After a brief interruption, everyone, including Flanders and the others, finished placing their bets. However, their financial capabilities were nowhere near as impressive as Chu Chengzhou's, who had just "robbed" Dai Mubai.
Some bet as little as 200, others as much as 20,000, but collectively, the eight of them didn't even match half of what Chu Chengzhou had bet.
The one who bet the least was Xiao Wu, the little rabbit who genuinely didn't have much money. She had less than Ma Hongjun and Oscar. Knowing they didn't have enough funds, Ma Hongjun and Oscar had each borrowed 900 gold soul coins from Chu Chengzhou, planning to double their money and pay him back 1,800 in a week.
On the other hand, the one who bet the most was Flanders, who Chu Chengzhou strongly suspected had used some of the public funds borrowed from the underworld forces in Soto City for this bet.
Chu Chengzhou couldn't help but look down on this behavior. It was just like misappropriating public funds for gambling, and sooner or later, Flanders would get caught in the mess.
Soto City's Great Soul Arena had five main soul fighting platforms: two for one-on-one matches, two for two-on-two matches, and one central platform for team battles. While all of these platforms were considered main arenas, they were not located in the same area.
The central team battle platform was not open to regular spectators, as it only had a few hundred VIP boxes instead of a large number of general seating. The one-on-one and two-on-two platforms were similar to the sub-arenas, just slightly larger in size.
Chu Chengzhou's match was a one-on-one duel, so he was headed to one of the two main one-on-one platforms.
The schedule for the main arena was much more relaxed compared to the sub-arena, giving ample time for betting, and it took over an hour before Chu Chengzhou's match finally arrived.
At this point, a young host, dressed in a suit and wearing gold-rimmed glasses, with a pair of black wings extending from his back, stood in the spotlight and announced: "Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the fourth match of the one-on-one battles in the number two main arena. We have two excellent Soul Masters today, both with impressive records. One is the 'Summoner' with the True Spirit Flag martial soul, undefeated with six consecutive victories, while the other is the 'Iron Fist' with the Beast Martial Soul, the Mighty Ape, who has also achieved five consecutive victories. Will the 'Summoner' continue his undefeated streak, or will the 'Iron Fist' claim his sixth victory? Let's find out!"
With a roar from the crowd and the spotlight shining down, Chu Chengzhou and a burly youth climbed onto the arena.
"Begin the match!" the referee called out, stepping back as the black wings behind the host fluttered, and he left the arena.
"I'll go first! My name is Iron Fist, a 29th-level Soul Master, and I'll be using my martial soul, the Mighty Ape!" the burly youth shouted.
With that, his muscles expanded, his arms turned into massive claws, and his two yellow soul rings glowed brightly. The Mighty Ape, a huge black-furred gorilla, materialized behind him.
"Please!" Chu Chengzhou responded, summoning his True Spirit Flag martial soul with a flash of soul power. His two yellow soul rings also appeared, and he politely gestured for the match to begin.
"Ha! Second soul skill, Mighty Fist of the Ape!"
With a roar, the second soul ring on the Iron Fist lit up, and his muscles bulged again, making his fists even larger and more powerful. The air around him seemed to crackle with energy.
Chu Chengzhou raised an eyebrow. 'This is similar to the White Tiger's Golden Fist technique, an enhancement skill.'
Without hesitation, he activated his second soul ring, summoning his second summoned spirit, the Bright Lion.
"Little White, go!" he shouted, tapping the lion's head.
With a roar, the Bright Lion, a mighty and muscular creature, charged at the Iron Fist, its claws outstretched.
"Good! First soul skill, Mighty Ape Punch!"
Having already studied his opponent's fighting style, the Iron Fist knew the Summoner's tactics and used his first soul skill to meet the Bright Lion head-on. His fists, glowing with golden light, collided with the lion's claws.
"Boom!"
The Bright Lion was sent flying backward by the force of the punch, landing heavily on the arena floor. Meanwhile, the Iron Fist only took a single step back, stabilizing his stance.
In the first exchange, it appeared that the Bright Lion was at a disadvantage.
However, this was not the case. The Bright Lion, a thousand-year-old summoned spirit, was far stronger than the 29th-level Beast Soul Master, Iron Fist. Even though the Iron Fist had used a powerful soul skill, his strength was nowhere near enough to match the Bright Lion.
If it came to raw power, even Dai Mubai, with his White Tiger martial soul and level 35 Soul King rank, would only barely be able to hold his own against the Bright Lion. The Mighty Ape, a beast with only an advanced-grade martial soul, was no match for it, even with his enhancement technique.
This was all part of Chu Chengzhou's strategy.
When fighting in the Great Soul Arena to make money, one had to be clever. The bettors in the arena were not all fools, though some might be crazy enough to bet on anything. Most people were quite rational.
If Chu Chengzhou were to crush every opponent with overwhelming force, only a few crazy fans or people hoping for a windfall would bet on him. The odds would drop to absurd levels, and he would risk losing money.
He couldn't bring himself to throw a match, nor would he want to risk it without strong backing. But pretending to be weaker than he was? That was easy.
If every time he fought, he only barely defeated his opponent, the odds would remain high enough for him to earn a good profit. The moment everyone started betting on him to win, the odds would collapse, and he would have to find a way to make up for the loss.
Pretending to be weak was much easier than pretending to be strong.
And as a Summoner, he didn't need great acting skills. He simply had to let the Bright Lion show off its power while he held back. The lion would take the lead, pretending to struggle, and charge recklessly at the opponent.
"Roar!"
The Bright Lion shook its head, acting as if it was not as powerful as it really was, but it was resilient and stood up again, charging at the Iron Fist once more.
The Iron Fist, having already used his strongest soul skill, was now left to fight without much in his arsenal. The battle continued with the two combatants trading blows, and the crowd was captivated by the fierce struggle between the lion and the ape.
To the trained eyes of Flanders and the others in the viewing area, it was obvious that the Bright Lion was holding back, but to the average spectators, this was an intense and skillful battle between two powerful fighters.