Upon entering the Great Spirit Arena, the first thing that caught the eye was a massive stone tablet carved densely with names.
"Kid, do you see that stone tablet?"
Flender pointed to the enormous tablet engraved with countless names.
"Mm."
Chu Chengzhou nodded.
"Those are all the names of soul masters who have died in the Suotuo Great Spirit Arena. You'd better think carefully and not get cocky just because you've got some strength."
Flender said with a somber expression.
He felt that Chu Chengzhou was getting too arrogant, thinking he could easily defeat Dai Mubai, a three-ring Soul Elder, and thus underestimated the opponents in the arena. He needed to knock some sense into him.
Well, this guy had the ability to defeat a three-ring Soul Elder at a higher level—did he have the right to be arrogant?
But that wasn't important. Having strength and being arrogant were two different things.
"I have a question."
Rubbing his chin as he examined the tablet, Chu Chengzhou spoke.
"What's your question?"
"I noticed this tablet is almost full. What happens when there's no more space to carve the names of fallen soul masters? Will they replace it with a new one? But if they do, wouldn't carving names lose its meaning?"
Chu Chengzhou asked curiously.
Flender and the others (three people and one rabbit?): "..."
Registering for battles in the Great Spirit Arena was simple. All it required was filling out a form with your name, age, place of birth, and martial soul, after which you would receive your initial Iron Spirit Fighter badge.
In fact, apart from the martial soul, which couldn't be faked, all other information could be falsified since the arena wouldn't bother verifying it.
Of course, the registration fee of ten gold soul coins was non-negotiable.
From this, it was clear that the world of soul masters was different from that of ordinary people.
Just the registration fee alone amounted to several months' living expenses for ten average families of three.
After paying twenty gold soul coins and undergoing a soul power test, Chu Chengzhou and Xiao Wu completed their registrations.
Once registered, the next step was arranging the order of battles. Flender led the four to the gambling-style battle zone, gave them a few brief instructions, and then left on his own.
"Fatty, the Great Spirit Arena should have betting odds for matches, right? What are the prerequisites for matches with betting odds?"
Chu Chengzhou asked Ma Hongjun.
In his previous life, World Cup matches had bookmakers setting odds, so naturally, the Great Spirit Arena also had betting markets.
However, it was certain that not every battle qualified for betting odds. There must be specific prerequisites.
Otherwise, any random person could stage fake matches and profit.
With his and Xiao Wu's current strength at the two-ring Soul Grandmaster and three-ring Soul Elder levels, they were virtually invincible.
If they could bet on matches, going all-in every time could easily net them hundreds of thousands of gold soul coins.
Though he wasn't short on money for now, who could resist shiny little treasures?
"Boss Chu, only matches in the main arena have betting odds. To compete in the main arena, either you need five consecutive wins, a Silver Spirit Fighter badge, or both participants must be at least level 40."
Ma Hongjun explained.
"Five consecutive wins or Silver Spirit Fighter?"
Chu Chengzhou raised an eyebrow. The conditions weren't particularly high.
The Great Spirit Arena was highly efficient, and soon the schedules for the four individuals' one-on-one battles were arranged. Since they arrived together, they were all assigned to the twelfth sub-arena in the gambling zone.
However, due to their differing soul power levels, their opponents also varied.
Chu Chengzhou and Ma Hongjun were two-ring Soul Grandmasters, so their opponents were also two-ring Soul Grandmasters. Meanwhile, Xiao Wu and Dai Mubai were three-ring Soul Elders, so their opponents were also three-ring Soul Elders.
Soul masters participating in battles were gathered in a spacious room to rest and wait for their turn.
Rest Area
"Boss Chu, although each soul master can only participate in one gambling match per day, they can join different types of battles. With your strength, why don't we sign up for a two-on-two battle?"
Ma Hongjun suggested to Chu Chengzhou.
With Chu Chengzhou involved, their opponents would only be two Soul Grandmasters, ensuring their victory.
Of course, increasing the points on their spirit badges wasn't the key point. The real reason was Ma Hongjun's urgent desire for Chu Chengzhou to achieve five consecutive wins.
Chu Chengzhou could easily defeat Dai Mubai, so at the two-ring Soul Grandmaster level, he was guaranteed a hundred victories.
Once he achieved five consecutive wins, Chu Chengzhou could compete in the main arena.
And matches in the main arena had betting odds. At that point, Ma Hongjun planned to wager all his assets on Chu Chengzhou's victories.
By betting big multiple times, once he had money, he could transform from "Prince of Brothels" into the beloved "Young Master Ma" adored by all the girls in the industry.
The beautiful ladies of the Black Horse Club?
Heh~ Every day I'll be the groom, every night a new bride, and it won't repeat for an entire year. Just thinking about it makes me a little excited!
"Two-on-two? Sure!"
Without much hesitation, Chu Chengzhou accepted Ma Hongjun's invitation.
"Brother, are you signing up for a two-on-two match?"
Xiao Wu, sitting next to Chu Chengzhou, asked.
"Mm. If we get five consecutive wins early, we can start making money soon."
Chu Chengzhou nodded.
"Making money?"
Blinking, Xiao Wu looked puzzled.
"You'll know when the time comes. Fatty and I will go register first."
After saying this to Xiao Wu, Chu Chengzhou and Ma Hongjun headed to the two-on-two battle zone to register.
"Registration fee is ten gold coins. If you win, you'll earn ten gold coins in total. Also, please give your team a name."
The staff of the Great Spirit Arena handled the matter professionally and collected the fees from Chu Chengzhou and Ma Hongjun.
'A registration fee of ten gold soul coins, no profit if you win, and a loss of ten gold soul coins if you lose. Who came up with such stingy rules?'
Faced with these miserly regulations, Chu Chengzhou's mind was filled with complaints.
"Boss Chu, what name should we give our team?"
Ma Hongjun asked Chu Chengzhou.
"Whatever's fine!"
Waving his hand dismissively, Chu Chengzhou didn't care.
"Whatever Team."
Ma Hongjun told the staff.
Chu Chengzhou: "..."
I told you to name it whatever, but you literally named it "Whatever Team"?
Well, it didn't matter. Whatever works.
"Gentlemen, 'Whatever Team' registration complete!"
Soon, the characters—"Whatever Team"—were engraved onto their Iron Spirit Fighter badges.
"Let me ask you something. Can I still use this badge to team up with someone else?"
Holding up his Iron Spirit Fighter badge, Chu Chengzhou asked the staff.
"It's possible, but you'll need to pay the registration fee again, get a new badge, and your previous team's records will be reset. However, your badge rank won't decrease."
Chu Chengzhou nodded. This way, teaming up with Ma Hongjun wouldn't affect his plans to team up with Xiao Wu for two-on-two battles after advancing to a three-ring Soul Elder.
Seeing that it would take several more matches before their two-on-two battle, scheduled after their individual matches, the two returned to the one-on-one battle zone.
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