, and no value could be read.

Round after round, there were more and more chips on the table, but fewer and fewer players participating in the game.

When Zabri turned over his cards, he was about to stand up and collect the chips, but another player stopped him.

He looked at the other player's cards, listened to the dealer announce the results, and left the table cursing.

"That son of a bitch definitely cheated!" he said to his subordinate.

His subordinate was a little helpless, "You can report this to the casino."

Ever since someone couldn't think straight after cheating in the casino and committed suicide by jumping off a building, it couldn't be said that there were absolutely no people cheating in the casino, but it could only be said that if there were, they were definitely low-key.

Keep winning?

Always lose small and win big?

Doesn't exist!

As long as there is a problem, you will be taken away.

If you can cooperate with the inspection and no problems are found, the casino will compensate the chips, 500 yuan for compensation in the lobby on the first floor, 5,000 yuan on the second floor, and 50,000 yuan on the third floor.

As for the upper floors?

How to deal with those non-public gambling tables is up to the guests, of course, the casino can also provide appropriate cooperation, but there will be additional charges.

Therefore, Goldport Casino has gradually been regarded as one of the cleanest casinos. Here, as long as someone suspects, they will be checked.

Of course, falsely suspecting others also comes at a price.

Zabri didn't want to cause trouble now, he shook his head, "Consider him lucky!"

In just a short while, more than an hour, he lost tens of thousands in the lobby on the first floor.

In fact, these money are not very important to him. What makes him unhappy is that he obviously has a big hand, but he is always eaten.

It's the same cards, others can win, but he will definitely lose, which is the reason for his anger.

"It's almost time," his subordinate reminded him, and then he nodded, took a few deep breaths, adjusted his emotions, and then took the elevator with his subordinate.

The sightseeing elevator allowed him to see almost all three floors of the casino, countless gamblers and the red, green, blue, purple, yellow, orange, white, black, silver, gold, and crystal chips on the gambling tables, weaving into an ocean of desire.

Everyone was deeply trapped in the ocean, unable to extricate themselves, unknowingly struggling.

No matter how hard they tried, they would eventually escape the fate of sinking to the bottom of the sea.

"Lans is a very powerful person," Zabri said suddenly.

His subordinate didn't quite understand why he suddenly said this, but fortunately, he took the initiative to explain, "That Lans Poker, and some of his practices."

"It seems like he's doing too much, but he's doing it with a sense of proportion. I now think that the decline of the five major families should have an inextricable connection with him."

"And I also heard that he… has someone in Congress."

Speaking of this, he couldn't help but laugh a few times. The underworld, Congress, these are words that can't be linked together at all.

But inexplicably, he felt that it might be true.

As he laughed, his expression became serious. If this was true, the situation would be very bad.

As the elevator arrived at the floor they wanted to go to, he reorganized his emotions, tidied up his clothes, and entered a small venue under the guidance of the sign at the door.

There are many such venues above the Goldport Casino. Some people who come here to travel come in groups, companies, group companies, capitalist families, and even federal government officials.

In addition to experiencing life, they also need a place to work, and these small auditoriums and small conference rooms can come in handy.

Zabri walked into the venue and found his seat. Without him noticing, someone suddenly bumped into him.

"Watch where you're going, bastard!"

He frowned and glanced at the person who bumped into him. It was a piece of shit from the Holy Bell Party, and his face became somewhat disgusted, "You're like a piece of dog shit that makes me feel disgusted. Your dog mother should have left you in her belly instead of pulling you out."

"Fuck!" The guy who was scolded by him instantly became impulsive. Seeing that the two were about to fight, the staff on the scene immediately rushed over to pull them apart.

The Holy Bell Party was represented by a guy named David, with silver-brown hair that was slightly naturally curly. His hair wasn't long, circling around his head, looking a little strange.

His face looked rectangular, with a recessed chin, and his eyes were light blue, giving him a special flavor.

But precisely, this person is an extremely conservative radical.

The Holy Bell Party and the Marcus family compete in some areas. Where there is competition, there is friction. The friction of the underworld will definitely not be resolved civilly, so there is hatred between the two sides.

David made a throat-cutting gesture to Zabri. Although he was conservative and radical, he knew that this was Lans' territory.

Although he didn't think a young man could be so powerful, he decided to respect the other party before he completely figured it out.

He was indeed quite extreme, but that didn't mean he was stupid.

As he finished his throat-cutting gesture, he turned around and left arrogantly.

"Mr. Zabri, do you need us to mediate?"

Zabri's face was very ugly, of course not towards these staff members. He shook his head, "That's just a mad dog, I'm used to it, thank you for your kindness."

He came to his seat and sat down, his emotions still fluctuating.

As more and more people arrived at the scene, and the agreed time arrived, Lans finally appeared on the podium, pressing the time.

Some people under the stage were dissatisfied with his attitude, some just snorted to express their dissatisfaction, and some directly stated that they didn't like Lans' style.

Lans also heard these discussions, but he didn't care.

He walked to the middle of the podium, looked at these people with a calm and composed face, and then said, "We should all be meeting for the first time. Let me introduce myself, my name is Lans, Lans White, I'm very glad to see you all here."

"I know you will notice my young appearance, and also feel that this is just a young man, not worth your attention."

"Here, now, I remind you, don't have such thoughts."

"I will try my best…"

Before Lance could finish speaking, a man with a thick Alan accent, slightly dark skin, and a small mustache loudly interjected, "Say something we're interested in. We didn't come here to make friends; we need to talk business."

Many people nodded in agreement. Everyone here had a gang background, the only difference being that some gangs were larger, like the Holy Bell Party, the Marcus Family, and the Thorn Gang, who had deliberately taken a seat in the corner.

But there were also some smaller ones, like these gangs from Alan.

In Lance's eyes, they weren't much different from those third-rate small-timers in the suburbs who relied on extorting three or five dollars from pedestrians for a living.

He looked at the man, "If I were you, I would choose to shut my mouth and listen quietly, instead of causing trouble for yourself and the gang behind you!"