Volume 2: The Rise of Dark Technology Chapter 132: Devil's Arena

  Raidhoof has a fairly large arena, which is something that almost everyone who comes to Raidhoof knows right away. Although the emerging ball games are also fun, the activity that suits the Saulte and Dwarf people the most is indeed the bloody monster fighting first.

  The original arena in Thunder Bluff was not very large, and at first, it was just a place that Mo Yan had created for fun. It only had a simple venue and less than 500 seats. However, as Thunder Bluff continued to develop and the number of spectators increased, the original venue was no longer sufficient to meet the needs of the residents. Therefore, a new location had to be chosen, and a new arena was built near the newly constructed sports stadium.

  The new arena is a huge circular structure, with the foundation made of large square blocks of stone, then bonded together with Opus caementicium. The arena consists of three levels of arched corridors, using white marble columns extensively and equipped with awnings for spectator seating, and even has private boxes on the third level.

  In the new arena, the performance venue is an elongated oval shape, with a yellowish-brown ground covered in a layer of glittering golden sand to make blood easier to clean up. The monsters or humans in the arena fight here, and then die amidst cheers or gasps of surprise.

  This arena can accommodate up to 10,000 spectators and has all the necessary facilities. Not only can you enjoy specialty food from the arena, but you can also buy some cute monster plushies. On every seventh day of rest, you can see human performers dressed as plushies at the entrance attracting customers.

  This series of modern amusement park-style operations, of course, could not have been thought up by these indigenous people. The operator of the arena has always been the Minotaur who lives in the White Castle, as the ruler of the entire city. Moreover, the new arena's appearance is also a complete copy, no matter which direction you look at it, the new arena is generally identical to the Roman Colosseum, only much smaller.

  This arena, named the Devil's Stage, is one of the most famous entertainment facilities in both Thundercliff and all of Eran. Even wealthy or noble individuals from other cities come to watch performances here at the Devil's Stage, where the third-tier private boxes have become a symbol of status, and only those who have paid a hefty price can ascend to watch the show.

  Recently, the Demon Arena has even launched a betting service. Each demon that appears on stage is given a number and a nickname that sounds very domineering. The day before the battle, these are posted on the bulletin board outside the arena, allowing people who come to watch the performance the next day to place bets on their favorite demons.

  Some clever people in Thunder Ridge have even started making and selling bestiary cards that analyze the strengths of magical creatures, which are selling quite well. They're almost always sold out by the end of each day. In a place like this, where all sorts of people gather, there are bound to be some unsavory characters lurking about. Although the arena has guards posted to prevent any serious trouble, theft and scams still happen every day.

  At this time, at the betting place in the Devil's Arena, a short and stout Sauron was enthusiastically introducing to someone who seemed to be visiting the Devil's Arena for the first time. The crowd quickly passed by their side, it was almost time for the start, they had to buy the demon beast they liked as soon as possible, once the betting deadline arrived, they could only wait until tomorrow.

  "I have inside information." The stout Salter man's sharp little eyes stared at the middle-aged man who had come to the Devil's Arena for the first time, looking around cautiously as if afraid of being overheard, and said in a low voice: "I'm in charge of cleaning the monster rest room in the Devil's Arena. I can get in touch with those monsters every day, so I understand their current state."

  "Then why don't you buy it yourself?" The middle-aged man, who was obviously cautious, looked at the stout Sartrean and asked, "If you have such a reliable source of information, wouldn't you have made a fortune by constantly placing bets? Why tell me the news." The middle-aged man had also been to many places, although it was his first time coming to the Devil's Arena in Thundercliff, but he wasn't blinded by the prospect of getting rich.

  "We have rules, no one working in the arena can place bets here." The stout Sartrean chuckled and said: "Those responsible for selling betting tickets are all acquaintances of ours, I couldn't show my face in front of them. Besides, as I said, I'm just telling you the situation without taking your money in advance, if it doesn't come true, you won't have any losses, right?"

  The middle-aged man hesitated for a moment after hearing the stout Salter's words, feeling that there was indeed no risk, so he still decided to follow the stout Salter's words and buy according to the number he provided. He didn't want to buy much, and if he didn't win, he wouldn't lose anything...

  "Haha……another one hooked." The stout Salterian watched as the middle-aged man walked to the betting area, took out a few silver coins and started placing bets. A sly smile of triumph appeared on his face. Although this was a very simple scam, if you didn't understand the underlying principle, it would be easy to get cheated without even knowing why.

  These people who specialize in picking on unfamiliar people at the betting site are called "guiders" by those around them. They don't have any special information sources as they claim, and the so-called winning numbers are just something they say casually.

  After all, the demons participating in the competition are just a few heads. They only need to find those who have just come to the demon arena or who are not familiar with the demon arena and let them buy all the demon numbers one after another. Then there will always be someone who wins the prize money. And when the winner goes to collect the prize, they will wait there asking for their share of the prize. This way, they almost say that without placing a bet, they can share a considerable amount of prize money.

  The audience has almost all taken their seats, and the demon beast gladiatorial combat is about to begin. Although the arena operates during the rainy season, it was affected by the heavy rain, so today's battle is the first large-scale performance after the end of the rainy season. Several demonic beasts that are well-known to everyone in the audience will also appear on stage for a fierce battle today.

  The first round of fighting began quickly, today's special opening was three hundred goblins equipped with simple weapons and armor, against a minotaur with no protection, wielding dual war axes. Although the goblins were not good at fighting and even quite timid, their number of three hundred would make even one or two Salter warriors feel very thorny, but it was also because of this that there was some fun to watch.

  The Minotaur who appeared was no ordinary one, having performed in the Demon-Slaying Arena for over a hundred shows, and could be said to have been through thick and thin. This Minotaur, named Chieftain, did not rush towards the trembling Goblins that were simply formed into an array on the field after emerging from the preparation room of the Demon-Slaying Arena.

  He is no longer the rookie who just arrived at the Devil's Arena, he understands that what he is doing is a performance rather than a normal battle. He strikes the two steel war axes in his hands against each other, producing a clear and loud sound. With a leisurely pace, he slowly walks around the arena, raising his hand to salute all those who are cheering for him.

  A feeling he had never felt before was echoing in his heart, a sensation that humans generally referred to as pride and glory. This feeling made the chieftain feel exceptionally comfortable, even making him somewhat fond of these humans who were once considered nothing but food before he arrived at Thunder Cliff.

  Men and women in the audience, holding their betting tickets, loudly cheered for the chieftain's name as he made his entrance. Some people who came to the Devil's Arena for the first time were also infected by the emotions of other excited spectators, with their hearts racing and blood boiling.

  Just as the chieftain finished showing off and was about to tear apart the earth spirit in front of him, a huge shadow suddenly covered the entire sky. A gigantic object that had never been seen before appeared above the Demon Fighting Arena, emitting thick steam from its whistle, making a loud noise, and forming white mist that floated away in the air.

  If it weren't for the icon of the crimson Thundercliff flag on top of this long, columnar object, I'm afraid everyone would have been shocked and fled in all directions. Soon, the manager responsible for presiding over the Devil's Arena received a message from the Party Guards.

  The amplification magic in the venue announced to all the audience the name and function of the object floating in the air, and let them remain calm and composed, continuing to watch the competition on the field. In this thing called a flying boat, the controller of Thunder Cliff was inside, he just came to watch the performance.

  The audience, who had been worried about the object in the air, finally put down their hanging hearts, but no one had the mind to watch the performance on the field anymore. They were all attracted by the flying boat in the sky and everyone was guessing how this huge thing could fly into the sky and why it would spray out such steam. The city master, who seemed to be all-powerful, had come up with another magical device.

  After tearing the last demon to shreds with his bare hands, the chief covered his head in blood and roared with closed eyes, waiting for the expected cheers. However, the demonic arena was silent, which made him open his eyes and look at the audience in surprise, only to find that everyone was looking up at the sky, and he couldn't help but throw the demon's corpse to the ground in annoyance, and stormed back to the locker room.

  His not-so-intelligent brain couldn't understand why the audience wasn't paying attention to him. In his eyes, the airship in the sky was just a big cloud, what's so interesting about it? Was it more fascinating than his own performance? Although on that cloud, there seemed to be a pattern similar to the flag of Thundercliff.