There were only two entrances to the vast arena, one on the east side, where people were approaching, and another on the southeast. The two gates were not far apart.
When the iron gate behind them clanged shut, they were all startled.
"Damn! Are we the last ones again?" Ouchi, designated as Number Two, exclaimed.
"Probably not. If I remember correctly, the rule for the arena is that it activates after every five teams enter," Henry, the blond, replied.
As soon as he finished speaking, they felt the ground beneath their feet begin to move.
It was then that they realized the ground they were standing on was not ordinary but a passage with hidden mechanisms.
"Be careful, everyone. The opponents for the fifteen matches are random, so we might encounter other teams right from the start."
Henry, living up to his role as temporary captain, reminded them.
The rule for passing the second stage, the beast cages, was that each team would randomly fight fifteen duels. The winning team would directly qualify to leave and then proceed to the final stage, the Iron Forest.
Therefore, the speed of progression was naturally related to the team's strength. The faster you finished a battle, the faster the arena would arrange the next one until you could leave.
So, after Henry's reminder, everyone immediately became extremely alert and formed their ranks.
With Henry at the core, Ouchi (Number Two) and Guido (Number Three), both former special forces and mercenaries, were responsible for flank security. Li Chonglou was to cover the rear or act opportunistically. The Thai boxing woman, Yiku, carrying the little girl on her back, was protected at the very rear.
This formation was one they had discussed not long ago. During the discussion, the Thai boxing woman was quite displeased, as she believed her combat power was no less than that of Number Two or Number Three.
It was only after Henry's explanation of "preserving strength and acting as a trump card" that she was successfully persuaded.
Thus, Yiku was under less pressure than the others. As the walls in front moved, she suddenly asked,
"It seems our team hasn't picked a name yet. How about calling it the Yiku Team?"
"No!"
The others unanimously and firmly rejected the idea.
"Why not? In my home, 'Yiku' means strong and powerful." Yiku's expression was one of great confusion.
The others' faces twitched.
Fortunately, Henry remembered his authority as captain and directly stated, "Although I don't know where you come from, the captain should at least be the one to name the team."
"Let's call it the 'Five Heroes Team,' signifying that each of us is a hero."
Henry, lacking in flair, made a swift decision. The other three, though still not entirely satisfied, could only nod their agreement to prevent Yiku from causing further chaos.
Seeing that everyone agreed, Yiku could only sigh and say, "Alright."
"What about me? Can't I be counted?"
The little girl behind Yiku suddenly spoke, startling everyone. They had almost forgotten her existence.
"Then let's call it the Six Heroes Team." Henry added another number without hesitation.
But the little girl still showed a happy smile.
A team name was thus hastily decided.
At that moment, the constantly moving walls suddenly faltered with a grinding sound. The accompanying vibration caused everyone to sway.
Then, they saw the wall on the right slowly descend.
When it had lowered by a third, they could already see their opponents for the first match: a pack of mutated Komodo dragons.
There were more than ten of them, each as large as a magnified bear. Beneath their blood-red eyes were rows of fine, sharp teeth, and their claws gleamed menacingly.
Coupled with their tough, grayish-silver skin that reflected light, their appearance alone was enough to instill a sense of dread.
"Damn! What kind of monster did some pervert create?"
Ouchi, a former special forces soldier, felt his scalp tingle the moment he saw the reflective hide. He understood better than anyone how difficult such a creature would be to deal with. It wasn't just impervious to blades and spears; even cannons would struggle to penetrate such defense.
And there wasn't just one of them. In the vast space, fourteen of them were crammed in!
"Don't go out! The space here is limited, so let's fight right here!"
Guido, Number Three, who also had extensive experience in wilderness combat, immediately advised. Henry's expression darkened, and he took the lead, blocking the front.
No one else objected to this. Based on their current assessment, Henry's greatest strengths were his burst power and strength. If even he couldn't withstand the attack of a mutated Komodo dragon, then the others certainly couldn't.
As the stone wall completely lowered, the mutated Komodo dragons finally spotted the group and began to lumber towards them.
As one of the dragons squeezed through the gap, it opened its massive maw and lunged at Henry. The fetid wind it generated was enough to make them feel nauseous.
This mutated Komodo dragon was a good two meters long. The space created by the descending stone wall was just enough to accommodate one at a time, with more than half of its body still outside, which gave them a slight sigh of relief.
Facing the gaping maw, Henry's figure flickered, and he dodged, then darted under the dragon's neck.
"Heavenly Wolf Bell!"
Henry unleashed his ultimate move. With his hands on the ground, his legs shot out like cannonballs, directly striking the dragon's neck.
Although it was the neck, it was still covered by the same grayish-silver armor-like hide. As Henry's Heavenly Wolf Bell impacted, his expression suddenly changed.
"Damn, it's so hard!"
With a tremendous bang, Henry himself staggered backward, while only a slight indentation appeared on the dragon's neck.
No penetration!
At this, their expressions turned grim.
"What the hell! Is this beast cage that perverted? Throwing this kind of thing at us right at the start!"
Ouchi yelled and, taking advantage of the dragon's slow reaction, charged forward. Unlike Henry, he targeted the dragon's eyes.
"Even if your skin is tough, I don't believe your eyes are made of iron!"
Ouchi leaped up, agilely and swiftly jumping onto the dragon's mouth. Using its nose as a springboard, he thrust his right foot like an arrow towards the dragon's blood-red eye.
However, he never expected the dragon to close its eyes at the last moment.
Ouchi's face changed. The next moment, he felt himself kicking a rock.
Although not as hard as its skin, it still absorbed most of Ouchi's impact, causing its eyelid to only sink a few centimeters.
The dragon, in pain, thrashed its head, and the group quickly retreated to the edge of the stone wall. The stone walls on the sides began to crack due to the dragons' collisions.
Debris rained down on their heads!