Time fleeted by and an hour passed. Two cool and imposing-looking deathmatch gladiators were brought into the arena. The good-looking Golden Immortal man in white slightly bowed to the spectators and then announced with a smiling face, \"This is the eighth match at our Convict Arena today. An expert of the Crystal Race against a Featherkin expert. The guests who'd like to participate in the gamble, it's time for you to place your bet.\"
Having said that, he didn't stay too long and quickly left the Convict Arena.
At the auditorium.
Dragon Broker came to Tang Xiu and bent as he whispered, \"Sir Great Tang, that Crystal Race's expert is just an ordinary Immortal, whereas that Featherkin expert has just advanced to the Earth Immortal Stage. The Convict Arena's authority placing them in this match means that this Crystal Race expert is very powerful and may be able to contend with an Earth Immortal. But there's also a chance that the Convict Arena's management is trying to manipulate the information. After all, such a chasm in cultivation level is not so easy to offset.\"
\"You just went around in order to remember the information of these deathmatch gladiators?\" Tang Xiu smilingly commented.
\"Ah, it's because this is a part of my service for you, so I naturally must know their information.\" Dragon Broker smilingly replied, \"However, I will only tell you their information without disturbing your judgment and decision.\"
Tang Xiu slowly nodded. Despite having sharp and keen eyesight, the fight between this Crystal Race and Featherkin experts had yet to start, so he was unable to judge their strength.
\"Tell me the records of their previous matches.\"
Dragon Broker told Tang Xiu the records of the two combatants' performances in their previous matches. He just simply recited the information about them since he had a good memory. After reciting them, he said, \"Sir Great Tang, I'm afraid you'd need to take note of all the information of the gladiators yourself if you'd like to keep betting, or you'd need to wait for the start of each match before you judge. A rushed decision and judgment would be less thorough otherwise.
Tang Xiu gently nodded as his mind unceasingly analyzed the records of these two people's winning matches. After more than 10 minutes, he then said, \"Place the bet for the win of that Crystal Race's gladiator.\"
\"100,000 Immortal Crystals all on him?\" Dragon Broker's throat dried as he asked hesitantly.
\"Yup. Bet all the 100,000 Immortal Crystals.\" Tang Xiu confirmed.
Despite knowing that Tang Xiu was really rich, little did Dragon Broker think that he would take it so lightly. He thought that Tang Xiu's decision to place all the 100,000 Immortal Crystals on the Crystal Race's gladiator was absolutely not a wise move. He just only heard the performance records of these two combatants, for God's sake!
Yet, he didn't dare to persuade since his previous attempt triggered his dissatisfaction. While harboring a helpless feeling, he had no choice but to go to the cashier window to place the 100,000 Immortal Crystals bet.
This grand gamble was, in fact, established and managed by the Convict Arena itself. Regardless of the win or loss of the gamblers, the Convict Arena was the real winner. However, the losers would lose all the money they bet, whereas the winners would double their money according to the amount of their bets.
For instance, in Tang Xiu's case, he would earn another 100,000 Immortal Crystals should he eventually win the bet.
Quickly after, Dragon Broker returned to Tang Xiu with the betting token worth 100,000 Immortal Crystals. After giving it to Tang Xiu, he respectfully said, \"Sir Great Tang, you can go to the cashier window to exchange the token into Immortal Crystals should you finally win. Also, we still have an hour left before the match begins. Would you like me to see the information regarding these two gladiators again?\"
Tang Xiu thought about it for a moment before he got up and said, \"Taking a look at them sounds good; better than wasting time here.\"
After saying that, he left the auditorium. However, he didn't go straight to the cages of the two deathmatch fighters, but started from the end of the row and kept reading the information on each cage. It only took him half an hour to see nearly a hundred deathmatch fighters and read all of their information.
\"Sir Great Tang, the deathmatch has just begun, don't we need to return to the auditorium?\" Dragon Broker really couldn't understand Tang Xiu's mind. He hesitated for a while before asking in a whisper.
\"Well, I'll read all the information of these deathmatch fighters, before enjoying the match in the auditorium then!\" Tang Xiu lightly said, \"But you can go back to the auditorium to watch the match yourself if you feel bored following me, though.\"
The teenager thought about it and finally said honestly, \"I'll stay with you, Sir Great Tang! In case you meet any deathmatch fighter you take a liking to, I can run about for you if you want to buy him or her.\"
\"Okay.\" Tang Xiu just answered casually and kept walking forward. There were more than 200 deathmatch fighters in the cells. The match between the Crystal Race's expert against the Featherkin expert came to an end with the former as the winner when Tang Xiu came to see the 140th cell.
\"We won!\"
Dragon Broker was so excited that his body slightly trembled. Although he wasn't the one who gambled, how easy it was for Tang Xiu to win 100,000 Immortal Crystals had really opened his eyes. There was a likely chance that he would earn more rewards from Tang Xiu should Tang Xiu win more Immortal Crystals in the end.
Tang Xiu himself seemed to not hear the teenager's exclamation. He was standing in front of a giant iron cage at the moment, looking at a scrawny and bloodied feline woman inside. The feline woman was very beautiful. Except for a few horizontal stripes on her cheek, her tail was moderately long and had obviously been cut off by someone while her other features were no different from humans.
The other deathmatch fighters always showed a ferocious or sinister expression whenever Tang Xiu approached them, except this feline female. Her expression and eyes looked dull and indifferent even if she realized that many people were crowding outside to see her.
\"Why do I feel I have met her before?\"
Tang Xiu deeply frowned and a thoughtful look appeared in his eyes. He felt a kind of familiarity with this feline female the moment he saw her as if he had seen her before. He kept racking his memory to remember who she was but couldn't recall anyone.
\"Kitty, stand up and turn around a few times!\"
Tang Xiu suddenly said.
An anxious expression flashed in the lifeless eyes of the feline female. After turning her head to see Tang Xiu, she looked slightly startled and blinked her faint-blue eyes. But she suddenly dashed towards Tang Xiu at the speed of lightning. Her hands grabbed the iron bars of the cage and stared at Tang Xiu as her nose vigorously sniffed to smell something.
Half an hour later, her pupils suddenly contracted and she loosened her grip on the cage bars. Walking staggeringly to the back, she then slumped down on the floor. The shocking mood she had made her lose her mind and just sat lifelessly there despite her Celestial Immortal Stage cultivation.
\"You're…\"
Her voice was a bit hoarse as though her throat had been severely damaged. She swallowed back the rest of the words she was about to spill after saying a word.
Crystal tears came down and covered her shocked eyes. Under Tang Xiu's gaze, she slowly lay down to the side and big drops of her tears fell down while her blood-stained fingers gently curled up, making a scratching gesture.
\"Totoro?\"
Tang Xiu's body shuddered and an incredulous look was plastered on his face. With a twitching heart, he stared blankly at the feline woman who kept making the same movements.
\"Show me your belly!\" Tang Xiu said with a deep voice after taking a deep breath.
The feline female slowly got up and gently lifted her ragged upper clothes. A shocking scar was revealed to Tang Xiu, and he keenly saw a faintly visible black line from the cat woman's scarred abdomen.
At this moment, Tang Xiu tightly gripped his fists. His eyes were as though able to kill as he shifted to Dragon Broker and said in a heavy voice, \"I want her. Inform the person in charge of this Convict Arena that I'll buy her regardless of the price.\"
The teenager didn't notice the unusual situation that just happened between Tang Xiu and the cat woman since he was still full of joy of Tang Xiu's winning 100,000 Immortal Crystals. But he quickly observed the feline woman after hearing Tang Xiu's order and then complied before running toward the cashier.
Half an hour later, the boy came back with a goatee-bearded old man in a grayish robe.
\"I was told that Fellow Immortal would like to buy this deathmatch fighter. Is that true?\" the old man amicably smiled and stroked his goatee beard while talking.
\"Is her price exactly on this price tag?\" asked Tang Xiu.
\"That's right,\" the old man smilingly replied. \"You can buy this deathmatch fighter for 420,000 Immortal Crystals.\"
Tang Xiu handed him the betting token and then took out 220,000 Immortal Crystals from his interspatial ring. After transferring them into another ring, he handed it to the old man and said, \"These are 420,000 Immortal Crystals. She's mine.\"
The old man slightly smiled and took out a peculiar-shaped key and unlocked the chain wrapped around the iron cage. He then gave a jade token to Tang Xiu and said, \"Her Life and Soul Essence are in this token. From now on, her life is in your hands.\"
Tang Xiu waved his hand and watched the old man leave. A blob of True Fire then appeared in his palm and instantly burned the jade token. However, he quickly grabbed the wisp of the transparent Soul Essence of the cat woman from it and put it back into her body.
\"Sir Great Tang…\"
Dragon Broker was horrified as though he just saw the most inconceivable thing in the world. He knew that every deathmatch fighter was a fearsomely ruthless character. Unless their Life Source and Soul Essence were under control, a terrible fate would befall their Master should they have any intention to harm or kill their Master.
Tang Xiu took out 20 Immortal Crystals, handed them to the boy and said, \"You don't need to follow me anymore from now on, so take these Immortal Crystals. Don't ever show yourself in front of me if I don't take the initiative to find you.\"
Dragon Broker shuddered inwardly and hesitated for a moment. With a bit of regretful face, he received the 20 Immortal Crystals and left extremely fast.
Tang Xiu then took out a full robe from his interspatial ring and then came to the feline woman, covered her body by himself and then said softly, \"You've suffered.\"
Large beads of tears flowed from the cat woman's eyes. She desperately shook her head and gently hugged Tang Xiu and didn't let him go for a long time.
After a long while, Tang Xiu softly patted her shoulders and then took out a Springtime Elixir and stuffed it into her mouth, saying, \"Follow me. We'll be staying here for a few days before taking you home.\"