Chapter 58 Blood Rites – Seal of Darkness! (3)
Zhou Weiqing looked at Lin TianAo and smiled, placing his hand on Yun Li’s shoulder, he said with a faint smile: “I’m sorry, we reject the bet.”
Lin TianAo started before saying: “Reject? Why? Aren’t my conditions favourable enough? When you are attacking, I will not counter attack at all.”
Zhou Weiqing shook his head and said: “Bro Lin, I’m afraid you haven’t seen things clearly, or perhaps you are treating us like idiots. You are a Ultimate Defense Type Heavenly Jewel Master… how much attack power do you even have anyway? Of course, you can easily say that you will not counter attack, after all, probably more than 90 percent of your power is held up in defense right. Naturally, you can pretend to be generous in that matter. Our cultivation levels are below yours, and you are also a pure Ultimate Defense type. If we can’t move you, we will have to be enslaved to you for life. Such a bet where I have no confidence, I will not go through. Come on Yun Li, let’s go back to the shop, I still have things to buy.”
No matter Lin TianAo or Yun Li, no one had expected Zhou Weiqing to reject it so easily. Even Shangguan Bing’er and Qin Feng were also a little puzzled. After all, earlier, when Zhou Weiqing had placed his bet with Yun Li, none of them had actually thought he would win, yet Zhou Weiqing had insisted in doing so. Now that a bet was placed in front of him that seemed so favourable, he had instead avoided it. None of them could understand what was going on.
On the other hand, Zhou Changxi’s look towards Zhou Weiqing had changed, nodding his head inwardly to himself, thinking:What a clever little scoundrel. It looks like perhaps the bet between him and Yun Li is not as simple as a draw.
Seeing that Zhou Weiqing was pulling Yun Li away, Lin TianAo couldn’t help but feel a sense of urgency. “Wait, what terms do you need for you to be willing to bet with me?”
Zhou Weiqing laughed heartily. Just as he was about to reply that he wouldn’t bet with him no matter what, a sudden voice rang out in his voice, causing his heart to shake in shock, causing him to swallow the words that were on the tip of his tongue.
“Bet with him, I will help you secretly. You definitely must win, this person will be of great use to you. I am Tian Er.” The voice that sounded out in Zhou Weiqing’s ear spoke out. He did not know where it came from, but he could tell the owner of the voice was the mysterious white clad young lady Tian Er, who had saved him from Ming Wu the other day.
If we were to say that previously Zhou Weiqing’s memories of this Tian Er were somewhat unreal, almost like she was an illusion, he finally could confirm her existence.
“Well… it’s not impossible for me to take this bet…” Zhou Weiqing had not thought things through, after all he had just gotten word from Tian Er barely a moment ago. However, he had always been quick thinking, and with a short pause, an idea came to his mind. “My terms are that you have to only use one hand to fight with us; furthermore, both of us can attack you at the same time.”
Hearing Zhou Weiqing’s words, not just Qin Feng and Yun Li, even Shangguan Bing’er felt that he was asking for too much. Even if this Lin TianAo had one more set of Jewels than Qin Feng, they were after all fighting him 2 versus 1, with him not even counter attacking, yet he still wanted him to only use a single hand?
After all, Lin TianAo’s bet with them was that his feet would not leave the ground. That was to say, in the fight, he would not even be able to use his feet as weapons. Under such a circ.u.mstance, to only be able to use a single army in the fight, it would hardly be fair.
Yun Li closed his eyes, sighing inwardly. Ahhh, how could I lose to such a shameless fellow! My good name, its all ruined now!
However, to everyone’s shock, when Lin TianAo heard Zhou Weiqing’s request, he only thought for a while before nodding. In a solemn tone, he said: “Alright, I agree to your request.”
“En?” Beside Zhou Changxi, everyone stared at Lin TianAo in shock. Even Zhou Weiqing had not expected him to agree to his terms. His original thinking was that if this Lin TianAo did not agree, he would just go with the original terms. After all, with Tian Er helping him secretly, he was confident of the win. That Tian Er Beauty was from the something something Snow G.o.d Mountain, and had six sets of Alexandrite Cat’s Eye Jewels. Such a powerful being, no matter how powerful this Lin TianAo was, he would likely not be a match for her. After all, she had been able to scare off Ming Wu. However, Lin TianAo had given him a surprise and agreed to his terms.
Just a second ago, Yun Li had still been thinking of how shameless Zhou Weiqing was. Yet now, his heart was racing in fear. He was also an intelligent person, and when Lin TianAo agreed to Zhou Weiqing’s outrageous request, he immediately calmed down. Yun Li realised that perhaps this Mid Level Zun Stage Heavenly Jewel Master was not as simple as he thought.
“Let’s go to the Underground Arena then. After all, once we are there, none of us can break our word. Otherwise, if after the bet, you two wish to run, I will definitely not be able to catch up.” Lin TianAo said pa.s.sively.
Zhou Weiqing looked at Yun Li curiously: “What is this Underground Arena?”
Yun Li said: “There is an underground arena in our Trading Center, and it is a fighting ground usually used by Jewel Masters to settle their scores. It is also used to place bets, and many Jewel Masters like to go there to indulge in betting. This Underground Arena is secret from the Fei Li Empire, and the only thing we can be sure of is that it is definitely upheld strictly, and both sides will have to sign a contract before starting any fight. Anything can be used as a bet, items or even your own life. As soon as the fight is over, the bet contract has to be settled, otherwise the owner of the arena will carry it out on your behalf. It is rumoured that there was once a nine-Jeweled High Level Zong Stage Heavenly Jewel Master who tried to break his word and not honour the bet. The next day, his corpse was found hung on the east gate.”
“d.a.m.n, that is a great place.” A light shone in Zhou Weiqing’s eyes, as he thought to himself. Even a High Level Zong Stage Heavenly Jewel Master was not able to run, that showed how powerful the master of the Underground Arena was. However, if that was so, would Tian Er really be able to help him cheat? If not, what would happen if he lost?
Tian Er’s voice sounded out once more, with a hint of disdain at him, as if she had read his mind. “Do not worry, just go ahead.”
Zhou Weiqing did not try to talk to her, but hearing her words affirmed his confidence. His trust in Tian Er was extremely simple. With her cultivation level and power, if she wanted him dead or to enslave him, she could have easily done so, especially after saving him from Ming Wu. Why would she need to go through such trouble?
“Please lead the way then.” Zhou Weiqing motioned to Lin TianAo politely.
Lin TianAo walked in the front, leading Zhou Weiqing and Yun Li along as they rushed to follow. Just as Shangguan Bing’er was about to follow them, she was stopped by Qin Feng.
“Young lady, I’m afraid you’ll have to wait for them here. The Underground Arena rules are such that no audience is allowed, and only those who are undergoing the bet can enter. With such favourable conditions, I believe that Bro Zhou and Master Yun Li should have no problems winning.”
Zhou Weiqing turned around and nodded to Shangguan Bing’er, and she stopped as well, pursing her lips at him with a dissatisfied look on her face, as if saying. You are always making me worry!
As Lin TianAo led the two of them deeper into the heart of the Trading Center, he kept silent all the way. Yun Li’s brow was furrowed, and the three of them walked along in an awkward silence.
Very soon, Lin TianAo stopped right in front of a large circular building. Without being told, Zhou Weiqing knew that they had reached. The building was only a single level, and seemed rather nondescript, except for the two large bright red words on the front: Underground Arena.
The door was wide open, looking like the gaping maw of a man-eating beast. Lin TianAo motioned towards Zhou Weiqing and Yun Li, before heading in ahead, with the pair following close behind.
After entering, Zhou Weiqing was a little surprised. Here, the entire floor was black, but the walls and ceiling were all blood red, and the entire area seemed to be permeated with a rather eerie and forbidding air around. After concentrating a little, he noticed a stairway leading down.
In front of the stairs, there was a red table, with an one-eyed old man sitting behind. The old man looked aged and frail, as if he was barely alive.
Lin TianAo took a big stride forward to the old man, giving a slight bow before saying: “We wish to fight and place a bet.”
The old man nodded, saying: “You know the rules then, please pay up.”
Lin TianAo did not say anything further, taking out a blue members.h.i.+p card like the one Zhou Weiqing had, pa.s.sing it to the old man, who swiped it along a unique looking item, before returning the card along with a plaque to Lin TianAo. Waving his hand, he motioned the three of them to go ahead.
Yun Li quickly explained to Zhou Weiqing: “The fee is ten thousand gold coins for using the arena once, non-negotiable. Due to the authority and power of the Underground Arena and the securities it provides, the fee is not considered high.”
Zhou Weiqing inclined his head in agreement, and the two of them continued following Lin TianAo down the stairs.
At the start, it was pitch black, but as they continued along after two bends, it gradually brightened. However, even the lighted walls were all blood red, and as they continued along, the eerie feeling grew stronger.
After they had descended more than thirty metres down, a tunnel finally appeared. Lin TianAo looked at the number of the plaque in his hands, and walked down along the path. He moved rather quickly, and it was obvious that this was not his first time here.
Zhou Weiqing could see that along the two sides of the walls of the tunnel, there were thick large doors, with a number on each of them. From the look of it, they corresponded with the plaques, and each should have an individual arena ring behind them.
Lin TianAo stopped right in front of the door with the number seven on it. Pus.h.i.+ng open the door, they entered together.
In contrast to the dimly lit corridor outside, the large room was brightly lit, causing Zhou Weiqing to squint involuntarily for a while.
It was a huge round room, with a red robed man standing silently behind the door, his face covered in a cloth mask which hid his features. Seeing the three enter, the man said solemnly: “Do you require a betting contract before starting the fight?”