The Underworld, once deathly silent and frigid, had now become unusually noisy.
"Go, go! Take down that longworm!"
"Idiot! Step on its tail, pin its head, and chop it off with one swing! How hard is that?"
"It got away again! Again! It's on the left, idiot!"
"Damn it! I really don't know what the goddess sees in these brainless fools. They only know how to throw their weight around. If they were my soldiers, I'd curse their whole family line out of existence!"
Within the Spear Cages on both sides, hundreds of humanoid soul flames flickered violently.
The undead, their faces vaguely visible, shouted furiously. They clutched stones carved with skull symbols, looking as though they could not wait to hurl them.
"Samael, yes, yes, yes! Beat the hell out of him!"
"Poison is useless! Garuda Spirits are soul entities. Use whatever magic or divine arts you know and throw it all at him!"
"Battle techniques work too. Once they resonate with Aether Factor, the resulting shockwaves can inflict actual damage on ghosts!"
"Haha, you little bastard, you really do learn fast. I knew I hadn't misjudged you!"
At the same time, another group of ghosts holding stones carved with snake symbols grinned as they shouted advice or traded insults with the group across from them.
Meanwhile, on the open ground, one large and one small figure clashed repeatedly in a fierce battle.
The aftershocks from the surging magic power blasted apart the surrounding rocks, while powerful gusts of air stirred up a hazy cloud of dust.
"Wooo!"
A piercing wail came from one side. The Garuda Spirit, its entire body wreathed in Death Qi, had failed to gain the upper hand after a prolonged assault and was gradually becoming frantic.
Red light flared in the monster's eyes as it swept out with its claws, sending rippling silver patterns outward.
"The Garuda Spirit has gone berserk! It's exceeding its power limit! Foul! Foul!"
Umm, a ghost clutching seven or eight snake-symbol stones in his arms, slapped the Spear Cage and shouted angrily.
The souls, who had originally stood in opposing formations, stopped jeering almost at the same time. The flames in their eyes trembled slightly.
However, before they could react, the situation on the field suddenly changed.
The slender figure engulfed by the foul wind saw the bony claw wreathed in ghostly blue flames closing in. It immediately threw back its head with a shriek, its scales flipping outward and bursting apart as a red-black blood mist spread through the air.
Then, just as the Garuda Spirit swung its claw at that cloud of red-black mist, a furry claw marked with reddish-brown patterns shot out without warning and slammed it heavily to the ground.
Boom!
A tremendous roar spread outward as shattered stones sprayed in every direction.
The Garuda Spirit, sunk deep into the crater, let out dull cracking sounds from its breastbone. The Death Qi surrounding it was forcibly scattered.
At the same time, as the smoke and dust gradually dispersed, the thing standing atop the Garuda Spirit revealed its clear outline.
This lion-like monster with reddish-brown fur was imposing and ferocious, standing roughly two meters tall. Its gaping maw held two pairs of sharp fangs and a mouthful of chisel-like teeth.
Furthermore, its neck, spine, and tail were covered in golden mane, like leaping flames.
"Isn't that thing..."
Old Umm smacked his lips, his expression strange and filled with disbelief.
"Lion-like Urum! One of the Eleven Demon Beasts said to have been created by the goddess Tiamat!"
A newly arrived ghostly commander of a thousand from the ruined city of Babylon spoke in a dry voice.
Just as the atmosphere inside the Spear Cages froze, the lion turned its head and asked cautiously. Its distinctive vertical snake pupils opened and closed as they looked around.
"So, it broke the rules first. That means I still won this round, right?"
Could this Demon Beast be Samael's transformed form?!
As the ghosts stared at one another, the Garuda Spirit pinned to the ground shook its skeletal head.
Its scattered Death Qi surged back together wildly, the flames in its eyes burning intensely. Its upper and lower jaws opened wide and snapped viciously at the imposing Demon Beast's forepaw.
However, with even quicker reflexes, the lion-like Urum swiped one claw through the thin Death Qi and smacked the Garuda Spirit's head flying, quieting the thing down for the moment as it slowly used Death Qi to repair its injuries.
"Hey, hey, buddy, that's enough. You're working way too hard. Nobody's paying your injury compensation."
Lin Xian, transformed into a lion-like Urum, lowered his head and muttered. He then released the Garuda Spirit and strode gracefully toward the Spear Cages with the elegant gait of a feline.
"So, uh, a bet's a bet. Those who owe up, pay up. Battle techniques, magic, antiques, treasure, anything like that can be valued and used as payment."
The ghosts, finally coming back to their senses, immediately exploded into an uproar and threw their skull-symbol stones at the lion.
"Won my ass! This was rigged!"
"You can transform into Uridimmu, and you still want to gamble? Gamble my ass!"
"That's right! You little bastard! Give us our money back!"
This Garuda Spirit guarding the Underworld had only recently completed its transformation. It was merely Silver-rank and had lost most of its combat skills.
And that was without even mentioning the Eleven Demon Beasts, those Deity-class freaks serving as the template.
Among the beast tide currently ravaging the world of Mesopotamia, most mature Uridimmu were already Silver-rank.
And you expected a brainless Garuda Spirit to suppress its strength and duel you one-on-one? Who were you trying to fool? Where was your shame?
Several knowledgeable undead Sumerian soldiers cursed the loudest. They looked ready to crawl out of the Spear Cages and chop this bastard to pieces.
Amid the dense rain of stones, the lion-like Urum's sleek, gleaming fur automatically deflected every foreign object that struck it. Its steel-like body did not feel the slightest itch or pain.
"Tch! I told you all to keep things peaceful and be reasonable."
"You were the ones who insisted on egging me into fighting the Garuda Spirit, then secretly placed bets."
Lin Xian, still transformed into the lion-like Urum, leaned toward several of the loudest undead with a somewhat aggrieved expression.
At the same time, the ghosts on the other side holding snake-pattern stones, who had bet on Lin Xian, saw that their opponents did not want to settle up and immediately began cursing as well.
In the end, the chaotic quarrel and dispute came to nothing as the Garuda Spirit gathered itself and the barrier around the Spear Cages closed.
At dusk, a slender figure slipped into a stone cave, dragged out a large bundle of goods, and furtively knocked on several Spear Cages.
Several gems carved with cuneiform symbols were tossed onto the ground, and a restraining barrier spread outward.
In the dim light, the bundle was opened, and the gleam of glittering treasure illuminated a snake face and two clusters of soul flame.
In order to let the dead live better in the Underworld, myths from every civilization recorded undead bribing guards there.
The Sumerians were no exception. The undead who had placed bets during the day all had more or less some savings on hand.
Even if they had no cash, the clay tablets on the table, inscribed with valuable secrets, could be used as collateral.
"After settling the accounts for those gamblers, this much is left."
"By the rules, we split it three ways. That ten percent can count as a favor."
"After all, in this Underworld, we'll keep running into each other. Some things can't be taken carelessly."
"For example, the gold ring Ninurta's wife was buried with, Nash's ancestral amethyst, and the medals belonging to several soldiers from the ruined city of Babylon..."
"These all need to be returned."
The ancient serpent flicked its tongue and set several items aside. Then it thought for a moment, its eyes flickering.
"If ten percent isn't enough, deduct the rest from my thirty percent."
"If no one has any objections, are you satisfied with this division? Old Umm, and General Tal?"
In the faint light, the two humanoid soul silhouettes opposite him were none other than Old Umm, who had stirred up the crowd for one side, and the commander of a thousand from the ruined city of Babylon.
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