Chapter 93: Brotherhood
"Relay battle!" the Fire Berserker growled with hatred.
"Exactly, a relay battle. So, are you going to participate?" the veiled woman asked lazily.
"Yes! Why wouldn''t I? I''ll go first," the Fire Berserker laughed maniacally, stepping forward.
Han Ming gently patted the berserker''s shoulder and whispered, "If we join this fight, we might not make it out alive today. Are you sure you still want to compete?"
The berserker chuckled, "Of course, I do. I''m not a good person, and I''ve used others as scapegoats before. But I can''t stand these alien scum slaughtering our kind. I can kill, but they—they can''t!"
"What''s your name?"
"Bart!"
The Fire Berserker strode forward, standing in the center of the arena, and roared at the surrounding snake people, "Who''s first?"
"I''ll go!" A snake man stepped into the arena.
The snake attendant struck the gong with a wooden mallet.
*Clang...!*
"The match begins!"
Bart unleashed a fierce wave of fire energy, charging at the snake man with a powerful step. The snake man twisted his body, his thick tail whipping out with such speed that it became a blur.
Bart roared, not even bothering to dodge, and took the full brunt of the attack on his back.
*Crack!* A loud explosion echoed as Bart''s shirt disintegrated into shreds. Seizing the moment, he grabbed the snake''s tail and, with a fist engulfed in blazing energy, smashed the snake man''s head into pieces.
The strength of a three-stage, six-tier Fire Berserker was undeniable.
Bart laughed wildly, exhilarated by the fight.
The snake people, enraged, began to surge forward, ready to swarm Bart.
"Don''t break the rules. One at a time," the veiled woman said sharply, her eyes glinting with a cold light.
The snake people, though furious, dared not disobey and reluctantly backed off.
"I''ll take you on!" Another snake man stepped forward.
The attendant moved to strike the gong again, but Bart bellowed, "Stop wasting time with that damn gong! One dies, another comes!"
"How arrogant!" The snake man roared, releasing a surge of earthy yellow energy as he clashed with Bart.
Han Ming watched carefully, surprised by the high level of the snake people''s strength. Almost everyone in the arena was at least a Berserker, with some even reaching the peak of the sixth tier.
Moreover, Han Ming noticed a figure standing beside the veiled woman who had completely shed his snake-like features. His strength was at the first tier of the fourth stage—a War Soul.
If that was the case, how strong was the veiled woman herself?
Han Ming''s expression darkened. It seemed unlikely they would leave this place alive today.
After Bart crushed another opponent''s skull with his fist, the next snake man stepped up.
The battles continued one after another, and Bart''s stamina began to wane. Earlier, while fighting the swarm of insects, Han Ming and his companions had exhausted their energy. Although they had recovered somewhat during the three-day journey tracking the corpse, it wasn''t enough to sustain them through this relentless relay battle.
Moreover, the snake people were no pushovers.
When Bart finally incinerated another opponent, he fell to one knee, battered and bloodied. His body was covered in wounds, his flesh torn open in many places, and he was drenched in blood, barely recognizable.
"I''ll take his place," Chuck said, stepping forward to relieve Bart.
"I said, follow the rules. Only when one dies can another take their place. If you break the rules, don''t expect us to abide by them either," the veiled woman said coldly.
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Chuck glared at the snake people surrounding him and Han Ming, gritting his teeth in frustration before sitting back down.
"Next!" Bart spat out a mouthful of blood, his limbs trembling from exhaustion.
A snake man leaped into the air, kicking Bart squarely in the chest. Bart tried to fight back, but his body refused to obey. The snake man''s tail coiled around Bart''s neck, lifting him into the air before slamming him into the ground with a deafening crash, creating a massive crater.
The snake man lifted Bart by the neck, sneering, "How about this? Admit defeat, and kill a human woman in front of us, and I''ll spare your life."
"Go to hell! If anyone''s sparing anyone, it''s me sparing you!" Bart spat a bloody wad of saliva into the snake man''s face and laughed.
"You''re asking for death!" The snake man''s eyes flashed with murderous intent as he slammed Bart into the ground again.
"Admit defeat!"
"Admit this!"
*Crash!* Another brutal impact.
"Admit defeat!"
"Cough... admit... admit this!"
*Crash! Crash! Crash!...*
The snake man continued to slam Bart into the ground, the sickening sound of bones breaking echoing through the arena. Blood splattered everywhere.
"Will you admit defeat?!" The snake man lifted Bart high, glaring into his eyes.
By now, Bart''s body was a broken mess. His bones were shattered, jagged fragments piercing through his skin, and his limbs hung limply. Blood dripped steadily from his body.
"Please, admit defeat. We appreciate your efforts, but we''re ready to die. Don''t keep fighting. You''ll all die if this continues," a woman tied to a stone pillar pleaded through tears, unable to bear the sight of Bart''s suffering.
Bart struggled to turn his head, his face a mangled, bloody mess, and gave the woman a grotesque smile before turning back.
*Spit!* Bart spat another mouthful of blood into the snake man''s face.
"Fine! I''ll grant your wish!" The snake man, furious, channeled a surge of energy into his tail and prepared to slam Bart into the ground with enough force to turn him into pulp.
"Firebird!" Bart roared with his last ounce of strength.
A blazing firebird erupted from him—a Beast Soul!
The firebird circled the snake man once, and in an instant, the snake man was reduced to ashes. Bart crashed to the ground, but since the snake man had died first, the impact was lessened, and Bart wasn''t immediately killed.
"Bart!" Chuck clenched his fists, standing up abruptly.
The firebird, the manifestation of Bart''s Beast Soul, gently descended onto Bart''s body, covering him with its wings and letting out mournful cries.
"Those... who harm our kind... must die!" Bart roared with his final breath, his voice filled with grief and rage.
The firebird let out a long, piercing cry before dissipating into the air, as if mourning its fallen master. The cry echoed through the hall, lingering in the air.
"Bart, you were amazing!" Han Ming stood up, laughing.
Chuck pressed Han Ming back down, his expression calm but resolute. "Do you know what Bart''s Beast Soul was?"
Han Ming shook his head.
"It was a Blazing Fury Eagle. And mine is a Tempest Fury Eagle. These two beasts, though of opposing elements, are inseparable. But what you might not know is that both are male. They aren''t bound by love, but by brotherhood. Legend says they were born from the same divine eagle. Bart and I hunted these two beasts for two years!"
Han Ming understood Chuck''s meaning now. His gaze, once filled with disdain, now held respect—a respect for the bond of brotherhood.
Chuck smiled faintly. "Bart and I grew up together. Our Beast Souls are brothers, and so are we. We''ve faced life and death together. The Blazing Fury Eagle is dead. How can the Tempest Fury Eagle live on? I''m not as impulsive or as noble as Bart, but I know one thing—vengeance for a brother''s death must be served."
Han Ming nodded solemnly, realizing that Chuck was prepared to die.
Chuck patted Han Ming''s shoulder, slipping a small, round object into his hand. "You probably didn''t expect this, but I have the fourth-stage water elemental core. If you somehow make it out of the Wild Forest, give this to a woman named Nasi in Fera City, Monte Empire. She''s a water elemental warrior and Bart''s fiancée. I don''t know if I can trust you, but I have no choice."
Seeing Han Ming nod firmly, Chuck gave a bitter smile and walked into the arena.
"Bring it on."
Chuck stood in the center, a third-tier Wind Mage, challenging the snake people.
*Clap! Clap! Clap!*
"What a touching display of brotherhood. Since you care so much for your brother, I''ll grant your wish," the veiled woman said, applauding. With a wave of her hand, a swarm of insects flew from her sleeve, burrowing into Bart''s corpse.
"Bastard! What are you doing?!" Chuck''s eyes widened in fury as he tried to swat the insects away, but it was too late. They had already entered Bart''s body.
Bart''s corpse began to twitch and then rose to its feet, moving unnaturally.
"Hmm... though his body is badly damaged, it''ll do. Now this corpse belongs to me, and thus to the snake people. If you want to fight, you''ll have to defeat him first," the veiled woman chuckled.
"I''ll kill you, you witch!" Chuck roared, summoning a whirlwind of hundreds of wind blades, hurling it toward the veiled woman.
But a figure suddenly stepped in front of the whirlwind—Bart''s reanimated corpse.
"No!" Chuck screamed in panic, desperately trying to retract the spell.
But once a spell is cast, it can''t simply be taken back. Chuck had to expend several times the energy to pull the whirlwind back, and the cost was immense.
The whirlwind, drawn back by Chuck''s magic, engulfed him instead.
"Ahhh!" Chuck screamed in agony as the wind blades sliced deep into his body, blood raining down like a storm.
The snake people eagerly lapped up the blood, savoring the taste.
Chuck''s body collapsed to the ground, but he struggled to his feet, bloodied and broken.
"Chuck, do it. He''s not your brother anymore," Han Ming urged, his voice trembling with sorrow.
"Do it!" the veiled woman commanded.
Bart''s corpse obeyed, delivering a brutal punch to Chuck''s face.
But Chuck grabbed hold of Bart''s body, laughing wildly. "Brother! Let''s fight together!"
"Tempest Fury Eagle!"
Chuck roared, summoning his Beast Soul—a massive wind eagle that erupted from his body, its wings spread wide.
The eagle, fueled by Chuck''s life force and magic, unleashed a storm of razor-sharp wind blades in all directions.
The snake people scrambled to defend themselves, but many were too slow. Over thirty snake men were shredded to pieces.
The eagle itself charged straight at the veiled woman.
"Foolish!" The War Soul beside the veiled woman stepped forward, his fists glowing with immense energy, and struck the eagle down, dispersing it into nothingness.
Chuck, unwilling to let his and Bart''s bodies be further desecrated, summoned a final barrage of wind blades. Embracing Bart, the two dissolved into a bloody mist, their bond unbroken even in death.