The Demonic Crown Prince

The once empty granary was transformed into a huge fighting arena, with a half-person-high earthen platform in the center surrounded by a thick wooden fence.

The ground was covered with a thick blanket, which had been soaked in blood countless times and turned dark brown.

The stands were packed with people, including street ruffians in short clothes, wealthy merchants in brocade robes, and even a few sons of officials wearing veils to conceal their identities.

All eyes were fixed on the earthen platform in the center.

At this moment, two shirtless fighting slaves on the stage are engaged in a fierce battle.

Both men were extremely strong. One of them had a deep, bone-revealing scar across his face. He punched his opponent in the temple, and the latter groaned and fell straight down, his brains mixed with blood splattering onto the felt.

A deafening roar erupted from the stands, with countless people shouting the winner's name.

The slave fighter stood on the stage expressionless, his eyes numb, as if life and death were merely insignificant processes, whether to others or himself.

Subsequently, eight more fighting slaves split into two groups, went up the earthen platform barehanded, and started fighting again.

Li Yuan's gaze swept over the fighting slaves, and his eyes narrowed slightly.

These men employed deadly combat techniques typical of the military: punches, parries, and throat locks—each strike aimed to kill. Many bore the marks of arrow and knife wounds typical of border regions, clearly indicating they were veterans from the army.

A thought struck him—this was exactly the kind of person he wanted; this was the most important foundation for becoming an elite.

Blood splattered everywhere on the earthen platform, and people fell down from time to time.

Even those who fell did not utter a single howl. As long as they could stand up, they fought desperately for the last chance to live!

"Wan Quan, if it were you guys going up there, how many matches could you win?" Li Yuan asked with a smile.

"This is a beast-like one-on-one life-or-death struggle, which is fundamentally different from the forest-like advance of the army. Therefore, judging from the current situation, if I rashly go up, I'm afraid I won't be able to last a single battle."

Wang Wanquan shook his head and said bluntly that, in some ways, this was even more brutal than the life-and-death battles on the battlefield.

The life-or-death struggle on the battlefield is only about winning or losing; perhaps surrendering offers a chance to survive.

But here, only those who survive are victors; the losers have only one fate: death!

He let out a long sigh and cursed, "But this is fucking cruel! They're human beings, not beasts!"

The others were all panting heavily, their chests heaving, equally discontented.

Because they are soldiers too.

"In this world, some people are human, some people don't treat others like human beings, and some people only appear to be human."

Li Yuan said calmly.

Everyone fell silent.

After a long pause, Wang Wanquan took a deep breath. "If such people are disciplined and sworn to be loyal to the death, a hundred of them would be invincible!"

"So, I've decided on them." Li Yuan smiled slightly.

"Your Highness, how many fighting slaves do we need to buy?" Wang Wanquan asked.

"Buy as many as you can!" Li Yuan raised an eyebrow, turned to look upwards, and a smile appeared in his eyes. "But why do you have to buy them all?"

Wang Wanquan was taken aback, somewhat puzzled.

Following his gaze upwards, one could see a woman standing by the carved railing on the second floor. She appeared to be in her early twenties, wearing a scarlet long dress embroidered with gold and intertwined branches. Her long hair was loosely tied into a cloud-like bun, adorned only with a red gold and kingfisher feather hairpin.

A breeze blew in through the window cracks, wandering around the room. It blew onto her head, causing her hair ornament to sway gently, making her beautiful face radiant, yet her eyes held a coldness that seemed to have seen through the world.

She held a glass of amber wine in her hand, her fingertips were fair and slender, and her nails were painted with light red nail polish. She didn't look like someone from this bloody arena at all, but rather like a pampered noblewoman from a secluded mansion.

She was completely out of place in this environment.

"That person, shouldn't he be the one in charge here?" Li Yuan asked, staring intently at the woman.

"It seems...yes." Wang Wanquan hesitated for a moment, after all, he didn't know the situation here.

"Let's go talk to her." Li Yuan turned around and led his men upstairs.

"Talking like this?" Wang Wanquan grinned. Wasn't that a bit too reckless?

This is Black Wind Corner. If you suddenly decide to buy all the fighting slaves here, it's like cutting off their source of income. Won't that scare them?

"Could it be that Your Highness intends to use your good looks to seduce me?"

Wang Wanquan made wild guesses in his mind and followed Li Yuan toward the stairs.

However, after taking only a few steps, he was stopped by someone.

"The upstairs area is a restricted zone. No one may enter without permission except for authorized personnel!"

Several burly men in black robes blocked their way, staring at them with cold, sharp eyes.

"Then we'll have to inform them that we'd like to buy a few fighting slaves to guard our home. Is that possible?"

Li Yuan laughed heartily.

"Buy fighting slaves?" The burly men in black were stunned.

That's really novel; no one has ever made such a request here before.

Generally speaking, people come here to gamble, have fun, and watch life-or-death battles.

Several burly men in black hesitated, somewhat uncertain.

"We are sincere," Li Yuan said with a smile, his gaze naturally drifting towards the woman on the other side of the railing.

At that moment, the woman was also looking at him, clearly having heard their conversation, and her eyes showed some curiosity.

Seeing Li Yuan looking at her, she raised her delicate eyebrows and said softly, "Let them come up."

Several burly men in black robes made way for Li Yuan, who went upstairs and stood before the woman.

"What's your name?" the woman asked, looking at Li Yuan with bright, sharp eyes.

"My surname is Mu, and my given name is Ziyao. I wish to greet you, young lady," Li Yuanyi said, bowing slightly.

"Whose work are you doing this for?" the woman asked directly, without any hesitation.

"It's inconvenient to say who I'm working for, otherwise I wouldn't be hiding my face like this."

But the master said he wants to buy some strong and loyal fighting slaves to protect him personally. If possible, young lady, please name your price, what do you say?

Li Yuan asked with a smile.

"How much do you want to buy?" The woman didn't ask about his background, but stared at him and asked again.

"Ten, is that alright?"

"Alright, but the price of fighting slaves varies depending on their strength. If you want to discuss it, have your master come and talk to them in person."

Otherwise, there's no need to come again.

The woman said.

"Okay, I'll come again tomorrow night!"

Li Yuan nodded and went downstairs.

As Li Yuan led Wang Wanquan and the others out, he glanced back and saw the woman's gaze fixed on him, piercing through the massive arena.

"Your Highness, can they really sell them?" Wang Wanquan asked, somewhat skeptical.

"Of course not, in fact, it's possible they've already figured it out," Li Yuan said calmly.

"Huh? Then tomorrow night, won't we be in danger?" Wang Wanquan asked in surprise.

"That's the kind of danger we want. As they say, fortune favors the bold. Let's go big this time!"

Li Yuan laughed heartily.

Looking at him, Wang Wanquan felt that he was unfathomable.

What exactly is Your Highness up to?

However, after walking less than two miles outside, Wang Wanquan frowned and looked back warily. "Your Highness, it seems someone is following us."