Super Soldier

Chapter 11: Skewered Meat

Lin Fei glanced around and, with the fatty in tow, chose to dash toward the cage containing daggers.

The bio-engineered soldiers opted for the metal swords, while the Terminator duo moved towards the cage with large blades. At the outset, the three groups tacitly avoided the central cage containing the laser sword.

After all, the laser sword was far too powerful. Anyone wielding it would immediately become the target of a coordinated attack from the other two factions. When facing equally matched opponents, it was hardly wise to take the risk of acquiring such a weapon.

Lin Fei seized a metal dagger from the unlocked cage and swung it a few times, finding it manageable. It felt somewhat like the dissection knife he had once used. He could use this metal blade to "dissect" the living, perhaps even today. Meanwhile, his chubby cellmate was already frozen in fear, mechanically following behind Lin Fei, clutching the metal ball in his arms.

Just as Lin Fei prepared to use his agility to dodge the fighting between the other two groups, waiting for them to exhaust each other before entering the fray, the War God System unexpectedly spoke up in his mind.

"Reality combat arena, a stage for the courageous, mission conditions met. Task: Secure the laser sword from the arena, and defeat all opponents, excluding your team.

Failure penalty: Should you fail, your opponents will send you to meet your maker.

Completion reward: Should you succeed, you will come one step closer to becoming a true warrior. The reward is a further enhancement of your cellular evolution, courtesy of the War God System—no side effects. How much you benefit will depend on your body's capacity to endure."

Listening to the voice in his head, Lin Fei couldn't help but feel impressed by the system's rare generosity. Cellular evolution, a concept he'd heard of back at the academy, was usually reserved for the wealthiest families due to its astronomical cost and potential side effects. While it promised to repair the body’s injuries and unlock its latent potential, the process could also lead to irreversible damage if not done correctly.

"Perhaps it’s worth the risk," Lin Fei thought to himself, tossing the dagger to his terrified companion. He retrieved the metal ball from the fat man’s arms and began sprinting toward the center of the arena.

Seeing Lin Fei’s sudden move, the other four opponents also began rushing toward the center, intent on ganging up on him once he grabbed the laser sword.

The fat man was stunned by Lin Fei’s reckless charge. "Boss, you're really my boss," he muttered, realizing that if Lin Fei were to die, his own fate would not be any better. So, with heavy steps, he too began running toward the center.

The crowd outside the arena began to roar in excitement.

Fortunately, Lin Fei’s recent training paid off. Having started early, he reached the central metal cage first and swiftly grabbed the laser sword. Without hesitation, he turned and ran back.

With the laser sword in hand, Lin Fei darted toward a huge golden metal cage at the rear of the arena, which contained the most powerful weapon of all: a flamethrower.

With a loud click, Lin Fei swung the laser sword, slicing open the golden cage. He immediately tossed the laser sword back to the fat man, dropped the metal ball, and grabbed the silver flamethrower, which was over half a meter long, in both hands. Without a second thought, he aimed it at the Terminator duo, who were merely a meter away, and pressed the firing switch.

The flamethrower erupted, sending a jet of flames at the duo, engulfing them in a searing inferno. Their half-metal, half-human bodies melted under the intense heat, and their flesh was roasted to a crisp. The smell of charred meat filled the arena.

As the two half-human, half-metal Terminators staggered a few steps, they collapsed to the ground like skewered meat. The crowd outside the arena went wild, shouting, "Burn them! Burn them!"

The prison warden, witnessing the intense reaction from the audience, chose not to pursue Lin Fei for breaking the rules by acquiring the flamethrower.

After all, the rule of the deathmatch was simple: there were no rules.

The remaining bio-engineered duo, still armed with primitive weapons, looked at Lin Fei, holding a flamethrower in one hand and a laser sword in the other. They glanced at the two charred bodies in front of him and, then at the iron shards in their hands, feeling a surge of despair.

The two three-meter-tall bio-engineered soldiers wisely decided to run towards the electric fence, where they were immediately shocked unconscious. With a couple of loud bangs, the self-destructive duo fell to the ground.

"Slaughterer, cafeteria butcher, butcher!" The arena erupted in cheers for Lin Fei, chanting his nickname. According to the fat man, Lin Fei had likely broken the arena’s record, defeating all his opponents in just two minutes after the match began.

Lin Fei and the fat man exited through the arena's metallic gates, only to be surrounded by the first cafeteria’s "mummy" soldiers. They were tossed into the air and caught again, celebrating with wild abandon.

What they were celebrating might have been Lin Fei’s victory, or perhaps the improved meals they would receive over the next month. Whatever the reason, it no longer mattered. That night, the prison guards delivered roasted meats, four bottles of white wine, and two packs of cigarettes to Lin Fei’s cell.

"A soldier who does not aspire to be a general is not a good soldier." These were the words Lin Fei had heard on his first day at military academy, during the instructor’s first lesson. Back then, he had thought the instructor was a great man, an invincible figure with a clear life goal.

Of course, more than half a month ago, the instructor had met his end at Lin Fei’s hands. After his personal hero became a memory, Lin Fei occasionally whispered a prayer for him in his spare moments—usually while using the toilet.

Now, as a prisoner sentenced to life imprisonment, barely nineteen, Lin Fei had a new objective. His teachers had always told him that life required planning, both short-term and long-term. Lin Fei thought about his long-term plan, which seemed to align with his current reality: he would likely die in prison.

Thus, he resolved to focus on a short-term plan. Famous quotes had their purpose, and Lin Fei had written one of his own to inspire him for the future: "A prisoner who doesn’t want to escape is not a good prisoner."

This thought, once it surfaced, proved too much for Lin Fei, a man of action, to ignore.

Imprisoned, at the age of twenty, he yearned for beaches, beautiful women, and fine food. But all he had here were muscle-bound men and synthetic food. Real meals could only be obtained by risking one’s life and were painfully scarce.

Thus, as he lay on the iron bed in his cell, Lin Fei began to plan his escape from the imposing iron cage known as Carl Prison.