The moment they stepped into the pillar of blood-red light, Ye Yu felt a sudden spatial distortion.
In the blink of an eye, he found himself transported to another location.
The surrounding environment was instantly plunged into darkness.
Although Slaughter City itself was quite dim, the constant illumination from the crimson full moon overhead at least made things visible.
But here—this place was nearly pitch black.
The only source of light came from a mighty, surging Blood River below, glowing faintly red, barely casting any illumination in this abyssal space.
Of course...
For Ye Yu—who had cultivated the Purple Demon Eye and consumed the immortal herb Full Moon Wearing Autumn Dew—this was no problem.
Upon activating the Purple Demon Eye, the hellish landscape before him became as clear as day.
"Anlan, are you okay?"
As her senses recovered from the disorientation of spatial transfer, Hu Liena shook her head hard, then turned her alluring and beautiful face toward Ye Yu with deep concern.
"I'm fine," Ye Yu replied calmly, offering a slight smile.
Then he turned his gaze ahead.
At the moment, Ye Yu and Hu Liena stood on a circular platform about five meters in diameter.
Surrounding them was a bottomless abyss.
Below, only the Blood River flowed violently and endlessly through the dark chasm.
Directly ahead lay a narrow path—no more than two feet wide—just enough for one person to stand with both feet side-by-side. It stretched forward into the unknown darkness.
Clearly, this was the Hell Road.
"So this is the Hell Road, huh?" Hu Liena murmured. "It's so narrow!"
Lighting a torch, Hu Liena stepped lightly forward, her graceful figure moving with elegance as she approached the edge where the platform connected with the path.
Seeing the width of the road, she couldn't help but complain.
"It's probably part of the trial," Ye Yu said evenly.
Then, he pulled out a long rope from his storage-type Soul Tool and tied one end around his left arm, handing the other end to Hu Liena.
Seeing her momentary confusion, Ye Yu explained:
"This road is really narrow. If something happens, it'd be easy for someone to fall."
"If we're tied together, one can pull the other up if they fall."
"Anlan, you're so thoughtful!"
Even though Hu Liena had an external Spirit Bone—the Fox Tail, which could anchor into walls like a mace and help her recover from a fall—she was still moved by the consideration in Ye Yu's gesture.
Warmth and admiration filled her heart.
"It's nothing. Let's get moving."
With a faint smile, Ye Yu turned his gaze toward the depths of the Hell Road and took the lead, beginning to run forward.
Hu Liena kept pace right behind him.
On the Hell Road,
Time passed unnoticed as Ye Yu ran for nearly an hour.
Yet the end of the road was still nowhere in sight.
Though Ye Yu felt no fatigue thanks to his exceptional physical endurance and recovery abilities, he noticed the signs of wear on Hu Liena.
Her gorgeous face had grown flushed; beads of sweat glistened on her forehead, and her breathing had grown labored and heavy.
Ye Yu came to a stop and turned to her.
"Let's take a break," he said. "Eat something. Drink some water. Regain your strength."
"Okay." Hu Liena nodded gratefully, her eyes full of appreciation.
Anlan really pays attention… he even noticed I was getting tired...
"Here."
Sitting down on the Hell Road, Ye Yu retrieved some rations and a cup of clean water from his Blue Silver Space and handed them to Hu Liena.
"Thank you," she said, accepting the food and water and beginning to nibble slowly, drinking between bites.
Hu Liena couldn't help being curious.
Where was Ye Yu getting all this food and water?
Before entering Slaughter City, she had packed as much as she could into her storage-type Soul Tool, after getting a briefing from Bibi Dong about the city's conditions.
Still, the space was limited, and since the constant death matches in the Slaughter Arena often left one injured, eating and drinking properly were essential to healing.
Despite being frugal, she had exhausted her supplies in less than three months.
Yet Ye Yu had continued to eat dry rations and clean water brought in from outside—without ever seeming to run out.
Just how many storage tools was he carrying?
While she pondered this, Ye Yu casually pulled out his own portion of food and water and began to eat and drink, at the same time using the Purple Demon Eye to scan their surroundings for any threat.
Unbeknownst to them, they were already approaching the territory of the Blood-Colored Bat Swarm.
Up ahead, hanging from the cavernous ceiling of the Hell Road, countless blood-colored bats clung upside down in the shadows.
Among them, one bat stood out—over four meters in length, its razor-sharp claws spanning over a meter wide, its body a deep metallic gold, with massive wings and three heads.
It was the Dark Golden Three-Headed Bat King.
The instant it caught the scent of Ye Yu and Hu Liena, the entire swarm stirred.
In the darkness, thousands of blood-colored bats opened their crimson eyes, shrieking sharp "Screee!" sounds.
In a flurry of wings, they rose into the air like a crimson storm, blotting out the sky as they surged toward Ye Yu and Hu Liena's direction.
Far ahead, Ye Yu spotted the oncoming swarm through the Purple Demon Eye.
He quickly finished eating and drinking, then stood up and turned to Hu Liena to warn her.
But at that moment…
Having run for so long and gotten warm, Hu Liena had removed her golden outer robe.
She was now down to a light-gold inner garment—a sleeveless crop top that exposed large areas of her fair, slightly flushed skin.
Below, she had replaced her long skirt with a pair of white hotpants, accentuating her curvaceous, toned figure.
When Hu Liena noticed Ye Yu looking her way, a shy blush spread across her alluring face.
Despite her bashfulness, after nearly a year of traveling together in Slaughter City, she had long since developed deep feelings for Ye Yu.
With his appearance, strength, and constant care, her admiration had become love.
And so—even in her embarrassment—she stood a bit straighter, letting her full curves stand proud under his gaze.
Although compared to Zhu Zhuqing or Ye Lingling, Hu Liena's figure was also impressive, it still fell slightly short in sheer scale.