Old Voice, Old Position, and the Old Swindler

"Brother Lu, I truly admire your ingenuity in designing such an illusion... I wonder if I might be lucky enough to win just one small round against you!"

Wang Tianjing stared directly into Lu Ze's eyes, not letting his gaze drop for even a moment, as he drew a card from the center and tossed it onto the table.

"One [Human]."

"Doubt."

Lu Ze immediately slammed the table without hesitation.

"!?"

All three players were stunned.

Questioning the very first card played—this was unusually aggressive.

Yet when the card was revealed, it was indeed a fake—[Earth].

Wang Tianjing let out a bitter laugh and picked up the hand crossbow beside him, pressing it against his temple and pulling the trigger.

Fortunately, it was a blank.

"Brother Lu, I never expected you to be so... bold."

Wang Tianjing sighed.

"Not exactly," Lu Ze shook his head with a faint smile.

"Brother Wang, you might not realize it, but whenever you try to deceive someone, you always subconsciously talk more than usual."

Of course, Lu Ze only explained half of it.

Earlier, Wang Tianjing had locked eyes with him—precisely to mask the subtle tells of his bluff.

In his mind, maintaining eye contact was a sign of confidence, proof that he wasn’t lying.

But these two tells combined made Lu Ze certain that the probability of a fake card was high.

He had to strike first and establish dominance.

If Wang Tianjing succeeded in sneaking a bluff, his pressure in later rounds would lessen significantly.

[This round’s target card: Heaven]

"I see, I see... I’ve learned my lesson."

Wang Tianjing glanced at his hand, swiftly rearranged the cards, and held them close.

Then his eyes locked onto Lu Ze again.

"Brother Lu, you seem quite knowledgeable about the psychology of card games. Given that this particular game... has never existed before, where did you gain so much experience?"

Lu Ze smirked. "Guess."

"I’d guess... Brother Lu is a genius."

Wang Tianjing chuckled and shook his head before playing another card.

"One [Heaven]."

"Doubt."

Lu Ze remained calm, tapping the table with the same faint smile.

"!?"

Wang Tianjing’s grin froze on his face.

The card was flipped—sure enough, it was a [Human].

"Brother Lu, how...?"

Wang Tianjing stared at him in disbelief.

"Normally, repeating the same trick would indeed be a good way to bait me," Lu Ze explained, spreading his hands.

"So wouldn’t this be the perfect chance to sneak in another fake?"

Then, with a playful grin, Lu Ze flipped over his own hand one card at a time.

"Of course, the real reason I dared to doubt you is... all my cards are fakes."

Not a single [Heaven] was in Lu Ze’s hand.

Assuming Wang Tianjing held three [Heaven] cards, the most likely positions for a bluff were either the first or second play.

And since Wang Tianjing was a gambler at heart, he’d likely bet on Lu Ze not daring to call him out twice in a row...

Lu Ze judged this to be the perfect moment to strike.

"Truly impressive, Brother Lu. I concede defeat without regret!"

Xu Hao nodded thoughtfully, admiration in his voice.

"Do you have mind-reading powers or something...?"

Chen Yiyun eyed Lu Ze with deep suspicion.

"Brother Lu is indeed the chosen one..."

Wang Tianjing sighed. He never expected Lu Ze’s lack of genuine cards to work in his favor.

He picked up the hand crossbow again. With two blanks already fired, the odds of the third shot being live were dangerously high.

The threat of death loomed over him, tightening his chest.

Squeezing his eyes shut, he pulled the trigger—click—still no bolt.

Wang Tianjing exhaled in relief and grinned. "Brother Lu, it seems my luck hasn’t run out yet."

The game continued.

[This round’s target card: Heaven.]

When [Heaven] appeared, Lu Ze—usually unreadable—briefly twitched an eyebrow.

‘Heaven again...?’

He couldn’t help but grumble inwardly.

Every time the target was [Heaven], his hand was terrible.

Even though the secret realm blocked the "internet" sustained by the remnants of the Heavenly Dao...

He couldn’t shake the feeling that, in some unseen way, that damned remnant was rigging the game.

Not a single [Heaven] card ever came his way!

But the moment his hand was dealt, Lu Ze was stunned—this time, he had four [Heaven] cards!

‘Well, well... decided to play fair now?’

He suppressed any reaction, swiftly arranging his cards face-down on the table.

Wang Tianjing played just as quickly.

This time, he’d learned his lesson.

No chatter, no staring—just a brief pause before sliding two cards forward.

"Two [Heaven]."

Chen Yiyun and Xu Hao both turned to Lu Ze, eager to see his next move.

After back-to-back instant doubts, would he challenge Wang Tianjing again?

The game had reached its climax—Wang Tianjing was dancing on the edge of death.

A battle of wits between masters was thrilling to witness!

With Lu Ze holding four [Heaven] cards, the probability of Wang Tianjing’s two being fake was extremely high.

But Lu Ze, now in an overwhelming position, saw no need to gamble.

With a smirk, his hands blurred as he shuffled his face-down cards at lightning speed.

By the time he stopped, the others couldn’t track which card was where.

Lu Ze raised his right hand toward his nose—then abruptly lowered it, tossing out three cards in rapid succession: first, second, and fourth positions.

"Three [Heaven]."

His lips curled as he pitched his voice higher:

"Take a guess... do you believe me?"

"Not this again!!!"

Chen Yiyun shuddered, haunted by traumatic memories of past rounds.

That voice, that move—same old trickster.

"Haha, the pressure’s on Brother Wang now."

Xu Hao grinned, watching Wang Tianjing sweat.

Wang Tianjing clenched his fist, index finger pressed to his nose, running calculations in his head.

His hand held two [Heaven] cards.

The two he’d just played were fakes.

At first, he thought he was safe when Lu Ze didn’t call him out.

One more bluff, and victory would be his.

But if Lu Ze successfully played three cards now, Wang Tianjing would be at a crushing disadvantage!

The core of The Liar’s Teahouse was twofold: bluffing and speed.

The first to empty their hand won.

If Wang Tianjing played two fakes and Lu Ze played three, Lu Ze would be way ahead.

Wang Tianjing had two genuine cards, meaning Lu Ze likely held three or even four.

If Lu Ze had three, this play was a trap—baiting Wang Tianjing to doubt.

If Wang Tianjing didn’t take it, Lu Ze would be stuck with two fakes, doomed to lose.

But given Lu Ze’s skill...

That strategy was possible, but unlikely.

Because if Wang Tianjing refused to doubt, Lu Ze would be in dire straits.

Which meant—

Lu Ze probably had four genuine cards!

Now the question was: where had Lu Ze hidden the single fake?

Among the three played cards, or the remaining two?

Lu Ze's playstyle...

Wang Tianjing's frown deepened further.

Lu Ze's tactics were far too unpredictable!

It was utterly impossible to grasp his patterns!

It was as if...

Every single thought in his own mind had been laid bare before him.

In an instant, the match seemed to have reached a deadlock.

"Brother Wang, what's wrong? Need me to give you a hint?"

Lu Ze's devilish laughter echoed.

Wang Tianjing opened his eyes and witnessed an unbelievable sight—

Lu Ze had actually reached out and flipped over the first card himself.

It was none other than... the [Heaven] card!