Floor 9: The Colosseum of Blood.
The transition was instantaneous. One moment, the golden light of the Casino; the next, the roar of a million voices.
Lin Fan stood on the sandy floor of a massive stone arena. The sky was blood-red.
But the voices weren't coming from the stands—the stands were empty. The voices were coming from the sky.
The Sovereign's Sky Screens were projecting the Live Chat of the four billion viewers directly into the air above the arena like storm clouds.
"Kill Lin Fan! Justice for Fatty Wu!"
"I hope he dies horribly!"
"Boo! Get off the stage, villain!"
Lin Fan looked up at the wall of scrolling hatred. He took a deep breath.
[Passive Active: Aura of Tyranny.] [Source: 4 Billion Haters.] [Effect: Qi Regeneration +400%. Strength +20%.]
" Delicious," Lin Fan whispered. The hatred didn't hurt him; it tasted like spicy wine. His Qi boiled, overflowing from his Dantian. The Natal Desert Eagle in his soul hummed, eager to release the excess energy.
[Trial: The Duel of Destinies.] [Format: 1v1 Tournament. Winner advances to Floor 10.] [Match 1: Lin Fan (The Villain) vs. Xiao Chen (The Hope).]
The gate opposite Lin Fan opened.
A young man stepped out. He looked no older than fifteen. He wore the humble robes of a minor sect, but his eyes burned with determination. He held a simple wooden spear.
This was Xiao Chen.
The Sky Chat exploded with love.
"It's Xiao Chen! The boy who saved his team on Floor 4!"
"He's so brave! Defeat the demon!"
"Xiao Chen! Xiao Chen!"
Xiao Chen pointed his spear at Lin Fan. His hands trembled, not from fear, but from righteous anger.
"Lin Fan," Xiao Chen shouted, his voice cracking slightly. "I saw what you did. You shot your own teammate. You forced the Fat One to play with death. You are scum!"
"I am efficient," Lin Fan corrected, adjusting his Mantle of the Villain. "And you are... looking very flammable."
"I fight for justice!" Xiao Chen charged. "Gale Wind Spear!"
He was fast. A prodigy of the wind element. He moved like a leaf in a storm, his spear tip creating a vortex of air.
Whoosh!
The spear grazed Lin Fan's cheek, drawing a thin line of blood.
The crowd cheered wildly.
"He hit him! Go Xiao Chen!"
Lin Fan didn't dodge the next strike. He stood there.
Thwack.
The wooden spear struck Lin Fan's chest. But the Mantle absorbed the impact, and Lin Fan's body, fortified by the First Seal (Body Cleansing), barely flinched.
Lin Fan grabbed the spear shaft with one hand.
"Is that it?" Lin Fan asked boredly.
"Let go!" Xiao Chen struggled, pulling at the spear.
"The crowd loves you," Lin Fan noted, looking at the sky. "They think you're the protagonist. They think you're going to slay the dragon."
Lin Fan's eyes flashed with the blue light of the Blueprint (Seal 2).
[Target: Xiao Chen.] [Weakness: Emotional Volatility. Knee Joints.]
"Let me show them," Lin Fan whispered, "what happens to heroes in the real world."
CRACK.
Lin Fan kicked Xiao Chen's knee.
"Argh!"
The boy screamed, collapsing to the sand.
Lin Fan didn't pull his gun. He didn't end it quickly. That wouldn't generate enough Fear.
He walked over to the boy and stepped on his hand, crushing the fingers holding the spear.
"Stop! Fight back!" The crowd screamed.
"He can't fight back," Lin Fan addressed the sky cameras. "Because he is weak. And you..." He pointed at the screen. "...you are cheering for him to die. You sent a child to fight a monster."
Lin Fan picked up Xiao Chen by the throat.
"Please..." Xiao Chen gasped, tears streaming down his face. "I give up... I surrender..."
[System: Opponent Surrendering.] [Accept?]
Lin Fan looked at his Aura of Tyranny gauge. It was spiking. The fear from the crowd was delicious. If he accepted the surrender, the fear would turn to relief. He would lose the buff.
"Surrender?" Lin Fan tilted his head. "I don't recall seeing a 'Mercy' button."
He summoned his Natal Desert Eagle.
He pressed the barrel against the boy's forehead.
The crowd went silent.
"He won't do it. He surrendered."
"Don't do it!"
"Watch closely," Lin Fan smiled at the camera. "This is the price of your entertainment."
BANG.
He pulled the trigger.
It wasn't a clean shot. The Qi bullet blew the back of the arena wall out. Xiao Chen went limp, his body dissolving into white light (Eliminated/Dead).
[Winner: Lin Fan.]
The silence in the Myriad Spirit Realm was absolute. Then, a collective scream of horror erupted.
[Aura of Tyranny: Overcharge.] [Qi Reserves: Overflowing.]
Lin Fan stood in the center of the arena, bathed in the white light of the boy's death. He spread his arms.
"Who's next?"
The Sovereign's Palace.
"Brutal," The Sovereign noted, though he didn't look displeased. He was munching on some popcorn. "He understands the assignment. He is generating content."
"The viewership has peaked," Unit Alpha reported. "However, the psychological stress on the remaining survivors is reaching critical mass."
"Good," the Sovereign stood up and stretched. "The Tournament is dragging on. Let's skip to the season finale."
He tapped the Jade Command Slate.
"Cancel the remaining matches. Teleport all winners to Floor 10. It's time for the Raid Boss."
"And then?" Alpha asked.
"And then," the Sovereign grinned, "we pull the plug. End of Open Beta."
Floor 10: The Throne of the False God.
Lin Fan blinked. The arena vanished.
He stood on a massive platform made of floating obsidian gear-work, suspended in a starry void.
Around him, other survivors materialized. Su Mei. Zhang Wei. Fatty Wu (Who had miraculously survived his duel by bribing his opponent with chips). Ye Qingyu (Wait, no, he was dead). Jian Chen (A rogue cultivator who took Ye Qingyu's spot).
There were only ten of them left. The Ten Finalists.
In front of them sat a massive, hooded figure on a stone throne. It wasn't the Sovereign himself, but a Construct—a massive mechanical puppet resembling a Grim Reaper.
[Floor 10: The Boss Raid.] [Boss: The Arbiter of the End.] [Objective: Survive for 10 Minutes OR Defeat the Boss.] [Reward: The Rights to the Tower.]
The voice of the Sovereign boomed from the sky, sounding bored and distant.
"Congratulations, insects. You have reached the Floor 10, your final test."
"Test?" Su Mei frowned, her daggers drawn. "Ten floors of hell was a test?"
"Indeed. The servers will be shutting down shortly for a version update. Defeat this construct, and you may keep your loot. Die, and your accounts will be wiped."
The Mechanical Reaper stood up. It was fifty feet tall. Its scythe crackled with purple lightning.
Lin Fan checked his gun. It was glowing hot with the hate-fueled Qi from the arena.
He looked at Zhang Wei, who was staring at him with horror. Zhang Wei had seen the broadcast. He had seen Lin Fan execute the boy.
"Lin Fan..." Zhang Wei whispered. "You are lost."
"I am found," Lin Fan replied, aiming his gun at the giant Reaper. "Now shut up and tank. If we don't kill this thing, the 'Server Wipe' kills us all."
The Reaper swung its scythe.
[RAID START.]