Reputation on the Arena (Part One)

The white lights in the Special Operations Ninth Division safehouse were as cold as surgical knives.

Lin Xiao sat cross-legged on the hospital bed, his back ramrod straight. Under the continuous nourishment of the "Jade Marrow Muscle Growth Powder," the wounds on his right shoulder and back brought an itch deep into his bones—the proof that his flesh was growing at a mad pace.

He kept his eyes closed, his breathing long and faint, yet fine beads of sweat seeped from his temples.

Source Energy Points: -1.93.

In his mind, the dim-blue screen remained deathly silent, its surface covered in black cracks like marks carved by an abyss.

Every attempt to focus his mind felt like walking along a thorny road strewn with shards of glass, bringing a sharp pain that made it hard to breathe. The silent warning of core depletion echoed through every corner of his consciousness.

"Brother Xiao! It worked! It worked!"

The hospital-room door was shoved open. Fatty Wang poked his shiny, grease-slick head inside, his face filled with barely suppressed delight. His voice had even gone slightly shrill from excitement.

Lin Xiao slowly opened his eyes. There were no ripples in their depths, only quiet exhaustion. He looked at Fatty Wang without speaking.

Fatty Wang squeezed inside like a slippery loach, shut the door behind him, and darted to the bedside. Lowering his voice, he nearly sprayed Lin Xiao with spittle. "Brother Xiao! That Skinny Monkey kid is really a damn genius! We've got every detail! Old Weasel's operation is in the 'Weasel's Den' on Subway Line Three, which was abandoned. Ten o'clock the night after tomorrow! We got the auction process, too! The starting bid for the mining-rights share is fifty thousand, with minimum increments of five thousand! Most importantly, Skinny Monkey even found out how many ventilation ducts the Weasel's Den has and when the guards change shifts—he's got it all figured out! And..."

He caught his breath, then carefully pulled a palm-sized package wrapped in oil paper from his bulging trouser pocket. He held it out to Lin Xiao with a mysterious air. "We got the thing you wanted, too! From Old Pi of the Black Market. Absolutely fresh!"

Lin Xiao took the oil-paper package. It was surprisingly heavy, and it carried a pungent, strange odor—a mixture of sulfur and saltpeter.

He opened one corner. Inside were several powders and granules of different colors and shapes.

After examining them carefully, he nodded, wrapped them up again, and stuffed them beneath his pillow.

"Good work." Lin Xiao's voice was hoarse from his serious injuries, but his tone remained calm.

"Brother Xiao, then should we..." Fatty Wang rubbed his hands, his little eyes gleaming. "Are we going to storm the Weasel's Den, or..." He drew a finger across his throat.

Lin Xiao glanced at him, his gaze calm and unruffled. "Storm it? That'd be suicide. If Old Weasel has managed to establish himself in the western part of the city, how could he not have a few tough guys under him? What we want now is the share, not a death match."

He paused, then looked at Fatty Wang. "What about the money?"

The excitement on Fatty Wang's face instantly stiffened. Like a burst balloon, it quickly deflated.

He grimaced and counted on his fingers. "Brother Xiao, all we have on hand... adding it all up, just over seven thousand three hundred Credit Points... and that's counting the odds and ends you had me dispose of before... Fifty thousand... That's way too far off! Even if we sold me and Skinny Monkey, it wouldn't be enough!"

Seven thousand three hundred versus fifty thousand was a despairing chasm.

Silence fell over the hospital room again.

Only the faint city noise outside and Fatty Wang's heavy breathing could be heard.

Lin Xiao leaned against the headboard, eyes closed, his fingers unconsciously twisting the stopper of the white-jade bottle beside his pillow.

The medicine's delicate fragrance drifted through the air, yet it could not soothe the anxiety in his heart.

Money! Damn money! Without money, even the most perfect plan was a castle in the air.

Should he really go to Su Qingxue?

Or ask Ye Qingyan?

Qin Bing?

The thought flashed through his mind and was immediately snuffed out.

Asking Su Qingxue for help would mean lowering himself and breaking that fragile balance. It would make it even harder to exchange any subsequent "help" on equal terms.

Ye Qingyan? She was a venomous snake that devoured people without spitting out their bones. The moment he asked her, the price he paid would probably far exceed money.

Qin Bing? Heh. That cold-faced policewoman was probably praying for him to end up desperate so she could interrogate him conveniently.

Rely on himself! He had to rely on himself!

Amid that suffocating silence, the small LCD screen hanging on the hospital-room wall—which normally only played internal notices from the Special Operations Ninth Division—suddenly flickered and switched channels.

The cold notification text vanished, replaced by the school-news channel of Tianhai First High School.

"...To promote the spirit of martial arts, resolve conflicts between students, and foster harmony on campus, the school will hold this semester's first 'Fairness Arena' at three o'clock this afternoon in the Third Martial Arts Training Hall! The arena will be personally overseen by Teacher Wang Zhenshan, head of the martial-arts teaching group! All faculty and students are welcome to attend! The currently registered matches are as follows: Zhao Long of Class Seven, Senior Year Three, challenges Li Hu of Class Three, Senior Year Two; Liu Meng of Class One, Senior Year Three, accepts an anonymous challenger..."

On the screen, a bald student in a Tianhai First High School uniform stood as broad as a bear, a fresh scar across his face and a savage gleam in his eyes. He grinned viciously at the camera and provocatively drew a finger across his throat.

Pinned to his chest was a small, ferocious wolf-head badge—the symbol of the Blood Wolf Gang!

Liu Meng! Scarface Qiang's top enforcer!

A mid-level One-Star Martial Artist!

It was said that he practiced an advanced version of "Raging Bull Strength," possessed tremendous power, and was exceptionally vicious when he struck! After Zhao Hu was hospitalized, Scarface Qiang had planted him at the school specifically to disgust Lin Xiao.

And that "anonymous challenger"... Lin Xiao's gaze instantly sharpened like a blade!

At the bottom of the screen, Wang Zhenshan's stern, rigid voice scrolled past: "...Martial-arts exchanges must stop once the outcome is clear! Maliciously injuring others is strictly forbidden! Violators will be severely punished! Both challengers are asked to uphold martial virtue..."

"Brother Xiao! It's that bastard Liu Meng!"

Fatty Wang recognized him as well. Pointing at the screen, he was both shocked and furious. "He accepted an anonymous challenge? This is obviously aimed at you! Scarface Qiang must've ordered it! They want to cripple you in the arena while you're still injured! What a bastard!"

He stomped his feet in anger.

Lin Xiao watched Liu Meng's arrogant, vicious grin on the screen and the glaring wolf-head badge. Then he looked at Fatty Wang's indignant yet helpless cowardly expression, and at the deathly silent, heavily cracked screen in his own mind with its despairing number of -1.93...

A cold flame suddenly shot up from the deepest part of his heart, igniting his blood in an instant!

An opportunity! A perfect opportunity!

An arena at school! A public venue!

Wang Zhenshan overseeing it! The Blood Wolf Gang's provocation!

And... that damn fifty thousand!

"Fatty." Lin Xiao's voice was frighteningly calm, carrying a bone-chilling coldness that made the heart tremble. "Go register."

"Huh?" Fatty Wang froze, unable to process it. "Reg... register for what?"

"Challenge Liu Meng."

Lin Xiao's gaze was like a blade tempered in ice as he fixed it on the arrogant bald man on the screen. "The anonymous challenger is me."

"Wh... what?" Fatty Wang nearly jumped. The fat on his face trembled. "Br... Brother Xiao! What are you talking about! Your injuries haven't healed! Liu Meng is a mid-level One-Star Martial Artist! He practices 'Iron Bone Raging Bull Strength'! He's incredibly strong! If you go up there now... wouldn't that... wouldn't that be suicide?"

"Suicide?" Lin Xiao tugged at the corner of his mouth, revealing a smile without the slightest warmth, with a hint of madness in it. "Who dies remains to be seen."

He threw off the blanket. His movements were somewhat sluggish, but extraordinarily firm, as he began putting on the neatly folded school uniform jacket beside him.

The movement of his right shoulder pulled at the wound, making his brow furrow almost imperceptibly. Cold sweat seeped from his temple, but his hands did not pause for even a moment.

"But Brother Xiao! Your injuries..." Fatty Wang was almost crying from anxiety.

"Shut up." Lin Xiao cut him off, his tone leaving no room for argument. "Go register. Now. Immediately. Tell the registration desk the anonymous challenger is Lin Xiao."

Fatty Wang looked at Lin Xiao's pale face and the resolute, crazed look in his eyes. He opened his mouth, but ultimately swallowed his words. Stomping his foot, he said, "Fine! Brother Xiao! I... I'll go right now! You... be careful!"

With that, he hurriedly rolled out of the hospital room like a ball of flesh.

Only Lin Xiao remained in the room.

He put on his uniform and carefully tucked the luminous white jade bottle against his body.

He walked to the window and looked at the gray sky outside, as well as the faint outline of Tianhai First High School in the distance.

Time was tight.

He drew a deep breath and forcibly suppressed the waves of dull pain from his right shoulder and back, as well as the sensation of depletion tearing at the depths of his soul.

He closed his eyes. His will was like the toughest steel wire, wrapping tightly around the dim-blue screen in his mind that was on the verge of collapse!

Target scan: Host (Lin Xiao)

Status scan: Body seriously injured and not yet recovered (lacerations to the right shoulder and back, minor bone damage, internal-organ concussion, weakness from blood loss). Meridians impure, energy circulation sluggish. Mental exhaustion.

Available modification: ... Temporarily optimize neural-signal transmission efficiency (localized: regions associated with vision, hearing, and touch), increasing instantaneous reaction speed (estimated increase: 15%–20%). Duration: approximately 30 minutes. Side effect: intensify mental exhaustion; may further reduce core stability.

Required Source Energy Points: 0.2! Warning! Current core state is extremely dangerous! Risk of collapse from this operation: High!

0.2 points!

Subtracting another 0.2 from -1.93 would make it -2.13!

The risk of core collapse would soar to an unprecedented level!

Lin Xiao clenched his teeth hard against his lower lip, nearly biting through it.

The warning from the depths of his soul was like billions of needles piercing him at once!

It was the extreme terror of complete annihilation, born from the instinct for survival itself!

But he did not hesitate.

The arena! Liu Meng! Fifty thousand! The black-market share! Source Energy Points!

This was the only opportunity he could seize right now to break through the deadlock by relying on his own strength!

If he missed it, he might truly be swallowed by this quagmire of depletion!

"Modify!" Lin Xiao roared silently from the depths of his soul. His will was like a burning meteor, slamming into the dim-blue screen covered in black cracks!

Command received! Source Energy Points deducted: 0.2!

Source Energy Points: -1.93 - 0.2 = -2.13!

Modifying parameters... (The screen trembles violently! The black cracks spread and deepen at a frantic pace! The core emits a sharp, overloaded wail!)...1%...10%...50%... (Progress extremely slow, as if struggling through a viscous swamp)...90%...100%...Modification complete!

Buzz—!

An indescribable, enormous emptiness and tearing pain originating from the deepest part of his soul instantly drowned Lin Xiao like a tsunami!

It was more violent than any previous occasion!

His vision suddenly went black. His body swayed violently, and a sweet, metallic taste rushed up his throat. He forcibly held it down!

Cold sweat instantly soaked through the clothes on his back, making his wounds burn with fiery pain!

In the real world.

The instant the modification finished, Lin Xiao suddenly opened his eyes!

The entire world seemed to become ten times clearer in an instant!

The fine patterns of dust on the window glass, the blurred writing on a distant sign outside, the paths of dust motes drifting through the air, even the low humming rhythm of the equipment in the next room... Every piece of information surged into his senses like a tide!

The speed at which his brain processed information had been forcibly raised, bringing a strange illusion that even the flow of time had slowed.

At the same time, a deeper, colder sense of depletion clung to his consciousness like a parasite attached to the bone.

The screen in his mind had dimmed to its utmost limit, like the final spark of a guttering candle in the wind, ready to go out completely at any moment.

Those black cracks were no longer cracks. They resembled deep ravines crisscrossing a shattered mirror!

The warning of core overload was as faint as the groan of a dying person, yet it carried an even more despairing meaning.

-2.13!

Lin Xiao gripped the windowsill and gasped violently. His face was as pale as gold paper, and beads of sweat the size of beans rolled down his temples.

He shook his head hard, trying to dispel the intense dizziness and the excruciating pain of his soul being torn apart.

Thirty minutes!

He had only these thirty minutes, gained by forcibly overdrawing his core—like quenching his thirst with poison!

"Student Lin Xiao, according to regulations, you need to undergo a routine examination and confirm whether your physical condition is suitable for leaving the safehouse."

A medical worker from the Special Operations Ninth Division entered through the door and spoke in a formulaic tone.

When he saw Lin Xiao leaning against the windowsill, pale-faced and drenched in cold sweat, his brows immediately furrowed.

Lin Xiao drew a deep breath and forcibly straightened his back. He struggled to put a weak smile on his face, but his eyes were exceptionally bright and sharp, carrying an unyielding determination. "Doctor, I feel much better. There's an emergency at school, and I have to go back. It's a personal grudge that needs settling. I promise I'll return as soon as I'm done."

His tone was calm, yet it carried an air of finality.

Those eyes, sharpened to an extraordinary degree by the optimization yet now suppressing pain and madness, made the medical worker, who was accustomed to seeing the injured, inexplicably shudder.

Three in the afternoon.

Tianhai First High School, Third Martial Arts Training Hall.

The enormous venue was full of noise, almost completely packed.

The air was thick with the scent of sweat and excitement.

Students crowded the stands, whispering and discussing among themselves, their gazes focused on the alloy arena more than a meter high in the center of the hall.

"Did you hear? The anonymous challenger to Liu Meng is Lin Xiao!"

"What?! Lin Xiao? Wasn't he taken away by the Special Operations Ninth Division? I heard he was seriously injured!"

"Seriously? He dares challenge Liu Meng? Liu Meng is Scarface Qiang's most vicious enforcer! He practices 'Iron Bone Raging Bull Strength'! A mid-level One-Star Martial Artist! Lin Xiao only beat Zhao Hu last time because of luck, right?"

"I think he's crazy! He dares get in the arena before recovering? Liu Meng will definitely go for the kill!"

"This is going to be good! The grudge between the Blood Wolf Gang and Lin Xiao is finally being put on full display!"

At one side of the arena, Liu Meng stood like an iron tower.

He wore a sleeveless compression vest, exposing bronze-colored muscles knotted like rocks. His arms were crossed, his bald head gleaming under the lights, and the fresh scar on his face made him look even more ferocious.

A cruel grin played at the corners of his mouth. His narrow eyes swept over the entrance like a venomous snake, while the wolf-head badge on his chest reflected a cold glint.

"Lin Xiao... you little bastard... Today, I'll break every bone in your body in front of the whole school! I'll avenge Brother Qiang and our dead brothers!"

He growled in a low voice. Though it was not loud, it was filled with savage killing intent, making several Blood Wolf Gang members nearby grin viciously along with him.

On the platform directly in front of the arena sat several school leaders and teachers from the martial-arts teaching group.

The man seated in the middle was Wang Zhenshan.

He was around fifty, with a square face and eyes as sharp as an eagle's. He wore a gray martial-arts uniform washed pale with age, his back ramrod straight, his entire body radiating a powerful, dignified aura.

He watched the arena expressionlessly, tapping his fingers rhythmically against the tabletop as if waiting.

Time passed second by second.

Five minutes remained before three o'clock.

The entrance was still empty.

The discussions in the stands grew louder and louder.

"Lin Xiao didn't chicken out, did he?"

"I knew it! How could someone seriously injured and not yet recovered dare show up? He's definitely scared!"

"Tch, what a letdown! We waited for nothing!"

The vicious grin on Liu Meng's face became impatient and contemptuous. Facing the entrance, he made an extremely obscene and provocative gesture.

"Lin Xiao! Did you piss your pants in fear, you damn coward? If you've got the guts, get your ass out here! If not, crawl back into your mother's arms and suckle!"

His roar echoed through the enormous hall, drawing boisterous laughter from the Blood Wolf Gang members.

Just as the uproar reached its peak and Wang Zhenshan slightly furrowed his brow, preparing to stand and announce Lin Xiao's forfeit—

The light at the entrance suddenly dimmed.

A figure in the blue-and-white uniform of Tianhai First High School slowly walked in.

He moved very slowly, his steps even somewhat unsteady. His face was deathly pale, without a trace of color, and cold sweat still clung to his temples. His lips were tightly pressed together, as if he were enduring enormous pain.

The loose uniform hung somewhat empty on him. His right shoulder in particular seemed stiffer than the left.

It was Lin Xiao!

The entire venue fell silent in an instant!

Every gaze, like a spotlight, instantly focused on the figure slowly walking toward the arena!

Shock! Doubt! Sympathy! Schadenfreude!

All kinds of complicated emotions spread through the stands.

"He... he really came?"

"That complexion... he's as pale as paper... He's even staggering as he walks..."

"It's over, it's over... Liu Meng is going to beat him to death!"

Wang Zhenshan's sharp gaze fell on Lin Xiao, and his brows furrowed even more tightly.

With his eyesight, he could naturally tell that Lin Xiao's steps were unsteady, his breathing uneven, and his qi and blood both depleted. It was obvious that his serious injuries had not yet healed!

Going into the arena in this condition was simply courting death!

The fingers of the hand he had placed on the table tensed slightly, the knuckles turning white.

When Liu Meng saw Lin Xiao appear, he was stunned at first. Then, the ferocious grin on his face instantly twisted into wild delight and cruelty!

He licked his lips. Like a predator seeing prey caught in a trap, the vicious light in his eyes flared as he roared, "You little bastard! You really dared to come here and die! Today, I'll make sure you leave lying down!"

Lin Xiao seemed not to hear the surrounding uproar, Liu Meng's roar, or Wang Zhenshan's sharp gaze.

Step by step, he walked to the edge of the arena, slow but exceptionally resolute.

Without sparing Liu Meng a glance, he grabbed the rope at the arena's edge with one hand and awkwardly used it for leverage, hauling himself up with visible effort.

That simple movement seemed to tug at his injuries again. His body swayed slightly, his face grew even paler, and cold sweat beaded more heavily at his temples.

Standing in the arena, he panted faintly, his body beneath his school uniform seeming to tremble slightly.

He raised his head and calmly looked toward Wang Zhenshan on the judges' platform. His voice was not loud, yet it clearly carried throughout the now-silent venue:

"Class Three-Year One, Lin Xiao. I challenge Class Three-Year One's Liu Meng."