Coincidentally—
After Tang Chen was controlled by the Blood-Red Nine-Headed Bat King, his Slaughter God Domain evolved into the Slaughter Domain, which had the ability to forbid the use of soul skills.
So...
Was the City of Slaughter's ban on soul skills actually the effect of an enormous Slaughter Domain covering the entire city?
Tang Lan had roughly estimated earlier that the City of Slaughter was at least as large as Heaven Dou City, if not bigger.
Maintaining a domain of this scale for thousands of years without it dissipating...
This...
God of Shura, truly terrifying!
"I don't like the atmosphere here." Xue Di frowned. "I'm heading back."
"Me too." Bing Di followed.
After Tang Lan nodded, they both returned to his spiritual world.
Meanwhile, Tang Hao gave a brief explanation.
"There are only two things you need to keep in mind."
"First—there are law enforcers in the city. They have the permission of the Slaughter King to use soul skills freely. The weakest of them are Spirit Douluos, and their leader is a Titled Douluo."
Tang Hao cast a glance at Tang San.
"Don't provoke them. If you do, I'm not saving your ass."
As for Tang Lan, he said nothing more.
Even though soul skills were forbidden, soul rings could still be revealed.
Which meant—Ring Detonation was still usable.
And Tang Lan now had a million-year soul ring, as well as a 700,000-year and a 400,000-year one.
If he detonated them...
Even Tang Hao wasn't sure if his own full-powered hammer strike would be stronger than Tang Lan's.
Tang Hao continued—
"Second—know the difference between the Outer City and the Inner City."
"The Outer City strictly forbids any fighting. Anyone who violates this will be executed on the spot by the law enforcers."
"The Inner City, however, is a free-for-all. Here, even blood brothers can't fully trust each other."
Tang Hao glanced at Tang San again.
Tang San found it strange.
"Dad, why do you keep looking at me like that?"
"I trust my brother completely!"
Tang Hao smirked coldly.
—I was actually reminding Tang Lan that he can't trust you, you little brat.
Since Tang Lan would understand, Tang Hao didn't bother saying more.
"Let's go. You're on a tight schedule, right? Straight to the Hell Slaughter Arena then."
Tang Lan nodded enthusiastically.
Exactly what he wanted.
Tang Hao and the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger didn't bother concealing their presence as they walked openly down the main street.
People along the way quickly stepped aside, not even daring to glance at them.
They were terrifyingly imposing.
"Looks like in these past ten months, Dad's killed quite a few people." Tang Lan teased. "Just look at them—they're practically about to piss their pants."
"It's all because of you and your soul spirits." Tang Hao grumbled. "The Slaughter King has summoned me multiple times already. If you hadn't shown up soon, I was about to leave."
Tang Lan shrugged.
The Slaughter King sure is stingy.
Though...
I wonder what he'd do if I went on a killing spree instead?
Now that would be interesting to see.
At that moment—
Tang San stepped closer and said—
"Brother, Huangquan Dew is problematic. It messes with your mind and disrupts your internal energy. Even though you're immune to poisons, it's best to drink as little as possible."
Tang Lan nodded in agreement.
Huangquan Dew was made from human blood, but its source was the Crimson River in the City of Slaughter.
That river contained a slow-acting toxin capable of controlling a person's mind.
It was actually created by the Blood-Red Nine-Headed Bat King, which had parasitized Tang Chen, using its abilities to enslave the entire City of Slaughter.
It would be shocking if it wasn't problematic.
'But the Evil Eye can absorb Huangquan Dew...'
'I wonder if it could devour the Blood-Red Nine-Headed Bat King itself?'
'If it can, that would save me a lot of trouble.'
As he pondered,
the three humans and one beast arrived at the Hell Slaughter Arena.
With Tang Hao, one of the Slaughter Gods, standing there,
the guards at the entrance didn't even dare ask for an entry fee—they simply stepped aside.
Inside—
A wave of noise and heat surged over them. A rowdy crowd of people, all dressed differently, were cheering madly.
"Kill him!"
"Aim for the vital points!"
"A clean throat-slash! Beautiful!"
"What a gorgeous woman... what a pity."
The layout of the place was similar to a Roman Colosseum.
Down below, the arena was in utter chaos, a brutal melee where every move aimed to kill.
It was a fight to the death!
Tang San's heart pounded in shock.
"This is the Hell Slaughter Arena." Tang Hao explained. "Each match is a 10-person death battle, where only one survivor emerges victorious."
"To obtain the Slaughter God title, you need 100 consecutive wins."
"In other words—you must kill 900 people."
Tang Lan already knew the rules, so he showed no reaction.
Tang San, on the other hand, felt his eyelids twitching.
So brutal?!
He looked down again.
The two remaining fighters were both Spirit Sages (Seven Rings).
Even with their soul skills sealed, their strength was still terrifying.
Tang San, a Four-Ring Soul Sect, couldn't help but feel immense pressure at the thought of stepping into that arena!
This...
How was he supposed to fight?!
Not to mention, he only had a little over a month before he had to return to Sea God Island to complete the Sea God's Light trial.
Otherwise—
"Boom—"
His head would quite literally explode.
"Brother!" Tang San anxiously asked, "A hundred consecutive wins in just over a month... is that really possible?!"
Tang Lan laughed.
"You got one thing wrong, Xiao Sanzi."
At that moment, the fight below had just ended.
A Beast Martial Soul Spirit Sage had barely managed to kill his opponent, suffering severe injuries in the process.
Tang Lan stepped onto his ice sword and descended into the arena.
Without even looking back, he said—
"I set my own time limit—
I'll clear it in ten days."
He landed in the Hell Slaughter Arena, without wearing a mask, his youthful yet handsome face fully exposed.
Then, with a simple wave of his hand—
Ten soul bones, all radiating the aura of ten-thousand-year-old spirit beasts, floated around him.
He turned toward the crowd, his expression full of provocation.
Even though he didn't say a word,
everyone instantly understood.
—"I've got ten ten-thousand-year soul bones. Whoever can kill me gets them."
Among the ruthless fugitives here, who was here willingly?
They had all been forced into this place, with nowhere else to go.
Simply put—this was a city of desperate outcasts.
When had they ever seen such a tempting offer?
Immediately, nine people leaped into the Hell Slaughter Arena, eyes filled with greed.
Those who hesitated for even a fraction of a second were left pounding their chests in regret.
—How could I be so slow?!
But they didn't leave. Instead, they sat back down to watch the show.
Ten soul bones, but only one survivor.
Even if the winner absorbed the soul bones on the spot, they'd still have to leave the Hell Slaughter Arena eventually.
And once they were outside...
Well—the Inner City had no rules.
Who would truly end up with those soul bones?
That was anyone's guess.
The arena host was equally decisive.
He immediately announced—
"Let the slaughter begin!"
The moment those words fell—
The nine fightersdid not rush toward Tang Lan.
Instead, they immediately turned on each other, engaging in close-range combat.
—Once the Hell Slaughter Arena battle begins, only one out of ten can survive.
Even if they seized the soul bones, they couldn't absorb them right away to gain power.
The real strategy was to eliminate the strong opponents first.
And so—
The "little brat", Tang Lan, was momentarily ignored.
Which suited him just fine.
He simply sat back, watching the bloody carnage unfold, getting a close-up feel for the brutality of the slaughter.
He was running an experiment.
He wanted to see—
Could his Evil Eye absorb the death aura from people killed by others?
(End of Chapter.)