After a brutal round of combat, the first death occurred.
Tang Lan's Evil Eye automatically activated, absorbing a wisp of black energy from the corpse.
Its age instantly increased by 500 years!
Tang Lan raised an eyebrow.
So earlier, the reason it didn't absorb anything was simply a matter of distance?
Since he could gain power while being lazy...
Tang Lan pulled out a handful of sunflower seeds, stood to the side, and casually cracked them open, waiting for the death aura to roll in.
The spectators above burst into laughter.
"Where did this little brat come from? Does he think this is some kind of game?"
"He'll be crying soon enough!"
"Maybe he'll get so scared he calls for his mommy?"
"Nah, at most, he'll piss his pants."
"Hahahaha—!"
Tang Lan completely ignored the mockery.
Tang San, however, felt annoyed and was about to defend his brother.
"Know your limits before stirring up trouble." Tang Hao said indifferently. "If you get yourself targeted, I'm not saving you."
Tang San froze!
He stared at Tang Hao in disbelief—
Aren't you my dad?!
And also—
"Aren't you the one who spoils my brother the most? And you're just standing there letting them insult him?"
"Do words matter?" Tang Hao sighed. "You've been with Lan'er for so long, and you still haven't gotten smarter?"
Tang San fell into silence.
He was trying to figure out where he went wrong...
Meanwhile, Tang Lan was already slapping faces down below.
A Seven-Ring Spirit Sage, wielding a nine-section whip, had managed to kill his opponent, suffering only minor injuries, and emerged victorious.
With a cruel grin, he walked toward Tang Lan.
"Kid, since you're offering up soul bones, I mig—"
"Bang!"
He didn't even get to finish his sentence.
Tang Lan casually raised his Python Revolver and fired.
With mental power augmentation, the bullet was so fast that the man couldn't react in time.
It pierced through his protective soul power and blew his head off in one shot.
He dropped dead, eyes wide with disbelief.
For a brief second—
The entire arena fell silent.
Then—
An uproar erupted!
"What the hell was that?!"
"He just one-shot Nine-Section Snake?!"
"He just caught him off guard with a sneak attack! Using an external weapon is cheating!"
"If it were me, I could do it too!"
The crowd buzzed with speculation.
But none of that mattered.
The referee promptly declared—
"Contestant 9527, victory!"
Immediately, streams of bloody energy rushed toward Tang Lan.
The energy entered his body and vanished.
But in Tang Lan's mental perception, the energy had actually hidden within his meridians.
As his spiritual energy circulated, it slowly fused into his body.
It flowed into his brain, seeping into his mental world.
This was both a transformation process and a corruption process.
Regardless of the outcome—he was undeniably growing stronger.
The only question was—would he be consumed by the killing intent and lose himself?
"Contestant 9527, you may leave the arena now." The referee reminded.
Tang Lan snapped back to reality and grinned.
"I refuse."
"I'm entering the next match."
"If you want the soul bones, first come, first served~"
The entire audience erupted!
"Youngster, don't be too arrogant!"
"You just got lucky with a sneak attack! How dare you?!"
"Let this old man teach you some respect!"
"Count me in!"
"Little brat, prepare to die!"
As curses filled the air—
In less than ten seconds, the Hell Slaughter Arena was full again.
It was one of the fastest match resets ever.
The referee, showing no hesitation, declared—
"Let the slaughter begin!"
This time, the nine other fighters had a common goal—
They all charged at Tang Lan.
"Kill the brat first! Take the soul bones later!"
"Yeah! No more sneak attacks!"
"Go together!"
From all directions, the nine fighters activated their martial souls and brandished their weapons, lunging at Tang Lan.
Tang Lan sighed, a little disappointed.
So much for sitting back and watching the show...
Well then...
Time to end this quickly.
Tang Lan raised both hands, holding his Python Revolvers, drawing everyone's attention.
Meanwhile—
At his feet, he had already formed nine small ice daggers with Extreme Ice, each about the size of a palm.
Under the illusion of Mirror Flower, Water Moon, their color perfectly blended with the ground.
With a mere thought,
the daggers silently glided along the ground—
straight toward the nine fighters.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
Tang Lan fired multiple shots from his Python Revolver, the loud gunfire echoing through the arena.
The bullets, however, hit nothing—they were all blocked by the fighters' defenses.
Just as the crowd was about to laugh at him—
The nine ice daggers silently struck their targets, piercing straight through their hearts.
The lingering frost immediately spread, freezing them into ice statues.
One-hit kill!
"Boom—"
"Clatter—"
Nine bodies collapsed simultaneously, shattering into the arena floor.
The once rowdy audience fell into stunned silence.
What... just happened?
Wasn't the mysterious attack blocked?!
Above, Tang Lan's Evil Eye appeared, effortlessly devouring the death aura.
His age limit surged by another 3,500 years.
The killing aura seeped into his body, spreading through his limbs and bones.
Tang Lan scanned the crowd and pointed at the ten floating soul bones beside him.
"Anyone else want these soul bones?"
A moment ago, people were fighting to get in.
Now?
Not a single soul dared to enter the arena.
This was simply too eerie!
No one wanted to be the next fool—not until they understood how Tang Lan was killing so effortlessly.
—Besides, even if someone won the soul bones, whether or not they left the Hell Slaughter Arena alive was another matter entirely.
Between facing a mysterious young killer and ambushing a familiar old warrior,
they chose the latter.
For a moment—
Tang Lan stood alone, a crane among chickens, in the center of the Hell Slaughter Arena.
No one dared to step forward.
Tang Lan sneered in disdain.
Not coming down?
Well, as the saying goes—"Great rewards breed great warriors."
Right now, they were hesitant because soul bones couldn't be "instantly used."
Then...
What if he offered something consumable instead?
With another wave of his hand—
A Ten-Thousand-Year Nine-Petal Purple Ganoderma appeared, its vibrant purple glow radiating an intoxicating fragrance.
At first glance, it was obviously a treasure.
Tang Lan spoke loudly—
"This is the immortal herb, the Ten-Thousand-Year Nine-Petal Purple Ganoderma."
"It fortifies the foundation, enhances vitality, and boosts cultivation."
"Anyone stuck at a bottleneck can instantly break through after consuming it."
"And I mean instantly."
Most people had never heard of immortal herbs.
But even an idiot could tell that the Nine-Petal Purple Ganoderma was no ordinary plant.
Most importantly—
Unlike soul bones, a herb disappears after it's eaten!
The once calm onlookerscould no longer sit still.
Like dumplings dropping into boiling water,
fighters rushed into the Hell Slaughter Arena once again.
Within seconds, the slots were filled.
The referee, who had been waiting for this moment, wasted no time.
"Let the slaughter begin!"
This time, the nine fighters didn't even hesitate—
They immediately charged at Tang Lan.
—Kill him first! Snatch the Nine-Petal Purple Ganoderma and shove it into our mouths!
Tang Lan nodded in satisfaction.
This time, he didn't even bother using his Python Revolver.
He simply recreated nine ice daggers, sending them gliding across the ground.
However—
These nine opponents had come prepared.
They were all defense-type fighters.
Even though Mirror Flower, Water Moon blinded them to the daggers' trajectory,
as long as they activated their martial souls,
not even Extreme Ice's sharpness could break their defenses.
But—
Extreme Ice's true power was never about sharpness.
The moment the ice daggers struck their soul power barriers,
they exploded into freezing blue mist,
completely enveloping the fighters.
Extreme Ice's absolute cold not only froze their bodies,
but also sealed their soul power.
Nine warriors turned into frozen statues.
Tang Lan then activated his Snow Emperor's "Absolute Ice Sky Left Arm Soul Bone", summoning the Emperor Sword.
One of Snow Emperor's three ultimate techniques—
The Emperor Sword's lethality was undeniable.
With mental power enhancement,
it effortlessly pierced through both the ice and the people inside.
One quick lap around the arena—
Nine instant kills.
As death aura and killing aura surged toward him,
Tang Lan absorbed them all.
Once again—
The arena fell silent.
Did he just... wipe them out again?!
(End of Chapter.)