Meng Chao was stunned for a long time before he said, "So, you're saying that brutal gladiator fights happen at any time?"
"That's right. On the streets, in the taverns, in the casinos … The more people there are, the more likely there are gladiator fights," Ice Storm explained.
The Ice Storm explained, "The process and rules of a gladiatorial fight have been greatly simplified. A clan warrior swaggers on the street. If he sees a member of a rival family, an enemy, or an ugly warrior, he can send an invitation to a gladiatorial fight. Generally speaking, the other party will never and can't refuse such an invitation. If anyone refuses such an invitation, he will be laughed at by everyone. Then, he can forget about leading the army and snatching valuable trophies in the following war.
"Similarly, they can continuously increase the stakes in front of everyone's eyes. Resources, armor, and even the relationship between the two parties can be used as stakes." For example, two clan warriors will have a one-hundred-man fighting squad. They will fight, and once the victor is decided, the victor will have the right to command the loser's fighting squad, and the loser will become the victor's deputy and listen to the victor's orders during the war. That's the general idea.
"Of course, they can also use underhanded methods and sneak attacks, but if they don't fight openly in front of everyone's eyes, they won't be able to make the other party submit to them and spread their fame.
"As for deaths and injuries, there will definitely be. Although high-ranked Beastmen have thick skin and flesh, and it is not common for them to be beaten to death in a fight, it is not a big deal even if it does happen. They are merely responding to the summons of their ancestors.
"Based on the traditions of the Turanians, this endless gladiator fight is known as the Game of the Brave, but to me, it's more like the final craziness before they swear an oath of allegiance. It's a carnival that will last for half a month. Before they go to war, they offer the greatest sacrifice to their ancestors. They use their blood and death as sacrifices in hopes that their ancestors will bless the entire clan with good luck."
Meng Chao gasped in amazement.
He gained a deeper understanding of the high-grade orcs' bravery.
"Is there a Game of the Brave at the start of the Glory Era?" he asked.
"That's not the case. If the two Glory Eras are close enough, and the heroes of the last war haven't perished yet, there will be no need to play the 'Game of the Brave' at all."
The Ice Storm said, "If a family is particularly powerful and has a Paramount Master with absolute ruling power, then under the command of the Paramount Master, there is no need to play the Game of the Brave.
"But in the case this time, the heroes of the past have perished, and the major families have rested and expanded crazily in the prolonged era of prosperity. Countless arrogant soldiers and tough generals have emerged. So, we have to convince them with a 'game of the brave' in order to better command the battle in the future. It is the logic that thousands of years of war experience have taught us.
"So …"
Meng Chao still could not believe it. "The people who died in the Brave's Game … died in vain?"
"If he died in the Game of the Brave, it means that he wasn't strong enough."
The Ice Storm said matter-of-factly, "Since he wasn't strong enough, dying in the Game of the Brave is the best ending.
"After all, a weakling dying in Black Horn City is better than having him lead an army and die on the battlefield. At the same time he dies, he also kills countless subordinates and comrades, causing the frontlines to collapse, and he loses the war, right?"
"That makes sense. What about the totem armor?"
Meng Chao was more concerned about this problem. "Can the winner snatch the loser's totem armor at will?"
"Theoretically, yes. As long as the winner is confident that he can eat the loser's totem armor," the Ice Storm said.
"In reality, each totem warrior can only absorb a limited amount of totem armor. It's easy to understand. A warrior with one layer of armor is definitely stronger than a warrior without armor, but a warrior with ten layers of heavy armor might not be stronger than a warrior with two or three layers of heavy armor, because the former might have been crushed to death by the ten layers of heavy armor. Even if they weren't crushed to death, they might not be able to walk anymore. Do you understand what I mean?"
"Yes."
Meng Chao nodded. "Going too far is as bad as falling short. All forms of power are double-edged swords."
It was the same for Dragon City's cultivation system.
It was not always better to have a higher cultivation realm.
The higher a person's cultivation realm was, the more spirit energy would surge into their brains and stimulate their brains, which would make them hear more disorderly sounds and see more strange scenes. They would be more easily affected by the ancient summoning, which would lead to spirit energy deviation and them turning into deformed and twisted monsters.
Based on what Soul Breaking Saber Luo Wu, the first superhuman at the peak of Heaven Realm Meng Chao knew, he had the strength to reach Deity Realm a long time ago, but he did not dare to take that step because he was worried about the backlash from the power of Deity Realm.
And Battle God Lei Zongchao, the strongest fighter in Dragon City in the past, was now in his twilight years, but he could only curl up in Battle God Palace, which was isolated from spirit energy magnetic field interference. His body was in a state where he was neither dead nor alive, and that was the embodiment of the backlash.
The totemic battle armor only made the backlash more concrete.
"The victors usually don't take away the loser's full set of totemic armor. They only take away a small part of it symbolically and make the loser swear to the spirits of his ancestors that he will obey the victors' orders throughout the Glory Era in front of everyone. That way, the victors can be considered to have all the fighting strength of the loser," Ice Storm explained.
Hailstorm explained further, "Of course, many low-born clan warriors are far from reaching the upper limit of their totemic armor before the start of the Game of the Brave. Therefore, they tend to be more ruthless in their attacks. They will seize as many armor fragments as they can before anything else.
"This sort of person is also the most likely to be devoured by the fierce souls hidden in the armor fragments and turn into pitiful creatures like Origins Warriors.
"But no matter how the totemic armor is circulated, to the entire Blood Hoof Clan, it's not a loss.
"It's because the totemic armor can store its master's fighting experience and killing moves, and it can transfer these experiences and skills to the next master's brain. The masters fight and die, but the totemic armor will always exist, and it will become stronger.
"So, the more intense the Game of the Brave is, the more casualties the families will suffer, but in truth, they will obtain a lot of warriors with real fighting experience and even stronger totemic armors. They will definitely be able to bring out even more terrifying fighting strength in a real war."
"I understand now. It's like a rusty war machine. It needs a lot of blood and organs to lubricate it before it can be activated, and in the shortest amount of time … it will run to its limits," Meng Chao mumbled.
"Does everyone have to join the Game of the Brave?"
"Of course not. If they're afraid of death, they can just hide in Blood Skull Coliseum. Even the elite warriors of the Iron Skin Family won't come to Blood Skull Coliseum to die, right?"
Ice Storm said. "But if they do that, they won't be able to show off their bravery. Instead, they'll be mocked as cowards who only dare to fight properly in the arena. Even their servant soldiers will be disloyal and think that they're following a cowardly master.
"Besides, the families will distribute soldiers, resources, and missions based on their achievements in the next half a month. The people who don't get anything in the Game of the Brave will be sent to defend cities or supply wagons. Only the truly brave can enjoy the glory of attacking cities and destroying everything. And glory is everything to the Turan warriors."
Meng Chao nodded and stared at the Snow Leopard Female Warrior. "So, Lady Ice Storm will also join the Game of the Brave, right?"
"Yes, I will definitely join," Ice Storm said calmly.
"Since you killed Big Buck, I don't need to hide it from you. My goal isn't to show off my name, get a higher position in the Blood Hooves Army, and get more soldiers or something as boring as that.
"I only have one goal, and that is to get more Totem Armor Fragments.
"Even though the Mithril Ripper is already very strong, I feel that it hasn't evolved to the limit of what I can handle.
"Or rather, what I'm going to do in Pure Gold City requires me to have a stronger Totem Armor. It'll be best if it's ten times stronger than the current Mithril Ripper.
"Even if, even if I'll become an Origin Warrior tomorrow, I'll still devour more totem armor fragments today!
"And if I want to stabilize the totem power in my body and reduce the possibility of me becoming an Origin Warrior, I must eat a lot of Golden Fruits, totem beasts' flesh, and cores at the same time to feed the monster hidden in my body. Then, through more fights, I can vent its fierceness.
"This is the reason why I must control a fighting squad of hundreds of people. Only by doing so can I get enough resources and capital to fight against the other Blood Hooves Army. If I don't even have a single random soldier under me, even if others are willing to fight against me, it's impossible for them to bring out a lot of resources as stakes.
"And based on the rules of the Game of the Brave over the past hundreds of years, when the carnival in Black Corner City reaches its peak, small-scale street fights are no longer satisfying enough. The powerful fighters who have hundreds or even thousands of servant soldiers under them will usually mobilize their soldiers to the open land outside Black Corner City to carry out larger scale fights, which are something between armed fights, drills, and war …"
"Practical drills?"
Meng Chao thought of a suitable term.
"That's right. It's a practical drill to prepare for the real war that will follow," Ice Wind Storm said.
"And on the day they swear an oath of allegiance, practically all the families will bring their main forces outside the city to carry out the largest practical drill. They will use blood, smoke, and shouts to please the ancestral spirits. At the same time, they will also let the powerful fighters who have risen to fame over the past half a month make a grand entrance in front of all the Blood Hooves Army.
"Then, they will offer sacrifices to the ancestral spirits, sign the oath of allegiance, hold a rally, and send out the army.
"As long as I have enough servant soldiers under me, when it's time for the practical drill, I will have more space to move around. I can move to the edge of the drill without anyone noticing.
"Then, while everyone's attention is on the center of the training ground, I will escape from this stupid place!"
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