In Xiao Hua's imagination, the environment of the underground arena, located so deep beneath the surface, should be dark and narrow, similar to the bars filled with neon lights in reality. As for the arena itself, he thought it might be an enlarged version of a boxing ring.

But the moment he stepped through the small stone archway and opened his eyes, Xiao Hua was completely stunned. For a split second, he thought he had taken a wrong turn!

The azure sky, although lacking both the sun and clouds, was indistinguishable from the sky outside, with ample light, bright and without any hint of darkness!

In surprise, Xiao Hua realized he was standing on a wide and massive stone staircase. Looking around, he was startled to discover that this so-called underground arena was enormous, completely different from the boxing rings in reality!

But what he saw indeed were arenas. At the bottom of the massive stone stairs lay circular arenas resembling ancient colosseums, each the size of a football field. Unlike the colosseum, the arenas were dotted with pale rock pillars of various sizes and heights. These stone pillars were clearly ancient, pale in color, and marked with signs of wear and tear, some even toppled over onto the ground covered with sparse yellow grass. Although Xiao Hua was standing on the stone staircase far away, he could still see these details clearly.

These massive arenas were connected side by side, each covered by a faint white transparent magical screen, separating them from one another. There were at least ten such arenas in sight. The giant stone staircase where Xiao Hua stood was obviously the spectator seating, circling around the arenas from high to low.

This wasn't just an underground arena; it was practically an entire underground world, larger than the entire Black Mist City above!

Xiao Hua was amazed by this realization!

Moreover, those huge magical barriers surrounding each arena and the vast azure sky overhead were no joke!

Xiao Hua had encountered important quests and settings in Second World before and had a deep understanding of the game's mechanics. Rarely would there be useless settings in Second World, especially one as extravagant as this underground arena. There must be some significant secrets hidden here!

While Xiao Hua was marveling, a blacklisted assassin player approached him. Xiao Hua then noticed a group of people watching a match on one of the lower stone staircases nearby.

The actions of this blacklisted assassin player immediately drew the attention of several spectators. They looked at Xiao Hua, the newcomer, and the approaching blacklisted player with amusement, apparently preparing to watch a show.

Xiao Hua squinted his eyes at the approaching player, slightly cautious but not overly worried. If this person had any ill intentions, he would have sneaked up and attacked already. Moreover, Xiao Hua saw black-armored guards patrolling the stone staircases in the distance, indicating that malicious PvP was strictly prohibited here!

"New face, huh? Haven't been in Black Mist City for long, right?" The blacklisted assassin approached Xiao Hua with a smile.

"Almost a month now." Xiao Hua didn't want trouble and replied with a smile.

"Looking for NPC Lea?" The blacklisted assassin's eyes flickered. He was asking knowingly; anyone entering here without the "Underground Arena Pass" would be escorted out by the black-armored guards and warned. Re-entering after being escorted out would result in a day's detention. Those coming here for the first time with the pass were obviously looking for the quest NPC Lea.

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"Yes." Xiao Hua admitted candidly.

"Hehe, that won't work! To contact Lea and continue the quest, you need the approval of our boss Shadow or the boss of Madmen, Tu Kuang. Since they're not here, it's impossible to get their approval. But if you can pass my test, I can speak to the boss, and you can continue the quest." The blacklisted assassin changed the subject.

"A test?" Xiao Hua understood what the assassin wanted.

"Yeah! PvP, outside without using stealth, a real fight! If you can beat me, your strength will be recognized, and you'll be qualified to use the underground arena, and no one will obstruct your quest progress!" The assassin said proudly.

"No-holds-barred PvP?"

"Exactly!" The assassin's eyes flashed with madness.

"PvP isn't allowed here, and you can't stop me from contacting NPC Lea, right?" Xiao Hua noticed an NPC girl with short black hair standing beside a black-armored guard in the distance, presumably Lea.

"Hehe, you can certainly try, if you think you can safely return to the surface via that narrow staircase. Also, honestly speaking, this quest requires multiple contacts with Lea!" The assassin shrugged, smiling sinisterly.

Damn, this is troublesome. Should I continue this quest?

Xiao Hua was troubled. After recent training, he had a desire to PvP. Facing an assassin ten levels higher than him didn't intimidate him. However, players weren't NPCs; they could use potions to recover health. His current skills were not suitable for PvP. Both poison and infinite stacking poison were ineffective against players who could negate the damage with health potions. Using illusions would give him a good chance, but he wouldn't use them in such a PvP.

"Let him through!" Just then, a loud and solid voice came from the stone archway. Xiao Hua recognized it immediately—it was Tu Kuang.

Tu Kuang's tall frame emerged from the small archway. Xiao Hua was surprised that Tu Kuang managed to navigate the narrow staircase.

"Boss Tu..." The blacklisted assassin seemed reluctant to let Xiao Hua slip away and prepared to object.

"I said let him through! Any objections? If so, let's PvP outside, and whoever wins gets to decide. Otherwise, it looks like I'm being unreasonable!" Tu Kuang interrupted the assassin brusquely.

Damn! Isn't this bullying people! Who wants to PvP with a freak like you!

The blacklisted assassin cursed inwardly. Tu Kuang was unbeatable in PvP in Black Mist City, except by a few individuals. He wasn't foolish enough to challenge him!

"Ha ha, Boss Tu is joking. If this person is known to you, I have no objections." The assassin forced a smile and stepped aside obediently.

"Boss Tu, you're so impressive!" A blacklisted player in the distance shouted upon seeing the assassin's dejected look.

"Improve yourself, and you can be impressive too!" Tu Kuang laughed heartily in response.

Watching Tu Kuang, Xiao Hua felt a strange sensation. He couldn't understand why someone like Tu Kuang would be content staying in Black Mist City. Although it was only their second meeting, Xiao Hua sensed that Tu Kuang was far stronger than Bing Feng Tian Xia. If he wanted, forming a powerful guild and dominating an area would be easy!

"Ha ha, no problem. You can go talk to Lea now. In the future, if Seven Wolves know you're associated with me, they won't openly mess with you, but you need to be careful. If you get killed, the system won't notify you who did it." Tu Kuang waved to the crowd and turned to Xiao Hua.

"Thanks. Let's be friends." Xiao Hua nodded and sent a friend request to Tu Kuang. It would be a waste not to know such a person better!

"Not seducing wives, ha ha, that's a good name! Among my friends, yours is the second most unique name!" Tu Kuang's rough voice laughed again.

"What's the deal with this quest? Needing player approval sounds mysterious. Can you give me some hints?"

"There's nothing mysterious about the quest. I'm sure you've guessed that completing it grants you a Killer Badge. Shadow and I don't want Killer Badges to be rampant, and we want to maintain a bit of dignity and mystery. That's why we haven't let all blacklisted players attempt this quest." Tu Kuang sighed slightly.

"As for the quest process, it's actually very simple, but it requires corresponding strength and a lot of time. As a thief, frankly, I'm not optimistic, unless you have powerful free skills. Of course, there's another simpler but difficult path... Anyway, go talk to Lea; she'll explain it better. Explaining it is too troublesome!" Tu Kuang said halfway, finding it too troublesome, and told Xiao Hua lazily.

Hearing Tu Kuang's explanation, Xiao Hua didn't ask further and walked straight toward Lea.

As he approached Lea, Xiao Hua noticed she wore black assassin leather armor. From the side, she looked somewhat familiar!

Strange, did I see Lea somewhere before? But such a distinctive NPC girl, if I had seen her, I wouldn't forget her!