I run a casino in the immortal realm.

On the day Tianyuan Casino opened, half the main street of Sujiafang was covered with colorful banners and incense.

Zhao Wenyuan didn't make a big show of it. He didn't hire an opera troupe or set off any magical fireworks. He simply set up a row of tables at the entrance of the gambling den, with free spiritual tea and melon seeds on them. Anyone who passed by could take a bowl.

He wore a newly tailored gray-blue robe, with a copper abacus at his waist. He stood at the door to greet guests, his smile just right—warm but not obsequious.

At three quarters past Chen hour, the guests began to arrive one after another.

A steward from the Su family arrived. He was in his forties and had two servants with him. He sat in the very center of the front row, representing the Su family to make a good impression.

Three people from the Iron Fist Sect arrived. The new sect leader, a short, stout man at the eighth level of Qi Refining, sat in a corner, his eyes gloomy, and remained silent. They couldn't swallow the fact that the Datong Gambling House had been taken over by the Su family, but they couldn't bring themselves to say it either.

The second-in-command of the Green Snake Gang, along with five brothers, sat down at the table, downed three bowls of free spiritual tea, ate a handful of melon seeds, chatted with the people next to him, and kept looking at the gambling den's facade.

Representatives from Longhutang and Wantonghui also arrived, but there were only two or three of them, and they sat far apart, as if afraid of being recognized.

The majority of the crowd consisted of independent gamblers, with about a hundred people crammed at the entrance. Some had come specifically because they heard the news, while others were just passing by and joining in the fun.

Zhao Wenyuan and the others had almost arrived, and he cleared his throat.

He didn't go on stage; he just stood on the steps by the door. His voice wasn't loud, but it was strong.

"Fellow neighbors, I am Zhao Wenyuan, the manager of Tianyuan Casino. I'll take up two cups of tea's time to tell you three things."

He held up one finger.

"First, Tianyuan Casino offers a one-stop shop for food, drinks, and entertainment. Once you enter, you can drink spirit tea for free, sit anywhere in the rest area, and enjoy food, drinks, and private rooms on the second floor. If you win money and want to celebrate, you don't need to go out; everything is available upstairs. You can stay home for a month without leaving the house."

Someone in the crowd chuckled, "The gambling den provides meals? That's novel."

Zhao Wenyuan ignored him and raised his second finger.

"Secondly, Tianyuan Casino does not act as the bookmaker."

The laughter stopped.

The second-in-command of the Green Snake Gang paused for a moment while cracking sunflower seeds.

"The casino provides the venue, gambling equipment, and dealers, but does not participate in the gambling. The dealer is chosen voluntarily by everyone present, and the casino only takes a 5% venue fee from the dealer's profits."

In other words, winning or losing is your business; the gambling den doesn't touch a single spirit stone of the bet.

With a whoosh, the crowd erupted.

The gambling den doesn't act as the house?

This was unheard of in Sujiafang City, no, in the entire Southern Wilderness.

Ever since gambling dens appeared in the cultivation world, the one who runs the gambling den is the house, the gamblers gamble on the house's money, and the house earns money from the gamblers.

This is a matter of course, just like the rising and setting of the sun and moon.

You're telling me you're not the dealer?

Then why do you run a gambling den? To do charity?

The new leader of the Iron Fist Sect smirked and whispered something to the person next to him. The two of them laughed at the same time.

The buzzing subsided considerably, and Zhao Wenyuan raised his third finger.

Third, Tianyuan Casino promises that the gambling equipment will be absolutely fair and all cheating will be eliminated.

Whether it's the house or a gambler, anyone who cheats will pay triple damages, be expelled on the spot, and banned from entering for life.

He paused for a moment, then emphasized his words.

"If anyone can prove that the gambling equipment at Tianyuan Casino is rigged, we will compensate them tenfold."

Upon hearing this, the crowd fell completely silent.

Tenfold compensation for any counterfeit product.

The gamblers here are all seasoned veterans. Which gambling den's dice haven't been tampered with? Which gambling den's cards haven't been marked? Everyone knows it, but they have no choice.

Now someone has jumped out and said, "My gambling equipment is absolutely fair. If you find any problems, I will pay you ten times the amount."

Either a madman said that, or he's really confident.

The second-in-command of the Green Snake Gang put down the melon seeds, straightened his posture, and began to seriously examine the facade of the gambling den for the first time.

Zhao Wenyuan cupped his hands in greeting: "Enough with the small talk, please come in."

The two large wooden doors opened to the sides.

Those who went in slowed their pace by a beat.

The lobby on the first floor has a high ceiling of three zhang (approximately 10 meters), with twelve spirit stone lamps hanging overhead. The light is soft and even, illuminating every corner brightly without being glaring or leaving any dark or gloomy corners.

The ground was paved with polished blue bricks, and walking on them gave a slight warm feeling underfoot—a warming array was buried beneath the bricks.

The public gambling area on the left has twelve gambling tables, all made of spirit wood, with the tabletops covered with a layer of dark green spirit velvet cloth that feels smooth but not greasy.

The tables are spaced two meters apart, so it's not difficult to walk around or turn around.

The table was furnished with a backrest made of spirit wood, which was ten times better than the hard benches found in the gambling dens outside.

To the right are four semi-open private rooms, separated by wooden lattice partitions. You can see out from inside, but not out from outside, providing both privacy and a comfortable atmosphere.

In the very center was a three-foot-diameter roulette wheel, its red and black grids gleaming warmly under the lamp.

Several gamblers gathered around and looked at it for a long time, but none of them had ever seen this thing before.

There are three rest areas in the corner of the hall, with low tables and soft couches, and teapots placed on the tables for easy access. Fruits and snacks are also placed next to them.

A row of counters was set up against the back wall, selling spirit rice cakes, grilled spirit skewers, and fruit wine. The prices were 20% higher than those at the street stalls, but the convenience made them worthwhile.

The most surprising thing was the toilet.

The two separate clean rooms are so clean you can see your reflection in them. They are equipped with cleansing talismans and hot water, and the rooms are automatically cleaned after use.

An old gambler came out of the clean room with a complicated expression on his face.

He had been gambling for thirty years, and this was the first time he hadn't had to cover his nose when using the toilet in a gambling den.

The second floor is even better. There are two large private rooms with spirit wood floors, brocade cushions, separate spirit tea bar tables and wine menus, and soundproof array patterns on the walls. Once the doors are closed, you can't hear anything even if it's a huge commotion outside.

"Is this still a gambling den?"

A rogue gambler stood on the second-floor corridor, looking around, and muttered, "This is a brothel, a restaurant, and a gambling den all in one."

After the opening ceremony, the gambling tables officially began.

The first person to take the lead was the young owner of a spiritual materials shop in Sujiafang Market. His name was Qian Youyu. He was at the seventh level of Qi Refining, in his early twenties, and had some spare money. He was just doing it for the novelty.

He sat down at the table where they played a dice game, ready to roll the dice himself.

The dice are completely transparent, so gamblers can immediately tell that there are no cheating devices inside.

As the gambling began, the casino manager announced several rules. Although the gamblers did not take a cut, the house had an advantage: the house would score a certain number of points in each round, and as long as that number was scored, the house would only win and never lose.

For example, if the dealer sets the numbers to a combination of three and five, and this combination is drawn during the game, the bettors who bet on even numbers will not win and will have their stake taken back, while the bettors who bet on single numbers will naturally lose.

This rule is the only advantage the house has; after that, winning or losing depends entirely on luck.

The gamblers had no objection to this rule. To them, it was fair, since the dealer rolled the dice first and the gamblers placed their bets afterward. The initiative was in the hands of the gamblers, and with the gambling house as a guarantor, both sides were gambling on luck.

The initiative is actually in the hands of the gamblers. They can bet on whichever side they want, and no one will stop them from withdrawing at any time. The house, on the other hand, has to keep running every round for two hours.

There were no abnormalities.

The dealers at the gambling den never touch the gambling money; they are only responsible for taking a cut.

If a gambler wins, the spirit stone is pushed from the dealer's side to the gambler; if the dealer wins, the spirit stone is pushed from the gambler's side to the dealer's side. The gambling den does not intervene.

At the end of each round, the dealer calculates the house's winnings on the spot and takes five percent, which is placed into a transparent jade box next to the table—that's the gambling den's venue fee.

Open and transparent, everything is clear at a glance.

In a two-hour match, Qian Youyu won over eighty spirit stones.

He rubbed his hands together, and his eyes lit up.

This is a good deal.

He gambled at casinos outside, where cheating was commonplace, and he lost nine out of ten times.

Now that I'm the bookmaker, the gambling is fair, and I win money based on my skills and luck. Even with a cut, I still get much more than before.

News travels fast.

On the first day, Tianyuan Casino did not have a large number of customers. More than 300 people came and went, but less than half of them actually gambled with real money. Most people were watching the excitement, drinking free spiritual tea, and trying the food and drinks on the second floor.

The number of people tripled the next day.

The news that there would be no water fee spread like wildfire throughout the entire Sujiafang market.

Those seasoned gamblers who frequent gambling dens are very shrewd—they take a 10% cut of the winnings. If you bet 100 spirit stones, you have to pay 10 yuan just for the commission. After a month, even the best gambling skills will be wiped out by the commission.

Tianyuan Casino does not take a cut.

This alone makes it worth visiting often.

More and more people started to become the banker, not only those with extra money, but also several small merchants and wealthy young men lining up for their turn. They discovered that being the banker was more stable than gambling – as long as luck wasn't too bad, the odds of winning were around 60%, and after deducting a 5% cut, they could easily earn dozens of spirit stones a day.

Baccarat and roulette have become the most popular games.

Baccarat has simple rules, a game lasts three minutes, and is fast-paced and exciting.

Roulette is even more bizarre. A ball is thrown into the roulette wheel, and the odds are split between red and black. If you bet on a single number, you win 35 times the stake. The feeling of holding your breath and waiting for the ball to land is addictive for veteran gamblers.