Chapter 172: The Circus

"You should solve Doctor Ai Lun's luck problem; after all, staying unlucky forever isn't a solution."

Lei Kedun made a request to De Si Ti Ni, then turned to Doctor Ai Lun and said:

"Mr. De Si Ti Ni can fix your misfortune, but as a price"

"How much money is needed?" Doctor Ai Lun interrupted Lei Kedun.

He already regarded Lei Kedun and De Si Ti Ni as scammers, but after being tormented by bad luck for so long, he still wanted to hear what they would propose.

Lei Kedun waved his hand: "No money needed."

"Consider it a gift for your future child."

De Si Ti Ni unexpectedly replied with that sentence.

"Future child?" Doctor Ai Lun looked puzzled, but no one present offered an answer.

Lei Kedun glanced at De Si Ti Ni, surprised that the other so easily guessed Wei Er·Ang Sai Ting's plan to reboot.

Lei Kedun didn't want to intervene in the conflict between Wei Er and Wu Luo Liu Si, and now a fragment of the True Creator's consciousness dwelled within him, so Wei Er wouldn't dare to face him.

Thinking that Wei Er was now avoiding him, Lei Kedun felt his outing today was pointless.

"Or perhaps my intuition points to something else?"

Lei Kedun pondered briefly but couldn't think of anything else that could spark his inspiration.

Doctor Ai Lun glanced at the deep-in-thought Lei Kedun and De Si Ti Ni, then politely took his leave, leaning on his cane to find other acquaintances to chat with.

After Doctor Ai Lun left, Lei Kedun asked curiously:

"Mr. De Si Ti Ni, have you already dispelled his misfortune?"

De Si Ti Ni, eyes closed, shook his head slightly and explained:

"It's not that he's infected with misfortune; his own luck is simply lacking, and I've supplemented some for him."

"Although it's not enough to make him lucky, it will prevent extreme bad luck."

Lei Kedun nodded thoughtfully, saying nothing more.

Sitting like that grew boring, so he simply asked a waiter for a set of Flying Chess.

"Thanks to Emperor Luo Sai Er, my life isn't so boring!"

After thanking Luo Sai Er for the Flying Chess, Lei Kedun invited De Si Ti Ni to play with him.

While playing, Lei Kedun felt something like fate's favor.

After a round, Lei Kedun switched the Flying Chess to Indis Chess, not for any other reason but because chess is less affected by luck.

When Craine returned from target practice, he saw Lei Kedun and the ever-closed-eyed Mr. De Si Ti Ni playing cards.

Several other board games were laid out on the nearby table; it seemed the two had tried them all, and many onlookers gathered around.

Taking a few steps closer, Craine asked curiously:

"Why did you start playing cards?"

"Bored, wanted to challenge fate."

Lei Kedun casually drew a card and said:

"Challenge fate?" Craine asked, puzzled.

"Sherlock, are these two your friends?"

Talim, who introduced Craine to the Krag Club, turned aside to make room for Craine and then, in an exaggerated tone, said:

"You have no idea how good this old man's luck is—it's like his wishes come true; he can draw any card he wants. Whether chess or cards, as long as luck is involved, he hasn't lost a single game."

Craine nodded politely: "Indeed, the old man's luck has always been great."

He is an extraordinary one of the Fate Path!

Doctor Ai Lun, also watching Lei Kedun and De Si Ti Ni play, heard Craine and De Si Ti Ni become acquainted, and, leaning on his cane, called Craine aside for a private talk.

Doctor Ai Lun recounted his recent experiences and De Si Ti Ni's words to Craine, seeking the detective's opinion.

"Sherlock, are you familiar with that Mr. De Si Ti Ni? Do you think his words are trustworthy?"

"I was originally reluctant to believe this, but after watching them play cards and chess for a while, honestly, I even suspect they might be wizards wielding mysterious powers."

Doctor Ai Lun said, his tone tinged with disbelief.

Craine wore a thoughtful expression, pondering how to speak so that everything seemed reasonable yet convinced Doctor Ai Lun.

After a moment of thought, Craine cleared his throat lightly and said:

"Ahem! Doctor Ai Lun, that Mr. De Si Ti Ni indeed possesses extraordinary insight into fate; I think you can trust his judgment."

"You can observe for a couple more days, see if your luck improves, then decide whether to consider other methods."

Doctor Ai Lun chuckled wryly: "True enough, I've been unlucky for such a long time anyway; missing a day or two won't hurt."

After comforting Doctor Ai Lun, Craine went to the buffet and grabbed some food for today's lunch.

Not long after Craine sat at the table, Lei Kedun and De Si Ti Ni each came with a plate of food, approaching the area around the table.

Craine glanced at De Si Ti Ni, whose closed eyes made no difference from open ones, and asked curiously:

"Mr. De Si Ti Ni, is there any problem with Doctor Ai Lun's sudden drop in luck?"

De Si Ti Ni, while eating lunch, replied:

"No problem; someone simply asked him for help. I gave him some luck, so he won't be unlucky thereafter."

"Why would seeking help cause someone's luck to worsen?"

Craine grew even more puzzled.

De Si Ti Ni said, his tone a bit wistful:

"Every gift from fate requires a price; that doctor is merely paying the price early, and fate's gifts will arrive gradually thereafter."

Craine nodded as if half-understood; seeing De Si Ti Ni had nothing more to say, he stopped asking.

"What are you planning to do this afternoon?" Lei Kedun asked Craine about his afternoon plans.

"Going to the circus to watch the clock performance." Klein answered his own plan for the afternoon.

Rex closed his eyes and pondered for a moment, no longer having that wonderful premonition from the morning, not knowing whether he had missed it or already encountered it.

Destiny also spoke at this time:

"I'm preparing to go back; I've used up too much luck today, so it's not suitable to continue going out."

Rex and Klein exchanged a glance, both seeing doubt in each other's eyes.

"Doctor Allen?" Rex said thoughtfully.

Destiny nodded slightly: "I've given most of the luck I've accumulated over the years to him, hoping to exchange it for useful news."

"Is there any special reason for Doctor Allen's luck suddenly worsening?"

The conversation between Rex and Destiny made Klein now suspect that Doctor Allen's worsening luck might be due to the influence of higher-ranking entities on the fate pathway.

Destiny did not answer this question, merely silently eating her lunch.

Rex thought for a moment and said: "He previously encountered a guy who was having bad luck."

After finishing lunch at the Kelage Club, Destiny and Rex said goodbye and then left by carriage.

After seeing Destiny off, Klein turned his head, directed his gaze at Rex, and asked:

"Do you still want to go to the circus with me?"

Rex shook his head: "Why not? I also want to relax; lately my magic potion digestion hasn't made any progress, it's making my head feel big."

"How does your magic potion digestion need to be acted out?"

Klein asked very curiously.

Since he knew the other person, he had never seen any behavior that looked particularly like acting.

"As a secret arts instructor, what's naturally needed most is to develop various secret arts and spread them."

Rex casually explained, then hailed a carriage at the roadside.

The two took a carriage to a circus near the Qiaowude District Tasuoke.

Today was not a special day, nor a holiday; there were not many guests in the circus, and even the clowns looked listless.

The two bought tickets at the theater inside the circus, then went in to watch the clock performance.

On the stage inside the theater, an animal trainer was commanding a black bear, a tiger with striped yellow-black fur, and a seated curly-haired baboon.

Klein and Rex found a seat and sat down, quietly watching the performance on stage.

The animal trainer waved the whip in his hand, commanding the black bear to clumsily do a somersault.

"Hey! This guy just wanted to slap you!"

A chubby man in his thirties sitting in the front row suddenly shouted at the animal trainer.

The not-so-numerous audience in the venue was amused by this scene and burst into loud laughter.

Rex raised his eyebrows, glanced at the black bear, then at the chubby man, and murmured softly: "Animal trainer!"

"Animal trainer?" Klein thought Rex was referring to the performer on stage.

The chubby man in his thirties suddenly shouted toward the stage again:

"That curly-haired baboon wants to grab you and use you as a cushion under its butt!"

Klein quietly activated his spiritual vision, observing the aura colors of the animal trainer on stage and the three animals.

The emotional colors of those three animals were indeed unstable; it seemed that a little more stimulation could cause them to erupt.

Klein originally wanted to ask Rex which animal trainer he meant earlier—the one performing on stage or the one down below who looked like he was sabotaging the act.

Immediately afterward, he heard the other's soft whisper:

"I've figured out what kind of secret art to develop next!"

Klein curiously turned his head and asked:

"What kind of secret art are you preparing to develop?"

Rex slightly raised the corners of his mouth and said:

"Emotional and desire types!"

"In the magical knowledge recorded by the Knowledge Church, this area is lacking; if I can develop some secret arts in this area, the remaining magic potion in my body will basically be digested completely."

(End of chapter)