Chapter 2591 Lin City Arena
In a blink of an eye, several hours passed, and only half of the market was explored, but the harvest was significant, not only finding several Spiritual Medicines useful for Alchemy but also discovering two mysterious Demon Cores. Yet Lin Feng remained highly intrigued.
As Lin Feng walked, he felt a bloody scent in the air, somewhat puzzled as to where these smells originated from. Standing still, he closed his eyes and projected his Divine Sense outward. Everything around him became captured in his mind through the exploration of his Divine Sense, swiftly revealing a peculiar building not far away, from which the bloody scent emanated.
Opening his eyes and gazing in that direction, he led Ma Biaohu and Tangyuan towards that peculiar building.
Not having walked far, the cries resonated continuously, and ahead, a colossal structure of stacked stones caught Lin Feng’s eyes, reminding him strikingly of Earth’s Ancient Rome arena.
The outer wall stood nearly dozens of feet high, built with stones of about a foot wide, impermeable. The mottled marks on the wall clearly showed this building has stood for a long time. The stone wall’s top circled with formations encapsulating the entire plaza, seemingly oppressive. Looking around, several exits in different directions were sealed with iron gates, leaving only one opening for entrance and exit.
Lin Feng and Ma Biaohu exchanged glances, their curiosity piqued by the cries inside, thus they followed the crowd into the plaza. Upon entry, Lin Feng realized his assumption was spot on; this place was indeed an arena, but far from being a place of human combat—it was a battle arena for Demon Beasts.
The arena’s interior was supported by dozens of deep brown stone pillars, tens of feet high, around which chain-like characters wound, forming a robust protective wall with formations surrounding the entire arena.
The venue was mainly divided into three areas. The first section, spectator area, featured tiered seating made of stone benches, filled with audiences shouting in waves. Some were even excitedly standing up, waving their fists. The central area, battle zone, displayed a circular arena, dozens of feet in diameter, sunk three feet underground—the soil colored dark red, clearly from the countless Demon Beasts’ blood staining it, resembling a desert flowing with fresh blood from afar. The backstage holding area imprisoned various Demon Beasts, each segregated by formations, with occasional pitiful howls ringing out.
Lin Feng and Ma Biaohu glanced around the venue, while Tangyuan concealed its presence, perched on Lin Feng’s shoulder.
"Boss, what are they doing?" Ma Biaohu asked curiously upon seeing a group of people lining up beneath the spectators’ stand to place bets.
"I bet on the Black Armored Rhinoceros, five hundred Yuan Stones."
"I bet on the Golden Thunder Furious Lion, one thousand Yuan Stones."
"Golden Thunder Furious Lion, five hundred"
"..."
The adjudicator seriously recorded their bets and collected the Yuan Stones afterward.
As Lin Feng and Ma Biaohu found a quiet corner to sit down, while the two were still curious, these two gigantic Demon Beasts were released into the arena.
Only to see from the north side gate, a beast, over twenty feet long, emerged, looking extremely majestic, its head resembling a rhinoceros, yet somewhat different—its horn shaped into a spiral conical form emitting a silver sheen, measuring more than half a foot long, with two eyes like copper bells, exuding murderous intent!
The beast was extraordinarily robust and covered in dark blue Scale Armor; crucial joints even bore some outward-growing bone armor for protection. At this moment, the Demon Beast had clearly entered battle readiness with a dense soil-yellow Demon Energy dispersing from its body.
On the opposite south side gate, a beast resembling a lion, more than ten feet long and covered in golden fur, leaped out at that moment. Its streamline body, entwined with strands of lightning, identified it unmistakably as a speed and technique-type Demon Beast.
This beast was also unusual, adorned with a blue diamond-shaped symbol between its giant forehead, sharp fangs protruding from its mouth emanating a white chill, and its four claws had nails extending out like blades, instantly suggesting its power!
"Fight now!"
"Golden Thunder Furious Lion, kill it for me!"
"Black Armored Rhinoceros, Black Armored Rhinoceros, Black Armored Rhinoceros!"
...
On the surrounding spectators’ stand, a wave of shouts rose and fell, evidently noting the spectators were already in an excited state, eagerly awaiting the two Demon Beasts’ lethal brawl in the arena, igniting the entire arena’s atmosphere!
"Roar!"
Perhaps feeling the outer atmosphere, the Black Armored Rhinoceros erupted into a rampage, galloping vigorously, its body like a swift wind, kicking up the dark red sands on the ground like a traversing tornado, charging towards the Golden Thunder Furious Lion with seemingly unbeatable might, as if about to collapse a mountain!
"Roar!"
Upon seeing the Black Armored Rhinoceros charging over, the Golden Thunder Furious Lion also roared loudly, then moved its body almost instantaneously, its explosive speed even more extraordinary than the Black Armored Rhinoceros, causing it to draw a golden shadow in the air, within the blink of an eye meeting the Black Armored Rhinoceros...
But just at the instant before collision, the Golden Thunder Furious Lion did not clash head-on with the Black Armored Rhinoceros; rather, it dodged the impact with an even more incredible speed. In the brief moment when the two beasts brushed past each other, the Golden Thunder Furious Lion’s claws, sharp as blades, struck sparks on the rhinoceros’s side, leaving several gaping wounds from which crimson blood gushed forth from beneath the armor!
"Aah!"
Injured, the Black Armored Rhinoceros showed no mercy. Before the Golden Thunder Furious Lion could retreat from its zone, the massive hoof struck at the lion with unimaginable speed, catching it off guard.
"Bang!"
In an instant, the Golden Thunder Furious Lion’s body was sent flying like a rubber ball by that colossal hoof, soaring more than ten zhang away. Upon landing, blood trickled from the lion’s mouth, and it stared at the Black Armored Rhinoceros with fierce eyes!
"Roar!"
By this time, the Black Armored Rhinoceros had turned around and charged at the Golden Thunder Furious Lion again...
"Boom!"
"Bang!"
"Roar!"
...
Subsequently, the two beasts clashed fiercely, with the roaring of beasts, the sounds of collisions, and even the splattering of blood blending together. In just a moment, the arena turned exceedingly bloody, with large patches of sand stained by blood.
"Kill!"
"Kill!"
...
The spectators in the stands were thrilled by this intense beast battle. They couldn’t even remain seated and stood up, waving their arms and shouting a word, creating a uniform rhythm within the arena. This thoroughly ignited everyone’s emotions, and at the same time, it completely exploded the atmosphere in the arena!
"What’s going on here?" Ma Biaohu patted the audience member next to him and asked puzzledly.
The skinny man glanced at them and replied, "You must be outsiders, right? This is our Lin City’s custom, also our hallmark, the arena."
"Arena?" Ma Biaohu looked puzzled.
Seeing Ma Biaohu’s confusion, the man continued, "As the name implies, an arena is where demon beasts compete with each other. You bet on which beast will win, and if you guess correctly, you get doubled rewards. Basically, different levels of demon beast matches are held every day. This custom has been going on for many years."
"Are there always so many people watching?" Lin Feng asked calmly as he looked at the audience below. He was genuinely curious why so many people were interested in this bloody spectacle, where the scene was so brutal, yet the people around were so enthusiastic. It was truly incomprehensible.
The man laughed and said, "Lin City itself has a large population, plus many outsiders come here especially to gamble on the beasts. If they win big next time, they can live worry-free for life, so the arena is always full."
Speaking of the arena, he couldn’t hide his proud expression. In Lin City, the arena was well known, so it was unsurprising that so many people would come to watch. It’s just being the frog in the well...
"Why are there so many demon beasts in Lin City?" Lin Feng asked puzzledly. Although it is close to the Southern Sea, in the Myriad Heavens Divine Realm, demon beasts have their territories and wouldn’t randomly enter human territory. This is a rule, but it seems like in Lin City, the coexistence of humans and beasts has been a situation for many years, so he really wanted to know where these demon beasts came from.
"Most are captured and brought back. You may not know, but cultivators above Divine King level in Lin City often organize expeditions to the Southern Sea to hunt demon beasts. Captured ones can be sold for a good price; if you find a demon beast that has transformed into a beautiful woman, it’s like finding treasure. But, many have also died there. A small portion is traded by demon kings and demon venerables, after all, they’re just waste that can’t survive elsewhere," the man said, his eyes drifting to the arena waiting for the next match. There’s no point in talking too much with these people, better to focus on the competition and hope the beast he bet on would win.
"Where can I buy demon beasts?" Lin Feng asked tentatively. If he wanted to establish himself in Lin City, he needed more understanding of the place. He also wanted to see what level of demon beasts there were before going to the Southern Sea, to prepare mentally.
"The demon beast slave market is just ahead; they sell all kinds of levels of demon beasts there. With money, you can buy any kind, the lower-level ones are used as slaves, and some battle-type demon beasts are sold to this place for people’s gambling entertainment," the man continued, scrutinizing Lin Feng and his companion, wondering where they were from and why they were so interested in Lin City.
"Boss, let’s not go there, it’s too cruel," Tangyuan suddenly manifested and said while shaking its head. It couldn’t bear to see fellow demon beasts being treated as commodities.
The man exclaimed upon seeing Tangyuan, "What kind of demon beast is this, capable of invisibility? It would surely fetch a high price if sold!"