The Thousand Link Slavers had existed for decades, as such, tradition had started to form. One such tradition was to make the young slaves fight. Their intended purpose was to be sold to the Demonic Sect and the Demonic Sect were the ones that demanded this tradition to filter out the weakest kids.
The Thousand Link Slavers were more than delighted to comply. As they were horrid people with corrupt minds, they instantly saw this as a chance to gamble and entertain themselves. Appraiser Tong had even designed a gigantic tent for this purpose, it was a combination of 16 tents and 64 stakes that stood tall enough for nearly a thousand men to watch the fight at a time. Of course, Lian Lingzhu and Appraiser Tong would get a small cut of all the bets, but the slavers were more than happy to be entertained and gamble.
This time around, they had cow and chicken meat to feed all of them along with enough cheap wine to last them a decade. They were short on nothing, and the festivities could finally begin.
The 4 kids that Appraiser Tong had picked out were favored to win this time around, and Appraiser Tong had made a point to keep the killings to a minimum beyond the quarter finals since even non-combat slaves could still be sold to people other than the Demonic Sect, even if for a significantly lower sum of money. Lian Lingzhu also demanded that the fights be held in a tournament style so that they could reward the winning slave with a comfortable tent, high quality meat, and a slave concubine. Of course, those rewards would only last for a few days until they were sold off, but Lian Lingzhu knew well that going to a sale with a high quality and fine condition product to show off would smoothen the entire negotiations.
All was prepared, everything was ready, and every last slaver had made sure that none of the slaves were informed. One of the delights of such an event was to see how terrified the participating kids would be when they learned as the slavers drank wine.
Appraiser Tong was not fond of his expensive and newly captured slaves going to such a dangerous event, even if they were favored to win. So he at least made sure that all of them ate grilled fish and drank warm and clean water alongside fresh fruits as desserts. It was not out of the kindness of his heart, he simply wanted to ensure the protection of his property.
Tian Mingyun and Yanku Zhimei understood something evil would follow when offered such a meal, but they still ate it down to the last bite without complaint. Meanwhile, Shupi Juren and Huo Lan had eaten their share without a hint of hesitation.
Appraiser Tong also noticed that Shupi Juren had become more precious as a slave, but failed to pinpoint why. He was simply glad that his commission fee would be further increased thanks to his increased value. He could never imagine that Shupi Juren had become a Skin Refinement Realm cultivator already.
When the 4 kids were carried into the tent where the fights would be held, they were finally released from their cages. However, they were surrounded by armed guards who made sure that they did not get away. To their shock, they were surrounded by hundreds of other kids and nearly a thousand spectating slavers. The shock of this strange and crowded atmosphere was too much for all of them. Then, they all turned their heads as a voice rang from a high podium.
"I am Lian Lingzhu! I am the man who enslaves cities! I am the man who wraps chains around castles! I am the mightiest one in this camp and its sole Master! Today is the day your merit shall be tested! 4 more batches of this many hundreds of kids shall be tossed into the arena! Only the final standing ones are to be declared fit to even fight in the Thousand Link Slave Tournament! Win it, and you shall be given your own tent, meat, wine, and even a concubine!"
None of the kids were delighted to hear this. None of them coveted such rewards. They were all horrified that only a quarter the number of every captured child slave would be allowed to even participate in a tournament, while the rest would die.
Lian Lingzhu looked like a demon to them. He stood tall, and his shoulders were wider than the width of the large kegs at an inn. This physique of his despite him being in his 60s was thanks to his restless training of the cheap Body Arts he had acquired in his youth. He had never skipped a day of training, and he made sure he never drank enough wine to get drunk or never fooled around with concubines enough to forget his Body Arts. Had life flowed differently, perhaps he would be a cruel yet diligent disciple in a sect, but the man he turned out to be was currently ready to condemn hundreds of kids to death.
As he sat down on his ramshackle yet large wooden throne covered with bear fur, he ordered one of his slave concubines to sit on his lap and serve him wine. He looked at the screaming and crying flock of kids down below without a hint of mercy in his eyes. If they died, they were simply bad products not even worth keeping alive on the journey.
Yanku Zhimei was digging her fingernails into her palms while looking at Lian Lingzhu and the other slavers. How could a human be so cruel? How could one truly massacre so many children as entertainment? How could the heavens not smite them down for such injustice? She was going mad with questions, and her Wire Frame Body Arts which she had practiced for 9 years started reacting.
Tian Mingyun and Huo Lan did not quite understand how Wire Frame Body Arts would be useful in combat, this was because they only knew of combat from stories and the brutal clashes of the armies. Wire Frame Body Arts neither taught one how to use weapons nor to throw gallant punches and kicks. However, now it was laid bare before their eyes.
Yanku Zhimei's body was visibly distorting like a puddle with a stone thrown into it. Her muscles were moving like waves under the skin tight clothing she had all over her body. Her back was especially a brutal sight, as one could see her muscles desperately tightening around her bones as if readying her for a quick burst of power.
Shupi Juren alone was calm, she had seen Yanku Zhimei get riled up and calm down before. Now to mention, his senses were significantly sharper ever since he broke into the Skin Refinement Realm. Just by looking at the other kids around him, he could tell that the violence would avoid him. They were all scared of his imposing figure. He could protect his own friends and mostly avoid harming others just by standing here, or so he hoped.
Huo Lan was glad. She had an innate moral compass just like any human and tried her best to harm others if it was not needed, but she also had the capability and desire to be violent. For her, seeing Yanku Zhimei clearly display the Wire Frame Body Arts had gotten her riled up. She did not know about killing, but she most certainly wanted to fight a few people and better understand her Body Arts.
Tian Mingyun felt safe around his companions, so he was in an observing state. A few of the other kids looked noteworthy, but more importantly, he understood what Martial Will meant now. It was the willingness to both train and use one's Martial Arts, be it Body Arts, Cultivation, Venom Arts, or any other. He was envious upon seeing Yanku Zhimei so obviously bear her fangs at their captors, ready to pounce like a tiger regardless of the odds. He was envious when he saw how relaxed Shupi Juren was, confident that he could walk upon everyone here unharmed. He was envious when he saw how Huo Lan looked more excited than angry to be in a situation like this. He alone was hesitating and merely observing.
Tian Mingyun decided he had to make up his mind and call upon his Martial Will before the call to start the fight was made. He tried to remember when he was truly ready to practice Venom Ants, and it was certainly as he used the Cauldron Fever recipe. He had willingly tipped a boiling cauldron onto himself and he had yelled and declared who he was for the first time when he was healed after surviving a coffin of flaming hot resin.
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What were a thousand slavers filling a tent? What were hundreds of kids willing to kill him to survive? Had all of them died right now, this place would not be half as horrifying as that pith of death and decay he crawled out of. Had all of them tried to kill him, they would not be half as dangerous as burning resin clinging to his skin all over. This was nothing. He would live. He would live even if he had to make a hill of their dead bodies.
Tian Mingyun was finally braced. What mattered to him was life, he would kill if it meant he would live. He quickly bared his black fingernails that were harder than iron, he had burned them while trying to live, and now they would help him live once more. He was ready.
Yanku Zhimei finally calmed down and her Wire Frame Body Arts were under control once more, she turned to the others as the eldest one and spoke a few words.
"Stick close, protect one another, and do not hesitate to kill. There is no shame in killing to live, the shame lies with the ones who forced us here. Huo Lan, as your Elder Sister who taught you your Body Arts, you must make use of them here and learn as much as you can. Shupi Juren, hold back, you must not show what you are capable of, not yet. Tian Mingyun..."
She was going to tell the seemingly booksmart boy to stick close to her so she could guard him but she could see his determination right now as he held out his fingernails as if they were claws. He was ready and braced.
The world and fate had been cruel to force all 4 of them into such a situation, but they would bitterly resist. All 4 of these kids had Martial Wills. They would not hesitate to act, though each may have had a different reason.
Appraiser Tong was grinning ear to ear. He was confident of the slaves he had hand picked, and their odds to win were high in the betting as most people in the camp knew of Appraiser Tong's skills. However, low returns did not mean no returns. Appraiser Tong had bet a large sum of silver taels that those 4 would end up being the top 4 of the tournament.
The spectators were all gripping their wine cups from excitement. The slave kids in the arena were crying from fear and tension. However, there were favorites in each batch of kids that would be thrown into the arena. Though the first 4 of such favorites were Appraiser Tong's handpicked slaves, there were also other favorites that people expected a lot of in other batches. Sending the most favored favorites in with the first batch was also for this purpose, its goal was to tire them out and have the odds evened out.
Lian Lingzhu finally gave the signal to start, and the carnage began. The kids that feared death most were the first to attack those near them, and after a few pockets of violence, the entire arena was drowning in screams and the sounds of punches.
Weapons were intentionally not a part of arena fights. A lot of slave kids here would die, but it would never be an amount that would actually equal 3/4ths of those kids. Instead, only about 1/10th of the kids would die, and none of that number would be during the higher parts of the tournament. After all, punches and kicks were far less lethal than knives and swords. The injured ones could still be sold as servants or labor slaves for cheap.
The real issue was the injured female slaves. The high quality ones or the ones that were revealed to be good in bed or with the fine arts despite not having the best looks were all spared out of the arena. The current female ones in the arena were either deemed ugly, or fiesty or they were the ones who had dared to fight back when being assaulted by the slavers. Well, some of the prettiest male kids were also spared, as Lian Lingzhu knew of more than a few perverted rich men and women who enjoyed buying them.
Lian Lingzhu finally decided it was time for the action to start. He held onto a metal chain to prepare to give the start signal.
Fortress Enslaver was the signature weapon of Lian Lingzhun. Although he could use axes and spears, the Dominating Step Body Arts and the Vein Filling Vigor Body Arts that he practiced both benefited from using a chain as a weapon. The Fortress Enslaver was forged from expensive steel, which was usually only reserved for use in the military, that would not break even by the hands of Peak Skin Refinement Realm cultivators and Lian Lingzhu had captured a few fledgling Skin Refinement Realm cultivators in the last decade as he mastered his weapon.
Lian Lingzhu's thick and strong arm lifted itself up in the air, and the moment he lowered it the Fortress Enslaver rose up and then fell down with a loud crack. Lian Lingzhun shouted loud enough to fill the whole tent with his voice right after the loud metallic crack of his chain whip weapon.
"SECOND BATCH!"
The next batch followed. The first batch was already busy fighting, so a stampede occurred in the arena was the second batch flowed in. The fighting also naturally finally reached Tian Mingyun and his companions.
Yanku Zhimei leaped up at the confused and bloodied kids coming over to attack them and quickly struck each of them in the abdomen to knock them out. One's breath would leave quickly if struck right below the rib cage, she knew just as much and focused her kicks around that area. She did not want to kill anyone unless needed, but she did not hold back in her strikes nor did she hesitate to hit even boys and girls younger than the 9 year old Huo Lan.
Shupi Juren simply stood with his arms crossed and kicked anyone that got too close to him. His kicks were often enough to knock them on their asses and make them run the other way. He was doing his best to hold back so that none of them would die. He was instead mesmerized by the paths the batches of fighting kids followed in this chaotic stampede. His mind kept drawing paths after paths and he could not help but smile at how beautiful the paths were despite the carnage.
Huo Lan did not hold herself back from killing. She killed as if she already knew how to kill. She jumped all over the place and removed handfuls of flesh from anyone she touched as if her hands were made of iron and the other kids were made of clay. Whenever someone tried to hit, bite, or push her, she would not be faxed or harmed in the least, instead trying to dance away from their blows. Though, she was certainly too clumsy with the Wire Body Arts to be even 1/10th as nimble as Yanku Zhimei was, as such she kept getting hit but remained unharmed.
Tian Mingyun was the only one having a hard time. He made sure to stick close to the others, but a tall and skinny kid was clearly looking at Tian Mingyun while standing head and shoulders above the crowd of fighting kids around him. Just the gaze of that extremely tall boy with red eyes and long black hair was distressing enough, and his body looked truly terrifying with how scarred yet lean and musclebound it was. Tian Mingyun felt like prey being looked down upon by a predator.
Tian Mingyun was also physically the weakest of the bunch. He fought by using his tough nails and clawed at the other kids, but every stray punch that landed on his body would cause pain to surge in his body. Yet, whenever he reeled from the pain or suffered damage, that tall and intimidating boy would step even closer. None of the other kids from that batch attacked him, as if they were fighting just to get away from him.