235: Chapter 234 A Battle for Life

"Stop! Everyone stop!"

The Shop Owner from earlier came scrambling out of the shop, his fat face covered in sweat, his four hands waving frantically.

"Gentlemen, have mercy, have mercy! Qiming Star has laws; private fighting in the city district, if caught, means five years of imprisonment! Five years!"

His gaze darted back and forth between Song Yang and the three beastmen. These were his big clients; if something happened at his storefront, he could forget about doing business.

The Scaly-Faced one paused, turned his head, and cursed impatiently:

"Old thing, get lost, this is none of your business."

"It is, it is, how could it not be!"

The Shop Owner put on a fawning smile, trotted over to the Scaly-Faced one, and lowered his voice.

"Here in Black Flag Starport, we might lack many things, but we certainly don't lack places to settle grudges. Head east, and you'll find the arena!"

"There, never mind having a fight; even if you twist off the other person's head and kick it around like a ball, no one will care!"

"If you win, you get a ton of star coins, and the cheers of the entire crowd belong to you. Isn't that much more impressive than doing it in this little alleyway?"

These words struck a chord with the Scaly-Faced one.

Winning on the street would just be a brawl.

But in the arena, in front of thousands of spectators, stepping on this ignorant brat and then rightfully taking the beautiful girl beside him—that would be true conquest.

He turned around, his thick neck cracking as he twisted it, and fixed his vertical pupils on Song Yang with a sinister grin:

"Brat, did you hear that? The arena, one-on-one, do you dare?"

Liliya's face turned even paler, and she instinctively grabbed the corner of Song Yang's clothes.

Song Yang patted her hand reassuringly, then lifted his eyes to meet the other's provocative gaze.

"Sure."

The Scaly-Faced one froze, seemingly surprised by how readily he agreed, then let out a deafening roar of laughter, as if Song Yang were already a dead man.

...

The Black Flag Starport arena was an incredibly massive circular structure.

On the towering giant light screens, bloody scenes from different rings were being broadcast in real-time, and the fanatical shouts of the spectators formed a wave of sound that hit them even from far away.

Under the Shop Owner's "enthusiastic" guidance, they quickly passed through the combatant's passage.

When Song Yang and the Scaly-Faced one stood on one of the rings numbered "C-77", tens of thousands of eyes from the surrounding spectator stands instantly focused on them.

This was an open-air medium-sized ring, suspended in mid-air, surrounded by circular rising spectator stands filled with various cosmic races of all shapes and sizes.

Blinding spotlights shone down from above, clearly projecting their figures into every corner.

"Oh? A newcomer!"

"Who is that skinny kid? Looking at his clothes, he doesn't seem like much of a tough guy."

"The one opposite him is bone crusher Bach! I know him, he's a veteran of the arena and has already won seven consecutive matches!"

"Is there even a need to bet? I'm betting all my savings on bone crusher to win!"

The light screen above the ring flickered, and their portraits and profiles appeared.

[bone crusher - Bach]

[Record: 17 matches, 13 wins]

[Odds: 1:1.2]

[Challenger: Song Yang]

[Record: None]

[Odds: 1:15]

Once the lopsided odds appeared, the betting interface instantly exploded, with 99% of the funds pouring under the name "bone crusher - Bach".

Bach let out a satisfied rumble in his throat, like a beast about to feast, while looking at the nearly overwhelming support rate on the light screen.

He stuck out his forked tongue, licked his scaly lips, and the cruelty in his eyes was almost palpable.

"Kid, did you hear the cheers of the whole arena?"

He pointed his thick fingers toward the stands, where roars like a mountain landslide and a tsunami came from every direction—it was a frenzy for "bone crusher".

"It's been a long time since I've tasted such fresh flesh."

His voice, amplified by the ring's audio system, clearly spread across the arena, inciting another wave of excited screams.

"I forgot to tell you, this C-77 ring is a life-and-death stage."

Bach sneered and took a step forward.

"Once it starts, the door will only open again when one side has completely breathed their last. I will personally twist off your head and, right in front of that little beauty of yours, kick it until it explodes like a ripe watermelon!"

At this moment, the numbers on the giant light screen above the ring began to change.

[10]

[9]

...

The roar of the crowd converged into a single voice, chanting in unison with the countdown.

[3]

[2]

[1]

The death match began.

Bach's muscles instantly bulged, and he charged at Song Yang like a runaway heavy tank, making the ring beneath his feet tremble.

At that very same instant, Song Yang, who had been standing perfectly still, finally lifted his eyes.

"Die!"

Amidst Bach's roar, his right claw, covered in hard scales, had already reached Song Yang's face.

The five sharp claws tore through the air, creating a piercing hiss as they went straight for Song Yang's throat!

It was an extremely tricky angle, his foolproof killing move; countless opponents hadn't even had time to react before having their tracheas torn out by this single claw.

In the spectator stands, many people even stood up in excitement, preparing to welcome that familiar, bloody scene.

However, the anticipated blood did not spray.

Just at the moment the sharp claws were about to touch his skin, a cold glint appeared out of thin air in front of Song Yang.

Clang—

A pitch-black long spear appeared out of thin air and was firmly gripped in his hand.

Bach's claws grabbed right onto the shaft of the spear.

"What?!"

Bach's pupils contracted sharply, his face full of disbelief.

Song Yang flicked his wrist, and the spear shaft became like a living black dragon; a subtle force traveled along the body of the spear, instantly shaking off Bach's claws.

Before Bach could retreat, the long spear turned into an Afterimage, nimbly bypassing his defense with a speed far beyond his comprehension.

Bach only felt a blur before his eyes, followed immediately by an excruciating, heart-wrenching pain in his right shoulder.

He looked down and saw his entire thick arm severed from the root at the shoulder, spinning as it flew away. With a "plop," it landed on the other end of the ring, and blood gushed out like a fountain from the stump!

"Ahhhhh—!"

The delayed, excruciating pain caused Bach to let out a shriek that didn't sound human. He clutched his wound tightly with his left hand, his face extremely twisted from pain and rage.

The roaring cheers in the spectator stands came to an abrupt halt. Tens of thousands of eyes stared fixedly at the ring, and the scene fell into an eerie, deathly silence.

That newcomer with 1:15 odds had crippled one of "bone crusher's" arms with just a single move?

"I'm going to kill you! I'm going to tear you to pieces!"

Fueled by rage, Bach lunged again with his remaining left claw.

Song Yang tapped his feet lightly, like a ghost dancing on the tip of a blade, avoiding Bach's desperate lunges with minimal movement and perfect precision every time.

After a few more exchanges.

Just as Bach swung his claw and missed again, with his old strength spent and new strength yet to arise, Song Yang's figure closed in like a phantom.

Puchi!

The black long spear didn't hesitate for a second, accurately thrusting into Bach's lower abdomen. The tip of the spear pierced through his body, bringing out a spray of hot, shredded internal organs and blood.

Bach's movements froze.

He lowered his head, looking in disbelief at the spear shaft that had run through his body, his strength rapidly dissipating along with his fading life.