Chapter 37

Chapter Thirty-Seven

"Where are we going now, a bar?"

"No, no, Qin An, we're taking you to a good place."

Lar chuckled, and even Gouf pulled a strange smile, which looked incredibly lewd to me.

Could it be that kind of place? My heart was pounding, a mix of nervousness and anticipation—was my 20-year-old virgin life finally coming to an end?

"Where are we really going?"

Doug walked ahead with his head held high, and I quietly asked Gouf beside me.

"North District."

"Where in the North District?"

Could it be the legendary red-light district? My eyes sparkled.

"Training ground," Gouf said succinctly.

I: "..."

Cough, cough, where are all of you thinking? Why are you looking at me with those eyes? I'm not that kind of person. Actually, I already knew they were taking me to the training ground; I was just testing everyone's level of perversion...

Before we even entered the North District, I could already feel the intense atmosphere in the air, as if hundreds of thousands of troops were training inside. The air was filled with the enthusiastic shouts and the clashing of weapons, making everything vibrate.

There were burly barbarians, muscular paladins, tall and slender Amazons, and some seemingly frail Rogue mercenaries. The men were mostly bare-chested, each one strong and powerful, while the women mostly wore tight clothing, their figures either fiery or petite, each with their own charm. It made some people (just you, really) drool, but in this world of constant danger, survival was the primary goal. The allure of beauty was much less significant compared to the original world. Just looking at the burly men who were focused on their training, ignoring the passing beauties, and the tight-clad beauties who didn't seem to care much about their looks, it was clear that strong women were far more proud and respected than beautiful ones.

Doug told me that the residential area of the North District had a large number of training grounds, which were divided into four main areas.

For example, the area where I am now, in the south of the North District, is for melee classes and most powerful mercenaries. Some who are about to advance to a higher class also come here to train.

In the west of the North District, it's the training ground for newbies. Most of the newbies who dream of becoming strong, or orphans who have lost their families and must join the training, come here at a young age to undergo the most brutal training. In the end, the strongest and most talented are listed as potential candidates for advancement, while the weaker ones are obligated to join the Rogue camp as soldiers.

As for those of average level, who cannot advance to a higher class but are still stronger than soldiers, they choose to become free mercenaries. After that, they can either join other teams to gain experience together or venture out on their own. However, regardless of their choice, their ultimate goal is to become stronger. If they are lucky, they might be chosen by powerful advanced classes and sign a contract to become their exclusive mercenaries. Having a powerful advanced class by your side is much safer and faster for leveling up. The countless corpses and bones in the evil caves—most of them are from mercenaries who were not hired by advanced classes and had to venture out alone or in small groups.

In the far north of the North District, it's the training ground for magic classes. Unlike the noisy areas here, mages also need to exercise, but their most important training is constant meditation. Most of the trainees there are commoners. The newbies from noble families have better meditation rooms and advanced class instructors at home, so they don't need to go there.

In the east of the North District, it's the training ground for ranged classes. Most of the training involves archery and spear throwing, and there are also some wizards practicing spell accuracy.

I was wearing a mage cloak, covering my entire body, making it impossible to see the quality of my equipment. After a month of training, the unintentional killing intent in my eyes finally gave me a hint of the aura of an advanced class. Plus, being with Doug, who was somewhat famous in the Rogue camp (I think it's more because of his loud voice), no one treated me like a newbie anymore. At least, they didn't look at me with the cold, even slightly contemptuous, eyes they used to.

I looked around, taking in everything. It was easy to tell the classes of these advanced classes by their clothing and demeanor, but once they took off their shirts and bared their chests, it was harder to distinguish. Barbarians were easy to spot because of their large builds, but it was harder to tell the difference between Druids and Paladins—although I knew Druids symbolize nature and peace, and Paladins represent justice and order, I still couldn't judge their classes from their auras. Sigh, I'm still a newbie!

After observing for a while, I couldn't help but ask.

"What should Druids train for?"

Doug turned and looked at me with a "Are you a newbie?" expression.

"You Druids are a bit different. You can train your body here and also meditate in the north to train your spirit. Haven't you trained here before? Did you burn your brain during your month out, forgetting even this?"

"Ha ha, how could I!" I laughed awkwardly. My mouth really couldn't keep quiet; I wanted to ask about everything, even asking others about Druids when I myself was a Druid. Wasn't I just asking for suspicion?

"Have you all been coming here to train for the past month?"

"Yep."

Doug nodded: "Although such training is no longer useful for us advanced classes, we still come here to keep our bodies in shape and prevent our bones from getting rusty. Besides..."

Damn, even the big-mouthed Doug was starting to build suspense. This world is crazy...

Before long, Doug and Gouf led me to our destination—a large open-air arena surrounded by people. Some were shouting loudly, cheering for the fighters on the stage, while others were gathered in small groups, betting on the outcomes. The noisy atmosphere, the rude curses, and the dark, real side of human nature were all on full display.

"This is the proud fighting arena of our Rogue camp. Only true warriors can step onto this stage."

Seeing that there was no more suspense to build, Doug immediately started explaining to me.

I looked at the stage, where two barbarians were fighting fiercely.

"Such intense battles, aren't you afraid of any accidents?"

"Absolutely not!"

Doug shook his head: "Generally, stronger fighters don't challenge weaker ones, and weaker ones don't challenge stronger ones. The fighters are usually of similar strength, and the win is determined by the half-health rule!"

"Half-health rule?"

"Yep, the one whose health drops to half first loses."

Oh, that's indeed safe for fighters of similar strength.

"This arena is a great place. Even if you can't experience the excitement of the battle yourself, just watching the experts fight can be very beneficial."

Doug's eyes sparkled as he watched the two barbarians locked in a tight struggle on the stage.

To be honest, I hadn't seen a barbarian fight before. Although I had seen Doug and Gouf fight before, their opponents were always Fallen Ones, which didn't require any particular style.

The two barbarians on the stage were clearly both level 12 or higher, but their fighting styles were very different. One specialized in combat skills, while the other focused on shouts.

Both had learned the dual-wield skill, and their weapons swung like terrifying steel wheels. The taller barbarian, who specialized in combat skills, clearly had the advantage in close combat. He occasionally landed a heavy strike, sending the other one flying several meters, earning cheers from the crowd. The shorter barbarian's heavy strikes only made his opponent step back a few steps.

Specializing in close combat skills, the taller barbarian was indeed more powerful in the early stages. With two axes and a high-level heavy strike, he was terrifying.

But that doesn't mean the barbarian who specialized in shouts was helpless. The first skill in the shout tree, "Howl," although it doesn't make the opponent flee in fear, can still put them into a brief state of confusion, significantly reducing their accuracy. Barbarians already have low accuracy, and with this, it was even worse. However, the confusion state didn't last long.

The shorter barbarian had already been buffed with the second skill in the shout tree, "Shout," which gave him better defense than his opponent.

After the first skill "Howl," the next was "Taunt," which greatly reduced the opponent's judgment.

So now, the two were fighting back and forth, the outcome hanging by a thread.