Chapter 10

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

The beating heart of Rome is not the marble of the Senate. It’s the sand of the Colosseum.

This famous line was obviously a misunderstanding of Rome.

Modern artists magnified Roman culture’s barbarism infinitely for the plot’s conflict.

Blood and violence were shaped into the background of this great civilization.

This was already a form of discrimination.

However, the scariest thing in the world was that discrimination was reflected in reality.

Jin Yuchen was currently applying olive oil to his upper body, which would highlight the lines of his muscles.

It made him look even sexier. It would also be easier to satisfy the audience.

The audience was now gathered at this 1:1 replica of the ground-level Colosseum.

Those who died fostered hatred for the living. Perhaps blood was not the color of ancient Rome, but it must be the color of Rome Inverted.

They yearned for fresh bodies to shed blood here and become one of them.

Alfonnius was no exception. The evidence was that he threw Jin Yuchen into the arena without even letting him rest.

He just wanted Jin Yuchen to die a more gruesome death.

At the best position in the stands, the skeleton with the Laurel wreath put down the hand on his lower jaw and stood up.

“Citizens! Today is a special day for us.”

The skeletons in the stands roared in unison.

“Your Majesty!”

“Ho!”

…

The emperor with the Laurel wreath enjoyed the cheers and continued to shout, “It’s been 1,000 years!

“From today onward, an endless stream of living people will come here.

“For the great Rome, your Augustus, and all of you, I present you with a magnificent performance!

“Now, let’s begin!”

With a deafening roar, a few naked skeletons turned the capstan.

The iron gate made a special ear-piercing sound of rust and erosion, and the light of the magma river poured into the passage.

Jin Yuchen slowly walked out and looked at the emperor on the stage.

‘This is the owner of this place, Nero. Tsk, so difficult to deal with.’

The simplest and crudest way to obtain the treasure of the tomb owner was to defeat the tomb owner and then snatch the treasure.

However, there were also cases of theft, and there were even cases of giving away the tomb for free after establishing a good relationship with the tomb owner.

Of course, that was something that could only be encountered and not sought.

Nero seemed to understand his relationship with the outside world and even set a trap just to satisfy his entertainment.

It was almost impossible for this kind of fellow to become weak.

Jin Yuchen was already imagining the tomb’s development scene, a group of people holding tickets and trying to get into the tomb by luck.

After entering the tomb, they would either die at the entrance or pour their blood on the arena.

The information also stated that a large-scale group of tomb raiders had entered the tomb, but there were no details.

McRae Corp. had not gained anything from this excavation.

From this limited information, Jin Yuchen could smell the stench of blood.

‘You’re too arrogant. I hope this backup plan works.’

Jin Yuchen thought for a while, then moved his eyes away from Nero and looked at the iron fence on the other side of the arena.

‘Let’s take it one step at a time.’

…

As the iron door rose, a skeleton gladiator holding a spear appeared.

The shield was small and round, only enough to cover his forearms, and beautiful patterns were drawn on it.

The spear in its hands was also very short compared to the spears on the battlefield. Its whole body was wrapped in cloth, and only its head and legs were covered in armor.

‘Heavy-armored gladiators are quite troublesome.’

Jin Yuchen’s eyes twitched.

It was called heavy armor, not because of the multiple factors of the armor, but because it was an imitation of the Greek heavy infantry.

However, it was different from the heavy infantry on the battlefield. This specialized in one-on-one combat.

Even Jin Yuchen, who had never fought a gladiator before, could tell how terrifying this equipment was.

A short spear was lighter and more flexible. It was convenient to use it with one hand and give a variety of movements. The same was true for a small shield. As long as it was flexible, it could protect the upper body.

As for the head and legs that were not easy to protect, they could be protected with armor. Simply put, this gladiator was a turtle, a spiky one.

‘It seems like you really want me to die quickly. You don’t even need to pretend anymore.’

Jin Yuchen walked to the weapon rack and picked up a spear.

“It’s a little short, but it’s enough,”

He shook the spear in the air and felt the material of the spear handle.

It was a good spear, but it was a little hard.

He grabbed the middle part of the spear shaft with his right hand, assumed a horse stance, lifted the spear, and gestured to the stands.

“I’m ready. Let’s start.”

As the referee’s hand gesture fell, the stands erupted with a tidal wave of roars.

“Kill him!”

“Kill him!”

“I want to see his brain!”

…

The heavy gladiator bent his spine slightly and lowered his body. He rushed toward Jin Yuchen and stabbed his short spear at Jin Yuchen’s body.

The spear’s tip was only an arm’s length away from Jin Yuchen’s chest when it was suddenly stopped.

At that moment, Jin Yuchen held the spear with both hands and pressed it down on the short spear.

His master’s dojo was a branch of Wing Chun, which was also the origin of the martial art he was best at.

In his previous life, he had added in the principles of karate and grappling, and evolved into a technique that could be called vicious.

However, the most basic concept of this technique was still to pursue close-range and ultra-short-distance combat.

In terms of cold weapons, he naturally inherited the bang staff. However, Jin Yuchen had gradually abandoned this kind of weapon over the years.

It was true that an inch longer was an inch stronger. This theory was also applicable to the tombs’ undead with infinite strength. They would only be stronger in comparison.

Some of the undead in the tombs were even three meters tall, and their arm span and weapon advantages were even more exaggerated than Michael Tyson’s fighting with a kindergartener.

Only at close range could one nullify the strength and physical advantage of the monsters to a certain extent.

Unless these monsters knew how to use one-inch punches, they could only blame their bad luck for running into Jin Yuchen.

After many years of fighting, Jin Yuchen had put the idea of close-range fingering into the weapon and thus formed this unique fighting method.

This was also the reason he was holding the middle part of the spear. Only such an extreme way of exerting force could contend with this monster.

Heavy-armored gladiators used single-handed spears, so they were at a disadvantage compared to Jin Yuchen’s two-handed spear. Although it had been strengthened, Jin Yuchen could maintain the strengthened state for a short time.

This time, it even caused his body to lose its balance.

Jin Yuchen took a step forward and entered a dangerous distance. At the same time, he twisted his waist and turned around, using the momentum from his spin to thrust his spear forward.

A back thrust!

The heavy-armored gladiator blocked the attack with his small round shield. This kind of combat reaction was shocking.

However, this shot was obviously not very pleasant. The huge impact had caused the small shield to deviate.

However, to the gladiator’s surprise, his small round shield even brought with it a tearing force that bent his forearm.

What’s this!?