Monarch of the Dark Night

Chapter 9

Upon hearing the term "hundred-man battle," Duke's gleeful smirk instantly froze on his face, while all other factions present were equally stunned.

In this Death House, life was the least valuable commodity.

As suggested by the name, the battle involved each side selecting a hundred individuals for a fight to the death. It persisted until one side was entirely wiped out or surrendered.

The "hundred-man battle" was an extremely bloody fight where even the victorious side often saw a mortality rate of over eighty percent. Such battles provoked profound fear even among the death row prisoners.

Reflecting on the horror of the hundred-man battle made Duke's lips twitch involuntarily. He felt both insulted and angered. Yet, considering Jaguar and Xavier's physical prowess and combat skills, he could only remain silent, unwilling to agree to Jaguar's challenge.

Viper taunted, "Duke, what's wrong? Scared to face the hundred-man battle? That's not very Duke-like! Plus, it's not good for your reputation! Hahahahaha!"

Duke sneered, "Viper! If you're so brave, then step up and take the challenge yourself."

Viper grinned brightly at Duke, "Haha, too bad no one's challenging me! This hundred-man battle is going to be exciting. Duke, enjoy what little time you have left. See you!"

Watching Viper laugh hysterically as he left, Duke couldn't help but tremble with anger.

Duke glared at Jaguar and said coldly, "I accept your challenge. But let me warn you, just because you and Xavier are tough doesn't mean you can do whatever you want. It's twenty of you against a hundred of us. There's no guarantee you'll win!"

Duke waved his hand and swiftly left with his men.

***

In Cell 401 of Block D, Duke stood coldly by the cell door, remaining silent for a long time.

After a while, Duke finally asked, "Wade, if you were to fight Xavier, how many rounds do you think you could last?"

Wade was Duke's top fighter. He had been by Duke's side ever since Duke took charge of Block D, so he was naturally Duke's most trusted subordinate.

Wade's stern expression twisted into a faint, bitter smile. "Duke, I don't mean to sound negative, but whether I can defeat Jaguar is up in the air. If I were to face Xavier, I'd be defeated in less than a minute!"

Duke trembled slightly at his words. He had never experienced such despair. With a sullen frown, he asked, "Does that mean... we don't stand the slightest chance of winning?"

Upon hearing Duke's defeated tone, Wade exchanged a quiet glance with his comrades, each feeling a twinge of shame as they averted their eyes.

As the entire cellblock fell silent once more, the sound of steady, powerful footsteps suddenly echoed from the distant staircase.

Soon enough, a smiling Viper appeared at the iron gate of the fourth floor.

Duke frowned and said coldly, "Viper! What are you doing here on Block D? Aren't you afraid I'll kill you?"

Viper laughed and replied, "A guest on your turf deserves some courtesy. Why threaten to kill me right away? That isn't very nice of you, is it?"

The prison guard unlocked the iron gate for Viper to enter, then immediately locked it before leaving.

Viper watched the guard leave and said, "I can only stay for 30 minutes, so I'll get straight to the point. Though we've fought each other for so long, we've never really undermined each other's foundations and our status as the kingpins. But these people are different. Jaguar is challenging you now, and if he wins, he'll continue to challenge other kingpins next. Before long, all six kingpins of East Wing will be wiped out by them."

Duke looked at the smiling Viper with a complex expression. "Viper, why don't you tell us what we should do?"

Viper shrugged. "What else can we do but unite! Iceblade from Block E has already agreed to my request. He will stand with us and assist us in winning this battle. As for Block A and B, they should understand why I am doing this. Do they really think they can resist Xavier and Jaguar all by themselves?"

Viper remarked wearily, "But even with Block C, Block D, and Block E united, winning that hundred-man battle still doesn't seem too promising."

Duke scoffed, "With Block C, D, and E joining forces, are you still worried we can't handle Xavier's motley crew? Trust me, it will be more than enough."

Duke went on to explain his thoughts, "We have three expert combatants: Iceblade, Max, and Wade, along with the handpicked fighters from Block C, Block D, and Block E. We outnumber them and surpass them in fighting skills. Do we really need to fear them so intensely? On that day, we will send Iceblade to engage Bloodhawk, and Max and Wade will handle Jaguar. Once we've eliminated those two, victory will be ours!"

Viper looked at Duke, who was brimming with confidence. He said with a frown, "Duke, don't you think you're over confident? You've witnessed the power of the Bloodhawk and Jaguar. I do not doubt Iceblade's physical prowess and fighting skills, but expecting him to hold off Bloodhawk by himself is too much. In my opinion, we should persuade Reaper and Titan to join us. Even if we can only get one of them to join us, it will greatly increase our chances of winning this hundred-man battle."

Duke shook his head and said, "You know Reaper and Titan's personalities better than I do. Reaper is aloof and proud, while Titan is hot-tempered. We can't count on either of them. If we work together wholeheartedly, we will be able to defeat the Bloodhawk League for sure!"

Viper laughed heartily at his remark. He rose and extended his right hand to Duke. "Here's to a landslide victory!"

Duke also extended his right hand toward Viper, their strong hands gripping tightly. "We will win this!"

Duke thought to himself, 'Xavier, you're as good as gone!'

***

Just as Viper and the others were joining forces for their own survival and interests, Xavier and his group were also devising strategies to win the battle.

Xavier's main concern was that they were outnumbered by Duke's group. Despite his confidence in defeating Duke and his men, Xavier aimed to achieve victory with minimal casualties.

He announced to the others his plan to recruit additional members for the hundred-man battle. To attract others to join them, he would promise the potential recruits that surviving the ordeal would grant them permission to join the Bloodhawk League and an unimaginable reward.

Unable to rein in his curiosity, Tucker asked, "An unimaginable reward? What exactly is it?"

Xavier smiled faintly. "Freedom. True and absolute freedom."

The crowd stared at Xavier in silence for nearly a minute. Unable to hold back, Tucker asked, "Freedom? Are you saying we can be released from prison?"

Xavier nodded to them with a smile.

Everyone, including Jaguar, widened their eyes in disbelief and stared at Xavier. 'Can we really get out of this Death House?'

Xavier cleared his throat. "Don't reveal too much to those potential recruits. Just hint at it. When the time is right, I'll lead all of you out of this Death House — this is the first promise from Xavier Young to all of you."

The group exchanged glances of surprise before kneeling on one knee, shouting, "We swear our loyalty to Brother Hawk. We will never betray you in this lifetime."

Xavier instructed, "Get up. Our current mission is to win this battle with minimal losses."

Tucker could barely contain his excitement. He said, "Don't worry, Bloodhawk. Even if it's just the seventeen of us, we can kill all those enemies. Jaguar can handle Duke's best fighter, Wade. Even if Duke joins forces with others, we still have you to count on. Right, Bloodhawk?"

Xavier shook his head with a weary smile, "But what if Reaper from Block A and Titan from Block B also get involved?"

Tucker scratched his head before answering, "Uh... that seems pretty unlikely, doesn't it?"

After a moment of thought, Jaguar said, " Bloodhawk, I think if we can take down a few key fighters from their side, we'll be able to win this battle. We need to think about how to take out their best fighters."

Xavier calmly said, "Leave those expert fighters to Jaguar and me. The seventeen of you handle the rest of the trash. Try your best to avoid any serious injuries. You guys are my elite team and my brothers. Minor injuries are acceptable, but severe injuries are not allowed. Understood?"

Out of nowhere, Tucker suggested, " Bloodhawk, I have an idea. I know a guy named Dylan. Maybe he can help us."

Hugo frowned and said, "Dylan? Is he the one-eyed guy you saved? That kid is always so gloomy. Just looking at him makes me uncomfortable. Can he really be of any help?"

Tucker said, "Hey, this kid may seem gloomy all the time, but he's a master of disguise. His can easily change a person's appearance with his disguise skill. My plan is to have Dylan swap Bloodhawk's appearance with mine. That way, when Bloodhawk suddenly attacks with my face, it should be easy to trick and take down Wade, right? "

Jaguar couldn't help but cheer, "Great! That's a brilliant plan! Let's do it!"

Xavier nodded with a weary smile, "Alright then, we'll go with it. But everyone, please make sure to stay safe!"

Three days later, an exceptionally bloody hundred-man battle would take place on the basketball court of Apex Penitentiary!

On the day of the battle, over ten thousand death row inmates gathered in the basketball court watch stands to witness what might be the most intense hundred-man battle in the history of Apex Penitentiary.

Bloodhawk and Jaguar—these two terrifying beast-like figures had already become legends within the entire Death House.

Although the inmates of Death House did occasionally witness the rise of exceptionally formidable figures, they paled in comparison to Bloodhawk and Jaguar.

The inmates were buzzing with speculation and discussion, wondering how long Duke could hold out without being defeated.

For the hundred-man battle, nearly every guard in the death row prison was deployed. Over a thousand armed guards took their positions around the basketball court.

At 8 a.m. sharp, the east and west gates of the basketball court opened slowly.

The two teams participating in the hundred-man battle entered the court and halted when they were about 30 feet apart.

They were dressed in red and blue prison uniforms, respectively.

Xavier and Jaguar exchanged a confident glance.

Xavier had worried that Titan and Reaper might join the battle, but they were watching from the stands instead.

As for Duke, Iceblade, Max, and their men, Xavier was absolutely confident in defeating them.

As the guards left the basketball court to take positions around the perimeter, the entire court gradually quieted down.

A truly bloody battle would soon unfold, with many lives likely to be lost in a very short time.

In this tense atmosphere, everyone's nerves grew increasingly taut.

The best fighters of both sides stared intensely at their chosen prey, awaiting the command to attack!

Moments later, Jaguar and Wade slowly raised their right hands simultaneously.

"Attack!"

With two earth-shaking roars, the two groups of inmates charged forward simultaneously.