My health recovery is incredibly fast.

Xia Zuo carefully considered their conversation, then manipulated his No. 5 servant, who was hiding in the gun shop, to come to the competition venue. Just before the host was about to go backstage, he had the No. 5 servant attach itself to the host's coat.

The host with the goatee and the staff gave a few instructions, telling the thugs to keep an eye on the nearby passageways, and then led Sid, who was waiting nearby, into the underground passage deep in the corridor.

Under the light of the alchemical lamps, the two walked down the stairs for a while and came to a corridor with iron gates.

After entering one of the doors, Sid removed the mask from his weapon and then lifted the face mask covering his face, revealing his scarred face.

“Well done. Heh heh... Jack did a good job too, he helped you remove the mask so you didn’t have to do it yourself. I think the audience, and the detectives from the Alien Group, should have seen ‘Sid’s’ face.”

"What should I do now?" Scarface handed over the face mask.

The host took the face mask and pointed to the clothes hanging on the wall. "Change into your clothes, go and greet the two detectives, dispel their doubts, and then come back for the coupling ceremony. Mr. DeShawn personally paid for all the ceremony materials for you. You've been waiting for this day for a long time, and I'm so happy for you."

Scarface grinned, his scarred face somewhat ferocious. He took off his weapons, put down his energy sword, put on his usual black jacket, and left.

The host took out many bottles and jars from a metal box on the ground and squatted down to work, seemingly setting up a coupling ceremony.

Xia Zuo manipulated his No. 5 servant to come to the top of this secret room, squinted at the glass bottle, and kept casting detection spells to confirm his identification results.

He found a notebook and wrote down the materials needed for the Python V-shaped alchemical implant coupling ritual. Then, referring to the patterns on the floor, he drew the entire ritual array on a piece of paper.

The purpose of the Beast Arena is all too clear.

This bone sac is estimated to be a high-grade, high-quality primary material for implantation, and it has extremely high value.

It aroused the greed of the Beast Arena, leading these people to take risks and use ingenious schemes to seize it.

What's uncertain now is...

Was it the Mishima Group that ordered them to do this, or was it a private conspiracy between DeSean, the goatee host, and Scarface?

Regardless of which possibility...

None of this prevents Xia Zuo from meticulously recording the materials and magic arrays of the ritual, and incidentally observing the ritual process to absorb knowledge of alchemical bio-armor.

That said, if the Beast Arena really succeeds, it will be even more difficult for Andrew and Ross to get their bone sac back.

...

Inside the Red Beauty Tavern.

Next to the card table in the corner of the lobby on the first floor.

Ross sat uneasily in his chair, tossing a few cards onto the table. His gaze drifted toward the tavern entrance, where a tall figure walked in, his face covered in wrinkles and scars.

Andrew, on the other hand, remained calm, his eyes fixed on his hand. He only spoke when heavy footsteps approached the table:

"Scarface, what do you want with us?"

Scarface remained expressionless, his hands resting on the backs of their chairs, and said in a low voice:

"How was your time, gentlemen? The boss wants me to make a quick trip to the Dicos lumber mill; there are some troublemakers causing a ruckus there. I need to get going. For the next two days, you'll be entertained by Doom, the host of the Beast Arena."

“It seems the lumber mill is in quite a mess, requiring your personal visit,” Andrew nodded. “Thank you and Doom for your hospitality. I’ll wait here for what I need.”

Scarface straightened up, glanced at the jacketed thug leaning against the corner, and was about to turn and leave when a nervous Ross called him back.

“Scarface…” Ross took a deep breath, forcing himself to remain calm, and looked at the other man’s ferocious face as he asked:

"Are you planning to install the alchemical bio-armor on Sid? And if so, how?"

Scarface touched his bumpy, bald forehead and chuckled, "The safest way. Hehe... take your time, you two."

Scarface walked toward the tavern door.

After he left, two thugs in jackets leaned against the door frame on either side.

A thug in a jacket emerged from the passageway behind the tavern and leaned against the wall beside the passageway.

Roston sensed something was wrong, shifted his weight closer to Andrew, and asked in a low voice:

"I have a feeling they have ill intentions... What should we do now?"

Andrew gestured to the person next to him with a chin and raised his voice, saying:

"Go back to your seat, relax, play cards, and pass the time. We'll talk about it again in two days. At worst, the mission will fail; it's not a big deal."

"Oh..." Ross sat back down, continuing to play cards with a restless mind.

Xia Zuo opened the notebook containing Andrew's personal information.

The above clearly states that Andrew is a steady and experienced person.

His deliberately raised voice was both a reassurance to Ross and a message to the jacketed thugs watching them nearby:

I know you guys are up to something, but I don't want to cause trouble.

Will Andrew really be so docile as to stay out of trouble and let the Beast Arena pocket the bone sac...?

Even his henchman Ross probably doesn't know.

Xia Zuo guessed based on his intuition...

Um..

Andrew might actually do that.

To thrive in this land, one either needs sufficient personal strength, or a large organization to back them up, and also needs to be very shrewd and adaptable.

As of now, Andrew is clearly the latter.

Xia Zuo wrote this question down in his notebook.

At the same time, he noted down the name of the arena host: Doom.

...

Inside the underground chamber of the Beast Arena.

Scarface pushed open the door and walked in, speaking to Doom, the goatee-bearded man inspecting the ritual array:

"Those two detectives from the Alien Group are trying to find out how we install the alchemical implants."

“Ignore them. Mr. DeShawn has already made arrangements.” Doom pointed to the magic circle on the ground. “Stand on it, I’m all ready.”

He directed Scarface to place his foot in the correct position, pouring powder or potion into the empty bowl on the magic circle as he spoke:

"Let's double-check the subsequent action plan."

"After you complete the coupling ritual, put on the 'Sid' face mask and go on stage for the competition. The next two days will be enough for you to get used to the alchemical bio-suit."

"You'll injure me in two days, so go easy on me. I've taken care of everything for you..."

Doom continued:

"You fight your way up from here, escape the Beast Arena, and run south to the Catfish Forest."

"If those two detectives don't come after you, that would be great. After you receive my signal, take off the 'Sid' mask, take a detour to the Dicos Lumber Mill, and wait for the detectives to leave the Stillwater Town area before following the convoy back."

“If those two detectives are desperate to catch you… then you and your men, who are lying in ambush in the catfish forest, should give them a good welcome for me and Mr. DeShawn.”

Doom finished setting up the magic circle, put his hands on his hips, and grinned:

"The murderer who killed the detective was Carpenter, who participated in the massacre of a branch of the Ossie family."

"In order to evade the pursuit of the Ossie family knights, he disguised himself as the greatswordsman Sid and lay low in Stillwater for five or six years, gaining the trust of DeShawn."

"Carpenter has finally obtained the Alchemy Armor and has the strength to face the Ossie family knights directly, so he couldn't wait to betray the Beast Arena and flee Stillwater Town."

Doom pulled a wanted poster from his pocket, which featured a portrait of Carpenter—whose face bore a resemblance to Sid's... but Shazor was certain that Carpenter and Sid were not the same person.

“If the detectives question me, I’ll give them this arrest warrant. Let them and that damned Knight O’Cie go after the fictitious Carpenter.”

He shook the bounty poster, making a rustling sound, and then put it in his pocket.

"Six years ago, you escaped the pursuit of the Rose Knights by disfiguring yourself."

"Now, we've not only cleared your name, but we've also fitted you with the Python V-Type Alchemy Armor, one of the most advanced armors on the market."

"No one would know that Sid, who looks somewhat like you, has long been locked up in a secret place."

“I originally intended for him to take your place in the trial by the Ossie family, and I even prepared the evidence.”

"Who knew that a brat carrying a high-level bone sac would suddenly appear and disrupt my plans."

"Fortunately, I made adjustments in time and persuaded Mr. DeShawn to buy everything you needed for the coupling ceremony."

"From now on, you'll have to follow our arrangements obediently. Our plan can't be without you."

Scarface raised his right hand and gave Doom a fist bump in celebration. "I promise I'll obey you. This plan is brilliant. You're really quick-witted; no wonder Mr. DeShawn values ​​you so much. Let's get started."

Xia Zuo organized the ins and outs of the incident in his notebook and wrote down the name "Ossie Family".

From the perspective of Servant No. 5.

Doom stood by the wall away from the magic circle, took a parchment from his pocket, spread it out in front of him, and showed the writing on it to Scarface.

“Scarface, you must recite the ritual incantation on this text accurately to activate the magic circle. The speed can be slow, but you must not make any mistakes. Recite it silently a few times first, then read it aloud. After the magic circle is activated, do not do anything. You can only move when I tell you to. Understand?”

“Okay, Doom.”

Scarface kept his composure, frowning as he looked at the parchment scroll. The dozens of lines of text arranged vertically on it put no less pressure on him than Jack, who was wearing a suit.

"It's so hard to understand... It's a common language, and I recognize each word individually, but when they're put together, I just can't make sense of it..." Scarface complained in a low voice.

“Be patient, this is a necessary test,” Doom said emphatically.

Xia Zuo manipulated Servant No. 5 to come behind Scarface, face the parchment scroll, and recorded the text on the scroll in reverse order rather than in sequence to avoid triggering unknown events.

With this, the list of items needed for the Python V-Type Alchemy Embryo Coupling Ritual was complete.

Just as Xia Zuo put down his pen, Scarface said:

"Dum, I should be fine now, I won't mispronounce it."

“Okay.” Doom nodded. “Let’s begin.”

"Disciples nourished by blood, a distorted illusion of flesh..."

Xia Zuo raised his eyebrows.

Isn't this the pretentious line from Nukalofa's entrance, a butler of essence and flesh?

Could there be a deeper meaning?

He shifted his gaze from the notebook to the perspective of Servant No. 5, maneuvering the servant to retreat into the crack in the door so that they could escape immediately should anything happen.

Scarface continued reading in a slow, steady tone: