Jiaowa!

Sun Busong turned around at once. A woman stood before him, about half a head shorter than he was—less than five feet tall—with a black gauze sunhat on her head.

She wore a pale blue Priest's robe. Her slender frame didn't look the least bit sexy. She held a staff that, in Sun Busong's expert opinion, was Blue Fine Grade. Her little feet weren't even as big as Sun Busong's palm, and she wore a pair of delicate cloth shoes embroidered with a pair of ravens?!

Seeing Sun Busong studying her, the human woman hurried two steps closer and came right up beside him.

"I came here to have some fun, but I didn't know people would die here. I don't want to die. Waaaaah!"

She hadn't even finished a sentence before she started crying. From her voice, Sun Busong could tell she definitely wasn't an adult. Her small, childish voice suggested she was no older than twelve.

"Why are you crying? Why'd you come to play in an arena if you had nothing better to do? Whose kid are you? Where are your parents?" Sun Busong could tell right away that she was a disobedient little brat, so he raised his voice.

"Waaah, don't scold me. I'm Nina Lightbrew's daughter. She's an alchemist in Watchtower Citadel, in The Blasted Lands. My mom's at home. She doesn't know I came out to play."

Sun Busong froze. She really answered whatever he asked? Didn't she have any sense of danger?

The little girl's crying softened him up. He put away his hammer, stepped in front of her, and spoke more gently. "Don't cry. It's okay. You won't die while I'm here. Just stay right behind me later, all right? It'll be dangerous if you get separated."

"Mm-hmm! I'll behave!" She was still sniffling, but her voice had quieted down.

Sun Busong nodded at her. Just as he turned to face the others, a little hand behind him gripped his belt tightly.

If she wanted to hold on, that was fine. Clinging to his belt would probably make her feel much safer.

Sun Busong rolled his shoulders and got ready to fight. He'd have to pay extra attention now that he had a little tail behind him. He couldn't let anyone cut it off—that would tarnish his image as an undefeated warrior!

"What's your name?" The fight hadn't started yet. As Sun Busong studied the enemies around him, he asked her.

"My name is... Lightbrew Jiaowa."

What a lovely name—Jiaowa! Sun Busong's lips curled up slightly.

Bang!

The signal gun went off!

The hundred people in Arena 14 instantly erupted into a fight. Sun Busong held his shield behind him to protect Jiaowa and backed away as he said, "Watch your back. We'll retreat to the iron cage. Nobody will be able to hurt you there."

"Mm-hmm!"

The battle was bloody. Less than a minute after it started, more than a dozen people had already fallen.

Sun Busong was decked out in defensive gear, and he was at the very edge of the arena. So far, no one had come looking for trouble with him.

But as the fight went on, the number of people left in the arena dwindled. A sign hanging above the arena displayed the remaining count: 29!

Two dragonkin, each about eight feet tall, set their sights on Sun Busong and Jiaowa. Both were physical-combat Warrior Professionals, and each carried a huge serrated blade smeared with bits of flesh and blood.

Jiaowa was trembling all over with fear. Sun Busong could clearly feel his belt shaking.

"Don't be afraid. I'm here!"

Since they'd come after Sun Busong, their arena careers were as good as over. Sun Busong had a kind heart, but put another way, the guy was a demon—no, worse than a demon. He'd killed more than thirty thousand enemies!

"Did you sign up for a regular match or a death match?"

Just as the two dragonkin came up to Sun Busong with their blades in hand, looking fierce, he spoke.

He spoke Dragonkin. As soon as the two dragonkin heard him, they stopped in their tracks. Their eyes, each bigger than Sun Busong's fist, fixed on him as they sized him up.

"Big bro, is he a dragonkin?" the dragonkin on the left asked his older brother doubtfully. His brother wore only a pair of blue leather shorts, which must have been made from dragon hide.

"He shouldn't be a dragonkin. We can't see his face, but he doesn't look anything like us. No tail, no claws. Look, he's even wearing shoes!"

The younger dragonkin looked at his own toes, then at Sun Busong's shoes. "So, big bro, do we kill him or not?"

"Hmm..."

After thinking it over, the older dragonkin called out to Sun Busong, "Hey! You understand us, right? Surrender. If you do, no one will kill you."

After Sun Busong spoke, he'd kept an eye on them. He hadn't expected the two dragonkin not only to refrain from attacking him, but to tell him to surrender. He decided to let them live.

The number on the sign overhead had dropped to 19. Thanks to the dragonkin brothers, none of the other fighters came over to bother them. The blades they carried looked dangerous, and it was clear they were working together.

The dragonkin brothers said nothing more about Sun Busong surrendering. They simply watched the remaining fighters in silence. Before long, the fight in Arena 14 was over.

Not counting Sun Busong and the dragonkin, twelve people remained alive in the arena. Six had surrendered, and the arena didn't count them among the ten survivors.

"Be more careful next time. You got through this one because we were here. You won't be so lucky next time," the younger dragonkin said to Sun Busong after leaving the arena, making a point of coming back to tell him.

Sun Busong only gave him a faint smile. This time, he'd taken off his helmet. After saying his piece, the younger dragonkin left.

"Boss! Hahaha, I'm back! I took out eleven of them all by myself this time. By the end, nobody dared come near me! Hahaha, moo!"

Heavy Fist's booming voice could be heard from far away.

After leaving the arena, Sun Busong had nowhere to go, so he waited near the exit. The little hand behind him was still gripping his belt.

"Huh? Who's this?" Heavy Fist came up to Sun Busong, then suddenly noticed someone behind him.

"Picked her up in the arena. A little brat who thought this was a game of house," Sun Busong said crossly.

"Wow! You can do that? Boss, you've had some great luck lately. Keep this up, and in a few years we'll have picked up an entire legion! Hahahaha, moo!"

Sun Busong kicked out. The movement was too sudden, and he flung the little brat holding his belt right onto the ground.

"Waaaaah!" She started crying again.

"Hey, don't cry. We're out of the arena safely now. You can leave. Do you have money for an airship? If not, I've got some. Here!" Sun Busong quickly turned around and helped Jiaowa to her feet.

As Jiaowa stood up, the black gauze sunhat fell from her head, revealing a stunning face streaked with tears.

Her large eyes shone as brilliantly as the stars in the night sky, and tears clung to her long, curled lashes. Her innocent gaze made Sun Busong's heartbeat seem to stop.

Her little nose was perky, and its wings twitched slightly as she sniffled. Her small lips were sensual enough to make a person hungry just looking at them, and their sculpted shape suggested she had a strong personality.

She was probably the most beautiful woman Sun Busong had ever seen. He was practically entranced.

Jiaowa nodded weakly, her voice still thick with tears. "Mm-hmm. I want to go home. This place isn't fun at all."

Sun Busong was still lost in his lovestruck daze. Heavy Fist looked at him in confusion, then gave him a shove. "Boss?"

"Hm?"

After Heavy Fist shoved him, Sun Busong finally came to his senses.

"Uh, well, you can't leave just yet. It's mainly because, uh... I've got something to do and can't get away. It'd be too dangerous for you to go home alone. Once I'm done, I'll take you back. Okay?"

Sun Busong had gotten carried away by lust!

Jiaowa had stopped crying. She fixed her innocent eyes on Sun Busong and nodded firmly.

Sun Busong kept his face solemn, then turned around quickly, leaving Jiaowa with nothing but his trembling back.

"Holy crap! Her peerless beauty checks every box I could ever want in a woman! I can't believe I met one of my future wives before I've even come of age. Hahaha, I'm one lucky guy!"

Thinking of this, Sun Busong grinned so hard the muscles in his face began to cramp. He tried his best not to laugh aloud, but couldn't keep his body from shaking.

After quite a while, he finally took a deep breath and got his expression under control.

"Jiaowa, there were so many people in the arena earlier. Why did you choose to team up with me?" Sun Busong had forgotten to ask before, so he asked now.

Jiaowa looked at Sun Busong with her beautiful eyes and answered seriously, "My class is Priest, and I have a family skill passed down through the generations. It lets me tell whether someone is righteous or evil. Everyone in there seemed evil to me."

"Hahahaha! So I was the only righteous one?" Sun Busong was a little pleased.

"No!" Jiaowa pouted as she said it, and Sun Busong swallowed.

"It's just that your evil was much fainter than theirs. And you're wearing defensive gear, so if we worked together, we'd have a good chance of surviving."

The smile on Sun Busong's face twitched.

The second match was three hours later. Sun Busong left the arena with Jiaowa and Heavy Fist and found a nearby food stall. During the meal, Sun Busong learned a lot about Jiaowa.

She was a level 28 Priest, and her secondary profession—or trade skill—was intermediate Alchemist. In World of Warcraft, everyone could have up to two secondary professions, even ordinary civilians.

Jiaowa's mother was a Priest in Watchtower Citadel. Her secondary profession was high-ranking Alchemist, and her husband had died in battle many years ago. The mother and daughter depended on each other.

Jiaowa had quarreled with her mother and run away from home. She'd taken a Gryphon to Treasure Bay. Although she'd brought all the Gold Coins she'd saved over the years, a dozen or so coins didn't go far in Treasure Bay.

So she'd been talked into spending ten Gold Coins to enter the arena tournament. Only after she'd spent all her money did she learn that people could die in the arena!

She might be short and slender, but she was already fifteen—a grown woman! Her class specialization was Holy Priest. Although she was only an A cup herself, her healing output was impressive. With her on board, Sun Busong's plan to secure the Crystal Mine Cave was now completely doable.

"Stick with us for the next few days. Don't worry, we're not bad people. He may be a Tauren, but he grew up in the Alliance. He doesn't even speak Tauren!" Sun Busong laughed.

Sun Busong didn't know how to sweet-talk women. He had no idea how to coax them, either. He had only one thought: stall. Keep Jiaowa with him.

Didn't people say that love grew with time? Sun Busong figured that if he just kept her from leaving, she'd eventually fall for him. A beautiful woman like her could only be his!

The afternoon matches were much bloodier than the morning ones. In the level 31–40 bracket, Elite Professionals had already appeared. They could easily crush ordinary Professionals of the same level. They had longer health bars, more skills, and twice the attributes of ordinary Professionals.

After those Elite Professionals took out the ordinary fighters, they started attacking one another in pairs. The fights in the arena immediately shifted into a series of one-on-one battles spread across the floor. The healers were especially tough to deal with; unless they ran out of mana, there was little anyone could do to them.

By afternoon, the battles in the level 41–50 bracket were even more spectacular. The dazzling skills and powerful magic had the ticket-holding spectators cheering with excitement.

The arena matches didn't end until dusk. According to the organizers' final tally, more than 4,100 people had died in this Stranglethorn Vale arena tournament. They were all contestants who'd paid ten Gold Coins to enter death matches. A few lucky ones had survived the day.

Each survivor received a reward of 500 Gold Coins. If they entered the matches again tomorrow, they'd earn 1,000 Gold Coins for every victory.

The arena needed people who weren't afraid to die. Their fights were the bloodiest and most brutal. They might be poor, unable to afford good armor or weapons, and lacking dazzling combat skills and magic, but the audience loved watching them.

They'd do anything to win: gouge out their opponents' eyes, bite through their throats, or sneak-attack them in the crotch, among other things.

Tomorrow's matches had already been set. They'd again start with one hundred people in each free-for-all, and each level bracket would end with thirty contestants left. Those thirty would move on to the final tournament the day after, where they'd compete one-on-one.

When Sun Busong and the others returned, the auction was just reaching its climax. One epic weapon or piece of armor after another was brought onto the auction stage.

In their private room on the second floor, Finn gave Sun Busong a report on the morning's auction. Jiaowa listened to Finn's report in astonishment, while Sun Busong listened and admired her adorable, bewildered expression.

How could she be so cute? Why was she so cute? She was so cute it defied all reason! He wanted to hold her in his arms!

Sun Busong felt he'd found true love!

I drank all night last night, and when I put my hands on the keyboard, I had no idea what to type!

By five o'clock, I'd finally managed to finish today's chapter.