The wild boar went berserk, slamming itself again and again into the iron cage. Xiao Dou had to flap her wings and climb up the wire mesh, clutching it tightly as she watched that crazed beast crash around below. It was terrifying, enough to scare any chicken to death. But then she thought about braised pork ribs, and suddenly, courage flooded her little body.
That's right—this time, Xiao Dou made the first move.
The boar screamed and rammed the cage for a good ten minutes before finally collapsing with a loud thud. The audience cursed their mothers and fathers in frustration.
Once again, to everyone's disbelief, Xiao Dou—the chicken everyone swore couldn't win—actually won. The guy who'd sworn to twist his head off if the chicken won slunk away quietly. No one could understand it. How did such fierce beasts lose to a chicken every single time?
The sixth match was against a Komodo dragon, ranked eighth among the noble pets in the black market arena. Its attack power was even deadlier than the wild boar's. The key issue was size: the Komodo dragon was three meters long. This wasn't some wild boar whose eyes could be easily pecked out. That trick wouldn't work anymore.
The moment the Komodo dragon was brought out, everyone knew it was over.
By now, Xiao Dou's fighting style was no mystery. After five straight wins, everyone had seen through her little pattern. Sure, she was unique, but there were limits to what a chicken could do. Even if the Komodo dragon just stood there with its eyes closed, how the hell could a chicken possibly kill it?
Komodo dragons were apex predators, known as "Komodo dragons" for a reason. They had multiple attack methods, could use their tails as a pillar to stand upright, and tore through prey with sharp claws. Worse yet, they were venomous. If you got bitten, you were as good as dead.
The host looked regretful. In truth, the black market never allowed outsiders to break the sacred "Ten Wins of Life and Death." That title was part of their own propaganda, a money-making machine. Every now and then, they'd stage a ten-win event, tweaking the results behind the scenes to suck all the black market coins from mercenaries and commoners. Then they'd flood the system with new tasks, keeping the economy under control.
In short, the 98% of mercenaries and poor folk kept grinding missions, generating wealth for the 2% of nobles. Those nobles lived in luxury, amused themselves with pet battles, and conveniently recycled black market coins to prevent inflation or anyone hoarding too much wealth to trade for supplies.
With Xiao Dou's current strength, Jing Shu wasn't sure if she could handle a Komodo dragon. To play it safe—and save time—she tossed a handgun into the cage before the match started.
"Sir, this is the chicken's weapon," she said. "She requests to use it in combat."
Everyone: "???"
"What the hell does that mean?"
"You're telling me the chicken's gonna shoot the Komodo dragon?" Xiao Hei asked incredulously.
Jing Shu nodded.
The host burst out laughing, and so did the crowd. A chicken with a gun? Even if it could pull the trigger, could it actually aim?
As soon as the Komodo dragon entered the cage, it began swaying its massive body and casually bit into the hyena's corpse lying nearby, crunching bones like crackers. Xiao Dou trembled in the corner, terrified—but thankfully, her owner had thrown in a gun. That thing, she was familiar with. Her owner pointed one at her all the time during training. She might not have eaten pork, but she sure had seen pigs run.
Xiao Dou propped the gun upright with her wings, gripped the trigger with her beak, and took aim.
Jing Shu used illusion magic to subtly guide Xiao Dou's angle.
Bang!
A deafening gunshot rang out, and blood burst from the Komodo dragon's head. It howled in pain and leapt up like a startled bird. Then came another shot, perfectly placed. The bullet pierced through its skull. The massive creature collapsed instantly, dead before it hit the ground.
The battle ended so fast that people were still laughing, waiting to see the chicken's "funny attempt" at shooting. Their laughter froze midair.
Holy shit. It actually worked.
Once again, Xiao Dou had pulled off an absurd, impossible victory. The audience's experience? Absolutely ruined.
The host swallowed hard, his voice trembling. "My god... that's impossible!" But it was real. Even after the black market staff combed through the arena for tampering, they found nothing. The officials were already planning to report the incident, hoping to change the rules. After all, if an animal could use guns, wouldn't that make it unbeatable?
Jing Shu glanced at the Komodo's corpse, wondering if the meat would taste any good. The skin was probably tough, but perfect for armor. She had the carcass dragged out and stacked it beside the eagle, wild boar, leopard, wolf, and now, the Komodo dragon. The pile at her feet looked downright epic.
The seventh round was against a bison from the noble district, ranked sixth. The audience's confidence flared up again. The black market had clearly decided to fight back. Jing Shu rolled her eyes. "Why not just bring out an elephant next?"
"A handgun's useless against a bison," someone muttered. "Even if it hits, it won't die right away. Damn it, that thing'll gore the chicken before it can even aim!"
Most people bet on the bison again, like gamblers who refused to stop until they won. But Jing Shu's teammates, after seeing what she could do, quietly placed their money on her side. One look at her calm face told them she had another trick up her sleeve.
News of the "gun-wielding chicken" spread fast. Within minutes, the entire black market was buzzing. People flooded into the arena, eager to witness this insane spectacle.
The bison was the largest opponent so far. Its horns could easily fling Xiao Dou sky-high. It took several men just to drag it into the cage. Then, as if to make it worse, a staff member slashed the bison twice with a blade, deliberately enraging it. The moment it entered the ring, the atmosphere exploded. The beast snorted, charged, and thundered toward Xiao Dou like a freight train.
Could the bison kill Xiao Dou before she pulled the trigger?
The answer was no.
Just when everyone thought this nightmare farce was finally over, Jing Shu tossed something else into the cage—a machine gun.
"You've got your horns," she said calmly, "I've got my gun. Let's see who's more badass."
Everyone: "...There's probably something we shouldn't say here, but damn."
Then came the tat-tat-tat-tat! of the machine gun. No aiming required. Just fix it in place, and fire away. Bullets tore through the air as the crowd screamed. Stray rounds even hit some of the spectators, throwing the arena into chaos again.
Xiao Dou seemed to have achieved enlightenment. Between Bull A and Bull C, only a badass weapon could end this fight.
Jing Shu clutched her chest, not from pain, but from heartbreak—not over the bullets wasted, but over the poor, bullet-riddled bison. She'd heard that yak jerky was chewy and delicious once dried. She wondered if bullet holes would ruin the texture.
The nobles and audience alike were speechless. Their "entertainment experience"? Absolutely terrible.