"I'm going to die!!"
Despair flickered in Martin's eyes. He instinctively closed his eyes, awaiting the reward of death.
"Hope the cleaver is alright."
Chen Shu smiled faintly, even making a gesture of prayer.
"You and your sister!"
Martin's lips twitched, and his body trembled.
But just as the butcher's cleaver was about to chop down on Martin, a beam of starlight suddenly appeared before him, blocking it.
[Gate about to open...]
[Ruin protection mechanism activated.]
Two messages entered both their minds, causing them to freeze for a moment.
"Oh my god..."
Martin couldn't help but swallow, his entire body almost completely drained.
When he opened his eyes, cold sweat dripped from his forehead again, his gaze filled with a hint of terror.
The butcher's cleaver was incredibly sharp, easily slicing into the ice river, its blade even trembling slightly.
Martin's fear stemmed from the fact that the cleaver was less than a centimeter away from his crotch!
"Holy crap!"
Martin jolted, instantly standing up.
"A pity."
Chen Shu shook his head. A shimmering starlight enveloped their bodies, clearly a protection mechanism similar to the [Flame Ruin].
"Little thing, I admit, you have good luck!"
He slowly stepped forward and retrieved the butcher's cleaver from the ground.
"Don't push it too far!"
With the ruin's protection, Martin felt emboldened, puffing out his chest.
"What? Not convinced?"
Chen Shu raised an eyebrow, shaking the urea bag in his left hand, a glint of mischief in his eyes.
"..."
Martin's body stiffened. Smelling the noxious odor, he felt a surge of fear again.
But at that moment, both of them vanished from their positions, appearing in mid-air.
"Hm?"
Chen Shu frowned, surprised by the forced transfer. The power of the ruin was truly formidable.
They were now nearly a thousand meters apart, standing in mid-air, gazing at each other.
"I can't move?"
Chen Shu was slightly taken aback. His body wasn't restricted, but he couldn't take a single step.
[Confrontation Gate 'Beast Taming Chess' has been activated!]
Another message appeared in their minds.
"Beast Taming Chess?"
Chen Shu was stunned. Beast Taming Chess was a game that had taken the world by storm.
Both ordinary people and beast tamers were extremely enthusiastic and skilled at it, with dedicated international competitions.
Chen Shu had certainly heard of such a popular game,
but that was all. He didn't even understand the basic rules...
He was just a notorious bandit from Nanjiang, how could he have had time for such refined hobbies...
"Heh heh!"
Martin, on the other hand, had a look of delight, as if victory was already within his grasp.
As their expressions varied, the sky began to change!
Boom, boom, boom!
In an instant, countless ice sculptures rained down from above, crashing onto the ice river.
"Wind Strider Beast, Desert Crocodile, Blazing Lion..."
Chen Shu immediately recognized the sculptures. They were all human contracted spirits, and relatively common ones.
Thirty-six contracted spirit sculptures stood on the ice river, their potential ratings ranging from D-class to S-class, each lifelike in appearance.
"Kid, it seems you're doomed to lose this first round!"
Seeing Chen Shu's bewildered look, Martin knew at a glance that the other party wouldn't know how to play.
He wasn't surprised. Although Chen Shu was a top student from the Huaxia Academy,
this guy looked like a pervert, what could he know about Beast Taming Chess?
"..."
Chen Shu remained silent, his eyes constantly searching for any related rules.
Just then, the ice sculptures of the contracted spirits on the ice river changed. Their eyes all opened, a starry glow flashing within them.
"I can control them?"
Chen Shu suddenly sensed a connection with eighteen of the ice sculptures, as if he were controlling his own contracted spirits.
"Beast Taming Chess begins! S-class contracted spirits will be 'eaten' and become the loser!"
"Selecting first player..."
After a moment, a beam of starlight descended from high above, finally settling into Martin's mind.
"It's me?"
Martin's expression brightened. He hadn't expected to get the first move.
Without hesitation, he directly manipulated an ice sculpture, moving it fifteen meters forward!
"Is it similar to chess?"
Chen Shu frowned, looking down at the Beast Taming Chess below, but he truly didn't understand the rules.
A countdown appeared in his mind, clearly indicating it was his turn.
"Kid, can you stop wasting time? If you don't know how to play, just surrender and save us some time!"
Martin shouted mockingly, trying to get under Chen Shu's skin.
"Can you shut up? Your bandit brother is thinking about how to instantly kill you!"
Chen Shu frowned, his eyes constantly pondering.
Just as time was about to run out, he made a random move.
"As expected of a novice! No, at this level, you're not even a novice."
Seeing this, Martin's smile widened.
Boom, boom, boom!
The ice sculptures of contracted spirits continued to move.
By the fourth round, one of Chen Shu's ice sculptures was shattered, turning into ice fragments and merging into the ice river.
It had clearly been 'eaten.'
As time slowly passed,
Martin's army of pieces advanced, launching a full-scale invasion.
Chen Shu's ice sculptures were shattered one after another, simply being crushed without any power to resist.
It was a one-sided confrontation!
Half an hour later,
Chen Shu had only five pieces left on the board...
By this time, he still hadn't figured out the rules, haphazardly making moves.
"My mindset is totally broken..."
Chen Shu rubbed his head, already wanting to give up.
The ruins he had participated in before were all combat-oriented. When had he ever encountered such a refined challenge...
"Kid, bye-bye! Your King piece is about to be taken!"
Martin smiled slightly, shattering another of the opponent's ice sculptures.
"King piece?"
Chen Shu raised an eyebrow, glancing at Martin's 'board' in the distance.
Besides three ice sculptures remaining stationary, Martin's other fifteen pieces had already invaded.
"If I destroy the King piece, I win?"
Chen Shu stroked his chin, a sudden spark of inspiration appearing in his eyes. He even couldn't help but let out a chuckle.
"Kid, just accept your defeat!"
Martin wasn't in a hurry, intending to slowly devour Chen Shu's remaining pieces, leaving only the solitary King.
Even world champions would fall to his hands!
"Isn't it just about destroying the King piece? Isn't that what I, the notorious bandit of Nanjiang, am best at?"
Chen Shu murmured to himself, and at the same time, a bottle of gray potion suddenly appeared in his right hand...