Chapter 25 Beauty Ruins: Fierce Beasts

Here, no one is born, only people die.

When vision is lost, other senses become more acute.

Aside from the subtle stench of blood at the tip of her nose, Tang Yu heard the unique music of the Western Regions' dragon zither, the distant laughter and cheerful voices, and the soft breathing of a woman a few steps away, all of which were amplified infinitely.

Besides her, there were only two other people. Judging from the distant, hushed conversations, there were at least a dozen guests at this Beauty Market…

That's strange.

Like a wild animal with an innate sensitivity to danger, Tang Yu's unease grew stronger.

The drumbeats suddenly quickened, and with a "clack," her wrists were bound by cold metal chains, and she was pulled forward.

A sliver of faint light from the outside shone through the gap in the black cloth, and she seemed to be brought to the center of the stage.

Immediately, a woman's sweet laughter rang out, echoing in the empty space, ethereal and unpredictable, making it impossible to tell where it came from, yet strangely drifting into everyone's ears.

The woman's voice was charming, yet it carried a hint of chill, instantly silencing the surroundings.

"Today we have special merchandise, and naturally I will also be offering special pets. Please place your bets and have... fun."

As soon as she finished speaking, another low, soft laugh escaped her lips, causing Tang Yu to furrow her brow slightly.

That voice... I feel like I've heard it somewhere before.

Before she could think further, the black cloth was suddenly pulled back. The sudden light made her instinctively look down, her eyes feeling uncomfortable for a moment. It took her a while to raise her eyes, and her pupils suddenly contracted.

She was in an open space surrounded by high, gray-tiled walls, from which hung red silk woven with intricate gold threads, stretching from top to bottom. At the very top of the walls was a ring of gilded stands.

The people in the stands were all dressed in fine clothes, but they wore strange masks. Even though their faces were completely covered, she could still sense the expectant and mocking gazes beneath the masks.

Two young women from southern Xinjiang stood beside Tang Yu, their noses high and their eyes filled with terror, trapped with her at the bottom. Meanwhile, on the high platform, the guests, with their refined and leisurely air, looked down upon them as if they were prey unable to escape the deep well, helplessly sinking deeper into despair.

Suddenly, a deep, muffled growl came from the shadows. Immediately afterward, a piercing scream cut through the air beside them.

Tang Yu suddenly turned her head—a gray wolf emerged from the shadows, its eyes flashing with a sinister and fierce light, its fangs as sharp as knives.

At first, it only tentatively took a few steps forward, but when it saw the girl fall to the ground in fright, it suddenly pounced on her amidst her desperate screams!

Tang Yu's heart tightened. Without thinking, she tried to rush forward to save the person, but the silver chain on her wrist suddenly tightened around her, pulling her to a stop and causing her to cry out in pain.

In that brief moment of hesitation, the gray wolf pounced. The woman's body went limp, and even if she wanted to run, she lacked the strength. She could only use her hands and feet to crawl towards Tang Yu and the others in a disheveled state.

When Tang Yu looked up again, she only had time to see the naked fear of death reflected in her jade-like eyes.

The gray wolf's sharp teeth dug deep into the slender, fair neck, tearing off a piece of flesh. Bright red blood gushed out from the side of her neck like a spring, staining the ground.

Applause erupted from the platform; cheers and shouts filled the air, their excitement and elation barely concealed by their masks. They greedily anticipated an even more brutal and bloody feast.

Tang Yu's ears were ringing. The screams of the other woman next to her seemed to be blocked out, but the laughter of the crowd on the stage cruelly pierced her eardrums.

The gray wolf licked its bloodstained fangs, growling softly, its eerie eyes scanning the two men as it coldly chose its next target.

Tang Yu took a deep breath, suppressing the coldness and anger rising in her heart, and calmly said, "Keep your eyes on it, don't be afraid."

The girl from southern Xinjiang beside him had tears in her eyes. Hearing this, he glanced at her and saw that she showed no fear. He forced himself to stare intently at the gray wolf, just like her.

As expected, the gray wolf hesitated and was wary, and did not immediately pounce.

While staring intently, Tang Yu raised her hand to remove the hairpin. Her movements were extremely nimble, and she untied the silver chain in a few breaths. She then moved to the woman's side step by step and untied the chain for her in the same way.

The woman wept with joy, her heart pounding with relief, and she inadvertently looked away. Seizing the opportunity, the gray wolf, its fangs flashing coldly, pounced!

Tang Yu suddenly pulled her behind him, nimbly dodged, and kicked the wolf hard, sending it flying ten feet away.

But it was too big and had thick fur, so the kick didn't do much damage. Instead, it enraged the creature, which let out a long howl.

When the crowd in the stands saw the two women escape from the wolf's jaws, boos erupted, and some even angrily cursed the wolf for being useless, completely disregarding the fact that there were two living human lives at stake below the stage.

Perhaps to appease the dissatisfaction of the distinguished guest, or perhaps it was planned in advance, the stone door on the other side slowly opened, and in the darkness, a giant lizard with a blood-red body slithered out, its teeth fine and sharp.

Tang Yu was startled and momentarily distracted. The gray wolf seized the opportunity and pounced again!

She hurriedly raised her palm, channeling her energy, and forcefully drove the hairpin into the wolf's belly. The wolf howled and was sent flying, but its claws seized the opportunity to viciously claw at Tang Yu's arm, tearing off a piece of flesh.

A sharp pain shot through Tang Yu, and cold sweat instantly poured down her forehead. But how could she afford to be distracted again? Gritting her teeth, she pulled the girl along and rushed towards the wall as if her life depended on it.

But the giant lizard was obviously faster than the gray wolf, and it closed in on the two in the blink of an eye.

Damn it!

Tang Yu cursed under her breath, feeling annoyed. The pain in her arm was a minor issue; what she feared was that if it dragged on, excessive blood loss would impair her judgment and reaction time.

Where is Xie Xingzheng?! Didn't you promise to protect me?!

Unbeknownst to her, Xie Xingzheng had already foreseen her perilous situation. His knuckles were clenched so tightly they turned white, and he wanted to rush down to save her. However, he was surrounded by more than a dozen masked men, making it difficult to escape.

In the arena, Tang Yu had no time to think. The gray wolf recovered and staggered to its feet, still roaring and charging forward despite blood dripping from its abdomen. The giant lizard also caught up with the two, making the situation extremely dangerous.

With no weapons in their hands, how are the two supposed to fight the ferocious beast?

Tang Yu had no choice but to lead her aside, dodging a giant lizard's attack. Then he whispered, "If you want to live, you have to listen to me! Run close to the wall and lure the giant lizard away. I'll deal with this wolf and then come to save you!"

The woman gritted her teeth, knowing that her life was now in her hands. Even though her legs were trembling with fear, she nodded and staggered along the wall.

The monitor lizard was instantly drawn to its active prey and immediately turned to give chase.

Tang Yu tore off her sleeve, hastily wrapped it around the wound on her arm, and coldly met the gray wolf's eyes.

The gray wolf seemed to understand her provocation, and despite being severely wounded, it still howled and pounced.

Tang Yu was prepared. Instead of retreating, she advanced swiftly to meet the wolf. With the fangs almost within reach, she suddenly bent over, her body skimming the ground. She braced herself with her left hand, grabbed the hairpin that was halfway embedded in the wolf's belly with her right, flipped over, and leaped from behind, forcefully pulling it out!

Wolf blood splattered, and the wolf, writhing in agony, slammed straight into the gray wall due to inertia.

Without the slightest hesitation, Tang Yu exerted force with her feet, turned around and stepped forward, channeling all her inner strength to fiercely stab the hairpin into its brow.

With a mournful howl, the gray wolf twitched its limbs twice, its eyes went dark instantly, and purplish-red blood flowed down its face before it fell silent completely.

She was clearly killed by Tang Yu, but before she could catch her breath, she immediately turned around.

The girl cried as she ran frantically, her strong will to survive keeping the giant lizard from catching up.

"Run over here!" Tang Yu shouted.

Upon receiving the instruction, the woman immediately ran towards her.

Tang Yu raised her hand to touch her hair bun, and instantly her black hair cascaded down. She pulled out an extremely thin, dark thread from her hair. This was made of thousand-year-old black iron, which could not be broken by swords or blades.

She tore off a piece of cloth and wrapped it around her hands, then wrapped the silk thread around them twice to make a deadly throat-slitting noose.

She stood there, holding her breath, her eyes as cold as blades.

When the woman was two steps away from her, she suddenly shouted, "Get out of the way!"

The woman immediately lunged to the side, while Tang Yu suddenly stretched the black silk, took a step forward to meet the charging giant lizard, and used the momentum to firmly wrap the black silk around its throat.

In an instant, a bloody gash appeared on the giant lizard's throat, spraying blood all over her face and body, making her look like a blood-soaked figure.

Its eyes bulged and seemed to want to roar, but its trachea had been severed, and it could only make a hissing, eerie sound.

The giant lizard thrashed wildly, trying to break free with its last bit of strength, but Tang Yu tightened her arms and pulled even harder on the silk thread.

Even through the strips of cloth, the threads were almost embedded in her flesh, the bloody gashes soaking the cloth red, yet her hands still clenched tightly. She gritted her teeth, using the force to twist violently, pouring all her strength into her palms.

"Snap!"

With a muffled thud, the giant lizard's head and neck were severed, and its head rolled to the ground.

The room was initially deathly silent, then erupted in an uproar.

In the Beauty Ruins, for the first time, someone survived being devoured by a ferocious beast through their own strength.

Tang Yu, panting heavily and covered in blood, looked at the two beast corpses on the field with a cold gaze.

She looked up at the masked figures on the platform. Their gazes were more intense than before, filled with surprise, but even more so with fervor and excitement.

They shouted excitedly, urging the Beauty Ruins to unleash even more ferocious beasts. They were determined that no matter how hard the two men tried, they would die beneath this high platform.

In their eyes, the beautiful women in the audience were nothing more than playthings for their amusement, not human beings.

Tang Yu withdrew her gaze and fell on the woman beside her, who had collapsed to the ground, her face streaked with tears. A chill ran through her heart.

She had initially thought that the Beauty Market was merely a place like a music hall or brothel, a place for high-ranking officials and nobles to seek pleasure. Little did she know that it was, as its name suggests, a tomb where the bones of beautiful women were buried.

Beauty and life are merely seasonings in this bloody feast. The powerful and wealthy cheer around them, not for the women themselves, but for the taste of blood and the passing of life.

No one cares how much pain it takes when the sharp teeth of a wild beast pierce delicate skin; no one cares about the tragedy of lives lost as blood splatters.

To those watching, it was nothing more than a game. And their deaths were merely the final act of that violent performance, reaching the climax of "abusing beauties."

Tang Yu felt a chill run down her spine.

She couldn't believe that people's hearts could be so wicked.

Countless women were sent to the Beauty Ruins, where they were mercilessly torn to pieces and made food for wild beasts. Blood splattered on the floor tiles, accumulating layer by layer, day by day, seeping into them. It became the stench of blood that even the most expensive incense could not mask.

Here, no one is born, only people die.

[Author's Note]

The initial inspiration for Meirenxu came from a line in Mo Yan's novel "Sandalwood Death": "The death of a beautiful woman by a thousand cuts is the most tragic and beautiful performance in the world."