Chapter 48: Mount Hua Arena

"Ha, exactly. If any accidents happen, we just take the penalty of reduced experience points and docked gold coins. What's the big deal?"

Huang Hong also said with a smile. Such an opponent was quite thrilling, so naturally, he wanted to see who would have the last laugh in the arena. Afterwards, Ye Yu and his group directly used their teleportation talismans to return to [Purple Void City].

As soon as Ye Yu and his group returned to [Purple Void City], core members such as 'Warmth of Human Nature' hurriedly rushed over. 'Warmth of Human Nature' asked with a hint of anxiety, "Did something happen? I received a message from Daddy, but later it seemed like we weren't needed anymore."

"It's nothing, just that it's time to settle things with 'Three Years Difference'. It doesn't involve the [Purple Void Realm], so it's fine."

"What? It's the [Supreme Faction]? 'Three Years Difference'!"

'Warmth of Human Nature' asked with a hint of tension, "They have quite a lot of people, are you alright? None of you got hurt, right?"

Although 'Warmth of Human Nature' knew the capabilities of Ye Yu's group, facing the massive numbers of the [Supreme Faction], no matter how strong one was, they would naturally fall into a disadvantageous position. Therefore, what he worried about most was whether the group was safe, especially Ye Yu.

"No, don't worry." Ye Yu smiled, his gentle expression resembling a mountain breeze accompanied by sunlight. He placed his right hand on 'Warmth of Human Nature's shoulder and continued, "He just issued a challenge to us to resolve past grudges. We will settle it in the grand finals of the weekly arena tournament. Therefore, the [Supreme Faction] will also be participating in the weekly tournament within our level bracket."

"So that's how it is. That's good then, as long as you guys are safe."

'Warmth of Human Nature' said, letting out a sigh of relief. Even Xiao Mo and the others who had hurried over felt a weight lifted off their chests, believing that player deaths in the arena merely resulted in some experience penalties, so they didn't worry too much, as if a stone in their hearts had finally settled. However, Ye Yu and his group naturally did not point out the underlying truth behind this matter. 'Warmth of Human Nature' then continued to ask, "Then do we need to replan the upgrade progress for [Purple Void City] because of this match..."

"No need, just follow the original plan. The progress of our [Purple Void City] cannot be altered and must be advanced without any omission. No changes allowed. You can arrange any surplus manpower as you see fit, and everything else proceeds as usual."

Luo Feng directly rejected the question raised by 'Warmth of Human Nature' and continued, "The matter concerning this arena is our war and will not drag you into it. You don't need to worry; the development of [Purple Void City] must be maintained."

Shortly after, the group ordered their respective drinks at an inn in [Purple Void City], walked over to a corner table, and began to chat.

"He will definitely regret making this decision to fight us in the arena. Let's finish him off along with his so-called pride."

Old Hu slumped directly onto the stool, crossed his legs, and laughed coldly.

At this point, the expression on Old Hu's face suddenly changed, clearly recalling something, and he immediately warned, "Regardless of who manages to defeat 'Three Years Difference' in the end, we must strive to slaughter this guy. The penalties suffered within the [Mystic Heaven Server] will likely make that fellow unforgettable for the rest of his life, because the sudden widening of the gap will undoubtedly exceed everyone's imagination."

"That goes without saying; we must deal with this fellow and ensure the [Supreme Faction] can no longer threaten our [Purple Void Realm]."

Ye Yu nodded and said with an extremely calm expression, "Since it's that fellow 'Three Years Difference', he would probably have tried every possible means to kill us and cause our characters to die anyway. Moreover, the crucial point is that this is just a game, so we don't need to show any mercy to this guy whatsoever."

At this moment, 'Wine Cup Traps Hero' rested his chin on one hand and said casually, "Killing 'Three Years Difference' will inevitably shake his status within the [Supreme Faction], and it will also implicate the standing of the entire guild faction. It won't be long before the [Supreme Faction] can no longer coerce other guild factions into serving them."

"Indeed, this is a good method. For them, it's game over completely."

Luo Feng also nodded from the side and explained, "A player like 'Three Years Difference' is no longer an ordinary person, especially given his high-profile behavior. The enemies he has made in the [Mystic Heaven Server] are certainly not few. A single death penalty will definitely make him feel despair. His enemies will unite all factions to oppose the [Supreme Faction]. Without a doubt, the [Supreme Faction] will no longer be as powerful as it is today. Once its status is shaken, other factions will naturally be willing to step in and pull this behemoth down, eventually plunging it into a new power struggle."

"In the end, the [Supreme Faction] will likely be loathed by other players." Old Hu's tone naturally carried a hint of mockery. Clearly, Old Hu had seen far too many such matters in the old servers. If someone died in this arena match, the consequences would be unimaginable.

Ye Yu sighed and said directly, "There is no other way. If we lose, we will inevitably suffer a devastating disaster. If we win without killing this guy in the arena, given his current ego and obsession with glory, he would launch overt conflicts against us. Therefore, we have no choice. We must protect the brothers of the [Purple Void Realm]."

Right at this moment, a group of players who had just entered [Purple Void City] behind Ye Yu began discussing a certain topic. Hearing this conversation, Ye Yu and his group wore strange expressions, and a flash of awkwardness crossed the depths of their eyes.

"Have you guys seen it too? This [Ancient Evil Washes Martial Arts in Blood] actually affects the entire 《God's Demise》."

"Indeed. It even triggers mandatory city wars, and we will be attacked by the forces tied to this [Ancient Evil Washes Martial Arts in Blood] event."

"I heard this event was triggered by a player. Which blind fool triggered such a high-difficulty event, damn it!"

"The game is already difficult enough as it is, and they had to throw out an event like this. It's really giving us a headache. Life in the game was hard enough already, and now they pull this stunt."

...

After discussing the matter, the consensus among Ye Yu's group was clear: 'Three Years Difference' was no pushover and had chosen the Qi-master swordsman route. Old Hu deduced that there must be an expert strongly guiding him behind the scenes, and even his custom talent skill tree seemed shroud in extreme secrecy.

Although there was the so-called principle of a fair and square duel in the arena, to put it nicely, it was merely a facade to avoid gossip about relying on overpowered saint-tier equipment. But anyone could guess what 'Three Years Difference' was truly scheming.

The reason 'Three Years Difference' scheduled their match for the grand finals of the battle ring was naturally to boost the fame of the [Supreme Faction]. Because of Ye Yu and his team, the [Purple Void Realm] had already become the most renowned faction group in the [Mystic Heaven Server]. Thus, defeating Ye Yu would instantly shift all the spotlight onto him and the [Supreme Faction].

'Three Years Difference' had naturally gathered all intelligence reports regarding their group. It was impossible for him to underestimate Ye Yu's team; on the contrary, his caution was astonishing to anyone who heard of it. Hearing the report from 'Warmth of Human Nature', Ye Yu and the others couldn't help feeling a slight scalp-tingling sensation. It seemed this was going to be a truly grueling battle.

The arena rules allowed new members to be added to a participating team as long as someone from the original team remained. This meant that as long as 'Three Years Difference' managed to enter a team that reached the grand finals of the battle ring and lowered the overall combat power balance to match the threshold for fighting Ye Yu's group, he could directly participate in the grand finals without needing to personally slog through the preliminary rounds.

When the group of players discussing the [Ancient Evil Washes Martial Arts in Blood] event finally dispersed, everyone took a deep breath, feeling a sense of relief.

"Our best strategy right now is to rely solely on Third Brother to carry us to the grand finals. This way, we can ensure the skills of the others are not exposed. Of course, under this circumstance, Third Brother will have to make a sacrifice because all his skills will likely be exposed. But the advantage is that none of the rest of us will reveal a single skill."

Old Hu pondered for a moment before speaking.

"I feel that's a bit far-fetched. And doing this is undoubtedly writing me and 'Three Years Difference' out of our battle, right? But isn't it actually me who has a grudge with this guy?"

"What Third Brother said makes sense, and there's the principle of fair competition." Luo Feng also mused, "Why don't we take turns playing? I don't think there are any players currently participating in these matches capable of forcing out all our hidden cards, right?"

...

"I think we should take turns entering the matches. I believe that within the Indomitable Silver ladder tier, there shouldn't be any players capable of handling us, and our trump cards won't be completely exposed by them."

Luo Feng nodded and said.

"Starting tomorrow, we will randomly take turns entering the battle ring matches until the finals."

'Wine Cup Traps Hero' also said with a solemn expression. Clearly, despite being a bit scatterbrained, he was brimming with fighting spirit for the upcoming battle ring matches.

"That's a pretty good idea. Since that's the case, let's all step up our game starting tomorrow."

Luo Feng nodded in agreement.

"Let's call it a day for now and disperse. Running dungeons right after grinding the arena is exhausting."

Ye Yu waved his hand and said.

After a day of recuperation and preparing for the evening's arena matches, the second round of arena battle ring matches officially began the following night. As previously planned, it was now the turn of either 'Wine Cup Traps Hero', Old Hu, or Huang Hong to step into the ring. Because they could eventually assemble and rotate as a unified collective for the matches—acting as a team via a rotating roster rather than a simultaneous team battle, with only one person taking the stage at a time—the arrangement was set.

Since Ye Yu had already fought once before, his opponents had a certain understanding of his skills. Dealing with a string-type player was quite troublesome, and if Ye Yu took the stage again, he might be forced to pull out his trump cards and reveal stronger skills, which would be disadvantageous for the upcoming clash with the [Supreme Faction].

Players within the Indomitable Silver ladder tier of the old servers were scarce; practically ninety percent of the participants in this tier came from the novice servers.

"The map for this arena match has actually undergone a significant change!" Ye Yu frowned and said, feeling quite surprised. When he returned to the arena, he noticed that their location had drastically altered. Originally a circular arena combat map, it had now transformed into a rather crude environment, with everyone separated by makeshift wooden barriers blocking their paths.

This map had been ported from an old arena-style PvP game and infused with martial arts elements, resulting in a design heavily flavored by pugilistic world customs. Named the [Huashan Battle Ring], their location was high atop a mountain thousand meters above sea level. Falling off here meant immediate defeat without any respawn, posing a severe test for the players.

Naturally, besides this battle ring map, the arena featured many other highly dangerous advanced maps containing vision-blocking or ultra-hazardous settings. Such ladder mechanics made high-tier ladder matches all the more fascinating, which explained why the vast majority of players remained stuck in the Indomitable Silver and Glory Gold ladder tiers.