The First Summoner - Chapter 87

Shen Yan was about to move closer to stage five when Zhuge Youlin approached from nearby and drew her attention.

He soon reached her.

“You don’t look badly hurt. Impressive!” he said with a grin. Then he asked, “Want to visit the Beast Arena?”

Shen Yan glanced unobtrusively toward stage five. It was already empty. The match must have ended.

The youth suspected of being Pei Su had disappeared as well.

She withdrew her gaze. “All right.”

They headed to the Beast Arena together. The stench of blood was stronger there, accompanied by deafening beast roars that set every sense on edge.

The Beast Arena contained a single enormous fighting pit below, surrounded by stands. Its rules for participants were similar to those of the Martial Arena.

Most competitors were beast tamers or Summoners.

The two differed. Beast tamers formed contracts with spirit beasts in the real world, while Summoners called otherworldly beasts from mysterious alternate spaces.

Even the types of beasts they commanded were different.

These matches did not pit one’s own contracted beast against another. Instead, the competitor personally faced a beast supplied by the arena.

Those beasts varied in cultivation.

Anyone seeking a greater reward could challenge a beast above their own realm. The wider the difference, the larger the prize.

If their cultivations were similar, victory earned only a hundred taels of gold.

Watching the battle below, Zhuge Youlin grew eager to try.

He immediately registered.

Shen Yan quietly watched the ongoing matches until his turn arrived. He had challenged a spirit beast whose cultivation exceeded his.

By coincidence, it was a stone beast protected by a hard shell. Zhuge Youlin could not eliminate it instantly, especially with its cultivation far above his.

The match revealed his weakness to Shen Yan.

He excelled at ranged combat but was weaker at close quarters.

His threads were difficult to use at short range.

Although sharp, they lacked power. Against a defensive spirit beast like this, he faced a prolonged battle.

The fight unfolded exactly as Shen Yan expected.

As time passed, wounds accumulated across Zhuge Youlin’s body.

The stone beast’s shell was in poor condition as well. One ear had been severed by a thread, and blood streamed from the wound. The pain sent it into a fury.

Its strength was tremendous. One punch shattered Zhuge Youlin’s defensive barrier.

Bang!

He crashed to the ground and nearly failed to rise. He seemed to cough blood, soaking the inside of his mask.

His steps unsteady, he faced the stone beast’s next charge. His gaze chilled.

Until now, he had used threads from only four fingers.

This time, all five moved.

Five semitransparent threads shot toward the stone beast.

Swish—

They successfully tripped it.

Zhuge Youlin flashed forward and drove the incomparably sharp threads through its heart.

The stone beast fell with a heavy crash.

He had won.

The entire arena erupted in cheers and applause.

When Zhuge Youlin returned to the stands, Shen Yan looked at him.

His eyes were dark and he was forcing himself to remain upright, but his unstable steps betrayed the severity of his injuries.

Blood surged up his throat, and he spat out another mouthful.

Shen Yan merely watched him.

“Shen Yan, I…” His voice was hoarse, and he trailed off.

“You want to go back?”

Clutching his agonized chest, he nodded with a frown.

“Then go,” Shen Yan said evenly.

Zhuge Youlin fell silent.

He pressed his bloodstained lips together. “I’m injured.”

“I know.”

He choked on her answer. He could not leave alone. After winning so much money, someone would certainly follow him outside, kill him, and steal it.

His heart sank at the thought.

“Escort me back,” he demanded.

“But I haven’t entered a beast match yet.”

After thinking, he suggested, “Take me back, then return here.”

“Why don’t you wait until I finish? Then I’ll accompany you back.”

Zhuge Youlin stared at her, suddenly aggrieved. “How can you be so heartless?”

Shen Yan was speechless.

If they had not known each other for some time, she would probably have told him to crawl back himself.

Before she could answer, Zhuge Youlin’s strength failed. He nearly collapsed, only managing to shift onto the seat beside her.

“Cough, cough…”

He was coughing blood.

Shen Yan asked, “Don’t you have any pills?”

“How could I own something so expensive?” he rasped.

His chest throbbed where the stone beast had struck him. He grimaced and groaned.

“You earn so much money, yet you didn’t buy one or two pills for emergencies?” Shen Yan asked.

“No.” His face had gone deathly pale.

“…Miser.”

She sighed, stood, and helped him up.

“I’ll take you back.”

She had assumed he carried pills and could endure after taking one. Apparently, he had been relying on sheer will.

Zhuge Youlin put an arm over her shoulder and leaned toward her with a pained whimper.

The next instant, an inexplicable chill swept from Shen Yan’s direction.

He instinctively assumed she disliked his behavior. Withdrawing his arm, he took a wooden crutch from his storage space and used it to support himself.

Shen Yan said nothing.

She prepared to escort him to the inn, but his conspicuous hair would attract attention. After some thought, she took out a tablecloth and wrapped it around his head.

“Hey! This young master’s image—cough, cough…” Forced to accept the hideous covering, he reached to remove it but stopped beneath Shen Yan’s cold glance.

He drew back his hand, frowned, and resigned himself with a sigh.

As they walked toward the exit, Shen Yan asked, “You have so much money. Why won’t you spend it? Pills are indispensable to cultivators. They can save your life at the critical moment.”