Chapter 30  : Deathmatch

The engine of the Black Hawk was still rumbling, and the rotors had yet to come to a complete stop. Amid the howling wind, Xia Ping’an got off the helicopter with his satchel. He arched his back and tried to move away from the helipad as soon as possible.

Inside Xia Ping’an’s satchel, there were only a set of changing clothes and the Black Cobra steel whip.

A man with predominantly white hair stood beside the helipad. He wore a black windbreaker and had his hands in his pockets. He was waiting for Xia Ping’an.

Even though Mo Yanshao also liked to wear a black windbreaker, the gray-haired man looked cooler with it. The contrast of black and white appeared bolder on him.

The man’s hair was dancing in the wind stirred up by the rotors of the helicopter. He emanated a unique aura. He looked like a demon or an angel that had descended on Earth.

The man was handsome, with a cold gaze. He was young; he seemed like he was about the same age as Xia Ping’an. However, he gave off a domineering vibe.

Xia Ping’an approached the gray-haired man. The helicopter took off and returned to the National Order Council of Xianghe City.

“Are you Xia Ping’an?” the man asked.

“Yes, I am.” Xia Ping’an didn’t bother to stand on ceremony with the other party when he saw that the man still had his hands in his pockets and showed no intention to shake hands with him.

“I don’t want to waste time, so I’ll be quick about this. I’m Yan Duo. Mo Yanshao should have informed you about this mission, right?”

“Director Mo only said that this was a special mission, and I needed to bring my steel whip along. He didn’t tell me any details aside from asking me to obey your command. My time is precious, so I don’t want to waste it too. Whatever mission we’re doing, we can start now.”

A sparkle flashed past Yan Duo’s eyes when he saw Xia Ping’an being so straight to the point. A smile appeared on Yan Duo’s face. He glanced at his watch and said, “Great. I like to work with people who are decisive. We’ll head to the place now. The mission begins now. When we reach our destination, I’ll tell you what you need to do.”

Xia Ping’an nodded his head and followed the man.

The National Order Council of Yizhou Province was even larger than that of Xianghe City’s.

The headquarters here similarly was consisted of a black building. However, the scale of the building was larger. A Quick Reaction Force was stationed in the military base camp behind the building.

Tanks could be heard moving around in the military base camp. Helicopters, drones, and fighter aircraft frequently whizzed past in the sky. The place was lively. There was a military airport right inside the base camp.

Yan Duo didn’t bring Xia Ping’an to the headquarters. Instead, they went straight to the parking lot and got into a black Audi Q7. The car dashed out of the headquarters right away.

Xia Ping’an had been to Xinchuan City with Xia Ning before. Xinchuan City was more bustling than Xianghe City since it was the provincial capital.

Xia Ping’an had no idea where Yan Duo was driving him to. He waited quietly in the car.

The black Audi Q7 entered the downtown area of Xinchuan City and moved nimbly amid the heavy traffic and towering buildings. Half an hour later, they entered the underground parking lot of a seemingly old building. The car stopped at a remote corner on the second underground floor.

Yan Duo parked the car, opened the armrest compartment, took out something, and passed it to Xia Ping’an. He instructed, “Wear this.”

Xia Ping’an took the item and noticed that what Yan Duo passed him was a crimson hood. The hood was pointy and had two holes in it, revealing only the wearer’s eyes.

This hood was clearly something only an ancient European executioner would wear.

Xia Ping’an didn’t complain. Instead, he frowned and asked, “What are we doing?”

Yan Duo checked the time on his watch again. He said, “You have two minutes of preparation. After that, bring your steel whip, and we will enter an underground coliseum. I have arranged a deathmatch for you that allows fighters to use weapons. Your opponent is a scumbag that has just returned from overseas. He is a bloodthirsty pedophile and rapist. He has committed countless crimes in Asia and Africa. He has deserved death since long ago. However, due to various reasons, he is still alive now. You are the most suitable candidate we have now for executing him. So, you have two options later. It’s either you kill him or you’re killed by him in the match. If you’re scared, you can leave now. Then, the mission is considered a failure.”

F*ck!

Prior to coming here, Xia Ping’an knew that the mission was special. However, he didn’t expect it to be so bizarre. This was practically an extreme task that put his life at risk. He was about to spar with a psychopath.

Mo Yanshao was amazing when it came to picking out a mission for him.

“Is handling these scumbags part of the job scope of the members of the National Order Council?” Xia Ping’an asked.

“Ha! This is not handling-this is executing!” Yan Duo laughed coldly and said, “We don’t care what a scumbag like him does overseas. However, the Great Flame Republic is not a place where he should come. Since the customs and the police can’t deal with him, we will. The job scope of the members of the National Order Council is broader than you think.”

Xia Ping’an said nothing. He opened his satchel, took out the Black Cobra steel whip, and put on the crimson executioner hood.

Yan Duo took out a silver mask with exotic patterns and put it on. Then, both of them got down from the car and walked towards the elevator nearby.

When they were in front of the elevator, Yan Duo raised his head and glanced at the CCTV above. The door of the elevator opened automatically.

The two of them entered the elevator, and it descended another two floors. The elevator stopped, and the door opened once again. Outside the elevator was a pathway covered in red carpet. Hugging their arms, four bulky dudes in suits were standing guard in front of the door of a shelter.

Everything that was presented before Xia Ping’an’s eyes made him feel like he had arrived at a hidden underground club.

One of the dudes approached them and took out a metal detector. He scanned both Yan Duo and Xia Ping’an, ensuring that they did not carry any firearms with them.

After confirming that they had no firearms with them, another dude said something through the headset. The door sprang open, allowing Yan Duo and Xia Ping’an to enter.

The door was shut tight once again right after the two of them entered.

An old Caucasian, with blond hair and green eyes, was standing at the entrance with a smile. He greeted Yan Duo by placing his palm on his chest. Then, in fluent Mandarin, he said, “Mr. Nine, welcome!”

Yan Duo introduced the old man to Xia Ping’an. “He is the manager of the Death Coliseum. You can call him Charlie.”

“Ah. I am but a pitiful old man who has lost his country and homeland,” Charlie muttered.

Yan Duo pointed at Xia Ping’an and said, “This is the fighter.”

The Death Coliseum in Xinchuan City... This was the first time Xia Ping’an had ever heard of this place. Even from the name itself, he could tell that this place was illegal. It was most likely an underground organization. However, the National Order Council was used to interacting with all sorts of illegal organizations. Hence, Xia Ping’an was not at all surprised with the existence of this place.

It was impossible for a city as huge as Xinchuan to be completely free of underground activities. Light would also be accompanied by shadow. Such was the law of nature.

“Are you British?” Xia Ping’an asked the old man.

The temperament demonstrated by this old man reminded Xia Ping’an of a traditional British butler. Hence, he popped the question.

Since the British Isles had completely fallen to enemy occupation last century, countless British citizens became refugees worldwide. They lost their country and homeland.

“Hmm. You’re sharp. My homeland is now a radioactive paradise for demonic creatures. We have become duckweed. We have nowhere to return to,” Charlie lamented. He then glanced at the weapon in Xia Ping’an’s hand and asked, “You use a steel whip?”

“Yes, I use a steel whip,” Xia Ping’an confirmed as he nodded his head.

“This steel whip will be a spectacle to watch. Very few people bring steel whips to a fight. The crowd will definitely like it.”

“Alright, I will hand him over to you then,” Yan Duo said to Charlie. He then said to Xia Ping’an, “You just follow him. Charlie will take care of the rest. You only need to join the fight and win. You don’t need to be concerned with anything else.”

Xia Ping’an nodded his head. Charlie brought Xia Ping’an to a passageway to the side while Yan Duo walked off in another direction.

After walking down a long passageway and once again opening a security door, deafening cheers and cries suddenly filled Xia Ping’an’s ears.

A feverish aura swept towards him. Mixed within the aura was the scent of alcohol, expensive perfumes, cigars, as well as the faint smell of blood and sweat.

The scents were mixed with the cheers, stimulating the adrenaline of all who entered.

A huge, brightly lit underground coliseum appeared before Xia Ping’an’s eyes.

Charlie brought Xia Ping’an to the backstage on the second floor of the underground coliseum. From there, he could see the view of the entire underground space

This underground coliseum was larger than even a basketball stadium. In the center of the coliseum was a huge octagonal battle cage that covered more than 200 square meters. The battle cage was surrounded by spectator stands which were densely packed with spectators.

There were men and also women in the spectator stands. However, both men and women were well-dressed. Most of the men were dressed in suits and collared shirts. The women were also dressed to the nines, and some of them were adorned with jewels.

Every member of the crowd was wearing various silver masks. No one revealed their faces.

Among the spectator stands, there were also booths. In the booths, there were men with their hands around the waist of hot women. They were smoking cigars and roared as they cheered.

There were four gigantic displays along the four sides of the spectator stands. The screens showed the battle that was going on in the battle cage.

Right now, in the battle cage, there was a man wearing black leather headgear that had his face covered. From his skin tone, the man was most likely of Asian descent. He was fighting barehanded with a burly African man wearing blue leather headgear.

The African in the cage was tall and muscular. His punches and kicks were extremely powerful. However, the Asian was not at all intimidated by him. Instead, he fought the African head on violently with Muay Thai.

Both of them were covered in blood, yet they were still sparring. The audience was shouting and cheering them on. The atmosphere in the battle cage excited the crowd.

Charlie led Xia Ping’an to a quiet lounge backstage.

Charlie said, “You can warm up here. After this match, there’s another match before yours. When you hear the emcee calling for Whip Punisher, please enter the cage with your steel whip. Your opponent is Bear Butcher. Aside from the steel whip, you are allowed to choose a shield as defense. When you enter the cage, you are allowed to only wear your pants. The audience needs to see your upper body muscles and ensure that you are not hiding anything on you except the weapons in your hands. Do you understand?”

Xia Ping’an nodded.

Charlie left and Xia Ping’an waited in the lounge. Here, he could see what was happening in the battle cage.

After a few minutes, the man utilizing Muay Thai techniques lashed out with a ferocious sweeping kick from the side. He broke the calf of the African. The instant the African fell to the ground, the Muay Thai fighter sent out a swift knee strike, smashing his knee right into the African’s face.

The African’s face was flattened in an instant. Blood splattered out from his face. His neck was twisted, and his head tilted to one side. He fell to the floor of the battle cage and remained motionless. Even if he wasn’t dead, he would be severely injured. A pool of fresh blood rapidly spread out on the floor.

The Muay Thai fighter raised both his fists in the octagonal cage and roared loudly.

The workers immediately entered the battle cage and carried the African out.

“I declare Forest Tiger from Thailand the victor of this match,” the referee announced as he entered the cage with his microphone and raised the hand of the man.

Cheering and sighing could both be heard from the audience seats. Some people in the booths even popped open a champagne bottle to celebrate. On the other hand, some people tossed their betting tickets on the ground, looking dejected.