novelraw Chapter 26 : I Want to Compete
Chapter 26 : I Want to Compete
26: I Want to Compete
In the evening, after her shower, Yuyin dried her hair, did her makeup, changed into the same outfit as last time, and headed out, though today she wore her long hair down.
Arriving again at the lounge outside the Underground Fighting Arena, the buzz-cut man at the door seemed to have some impression of her. This second time inside, she would have to buy a ticket, which wasn't cheap at 200 yuan for a regular seat.
Yuyin walked up directly and said, “Hello, where do I sign up to compete?”
The buzz-cut man gave her a somewhat surprised look, sizing up Yuyin in her sunglasses and hat. He didn't ask many questions, leading her to a side door next to the bar in the lounge. Opening it revealed an elevator.
“Take this to the second floor, go out, turn right, it's room 206.”
Yuyin gave a slight nod and took the elevator to the second floor.
As the elevator doors opened, a fragrance wafted out.
A woman of similar height to Yuyin, with long, wavy, light-purple hair hanging loose, was waiting for the elevator. She wore a somewhat casual dress that clung tightly, accentuating her stunning figure.
What a figure.
At a glance, her bust was even more impressive than Yuyin's, making her waist seem even more slender. From the open, high-quality neckline, a delicate, shining necklace added a touch of fashionable, mature womanly charm.
She, like Yuyin, wore sunglasses, but even just seeing her face shape, one could tell she was a great beauty, with alluring purple lips and a small black beauty mark.
Her aura was strong. Yuyin waited a moment, then lightly stepped aside to let her pass.
But the other woman politely gestured for Yuyin to exit first.
Letting others exit before entering was basic etiquette, so Yuyin didn't stand on ceremony and walked out, brushing past the woman.
Even after the elevator doors closed, the woman's scent lingered in the air. A mature feminine aura mixed with an elegant, illusory yet natural-smelling perfume.
“This woman… she seems formidable in every way,” Yuyin thought to herself. One could only encounter such a woman in certain top-tier circles in a big city, right?
The hallway was dimly lit, and only the room at the far end on the left seemed to be open, with a light on.
Yuyin reached the door. It was indeed room 206. She knocked.
“Come in,” a refined, middle-aged man's voice said.
Yuyin felt a little nervous. The atmosphere felt like a job interview.
She took off her sunglasses and hat and pushed the door open. After all, she was here to register and should show some respect.
The room wasn't large. Behind a desk sat a man in a suit wearing an earring, busy with his work.
“Hello, I'd like to sign up,” Yuyin said, standing before the desk after entering.
The man glanced up casually at Yuyin, but immediately his eyes widened. He sat up straight, his gaze becoming gentlemanly and polite.
“This young lady, are you signing up for pole dancing or as a ring girl?” the man asked very politely.
“Huh!?” Yuyin shuddered, her face flushing with heat. Did she look like she was here to sign up as one of those women in bikinis holding up round numbers?
Yuyin calmed herself and said evenly, “Sir, I'm here to sign up for the underground fighting matches. I want to compete as an amateur.”
“Ha!?”
Now it was the refined man's turn to be stunned.
“Ding. You have successfully shocked the Fighting Arena's HR manager. Gained 1 Soul Charm Point.”
“What is it? Sir, are women not allowed to compete?” Yuyin asked flatly.
“You… you can, you can…” The man's sharp eyes darted around, and he quickly recovered. “I understand. Please register over here.”
Regardless of whether this great beauty was on drugs or something, if she really competed, she would surely ignite the passion of the crowd. The experienced middle-aged man immediately realized this.
The man watched Yuyin fill out the form. She left many fields blank, but the man didn't pry. In a place like this, one didn't ask about a person's background.
“Miss Xia, is it? May I ask what weapon you use?” There was a hint of excessive respect in his tone, born from condescension.
“A sword. A longsword,” Yuyin said.
“Hmm. Will you be bringing your own weapon? Any personal weapon must be inspected by us before it can be used. You know, although this is an underground fight, we try to ensure the competitors' safety. Any sharpened, edged weapons are not permitted,” the man reminded her.
“I don't have a weapon yet. Can you provide one?”
“We can.”
After the simple registration was complete, the man called a female intern on the phone. “Xiao Liu, take this young lady to pick out a weapon.”
“Then… Sir, has my registration been approved?” Yuyin asked.
“Yes,” the man nodded.
It was simpler than she had imagined.
“Then when can I compete?”
“Probably tomorrow. The amateur-versus-pro match tomorrow has no one signed up yet. You know, beautiful… of the ones who signed up the past few weeks, more than half were sent to the hospital. For 5,000 yuan, it's really not worth it. With your looks, we could pay you 2,000 a night to be a ring girl.”
“No, thank you.”
“Eight thousand for pole dancing!”
“Sir, I am going to compete,” Yuyin said seriously.
“Fine, all right…” The man shook his head helplessly.
Just then, a short girl in an oversized T-shirt walked over.
“Miss, you can go with Xiao Liu to pick out a weapon now. I'll arrange a specific time for you and let you know in a bit,” the man said.
Yuyin followed the intern to the fighters' exclusive training gym on the basement floor.
The moment she entered, a thick, fierce odor hit her.
In the dim, spacious gym, one burly man after another, their arms as thick as Yuyin's waist, was working out.
Seeing Yuyin, they all stared, their eyes glued. These rough men, who killed and survived in life-and-death battles, didn't know the meaning of shy. Some drooled while lifting barbells; others made all sorts of lewd gestures.
And this was with Yuyin wearing a loose jacket and jeans. If she had been in a miniskirt and silk stockings, these men would have probably pounced on her!
“Hey! Girl? Are you the new ring girl? You're beautiful!” a Black man in a red tank top, who must have been two meters tall, came up and asked.
“Mr. Lewis, this young lady is here to sign up for the fighting competition,” the intern explained, hiding behind Yuyin.
“What!?”
All the burly fighters in the gym stopped, staring at Yuyin as if she were some kind of spectacle.
“You? Compete? I might as well go pole dance,” Lewis said, deliberately imitating a pole dancer with his flexible, Black-man's physique. It was a painful sight to behold.
The burly men around him kept egging him on, booing and jeering, and many whistled at Yuyin.
“Xiao Liu, can we go choose a weapon now?” Yuyin lowered her head, too lazy to bother with these people.
“Ah, yes, please, please come with me,” Xiao Liu was also terrified. It wasn't easy for a college student to find an internship in Lingdu… She hurried toward a metal door.
However, Yuyin, who was younger but much taller and a high school student, appeared far more calm and composed. She wasn't intimidated by the large men.
“I say, Eastern beauty, do you like foreigners? How about I teach you how to fight tonight?”
“Beauty, don't compete. Do you like hitting people? How about you let big brother hit you instead?”
The commotion outside continued, and the words grew uglier.
But Yuyin's heart was calm. Before the match, words were meaningless.
Following Xiao Liu to the armory, she saw a complete collection of Chinese and Western weapons, swords, spears, and halberds all neatly arranged, each with a number tag.
Yuyin noticed that the bladed weapons were real but unsharpened, while the heavy blunt weapons were wrapped in a layer of engineering plastic made to look like metal.
That made sense; otherwise, blunt weapons would have too much of an advantage.
Yuyin walked around. Her gaze fell upon a row of black tungsten steel longswords. After a brief inspection, she picked up a sword that was about the same length as the one from the God-Devouring Chess.
“Miss Xia, this sword… a girl probably can't use it,” Xiao Liu reminded her.
“Why not?”
“It's a replica of a Warring States period longsword. Too long, too heavy… for a girl. We've had female fighters here before, and they would all choose the lighter swords and daggers over there, willow-leaf sabers and such…”
“I'll take this one.” Yuyin didn't say more.
With a flick of her wrist, the heavy longsword spun effortlessly.
Zheng!
With a clear, cold metallic ring, she forcefully and precisely thrust it back into the weapon rack. The metallic vibration echoed in the armory.