Man and Beast
In an instant, the roles of hunter and prey were reversed. The spectators who had been reveling in excitement moments ago were now reduced to tears and sobs.
On ordinary days, they took pleasure in the tears and vulnerability of the girls in the arena, even mocking them mercilessly. But when it was their turn, they seemed no better.
A young male cultivator desperately scrambled backward. "You—my father won’t let you—"
"Never mind, don’t bother telling me your name," Xu Shulou interrupted him. "Harm shouldn’t extend to parents. I don’t want to beat you up and then have to go after your father too."
"..."
Next to the deathmatch arena, in the beast-fighting pit, two women were locked in combat—one pinned beneath the other. The crowd jeered, "Kill her! Break her neck!"
Though this wasn’t a deathmatch, the spectators cared little for such distinctions when bloodlust took hold.
The woman on top ignored them at first, ready to release her opponent and stand up once victory was assured. But then a voice from the crowd shouted, "Snap her neck, and I’ll buy your freedom!"
"..." The woman froze, her head snapping toward the voice. She glanced at the guards by the arena, who merely shrugged, indifferent.
"No, please… don’t…" The pinned girl’s eyes filled with despair. "We’re from the same hometown…"
Their gazes met, both recognizing the pain in each other’s eyes.
"Do it now!" the spectator roared. "I’ll count to ten—if you don’t kill her, the deal’s off!"
Panicked, the woman tightened her grip without thinking, feeling the fragile neck beneath her fingers tremble.
The girl beneath her felt the hands around her throat constrict, the light in her eyes dimming.
Then—
A thunderous crash split the air. The eastern spectator stands were torn open as a gaping hole ripped through the wall, flooding the space with light. A figure stood silhouetted in the breach.
As the two women’s eyes reflected the sudden brightness, chaos erupted among the crowd.
Amid the uproar, the pipa player stationed at the edge of the arena—meant to entertain spectators between matches—abruptly shifted her melody. The gentle strumming transformed into the clangor of war.
When Xu Shulou swung her sword, the pipa’s notes sharpened into a battle cry. When she leapt, the music turned light and swift.
Xu Shulou chuckled amid the groans of the fallen and bowed to the musician. "Thank you for the accompaniment."
The woman in the arena had already released her grip, tears welling as she looked at Xu Shulou. "Thank you for coming in time."
"She saved me," the girl on the ground rasped, coughing before adding irritably, "Why are you thanking her?"
The woman didn’t explain, only stared at her hands in horror, unable to believe she had nearly killed someone. Relief washed over her—thankfully, she hadn’t crossed that line.
Xu Shulou didn’t linger. She cut through every arena, dispatched the guards, seized keys and tokens, and freed the girls from their cages. The captives were overjoyed yet hesitant to believe their luck—until they stepped outside, felt the night breeze, and collapsed into tearful embraces.
The round-faced girl who had shared Xu Shulou’s cage gaped at her. "You’re a cultivator?"
"Indeed. I apologize for hiding it yesterday."
As Xu Shulou turned to leave, the girl hurried after her. "Honored cultivator, could you… check if I have the potential to cultivate?"
Xu Shulou pressed two fingers to the girl’s wrist, channeling a wisp of spiritual energy to examine her meridians. After a moment, she nodded. "You do. There’s a natural trace of spiritual energy within you."
The girl blinked, caught between joy and apprehension.
Xu Shulou, recalling their conversation the previous night, understood her hesitation. She rested a hand on the girl’s shoulder. "The cultivation world has its share of scoundrels, but it also has chivalrous heroes, righteous female cultivators, and sword immortals who roam the land. Power doesn’t corrupt—it’s how you wield it that matters."
After this brief reassurance, she moved to investigate deeper into the beast-fighting pits—only to be stopped again.
"That thing you said yesterday about great love and small kindnesses…" The girl blushed. "You must be one of the cultivators with the greatest love!"
Xu Shulou laughed. "No, I’m among the most notorious."
———
Once the girls had calmed, someone approached Xu Shulou to ask about the spectators’ fate.
"Those from the deathmatch arena—whether to kill, release, or otherwise—that’s your decision," Xu Shulou said. "I won’t interfere."
The group nodded and began discussing among themselves.
Xu Shulou then asked, "Where are the abducted men held?"
A girl stepped forward. "Once, I saw guards take a man into a hidden room at the back."
"Lead the way."
"Gladly!" The girls eagerly guided her to a concealed chamber.
Inside, dim oil lamps flickered. The room held only a screen, a bed, a desk with a chair, and a bookshelf—hardly a prison.
Xu Shulou scanned the space. "There must be a mechanism."
"Let’s search separately," the girls suggested.
"I’m not skilled with traps," Xu Shulou admitted. Instead, she drew her weapon and began hacking at the walls. After demolishing all four, she dug into the floor, uncovering a hollow space. Following the buried gears, she smashed through tiles, shattered the furniture, and traced the mechanism to a vase on the bookshelf. "Found it!"
The girls stared, dumbfounded by her brute-force approach.
With a groan of machinery, a gaping hole opened in the floor. A wooden beam, suspended by ropes, slowly ascended from the depths—bearing a bizarre figure.
"Move back!" Xu Shulou warned, her sword shielding the girls.
The creature—covered in fur—leapt from the beam before it fully surfaced. The girls barely dodged in time; the beam was still several zhang high, yet the thing’s jump was unnaturally powerful.
Instead of attacking, it stared at them, as if waiting. Xu Shulou retrieved a red token taken from a guard and handed it over. The creature examined it, then stepped aside, no longer blocking their path.
"What is that?" the girls whispered, studying it with morbid fascination.
Its lower half boasted a leopard’s hind legs and tail, while its upper arms were also feline, spotted with fur. Yet its hands were human, fingers nimble. Most unsettling was its face—human in shape, but with a leopard’s eyes, nose, ears, and mouth. A prominent black mole dotted its lip.
Xu Shulou studied it closely, a chill running down her spine. This was no leopard demon—even partially transformed beasts didn’t look so grotesque…
As she was lost in thought, one of the girls suddenly trembled at the sight of the black mole on the creature's face. "Dongzi? Is that you?"
"What Dongzi?"
"My sweetheart, the one who was captured with me..."
The other girls looked at her in disbelief. "How could this monster be your sweetheart? Are you hallucinating from fear?"
"I can't be wrong," the girl whispered shakily, stepping closer to the creature for a better look. "I always hated that mole on his face... How could I mistake it?"
She reached out to touch its face, but recoiled when the creature bared its teeth in a threatening snarl.
"Don't touch it," Xu Shulou warned, glancing at the deep pit below. "I'll go down and investigate. Stay here."
By then, the horizontal beam had risen level with the floor. Xu Shulou stepped onto it, allowing it to carry her downward into a narrow, dark space. As her eyes adjusted, the scene before her suddenly opened up—a vast hollowed-out mountain interior stretched before her, illuminated by scattered torches. Spiral pathways wound along the walls, bustling with all manner of... grotesque figures.
The sight was almost majestic. Xu Shulou leaped down, but the creatures paid her no mind, continuing their work as if she weren’t there.
"You’ve found this place—has the Beast Arena been destroyed?" A man’s voice echoed from nearby.
Xu Shulou turned toward the sound. "It has."
The man raised an eyebrow, seemingly indifferent.
"Are you the master of the Beast Arena?"
He studied her. "Shouldn’t you introduce yourself before asking questions?"
"I am Xu Shulou. May I know your name, fellow cultivator?"
"I am Shen Zhuang," he replied, showing no reaction to her name. "And yes, I am the master of the Beast Arena."
This time, it was Xu Shulou who was surprised. "Shen Zhuang? You?"
The name had appeared in her dreams—he was an ally of Lu Beichen, providing him with wealth and resources. During a mortal famine, he had even spent lavishly to buy Lu Beichen a reputation for generosity. In return, Lu Beichen had used his influence to support Shen Zhuang’s various experiments. In the dream, Shen Zhuang had indeed created some formidable things.
Another of Lu Beichen’s allies from her dreams. Xu Shulou couldn’t help but reflect that she had already eliminated more than one such person.
In the dream, Shen Zhuang had been a relatively upright figure, if not a "great philanthropist," at least well-regarded. She hadn’t expected to meet him in such a place.
Then again, in her dream, she herself had been reviled as a public enemy. Perhaps dreams shouldn’t be taken too seriously.
"You’ve heard of me?"
Xu Shulou ignored his question. "You don’t seem particularly concerned about the destruction of the Beast Arena."
"That was merely a means to gather wealth," the man said, his gaze drifting over the beast-men moving through the cavern. "What I truly pursue lies here."
Xu Shulou followed his gaze, taking in the half-human, half-beast hybrids—most resembling tigers, leopards, wolves, or bears. Many bore male features, though some had the upper bodies of muscular women. Their expressions were blank, their movements mechanical as they labored.
"You’ve seen the leopard-man up close. What do you think?" The man’s face lit up with an almost childlike eagerness, as if awaiting praise.
Xu Shulou’s lashes flickered. "A cruel creation."
"Is that all you see? Clearly, you lack appreciation." He closed his eyes, savoring his own vision. "I gave him the hind legs of a leopard for agility, the forelimbs for strength, the eyes and ears for heightened senses—yet retained his human hands and part of his brain. Obedience is all that’s needed. Too much intelligence would only be a hindrance."
"You... stitched beasts and humans together?"
"Indeed. A fusion of the finest traits of both—my perfect creations." He watched her expectantly, as if anticipating awe.
Xu Shulou tightened her grip on her sword. "Is there any way to... reverse this?"
Even as she asked, she knew the answer. Those transformed into such monstrosities could never be restored.
"Reverse it? Why would I? Could they possibly offer more value as they were?" Shen Zhuang spread his arms like a sovereign decreeing fate. "This is creation! This is genius! This will propel the cultivation world forward!"
Xu Shulou shook her head. "You’re a madman."
"A madman who will shape history, then. Far better than the tedium of the mediocre," Shen Zhuang retorted, unoffended by the label. "The world is drowning in mediocrity. How dull."
Xu Shulou twirled her sword. "Perhaps because madmen like you never live long?"
"Is that a threat?" He scowled at her obstinance. "The Beast Arena was built by them, for me. You’ve seen the results. Imagine—creatures of absolute obedience and boundless stamina, serving us. They can build our sects, forge our strongholds, plunder and kill on our behalf. They can tend spirit herbs, raise spirit beasts, refine pills, gather herbs. They can even trigger traps in ancient ruins for us. All the tedious, laborious tasks—handed to them. Cultivators need only focus on cultivation, free from worldly distractions. Compare them to those expensive, rare puppets—my beast-men are made from materials found everywhere. Which is superior? You know the answer."
"At the cost of tormenting the mortal world."
"Torment? Mortals are endless. I’ve only taken a fraction. You call me cruel, yet a single mortal war consumes far more lives than I ever have. Isn’t that so?"
Xu Shulou felt a pang of anguish. Why did she always have to deal with such lunatics?
