Although he had expected it, Ash still felt a chill in his heart when he heard that the Blood Moon Judgment was indeed a death penalty.
He had held onto a bit of fantasy, thinking perhaps the people here would recognize he wasn't the Cult Leader, or that he'd go through a long trial, or maybe there'd be a two-year reprieve…
This fantasy peaked after entering the prison, because, in Ash's view, how could a death row inmate have such a nice room with its own bathroom?
How could a death row inmate move freely within the prison?
How could a death row inmate receive so many privileges from the prison?
Lanna's words shattered all his childish expectations—it was precisely because they were going to die that the prison treated them so well.
"The prison raises us like this, just to let us die in a more pathetic way?" Ash asked with difficulty, "Isn't that a waste of resources?"
"Would you complain that fireworks aren't brilliant enough when they explode?" Lanna laughed, "I'm surprised, you really don't seem to know much about the Blood Moon Judgment—it's a live broadcast program shared by every City, most citizens stay home at eight o'clock on the first and fifteenth of each month, turning on the Light Screen to watch the end of each criminal, and the ratings reach nearly seventy percent."
"By the way, compared to the advertising revenue from the 'Blood Moon Judgment' program, the cost of the prison raising us is insignificant."
Watching executions is actually a popular show in this world…
Ash tugged at the corner of his mouth, "It's absurd; how can seventy percent of people watch an entertainment program at eight o'clock in the evening, don't they have to work overtime? I think they're not working hard enough…"
Lanna was not surprised at Ash's impotent rage.
He had seen too many death row inmates disgracing themselves as the Blood Moon Judgment approached, from railing against societal systems to denouncing the ignorance of the populace. If you stayed in this prison long enough, you'd naturally see it all.
"But if you want to escape the Blood Moon Judgment, it's not impossible."
Ash immediately perked up, "What's the way?"
Lanna didn't tease him; he bluntly said, "Although each Blood Moon Judgment inevitably results in one person's death, there are eight people who enter, and these eight spots are not fixed but are ranked by 'contribution'."
"Every death row inmate starts with fifty contribution points, and ten points are deducted each month. However, even if it's deducted to zero, the prison won't do anything to the death row inmate."
"But the higher the contribution points, the later the ranking in the Judgement Sequence, and the lower the points, the earlier the ranking. In theory, the top eight in the Sequence are the participants in the Blood Moon Judgment."
"There are many ways to earn contribution; the simplest is to create value. Although our memories were extracted by Memory Masters before entering prison and our information is worthless, there are still many ways we can create contributions:
Some came here for dereliction of duty and bribery; they can offer institutional reform plans to reduce the chance of future dereliction and bribery;
Some came in because of illegal experiments; they can continue to do legal experiments and write papers in prison;
Some inherently possess various talents, some even write best-selling books in prison, which naturally counts as creating value."
"But in this prison, more people are those who came in for murder and are inherently averse to work, preferring plunder—like me."
Lanna pointed at Ash, "Like you."
"So how do we get contribution points? The Death Battle Society is our answer."
Ash realized something, "You just said participating in the Death Battle comes at a cost…"
"Besides death and pain, the biggest cost of a Death Battle is the transfer of contribution," Lanna said, "In each Death Battle, both parties must bet a certain amount of contribution points. The winner escapes the Blood Moon, and the loser faces judgment."
"If the Blood Moon Judgment is the end of the road, then the Death Battle Society is the Blood Sea along the way—almost every death row inmate eventually participates in Death Battles, gambling their last bit of contribution and draining their last drop of blood, then ascending to the live broadcast room in a most desperate manner."
"This is how we make contributions—eliminating the weak and maintaining a bloodthirsty spirit!"
"This is also why the prison allows the Death Battle Society to exist," Lanna's voice was as calm as discussing someone else's affairs, "Before going on stage, actors always have to put on makeup."
Actors have to put on makeup, otherwise, the audience won't enjoy watching.
Even without watching the Blood Moon Judgment, Ash understood Lanna's meaning.
Just like how they meticulously create illustrations for mobile game characters, so-called 'Death Battles' are the process of turning death row inmates into an illustration: gambling, fighting, despair, fear, pain… nothing evokes the bloodthirsty spirit in people more than 'fighting for one's life.'
When a death row inmate becomes hysterical from pain after numerous defeats in Death Battles, desperate and insane from fear, he becomes a 'main dish' ready for serving. What is then presented to the audience is such a blood-thirsty, fighting-spirited, desperate, fearful 'beast.'
Compared to a numb, decayed, sluggish 'human,' naturally a 'beast' that still seems to dare to resist is more entertaining to kill.
This was an overt conspiracy that death row inmates could not refuse.
Not only would the losers become the product needed by the prison, selling at a 'good price' on the live broadcast, but the victors also merely drink poison to quench their thirst and will one day appear on the broadcast, walking down the same dead-end path.
From the beginning, death row inmates had only one outcome: to be squeezed of all value by the prison and then die. The private-bathroom dormitories, good food, and comprehensive facilities were only to fatten them up.
The so-called Judgment Sequence was actually an internal competition mechanism; everyone was in a zero-sum game. Either you accept the judgment, or I get the death penalty.
But that's actually quite reasonable; who can blame them for becoming death row inmates by breaking the law?
And if a death row inmate doesn't want to be exploited, he can just lie down and wait for death, but it's the desire to live that stirs the competition.
If Ash was outside the prison, he would definitely applaud this mechanism as a bystander.
Unfortunately, Heath, as a Cult Leader, was not only weak but also incompetent, causing Ash to be caught up in prison, having to find another way to survive.
"After hearing all this, do you still want to join the Death Battle Society?"
"Of course!"
Lanna was not surprised. He finished his milk and burped, "Then come with me. If we're lucky, we might catch a glimpse of a fresh corpse."
"People in Death Battles even early in the morning?" Ash asked curiously.
"Although you need to wager contributions for a Death Battle, you don't have to wager a lot at first. In the first match, you only need to bet one contribution point, then each match requires one more point than the last. The second match is two points, the third match is three points, and so on."
"Although the bets accumulate significantly, losing the first five matches still leaves a chance for a comeback, so everyone tries to utilize the first five Death Battles to figure out others' strengths and weaknesses, assessing their standing in prison."
"Therefore, the frequency of Death Battles is quite high; one match a day is normal. With only a few days left until the fifteenth, those lower in the Sequence certainly want to escape judgment through Death Battles. I bet the bloodstains on the Battle Arena won't dry these days."
"By the way, do you want to buy meat?"
Ash blinked, "Meat? What meat?"
"The meat that falls on the arena. This is one of the few ways to spend contribution points. The meat on the arena belongs to the prison, and we can buy it back from the prison."
Lanna turned to glance at Ash, revealing two rows of pale, neat teeth, "If you're lucky, you can buy thigh meat, which tastes very good, whether as sashimi or cooked; highly recommended."