Chapter 27: The Nine-Tailed Fox Bloodline
Around 8:30 PM, the four of them gathered at a milk tea shop near the school, then set off together for Silver City's beast-fighting arena. The beast-fighting arena was located at the eastern outskirts of Silver City. When Yu Xian and Zhang Shou were out patrolling the previous night, they had passed it right by and could even hear passionate cheers and furious cursing echoing from the arena.
Nora had booked a private box. As they arrived at the beast-fighting arena, a dedicated waiter quickly stepped up to lead the way. The four of them entered the private box and sat down. Soon after, an assortment of fruits, pastries, and beverages was served.
Zhang Shou, who sat beside Yu Xian, looked around at the lavish decor of the private box and the beautifully baked pastries and whispered to his friend, "This is my first time in such a grand place. Oh man, I’m getting a little nervous."
Yu Xian slid his portion of fruits and pastries over to Zhang Shou and smiled. "It's fine. I'm nervous too. Once the fight starts, we'll be good."
Nora picked up a piece of the pastry. "Yu Xian, those pastries are specially made supernatural food. Have some."
The bloodlines of supernatural beings were incredibly diverse. They included practically every bizarre race under the sun. Supernatural beings with a beastfolk bloodline were particularly fond of eating raw meat. Their taste buds were completely different from those of ordinary humans, to the point where cooked food tasted foul to them.
Those who booked a private box at the beast-fighting arena were invariably wealthy or influential. Naturally, the arena would not make a low-level mistake like serving them bland or raw food. The staff had already recorded the guests' preferences during the booking, ensuring that a dedicated chef would be present for the day.
Since Nora was a vampire, the vast majority of the food in front of her tonight consisted of supernatural foods that vampires could eat, with nothing at risk of tasting like wax.
Yu Xian nodded. "Alright, I'll give them a try."
He picked up a piece of pastry and put it into his mouth. An unfamiliar flavor immediately spread across his palate. As he chewed and swallowed, his eyes lit up.
He became curious about the pastry. "What are these made of?"
Nora answered as she ate, "The blood lipids of various animals. Blood contains fat as well. For some reason, vampires can't digest regular fatty meat, but we can digest and absorb the lipids found in blood. That's how these blood lipid pastries came to be."
Yu Xian was quite curious about another thing. Normal vampires always referred to themselves as the "Blood Race" or "our race," but Nora used the term "vampire" every single time.
In the end, he couldn't hold back. "Dazed Goose, can I ask you a question?"
Nora gave him a sharp roll of her eyes. "Watch your tone and stop calling me names. I'll see if I want to answer."
Yu Xian inquisitively asked, "I notice other vampires always call themselves the Blood Race, our race, or our people. Why do you always use 'vampire'?"
Nora answered matter-of-factly, "Because we're vampires. My mom calls me a little vampire, and I don't see anything wrong with it. On the other hand, look at you... you silver-sucker!" [1]
Sitting on either side of them, Zhang Shou and Chen Ling burst into laughter.
Yu Xian hadn't expected that a simple question out of curiosity would land him the nickname "silver-sucker." To this day, Nora believed he fed on silver, completely unaware that he actually fed on light. If she knew the truth, he would probably end up with the nickname "light-sucker" instead.
The staff members outside the private box began inspecting the arena's safety equipment. Yu Xian picked up another pastry and put it into his mouth. After enhancing his sense of taste, he could discern multiple layers of flavor. Aside from the blood lipids, the pastry contained various minerals whose names he did not know. Clearly, they were also extracted from animal blood. As long as one had money, even after becoming a vampire, one could still enjoy many delicacies unimaginable to ordinary humans.
The hands of the clock struck nine, and it was time for the performances. The host greeted the audience with a roar. "Hello everyone, I am your host for tonight, Fei Quan! First of all, a warm welcome to all our guests here at the Silver General Arena. Next up is our first match, two Ant-rank Black Wolves against our old acquaintance, the Jackal, Hu Junjie!"
Two massive Black Wolves were released into the arena, followed by a powerfully built man sporting two tails behind his rear. Deafening cheers resounded throughout the entire arena.
Zhang Shou stared at the man in the arena. "Hu Junjie? I think he's Hu Tu'er's uncle."
Yu Xian nodded. Hu Tu'er certainly had quite a few elders. According to the information Jin Sheng provided, Hu Tu'er’s father had six brothers. The seven of them were collectively known as the Seven Heroes of the Hu Family.
However, they did not stick together, pursuing entirely different careers. Hu Junjie was a professional beast fighter who doubled as an online streamer, commanding a fair amount of fame in Silver City.
The beast-fighting arena hosted two types of performances: beast fighting and combat duels. The former involved battles between humans and beasts, while the latter involved duels between humans. Naturally, this match was beast fighting.
Once the host finished his introduction, the fight commenced. Hu Junjie was highly experienced and fully aware of the danger posed by two Black Wolves attacking together, so he first created distance between himself and the wolves. As the wolves charged him, he adjusted his position.
Due to his movement, the two Black Wolves that had been running side by side quickly became staggered. At the moment they closed in, Hu Junjie kicked the Black Wolf closer to him, sending it flying, and used the recoil to rapidly retreat, widening the distance between himself and the other Black Wolf.
Zhang Shou's eyes went wide. "So, you can fight like that. I'm learning something new today."
Yu Xian nodded with a serious expression. The technique itself wasn't difficult to learn. The real challenge lay in controlling the flow of the battle and seizing the right timing. That required rich experience and sharp judgment.
The two Black Wolves weren't fools. They had exposed an opening only because Hu Junjie controlled the flow of the battle so well that they had unknowingly fallen into his trap.
Hu Junjie seamlessly pulled the battle into his own tempo, leaving the two Black Wolves completely disoriented. He even used his tail to confuse them, shifting left and right unpredictably, effortlessly toying with the wolves in the palm of his hand.
The outcome of the battle was beyond doubt. After thoroughly toying with them, Hu Junjie put the two Black Wolves in a brutal guillotine choke, snapping their necks effortlessly and drawing thunderous cheers from the crowd.
Chen Ling glanced at Hu Junjie's tails. "Are people with the Nine-Tailed Fox bloodline stronger the more tails they have?"
Nora's gaze did not leave the arena. "Yes. You can judge the strength of someone with the Nine-Tailed Fox bloodline by the number of their tails. One tail is Insect rank, two is Ant rank, three is Bee rank, four is Sparrow rank, five is Serpent rank, six is Eagle rank, seven is Wolf rank, eight is Tiger rank, and nine is Dragon rank.”
Zhang Shou got curious. "Then what about God-rank? Ten tails?"
Yu Xian chuckled. "You'll find out whenever the progenitor of the Nine-Tailed Foxes breaks through to God-rank."
The progenitor of the Nine-Tailed Fox had only eight tails. He had a long way to go just to reach Dragon-rank, let alone God-rank.
1. This is a play on words. The Chinese word for "vampire" is 吸血鬼 (xī xuè guǐ), which literally translates as "blood-sucking ghost." ☜