Gladiator
Liu Ziguang was taken away by the warriors, his hands and feet bound with cowhide ropes, and thrown into a horse-drawn carriage. The carriage with black curtains walked on the stone road for half a day, seemingly entering a large mansion. Liu Ziguang was brought out, looking around in confusion.
Two rows of low and short stone houses, with thick iron fences enclosing the doors. In one row, there were burly men with cold eyes, either lying or sitting inside, while in the other row of small houses, there were various ferocious beasts pacing back and forth or violently pouncing on the iron doors.
Is this the legendary gladiator camp?
It is said that the ironworks often held bloody and cruel gladiatorial contests, where gladiators who had undergone rigorous training were used to fight to the death, either against each other or against ferocious beasts, or cavalry against infantry, or a few against many, with all sorts of variations, one after another, in short, everything was done according to the wishes of the big shots.
The origin of gladiators is from the extremely cruel death row prisoners, these originally ruthless and cold-blooded evil people after professional training can skillfully use various weapons, understand the vital parts of the human body, adults think that only trained gladiators fighting is exciting.
The average career span of a gladiator is no more than three months. Only the strongest characters can be bought by local merchants who frequently come to the iron factory, and the lords purchase them as guardian warriors. Since it's a competition, there must be some excitement, so spectators often bet heavily with large sums of money. As a result, running a gambling den and selling gladiators has become a lucrative third industry for the iron factory.
Liu Ziguang was thrown into one of the short houses, the iron door clanged shut with a lock, and the pink-clad Second Miss walked over with a smile: "9527, you first killed my Black Tiger, then saved me again, so I won't kill you. From today on, you're going to be this miss's exclusive fighter! You look like you can fight well, no need for training. Let's start the match tomorrow, I've borrowed Ling'ao to fight with you, but it's a great honor for you."
Before Liu Ziguang could react, Second Miss had already gone away with a smile.
Tibetan Mastiff, that's just a Tibetan Mastiff, the beast is stupid, what "Ling" character, I've been dealing with canine animals lately. Liu Ziguang thought.
The next evening, two warriors walked into the room, put iron shackles on him and took him out with a chain.
After passing through a brick-lined tunnel, they arrived at a stone room. One person unlocked his iron fetters, took out an iron collar, and put it around his neck. He was also wrapped in a thick cowhide belt. It seemed that the second young lady wanted him to suffer more and not be bitten to death immediately. A two-foot-long short knife was inserted into his hand. The man opened another exit of the stone room and pushed Liu Ziguang out.
This is a circular arena, with two-meter high walls on all sides, inlaid with iron plates, smooth and impossible to climb. The entire arena is surrounded by gateways. Above the surrounding walls are spectator stands, just like a pirated Roman Colosseum, Liu Ziguang thought.
The viewing platform was packed with spectators, munching on snacks and chatting, while warriors armed with long-handled iron swords stood guard beside them, the flames of the gas lamps fueled by blast furnace coal flickering on and off.
The second young lady sat in the VIP seat of the viewing platform, with the handsome Yu Xiaolong attending to her on one side, and several pretty maids holding fruit and wine jugs standing behind them. The rest of the seats were occupied by some pale-skinned, elegant and noble ladies, young ladies, and young masters, all dressed in gold and silver, shining brightly. They chatted loudly, ignoring Liu Ziguang who was standing alone on the scene.
The second young lady stood up, her small hands pressed down around her, and said in a soft voice: "Everyone, quiet for a moment. Today, I borrowed Uncle Yu's Linghou to deal with the bad guy who killed our Black Tiger. Everyone should cheer for Linghou! Also, those who have bet on Linghou winning, hurry up and place your bets."
A burst of noisy betting and shouting filled the air as people placed their bets and waited for the outcome.
The second young lady made a gesture to a warrior on the side, and with the opening of an iron gate in the field, a black giant beast rolled out like a dark cloud.
It was clearly a black lion with a ring-shaped mane, and its majestic aura made people tremble. The spirit dog flew towards Liu Ziguang without any hesitation, causing an uproar in the stands.
Liu Ziguang stood in a bow and arrow stance, with one leg pressed firmly against a half-meter high metal stud protruding from the ground in the middle of the arena, his two hands tightly gripping a short knife held above his head, using his head to support it, his entire body stretched into a straight line.
The lynx leaped over its head, blood flowing in a sheet from the lower jaw to the belly, which had been ripped open by a sharp short knife.
The Lingyao convulsed a few times, then fell silent. The audience on the platform was also silent for a while. Suddenly, Second Miss started clapping loudly and smiled: "It's fun! What a Lingyao? It's obviously just a stupid dog. 9527 is actually quite clever. I underestimated you by letting you fight with the fierce beast."
Liu Ziguang spent the whole day thinking of ways to deal with the fierce beast. A middle school essay about Tang, a hero from Huizhou who fought a tiger, reminded him that this was his only chance. The Tibetan Mastiff could take on three ferocious wolves at once, and although he had received some training, he was far from being as ruthless as Wu Song. Therefore, another necessary condition was that he must have a sharp blade. Fortunately, someone had given him a knife earlier, and it was a very good steel knife. This was how he managed to kill the Tibetan Mastiff by luck. His heart was filled with fear, and his back was covered in cold sweat.
The second miss realized the financial resources that 9527 might bring, and whispered a few words to Xiaolong. Upon hearing this, Xiaolong stood up and shouted at Liu Ziguang: "9527, the second miss is giving you a chance to live. If you can make sure the second miss doesn't lose face in the following matches, I'll consider setting you free."
"Freedom, what a strange word." Liu Ziguang's heart was moved, the smell of dog blood in the air stimulated his nerves, to be free, kill!
A warrior on the sidelines dropped a long knife at Liu Ziguang's feet and said, "Use this to kill your opponent later, and you'll win."
The opponent was a newcomer who was on the stage for the first time, about ten years old, with a calm and steady gaze, also holding a steel knife. His cold eyes were like the pupils of a venomous snake. Looks like a tough guy.
Two men faced off, their eyes locked in a fierce stare, each searching for an opening to strike. Their feet began to move sideways, the steel knives flashing in the light as they danced through intricate patterns. Liu Ziguang remained still, his peripheral vision catching the swift movement of his opponent's wrist.
A swift and fierce kick.
Legs arrive, knife flies.
When Liu Ziguang's knife cut open his opponent's throat, the flying knife was still stuck in the pillar of the viewing platform, trembling slightly.
With that kick, it only took two moves.
The audience on the platform applauded, and Second Miss laughed with joy: "Hehe, what a quick knife." The several loud-mouthed house slaves behind her who were specially called to cheer also shouted loudly.
A little servant on the side clapped his hands and urged Second Miss: "Second Miss, your fighter is so fierce, why don't we see how many rounds he can win today?"
"Alright, alright, call all the warriors over. Let them come one by one and fight against my 9527. I'll show you just how formidable the warriors I've brought out are."
So today Liu Ziguo was very lucky, and in the next two matches he still won, one of his opponents was seriously injured and the other died, and he also paid the price, with a wound on his chest and right leg. The white coarse linen robe was stained red with the blood of his opponents and his own, and the second young lady's small hands were all stained red, "From now on, we'll call you General Red Clothes."
Yu Xiaolong beside him pointed at Liu Ziguang and said: "Don't you thank Miss for giving you a name?"
Liu Ziguang made a bowing gesture to the audience, thinking in his heart: General Hongyi, treating me like a cannon. No, I feel more like it's the name of a cicada.
Xiao said: "Second Miss, your Red Armor General is injured, do you want to continue competing?"
The second miss widened her lovely eyes "Compare, of course compare, this is just the third round, how many people are left, come one by one, I see he still has a lot of energy left."
During usual training, several brothers took turns to attack, not giving Liu Ziguang a moment's rest, often continuously dismantling hundreds of rounds. Now it has also been put to use. After a brief rest, Liu Ziguang struggled to win two more games, almost exhausted, and with excessive blood loss, he already felt the steel knife in his hand weighed a thousand pounds.
The people on the stands were excited, it was rare to see a match with so many consecutive wins, and those who had placed their bets on Liu Ziguang were even happier. A cheerleading squad made up of several loud-mouthed housekeepers shouted "Red General! Victory! Victory!" The atmosphere was quite heated, and no one paid attention to the fresh blood dripping from Liu Ziguang's feet, which was his own blood.
Five have already fallen under the blade, Second Miss realized that such a match was meaningless and ordered Xiao Yu: "Are there any strong opponents? These shrimp soldiers are too easy to beat. Among the seated guests, is there a good hand to compete with my Red Armor General?"
The whole place was quiet and still.
Since no one came forward, the second young lady was unhappy and ordered Xiao Yu to find a good hand today to have another match, otherwise no one would be allowed to leave.
"My family has a good hand, I don't know if he can make a few moves under the Red Clothed General's command." The speaker was the director of the ironworks' steelmaking branch, a dark-skinned man. He beckoned to someone and brought over my Giant Spirit Bracelet, to test the prowess of the Red Clothed General.
The crowd gasped in amazement, the giant spirit was a three-time champion, undefeated, and now rarely participated in competitions, only appearing when there were high stakes. Everyone placed their bets, with odds of 1:10 for the Red General vs the Giant Spirit.
The second young lady was very dissatisfied, pouting her mouth and pushing up a stake of 500 taels of silver.
The bidding is over with a loud shout, and the chaotic betting has come to an end. Waiting for the announcement of the winner.
Jù Líng Shén was a towering giant, at least 1.9 meters tall and nearly 300 pounds in weight, wielding a large axe. Liu Zǐ Guāng felt a chill run down his spine; his opponent was too strong, and he feared that today might be the day he would die here.
The giant obviously held the same view, grinning and revealing a mouthful of yellow teeth. His chest was covered in black hair, and the large axe in his hand was extremely heavy, but he held it as if it were a toy.
The gong sounded, the match began, and the giant swung his axe with a momentum that shook the earth. Liu Ziguang didn't dare to resist head-on, relying on his quick footwork to dodge around the field. Wherever the axe fell, it left an extremely deep gash in the ground. The audience saw Liu Ziguang fleeing for his life and booed loudly.
Running like this will eventually exhaust all strength, at that time it will be slaughtered by others, left and right are dead, it's better to fight to the death, the giant is tall and fat, which is both an advantage and a disadvantage, only attacking his lower body has a chance.
Having made up his mind, Liu Ziguang pretended to slip and fell on the ground. Seeing an opportunity, the giant let out a loud roar and swung his axe down towards him. Liu Ziguang was prepared and rolled away just in time, swinging his knife as he did so, striking the giant's ankle. The force of the blow wasn't enough to sever the ankle, but it hurt enough that the giant became enraged, swinging his axe wildly like a windmill. However, with an injured foot, he couldn't catch up to Liu Ziguang anymore.
The giant suddenly stopped in his tracks, his venomous gaze fixed on Liu Ziguang. Liu Ziguang no longer dodged, and with a fearless gaze met the giant's stare head-on. The two locked eyes for a moment before simultaneously erupting into action. The giant hurled his axe, charging forward with a fierce battle cry. Liu Ziguang swiftly dodged to the side, the axehead whizzing past him with a whoosh of wind. The giant's massive body bore down on Liu Ziguang like a mountain range. Liu Ziguang's knife flashed out to meet the attack, striking true on the giant's shoulder. The giant let out a deafening roar of laughter, his hand closing around Liu Ziguang's wrist like a vice. With ease, he wrenched the knife from Liu Ziguang's grasp and flung it aside. His other hand grasped the front of Liu Ziguang's clothing, lifting him off the ground.
He slammed heavily against the wall.
Liu Ziguang was thrown to the ground, his chest and abdomen aching severely, fearing that several of his ribs were broken. Stars appeared in front of his eyes as the giant approached him again, ready to repeat his previous action. Liu Ziguang hung in mid-air, using all his might to kick out with one foot, striking the giant's groin. Then, with a swift motion, he flung two handfuls of sand into the giant's eyes.
The giant let out a miserable cry, loosened his grip, covered his eyes, and Liu Ziguang fell from mid-air, rolled on the ground, snatched the steel knife into his hand, jumped to the back of the giant, and with two swift knives, the giant's legs were severed, and his massive body knelt down to the ground.
The steel knife had been chopped out of countless gaps in the continuous fierce battle, and was no longer sharp after being scalded by hot blood. Liu Ziguang grasped the giant's hair and chopped it like firewood, one knife after another, every knife fell, and there was a burst of screams on the viewing platform, and the giant's head was cut off in this way.
Liu Ziguang was covered in blood, one hand holding a bloody steel knife, the other hand raised high with the giant's head, showing it off to the audience in the stands, like a god of slaughter.
Applause like waves.
The second young lady looked at the large pile of chips in front of her with great satisfaction, and used the chips to build a tower on the small table.
Xiao Yu asked: "Second Miss, is it still not enough?"
"Bring it on, I haven't won enough yet. Is there anyone else with a decent fighter? Don't be like that Giant Spirit, all show and no substance."
"Second Miss, listen to me. Now 9527 is already very weak and any ordinary warrior can knock him down. At that time, not only will we lose so many chips, but also lose such a good warrior, what a pity. Second Miss, think thrice."
Looking at Liu Ziguang who was on the verge of collapse and the chips in front of him that had been stacked into a small castle, Second Miss hesitated for a moment before finally saying: "Alright, let's stop here for today."
Liu Ziguang was barely holding on, not allowing himself to fall, but in reality his physical strength had been severely depleted, he had lost too much blood, and didn't know how many of his ribs were broken, nor did he know how many other big and small wounds he had. Now that he heard these words, his entire body suddenly went limp and collapsed to the ground.
