Chapter 983: The Arrival (Fourth Update)

Damp, slimy, cold.

Plop, sewage splashed everywhere.

This was a vast swamp, simulated by the arena as a battle scenario.

Su Xiao had been fighting continuously in the arena for hours; due to his low rank, his match speed was extremely fast, and since his opponents were all weaklings, each battle lasted only a few minutes, even counting entry time.

After securing 67 consecutive victories, Su Xiao surged from rank 125,743 straight to rank 10,650; if he won this battle, he would break into the top ten thousand.

After reaching around rank ten thousand, opponents’ strength noticeably increased—these foes could at least hold their own against Su Xiao, though defeating him remained unlikely.

Su Xiao’s opponent this round was a girl; whether due to personal preference or ability, she dressed like a magical girl.

Girls like this usually give off a soft vibe—the so-called “soft girl”—but Su Xiao’s opponent only looked like one; in truth, she was as stubborn as a donkey. Even after her arms were severed and she suffered near-fatal real damage, she refused to surrender, instead using her class-boosted blink ability to dart erratically—a form of movement similar to spatial teleportation, one whose trajectory could still be tracked.

Su Xiao walked through the muddy swamp; the arena didn’t simulate a virtual scene—it manifested a real one. It wasn’t simulation—it was actualization.

Mud splattered as Su Xiao stared at the sludge beneath his feet; bubbles rose from the mire. His True Perception ability clearly sensed the enemy was submerged in the mud. Stubborn as ever.

Whoosh—the mud splashed as the stubborn girl bit down on her wand, magical energy surging. She wasn’t a traditional mage; this was the result of her long ambush, having swallowed five or six mouthfuls of mud.

“Oh~”

A pained groan—the stubborn girl, just emerging from the mud, was stomped back into it by Su Xiao’s foot.

Glub glub glub…

Bubbles rose, mud splashed as the stubborn girl flailed her arms and legs. Su Xiao lit a cigarette and waited silently.

About two minutes later, he lifted his foot, and the stubborn girl burst out of the mud.

“Puh.”

The stubborn girl spat out a mouthful of sludge, her fighting spirit flaring—she was about to attack again when suddenly her body felt light, then uncontrollably lifted upward, a grip tightening around her throat.

Su Xiao gripped the stubborn girl’s neck, staring into her eyes. He couldn’t understand—this was just an arena. Why was she so obsessed?

The stubborn girl retracted her wand from her mouth, locking eyes with Su Xiao, still brimming with defiance, and spoke.

“Truly, a worthy opponent.”

Who knows if her ego hurt—since the fight began, she’d been repeatedly submerged and slashed in the mud. How could she call this a worthy opponent?

Su Xiao realized this stubborn girl wasn’t just stubborn—she was also a bit chuuni. Her gaze clearly said: *‘I’ve found a worthy opponent—praise me.’*

He raised his blade, lunged forward, and a burst of light particles exploded from his hand—the stubborn girl vanished.

As the stubborn girl disappeared, Su Xiao faintly heard: *‘This script is wrong.’*

Clearly, the stubborn girl’s chuuni condition was beyond remedy. In the Cycle Paradise, you encounter all kinds: vicious, cruel, absurd, gloomy, psychotic, insane, chuuni—you name it.

In this brutal environment, everyone’s hidden self awakens. Perhaps, only when a Contract Holder is inside the Cycle Paradise do they reveal their truest face.

Su Xiao returned to the rest area and checked his personal rank.

[Competitor: Su Xiao.]

[Status: Good.]

[Rank: 9,989th (Third Stage).]

[Consecutive Wins: 68.]

[Top Ten Rewards: Not yet obtained.]

…

He barely cracked the top ten thousand; his time limit in the Cycle Paradise was about to expire.

Sure enough, not long after returning to the rest area, the Cycle Paradise’s notification appeared.

[The Hunter’s time limit within the Cycle Paradise has been reached.]

[Returning to the real world. Remember the Cycle Paradise regulations.]

[Do not disclose any aspect of the Cycle Paradise in the real world in any form…]

…

[Transportation initiated. Destination: Real World.]

In the real world—in the second floor of Su Xiao’s jewelry shop.

Su Xiao and Bubu Wang appeared simultaneously. Before he could react, Bubu Wang bit down hard on Su Xiao’s muddy calf—his dog body froze.

Su Xiao was puzzled. Was this idiot somehow fascinated by his muddy shoes?

Not quite. Ten seconds earlier, inside a cold drink shop in the Cycle Paradise, Bubu Wang—as a premium VIP customer—sat in the window seat specially reserved for him.

Before him lay a delicate pudding, its surface trembling at the slightest vibration.

Bubu Wang glanced out the window and sighed inwardly. Who would’ve thought he’d end up like this? Once just a low-intelligence Imperial Artifact destined for disposal, now he was a higher lifeform.

Thinking this, Bubu Wang leaned forward to bite into the pudding—just as he was about to be teleported away.

After the muffled thud and ultra-high-speed teleportation, he reappeared on the second floor of the jewelry shop.

Bubu Wang was heartbroken. Why had his soft pudding turned into muddy shoes? Why was dog life so hard?

Su Xiao took off his muddy shoes and tossed them to Bubu Wang.

“Take your time. Don’t choke.”

Su Xiao then headed for the bathroom to wash up.

Leaving aside Su Xiao’s bloody stench and Bubu Wang’s antics, ten kilometers from the shop, two bald Mexican men stood on a pedestrian street, waiting for the traffic light.

One wore a beige suit, the other a gray one; beneath each lay a muscular frame, matched with bald heads and stern expressions, radiating silent ferocity.

One bald man raised his arm, his fingers flicking open his sleeve cuff—not just checking the time, but doing so with rigid precision.

The time was exactly noon. The two bald men exchanged a nod—no words needed. Though they were twins, they could go a full week without speaking to each other—or rather, unless absolutely necessary, they wouldn’t utter a single word.

They stepped off the pedestrian street, flagged down a taxi, handed the driver a slip of paper and a bright red bill.

The driver instinctively felt uneasy—the two silent bald men exuded an inexplicable pressure.

“Where to, sirs?”

The driver ventured a question—then came deathly silence.

The sweltering heat, combined with this eerie atmosphere, made sweat bead on the driver’s forehead.

About half an hour later, the taxi stopped before a jewelry shop. The two bald men stepped out simultaneously, walking in perfect unison toward the shop.