My name is Duan Shenxing, a pawnshop owner. I thought I would live an ordinary, uneventful life, but the dragon-patterned jade pendant and handwritten notes left by my grandfather led me to uncover...
When Ox-Head and Horse-Face arrived at the training ground, I was already lying motionless in the cage, exhausted.
Seeing the bull's head standing by the cage, my eyes twitched, and I gave him a venomous look.
"Damn, this kid's willpower is really strong. He hasn't eaten or drunk anything for three days, and he still hasn't fainted."
Ox-Head clicked his tongue in amazement at me, then shrugged at Horse-Face and said, "You win, I'll give you a million."
When I heard that the abuse I had suffered over the past three days was just a bet between the two of them, my eyes almost spit fire. I don't know where I got the strength, but I grabbed the iron bars and started cursing at the two of them. The main content was about how they came into this world and some kind of friendly greetings to their families.
Unfortunately, my verbal storm did not cause either of them the slightest discomfort.
Horse-faced lit a cigarette and looked at me with interest: "After all this trouble, you still have the energy to curse. It seems I underestimated your limits. You should come back tomorrow!"
"Screw you! I'm not playing anymore!"
As I spoke, I felt as if I were swallowing razor blades, and my eyes were fixed on the horse-faced demon like those of a wild beast: "I want to quit and will no longer accept your training."
Horse-faced said mockingly, "Kid, are you out of your mind? I said we would train you for three months, but I never said you had the right to stop the training. So in this game, you have no say whatsoever, understand?"
Hearing his answer, my body trembled.
A torrent of profanities was on the tip of my tongue, but I swallowed them back down.
Because I simply couldn't bring myself to curse anymore.
At this point, I no longer cared what the horse-faced demon was saying; driven by an intense will to survive, I uttered only one word: "Water!"
"Look, you've made the same mistake again."
Horse-faced raised an eyebrow: "I told you, you have no say in this training."
I suppressed my anger: "You said it yourself, this is just training. You didn't intend to kill me, did you?"
"That's right."
Horse-faced smiled and said to Ox-headed Man, "Bring the gift we prepared for him."
The bull-headed creature entered the jungle and soon returned, dragging a large iron cage with wheels. The cage was covered with a tarpaulin, and no one knew what was inside.
The horse-faced demon and the others dragged the large cage aside, slowly unchained the iron cage binding me, then opened the cage door and dragged me out like a dead dog.
At that moment, I really wanted to punch Horse-Face in the face, but I knew that even in my prime, I wouldn't be a match for him. Now, dragging my tired body against him, I had no chance of winning.
Immediately afterwards, Bull Head ripped off the tarpaulin covering the large cage: "Kid, I know you're thirsty and hungry. The flesh and blood are right here. Whether you can get your hands on some depends on your own skills."
I glared at the two of them angrily: "What do you mean? You want me to fight a dog?"
"Hey, please look closely, this isn't a dog, it's a wolf!"
Horse-faced smiled and said, "Like you, this wolf has also been starving for three days and is now ravenous. It is your first opponent and your food. Before we make our move, I must remind you that in this contest, Ox-head and I will absolutely not interfere. So don't take any chances and think that we will come to your aid when you can't hold on."
Before I could finish speaking, Horse-Face threw me into the cage without giving me a chance to reply.
When the wolf in the cage saw me appear, it immediately bared its fangs and stared at me with venomous eyes.
Like me, this wolf had been starving for days. We were both exhausted, but we were each other's chance to survive.
"roar!"
The wolf, unable to contain its killing intent, roared and charged at me.
"Damn it! Come on!"
I let out a roar and charged at the wolf.
"Gulp!"
The moment the two collided, the wolf pounced, pinned me to the ground, and bit down on my throat.
In order to save my life, I didn't have time to think and immediately put my arm in front of me.
"Pfft!"
Sharp fangs pierced my skin, causing my body to spasm in pain.
Stimulated by the excruciating pain, my mind became clearer. I reached out and grabbed the wolf's fur by the scruff of its neck, pulling it backward with all my might.
Stimulated by the smell of blood, the wolf became even more frenzied, biting my arm relentlessly while kicking wildly at me with its hind legs.
Although we had been starving for several days, this beast was clearly much stronger than me. Even though I tried my best, I still couldn't get it off me.
Stimulated by the pain, I had a sudden inspiration. Instead of pulling the wolf's body outwards, I pressed down on its neck, hugged it to my chest, and then pushed off the ground with my legs, flipped over, and pinned it underneath.
"Aww!"
Our unusual posture made the wolf feel threatened. It growled and then distanced itself from me.
I was severely injured after only one round of fighting between the two sides.
Looking at his bitten arm, his sleeve was stained red with blood, the blood flowing like a tap that had been turned on, forming a bloody line that flowed to the ground.
The wolf stood in the opposite corner of the iron cage, its eyes greedily fixed on my blood-stained palm, and it stuck out its tongue to lick the bloodstains from the side of its mouth.
Seeing the wolf's actions, I also raised my palm and sucked my own blood.
A taste like rust immediately filled my mouth.
The blood didn't taste good, it even had a nauseating quality, but the feeling of the liquid going down my throat made me feel like I was reborn.
When the wolf saw me licking the blood, it seemed angry that I had stolen its food. It scratched the ground with its paws, then lowered its body and pounced on me with incredible speed.
Seeing the gray wolf charging towards me, I quickly dodged to the side. Taking advantage of its missed attack, I rushed forward and pinned it down, raining punches down on it.
Although the wolf was about the same size as a German Shepherd, it was a wild animal after all, and its strength and ferocity were greater than those of a domestic dog. After I pulled it back, it also started to bite wildly.
Faced with this beast's attack, I frantically held down its head and, with all my might, poked its eyes out with my fingers.
"Awooooo!"
The intense pain caused the wolf to begin to thrash wildly, and while it couldn't see clearly, I mounted it and, like a raging beast, tore and bit at it.