Chapter 54: Chapter 49 Arena
The next morning, the upstairs of the tavern was a mess, clothes strewn everywhere in the large room.
“Xu Mo, are you a gold-swallowing beast?” Xiao Qi approached the Source Power House, equipped with many small devices specifically for Xu Mo’s cultivation.
But now, the Source Power Blocks in the Source Power House were almost depleted.
Although Xu Mo had a strong ability to make money, he was like a gold-swallowing beast, becoming more and more extravagant.
A single Source Power Block was worth thousands of Federation coins, approximately the annual income of a resident from the City State Main City.
Over the past year, it was unclear how much gold Xu Mo had swallowed.
“He can earn it himself, why are you shouting?” Ye Qingdie emerged and scolded, causing Xiao Qi to immediately shut his mouth.
“Ah!” Xiao Qi sighed.
Ever since Xu Mo appeared, Sister Butterfly had changed.
Ruthless.
“I’ll head to the Arena this afternoon, arrange that,” Xu Mo spoke up, lighting up Xiao Qi’s eyes instantly.
The Arena was like Xu Mo’s ATM.
…
City State Arena, at the heart of the Underworld’s main city area.
The massive arena held tens of thousands of spectators, a sea of people as far as the eye could see.
Beneath the stands, the large arena was illuminated by lights sweeping back and forth, while speakers overhead blared deafening sounds.
When the competitors emerged from various exits, roars like tsunamis erupted from the stands, loud enough to burst eardrums.
The oppressive Underworld compelled people to need a highly stimulating atmosphere.
The Arena undoubtedly provided such an environment.
The Arena operated on a point system, with five levels of competition: Black Iron, Silver, Gold, Diamond, and Star.
The ticket prices varied by level; Black Iron was only one Federation coin, yet few people came to watch.
Whereas Star Level occurred only once a year, with an average ticket price exceeding thousands of Federation coins, out of reach for ordinary people. Yet even so,
the annual Star Competition was still a sell-out, the most popular feast in the City State.
A feast for the strong.
This match was a Gold Level competition, with tickets averaging several dozen Federation coins, making the Arena’s revenue tens of millions of Federation coins, a terrifying amount.
Similarly, competitors’ incomes varied by level and rank, determining their earnings.
The first place in the Gold Arena earned fifty thousand Federation coins, enough to drive many people crazy.
Twenty Gold Level contenders entered the arena from different directions, standing in the arena, enjoying the tsunamic roars.
Just this scene alone was enough to make one’s blood boil.
“Caesar, Caesar…”
“Poison Dragon.”
People were shouting the contestants’ codenames; shouts for Caesar and Poison Dragon were seemingly the loudest, having gained considerable popularity in previous combats.
Xu Mo, dressed in black Battle Armor and wielding a War Saber, which were provided by the Arena.
Of course, the Arena allowed competitors to bring their own gear; if your equipment was strong enough, you had an advantage, which was also part of the skill, but Xu Mo chose the Arena’s equipment.
He had participated in some Black Iron and Silver competitions before and had earned points. After resting for some days, this was his first time in a Gold competition.
Because he was short of money.
There were no Casinos in the Main City area, a shortage of money-making opportunities.
As for the tavern, it was just a cover and a place to gather information.
This past year, they had done quite a few dark deeds.
“Are you all here to fight for second place?”
Among the crowd in the stands, a voice shouted loudly, Xiao Qi put his hands to his mouth, shouting downwards, drawing many sidelong glances.
Arrogant.
But if this guy said they were here to fight for second place, then who was first?
“Sit down.” Sister Butterfly glared at him, and immediately Xiao Qi sat down, looking down at Xu Mo in the arena, and said, “Sister Butterfly, this point competition is too troublesome, in the Gold Arena, who can be a match for Xu Mo, it doesn’t even need to be serious.”
Ye Qingdie didn’t deny Xiao Qi’s words.
They had lain low for a year, although they had done quite a few bad deeds, they had been very discreet, constantly under the radar, quietly improving.
Now how strong Xu Mo was, Ye Qingdie did not know.
But she knew one thing, Xu Mo was definitely stronger than Secretary Jin back then.
A year ago, feeling the oppressive aura from Secretary Jin, clad in red battle armor, was still vivid in their memories.
But now, the feeling Xu Mo gave them, was the same as Secretary Jin back then.
Moreover, they too had grown stronger, and Xu Mo had not yet taken it seriously.
So, how strong was Xu Mo?
She didn’t know.
Nobody knew.
Perhaps only Xu Mo himself was aware.
But in this Gold Arena, it was absolutely impossible for anyone to be Xu Mo’s rival. The Gold Arena wasn’t even at her current level and was comparable to Cobra’s initial strength.
The contestants in the Diamond Arena should be a bit stronger, as for the Star Arena, which only occurs once a year, only the top-tier masters have the opportunity to participate in the battle.
In Xiao Qi’s words, this place was Xu Mo’s cash machine.
As for the other contestants, as long as Xu Mo was willing, they were merely competing for second place.
Another section of the stands.
Elsa had also arrived, dressed simply and clean, and next to her was a sexy-dressed woman eying a male in armor wielding a heavy axe down below, his mask resembling a hellish demon.
This man, codenamed Caesar, had previously taken first place in other Gold Arenas, with explosive combat power, making him extremely popular.
“Elsa, did you hear? They are all shouting for Caesar,” Sophie said to Elsa, who was from the Main City and considered nobility in the City State, knowing Elsa because of Elsa’s mother’s man, a councilman of the City State.
Mr. Councilman had taken Elsa to some events, as a junior family member.
But many could see that the old councilman had some designs on Elsa.
As for whether he succeeded, nobody knew.
“Mm,” Elsa nodded.
“Caesar knows quite a few excellent youths from the City State; later I’ll introduce you to some, see if there’s anyone you like around him,” Sophie asked tentatively with a smile.
Elsa wasn’t interested; she knew she didn’t belong in Sophie’s circle.
At that moment, she thought of the small tavern last night, encountering Xu Mo there had given her some comfort, and she was already thinking about going back there after the match.
Thinking of this, Elsa felt a slight anticipation stirring within her.
Seeing that Elsa hadn’t responded, Sophie said, “Elsa, what are you thinking about?”
“Ah…” Elsa came back to her senses, saying, “Sophie, what did you say?”
Sophie rolled her eyes at her, smiling as she asked, “Do you think Caesar can take first place?”
Elsa looked towards the Arena, indifferent to the competition, softly saying, “I don’t know.”
“Of course, he can. Last time he was first, a single match, and he won fifty thousand Federation coins,” Sophie said with a laugh. “I’ll have him treat us after the match ends.”
Elsa said nothing; fifty thousand Federation coins were indeed a lot for her. When her father was alive, she had no clear concept of money, but she had never been extravagant either.
Now, living at the mercy of others…
In a corner of the Arena, a woman sat quietly watching the competition.
Mia used to hate the Arena, but now she occasionally came to watch.
A year ago, she had armored Xu Mo, and afterward, Xu Mo left wielding a War Saber and had not been seen since.
She didn’t even know if Xu Mo was alive or dead.
She occasionally came to the Arena to see if she could spot Xu Mo.
With a sound echoing out, the competition began, twenty people moving towards the battlefield simultaneously, several heading towards Caesar, clearly planning to eliminate the toughest opponent first.
A deafening cheer erupted, Caesar, holding a Source Power Battle Axe, charged towards the crowd; the ground seemed to shake, but it was drowned out by the roaring cheers.
“Buzz!”
The Battle Axe cleaved through, the person in the front had his Heavy Sword vibrated away, then the axe hit him. A piercing sound echoed, the Armor shattered, a streak of blood appeared, and his body was flung away.
He fell down.
After falling, he immediately raised both hands to indicate surrender, to avoid further injury.
In the Arena, bloodshed and killing were permissible.
But as long as one surrendered first, the other contestants generally didn’t continue attacking, killing could bring unnecessary trouble.
“Bang, bang, bang!” Several figures were sent flying by the Battle Axe, Caesar’s shouts thunderous, unstoppable, as if no one could stand in his way.
“Elsa, did you see?” Sophie was exceptionally excited, looking at the Arena.
“Mm,” Elsa responded, not very interested.
“Brother Mo, go ahead and act,” Xiao Qi watched Xu Mo who was still standing by and resting, participating in his first Gold Arena and being ignored.
However, one person started walking towards him, his eyes carrying a slightly sinister air; the competition ranked people to distribute prize money, while those fools were busy jointly attacking Caesar, he could wait until they were eliminated first.
But before that, he could eliminate one.
“Bang.” His body charged towards Xu Mo; he wore Mechanical Armor, a sharp chain shot straight at Xu Mo with terrifying speed due to mechanical propulsion, a strike likely to cause severe injuries.
Xu Mo glancing at him, lightly sidestepped as the chain neared.
The chain turned, trying to ensnare Xu Mo’s body, but Xu Mo stepped forward and charged towards him; before the chain could catch up, his War Saber had already slashed down.
“Bang.”
A massive force sent the opponent flinging back, crashing heavily, the power causing him to cough out blood, his face pale.
“This power…” he looked up as Xu Mo walked towards him raising his hands, somewhat frustrated, intending to pick off an easy target, he had instead kicked an iron plate.
This person was very strong, incredibly so.
And he felt that his opponent hadn’t even exerted full strength.
“Battle Armor, War Saber,” Mia looked in Xu Mo’s direction, her heart skipped a beat, but the person’s face was covered by a helmet.
The figure didn’t seem right.
Xu Mo used to be about her height, even if he had grown a bit taller.
One year’s time, possibly not as tall as one eighty, and Xu Mo’s body type was thinner, not so well-proportioned.
Mia turned and felt disheartened, yet there was still a faint hope; maybe he had changed a lot over the year?