Chapter 40: The game of shadows

Chapter Forty: The Game of Shadows

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Fire still blazed on the collapsed bridge. Ambulances rushed in alongside firefighting trucks, their sirens cutting through the smoke-choked air. The flames had been quenched, but smoke still curled upward like ghosts escaping the wreckage. Citizens had been evacuated. The road was quiet now, dark save for the faint neon glow bleeding across the ruins.

Shanyuan's body lay crushed beneath a giant rock, his legs twisted at wrong angles, his blood pooling beneath him.

The wind carried the smell of rust.

Blue ice crept around the rock, slow and deliberate, spreading like water across a floor. It covered the stone completely—then shattered.

A figure lowered his hand. He walked toward Shanyuan's broken body, tilted his head, and studied him with cold disgust. Then he grabbed him, hesitating for a moment, and walked away.

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Mystical Eraland

Tents were scattered across the clearing. A fire blazed in the center, smoke curling into the aurora-painted sky—purple and blue and red, churning like a dying heart.

Inside the largest tent, Lion's Dude sat with his legs crossed. A giant black-scaled cobra coiled around his neck, hissing softly. He could feel the enormous weight pressing down on him. He dismissed it immediately, gazing at Priceless.

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Her blue wig shimmered in the firelight. Her bronze armor glinted. She took a slow sip of red wine.

"You like it?"

"Hmm."

Lion's Dude nodded. Priceless continued, her voice calm but pointed.

"Take your time mastering it. It will be useful during the tournament."

Lion's Dude smirked, rolling his eyes.

"My strength alone is enough. I'm the most powerful Mutated Class hunter. And beast souls don't work outside Mystical Eraland. So what's the point?"

Priceless stared at him like he was a foreign object from another planet. Then she burst into laughter—wild and sharp.

"Oh my, Mr. Stone. Let me give you a piece of advice. Never forget it." She leaned forward. "Let the foolish ones not defend themselves with their foolish thoughts."

Lion's Dude's jaw tightened. He regretted the words the moment they left his mouth.

Priceless's smile vanished.

"Let me warn you. There's a clear difference between being politically influential and being powerful in a fight. Stop making false accusations about yourself. You think the ape show during the armadillo hunt made you strong?"

She paused. Lion's Dude clenched his fist, opened his mouth to speak, closed it, opened it again—

Priceless cut him off.

"Stop letting pride consume you. It only makes you foolish. You'll understand when the tournament begins."

"Enough."

His voice overlapped hers, silencing the tent. He closed his eyes, rage simmering beneath his skin.

"I don't like it that you're insulting me."

"I'm telling you the truth," she replied.

Lion's Dude fell silent.

Priceless leaned back, relaxing into her chair. He leaned forward, his voice quieter now, almost desperate.

"Thanks for the advice. But..." He paused, thinking. "I want us to form a cooperation during the tournament. I'll pay you any amount. I just want your help. I need it badly."

Priceless's eyes darted to the table beside her.

"Any amount?"

She was silent, thinking. Then—"Hmm. I see." She looked up. "But you know I can't."

"Why?" His voice cracked.

"Why?" Priceless raised her head. "The game won't be sweet. I can't participate because it will make it a one-sided win. And it's dangerous for me to really participate."

She paused, her voice dropping.

"Why?"

She asked herself again, quieter this time.

"Because that expensive stadium—worth over a hundred million DCs—might become a wasteland of ashes and space."

A flash of red appeared in her eyes—and vanished.

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End of Chapter Forty.