Lu Yin sat down and looked into the arena. Surprisingly, this was the same place where he had once been thrown to fight to the death. At that time, he had been a fighter, but this time, he was a spectator in the stands of the beast arena.
The stands were filled with spectators, and the entire place was raucous, filled with cheers and commotion.
The more civilized a person had to behave, the more primal and savage their methods of relieving stress would be. In the beast arena, people felt like mighty beings looking down on the ones fighting down below, and this helped them to relieve some of the pressure of their daily lives. This was the barbarity of a civilized culture.
For a civilization that focused on cultivation, something like the beast arenas would be pointless, as some people engaged in such battles every single day. However, in the Transcendent Universe, the beast arenas were the only places where such spectacles could be seen.
“How long has it been since I fought down there?” Lu Yin asked. There was a breathtakingly beautiful woman beside him. She was wearing a very revealing outfit and almost spilled the drink that she was pouring.
God of Mirrors and God Taiyi were similarly startled. The Dao Monarch had once fought in this place?
Ke Jian replied, “It’s been a bit more than three years.”
Lu Yin thought back. “A bit more than three years? That doesn’t sound very long, but it feels like a lifetime ago.”
Ke Jian laughed. “It is rather unbelievable that you were able to achieve the position of Acting Bureau Director in just over three years.”
Lu Yin laughed as well. “Even I find it hard to believe.”
Down in the beast arena, a man and a beast were engaged in a brutal fight. Lu Yin could clearly see the fear and despair in the man’s eyes. He had also experienced such emotions in the past. They had been the most intense when he had fought his way out of Driftcharge Planet, which had been the lowest point in his life. The man in the arena would not be so fortunate.
The roars of the beast and the man's cries of agony were quickly drowned out by the cheers of the crowd.
Ke Jian studied Xuan Qi, unable to determine what the young man was thinking from the calm expression on his face.
“Why does that man have to fight?” Lu Yin suddenly asked.
Ke Jian replied, "There are many possibilities, such as punishment. There are some who even participate voluntarily. If you wish to know, I can make some inquiries."
Lu Yin waved a hand dismissively. "There’s no need for that."
He hesitated for a moment, and a smile slowly spread across his face. "Does Madam He Ran enjoy the beast arenas?"
Caught off guard by Lu Yin's question, Ke Jian found himself uncertain as to how to respond.
Lu Yin chuckled. "If you don't know, then forget I said anything."
The fight resulted in an unexpected outcome: the man survived. He was in a miserable condition and was missing two limbs, but even so, he lived. As he was carried out of the arena, hope blossomed in his eyes. This was not a punishment. This man had chosen this.
This victory would allow him to obtain something that could change his life.
Everyone had their own path in life. Lu Yin would not interfere with others’ choices, even if he had the power to alter their fates with a single word.
Looking upwards and staring off into the distance, he wondered if it was really possible that some higher power was orchestrating everything. Would such a being have mercy if they witnessed this scene?
At that moment, cheers broke out again as another contender entered the arena. This person was up against a gigantic creature that looked a bit like a bat. However, it was so massive that it took up an entire third of the arena. The human participant had no place to run or escape.
Lu Yin stared in shock. "Xie Wu?"
"You know him?" Zi Jing asked.
Lu Yin nodded. "Ke Jian, isn't that Xie Wu? One of He Ran's people? How did he end up down in this beast arena?"
Down on the floor, Xie Wu trembled in fear. Despair filled his eyes as he looked at the monster facing him. The beast struggled to break free from its chains.
Ke Jian explained, "The Sixverse Academy’s first class of students have all already graduated, and each has since been assigned various tasks. Xie Wu and a few others were given the job of guarding some research data. It was a rather easy assignment that they were given as a favor. However, they were targeted and the data was destroyed, which has delayed the research progress by years. Madam He Ran threw him into the beast arenas as punishment. Should he survive three matches, all will be forgiven. Should he die, no one can be blamed."
Lu Yin glanced over at Zi Jing, who said, "The data that was destroyed was from research that was conducted decades ago. Losing it means that we need to rerun all of those experiments again."
Lu Yin understood.
"Bureau Director, do you know this Xie Wu?" Ke Jian asked.
"We've met once before."
"In that case, what are you trying to say, Bureau Director?" Ke Jian pressed.
Lu Yin replied, "This is Madam He Ran's decision, so what can I say?"
"If you don’t wish for Xie Wu to die here, just a single word from you would be enough. Madam He Ran will show you some consideration."
Lu Yin chuckled, but he said nothing. Xie Wu was destined to die in the arena. The bat-like beast was not something that the young man could handle, even if he had mastered some battle techniques or obtained an innate gift. Even after graduating from the Sixverse Academy, Xie Wu still needed to use an energy converter as a member of the Transcendent Universe. Without an energy converter, his strength would plummet. It would take a miracle for him to survive in the arena.
Not even He Shu had protected Xie Wu.
The fight was far more exciting than the previous one. Xie Wu used the Eight Hands of the Stone Gate and voidforce energy to somehow break off one of the beast’s tooths with a sneak attack. By then using that tooth as a weapon, Xie Wu was able to execute both the Stone Cudgel and Dragon Flash battle techniques. Still, he would ultimately be mauled to death by the beast even if he struggled right to the very last death throe.
It was only a matter of time before he perished.
It had become clear during the fight that some of the people in the audience did not want to see Xie Wu die just yet. Every time the bat-like creature was about to devour the young man, the referee would intervene and drag him away. The futile struggle to live left Xie Wu overcome with despair.
Lu Yin’s eyes narrowed. "Why won't they just let Xie Wu die?"
Ke Jian explained, "This is because of the beast arenas’ rules. If a fight triggers a strong enough response from the audience, the fight will continue until the cheers start to fade.”
"Things are dragged out to stimulate the audience and raise their emotions. It’s all about producing the right atmosphere in the beast arena."
Lu Yin looked around. The crowd was cheering with wild abandon, and the volume rose the more Xie Wu resisted.
On the floor of the beast arena, Xie Wu coughed up blood after being brutally slammed to the ground. The enormous beast’s shadow loomed over the man, its maw opened wide and ready to strike. Again, Xie Wu was dragged out of the way, and the beast bit the ground after missing its target. The creature became agitated out of frustration, which incited even more cheers from the crowd.
The same scene played out again and again; each time it happened, Xie Wu lost a bit more of his will to fight. He started yearning for death, as it would be better than having to endure such torment.
There was a thunderous crash, and the ground shook. Xie Wu was dragged away yet again. However, once he lost the motivation to continue resisting, the crowd started to calm down. It was no fun watching a fight where one side was not even resisting.
However, Xie Wu soon started trying to fight back with new motivation, and the crowd quickly became frenzied once more.
Lu Yin looked around just outside the arena, and he noticed that there was someone threatening Xie Wu. If he ever stopped struggling, they would throw his sister into the arena. It was this threat that drove Xie Wu wild with fury, and he directed that rage towards the bat-like beast. The cheers grew louder and louder.