Chapter Fifty-Eight: Fierce and Ruthless

Getting ready to freshen up and head out to the annual gathering point. Updates may not be punctual these couple of days, but rest assured, there will be no shortage of daily chapters. Please, everyone, keep voting in support of Pighead! By the way, apologies to Uncle Xin—Pighead didn’t expect your ID would be automatically censored by the system! The one blessed with the little girl is Uncle Xin, just to clarify.

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Lin Qi stood with his hands behind his back, smiling in utter delight. Two magical beasts were locked in a fierce struggle, blood, saliva, and poisonous gas spraying everywhere. Their colossal bodies collided with the earth, sounding like muffled thunder. Lin Qi’s smile made everyone except Jin look utterly grim, especially Ya and Ling, whose beautiful faces turned pale as death.

Never before had something so uncontrollable occurred.

The Church possessed its own secret divine arts; as soon as Ya and Ling entered the arena, they used their magic to assess the states of both beasts. Whether in terms of innate attributes or raw power, the Ice-Armored Polar Bear held an absolute advantage.

Yet now, the Green-Striped Gold-Eyed Python was suppressing the bear in combat.

With two shattered venomous fangs, the snake was driven mad, ignoring the blood streaming from its mouth as it savagely tore at the flesh beneath the bear’s fractured ice armor. The venomous fangs sunk deep into its body, injecting massive amounts of poison.

The snake even depleted its core essence, tapping into the life force stored within its magical core, transforming its own vitality into pitch-black venom that it spat out. This venom was over ten times more potent than what it usually stored; a mere touch would cause any ordinary creature’s body to rot and die.

The snake’s body was wrapped tightly around the bear, its muscles convulsing with an inexplicable efficiency. Its bones could not withstand the strain—dozens of fractures appeared throughout its serpentine frame. Yet the snake seemed oblivious to the agony within, clinging desperately to the bear, exerting every ounce of strength.

Its magical core burned hot, emitting a faint glow that shone through its skin at the vital spot. A dense black radiance appeared, like the eyes of a demon embedded in its body.

“This snake has gone berserk!” Ya and Ling frowned, glancing at Lin Qi. To witness a magical beast’s berserk transformation—such a rare phenomenon—and it happens to him?

The white bear struggled frantically, its massive ten-meter form writhing in desperation. No matter how it fought, it could not break free of the snake’s grip. Thick layers of ice armored its broad, heavy paws; its claws were sheathed in sharp ice crystals, gleaming coldly as they tore through the air, battering the snake’s body.

The snake’s scales were ripped open, muscles torn, exposing colorful viscera and stark white bones. Yet the snake only bit down harder, ignoring the searing pain.

The span of a tea’s time passed swiftly. The white bear was now a pitch-black mass. Poison permeated its body, its organs saturated. Blood poured from its seven orifices as it collapsed, and soon its flesh began to rot, dissolving into a pool of pus.

Victorious, the snake reared up, gazing across the magical barrier at Lin Qi and the others. It hissed sharply, spewing a thick jet of black venom skyward. The venom struck the barrier and bounced back to the ground, sizzling as it corroded the earth.

Having expelled its venom, the snake finally collapsed, barely alive. It coiled itself weakly, its massive head drooping limply. In that last fight, it had slain a beast far stronger than itself, whose ice armor was its natural nemesis, but at great cost—most of its life force had been spent.

Lin Qi quietly applauded, sweeping all the gold notes and easily collected jewels from the table into his pocket. As for the less portable swords, he generously tossed them in front of Jin. “These swords are worth quite a bit—consider them your share for this bet!”

Jin grinned broadly, nodding repeatedly. The swords themselves weren’t much, but the gemstones in their scabbards were valuable. Together, their jewels amounted to at least twenty thousand gold coins—a handsome cut for this high-stakes wager.

Lin Qi sneered and turned to Ya and Ling, whose faces were ashen.

“Ladies from the Vias Commercial Federation, heiresses of the finest families, might you release my friend now? You see, I’ve won.”

Lin Qi’s smile was smug and radiant, his words dripping with sarcasm.

He had every reason to be pleased. The snake was supposed to lose, but when Lin Qi’s gold note had fallen into the arena, he had hurried to retrieve it, and casually scattered a pinch of Master Kocha’s ‘Berserk Potion’ into the snake’s cage.

Originally, Master Kocha had intended to craft a powerful ‘Mental Elixir’ that would allow someone to go a month without sleep. But the mysteries of alchemy often beget surprises; the potion had mutated into something that could multiply a creature’s strength for a short time, after which it would be left barely alive.

Fully berserk, its power multiplied several times, the Green-Striped Gold-Eyed Python had managed to defeat the polar bear against all expectations. It won—Lin Qi won, and won big.

The best part: after the berserk potion took effect, it evaporated instantly. Even if other master alchemists were present, they wouldn’t detect a trace. It was the ultimate cheating tool in the arena, and Lin Qi had come here precisely for this.

After teasing Ya and Ling, Lin Qi tried to help up Enzo.

The middle-aged man snorted coldly, planting his foot on Enzo’s back. “Unless the lady orders it, no one touches him.”

Lin Qi’s expression darkened instantly.

Jin’s face fell as well. He barked angrily, “Ladies, this is the Golden Rose Lounge. Please abide by my rules! Control your servants, or you’ll be blacklisted as clients here.”

Ya and Ling paid no heed to Jin’s words, only watching Lin Qi with amusement, shaking their heads and sneering, “You think you can leave so easily after taking our money? Not a chance. We want another round.”

Their laughter was bright, as if this were nothing more than a delightful game.

Lin Qi’s face grew darker, as black as coal. He stared fiercely at Ya and Ling, slowly pulled out the gold notes they had wagered—worth over a million coins—and tossed them carelessly onto the floor. Then he strode out.

As he walked, he turned and snarled, “You sluts, you’ll regret this! Very soon, you’ll regret it!”

Ya and Ling’s faces changed abruptly, flushed with fury.