Chapter 466: Helping a Beauty
Translator: Oneshotwonder Editor: Hitesh_
When the dance party was halfway finished, a few muscular fighters walked to the center of the stage. Despite their perilous life, sparring remained one of the fighters' favorite pastime.
The winner of the fight also came with a perk: he would have the right to name a girl among the crowd. If he got the girl's consent, which happened quite often, then the winner would be able to spend a romantic night with his chosen companion.
Wang Tong's refusal of Ye Zi's invitation had avoided much unnecessary jealousy. Martians were well known for their xenophobic protectionism, and the adolescent drama of an outsider winning the favor of a camp flower would only add fuel to their aversion toward Wang Tong.
Under reduced circumstances such as these, women, like many other things had been reduced into resources and properties of men. The method of winning the right to bed a woman was rather unromantic and direct, but it was respectful and orderly nonetheless. Compared to other parts of Mars, it could even be considered civilized. For those who lived under the control of the Zergs, raping, and robbing women had become a new norm unfortunately.
The age of aggression not only bred the resistance militias, but also gave a second life to the pirates. These outlaws were no better than Zergs when they arrived. They robbed and pillaged, scrapping any resources they could find, and destroyed anything they couldn't carry with them.
Another swell of cheers rose from the camp. A METAL fighter had won three fights in a row.
"Ross has improved. In no time, he would become the most powerful METAL fighter on Mars."
"No kidding. I think only Boss could have a chance of winning against him."
"Haha. Boss is too powerful and deadly. No one would be stupid enough to spar with him."
"Do you think Ross would try someone challenging more this time?"
"You mean Ye Zi? Haha, yeah, it's possible. Other than the boss, I bet only Ross is worthy of sharing the bed with her. What a handsome and strong fighter he is! Maybe Ye Zi is already waiting for him to ask her."
Ross yanked his arms up as the crowd shouted out his name in unison. He walked away from the center of the camp and headed toward Ye Zi.
Unlike Earthlings and Ivantians, the Martians were direct when it came down to relationships. Asking for a girl's hand without knowing her first was not shunned upon, but encouraged. In the chauvinistic view of the Martians, it was only natural for men to dominate women with their might.
With Ye Zi's consent, the two would enjoy a night of passion under the sheets, and such was the way of love on Mars. The world had changed, and humans needed to adapt. Therefore, this seemingly uncouth custom was the best option for humans who needed to struggle to see the sunlight of the next day.
The crowd was agitated as Ross inched toward his prize. Shouting and cat-calling rose around the proud warrior. Wang Tong followed the person next to him and moved out of Ross' way. Suddenly, Wang Tong felt a soft hand grab his arm. Ross saw it too, and he was taken it back by the turn of events.
Wang Tong turned his head and realized that it was Ye Zi. He wiggled his arm slightly, trying to break free in vain.
"Do me a favor, please!" Ye Zi pleaded; her voice was low under her breath.
Wang Tong paused; he owed her a huge favor for saving his life, so it would be ungrateful of him to leave her when she needed his help.
"Who are you?" Ross walked to Wang tong and asked him with a booming voice. He had already defeated three competitors, and he didn't mind defeating another one.
"Wang Tong."
"I like this woman too. What do you say if we have a fight and the winner will take her home tonight?" Ross asked. The survival of the fittest, such was the way of life on Mars.
Ye Zi scowled; she knew no one in Battle Wolf could defeat Ross, much less a new addition to the team who had just recovered from a trauma. The crowd boiled over at the promise of another fight. The situation made it difficult for Ye Zi to say anything. Ever since she had arrived at Battle Wolf, she had not yet shared her bed with any of the fighters. The rumors had it that she was not into men at all. Guilt rose inside the field medic as she felt that she had thrown Wang Tong under the bus.
"Sounds good!" Wang Tong accepted the challenge with a broad smile on his face.
"Good! You have balls, I will give you that! Now, come on!"
The crowd dispersed, leaving a large empty ground for the two.
"Furface, don't be silly. He is a level six fighter. You have no chance of winning against him." Wang Tong's danger spurred Ye Zi to talk him out of his foolish act, but he didn't listen.
"Hehe, don't worry. I will be fine."
Ross pounded his hairy chest and shouted at Wang Tong, "Come on, I will let you hit me three times, and it will be your victory if you could knock me back half a step!"
Another cheer erupted following Ross's heroic announcement. The gap between the two warriors' strength was evident.
"Come on! Don't be shy!" Excitement contorted Ross's face. After taking three punches, Ye Zi would finally belong to him.
Wang Tong walked closer to Ross and punched at the warrior. The punch looked so weak that it resembled more like a staggered push.
"Balls, he can't even kill a rabbit!"
"Weak, too weak! I could have done better than him."
But in the next moment, Ross collapsed to the ground as if struck by a hammer, and didn't get up.
Silence suddenly fell around the camp, leaving only the crackling din of the fire pit.
"What happened to Ross?"
One second earlier, the onlookers were convinced that Wang Tong's attack was too weak to even make a scratch. But, a second later, they started to worry for Ross's life as he laid on the ground motionless.
Under envious and grudging stares, Ye Zi linked her arm with Wang Tong's, and the two sauntered off.
After a time, someone helped Ross to his feet. He was not injured, but he was rendered motionless when the punch destroyed his defense and sent a wave of paralyzing energy into his system.
When Wang Tong and Ye Zi were out of the crowd's view, Wang Tong released his arm from Ye Zi's hold and said, "I'm going to bed. Have a good night."
Ye Zi didn't say anything and watched as Wang Tong disappeared into the darkness of the night. The favor aside, Ye Zi's heart already belonged to someone else, the young master of the divine master sect, Michaux Odin.
After Wang Tong returned his room, he tidied the room a bit and laid on his bed. A service bot suddenly appeared in the room out of nowhere.
"Charcoal, what do you think about the feeling of the solid ground beneath us, eh? We have finally escaped the space!"
…
Wang Tong was awakened by the clamor outside his door. The METAL fighters and Mastery warriors had already started the day of training. There were no instructors to watch over their training, and neither was there such need, since everyone practiced as diligently as they could. Life was hard on Mars, and without solid self-defense, even breathing the air could be deadly.
Wang Tong scanned the training ground for familiar faces, and soon he found Duo Lun resting on a bench. He walked toward him and greeted him with a warm smile.
"Hey, Furface! What an a*shole you were last night, haha! "
Wang Tong sat down beside Lun Duo and said, "I didn't want to do that either. Ye Zi asked me for help, and I couldn't just ignore her."
"I never knew that you had a soft spot for girls. Do you hide it under the beard? Haha! Anyways, you don't need to worry about it; we are a family here. Captain Ross said that he had let you gain an edge because he had forgotten to shield himself with GN force. Even so, you are pretty strong; looks like that hammer you use to repair the METAL is not made out of feather after all. Ha! "
"Is Ross in charge of the METAL fighters around the camp?"
"You bet. Battle Wolf is not a large band, but our two bosses, Ross and our Mastery Boss, are two of the toughest SOBs on Mars. Ross is tier fifteen, while the other boss is a tier eighteen mastery fighter."
"Tier fifteen and eighteen?" Wang Tong was suddenly confused by the unfamiliar jargon.
Lun Duo took Wang Tong's confused look as shocking admiration, so he patted Wang Tong's shoulder and said, "Bro, you are in luck! The Battle Wolf is even feared by the bugs! Once we take over Maersa, all of us will become captains."