The operation to hunt down evil soul masters was going smoothly.
With Huo Yuhao's detection abilities, in the northwestern region of the Heavenly Soul Empire, anyone who was still breathing couldn't escape the pursuit of his team.
Soul masters who would hide in this desolate wilderness were rarely even Soul Sages, let alone Soul Douluos or Titled Douluos. As such, they were completely unable to resist Huo Yuhao's group.
The truly powerful high-rank soul masters could easily change empires and identities to gain decent status and power—far better than hiding in this godforsaken wasteland.
The few Soul Sages who did stay hidden here were usually those who couldn't integrate into normal society—mentally unstable or physically mutated.
In fact, many of the soul masters they killed weren't evil soul masters in the narrow sense.
In the broader sense, evil soul masters refer to wicked soul masters—not just those who possess inherently evil martial souls.
But anyone who deserved death—none escaped it.
All were killed. Not one was wrongly executed.
Along the way, Huo Yuhao's team also came to understand the diversity of evil soul masters.
Compared to those of the Holy Spirit Cult, the evil soul masters hidden here were far more savage and base.
Soil from poor mountains and cursed rivers only breeds bitter fruit.
Many evil soul masters hiding here could no longer even be called human—their humanity had been thoroughly twisted and obliterated.
Huo Yuhao's group wiped out yet another small gang. But there were no smiles on their faces anymore—only barely suppressed killing intent.
For example, in the camp of the gang they just wiped out, many women were found who had been abducted. These women were not only used as playthings, but also as food reserves. Even worse, the children born from them were used as cultivation materials for evil soul masters.
When the evil soul masters were killed and the women rescued, those who still retained some sanity chose to take their own lives. Those who didn't were either driven insane or completely numb.
Looking at the remaining women, Huo Yuhao stepped forward. Lifting a hand, he concentrated spiritual power at his fingertip and gently tapped one woman's forehead.
The woman, previously like a walking corpse, regained clarity—light returned to her eyes.
But before Huo Yuhao could ask her anything, she rasped hoarsely from her throat:
"Kill… me… please… I beg you…"
Her voice carried both resolve and desperation.
And she wasn't the only one. Every woman, once awakened, begged for death.
Xiao Xiao covered her face, burying her head into Wang Dong'er's chest, sobbing softly.
Wang Dong'er shut her eyes in anguish.
The rest of the team couldn't bear to look either. They all turned away.
Huo Yuhao sighed, then released a poisonous gas that let the women close their eyes peacefully, without pain.
The gas contained a trace of joy, causing a faint smile to appear on each woman's face.
After lives filled with suffering, they finally felt a moment of happiness upon release.
This wasn't the first time Huo Yuhao's group had encountered something like this. After wiping out so many evil soul master camps, they had seen countless filthy and dark scenes.
Even Jiang Nannan, who came from a modest background, had never imagined that such suffering existed in the world.
As for Xiao Xiao, Wang Dong'er, and Meng Hongchen—who had grown up pampered and surrounded by love and light—this was a complete shattering of their worldviews.
Even Xu Sanshi and Cao Jinxuan, with stronger mental fortitude, wore grave and complex expressions.
Huo Yuhao glanced at everyone silently. These dark events didn't disturb him too much. He believed that once he controlled the entire Douluo Continent, everyone would be able to smile.
In fact, he thought that exposing his teammates to such darkness might help guide their development in unexpected ways.
When someone's worldview is shaken, it often leaves room for influence and control.
Along the way, Huo Yuhao also collected many wicked souls—much more ferocious than ordinary ghosts.
People fear ghosts, but even ghosts fear the malice of human hearts.
Even evil beings are afraid of worse evil.
Of course, Huo Yuhao wasn't getting lost in the "game" of bandit-hunting. He had been continuously using his Frost Centipede Martial Soul to search underground for the ruins of the Slaughter City.
Back then, Slaughter City was hidden underground. Because of this, after ten thousand years, the ruins buried deep beneath the earth had rarely been visited and remained almost untouched.
They should be well-preserved.
Unfortunately, perhaps due to the erosion of time—or his own inadequate cultivation—Huo Yuhao's spiritual sight hadn't found any trace of it.
So he had to rely on the slowest and dumbest method: sending his Frost Centipede deeper and deeper underground to search bit by bit.
Finally, his efforts bore fruit.
Today, the Frost Centipede discovered a patch of poisoned soil in the underground depths.
Ten thousand years ago, Tang San—the God King—used the Snow Swan Kiss to destroy Slaughter City, which caused massive toxin contamination. Aside from the Nine-Headed Bat King, no one survived.
Thus, discovering soil contaminated by toxins meant he was close to the ruins of Slaughter City.
"If my deductions are correct, the poisoned soil must be the result of the toxins released by the Snow Swan Kiss. Is this the power of an immortal herb? Even after ten thousand years, its effects still linger," Huo Yuhao couldn't help but marvel.
The Snow Swan Kiss wasn't toxic itself, but it could amplify other toxins a hundred- or thousandfold. And Slaughter City contained a unique poison used to control its fallen denizens.
When the Snow Swan Kiss was thrown into Slaughter City, it was like a spark igniting gasoline—utter devastation followed.
Not only did it destroy Slaughter City, but its aftermath persists even now.
The Snow Swan Kiss is a treasure to poison-type soul masters—but also a curse. It can make their techniques terrifyingly powerful, but it can also trigger the toxins within their own bodies.
If mishandled, it could lead to a painful death from poison.
Even Huo Yuhao didn't dare to be careless.
After the Frost Centipede detected the poisoned soil, Huo Yuhao began remotely controlling it—cautiously having it absorb the toxins while exploring deeper.
If any remnants of the Snow Swan Kiss remained and touched the Frost Centipede, it would be in serious danger.
"The next question," Huo Yuhao thought, "is how to go deeper into the ruins of Slaughter City and find what I need. And once I find it, how do I shake these people off and explore alone?"
He glanced at his teammates, deep in thought.
There was a way.
"Looks like I'll have to pin the blame on those 'useful' evil soul masters again~"
Huo Yuhao behaved as if nothing had happened. As usual, he continued leading his teammates deeper into the northwest region, hunting down the remaining Evil Soul Master groups hidden in the area.
Now, when Wang Dong'er and the others faced Evil Soul Masters, they showed no mercy, as if releasing the fury and killing intent pent up in their hearts.
After so many Evil Soul Master groups had been slaughtered by Huo Yuhao's squad, the remaining ones were certainly not oblivious.
Instead of fleeing, they chose to join forces to target Huo Yuhao and his group directly.
Huo Yuhao had detected this situation through his spiritual power.
With the current strength of his mental abilities, almost nothing in this desolate region could escape his surveillance.
After all, if the Evil Soul Masters wanted to flee, their only route would be toward the ocean. Without being Sea Soul Masters, surviving in the sea would be extremely difficult.
Moreover, in the eyes of the Evil Soul Masters, this barren land was their territory. They were unwilling to simply flee.
But a pile of trash gathered together was still just trash—only making it easier for Huo Yuhao's team to eliminate them.
Therefore, Huo Yuhao decided to strengthen these Evil Soul Masters—at least temporarily.
Nightfall.
A six-man soul master group huddled in a wind-sheltered valley. They warmed themselves by a fire while roasting and eating meat.
Not all six were Evil Martial Soul users, but all were fugitives, each listed on the wanted lists of the Three Kingdoms of Douluo. Their actions were even more cruel and bloodthirsty than those of the Evil Soul Masters.
The meat they were eating at the moment? Their "rations"—human flesh.
In this barren, godforsaken land, there were no wild soul beasts to provide meat. But once they discarded their humanity, human flesh was available in abundance.
They were on their way to rendezvous with other Evil Soul Master groups to ambush the soul master squad that had recently entered the northwest region. They didn't know exactly who the enemy was, only that this squad intended to annihilate them.
So they decided to strike first, to kill this team completely, and prolong their own miserable existence in this wasteland.
Not knowing if they would make it back, they had taken out all their "rations." Recently, they had been eating well—plump and greasy.
Just as the six of them were enjoying their meal, a cold wind suddenly blew past, threading through them. Instantly, they became alert.
This was a well-sheltered area. How could there possibly be wind? What was worse, within that wind, faint crying sounds could be heard—clearly something was wrong.
But their alertness came too late.
Whoosh—
The eerie wind passed through their bodies. All six of them shuddered. When they opened their eyes again, dark shadows ringed their eye sockets, and a crimson glow flickered in their pupils.
They were possessed by ghosts.
A new day dawned.
"Up ahead is where those soul masters are planning to ambush us," Huo Yuhao said, pointing toward a group of hills.
Naturally, Huo Yuhao did not hide the fact that an ambush awaited them. On the contrary, he planned to use this ambush to eliminate the enemy completely.
"Those damn bastards, I'm going to crush every bone in their bodies!" Xu Sanshi growled.
Recent bloodshed had made Xu Sanshi more irritable and bloodthirsty.
But no one else thought anything was wrong.
Because everyone shared the same thought—they wanted to wipe out this entire group of soul masters.
"I used to think only Evil Soul Masters were evil," Jiang Nannan said quietly. "But now I realize, compared to truly wicked people, Evil Soul Masters are nothing."
"Huo Yuhao, take us in and kill them all. Leave no one alive!" Wang Dong'er said seriously.
Everyone was ready for battle.
"Alright. Stick to the plan. This time—for justice—no sinner shall escape!" Huo Yuhao said grimly.
Everyone nodded solemnly and followed him into action.
In the hills—
Dozens of soul masters were hiding here. Some were Evil Soul Masters, others were criminals.
They had once been wary of and hostile toward each other, but now they were strangely united.
Their goal was singular: to wipe out the soul master team that dared to come after them.
Even the Heavenly Soul Empire hadn't dared to send troops here. Yet this soul master team had come to hunt them? They would not take it lying down.
Others had tried to bring justice before, but these sly soul masters always used the terrain to escape.
But Huo Yuhao and his squad seemed to have some kind of tracking radar—every kill was precise, no one could hide.
If they kept hiding, they'd be picked off one by one.
Left with no choice, they united to fight back.
Knowing Huo Yuhao's team had special tracking methods, they didn't hide too deep. Instead, they chose a spot along the expected path and prepared an ambush.
As they crouched in wait—
Fog began to rise around the hills.
More precisely, it was poison mist!
Huo Yuhao and Meng Hongchen had joined forces to release a massive amount of toxic mist, encircling the entire hill.
It seemed like Huo Yuhao's team was walking into a trap—but in fact, they were the ones setting it.
"Attack!"
A low cry came from within the poisonous fog—Huo Yuhao's voice.
The next second, Wang Dong'er charged out first, followed by the others, launching a surprise attack on the hill from the rear.
With Huo Yuhao's precise control, his teammates were unharmed by the mist. On the contrary, the toxic fog acted as their shield.
It drifted with them up the hill, covering soil and stones with a layer of frosty white, adding to the eerie atmosphere.
"We've been exposed! Fight back!"
The leading Evil Soul Master—a rare Seven-Ring Soul Sage in this region—shouted.
With his cry, the soul masters hiding in the hills leapt out to fight.
But by shouting, the Soul Sage revealed himself as their leader.
The next second, the ground beneath him cracked open, and a mutated Frost Centipede Soul appeared, biting down on him. With a powerful snap, it severed him in two.
The Soul Sage only had time for a single scream.
Just as expected—a pile of trash. And they dared resist?
Even the weakest in Huo Yuhao's team, Cao Jinxuan, could use his soul tools to slaughter them with ease.
The soul masters who had planned to ambush Huo Yuhao's team began to fall rapidly.
Just as Wang Dong'er and the others thought the battle would end smoothly—
Among the last dozen or so enemies, a sinister aura suddenly erupted.
Evil Soul Master energy!
One soul master turned and bit into his companion, draining all the blood from their body.
After drinking the blood, his soul power surged.
Five more figures took to the air, all exuding dark energy. Each had at least Soul Douluo-level power. Two even had Titled Douluo soul power fluctuations.
"Impossible! How can there be such powerful Evil Soul Masters here?!" Wang Dong'er exclaimed in shock.
One of the Evil Soul Masters let out a raspy laugh and said:
"Shrek Academy brats... We've been waiting for you. Now, it's time for you to die! Keh keh keh—Jie jie jie"
Huo Yuhao and the others turned grim.
Their enemies were here specifically for them.
Four soul masters floated in the sky, their bodies emanating sinister black energy—clearly evil soul masters.
On the ground, one remaining soul master was frantically draining the blood of others, rapidly growing stronger. His behavior unmistakably marked him as one of the evil soul masters.
"The Holy Spirit Sect! That's right, these are evil soul masters from the Holy Spirit Sect!"
Huo Yuhao "deduced" the identities of the five sudden attackers and "analyzed" their motives.
"The evil soul masters of the Holy Spirit Sect must have infiltrated the Heavenly Soul Empire. They're likely trying to unite the hidden evil soul masters here and expand their power to disrupt the peace of the continent!"
"Jie jie jie… Didn't expect you to figure it out. That just means we can't let you live!"
One of the airborne evil soul masters cackled and admitted to Huo Yuhao's claim.
"Remember—those who are about to kill you are the Four Ghosts of the Huang Clan!"
Everyone, including Wang Dong'er, believed it, their eyes burning with fury as they glared at the five evil soul masters from the so-called "Holy Spirit Sect."
"Again with the Holy Spirit Sect. Damn it!"
Wang Dong'er cursed angrily.
Everyone stood united in hatred. Even Meng Hongchen wore a look of rage. She actually had no grudge against the Holy Spirit Sect, but looking angry like everyone else worked just fine. Besides, she didn't particularly like evil soul masters either.
Huo Yuhao sneered coldly at the sky.
"You think a few bottom-feeders like you can take us down? Don't make me laugh!"
"I'll handle the four in the sky. You guys take care of the ones on the ground."
"Frost Centipede Armor, equip!"
As soon as he spoke, Huo Yuhao soared into the air. The Frost Centipede Armor materialized on his body, and with the Frost Centipede Spear in hand, he charged toward the four evil soul masters in the sky—unstoppable like a blade.
He faced four enemies alone without hesitation.
Among the airborne foes, two were at Titled Douluo level, and the other two were Soul Douluo level. In terms of raw power, Huo Yuhao was more than a match.
On the ground, Wang Dong'er and the others didn't sit idle. They engaged the remaining evil soul masters.
Especially their focus was on the one rapidly growing stronger by feeding on blood.
Though his soul power was only at the Soul Sage level—the weakest among the "Holy Spirit Sect"—his rate of growth made it clear that he was not simple and had to be stopped before he fully matured.
That so-called weakest member had a ghost spirit possessing him—its martial soul was the Darkgold Three-Headed Bat King, and her name was Cain.
Xu Sanshi took the lead, charging at Cain with his Xuanming Shield. Unexpectedly, Cain didn't dodge—instead, she rushed forward to meet the blow.
With a loud bang, Cain was knocked flying.
Xu Sanshi sneered in disdain—until the next second, when his expression drastically changed. He quickly looked at his shield.
Only then did he notice something was wrong.
His Xuanming Shield now bore two deep gashes, with strange black energy lingering in the cuts.
"What is this power?! It even broke through my Xuanming Shield's defense?"
Xu Sanshi was horrified.
Everyone else was equally shocked. They knew how powerful the defense of Xu Sanshi's martial soul was.
Seeing it breached, no one dared to underestimate Cain any longer.
Cain, who had been knocked back, twisted her body and stood back up. The wounds were trivial—so long as her soul body remained intact, she could keep fighting.
Moreover, her ghost spirit greatly enhanced the host's body, making it far more durable—certainly not someone Xu Sanshi could take out with one hit.
In fact, the damage to the Xuanming Shield wasn't due to Cain being weak—it was because her fangs weren't long enough.
Yes, those two gashes were actually made by Cain's teeth.
Her martial soul, the Darkgold Three-Headed Bat King, was no weaker than a divine-beast-level awakened martial soul like the Xuanwu Shield. It was rarer, and its abilities were far more insidious.
Originally just an eerie martial soul, Cain's transformation into a ghost spirit altered it.
It gained three innate talents: Blood Drain, Venom, and Curse. The curse allowed Cain to bypass most defenses and apply lingering, hard-to-remove destructive effects.
Cain had belonged to Mingyu Sect, a soul engineer sect under the Sun-Moon Empire, based in Mingdu with a notable reputation.
During the Holy Spirit Sect's purge of the teams leaving Mingdu after the tournament, Mingyu Sect's team was wiped out—proving they had tried to flee.
The reason was simple: Mingyu Sect had once been loyal to Xu Tiannan, and missed the chance to pledge allegiance to Xu Tiancheng. They had been one of the factions manipulated by Juzi pretending to be Xu Tiannan.
With Xu Tiancheng on the throne, Mingyu Sect had to find a new path—defecting to one of the other three empires was natural.
Back during the tournament, Cain's younger brother, Ade, had even shared a friendly conversation with Huo Yuhao.
But weakness offers no choices.
Now, Xu Tiancheng had awakened his fourth martial soul—the Bloodsucking Bat King, which was Mingyu Sect's own inherited soul.
Mingyu Sect's fate was sealed—it would become Xu Tiancheng's new nourishment.
Such is the nature of power struggles: choose the wrong side, and you face annihilation. One wrong step, and all is lost.
Yet Brother Hao was merciful. He recognized Cain's talent and—out of respect for Ade's contributions to Xu Tiancheng's growth—gave Mingyu Sect's members a path to reunite in the Elysium.
As Cain rose from the ground, seven soul rings—yellow, yellow, purple, purple, black, black, red—appeared on her body.
Cain originally had only six rings, but Huo Yuhao had trained her personally due to her unique gifts. He hadn't stored her in the Ghost Banner Martial Soul, instead choosing to nurture her separately.
Drawing from the Grand Eunuch's training methods for Zhou Yi, Huo Yuhao not only preserved Cain's talents but also made her stronger.
Now she had advanced to seven rings, and her ghost body was far more formidable, bearing a 100,000-year seventh ring.
Huo Yuhao had even fed her many ghosts for this purpose.
Cain's seventh soul ring began to glow.
"Seventh Soul Skill: Martial Soul True Body!"
A blood-red glow enveloped her, forming a blood cocoon.
Wang Dong'er and the others panicked and launched attacks to break the cocoon—but their strikes failed to penetrate it.
After only three seconds, the cocoon split open.
In its place appeared a massive, ten-meter-winged blood-red bat with three heads, its fur glowing dark-gold.
It didn't look grotesque—rather, it had an eerie regal aura, the noble air of a high-level being.
With her Martial Soul True Body activated, Cain dove downward, baring her fangs at Wang Dong'er and the others.
After what had happened to Xu Sanshi, none of them dared to underestimate her—but still chose to face her head-on.
Wang Dong'er's seventh soul ring also began to shine.
"Seventh Soul Skill: Martial Soul True Body!"
Brilliant golden light radiated from her, clashing directly with Cain's blood-red energy.
In an instant, both forces surged across the battlefield.
The moment the true form of the Light Goddess Butterfly, with a wingspan of five meters, descended upon the hilltop, the oppressive and gloomy atmosphere enveloping the hill was swept away in an instant.
Each time the dazzling butterfly fluttered its wings, it scattered golden rain-like light, dispelling the ominous blood-red aura.
Even though the Light Goddess Butterfly's true form was smaller than the Darkgold Three-headed Bat King's true form, the aura it emitted was in no way inferior.
Moreover, compared to the elegant, demonic presence the Darkgold Three-headed Bat King had previously exuded, it now appeared far more sinister and vile in contrast to the radiant Light Goddess Butterfly.
The golden light rain filling the sky also had a powerful restraining effect on Cain, constantly dissolving the blood aura she released. Cain instinctively backed away, trying to avoid the light.
Still, she didn't give up on her assault.
The strength of her opponent only further provoked her brutality.
The fifth soul ring encircling her martial soul's true form glowed, and all three mouths of the Darkgold Three-headed Bat King opened simultaneously, unleashing a silent roar at the Light Goddess Butterfly.
Fifth Soul Skill: Gospel Shatters the Heavens!
This soundwave-type soul skill unleashed a powerful single-target attack.
Naturally, Wang Dong'er wasn't afraid. Her own fifth soul ring also began to shine.
Fifth Soul Skill: Butterfly Goddess Dance!
The massive Light Goddess Butterfly rose into the sky and instantly transformed into a radiant stream of blue-golden light that shot toward Cain.
Cain's soundwave collided with Wang Dong'er's light stream mid-air, causing a tremendous explosion that neutralized both attacks.
When the light stream exploded, Wang Dong'er reappeared unscathed—but the scattered fragments of light turned into numerous miniature Light Goddess Butterflies that immediately surrounded Cain and self-destructed.
Butterfly Goddess Dance had a second phase!
Cain let out a scream. The explosive little butterflies carried light attributes that were especially effective against her ghostly body.
"Now's our chance!"
Xu Sanshi seized the opportunity and surged forward, forcibly fusing his first four soul rings into a single pitch-black ring to awaken the power of his Xuanwu bloodline.
"Xuanwu Roar!!"
His Xuanming Shield evolved into the Xuanwu Shield, whose carved Xuanwu emitted a deep roar. Instantly, Cain felt as if she had fallen into a sticky swamp, her movements dulled and her consciousness cut off for three seconds.
Jiang Nannan, Xiao Xiao, Meng Hongchen, and Cao Jinxuan launched a coordinated barrage right after, concentrating their attacks on Cain.
The joint strike succeeded in knocking Cain to the ground, prompting delighted expressions on everyone's faces.
"We did it!" Xiao Xiao cheered.
But after landing, Cain regained her consciousness. Her fourth soul ring shone, and the Darkgold Three-headed Bat King split into three one-headed darkgold bats.
Though each bat still bore wounds, they were far less severe than before, and all three quickly regained combat capabilities.
Fourth Soul Skill: Triple Rhapsody!
This skill split her into three clones. Though the power of each clone decreased, as long as one remained, the main body wouldn't die. The split also mitigated damage and accelerated healing.
Losing a clone meant losing a head, but the heads could regenerate over time.
Most importantly, each clone could still use the first three soul skills!
The three clones displayed their soul rings—three glowing rings each:
First Soul Skill: Bloodthirsty Speed!
Increases speed by 20%.
Second Soul Skill: Bloodthirsty Defense!
Increases defense by 20%.
Third Soul Skill: Bloodthirsty Fury!
Increases attack by 30%.
All three also triggered the Blooddrinker Innate Talent: when this trait is active, any damage dealt to enemies or blood absorbed from them restores Cain's own stamina and injuries.
This Blooddrinker talent, like the Curse talent, was developed after Cain was trained by Huo Yuhao.
The three bat clones flew over the hill. Attracted by the spilled blood, the blood soaked into the soil and corpses began to rise and flow into the bats' mouths. The injuries on their bodies visibly healed.
Among the evil soul masters on the hill, none besides Cain remained alive.
Seeing Cain still able to regenerate, Wang Dong'er and the others grew anxious.
"Let me handle this!"
Meng Hongchen activated her seventh soul ring to enter Martial Soul True Form, then unleashed a massive wave of deadly poison at the bats.
However, her poison had little effect.
Cain's third innate talent was Toxic Immunity, making her highly resistant to all kinds of poison.
Seeing this, Xiao Xiao also entered her Martial Soul True Form.
A colossal Soul Suppression Cauldron descended from the sky.
With three martial soul true forms surrounding Cain—each bringing offense, control, support, and the light element that counters ghostly beings—Cain was finally in true danger.
The three bats reunited, allowing Cain to regain her strongest form to face her enemies.
By now, her wounds had healed almost completely, and she was cautious of Xu Sanshi. It was unlikely he could use Xuanwu Roar again anytime soon.
Wang Dong'er and the others had no choice but to rely on sheer power to take her down.
High in the sky, Huo Yuhao had been fighting four evil soul masters. He looked toward the hill and silently acknowledged Cain's strength.
Cain had an excellent foundation, and under his training, she had grown formidable.
"But if this continues, Cain will lose. It's time to move on to the next phase."
Just then, the four evil soul masters fighting Huo Yuhao unleashed a secret technique.
Three of them flew to the side of one titled Douluo-level evil soul master and sacrificed themselves, injecting all their energy into him.
Their corpses fell instantly.
The remaining evil soul master's soul power surged, instantly rising from ordinary Titled Douluo to Super Douluo!
This was a secret art—Four Ghosts as One.
Ghost merging with ghost—stacked four deep. Even a heavenly master would shudder.
This ghost fusion affected the possessed body too, twisting it grotesquely. The host grew white hair, long black claws, pale blue skin, and fangs protruded from the mouth.
"Roar!!"
The evil soul master let out a bestial roar and lunged at Huo Yuhao. Just his claws alone sliced the air with explosive force.
Huo Yuhao narrowed his eyes and stood ready, his dragon spear gleaming as he prepared for the incoming onslaught.
Their battle in mid-air caused shockwaves that disrupted the battle below.
Wang Dong'er's team's encirclement of Cain faltered.
Cain seized the opportunity, turning and fleeing from the toxic mist. Without a glance back, she disappeared from the battlefield.
Though the group wanted to give chase, they hesitated due to concerns about Huo Yuhao's aerial battle.
Huo Yuhao then shouted from above, "I'll hold him off—go after the evil soul master! She must not escape!"
The group exchanged looks, then trusted Huo Yuhao and pursued Cain without hesitation.
"Hang in there, Huo Yuhao! We'll finish off the bat and come back to help you!" Wang Dong'er shouted.
Ultimately, Huo Yuhao never received support from Wang Dong'er.
Because Huo Yuhao turned around, dispelled the fusion of the four fierce spirits, and recalled them. He then headed toward the ruins of Slaughter City.
The fusion of the four fierce spirits inevitably damaged their ghostly bodies. Fortunately, the damage could be healed inside the Hao Emperor Banner.
Otherwise, losing two Titled Douluo-level ghosts and two Soul Douluo-level ghosts just for this would've been too much of a loss for Huo Yuhao.
It's not that Brother Hao is unwilling to expend resources—it's just about knowing when to save and when to spend. Use your best steel on the sharpest edge.
That's what makes Brother Hao a practical guy.
By the time Huo Yuhao arrived at the ruins of Slaughter City, Cain's soul had also returned to him.
Cain had abandoned the body she possessed, faked her death in front of Wang Dong'er and the others, and escaped through the ground. Though she was inevitably burned by light-element power, her core was unharmed and would fully recover with time.
Huo Yuhao checked Cain's gains and found them substantial. By absorbing a large amount of blood, Cain's physical body had strengthened significantly—getting much closer to the Soul Douluo level. This saved a lot of cultivation time and resources for both Cain and Huo Yuhao.
Cain may not have been an Evil Soul Master in the past, but she definitely was one now. Her Darkgolden Three-Headed Bat King Martial Soul had also been corrupted into an evil-type martial soul, with increased power.
Practicing through blood absorption—the hallmark of an evil soul master.
"I can feed Cain some higher-quality blood later. That would help her progress faster and maybe even take her to the next level."
"Coincidentally, Dai Hao's tiger blood is useless to me now. Aside from tasting it, it no longer helps evolve my White Tiger bloodline. I'll give it to Cain."
"A Darkgolden Three-Headed Bat King cultivated with divine beast blood will become the nightmare of all beast-bloodline soul masters and soul beasts!"
Satisfied, Huo Yuhao reabsorbed Cain's ghostly form.
"Next, let's explore these ruins of Slaughter City."
"Wang Dong'er and the others will definitely be searching anxiously for me. I don't have much time—I must accomplish my goal quickly. Otherwise, I'll have to come back another time."
With a clear plan in mind, Huo Yuhao moved.
Using the tunnel dug by his Mutant Frost Centipede Martial Soul, he entered the underground.
As he approached the poisonous soil, Huo Yuhao raised his left hand, activating a golden light membrane that enveloped his body.
This golden shield, activated by his left-hand Heavenly Dream Remnant, was a defensive light membrane—an additional ability from the Heavenly Gourd. It could externalize the gourd's effect to enclose Huo Yuhao in an isolated space, shielding him from outside dangers.
Not very useful in combat—since it also blocked his own attacks and wasn't the strongest defense—but excellent for isolation. It repelled water, fire, poison, and wind, with almost magical effectiveness.
Huo Yuhao used it precisely to guard against the unknown dangers of the ruins—especially the Snowy Swan Kiss poison. Better safe than sorry.
No matter how deadly the Snowy Swan Kiss, if it couldn't penetrate the shield, it couldn't harm him.
As he went deeper underground, the surrounding poisoned soil took on a dangerous bloody-red hue.
"If I'm not mistaken, this red poison is the unique toxin of Slaughter City, activated by the Snowy Swan Kiss. The city's signature drink—Bloody Mary—was known to be toxic," Huo Yuhao speculated as he descended.
Curious, Huo Yuhao had long since collected and studied samples of the toxin.
Replicating it wasn't difficult—it's a highly addictive poison. At high concentrations, it's instantly lethal, but mass production would consume a lot of blood.
In short—not very useful to Huo Yuhao.
During his descent, he continuously stimulated his own Fate Luck, making his Destiny fate star shine ever brighter.
"Fate has arrived—will opportunity remain hidden?"
The former Slaughter City had been completely buried under collapsed earth. Excavation was the only way to enter.
Huo Yuhao didn't dare use earth-type techniques freely, as doing so would mean leaving his protective shield and exposing himself to the poisonous soil—possibly still contaminated by Snowy Swan Kiss.
So he relied on the centipede leg clones of his Frost Centipede Martial Soul to dig inch by inch.
As expected, the deeper he went, the more problems arose—the centipede clones couldn't withstand the toxic surroundings and began to corrode.
These legs were imbued with Ultimate Ice soul power, which should theoretically counteract poison.
But the toxicity was too concentrated, wearing down the ice until it could no longer protect the clones—allowing the poison to attack them directly.
If the clones hadn't been durable, they would've instantly dissolved into pus.
Still, Huo Yuhao didn't retreat. As long as the clones weren't destroyed instantly and could continue digging, he would proceed.
After all, his centipede had many legs, and he could produce many clones.
Once inside the ruins, Huo Yuhao's Qi-Gazing Technique finally began working again—he could now detect hidden energies.
Previously, it hadn't helped locate the ruins, likely due to some interference.
"If my Qi-Gazing can be interfered with… does that mean I may have missed other good stuff in the past?" Huo Yuhao suddenly felt like he'd lost a fortune.
Indeed, digging up treasure couldn't stop now.
Carefully examining the energies, he discovered two especially unique locations:
One higher up, exuding Slaughter energy.
One deeper down, radiating evil aura.
"Could these be the legacies of the Asura God and the Rakshasa God?" Huo Yuhao narrowed his eyes and chose to explore the lower location first—likely linked to the Rakshasa God.
Who knew what would happen if he messed with the Asura God's relic—Tang San might notice from the God Realm. Better to secure the base reward first.
Although Bibi Dong, the Rakshasa God, had died, her divine position hadn't shattered, so its inheritance might still exist.
Bibi Dong had received the Rakshasa God's trials in Slaughter City—perhaps there was more hidden here.
To investigate, Huo Yuhao summoned Electrolux and the Holy Spirit Feathered Serpent, two teammates with high discernment.
After sacrificing three centipede leg clones, he reached the suspected Rakshasa site.
Digging around the ruins, he uncovered stone blocks etched with strange symbols—fragments of broken sculptures.
"Old Yi, Ling'er, take a look—do we have any treasures here?" Huo Yuhao asked, activating his Holy Eyes like searchlights.
He could tell something was off—but not what, exactly.
The Holy Spirit Feathered Serpent spoke first after examining the area:
"Brother Hao… the stuff you've found here is really good at opening doors, huh."