Shi Lang was touring the city with Crystal when he came to a place that was filled with echoes and cheers, a lot of people were walking around, some in groups and some alone. He could not help but ask the girl beside him, “What is this place?”
Crystal said, “This is the arena, people from all generations come here to compete with each other and also settle death grudges. Every city on the planet has one such Arena, and is controlled by the Council.”
Shi Lang nodded and said, “This place can provide the outlet everyone needs to vent. I do not think that the younger generation is allowed to venture into the galaxy, right?”
Crystal nodded and said, “Yes, some of the younger generation elites were sent out, but when they came in contact with pretentious people, the situation almost ended up in a war, thankfully the council intervened.”
She sighed after she finished talking to him. Shi Lang said, “I will have arenas set up in the federation as well. This will get everyone the much-needed experience of a battlefield.”
Crystal nodded and asked, “Boss, would you like to go in and try the skills of the people?”
Shi Lang was taken aback and then said, “Well, let’s go. I would like to watch some fighting first.”
Crystal nodded and took him inside the Arena. The lady was well-known in the city and was taken inside the VIP area. Shi Lang did not say much but observed the surroundings and the crowd. He was not well-versed in the knowledge of the spirit beasts, but the ones he recognized, were all stronger ones.
The arena had five zones, one was the gladiator lobby, where all the fighters would gather. Then came the betting lanes, the staff of the arena management would collect money staked by the people and later the winner can collect the money from this area too. Then came the ordinary observation stands. This place was almost never missing a seat in attendance.
Then came the VIP box observation stands, there were hundred such rooms and all of them had tinted french windows overlooking the final and the most happening area of the Arena, the ring.
The circular ring with a hundred meters diameter was a big enough space for the warriors to fight with each other. the sides of the ring were enforced by a force nullification array, the impact inside the ring will not cause any trouble to the people.
At this moment, in the center of a ring, stood a beautiful young lady. She wore explosive clothing and the eyes of the entry ring were located on her. She said while waving her hands, “Friends, now is the time for the thirtieth bout of the day. Are you ready?”
The crowd cheered, and Shi Lang who was watching the scene from the window asked, “Do the fights have any rules the people have to follow at all times?”
Crystal nodded, “Fighters should not use sneaky means, otherwise the consequences are too heavy for them to afford.”
Crystal nodded and said, “Only death matches are the only exceptions for the people to use hidden weapons and poisons. After all, chasing after a life with fair means will only damage the two people a bit too much, death matches should settle down quickly.”
Shi Lang nodded and looked down at the ring and the woman said, “The two fighters we have for you now are both on a winning streak of five fights.”
The crowd became excited and Crystal explained, “Every five fights will allow the fighter to gain more rewards and also changes their odds in the betting lane.”
Shi Lang nodded and watched the girl announce, “The first contender is a member of the howling moon wolf clan, Thunder Fang.”
The people were bonkers. Shi Lang looked at all this excitement and could not help but say, “Such excitement is the proof of the raw nature of the spirit beasts, always competing whether happy or enraged.”
Crystal looked at Shi Lang from the side and did not know what to say, but she nodded with a smile on her face. She said, “My sister often says, a race of spirit beasts with high intellect will suffer if surrounded by a bunch of muscle mountains.”
Shi Lang chuckled as he watched the announcer announce the name of the other contender, “The warrior that will be facing Thunder Fang is known for her quick speed and beautiful looks. I present to you, the killer bride.”
The terran raised his brows and asked, “What a unique name she has.”
Crystal shook her head and said, “Killer Bride was actually sold by her husband on their wedding night. She suffered brutally but after a few years of moving around in the wilderness, she built herself, and then she enacted her revenge on her so-called husband in this ring.
She beheaded him and broke through her cultivation realm. She only appears in the arena every now and then, otherwise, she would live in seclusion.”
Shi Lang nodded and said, “Fate is a cruel master.”
Crystal nodded and the battle began, after a few minutes the door of the box was knocked and Crystal said, “Come in.”
A young girl walked inside, dressed in a butler attire, she asked, “Lady Crystal, would you like to place a bet?”
Shi Lang did not react, and after some thought, Crystal asked, “Boss, who would you place your money on?”
Shi Lang cast her a look and smiled, “You have learned how to exploit me now, Crystal. It seems Jill is a bad influence on you.”
The girl chuckled and Shi Lang said, “I will bet on the killer bride.”
Crystal gestured for the girl to come closer, and the girl took out a scanner, then Crystal swiped her hand over the scanner and said, “I will bet two hundred thousand credits on the killer bride.”
The butler girl was surprised because two hundred thousand credits was a big amount but the princess of Heavenly snow fox just staked them on a word from this young man, the butler looked at Shi Lang and Crystal asked, “Is there anything else?”
The butler woke up and with a bow she left. Shi Lang mumbled, “The hierarchy of the beasts is very rigid.”
Crystal did not comment and began watching the battle in the ring. After two minutes the end was not in sight, but everyone could see that the killer bride was being suppressed. Those who bet on her were getting anxious and the cheers for Thunder Fang were getting louder.
Crystal did not flinch, but the butler that accepted her stake was thinking how the young princess was a fool to trust the word of a stranger. However, just when the people were about to lose hope something happened.
…
In the arena, Thunder Fang stood in ragged attire, his torso lingered with a few shallow cuts, as he held two scimitars in his hand. In front of him stood a delicate petite figured female, she had two big gashes bleeding profusely on both her forearms, but she still held onto the curved knife in her hand.
The arena rules stipulated incapacity to keep fighting or voluntary surrender are the two means to be defeated, however, the killer bride was still clinging to the fight, Thunder Fang saw this and said, “You should know when to stop, Killer Bride.”
The lady had her entire face covered with a porcelain mask and her attire was a tactical suit. Only her blue eyes were visible to the people, and even her hair was covered with a hood. The lady took a deep breath, she was very much in the need to win this battle, but the odds were piled up against her.
Suddenly, she heard a voice in her head, “Believe in yourself..”
Her eyes widened as she stood there distracted, Thunder Fang saw this and he rushed forward with his weapons, however, just when he was about to slash at the killer bride in a pincer attack, the lady leaned forward and then she vanished from her place. When she appeared next, she stood one meter away from Thunder Fang, and her knife was resting against his nape.
The scimitars were yet to close in on the Killer Bride. However, this was not going to stop the battle so the lady did not hesitate, and to counter the incoming scimitars, she nudged the knife against the throat of the opponent and made him freeze from fear.
The cold tip of the knife was inside his skin, it was not deep but the blood was drawn and if the lady had exerted force, she could have killed him. Thunder Fang stopped and Killer Bride asked in a hoarse voice, “You should know when to stop.”
Thunder Fang was unsatisfied with the result but he nodded and accepted defeat. Life was much more important than a win in the arena. Crystal smiled and said, “Boss, I am rich, thanks to you.”
Shi Lang smiled and said, “Feel free to share the profit.”
The two looked at each other and laughed. Shi Lang suddenly said, “I also want to fight, what do you think?”
Crystal was surprised and did not know how to react, to be honest, she was joking earlier.