Matrix Survival: One random treasure chest per day

Chapter 438 I Let You Fight, You Dare to Tear Down My Shop? (7000 words)
"How...how is this possible?" Lorfa stared in astonishment at Li Zheng, who was completely unharmed. "How could you be completely unharmed?"

Throughout the abyss, the Balrogs are experts at playing with fire. Even the heavily armored demons with strong defenses and the Ice Demons of the Frost Mountain, who are skilled in ice and water abilities, could not remain so composed under the Balrogs' attacks.

"Just a tiny spark, what's impossible?" Li Zheng flashed his pearly white teeth and raised the Bloodthirsty Demon Blade: "Turn-based combat, now it's my turn. Are you ready to take the hit?"

"A small flame?"

The Flame Demon narrowed his eyes for a moment, then, as if realizing something, he immediately understood: "You have a Fire-Repelling Pearl on you?"

The Fire-Repelling Bead, the red bead given to Li Zheng by the Succubus Queen, is a special item left behind by a high-ranking fire demon after its death. It can increase the wearer's affinity for fire and protect them from fire-type damage up to a certain rank.

"Hmm... there was one, after all." Li Zheng shrugged. That kind of thing was nowhere near as useful as Ultimate Isolation. He just threw it into his capsule dwelling and didn't bother to take it out.

The Succubus Queen is really stingy. She has such a broken item that can only make one immune to peak-level extraordinary flames and reduce the power of star-level flames to a certain extent. She actually wants to return it after the boxing match.

Below the item description for that bead, it is highlighted in bold red italics and underlined: "No matter what means are used to forcibly take it out of the special room, it will provoke the Succubus Queen to take action and retrieve it personally."

This directly thwarted Li Zheng's plan to swindle the Queen.

Having received an affirmative reply, Lorfa knew what to do and began to gather his power again, preparing for the next attack.

Countless flames appeared out of thin air, and this time the power was obviously superior to "Blazing Flames". Even the color was blue and white, without a trace of other colors.

This flame reminded Li Zheng of the natural gas that every household had access to back on Earth; the flame from that gas was the same color.

"I'm telling you, oh no... you demon, you have no sportsmanship!" Li Zheng brandished the Bloodthirsty Demon Blade: "This should have been my turn, I haven't even drawn a card yet, and you've already attacked again? Even if it's the Infinite Fireball spell, shouldn't you have done the Time Gate quest first?"

"Since you're playing a cracked version, I won't stand on ceremony with you."

Li Zheng slowly raised his left hand, his thumb and middle finger touching once, making a delicate finger gesture, and a fanatical smile appeared on his face hidden under his hood.

The arena was filled with flames far more advanced than fire-type attachments, both in scale and temperature, unlike anything Li Zheng had ever seen in his life.

What if there's an explosion...

"Snapped!"

The fingers slid, and the middle finger struck the left palm heavily, making a crisp sound.

The next instant, outside the Succubus Tavern, Ye Kai and his companions saw a super pillar of fire rip off the roof of the mysterious tavern, the intense flames illuminating the entire space.

Lu Li, who had been using his ability to focus on that direction, was caught off guard and was blinded by the flash of light. Tears streamed down his face instantly, and he was temporarily blinded.

"Boom!"

A loud bang followed, robbing all four of them of their hearing. Liu Jin, whose constitution was slightly weaker, had bright red blood flowing from both ears.

"What the hell is going on? Did Old Li go too far?" Ye Kai subconsciously jumped into the mecha, started it up, and entered combat readiness mode, then sent a private message to Li Zheng.

boom!
Another loud bang followed, and the high-temperature storm caused by the explosion forced the four to retreat further into their hiding place, each taking out their own tools to defend themselves.

Li Zheng was also confused. He thought that if the Succubus Tavern was holding a boxing match, the security measures should be very good, right?
Unexpectedly, a mere diamond-level gene ability that wasn't even at its maximum level, combined with the flames condensed by a star-level fire demon, actually overturned the entire tavern!
A large number of demons flew out from the pillar of fire, and the entire space was filled with countless curses in the Abyss language. Some of the demons were charred black, and their outer layers had been charred. If these onlookers had not been of high rank and strong vitality, at least half of the demons present would have died in this attack!
Three figures flew out last, rushing in three directions to form a triangle, each using their own methods to suppress the pillar of fire.

The succubus queen held a little girl of about eleven or twelve years old in one hand, and stretched out the other hand forward, a pink wave of energy carrying overwhelming power, pressing down on the pillar of fire.

The Balrog King was a red-skinned demon, half again as strong as Lorfa, with his head ablaze with blue-purple flames. His eyes blazed, flames shooting from their sockets. He opened his massive mouth and inhaled forcefully, creating a tornado of fire that was sucked into his mouth and swallowed whole.

However, even the Fire Demon King could only absorb one-third of the fire pillars; the rest depended on the other kings.

The Lord of Destruction has fair skin and looks very much like people from Western countries on Earth. He has two thin, long, pointed horns in his full head of silver hair, which are curved in an exaggerated arc and point diagonally to the sky.

It pulled out a long black spear, its face cold and stern as it charged into the pillar of fire. With a flick of its arms, the spear whirled like a windmill, scattering the last remaining portion of the fire pillar.

However, this towering pillar of fire was just the beginning.

The real problem is that the bowl-shaped spiral fire source formed by the raging flames below the pillar of fire is spinning wildly, supplying a large amount of firepower to the pillar of fire.

At this moment, nine disheveled figures rushed out from the bottom of the fire. The most badly injured fly demon not only had its wings burned to shreds, but even the part of its body that was dragging under its body was burned to charcoal. Judging from its condition, it was already at the level of "it's all charred, let's cut it up."

"Was this caused by Lorfa?" The Banshee of Pain ripped off her burning cloak, revealing pale purple skin and an extremely ugly face.

“No.” The dark elf beside her also pulled off his cloak, revealing a handsome yet effeminate face, a stark contrast to the banshee of pain. “I saw it very clearly. Before the explosion, the Lampholder snapped his fingers, and then a strange wave suddenly resonated with the flames that Lorfa had condensed, compressing them in an instant before they exploded.”

"You mean this kind of powerful scene was actually caused by a mid-level extraordinary being?" The spider demon walked over, its limbs trembling, and said in disbelief.

The dark elf took a few steps back, seemingly unwilling to get too close to this ugly demon: "I made it very clear that it was the Lamp Bearer who triggered the flames condensed by Lorfa with a strange fluctuation, thus creating this scene."

The spider demon thought for a moment: "Isn't that still the lamp holder's fault? What's the problem?"

The dark elf said with annoyance, "The problem is that without the flames that Lorfa had gathered beforehand, the Lamp Bearer alone cannot unleash such a powerful attack!"

"Not always."

A clear voice rang out not far from the nine demons: "I can also use the ability to start fires, but since I have it readily available, I'm too lazy to use it."

The dark elves and other demons looked in the direction of the sound and were horrified to see the Lamp Holder dragging half of his body as he walked out of the flames.

The flames seemed to possess some kind of consciousness, circling around the lamp-bearer, yet they didn't even burn a single bit of his clothes.

"Pfft."

Li Zheng walked closer and threw the mangled body he was dragging in front of the demons: "This guy is still breathing. Can any of you help him contact a doctor?"

The dark elves and other demons looked at Lorfa, who was barely breathing and on the verge of death, with strange expressions on their faces.

The mighty Star-level Flame Demon had half its body shattered by a fire-based attack.
"You want to save him?" The dark elf's tone held a strange undertone.

The other demons remained silent, but Li Zheng could tell from their expressions that they shared the same thoughts as the dark elves.

"Of course! It was sent by the Fire Demon King to participate in the competition. What if the Fire Demon King holds me accountable if it dies at my hands?" Li Zheng looked around, then his eyes lit up. He waved to someone not far away: "Hey, you there! I remember you have healing abilities. Come and help!"

Sylvie was frustrated and embarrassed. She waited patiently in her room for the Star-level boxing match to end, preparing to spend the night with the strongman she had her eye on.

Just as the bathwater was prepared, a pillar of fire shot out from the ground, overturning the entire tavern and spilling the bathwater all over the floor.

Barely escaping from the flames, her beautiful hair was burned and curled, and her wings and tail were also burned to varying degrees. She was still worried about whether she would be left with scars after healing when she heard that somewhat annoying voice.

Turning around, I saw that it was the guy I wanted to spend the night with.

His skills are decent, but it's a shame he has a mouth.

Sylvie walked closer, looked Li Zheng up and down, and said with surprise, "You're really lucky. All the other contestants are injured, but you're fine. I remember that out of the eleven contestants, your strength rating was the weakest, right? Who helped you escape? This dying Flame Demon?"

Upon hearing this, the nine demons who were still able to move all revealed strange expressions.

Weakest rating?
Ha ha!

If I ever believe in the so-called strength rating again, I'll be the biggest idiot in the entire Abyss!

"Stop talking nonsense, give it a full... uh... half-body check-up first, see if there's any hope of saving it." Li Zheng pulled Sylvie down to squat, pointed at Lorfa and said, "No matter what, this guy can't die before the boxing match is over!"

You can die, but you can't die by your own hand.

"I didn't expect you to be so kind-hearted despite your harsh words. Someone saved you, and you still know how to repay their kindness." Sylvie said, examining Lorfa's injuries. His right side, from his shoulder to his waist, was completely gone, the wounds were pitch black, and they were caused by high temperatures.

"There's no hope. Just wait to die." Sylvie shook her head and issued Lorfa a death sentence.

"No!" Li Zheng exclaimed anxiously, pulling Sylvie along. "I think there's still a chance to save it. Think of something, even if it's just to keep it alive."

"Hey, don't pull me away!" Sylvie shook off Li Zheng and said, "I understand your desire to save your benefactor, but the Fire Demon Clan usually goes back to the Lava Ancestral Land to be treated when injured, so I really can't help you."

"Huh?" Li Zheng looked ashen-faced. "Is there really no way at all?"

“I really can’t help you.” Sylvie’s eyes darted around, and she leaned closer. “By the way, how are you? Are you hurt? Let me take a look.”

Li Zheng pushed her away and said sadly, "What injuries could I possibly have? It's mainly the Lorfa brothers; their injuries are the most severe! If they die here because of me, I'll never have peace of mind for the rest of my life!"

"Alright, stop pretending. Even if you kill it on the spot, I won't bother you."

A deep, resonant voice echoed above them. The demons looked up and saw that the three kings had already dealt with the fire and landed nearby.

"Greetings to the three kings." The demons present bowed and lowered their heads to show their respect.

"Your Majesty, what are you saying? Every word I spoke came from the bottom of my heart!" Li Zheng choked up, "It's all my fault. If it weren't for me, the Lorfa brothers wouldn't be injured like this!"

The King of Destruction, holding a black spear, said in a hoarse voice, "I used to think that the Serpent Demons were the most hypocritical demons in the abyss, but now that I've seen you, I realize that the Serpent Demons are a step below you."

The snake demon among the contestants shrank back, realizing that the King of Destruction's words were not a compliment.

“Lord of Destruction, you misunderstand. Although the Lorfa brothers and I were opponents on the arena, once we stepped off, we were as close as brothers! How could I not worry about my brothers being injured like this?” Li Zheng turned to the Flame Demon King and said, “I beg Your Majesty to save the Lorfa brothers’ lives!”

Pinch the horse!

Li Zheng's hypocritical act disgusted all the demons present; he was even more hypocritical than the demons themselves.

Sylvie finally realized what had happened and pointed at Li Zheng, exclaiming, "I thought it was injured like this to save you, but it turns out you were the one who hit it?!"

"It's a competition," Li Zheng smiled shyly. "Fists and feet have no eyes, swords and knives have no mercy."

"Wouldn't that be incredibly heartless and cruel?" Sylvie showed a satisfied expression, feeling that her decision to invite Li Zheng to spend the night with her before the match couldn't have been more correct. To fight a Balrog like this, even at a higher level, shows great potential; it's not impossible for him to grow to the King level in the future.

If only I could be with a future king...

Thinking this, two blushes appeared on Sylvie's face.

Her appearance surprised Li Zheng. "Do you dislike me or like me? Weren't you just criticizing me?"

"Alright, your hypocritical act is making me want to strangle you if I keep looking at you." The Flame Demon King grabbed the half-eaten Lorfa, gave Li Zheng one last look, and said meaningfully, "I hope we'll meet again someday."

After saying this, it informed the other two kings, waved its hand, opened a portal, and left.

Only after the Flame Demon King left did Li Zheng finally feel relieved.

Fortunately, I didn't offend the other party too much, otherwise I would have made the difficulty of this dungeon ridiculously high.

I glanced at the dungeon exploration progress, and it's already at 10%, but the remaining 90% is going to be tough.

Now that the venue has been destroyed by their own move, the audience is still there, but they probably have no interest in watching the game anymore. The reason they are staying is probably to wait for the top players to settle their bets.

"Um..." Thinking of this, Li Zheng asked hesitantly, "Should this competition continue?"

Upon hearing this, the other nine contestants all took a few steps back. You think crippling one Flame Demon isn't enough?

The moment they retreated together, the dungeon exploration progress instantly reached 100%. Li Zheng only needed to collect the final reward before he could draw a prize and leave.

"Judging from your expressions, nobody wants to fight me anymore?" Li Zheng asked the Succubus Queen, "How do we handle this situation?"

"Since you provided the prizes for the Star-level competition, I won't participate in the discussion." The King of Destruction turned and walked towards the spectators who hadn't left yet to handle the aftermath.

This boxing tournament is destined to be the most special one in history.

It was forced to stop before it was even halfway through.

Logically speaking, with three king-level demons present, things shouldn't have turned out this way.

As a result, Li Zheng's earth-shattering explosion came without warning, and its power erupted instantly. The three kings were too caught off guard to pay attention, causing the entire tavern to be turned upside down.

The Succubus Queen was on her way to save her daughter, the Lord of Destruction was worried that the prize he had brought out would be stolen in the chaos, and the Balrog King... having been in the fiery environment for so long, he didn't immediately realize how much damage such a large-scale explosion would cause to the demons other than himself. He waited in his seat for a while until the stone bench he was sitting on was also blown away before he flew out of the pillar of fire.

In fact, not to mention these demons, even Li Zheng himself did not expect that the explosion would be so outrageously powerful!
The "Explosion" ability is just a diamond-level ability that hasn't reached its maximum level!

Who would have thought that the massive amount of flames condensed by the Star-level Flame Demon would have such great power when detonated in one go?
The onlookers who escaped this time were only a part of the group. Many other demons who were not strong enough or were too close to the explosion point have become history and will never come out again.

This also shows that the ten demon fighters who participated in this boxing match were all very strong. Apart from Lorfa, the other nine actually escaped by virtue of their own strength.

Lorfa was at the very center of the explosion. The moment the blue and white flames were ignited, it didn't even have time to react. Thanks to the fire demon's affinity for fire, it was able to mitigate a lot of damage and was left only on the verge of death.

If any other player were in its position, there wouldn't even be any dust left.

Li Zheng is the first person in history to single-handedly disrupt a boxing tournament that was presided over by three champions.

She is also the only one.

Because the Succubus Queen learned her lesson from this incident, she built a fortress-level Succubus Tavern.

Not to mention Li Zheng's explosive power this time, even if ten Kings attacked together, he could hold out for three hours without falling!

Every time the boxing tournament resumes, the demons recall the days when they were dominated by the towering pillar of fire, and they talk to the new demons about how calmly they left the pillar of fire back then.

But that’s all for another day.

"How else can it be counted? If they forfeit, you'll be considered the winner of this Star-level competition." The Succubus Queen rolled her eyes at Li Zheng, her alluring appearance causing a flutter in his heart.

"Oh." Li Zheng asked the contestants, "Are you forfeiting?"

"Give up!" The nine participating demons nodded in unison, speaking in unison.

The snake demon, in particular, answered impatiently, then opened a portal and slipped away.

Li Zheng watched its departing figure with some regret. It was a pity that he couldn't complete the second task the Succubus Queen had asked him to do. He could only hope to come back and kill it when he had the ability in the future.

Hopefully it will live that long, since the Succubus Queen has her eye on it.

The other demons seemed to sense Li Zheng's strange gaze and also took their leave. Soon, only Li Zheng, the Succubus Queen, and two others remained.

With no outsiders around, the succubus queen waved her hand, creating a soundproof barrier to prevent other demons from overhearing what was happening.

She then said, "You have now achieved final victory, proving not only your character but also your strength. Although I am not entirely satisfied with your performance in front of the Fire Demon King, I can reluctantly hand over Miriel to you."

As she spoke, she led out the little succubus who looked only twelve or thirteen years old and said to her, "Miriel, from now on you will follow him. Don't you want to know what it's like outside the Abyss? He will take you there."

Although Miriel looked only twelve or thirteen, she already possessed the makings of a beauty. Unlike the Queen, she had large, watery eyes: "Mother, aren't you going?"

"I'm not going. I have things to do in the Abyss." The Succubus Queen stroked Miriel's hair. This parting might be the last time she and her daughter would see each other. She wanted to etch her daughter's image into her mind and not let time easily fade the memory.

After a long while, she reluctantly pushed her daughter in front of Li Zheng: "From now on, I'm entrusting Miriel to you. I hope you can protect her well."

As she spoke, she lowered her voice and pleaded, "I'm begging you, as a token of my gratitude, I'll give you that fire-repelling pearl."

Even though she had always been quite assertive in front of Li Zheng, her attitude softened considerably when it came to her own daughter.

Sylvie listened to their conversation with a confused look on her face. Finally, she came to her senses and pointed at Li Zheng in astonishment: "You...you...you're not a demon, but that so-called player?"

Judging from her appearance, it seems she has never seen a player before.

The Succubus Queen explained, "Sylvie was born after the Abyss Clan settled down, and she has always lived in the Abyss Clan's central location, 'The Source of the Abyss.' This is the first time she has been brought out to take charge of the Boxing Tournament."

Li Zheng nodded in understanding, and casually lifted the hood of his cloak slightly, revealing a face that was completely different from the demon's to Sylvie.

Sylvie glanced at Li Zheng's appearance and curled her lip in disdain: "He's quite good-looking, but it's a pity he has a mouth, hmph!"

She knew that her plan to spend the night with this guy was impossible.

Li Zheng smiled, not bothering to argue with her, and took Miriel's small hand. A notification flashed before his eyes.

Player Li Zheng has obtained the pet: Succubus (already named)

Instead of checking the attributes, Li Zheng asked, "There's something I don't understand. Do players attend every single boxing tournament you hold, or is this one an exception?"

The Succubus Queen shook her head, then nodded: "It's not common, but it's not uncommon either. However, I've never seen a player as cunning and disguised as you before. In fact, no matter how well you players disguise yourselves, you can't hide from a king-level demon. We three discovered you the moment you entered this place."

Furthermore, I know that besides you, there are four other fools over there spying on this place. By the way, could you perhaps ask your teammates to take their eyes off my chest? I've been holding back for far too long!

Li Zheng was greatly embarrassed upon hearing this and quickly sent a message to Lu Li, telling him to be careful.

Lu Li replied, "I'm aiming at her heart. As long as she attacks you, I can guarantee to fire immediately and provide you with fire support."

Li Zheng's face darkened. "Is that aiming? You're just lusting after her body like I am!"

They have a daughter!

How are you any different from that traitor Cao Cao?
You are despicable!
Too lazy to continue paying attention to Lu Li, Li Zheng warned him to look away and took a few more glances at the deep scar on the Succubus Queen's front before asking, "One last question, are all the players who fail to enter the outer city each time gathered together and live in a space similar to your Fallen Abyss?"

And they also have to shoulder the responsibility of being the training ground for the new generation of players?

This question had been bothering Li Zheng for a long time. Today, he met the Succubus Queen, which was a good opportunity to ask her and get a concrete answer.

The Succubus Queen looked intently at Li Zheng and slowly said, "Don't you already have the answer to this question in your heart?"

"Thank you."

For some reason, Li Zheng felt no emotion whatsoever after receiving this answer.

"Remember what I told you?" The succubus queen repeated what she had said before: "If you don't want your people to end up like us, then do your best to bring them all into the outer city!"

"I will." Li Zheng led Miriel towards his four teammates, leaving behind the words, "If I have the chance, I'll come back here and take you all out with me."

The main thing is to find a way to take the succubus queen out; how can a child be without his mother's company?

Well, as a righteous gentleman, Li Zheng dares to declare to the heavens that he has absolutely no selfish motives!

Miriel followed Li Zheng, reluctantly turning back to look at her mother.

While dealing with those boxing matches, the Lord of Destruction glanced in this direction twice, his expression enigmatic.

"Let's go, the dungeon is over, let's go back first."

After reuniting with his teammates, Li Zheng took off the translator and returned it to Ye Kai, gave him a wink, and led everyone out of the instance.

Only Liu Jin was stunned for a moment. After everyone else left, he realized what was happening and left to draw lots.

Back in the forest room, Li Zheng released the capsule dwelling and led the curious Miriel inside.

Because of the master-servant agreement between them, Li Zheng and Miriel could understand each other's general meaning from their words, even though they couldn't communicate in the same language.

"You can look around the place by yourself first, I have something to do."

Leaving Miriel to her own, Li Zheng created a temporary group chat and added all four of his teammates to it.

As soon as Liu Jin entered the group, he asked, "Why did you all suddenly leave?"

Ye Kai: "??? Didn't you hear Old Li say we're leaving?"

Liukin: "I didn't hear that, I was just deafened..."

(End of this chapter)