Chapter 69: The End of the Arena Battle
“Bang, bang——”
Inside the silent Beast Arena, everyone present stared at the scene before them in disbelief.
The severely wounded Golden Cobra twisted its bloodstained body on the alloy-armored floor, the golden tail lashing violently against the metal surface.
Judging from the situation, this was clearly the Golden Cobra’s final struggle.
“How could this be… how is this possible?”
Hu Peng could not accept what he was seeing. He stood there dazed, as if his soul had left his body.
The Golden Cobra before him was the one his hunting squad had stolen from a mother serpent at a terrible price.
In order to claim the young Golden Cobra for himself, Hu Peng, who had still been in decent condition back then, ambushed his remaining teammates and took their spoils along with the serpent back to Qinshan Base.
He had spent a massive amount of resources to dissolve his previous beast’s Spiritual Seed and implanted the recovered Spiritual Seed into the young Golden Cobra’s consciousness.
That process had consumed nearly all of his wealth.
In nurturing the Golden Cobra, he had even exhausted the resources looted from his former teammates.
His current status and standing—all of it came from this Golden Cobra.
And today, with the death of this serpent, Hu Peng would fall back to being an ordinary man.
Even if he recovered his spirit, he could never again obtain a Ferocious Beast like the Golden Cobra.
“Ah——!”
The paralytic venom from Inkband finally took full effect, turning the Golden Cobra completely lifeless.
The instant his beast died, Hu Peng let out a scream of agony.
“Boss! Boss!”
The other two members from Xin Hui Construction Group snapped out of their shock and rushed into the arena.
Seeing the miserable state Hu Peng was in, both of them immediately summoned their own beasts—
A Diamond Ape and a Violent Lion, both mainstream battle beasts.
“Stop!”
Sister Lin, Lin Feibao, who was acting as the witness, hurriedly stopped their actions.
A Blood Leopard leapt down, landing directly between Zhou Ming and Hu Peng’s group—it was Lin Feibao’s beast.
At the same time, Lin Feibao, whose martial arts were formidable, jumped down from the three-meter-high platform and landed beside them.
“Gentlemen, since you asked me to serve as the witness, you’d best abide by the rules.”
The Ironhand Gang was the largest gang in the western part of the city and naturally had powerful backers.
Otherwise, they would never have been able to construct such a grand Beast Arena.
Although Hu Peng’s group represented Xin Hui Construction Group, they had no right to make Lin Feibao ignore the rules on their behalf.
“Zhu Ming, Da Yong, stop!”
Despite the excruciating pain from his damaged spirit, Hu Peng managed to shout tremblingly to halt his men.
“Never thought I, Hu Peng, would rise because of the Golden Cobra—and fall because of it.”
After stopping his subordinates, Hu Peng gritted his teeth and glared at Zhou Ming.
“From today onward, the matter between Xin Hui Construction Group and the Wang family ends here. But Zhou Ming, I’ll remember you.”
“Let’s go.”
Fearing that he might collapse if he stayed any longer, Hu Peng spat out the threat and ordered his men to support him out of the arena.
“If you’ve got a problem, talk to me, Wang Yan. Can’t you accept losing?”
Seeing the Xin Hui Construction Group men about to break the rules, Wang Yan rushed in with his Tusked Battle Boar.
Hearing Hu Peng’s threat, Wang Yan immediately stood his ground.
Hu Peng ignored him and led his group away from the arena.
“Brother Zhou, congratulations! I didn’t expect you to crush Hu Peng so quickly.”
“Not at all, I should be the one thanking Chief Lin for stepping in.”
At this moment, Zhou Ming politely expressed his gratitude toward Lin Feibao.
“Haha, think nothing of it.”
“I wonder, would I be fortunate enough to treat Brother Zhou to a meal? I’d very much like to know such a fine young man.”
“Well…”
“Xiao Zhou, didn’t you say we’d celebrate after the arena match? Since Chief Lin is being so generous, why don’t we all celebrate together?”
With a joyful expression, Wang Tiezhu came over and suggested.
“All right then, we’ll celebrate together at Chief Lin’s fine establishment. What do you say, Chief Lin?”
Zhou Ming considered that since Wang Yan’s family lived in the western district, and the Ironhand Gang, though a gang, was not something the Wang family could afford to offend, he had no reason to reject the offer.
“Haha, nothing could please me more! Let’s all share in the joy of your victory banquet.”
For a man in Lin Feibao’s position, besides seeking connections with the powerful, befriending capable individuals was also valuable—especially promising youths.
If he could build rapport before they rose in status, it would bring him great benefits in the future.
Soon, the group left the Beast Arena and followed Lin Feibao to the third floor of the Yuelai Hotel.
As for He Yong, once Hu Peng’s defeat became obvious, he had quietly slipped away, unwilling to linger.
At the banquet, with Wang Tiezhu—who was well accustomed to social drinking—present, the atmosphere remained lively throughout.
It wasn’t until midnight that the celebration finally came to an end.
“Wang Yan, how’s Uncle Wang?”
At the banquet, Wang Tiezhu had been the one drinking the most—not only out of joy but also to help Zhou Ming and Wang Yan deflect toasts.
He couldn’t help on the arena stage, but he clearly wanted to make up for it at the banquet.
“It’s fine. The waiter and I already helped my dad into the car. I’ll drive him home and let him rest for the night.”
“You sure you can drive? You’ve had quite a bit too.”
“Relax, you know my tolerance. Besides, I didn’t drink that much.”
“All right then.”
Zhou Ming knew Wang Yan’s drinking capacity, so he didn’t press the matter further.
“I asked you to stay because there are a few things you should keep in mind.”
“Go on.”
Seeing Zhou Ming’s serious expression, Wang Yan realized it was something important.
“First, I already warned He Yong—whatever he gained, he’d better cough it all up. That guy was just there for show. If he hadn’t been so slow, his beast wouldn’t even have been injured.”
“Don’t worry, you don’t have to tell me twice. I already planned to get it back.”
Just hearing He Yong’s name annoyed Wang Yan.
“Second, you can stay in contact with Lin Feibao, but don’t get too close. Always stay alert. A man who walks the path of the underworld isn’t someone you should fully trust.”
“Understood.”
“Third, look into the connections between Xin Hui Construction Group and the upper management of Qinshan Base—especially the ones with strong ties. Take your time, and make sure you don’t expose yourself.”
“Zhou Ming, you think someone from Qinshan Base’s upper ranks was involved in this? That can’t be right. This was just a small construction contract. I know my old man’s limits.”
“Besides, wasn’t this job given to us through Sister Xiao Yun’s connection? They wouldn’t give us the project only to try to take it back, right?”
Wang Yan couldn’t quite follow Zhou Ming’s line of thought when he suddenly brought up the base’s upper echelons.
“You said it yourself—it’s a small project. With the face of Qinshan Base’s higher-ups involved, Xin Hui Construction Group wouldn’t have started this arena battle on their own.”
“It’s Xiao Yun.”
Zhou Ming directly stated the key.
“What does this have to do with Sister Yun?”
The more Zhou Ming explained, the more confused Wang Yan became.
“All right, let me give you my rough guess.”
“Their target isn’t Xiao Yun—it’s me. What they wanted was to force us to seek Xiao Yun’s help to resolve this matter. But with Xiao Yun’s ability, at most, she’d ask her parents for help.”
“You should know, favors have limits. The more you ask, the thinner the bond becomes. Even if Xiao Yun doesn’t mind, what about her family?”
“When I returned to Qinshan Base earlier, I talked with Xiao Yun over the phone. Lately, she’s had a lot of suitors, but she knows what they’re after and has been politely declining.”
At that, Wang Yan finally began to understand.
“So someone still misunderstands your relationship with Sister Yun?”