"Even if you can gamble with stones, you still need to observe before coming to a conclusion. Lin Mo, sitting here, simply glances from afar and knows Liao Zhiping lost. Could it be that you are an Immortal?"
Everyone didn't say it, but dissatisfaction was already evident on their faces.
"Green has appeared."
Green surfaced on both raw stones at the same time. Liao Zhiping glanced at them, sighed softly, "I lost."
"My apologies, Mr. Liao." Mr. Hu bowed his hands together, his face showing a trace of joy.
The raw stone chosen by Liao Zhiping revealed a touch of emerald green, while the one opened by Mr. Hu was a light yellow jade. In terms of quality, regardless of size, Mr. Hu had already surpassed Liao Zhiping.
"Brother, it seems that after Old Liao fell ill last time, he indeed isn't up to par now," Black Panther said with his head lowered, sneering.
Hei Xiong didn't speak, but the corners of his mouth curled into a strange arc.
Liao Jun felt like there was a fishbone stuck in his throat as he deeply looked at Lin Mo.
He hadn't expected Lin Mo to actually predict correctly.
Liao Zhiping lost.
But the raw stone hadn't even been cut open yet and Lin Mo didn't observe the stone, how did he know Liao Zhiping would lose?
"Father just recovered from a serious illness, and his condition isn't very good. Otherwise, how could Hei Xiong possibly win?" Liao Changjing clenched his fists.
Both Liao Ke and Li Yunfei looked at Liao Zhiping with worried expressions.
The raw stones excavated from the New Mine were somewhat different from those produced from the old pit. Even Liao Zhiping and Mr. Hu, relying on many years of experience, faced some difficulties, and both continued to frown deeply as they stared at selecting raw stones.
However, Liao Zhiping had been seriously ill once and though he recovered for several days, he hadn't completely returned to form, frowning tightly.
"Brother Xiao Mo, how did you know for sure that Liao Zhiping would lose?" Bai Rui slightly furrowed her beautiful brows, looking at Lin Mo with some suspicion.
Lin Mo's mouth lifted into a light curve, his face brimming with a bit of excitement, his palms slightly clenched into fists.
"It's just as I guessed."
Lin Mo, even from a distance, could feel the Spiritual Energy contained within the two stones.
This meant the New Mine was indeed a Spirit Vein, and all the jade stored within had Spiritual Energy. As long as one was a Magic User or a Martial Artist with strong spiritual power, they could sense the 'abnormality' within.
For the second time, Liao Zhiping and Mr. Hu each chose a raw stone of almost the same size.
But this time, Liao Zhiping won.
"Grandfather." Liao Ke suddenly stood up and rushed to Liao Zhiping's side, helping him.
Liao Zhiping's face was somewhat pale, and his forehead was covered with fine beads of sweat, clearly having expended too much energy in selecting stones. Given Liao Zhiping's age and recent recovery from a serious illness, his body seemed to be struggling to cope.
"I'm fine." Liao Zhiping waved his hand.
"Heh heh, Mr. Liao, there's one more round to go, you have to hold on," Hei Xiong said in a cold voice upon seeing Liao Zhiping's condition.
It was apparent that Mr. Hu had come prepared; although he slipped up just now, the jade he selected was only slightly less valuable than Liao Zhiping's. For the final round, most people were not optimistic about Liao Zhiping.
"It seems that the Liao Family is going to lose today."
"If Mr. Liao hadn't just recovered from a serious illness, it's uncertain whether he would have lost to Mr. Hu."
"Hmm, Mr. Liao is after all our Stone Touching Saint in Tengchong, such a pity," just as everyone was shaking their heads and sighing, Lin Mo suddenly stood up and said, "Mr. Liao, I wonder if I could replace you in the competition?"
Liao Zhiping looked at Lin Mo in surprise. As they say, specialization is key in any craft, and stone gambling, like medicine, requires time and experience to master. Even he could make mistakes, let alone Lin Mo.
This final match was about the fate of the Liao Family in Tengchong after all.
"Grandfather, let Mr. Lin give it a try. I believe in him," Liao Ke looked at her grandfather, her pretty face showing a firm belief in Lin Mo.
"Dad, this concerns the future of our Liao Family's fate, how can we let someone else replace us?" Liao Changjing immediately stood up, his eyes wide open.
Liao Changwei also said, "No, he may be great at healing, but stone gambling is not a joke."
Other members of the Liao Family also voiced their opposition.
How could the fate of the Liao Family be entrusted to an outsider, especially since Lin Mo was young? There's a world of difference between professions, and stone gambling is not like healing!
"Mr. Lin, then I'll have to entrust this to you," Liao Zhiping nodded at Lin Mo.
Immediately after, Liao Zhiping said, "Chairman Fang, Mr. Xiong, I'm feeling a bit under the weather. For this last bet, I will have Mr. Lin take my place, if that is acceptable?"
Chairman Fang frowned. This sort of thing had never happened before in the world of Gambling Stone. They were down to the last round and suddenly, there was a change of players.
"Dad..." Liao Changjing's eyes widened as he cried out.
"Shut up, I'm still the head of the Liao Family. Are my words no longer valid?" Liao Zhiping glared fiercely at his son.
The rest of the Liao Family wanted to speak up but restrained themselves. After all, Liao Zhiping was still the helmsman of the family, his authority still stood.
"Mr. Xiong, what do you think? After all, this is a bet between you and Mr. Liao," Chairman Fang looked at Hei Xiong, asking for his opinion.
Hei Xiong squinted his eyes slightly, a cold light shining through them as he watched Lin Mo, and said with a sneer, "Fine, then let's follow Mr. Liao's wishes."
He didn't believe that a youngster could understand anything about Gambling Stone.
Hei Xiong knew that Lin Mo was a Martial Artist and also knew medicine, but the waters of stone gambling ran deep. The Liao Family must have been desperate to let Lin Mo step in.
"Hmph." Mr. Hu swept a glance at Lin Mo, his eyes full of disdain, his hands clasped behind his back he shook his head, obviously not taking Lin Mo seriously.
"This Liao Family must be at their wits' end, huh? To let a brat gamble on stones," Black Panther said with a sneer.
"No matter what, as long as we can secure the New Mine," Hei Xiong picked up his celadon tea cup, blew away the mist, and took a delicate sip.
With Lin Mo stepping in for Liao Zhiping to bet, a buzz instantly ran through the crowd.
"Who is that guy anyway? Mr. Liao actually let him replace him in the stone gambling."
"He seems to have an extraordinary relationship with Miss Bai of the Bai Family, but isn't he too young?"
"Yeah, stone gambling is not child's play, can he really understand Gambling Stone being so young?"
"I've been immersed in this trade for more than a dozen years, and even now, I don't dare to make big bets. This young man is not up for it."
The crowd was filled with voices of doubt towards Lin Mo. After all, stone gambling is an industry requiring experience, and the accumulation of experience takes time, which at Lin Mo's age, made it impossible for him to achieve any success in stone gambling.
"What is Mr. Liao thinking?" Dan Wen frowned, puzzled. "Mr. Liao is trying to preserve the last bit of his reputation," Shan Xiongjie said with a cold smile and shake of his head: "If Liao Zhiping loses, he will no longer be the number one stone gambling master in Tengchong, but if someone else loses, even if the Liao Family loses to Hei Xiong, as long as Liao Zhiping didn't make the move, he can still maintain his reputation."
Hearing Shan Xiongjie's analysis, Dan Wen, Tian Zi, Huang Yongfei, and others around them all showed a sudden understanding.
It turned out that Liao Zhiping already knew he was bound to lose and getting Lin Mo to step in was an attempt to retain his last bit of honor.