Desolate Devouring Art

Chapter 756 - Partaking the Challenge

The hall was teeming with people when Liu Wuxie and Liu Xing entered. From the outside, the building had looked enormous, but its interior was even more expansive.

The structure was built against the mountains in a remote location. If not for this, Liu Wuxie and Liu Xing wouldn’t have had to travel so far to reach it. From the outside, only the gate was visible, but upon entering, the space felt boundless. A long corridor stretched deep into the building, spanning several thousand meters.

When Liu Wuxie stepped into the building, he detected a faint and ominous scent mixed with a tinge of blood stench.

”Is this a beast colosseum?” Liu Wuxie asked. He could hear the roars of beasts from the surroundings, and he mistook this place for a beast colosseum.

”No, this isn’t a beast colosseum but a life-and-death colosseum. There are various challenges, and you will receive corresponding rewards if you can make it through them.” Liu Xing explained as they walked. This wasn’t just a beast colosseum, as challengers could also choose to fight humans.

When their view expanded, the structure resembled a beast colosseum, divided into multiple arenas from one to fifty.

"This is interesting," Liu Wuxie said, rubbing his chin with a faint smile. The surrounding spectator stands offered a clear view of all the arenas.

“Big Brother Wuxie, look over there! Starting from the first round, the winner will receive all the spirit stones, while the loser either leaves or be killed,” Liu Xing said, pointing to an arena where someone was fighting a profound beast, and there was a wooden sign that stated one hundred spirit stones.

The reward would start small, as the early opponents were weaker. However, as the challenge progressed, the opponents gradually grew stronger.

They watched as the challenger successfully slew the profound beast and took the one hundred spirit stones on the reward platform before proceeding to the next round.

A combat of a challenger in the Astral River Realm couldn’t interest Liu Wuxie. The rewards were too little, and he couldn’t temper his skills with such weak opponents.

“This is the betting area. Besides earning rewards from challenges, you can also place a bet, and the odds are one-to-one,” Liu Xing said, pointing at another region.

Everyone was required to pay ten high-grade spirit stones to enter, which would grant them sole access to spectate. For many, the gamble was the main event—a chance to strike it rich. But no one knew who the next opponent was, and luck played a significant role.

Suddenly, a loud crack was heard as a challenger in the Astral River Realm was ripped apart by a profound beast. It was a gruesome sight, with blood and internal organs splattering around.

However, the gruesome sight only excited the spectators, especially those who bet on the profound beast to win.

Liu Wuxie and Liu Xing found seats amidst the chaos in the surroundings. Each arena teemed with challengers. Some came for spirit stones, while others opted for the experience and growth in life-and-death combat.

“Look there! He has already slain three profound beasts, and he will now face a human opponent in the fourth round,” exclaimed a few cultivators as they looked at the tenth arena.

The tenth arena brimmed with a sword aura that could be felt from a few hundred meters away.

“He’s an expert,” Liu Wuxie murmured to himself through his observation.

“They should both be challengers and whoever wins will claim the reward,” Liu Xing explained. In a nutshell, this place offered everyone training through life-and-death battles and the chance to earn resources.

The rewards were intended to tempt the challengers. After all, who would risk their lives if no rewards were offered?

“It’s Ghost-Faced Rakshasa! He’s here again!” Cheers came from the surroundings at the appearance of a figure donning a ghost mask. Despite his concealed appearance, his presence exuded an invisible pressure.

“I’m betting on the Ghost-Faced Rakshasa this round!” Many people began to bet on the masked figure, and the battle started swiftly. The two challengers clashed in the arena, sword aura slicing through the air in the surroundings, producing whistling sounds.

“What speed!” Liu Xing exclaimed in awe, surprised by Ghost-Faced Rakshasa’s attacking speed.

“He’s going to lose!” Liu Wuxie said after the two challengers clashed briefly in the arena. Although his opponent displayed no stunning performance or high cultivation, he had a substantial foundation.

“How is it possible? The Ghost-Faced Rakshasa is holding the advantage!” Liu Xing naturally wouldn’t doubt Liu Wuxie’s words, but he still found it unbelievable.

“The faster his strikes, the quicker he’ll be defeated,” Liu Wuxie said, offering no further explanation. He was confident the Ghost-Faced Rakshasa would lose eventually unless his attacks were fast enough to end the battle. If the battle were dragged out, his attack's weakness would eventually be revealed.

Many assassins were fond of prioritizing speed in their attacks to kill the enemy quickly. If the assassination attempt failed, they would flee without any hesitation.

Most of Liu Wuxie’s attention was on Ghost-Faced Rakshasa’s opponent. The latter was a ruthless figure who practiced a bizarre movement technique to dodge in the fight while constantly waiting for an opportunity.

When he finally drew his sword, Ghost-Faced Rakshasa immediately retreated after sensing the danger.

The longsword flickered, and a blood stripe appeared on Ghost-Faced Rakshasa’s neck.

When the Ghost-Faced Rakshasa fell, the cultivators who bet on him began to curse.

After defeating the Ghost-Faced Rakshasa, the challenger collected a reward of five thousand high-grade spirit stones and the Ghost-Faced Rakshasa’s interspatial ring before leaving the arena to rest.

For a mere five thousand high-grade spirit stones, countless people like him were willing to risk their lives. This reflected the harsh environment of the Central Plains.

Liu Wuxie spent two hours to have a clear understanding of the mechanics here.

“Here’s ten thousand high-grade spirit stones. Bet them all on my victory for each challenge,” Liu Wuxie said. He decided to challenge the arena. After all, he had to temper himself after absorbing so much knowledge from the Book Collections Hall, not to mention his recent breakthrough into the eighth level of the Astral River Realm. The best way to temper himself was through fighting.

“Big Brother Wuxie, you want to challenge the arena?” Liu Xing stood up abruptly after hearing what Liu Wuxie said. How would he explain to his uncle if anything happened to him? After all, all the challengers had to put their lives on the line in the challenge.

“I need to fight. With the Heavenly Spirit Celestial Academy’s recruitment approaching, I have to strengthen myself as much as possible,” Liu Wuxie said, giving Liu Xing a nod before walking into a passage.

All the challengers were required to report, and it was too late by the time Liu Xing wanted to stop Liu Wuxie. He knew Liu Wuxie’s strength well and believed the latter would be fine if he didn’t encounter someone in the True Profound Realm.

At the other end of the passage was a courtyard filled with a strong blood stench. The challenger who had come down from the tenth arena was also present. He was sitting there resting, and it seemed he planned to continue his challenge.

“You also want a challenge?” A middle-aged man came over to ask when Liu Wuxie entered the courtyard. Many people went there daily, and deaths occurred frequently.

“That’s right,” Liu Wuxie nodded, and his response drew much attention from the surroundings.

“Is he insane? He’s only in the Astral River Realm and dares to challenge the arena. He’s really fearless!”

Although there were also challengers in the Astral River Realm, as observed by Liu Wuxie, they typically took on low-tier profound beasts for meager rewards. Most challengers were in the Nascent Transformation Realm and possessed formidable strength.

Many of the challengers had experienced dozens of battles and had amassed tens of thousands of high-grade spirit stones. Their murderous intent was so overwhelming that anyone who stood near them felt threatened.

”Are you familiar with the rules?” asked a middle-aged man after noticing Liu Wuxie’s unfamiliar face.

”I do!” Liu Wuxie nodded. He had been watching the matches for over two hours and had a basic grasp of the regulations here.

”Pay a thousand high-grade spirit stones and sign this life-and-death contract. After that, you can start your first challenge,” said the middle-aged man, who demanded one thousand high-grade spirit stones as he took out a life-and-death contract.

This was to prevent the clan or forces behind the challengers from pursuing the matter if the challenger died in the arena. With the contract, no one could pursue them for responsibility.

After giving all of his remaining spirit stones, Liu Wuxie finally obtained the qualification to challenge the arena. He also signed his name and dripped a drop of his blood on the life-and-death contract, which had taken effect.

“Proceed to the seventh passage!” the middle-aged man said indifferently. In his eyes, Liu Wuxie was already as good as dead, and there was no need for him to waste words on a corpse. He turned to attend to another newcomer.

When Liu Wuxie emerged from the tunnel, cheers erupted from the surroundings.

“What’s going on? Are they letting someone in the eighth level of the Astral River Realm challenge? Did they run out of people?” An exclamation came from the surroundings. While challengers in the Astral River Realm weren’t uncommon, they lacked entertainment value.

Most of the people who came were in the Nascent Transformation Realm, and they naturally preferred to watch the fights of those in the same realm. For those in the Astral River Realm, they were no different from mere ants in their eyes.

Cultivators in the True Profound Realm were disdainful of coming here and generally preferred the Spirit Jade Pavilion.

Meanwhile, Liu Xing hurried to the betting area and bet all ten thousand high-grade spirit stones on Liu Wuxie. He hesitated momentarily and emptied his interspatial ring, betting his fortune of five thousand high-grade spirit stones on Liu Wuxie.

Once he was done, his heart pounded nervously as he looked at the seventh arena.

After Liu Wuxie took his position, a horrifying roar echoed from the depth of the tunnel, and a red-furred beast strode toward him with heavy steps. When Liu Wuxie saw the beast, Fiery squeezed out from his clothes and licked its lips excitedly.

“The Fire Demonic Bull!” Liu Wuxie murmured. It was no surprise Fiery was so excited as it was fond of fire-attribute energy. The Fire Demonic Bull’s internal core would be a great nourishment, and it had already set its sight on the profound beast.

It was an eighth-grade profound beast at the peak, comparable to the pinnacle of the Astral River Realm. With its tough hide, killing it wouldn’t be an easy task.

Perhaps the first two rounds were typically designed to bolster a participant’s confidence and offered high odds of success. However, there were also some exceptions, such as the challenger being defeated and consumed by the demonic beast.

Even if the challenger succeeded in the first two rounds, they would only receive a few hundred spirit stones as a reward. Not to mention, Liu Wuxie had paid one thousand spirit stones to participate in the challenge. This meant he would have to continue his challenge to recoup his losses.

This was a clever setup, akin to gambling, trying to lure the challenger with two participants to continue challenging the arena.

The Fire Demonic Bull roared at the sight of Liu Wuxie and launched itself into a thunderous charge. Meanwhile, Liu Wuxie had also retrieved the Heretic Blade, planning to comprehend an even more profound blade technique through the arena.