One Piece Gunslinger

Therefore, it would be inappropriate for Li Ang to continue with his previous approach; the strong must use the methods of the strong. The only resource Li Ang could utilize was the reputation of the Revolutionary Army behind him, and this was the leverage he needed to recruit Bakala.

Faced with the powerful Revolutionary Army, Tesoro, the local bully, could only struggle and be suppressed.

……

"Please come this way." After getting out of the car, Bakara led Li Ang through a fast passage, and they easily arrived at the front desk.

"Our place is different from other places. Since it's the Golden City, its unique feature is that you can also use gold as a bargaining chip. Would you like to use Berries or gold directly? If you don't have Berries or gold on you, you can also borrow some funds here. Given your status, you can borrow up to 200 million Berries or the equivalent in gold without interest."

Of course, you can borrow more, but that will incur interest. This is what we calculated after assessing your identity; for you, 200 million Berries isn't a large sum and you can easily repay it.

Blah blah blah blah…

Bakara expertly introduced the services to Li Ang, her lines clearly rehearsed countless times. The process was remarkably smooth; she spoke a long, uninterrupted speech, her experience truly invaluable.

"Do you understand? Do you need me to repeat it?" Bakara spoke for a full two minutes before finishing that long string of words.

"No need." Li Ang's memory isn't bad.

"How much do you need to borrow?" Bakara asked with a smile.

Bakara was certain that Li Ang wanted to borrow money because he arrived in a small boat without a bag or anything, so he certainly didn't have much money. He also wasn't wearing any gold or silver jewelry. If it weren't for his undeniable air of authority, one would easily mistake Li Ang for someone who looked very similar but was actually a penniless pauper.

Okay, Li Ang is indeed a penniless wretch, that much is true.

“In that case,” Li Ang said without hesitation, “let’s start with a gold equivalent to one hundred million Berries.”

Even if Li Ang had money, he had no choice but to borrow it. If he didn't, he would probably lose it all soon and then come here to borrow money. After all, the real battle only begins after borrowing money, so it's better to just come here and borrow some money first.

Then Bakara took a box from the front desk, opened it, and found some gold bars inside. Each gold bar was engraved with a number, in four different formats: "100", "200", "500", and "1000". The larger the number engraved on the gold bar, the larger it was.

Li Ang understood immediately. Influenced by the gold rush, they were directly casting gold chips. And this 100 was already the smallest gold chip; any smaller and the font would have to be reduced to engrave the numbers on the gold bars. It seemed these gold chip chips weren't something the average person could afford to play with.

"Then please confirm that this is exactly the equivalent of one hundred million Berries in gold."

Li Ang didn't even bother to count or calculate; anyway, their tricks wouldn't be that low-level, and the trap wasn't here. He simply nodded and took the box of gold from Bakara.

However, the instant Bakara took the box, her hand touched Bakara's. Moreover, Bakara wasn't wearing gloves on the hand holding the box. What seemed like a natural gesture was, in Bakara's eyes, a signal that he was beginning to dig a trap.

"Hehe, now it's my lucky time."

Baccarat had already brought good luck to Li Ang during that previous encounter.

As Baccarat previously stated, the figure of 100 million Berries was derived after assessing Leon's identity. If Leon were to lose all 100 million Berries, it wouldn't be a big deal; he could easily pay it back. Tesoro's goal wasn't simply to swindle 100 million Berries. If Leon lost 100 million Berries and then quit in a fit of pique, that would be tantamount to failure.

So we have to let Li Ang taste some sweetness first, and then take him to the more exciting VIP room to induce him to borrow more money, and finally swindle him out of a lot of money.

Therefore, Li Ang was confident that good luck must be with him now.

Li Ang then walked to a roulette table and pulled out a gold bar with the number "1000" printed on it. The maximum bet was ten million Berries.

“Oh? Roulette?” Baccarat asked, standing next to Leon. “Is this your specialty?”

“No.” Li Ang shook his head and said, “I should say this is a place I just picked randomly. Although I have two friends who are particularly good at gambling, I have almost never played these things myself.”

This refers to Max and Fujitora. The former relies on keen observation and years of honed skills, while the latter relies on incredible luck. Li Ang never plays with these two dogs, because humans can't outmaneuver dogs.

"Huh? Is that so?" Bakara asked in surprise. "Judging from your calm and collected demeanor, I thought you were a seasoned veteran. But if you don't have much experience, I recommend betting on red or black. And everyone's betting on black this time, I don't know why, but I have a feeling that betting on red will win."

Bakara is adept at this tactic, standing on the sidelines offering so-called beginner guidance, and providing more professional analysis for experienced bettors. But in reality, it's all nonsense. She's just spouting off; with the luck Bakara bestows, it doesn't matter what you bet on.

However, none of the people who are tricked know the reason behind it. Under Bakara's guidance, they bet on whatever they want and win every time. They feel that they are winning money at the gambling table time and time again because of Bakara.

Even if these people still believe they have some sense, as Bakala's influence grows, they will increasingly trust her and do whatever she says. Eventually, they will become completely obedient.

At this point, Bakara will take you to a VIP room with no betting limit, where you borrow another large sum of money and lose it all in one go. Some victims don't even realize that Bakara is behind it all.

However, there are some variations of this tactic. If someone doesn't heed Bakura's advice and still falls victim to the power of the Luck-Luck Fruit, then Bakura will stand by and applaud you, then use a set of words to praise you to the skies.

Anyway, Baccarat always has a trick up her sleeve to drag you into a trap.

Even Li Ang could only temporarily enter into Bakala's routine and try to decipher it from within.

So, during his speech in Bakara, Li Ang directly placed a gold bar worth ten million Berries on the "00".

“Eh, this…”

Bakara has seen dissenters, who bet on the underdog when someone says it's popular, but she's never seen someone like Li Ang bet directly on "00." Although the odds are high, the probability drops to 1/35. How confident must one be to bet on "00"?

This can only be attributed to the fact that Leon simply doesn't care about money. He just gave it away because he had nothing better to do than toss gold into the water and make a sound.

Bakara understood that since Li Ang had bet on 00, the final result was undoubtedly 00. She could only wait for the result to be revealed, and then, while Li Ang was celebrating wildly, Bakara could offer a few more words of praise.

"Do you think I can bet on it?" Li Ang asked.

"That's unlikely, the probability is a bit small." Bakara had already planned to use a strategy of first criticizing and then praising, so that she would contradict herself and elevate Li Ang.

Shortly after Bakala finished speaking, the roulette wheel stopped, and the ball landed right on the "00".

"Wow, that's amazing. You really won 00, congratulations!" Bakara quickly put on a smile and stood aside to applaud Li Ang.

Yes, her acting was so natural, there were almost no flaws. If Li Ang didn't know Baccarat's background, he might have actually believed her lies.

"Stop, stop. This is basic stuff." Li Ang, playing along with Bakala's performance, struck a confident pose and interrupted Bakala's applause.

"The reason 00 came out is because I bet on 00, that's all."

Upon hearing this, Bakara's expression faltered.

"This is a bit too much of a show-off. It would be more believable if you said this before the results came out, but it's clearly my fault, okay?" Bakara has seen people brag and show off over the years, but she's never seen Li Ang boast like this. And judging from his confident look, he clearly believes it himself.

Even boasting and showing off should follow basic rules, you know.

Chapter 339 Heaven and the Way of Man

However, because of this rare "00", Li Ang was not sure if Bakara had any luck left to pass on to him, and that this move might have used up all his luck.

This excessive show of arrogance can only be done once; there probably won't be another chance.

Sure enough, Bakara realized that she had used up most of her luck, and immediately said, "Since we're so lucky, why don't we go to the VIP room? It's riskier there, but we can earn more."

Bakara was about to lead Li Ang to the VIP room, but Li Ang shook his head and said, "Before that, let me go find a restaurant first. I haven't eaten in a long time."

Well, Bakara remembered now that Li Ang was different from the others; he had come by boat. And boating is physically demanding. Furthermore, Li Ang hadn't eaten anything since arriving in the Golden City.

"I'm sorry. This was my mistake." Bakara, as the top receptionist, immediately apologized to Li Ang. "What would you like to eat? I'll take you there right away."

Meanwhile, Bakara gestured to the monitor behind her back to postpone the plan. Playing the long game doesn't always go smoothly and resolve things quickly. The most important thing in this kind of thing is patience.

"Oh? Then how about this steak, wild-cooked?" Li Ang directly passed the complicated question of where 64 Garnet Street was to Bakara. He figured that having a lavish meal there would be enough time before Karina arrived.

As for Bakala's problem, Li Ang is confident that it will be resolved within this period of time.

Li Ang didn't take the gold he won; instead, he simply left it at the front desk. He entrusted these things to the casino for safekeeping, knowing they would all be his anyway.

The journey proceeded in silence, and under Bakara's guidance, Li Ang resolved the question of where Karina had mentioned. As expected of a top-notch receptionist, she was intimately familiar with all the shops in the city.

"Please bring me one, no, two of the best. Thank you." These were Bakala's first words after getting out of the car. Completely ignoring the menu—that's the most scientific and convenient way to order. As long as you have enough money, that's all that matters. Finally, she and Li Ang entered a private room.

Li Ang had no objection to this. After sitting down, he used his Observation Haki to observe the situation and found that there was indeed surveillance hidden there.

"Remember what I said in the casino? You might think I was bragging, saying that the outcome was predetermined when you bet on 00. How could that be?"

It's not just a possibility, it's exactly like that. Isn't that an exaggeration already?

Li Ang continued, “But what I said is true. Do you remember what I said before, ‘To everyone who has, more will be given, and he will have abundance; but from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away’?”

This actually describes a situation where the strong get stronger and the weak get weaker. Any individual, team, or organization that achieves success and progress in a certain area, such as money, fame, or power, will gain a natural advantage once they have enough of these things. This advantage will grow larger and larger, eventually creating a snowball effect, gradually transforming them into a behemoth.

Think about it now. In recent years, Golden City has become a place where you can make money without doing anything. Even if you do nothing, money and business will naturally come to you. That's the effect.

Conversely, the same principle applies: the weak, lacking the resources of the strong, will become increasingly weak.

This statement is actually from the Gospel of Matthew in the New Testament of the Bible, and the effect of the strong getting stronger and the weak getting weaker is also known as the Matthew effect.

This idea actually exists in China as well. "The way of Heaven is to take from those who have more than enough and give to those who have less than enough." This is the first sentence of the Nine Yin Manual, but its true source is in the Tao Te Ching.

Correspondingly, there is another saying: "The way of man is to take from those who have little and give to those who have much."

In the biological cycle and the laws of nature, when something is in excess, it will be reduced to make up for what is lacking. For example...

Imagine ducks and water lilies living in the same wetland. If there are many water lilies, the ducks will be full and their numbers will increase.

However, when there are too many ducks, the water lilies will be eaten in large quantities, causing their numbers to decrease drastically. As a result, the number of ducks will decrease due to lack of food, and the number of water lilies will increase again.

The ducks and water lilies will decrease in number to compensate for the lack of the other. Through repeated cycles, the numbers of ducks and water lilies will eventually reach a balance.

This is the way of Heaven: to take from those who have more and give to those who have less.

The way of man is the opposite. Think about why there are so many endangered animals and why so many species have disappeared. As the human population grows, so do our demands on nature. If this continues unabated, disregarding the way of nature will inevitably lead to collapse.

So Thanos followed the way of Heaven and didn't consider himself human at all.

With a snap of his fingers, he wiped out half of all life and forcibly corrected the way of Heaven. It is precisely because of his stance and persistence that, despite being a major villain, you can't bring yourself to hate him after watching the movie.

Of course, from a human perspective, Thanos's way of heaven is actually anti-human.

Regarding the Way of Heaven and the Way of Man, it's impossible to say which is right or wrong, superior or inferior. Both sides have their own logic, and both truly exist in this world.

The principle Li Ang is talking about now is the way of humanity. He intends to take advantage of the momentum of the way of humanity and seize Bakala in one fell swoop.

Having worked in Golden City for several years, Bakara naturally understood this principle, but her understanding remained at the level of money making money, lacking Li Ang's clear and straightforward insight. She lacked a deeper understanding of the principles of human relationships.

However, after hearing what Li Ang said, it was easy to understand the reasoning behind Li Ang's words. But what Bakara couldn't understand was: "But what does this have to do with what happened before?"

"Hehe, regarding your previous views on those slaves, you thought they were forced into slavery due to bad luck. But my betting on 00 was just good luck. If you analyze it using the theory I just mentioned, you'll find it's inevitable. The strong get stronger, and the weak get weaker—it's that simple."

Bakara was completely bewildered. Could this be explained like that? Inevitably? But this is a gamble with an element of luck involved, so isn't this explanation a bit far-fetched?

Seeing Bakara's expression, Li Ang knew she still couldn't believe it, so he continued to explain, "To put it bluntly, you must have done something to help me bet on 00, right?"

“How could that be? Our casino is always fair and just,” Bakara quickly denied.

Li Ang shook his head and said, "That's really not being frank. Although I didn't see the dealer do anything or find any tricks on the table, there must have been some tampering. If it's about luck, I myself don't believe I could have such amazing luck."

As for why I had to win, it's because I had to win. Have you heard the saying, "Unsolicited kindness is either a sham or a thief"? In short, whether there's a reason or not, I inexplicably became a VIP, and they're definitely trying to profit from me.

If they want further cooperation with the Grandet Group, a closer relationship, or some other ulterior motive, then currying favor with me is definitely a given.

The method is twofold: first, to fulfill all my demands from the outset; second, to create a sense of satisfaction and excitement for me at the gambling table. This achieves the desired outcome.

That's why I said I was certain I would win before the betting was even started.

"It's because I have the resources. Compared to any lowly dealer, or even you, Bakala, I'm a stronger player. Even if I do nothing, benefits will come to me. The strong get stronger—that's the principle."

"This……"