Infinite flow, but I submit myself

Ever since the signing of that agreement, the expert team had anticipated a confrontation with Yan Wuzhen based on his psychological profile and had prepared for it in advance.

Moreover, back in the cafeteria, he had deliberately sat with Tang Mo Bai, setting him up. Yan Wuzhen had a well-known reputation as an intelligence broker in the gladiatorial arena. Naturally, sitting beside him would cause the “dark horse” Tang Mo Bai to be scrutinized by the veterans. His little tricks did not escape the expert team’s watchful eyes.

He wanted to devour Tang Mo Bai completely, but the expert team also intended to leverage the Spider’s reputation to create a safer environment for Tang Mo Bai.

It was a matter of who would outmaneuver whom.

Inside the arena, Yan Wuzhen only had eyes for Tang Mo Bai’s bewildered expression, growing more certain of his own speculation. A faint smile curled his lips.

To consume this lamb entirely, he first needed to strip away its means of survival.

“Oh, you don’t need to answer—I already know you wouldn’t tell me the truth. Let me guess,” he pressed his fingers against his temple. “Your trump card must be the ‘Qualification Test.’”

“The rules for resurrection matches dictate that one hundred soul coins can be exchanged for a ‘Qualification Test.’ A contestant must secure over 60% of the votes from the audience to be resurrected. Only one Qualification Test can be held per day, and only one person can take it at a time.”

“You should already have more than 100 soul coins by now. That means you can easily initiate the test, and if you succeed, you can leave this place… But the key is: success.”

Yan Wuzhen studied Tang Mo Bai’s expression closely, his gaze carrying a certain malice. He spoke slowly, emphasizing each word: “Too bad. You may think the people backing you can secure your passage through the resurrection match. That might work in other arenas where guilds have influence. But here… it’s different.”

Tang Mo Bai frowned. “Why?”

Yan Wuzhen shrugged nonchalantly. “You’ll see soon enough.”

See what?

Tang Mo Bai didn’t voice the question. At that moment, the last of the simultaneous gladiator matches concluded. The previously chaotic arena fell silent, with only a blood-red moon hanging high above.

A lone figure emerged from the waiting tunnel, standing tall and calling out toward the sky, “Lost Paradise, I want to take a Qualification Test!”

Qualification Test?

The term immediately captured the attention of the entire audience. Even Tang Mo Bai was no exception. Though he had known about the advancement rules from the start, he had never witnessed someone undergo the Qualification Test firsthand.

The one stepping onto the battlefield was a powerfully built woman with a knife scar across her brow. Her high ponytail swayed slightly as she moved, and she wore only a practical, sports-bra-style top and black shorts reaching mid-thigh. Her tanned skin and muscular legs were exposed, but no one in the audience dared to whistle at her—clearly, she was a hardened warrior of the gladiatorial arena.

“Qiong,” Yan Wuzhen’s voice sounded beside him. “Third-in-command of the Watchtower from Hunger Hell. She was ambushed by the Beast Blood Guild during an exploration mission. To save her guild leader, she spent all her points and ended up in the resurrection matches. The Watchtower has been trying to get her back ever since. Looks like they finally gathered enough resources.”

“Resources?”

“Yes, resources,” Yan Wuzhen’s voice was as cold and precise as a scalpel, cutting straight to the point. “This Demon’s Arena is cut off from Lost Paradise. Not even live-streams can assist us here. The only way to manipulate the game… is through the periodic influx of newcomers.”

“Externally, they bet on matches to raise money for her. Internally, they manipulate the newcomers in the resurrection matches to secure votes for her. The Watchtower’s leader really went all in on this.”

Tang Mo Bai followed Yan Wuzhen’s gaze back to the arena. The blood-red moonlight deepened, casting an eerie glow over the crowd. It was as if a veil of crimson mist had draped over everyone present. Several hooded figures in black robes emerged from the tunnels, surrounding Qiong from a distance.

009 spoke, “Are you sure you want to take the Qualification Test?”

“I’m sure.”

“Then, let it begin.”

The ground beneath Qiong trembled. A platform rose from the floor, quickly ascending to a level parallel with the mid-section of the spectator stands. Railing-like structures emerged around it, giving the scene the appearance of an open-air courtroom under the blood moon.

Yan Wuzhen smirked. “Don’t you think there are a bit too many people in the audience today?”

Gladiatorial matches were held nearly every day, yet even newcomers like Tang Mo Bai wouldn’t linger in the audience constantly. But today, the seats were nearly full in all directions.

“What, did the village distribute free gold bars or something?” Tang Mo Bai quipped.

Had they all gathered to watch his and Xiu Wei Yi’s fight? No way. He knew he wasn’t that famous.

Then, remembering that the Qualification Test required votes from those present—and that it was an anonymous vote—where over 60% approval was needed to pass, a strange realization dawned on him.

His lips twitched as a bizarre premonition surfaced.

“…Don’t tell me they’re here for a robbery?”

“It’s not ‘they,’ it’s ‘we,'” Yan Wuzhen corrected. “Why make it sound so unpleasant? This is just the celebratory red envelope that the test-taker is offering us, isn’t it?”

Red envelope? More like outright bribery!

At that moment, Tang Mo Bai’s live-stream interface shifted, and a pop-up appeared in front of him.

[Would you like to cast your vote for Qiong? If she secures over 60% of the votes, she will immediately return to Lost Paradise. Yes/No]

Before Tang Mo Bai could react, the spectators erupted into laughter and shouts. Someone hidden among the crowd called out to Qiong, jeering, “The vote is about to start, Qiong! You’re from the Watchtower, aren’t you? You wouldn’t be stingy with red envelopes, would you? Otherwise, we might just have to say sorry!”

“Shut up, Manster!” Qiong snorted coldly. Without hesitation, she loosened the bundle strapped to her back, revealing a pile of shimmering silver coins. Picking up a small handful, she hurled them into the densest part of the audience.

Instantly, the silver tokens scattered like raindrops. The crowd erupted into a frenzy of grabbing and shouting. Tang Mo Bai and Yan Wuzhen were standing a bit farther away, so only a few coins ricocheted towards them. They each picked one up, and Tang Mo Bai examined his closely—sure enough, they were soul coins.

Judging by the amount she just threw, it must have been around a hundred coins. Damn, was this some kind of village-wide cash giveaway?

“Not enough!” Manster sneered. The scramble had only reached one section of the audience, but the gladiatorial arena had spectators on all sides. His greedy eyes locked onto the bulging bag at Qiong’s feet. “That little bit isn’t enough to buy us off! Do you really want to pass the Qualification Test?”

Tang Mo Bai couldn’t help but twitch at his words. “With prices this high, isn’t he afraid he won’t be able to afford it when his turn comes?”

Stop it! Don’t turn this into a bribery price war!

“He doesn’t care,” Yan Wuzhen replied coolly. “Manster maintains his betting popularity by brutally tormenting his opponents—he gave up on the Qualification Test long ago.”

“Besides, he has a lot of enemies outside. He’s better off staying here.”

Tang Mo Bai: …Oh.

Now he was starting to understand just how twisted this so-called Qualification Test was. Seriously, anyone who could accumulate over a hundred soul coins had to be an undefeated powerhouse in the arena. And yet, when it came to the resurrection match, the ones deciding their fate were the very people they’d beaten before.

Who in their right mind would vote for them?! What kind of insane system was this? It was practically designed to be unwinnable!

He looked at the hard-earned coins he had saved up, suddenly realizing how naïve he had been. Qiong had already thrown out nearly a hundred coins, and she clearly had more prepared.

“If you want my coins, fine,” she said with a smirk. “But if you take them, you’ll have to sign a contract guaranteeing that you’ll vote for me. As long as I make it out, all the coins here will be yours.”

“You’re overthinking it, Qiong,” Manster laughed. “You don’t have enough coins to exchange for contract papers—how can you guarantee we’ll keep our word? This deal isn’t up for negotiation. Voting is anonymous. How will you know who voted ‘yes’ and who voted ‘no’?”

“Do you really have enough people under your control to reach 60%? And even if you do, don’t you think they’d rather use this once-in-a-lifetime chance to get revenge?” Manster shouted to the crowd.

“And those of you who picked up a few scraps—are you really going to just sit back and watch her pass? Watch her go from being one of us to becoming just another spectator of the betting games? By tomorrow, she could be sitting at the bar in the Devil’s Casino, sipping a drink while we’re still here, fighting for our lives in the arena! Can you accept that?”

Well, damn.

Tang Mo Bai instinctively leaned back. So this was Lost Paradise, huh? They didn’t necessarily help themselves, but they sure as hell made sure to drag others down. A true hell filled with demons.

“It’s just like the Spider’s Thread…”

“What?” Yan Wuzhen glanced at him curiously.

“A story from where I come from,” Tang Mo Bai explained. “A bandit once saved a spider in his lifetime. Because of this single good deed, the Buddha, taking pity on him, lowered a spider’s thread into hell so he could escape. As he climbed, countless other damned souls tried to grab onto the thread as well. Fearing it would break, the bandit shouted at them to let go. At that moment, the thread snapped, sealing his fate.”

Yan Wuzhen listened quietly before letting out a cold chuckle. “That Buddha sounds cruel.”

“If he knew hell was full of sinners, did he really expect them to suddenly act selflessly? To ignore the only lifeline they’d ever seen? Did he think that bandit would suddenly repent in a den of evildoers and willingly give up his one chance at escape?”

“If you want to explore the depths of human nature, you’ll only ever find the answers you already expect.”

Meanwhile, outside the screen, the expert team watching the situation sighed. From the moment they learned the rules, some had already predicted that the Qualification Test wouldn’t be so easily passed.

A hundred soul coins was just the threshold—it was nowhere near enough to fill the black hole of human greed.

That’s why they had never planned to rely on the normal route to escape this resurrection match.