"This is the undercity," Luo Wen said evenly, looking out the window. "The Virtual Universe Company and Qiu Long Star's administrators dump everything they want hidden down here. Black-market deals, slave trading, banned drugs—and the Death God Arena, where we're headed."
Lu Chi gripped the Bloodshadow Battle Blade tightly. Even with the blade still in its magnetic mount, he felt an inexplicable tension. The atmosphere here was suffocating. Even the most dangerous parts of the Ten Thousand Beasts Forest in Cangwu Valley had never made breathing feel so difficult.
The hovercar stopped before a building topped by a huge, flashing neon Blood-Red Skull.
The building's doors were cast from rough pig iron, covered in cuts of varying depth and congealed, blackened blood. Four alien giants stood at the entrance. Each was over three meters tall, covered in long gray fur, and looked something like a gorilla. They carried alloy clubs as thick as thighs, their bloodred eyes fixed on everyone who approached.
Luo Wen got out, with Lu Chi and Ning Xiaohe close behind him.
"Stop! Admission is one thousand Black Dragon Coins per person!" One gray-furred giant stepped forward and slammed his alloy club into the ground, making the entire floor tremble.
The force made Lu Chi's chest tighten. In raw physical strength alone, this giant was far beyond him!
Luo Wen did not spare the giant a glance. He simply raised his wrist and scanned it against the giant's reader.
"Beep. Transfer complete: thirty thousand Black Dragon Coins."
The gray-furred giant looked at the figure on his terminal. His fierce expression froze, then instantly became an obsequious grin, his tusked mouth stretching almost to his ears. "Honored guest! Welcome to the Death God Arena! Please, come in!"
The doors thundered open, and a deafening wave of noise burst