Chapter 897: Heh. Talking Tough, Was He?

The sound of Achir hitting the floor resonated in the arena.

When Achir failed to get back up for a long moment, the referee had no choice but to come over, even if he had been inclined to go easy on him.

He began counting slowly.

“Three!”

The audience held its breath, waiting. They hoped Achir would do what he had done moments ago, that he would rise to his feet once more and give them another miracle.

“Two!”

The referee dragged out the count on purpose, giving Achir time to recover.

Wang Yun was neither impatient nor irritated. He was certain that this time, no matter what, Achir was not getting back up. He merely watched the referee with a mocking smile, amused by the man’s transparent act.

The referee had wanted to stall longer, but the instant he saw the look on Wang Yun’s face, he knew he could not drag it out any further.

“One!”

The moment the word fell, Achir, still lying there, glared at Wang Yun with furious unwillingness burning in his eyes.

He had not blacked out. He had simply overexerted himself to the point of collapse.

Wang Yun, on the other hand, merely smiled at him with easy good humor.

At that moment, Walter climbed onto the ring with two others, his face dark and ugly, to carry Achir away.

The match was over.

Yet the people in the stands stood there slack-jawed, whether because they could not believe the result or refused to.

Not one of them made a sound.

Inside the members’ private room, however, Colin and Baren had already thrown their arms around each other in excitement.

“Who exactly is this Brother Wang Yun? He’s incredible!” 

Baren said to Colin, practically trembling with exhilaration.

In truth, Baren had already begun entertaining the idea of bringing Wang Yun under him, making him work for him.

Out of his sight, Colin let a trace of ridicule curl across his lips.

“Boss, you know we’re on a show right now. There’s no way Brother Wang Yun can go work for you.”

Baren frowned, his good mood vanishing on the spot.

Wang Yun was clearly far more capable than Colin. If he could bring him over and use him for himself, that would be a genuine cash cow. But the tiny spark that had just lit up in his mind was instantly doused by Colin’s words.

Baren released him with ill-concealed displeasure and even shot him a look.

Colin only smiled, unconcerned.

This man would not be his boss much longer. He could think whatever he liked now. It had nothing to do with him anymore.

The thought left Colin feeling lighter than he had in years.

Just then, the sound of something smashing came from the room next door.

Baren and Colin exchanged a glance, then smiled in unspoken understanding.

No need to guess. It had to be some wealthy guest who had wagered heavily on Achir. Smashing things now could only mean he was furious beyond words.

Looks like that one had bet a great deal.

The bosses behind Blood Banquet must be overjoyed.

And indeed, just as they guessed, all of Blood Banquet’s upper management had gathered in their own private room, every one of them unable to wipe the smiles off their faces.

When they first arrived, each of them had worn a grim expression, the room heavy with gloom. But the moment Wang Yun knocked Achir down, everything reversed. Now every face was shining with delight as they looked toward Wang Yun in the ring.

“I knew the kid had it in him the moment I saw him.”

“Exactly. From the very first time he came here, he already had the nerve to make demands.”

“That fellow Baren really had guts, negotiating with Old Robin like that.”

“Still, Old Robin was the one with foresight. He pushed the odds even higher.”

“This round’s going to make our pockets nice and fat.”

They were all grinning as they talked.

With Wang Yun’s victory, Blood Banquet—as the house—had just made a fortune.

Exactly as Wang Yun had guessed earlier, the reason Blood Banquet had been so hard to investigate was not because its managers were individually so powerful, but because the place was jointly controlled and operated by the bosses of Mu City and several neighboring cities.

No wonder Officer Samson and his team had spent so long investigating with no real breakthrough.

Using Wang Yun as an undercover agent this time had been a move born of sheer necessity.

Wang Yun had won the match, yet no one congratulated him.

They had all bet on Achir.

He stepped down from the ring alone and, with a trace of helplessness, went to rest in a chair at the side.

Only then did the host seem to wake up and return to the ring.

“Well now, who would’ve thought our gentleman from Dragon Country would be this formidable? To think he actually ended Mr. Achir’s six-match streak!”

The host said it in that same oddly sour, insinuating tone from the stage.

Below the ring, Wang Yun frowned as he listened to her.

“Let’s invite Mr. Wang Yun back up, so we can hear a few words from our winner.”

After saying that, the host looked in Wang Yun’s direction.

Wang Yun saw it and, perfectly composed, walked back up onto the ring.

“Mr. Wang Yun, now that you’ve ended Mr. Achir’s six-match winning streak, how do you feel? Excited? Disbelieving?”

Wang Yun cast the host a sidelong look.

What kind of question was that?

Wasn’t she plainly saying that there was no way he should have been able to beat that brute?

Wang Yun smiled.

“I said it before we started. As long as I’m here, a winning streak doesn’t exist.”

Only then did everyone remember.

At the very beginning, faced with the host’s deliberate needling, Wang Yun really had said exactly that.

It was just that, at the time, who could possibly have taken him seriously?

They had all thought he was just talking tough.