Samao switched off the livestream and began to ponder.
"Luoluobai Muye is a slave, yet he has such astonishing combat talent. Now he's even crossed the threshold of the Laws..."
He had already looked over Bai Muye's file, so he knew all about his background and how he had grown up.
"With his current strength, earning the title of Giant Axe Warrior will be a piece of cake... Hmm, when he reaches his thousandth match, I'll be there to present him with the Giant Axe Warrior medal and witness the slave trader remove his Control Chip..."
As the manager of the Giant Axe Arena, he had seen countless contestants take part in death matches. Yet those with such talent were still few and far between. The fact that Muye had come from a slave background made his achievement all the more remarkable, and stirred a desire in Samao to nurture such talent.
"When he's free, I'll invite him to join the Giant Axe Arena..."
Bai Muye had sustained a few injuries in his fight with Xia, but they would heal on their own before long. Bastian naturally saw no need to arrange for him to use a Nutrient Pod.
The journey back to Bastian's planet took several months as well.
After Bai Muye went to his Training Room, Bastian and his younger brother, Baspencer, spoke to each other telepathically.
"You watched his match, right?"
"I did." Baspencer's voice held a note of excitement. "Big brother, are you going to find a way to keep him here?"
"What are you talking about?" Bastian shot him an exasperated look. "You think we signed that contract with the Giant Axe Arena for nothing? We may be gods in the eyes of slaves, but the Giant Axe Arena stands even higher than the heavens to us..."
"Then what do you mean, big brother?" Baspencer asked in confusion. "Isn't it a good thing that he won? You don't look very happy..."
"Of course I'm happy that he won. He'll keep earning us appearance fees." Bastian chuckled, then his voice turned grave. "I'm thinking about what comes next..."
"What comes next?" Baspencer looked puzzled. "What is it?"
Bastian looked at the younger brother who had followed him around since childhood, frustrated that he never seemed to learn. Baspencer was good-for-nothing, but at least he was obedient and did whatever Bastian told him. After thinking it over, Bastian patiently explained.
"Luoluobai Muye has won 924 matches in a row. At first, I wasn't too worried. With my connections at the Giant Axe Arena, I could arrange for him to face an opponent he definitely couldn't beat at the last moment. That way, we'd make money without leaving ourselves any trouble down the line..."
"What trouble?" Baspencer still didn't understand.
"You don't actually think you've treated Luoluobai Muye well, do you?" Bastian said coldly. "If you were him, once you were free, wouldn't you want revenge?"
"I would." Baspencer nodded honestly. Seeing his big brother about to lose his temper, he quickly smiled ingratiatingly. "But shouldn't he go after the Domain Lord who sold him to us? We weren't the ones who made him a slave..."
"If he had the strength to do that, don't you think he would?" Bastian shook his head. "From what I know of him, once he's strong enough, he'll definitely go after that Domain Lord. But before then, we're the ones who should be worried..."
"Big brother, you mean..." Baspencer finally caught on. "Once we remove his chip, he'll take revenge on us?"
"So you finally understand after all that explaining?" Bastian could hardly resist kicking him.
"But big brother, we have a Domain Lord Rank big shot backing us..."
"If we offend some Domain Lord, that big shot can help smooth things over." Bastian looked at him and sighed. "But he'll never act as our bodyguard... You can't be a thief forever without getting caught. We can't stay by his side forever."
Now that he understood, Baspencer grew nervous. "You're right, big brother. We may be Universe Level 8 and 7, but honestly, we wouldn't stand a chance against Luoluobai Muye. And it'd be even worse if he ambushed us..."
"I know that already." Bastian furrowed his brow. "That's why I'd planned to arrange an unbeatable opponent for him shortly before his thousandth win. That way, we could eliminate the risk..."
He sighed. "But we can't do that now. In this match, he clearly crossed the threshold of the Laws. We don't know how much stronger that's made him, but they say that anyone who crosses that threshold can earn the title of Giant Axe Warrior with ease. I doubt we'll find anyone in his upcoming death matches who can even threaten him..."
He sighed again and continued, "I'm not worried about him right now. Even if he's crossed the threshold of the Laws, we still have plenty of Universe Level 8 and 9 bodyguards. What I'm afraid of is what happens later, if he breaks through to Domain Lord..."
"Then what do we do?" Baspencer's expression turned ruthless. He drew a finger across his throat. "Why don't we just take him out before—"
"I've considered that." Bastian sighed. "But we can't. And that's not even counting how much we'd lose in appearance fees..."
He looked at Baspencer and said helplessly, "If he can't take part in his next death match, do you know how much we'd have to pay the Giant Axe Arena? You think those appearance fees were easy money? We'd have to pay back every last bit of what we'd earned—and I'd probably be dragged down with him..."
"It's that serious?" Baspencer asked in disbelief. "Luoluobai Muye is our slave. Isn't it up to us how we deal with him? What right does the Giant Axe Arena have to interfere?"
"If we hadn't signed the contract, the Giant Axe Arena would have no right to interfere," Bastian said gravely. "But we signed it, and now some things are no longer entirely under our control..."
As if something had just occurred to him, he asked his younger brother, "Do you remember Granta, from a few hundred years ago?"
"Of course. I heard he offended one of the Giant Axe Arena's higher-ups and got wiped out..."
"He didn't offend anyone," Bastian said, shaking his head. "He broke the Giant Axe Arena's rules..."
He looked at Baspencer and enunciated each word. "Just like you were suggesting. He killed a slave who'd signed a contract. Later, he made up an excuse, claiming that the slave had tried to rebel and he'd had no choice but to kill him. But the Giant Axe Arena didn't care. If you kill someone who's supposed to fight, then you have to take his place..."
"You know what kind of man Granta was. Going into a death match would've been suicide for him, so he ran..."
"He didn't get away?" Baspencer asked curiously.
"His spaceship hadn't even cleared the planet's defensive perimeter before a Laser Cannon hit it. He and the ship were blown to smithereens..."
Thinking of that fate, Baspencer couldn't help shivering. "Then what do we do now, big brother?"
"It'll take at least several decades to arrange the remaining few dozen death matches." Bastian pondered for a moment. "We'll prepare for both possibilities. For now, let's treat him well. Some people have suffered for so long that when someone shows them a little kindness, they become deeply grateful. Let's hope he's that kind of person..."
"I'll also look into whether I can pull some strings and arrange a stronger opponent for him," he said with a sinister chuckle. "It's a perfectly legitimate move. Even if the Giant Axe Arena finds out, they can't say a thing..."
"But what if we can't find a stronger opponent?" Baspencer looked worried. Even he knew how slim the chances were.
"...Then we'll have only one option left!"
"What is it, big brother?"
"If we can't get rid of him, we'll send him somewhere far away—so far that he'll never find his way back!"
Bastian's gaze turned sinister as he spoke slowly.
Bai Muye had no idea that the brothers were discussing what to do with him. Once he returned to his Training Room, he began browsing through Xia's memories.
Before you continue