Chapter 19: What Is Fought in the Arena

The world of gourmets was something Fourteenth Lady clearly did not understand. She was astonished that Little Gulu could comprehend human speech, amazed that he could mimic people and sit upright, startled by his human-like dining habits, and surprised by... well, countless other things. In the end, her astonishment became so frequent she could no longer pay attention to it. The sun rose, signaling her time to absorb the primordial energy of heaven and earth.

For a newly transformed little demon, this was of utmost importance. Shen Shi and Little Gulu did not disturb her in the slightest. They watched as she breathed in and out the morning clouds, three inhalations to one exhalation, switching from external to internal breath...

At first, it was Little Gulu who imitated her, then Shen Shi glanced over and followed suit. This was only natural. When someone cultivates immortality before you, would you not try to learn? In any case, Shen Shi was certainly willing.

Who knows how long passed. The little fox finished her morning practice and opened her eyes, immediately seeing Shen Shi and Little Gulu seated at her sides, like guardians, one to the left and one to the right.

This pair was astonishingly remarkable. Cultivation was never an easy path, demanding great talent; many mortals, even if personally instructed, could not make any progress. Thus, those who could embark on the Dao remained few.

Yet this man and beast were directly absorbing the essence of the sun—their talent was extraordinary.

“The spirit resides in the void, wondrous and boundless, subtle brilliance emerges from darkness, the Grand Mystery reaches infinity and maintains stillness—such is the Great Cavern.”
“In life, one receives qi from the Supreme Ultimate, acting according to the movements of heaven and earth; the spirit arises from the primal source, opening and closing in harmony with yin and yang.”
“Preserve the qi of the five directions, absorb the essence of sun, moon, and twenty-four stars, discard the false and retain the true!”

Cultivation is a lonely pursuit, hence the need for a companion in the Dao. The road to immortality is long, but with someone by your side, it becomes bearable.

The little fox’s Great Cavern scripture originated from the human race; she felt no reluctance in sharing it, especially since Shen Shi had aided her transformation, leaving her indebted.

“This...”

Yet, as she instructed, she looked to her left and saw Shen Shi radiate a soul-light, freely absorbing the qi of the five directions and the power of the stars beneath the cosmos. She was utterly dumbfounded, her mouth agape, lost for words.

This was too unfair to demons!

She had cultivated for five hundred years and still could not absorb the power of the stars during daylight, nor the sun’s energy. The sun was yang, the fox was yin. She could only slowly take in the morning glow, adapting bit by bit.

But Shen Shi... Was this not daytime?

The little fox glanced at the eastern sun and nearly felt ashamed at the stark disparity.

“Immortal, divine souls are yang. It seems I have met an extraordinary person.”

Only when a yin soul turns yang can one attain the rank of immortal or god; thus, in cultivation, there is talk of transforming the yin soul to yang. The little fox never expected to encounter one born with a yang soul.

She dared not disturb him, carefully guarding.

“Brother Shen, Brother Shen...”

Before long, a voice called from outside. Shen Shi opened his eyes and ceased his cultivation.

“Sir, keep meditating a little more; I’ll go answer the door.”

She glanced at the time; the morning sun was gone. Fourteenth Lady rose to open the door. Considering her appearance, she transformed with a shake, no longer a young girl but a red-lipped, bright-toothed pageboy.

Shen Shi noticed her practical sense was remarkable, even superior to his own, so he had no need to remind her and got up as well.

As he moved, Little Gulu stopped too.

“What exactly are you?” Shen Shi couldn’t help but scrutinize Little Gulu.

Shen Shi could absorb the qi of the five elements and the stars because he could perceive them. The incantation the little fox recited, Shen Shi had practiced too; he understood that cultivation formulas were essentially a process of distinguishing types of qi—taking in what was useful, expelling what was useless or harmful.

The method was excellent, but “useful” was still a broad category. The five vital energies and the power of the stars were all beneficial, but their natures differed. Shen Shi’s intuition told him that the purer the qi, the better.

Of course, as someone without a formal cultivation method, Shen Shi found both the nurturing of the five elements in the Great Cavern scripture and the cultivation of the soul with star power to be valuable guides.

Yet, none of this seemed to apply to Little Gulu. Whether good or bad, he swallowed it all. It was incredible—the mixed qi he absorbed had no effect on him whatsoever.

This was truly un-mythical. Even the gluttonous beast was not indiscriminate in its consumption.

“Brother Shen, Brother Shen! Our guests have arrived; aren’t you going to greet them?”

The visitor was already inside. Shen Shi went out to see Kong Xueli and Gongsun Ce.

“Brother Kong, Brother Gongsun, are you not studying today?” Shen Shi greeted them with a smile, making small talk.

“Study what? Come, let’s stroll around town. Without you these last half month, we haven’t left home—it feels like our bodies are rusting!” Kong Xueli joked, like a mischievous friend who hadn’t seen you for years.

His parents had truly wasted a fine name on him. He didn’t even resemble it, and his personality...

But Shen Shi didn’t blame him. People always say the ancients didn’t know how to have fun, but that’s nonsense. In fact, ancient entertainment was plentiful. The refined included music, chess, calligraphy, painting, poetry, wine, tea—all of which could be elaborated upon. For the masses, there were theaters and tea houses, drum performances, minor singing, mimics, jesters, singing games, archery contests, variety plays, palace tunes, shadow puppetry, and more.

Heh heh heh.

And for those seeking even more excitement, there were brothels, pleasure boats on the West Lake.

Even Shen Shi, after visiting once, wanted to go again.

“Where shall we go?” Shen Shi asked.

“We’re going to the Arena,” Kong Xueli replied.

Excellent! Let’s be off.

Having just finished the exam, if one doesn’t go out to play, what else is there—study? From ancient times to now, no student did that.

Shen Shi’s mention of studying was like the greeting “Have you eaten?” on the street—just a conversation starter, not an invitation to dine.

The Song Dynasty’s Arena had little to do with gladiators; it was a kind of gambling hall, but unlike dice games, guessing chess pieces, or card games—here, the entertainment centered on animal fights.

Dog fights, cockfights, cricket matches, even more unusual contests like bull fights, bird fights, sheep fights; the variations and breeds were numerous.

Shen Shi glanced at Fourteenth Lady beside him; seeing she had no objection, he entered the Arena.

Having come to the ancient world, Shen Shi was determined not to miss anything worth seeing.

Upon entering, they saw several large circles packed with people. The crowd was boisterous, all gathered around the ring, watching the animal duels and loudly cheering them on.

Shen Shi and his companions didn’t squeeze in but stood at the back, watching with interest. After a few minutes, the outcome was decided—some cheered, others lamented.

“Let’s go upstairs,” Gongsun Ce suggested. “Ordinary guests play on the first floor, where the stakes are smaller. It’s lively but noisy. The second floor is the VIP area, much more comfortable, with private rooms for rest.”