The battle arenas were divided into three tiers: the Highgod Battle Arena, the Midgod Battle Arena, and the Lowgod Battle Arena. There was only one Highgod Battle Arena, three Midgod Battle Arenas, and three Lowgod Battle Arenas as well.
"Boss, which tier should we go watch first?" Bei Bei asked eagerly.
"The Highgod matches are the most exciting, so naturally we'll head there first," Lin Lei said with a smile. The others were equally eager to see the Highgod Battle Arena, so the group followed the directional signs along the corridor and headed straight for it.
After a short while, Lin Lei and the others laid eyes on the massive battle arena.
The core fighting ground of the Highgod Battle Arena was a circular open area a full five li in diameter, while the surrounding tiered seating was packed with spectators—easily nearly a million seats by a quick estimate.
"This Highgod Battle Arena is the largest. The other two tiers don't have anything close to this scale," said the big-bearded man, Betts. Lin Lei and the others found some empty seats along the corridor and sat down.
God-level powerhouses had extremely far-reaching vision, which allowed everyone to clearly see the two combatants clashing in the core area several li away.
Right now, two figures hovered above the open ground, facing each other. One was a burly, horned giant, and the other was a seductive red-haired woman. What caught Lin Lei's attention wasn't these two about to fight, but rather the rows of warriors in blood-red armor standing at the very front of the seating, right along the edge of the core arena!
Along the rim of the circular stands, an island guardian warrior stood every few meters.
"There are actually over a thousand island guardian warriors!" Lin Lei observed carefully. Just these alone—over a thousand Highgods. And they were merely stationed along the arena's edge like sentries. Elsewhere, such as patrolling the corridors, there were plenty more island guardian warriors too.
The number of island guardian warriors at this battle arena was staggering!
"Wow, there sure are a lot of island guardian warriors," Bei Bei exclaimed.
Ekixi smiled and said, "This is the Highgod Battle Arena. So many island guardian warriors are stationed here to prevent the aftershocks of battle from injuring the spectators. The Midgod Battle Arenas have far fewer, and at the Lowgod stands, there aren't any island guardian warriors protecting the edges at all."
"Who could the aftershocks of Lowgod battles possibly hurt?" Betts chuckled.
As they talked, Lin Lei and the others watched the fight in the arena closely. The two combatants had become streaks of light, clashing like bolts of lightning, with flashes of radiance filling the air. Lin Lei and the others observed every move.
*Boom~~*
The seductive red-haired beauty was wielding a long red staff. With a flash of lightning speed, she brought it crashing down on the horned giant's body. "Ahh~~" A shrill scream cut short—the horned giant was sent flying, and then his entire body bizarrely burst apart with a *bang!*
"Clarinda wins two in a row!" a voice announced.
The seductive red-haired beauty then left directly through a passageway beneath the arena.
"So weak!" Lin Lei shook his head inwardly after watching the fight. "Just applying a slightly unusual Fire Laws profound mystery—'Explosion'—and she can win two consecutive matches. The caliber of people fighting in this arena is really far too low." Lin Lei had seen far too many powerhouses.
Whether it was Qing Huo, Beirut, or Lirmons, Di Yi, Ariquin, Pusro…
Even Ganmengting, whom he had personally defeated, was far beyond these people.
Noticing Lin Lei's expression, the big-bearded Betts lowered his voice and said, "Lin Lei, this Highgod Battle Arena is open to any Highgod, so the skill levels vary wildly. However, true powerhouses do show up occasionally, which is why most of these battles probably don't meet your standards."
"A true powerhouse shows up occasionally?" Lin Lei shook his head in resignation.
He had come here specifically to watch expert battles, and according to his plan, he was only staying at Milo Island for a day or two at most. Once he finished purchasing items at Freedom Castle, he would leave. He didn't have time to sit around waiting for a powerhouse to appear.
"What a shame," Lin Lei sighed.
"There are actually quite a few powerhouses that show up here," Betts said, keeping his voice low. "This Highgod Battle Arena has a rule: if you can achieve a ten-victory streak, you get a ten percent discount on everything at Freedom Castle. A fifty-victory streak earns you twenty percent off. And a hundred-victory streak? Everything at Freedom Castle is half price, plus a reward of ten billion darkstones! On top of that, you earn the right to visit the secret grounds on West Island!"
Half-price purchases and ten billion darkstones—neither interested Lin Lei in the slightest.
"Visit the secret grounds on West Island? What does that mean?" Lin Lei asked, a bit puzzled.
The East Island of Milo Island was open to the public, but the West Island was off-limits to outsiders. However, Lin Lei had never heard anything about secret grounds on West Island.
"Milo Island is jointly managed by the Five Great Families," Betts explained. "The families' members and the island guardian soldiers all reside on West Island. But apparently, there is one extremely important secret ground on West Island, and only those who receive a joint invitation from all five families—or a champion with a hundred-victory streak—are granted permission to tour it." Betts sighed wistfully.
Lin Lei felt a spark of curiosity. The Five Great Families jointly managed Milo Island—what could these so-called secret grounds on West Island hold?
"Betts, haven't you been to see it?" Lin Lei looked at him.
"I'd love to go," Betts said, shaking his head with a rueful smile. "But I value my life too much. A ten-victory streak isn't hard for me. But a hundred consecutive victories? You can't guarantee that every opponent will be weak. If some powerful fighter suddenly showed up, I'd be finished!"
"Hasn't anyone ever gotten lucky and faced only weak opponents for a hundred straight fights?" Lin Lei asked.
"Impossible," Betts said, shaking his head. "Even if someone got lucky and beat ninety-nine consecutive weak Highgods, the fifth fight would have the Five Great Families send out one of their own experts to test the contender. Anyone who truly achieves a hundred-victory streak is guaranteed to be a powerhouse. At minimum, they'd have to be at my level."
Lin Lei nodded slightly. That made sense—the Five Great Families probably wouldn't just hand out a ten-billion-darkstone prize to someone who merely got lucky.
"The prize alone is ten billion darkstones. These Five Great Families really are wealthy beyond measure," Lin Lei thought to himself.
"If you, Lin Lei, stepped in, a hundred-victory streak would be a walk in the park," Betts tried to tempt him. "Generally, anyone who reaches the Six-Star Demon level can secure a hundred victories, and a lucky Five-Star Demon might have a shot too. After all, a Seven-Star Demon showing up to fight in the arena probably only happens once every ten thousand years or so."
Lin Lei smiled. Of course.
A powerful Seven-Star Demon wouldn't care about ten billion darkstones. Still, given enough time—say, ten thousand years—it was entirely possible that a Seven-Star Demon-level powerhouse might eventually show up to compete.
"Boss, look quickly!" Bei Bei said urgently.
"Hm?" Lin Lei looked at Bei Bei in confusion. Not just Bei Bei—even Dilia and the others were alerting him: "Lin Lei, look! That person who just came out into the arena—it's someone we ran into before!" After watching the previous match, Lin Lei hadn't had high expectations for the battles here.
But now, he looked immediately—and nearly jumped in shock.
Standing in that open arena was an old acquaintance!