Uses of a machete
Leaving the Lost Library, Jiang Yu walked down the quiet corridor, pulling a faintly glowing parchment list from his pocket (space equipment). It listed the room numbers, tenant names (dungeon boss names), and the number of years the rent was owed. Next to the "Lost Library - Forbidden Book Administrator" section, he swiped his finger, and the debt status automatically updated to "Settled (paid in kind)."
The next name highlighted on the list exudes a faint aura of bloodshed—"Bloody Arena - Slayer Blood Axe".
Debt term: Fifteen years.
"This one doesn't seem like someone who can be reasoned with," Jiang Yu muttered to himself, looking at the aggressive-sounding name. He weighed the rusty machete in his hand and continued walking forward.
The sign for the "Bloody Arena" appears to be pieced together from dried blood and some kind of metal fragments, while the door itself is a single, massive piece of black iron covered in chisel marks. Even before approaching, one can faintly hear roars, clashing weapons, and the shouts of the audience emanating from within; the intense stench of blood and the atmosphere of violence are almost tangible.
Jiang Yu still used the scabbard of her machete to knock on the door.
Thump! Thump! Thump!
The voice was heavy, drowning out the noise inside the door.
The sounds from inside the door abruptly ceased. Then, the black iron gate swung open, releasing a wave of scorching heat mixed with the stench of blood. Behind the gate lay a colossal circular arena, its yellow sand stained a deep brown, surrounded by countless illusory images of frenzied, screaming spectators. In the center of the arena stood a giant nearly three meters tall, his muscles bulging, his skin dark red, a pair of curved horns on his head, and a massive axe the size of a door, constantly dripping with viscous blood.
It was the Slaughterer, Blood Axe.
Its eyes, burning with violent flames, instantly locked onto the thin boy at the door, who seemed out of place in his surroundings.
"Roar—! A new sacrifice? So weak, yet you dare to step into Blood Axe's territory?!" Blood Axe roared deafeningly, giving no chance to speak. Its massive feet slammed into the ground, shaking the entire arena. Like a runaway chariot, it charged towards Jiang Yu with the force to crush everything in its path! Blood Axe was raised high, tearing through the air, and then brought down with devastating power!
This single axe strike is enough to instantly vaporize an elite player squad.
Faced with an attack that would terrify anyone, Jiang Yu merely raised his eyelids slightly. He didn't even adopt a clear defensive stance, simply holding the rusty machete in his hand, which looked like it might fall apart at any moment, horizontally upwards.
The movement was so effortless, as if he were casually brushing aside a falling leaf.
"Clang—!"
A deafening, extremely sharp metallic clang rang out, defying all the laws of physics!
The anticipated scene of the boy and his sword being hacked to pieces did not occur. The terrifying blow of the Blood Axe, powerful enough to split mountains and shatter rocks, was actually steadily blocked by that rusty machete!
Time seemed to freeze at that moment.
Blood Axe's enormous pupils contracted sharply, its face filled with disbelief. It felt the violent power gathered on its axe blade vanish without a trace upon contact with the seemingly fragile rusty knife! No, not entirely vanished, but more like... its destructive power was forcibly "denied" by some higher-level rule.
Jiang Yu's arm, holding the knife, remained completely still; not even the hem of his clothes was ruffled by the shockwave. Through the clashing blades, he looked at the horrified face contorted with shock so close to his, and spoke again in that calm, unwavering tone:
"I'm here to collect rent. You've been in arrears for fifteen years."
Blood Axe snapped out of his shock, his rage instantly overwhelming his disbelief: "Rental?! Bullshit! I'm a butcher! I only know how to kill and conquer! Want to collect rent? Pay with your life!"
It tried to pull back the giant axe, only to find that the blade seemed to be welded to the rusty knife, and no matter how much force it exerted, it wouldn't budge. A fear from the depths of its soul crept into its heart for the first time.
Jiang Yu sighed, seemingly helpless: "It seems we can't communicate properly anymore."
He flicked his wrist slightly.
"Buzz—"
An invisible wave emanated from the machete. The entire bloody arena distorted and rippled violently, like a reflection in water broken by a pebble. The phantoms of the frenzied spectators let out silent screams and vanished instantly. The yellow sand, the blood-stained walls, even the illusory sun in the sky, all began to blur.
"What?! What did you do?!" Blood Axe cried out in terror, feeling its connection to this instance space being forcibly severed! Its source of power was rapidly draining away!
Jiang Yu did not answer. He simply pushed the cleaver forward slightly.
"puff--"
A soft sound, like a bubble popping, rang out.
Blood Axe's massive body shuddered violently. It looked down in disbelief and saw that the rusty cleaver had effortlessly pierced its chest, which was as hard as steel. No blood flowed, but a fundamental, existential sense of disintegration instantly swept over its entire body.
"We'll collect the rent next time. Remember, you've owed it for sixteen years."
After Jiang Yu finished speaking, she drew her machete.
The Slayer Blood Axe let out a mournful howl of despair, its massive body crumbling and dissipating like a weathered sand sculpture. The entire Bloody Arena instance also collapsed and vanished along with it.
A few seconds later, Jiang Yu was still standing in that endless corridor. The black iron gate in front of her had disappeared, leaving only a blank wall, as if there had never been a gate there.
On the list, the status of "Bloody Arena - Slayer Blood Axe" has changed to "Overdue payment, forced removal".
Jiang Yu glanced at the list, her expression unchanged, and silently walked towards the next address with overdue rent.
"It's better to have reasonable tenants."
He muttered to himself as his figure gradually disappeared into the depths of the corridor.
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