The powerful beings from various races continued their discussions, once again ignoring John.
However, the good news was that they no longer debated who would eat him. Instead, they discussed how John could provide them with more entertainment.
John frowned.
He realizing that these beings, corrupted by their long confinement in the Abyss, were far from sane.
“Alright, it’s decided then. We’ll have the Abyss Demons fight this little guy,” declared the Behemoth, finalizing the plan.
The other beasts and creatures nodded in agreement.
“I’ll build the arena.”
“I’ll capture the Abyss Demons.”
“I’ll set up the betting pool.”
…
Once again, these powerful beings ignored John and busied themselves with their tasks.
From their conversation, John gathered that this place was indeed inhabited by various monsters.
He attempted to escape a few times, but each time the unicorn would catch him and hurl him back to the ground.
“Little one, if you try to run again, I won’t be so gentle,” she said in the sweetest tone, but a black lightning bolt shot from her horn, striking a nearby boulder.
Boom!
With a loud crash, the boulder shattered into pieces.
John realized he couldn’t act recklessly. Trapped by these maniacs, he had no choice but to resign himself to his fate.
“That’s better,” the unicorn said with a satisfied nod before continuing her work.
Soon, they completed an arena constructed from solid stone.
The area was surrounded by a crowd of powerful beings-monsters, beasts, elves, werewolves, Minotaurs, Orcs, and more.
Ten Abyss Demons were herded onto the arena.
These were the Abyss’s native creatures, fifth-rank monsters at level 400, adept at dark magic.
“Place your bets! Minimum wager is one Life Fruit. The current odds for the human surviving are 120 to 1! Place your bets!” shouted the fiery Minotaur, standing behind a pile of red fruits.
From the chatter, John learned that these red fruits were Life Fruits, unique to the Abyss. Consuming one could increase a person’s lifespan by ten years, with no limit to the number that could be consumed.
His eyes gleamed as he looked at the pile of Life Fruits. An item that extended lifespan was a rare and valuable treasure.
Although John had nearly infinite life due to his life-sharing pact with the Tree of Life.
But the people around him, especially Sini and the others, were still ordinary mortals.
Even a ninth-rank powerhouse couldn’t exceed their natural lifespan unless they became a deity.
That nearly impossible for people like Sini.
“Alright, it’s your turn,” the unicorn said, approaching John. “I’ve placed my bet on you to win, so don’t let me down.”
John was somewhat surprised.
He had just reached the fourth rank, and anyone could see that he stood no chance against level 400 fifth-rank Abyss Demons.
This unicorn actually dared to bet on him to win-what a gambler.
John didn’t believe for a second that she could truly assess his abilities.
He looked at the unicorn and said, “Sister, could you lend me a few Life Fruits? I’d like to place a bet myself.”
Calling her “sister” made the unicorn smile brightly. “You’ve got a sweet tongue, little one. But if you lose, you’ll die. What’s the point of Life Fruits then?”
John frowned slightly, realizing that even she didn’t think he had a chance of winning.
He persisted, “Of course, I’m betting on myself to win. Sister, I’ll pay you back double.”
“Oh?” The unicorn eyed John with interest. “You’re quite the charmer. Alright, I’ll lend you one, and you don’t even have to pay it back.”
She didn’t really believe he would win, so giving him one Life Fruit seemed like a harmless gesture.
“Just one?” John was disappointed. “Sister, lend me ten. I promise you won’t be disappointed.”
The unicorn hesitated, but after hearing him call her “sister” a few more times, she sighed and relented, “Fine, I’ll lend you ten. If you win, you’ll pay me back. If you lose, you don’t owe me anything.”
John was speechless. If he lost, he’d be dead-how could he pay her back?
He couldn’t help but wonder what would happen if he died here. Would he respawn at a Resurrection point?
But he quickly dismissed that thought.
For other players, it might be worth trying, but not for him.
With his Undying and Immortal talent, he was nearly impossible to kill.
The only way would be to destroy his soul, which would also mean death in the real world.
Amid the shouts and cheers of the crowd, John stepped into the arena.
The unicorn placed a bet of ten Life Fruits on him.
She hesitated for a moment, then bet another ten on him just to be safe.
She didn’t really believe John would win, so she hedged her bets. If he lost, she wouldn’t lose
much.
But if he won, she’d make a huge profit.
The nearby dark elf silently placed a bet of ten Life Fruits on John as well.
“Betting is closing soon! Don’t miss your chance! Right now, the odds for the human winning are 200 to 1! Bet on the human and strike it rich!” The fiery Minotaur was shouting, his saliva
flying as he passionately encouraged bets.
But instead of decreasing, John’s odds kept climbing.
The first match was about to start, and the fiery Minotaur closed the betting.
“Kid,” the voice of the Undead Lord echoed in John’s mind, “Don’t reveal your true damage or the Sword of Divinity and Demons. These creatures are not to be trusted.”
Just as John was about to retrieve the Sword of Divinity and Demons from his inventory, he paused, heeding the warning from the Undead Lord. Glancing around at the roaring and excited powerful beings from various races, he quietly switched to the Phantom Mage’s staff
instead.
If he couldn’t reveal his true damage ability or the Sword of Divinity and Demons, he’d have to rely on the skills of the Wrath of the Gods mage class.
Fortunately, the abyssal demons he was facing weren’t that strong; he could handle them.
Whoosh!
Dark magic surged, and several Dark Orbs shot towards John. The battle had begun.
John didn’t dodge; instead, he summoned Diamond Armor, taking the abyssal demons’ magical attacks head-on.
Boom! Boom!
-1
-1
…
A series of explosions followed, but the damage numbers that appeared were pitiful. The powerful abyssal demons couldn’t even break through John’s magic resistance, only managing to inflict 1 point of damage.
The surrounding cheers and shouts fell silent. The powerful beings from the various races
stared in disbelief at what they were witnessing.
Then, John made his move.
With a wave of his staff, flames engulfed the area as he cast Hellfire, covering the entire arena.
The abyssal demons howled in agony.
Terrifying damage numbers flashed in rapid succession.
-334766
-332474
…
These fifth-tier abyssal demons were instantly annihilated.
Notification messages appeared.
[You have slain a level 400 abyssal demon, gaining 12,680 experience points.]
[Plunder talent activated, Spirit +1.]
…
The arena fell into a dead silence.
The powerful beings from various races stared dumbfounded at John, who stood on the stage, completely unscathed. They couldn’t believe what they were seeing.
“Cheating! That despicable human is cheating!” an Orc shouted, pointing at John. “He’s only a fourth-tier mage, how could he possibly have mastered the advanced spell Hellfire?”
“Not only that, all of his magical attacks were critical hits! How could a weak human have a
100% magic crit rate?”
“Yes, cheating!”
“Protest! This bet doesn’t count!”
…
The crowd erupted in anger. They didn’t care how John had mastered advanced spells or achieved such a high critical hit rate-they were simply upset over the loss of their precious
Life Fruits.
Many of the weaker creatures, desperate to win more Life Fruits, had gambled everything they owned on the abyssal demons.
Now, in an instant, they had lost everything.
The Flame Minotaur, who was acting as the bookmaker, also wore a grim expression. With
John’s high odds, his unexpected victory meant that the Flame Minotaur stood to lose thousands of Life Fruits.
He was sorely tempted to declare the bet void.
“Everyone, shut up!” The Unicorn’s cold voice cut through the commotion, her icy gaze
sweeping over the various powerful beings. “If you can’t afford to lose, don’t bet. If you bet,
you must accept the result. If anyone has a problem, they can challenge me instead.”
Silence fell over the crowd. No one dared to argue further.
The Unicorn was an eighth-tier legendary being; aside from the Behemoth, the three-headed Black Dragon, and the dark elf, no one could match her strength.
The three-headed Black Dragon seemed unhappy, but the dark elf had also bet on John to win, clearly aligning herself with the Unicorn.
As for the Behemoth, he remained indifferent, unconcerned about the Life Fruits he had lost.
The Flame Minotaur had no choice but to accept his loss. Gritting his teeth, he handed over a pile of Life Fruits, dividing them between the Unicorn and the dark elf. The Unicorn, satisfied with her winnings, transformed into a human form a tall, elegant figure in a black dress, exuding a noble aura. Her beauty was stunning, though the horn on her forehead remained as a reminder of her true form.
She picked up a Life Fruit and waved it playfully at John, clearly pleased with her success.
“The second round of betting begins!” the Flame Minotaur roared, eager to recoup his losses.
“This time, the challenge is against 100 sixth-tier ordinary abyssal demons.” The difficulty had been intentionally increased by the Flame Minotaur and the three-headed Black Dragon, who were determined to win back the Life Fruits they had just lost.
The Unicorn hesitated. She had initially wanted to bet on John again, but the prospect of him
facing 100 sixth-tier abyssal demons gave her pause.
Clatter!
At that moment, a large pile of Life Fruits-at least two thousand-was thrown onto the betting table. It was the dark elf, who calmly stated, “I’m betting on the human.”
The Unicorn frowned as she glanced at the dark elf, known as Phantom. ” Bonnie, have you
lost your mind?”
Bonnie, the first queen of the dark elves, had once attempted to steal the Demon Race’s Dark Sea but had failed and was subsequently imprisoned in the Abyss.
Bonnie gave a serene smile and replied, “These Life Fruits were won by this little guy anyway.
If he loses, it doesn’t really matter.”
The Unicorn’s frown deepened. She knew Bonnie too well-she would never make a bet she
wasn’t confident in winning.
Could it be that this human might actually pull off another victory?
To be safe, the Unicorn decided to place a thousand Life Fruits on John winning as well.
Other powerful beings began placing their bets too.
The odds for John were lower this time, but they still stood at twenty to one.
Most of the crowd bet on the abyssal demons to win.
The battle began once more.
On the stage, John’s expression was serious.
The hundred abyssal demons before him were at the peak of the sixth tier, posing a significant
threat. With his spiritual power reaching over thirty-five thousand, he had the capability to take down these sixth-tier monsters.
However, he was concerned about the increasing strength of the beasts he would face in the rounds to come. If he didn’t reveal his physical damage-dealing skills, he might not be able to keep up. Dark magic filled the air as the abyssal demons unleashed their attacks.
John couldn’t afford to hesitate.
He quickly summoned his Water Mist Clone while retreating, his staff moving swiftly as he
channeled the earth element. The ground beneath the arena began to tremble violently as he unleashed the Great Tremor skill. The entire platform shook, and a cascade of damage
numbers appeared.
-224140
-227410
…