Chapter 148: Changes in the Body Martial Soul
It was only the first day in the City of Slaughter, and Yang Xiong already felt the extraordinariness of this place.
Even though Yang Xiong found a vacant and remote house, on the very first night, seven groups of people snuck in, and each of them clearly had ill intentions.
It seemed that most people thought of him as a newcomer to the City of Slaughter, without any defenses, so they immediately targeted him.
In the City of Slaughter, Yang Xiong had no time to meditate. There was no distinction between day and night here. At all times, the place was filled with slaughter, and his nerves were always on edge. There was never a moment of relaxation.
Especially, these people used various methods to attack. Some used the characteristics of their soul beasts to launch attacks, such as poisoning with their soul beasts or using their soul beasts to confuse others. Some had dark attribute soul beasts, and if one wasn't careful, they would fall victim.
In general, the people here had no order and no morals. Backstabbing was quite normal.
Moreover, those who lived in the inner city of the City of Slaughter had extensive battle experience. Even the most insignificant and downtrodden person could carry the intent to kill. One had to be vigilant and never let their guard down until the enemy had truly perished.
Yang Xiong was well aware of this, which was why he primarily used a sword in battle. On one hand, it helped refine his swordsmanship; on the other hand, it concealed his powerful physical combat abilities. If he didn't hide his true strength, he would likely be killed at any moment.
The next day, when Yang Xiong entered the Hell Slaughter Arena again, the people around him suddenly started looking at him with strange expressions, as if they were more cautious.
Clearly, many had been watching him last night. Only a few had made a move, while the rest were probably just probing and waiting for an opportunity.
In the City of Slaughter, everyone was valuable, especially corpses.
Not only did the bodies contain blood, which was the main ingredient for Bloody Mary, but they also contained other valuable resources.
The second day, Yang Xiong participated in another Hell Slaughter Arena match. As before, he emerged unscathed and achieved a complete victory. Seven out of the nine opponents were easily killed by him, and the other two were killed by others.
After the second match, the killing intent within him seemed to grow stronger. This feeling was different from the one he experienced when killing soul beasts or ordinary people. It seemed to be a result of the special circumstances of the Hell Slaughter Arena.
The entire Hell Slaughter Arena seemed like a grand formation, and the ten-person battle felt like some sort of ritual. After killing people, the killing intent seemed to merge into his body, his bones, and even his soul.
Those who participated in different numbers of battles in the City of Slaughter seemed to have different levels of killing intent. The more battles they fought, the stronger the killing aura around them became.
Yang Xiong had encountered a few people who had participated in over fifty arena matches. These people no longer seemed like ordinary humans. They were more like beasts who only knew how to kill. Their eyes were bloodshot, and their souls were deeply tainted by the killing aura.
Unable to meditate in peace, Yang Xiong focused more on observing the City of Slaughter and his own physical changes, putting more effort into developing his self-created soul skill.
Time flew by, and soon, Yang Xiong had spent a full year in the City of Slaughter.
In this year, Yang Xiong had participated in seventy-one Hell Slaughter Arena matches, an amount that could only be described as insane.
At the start, Yang Xiong participated in one match every two days. But as time passed, the gap between matches grew longer, and by the end, it was almost ten days between each match.
This wasn't because Yang Xiong's body couldn't handle the intense matches, but rather because, as the matches increased, so did his killing intent. The more he killed, the more difficult it became to control himself.
Unlike Hu Liena and Tang San, who had the ultimate head soul bones, Yang Xiong didn't have a head soul bone, and his Purple Extreme Magic Eyes hadn't advanced either. They were still at the peak of the second realm: the Microscopic Realm.
The killing aura in the City of Slaughter didn't just affect the body; it also influenced everyone's martial souls. A martial soul exposed to the constant killing aura of the City of Slaughter began to change over time.
Yang Xiong's martial soul was unlike anyone else's. His martial soul was his own body, so the killing aura affected him more strongly than anyone else.
Originally, after cultivating the Purple Extreme Magic Eyes, his eyes would turn purple, but after a year in the City of Slaughter, they had turned blood red, giving them an even more terrifying and cold look, filled with killing intent.
Yang Xiong spent each day trying to synchronize his martial soul and body. Without a head soul bone, he hoped that his martial soul would be influenced by his body, and gradually, subtle changes began to occur.
Originally, when Yang Xiong used his body martial soul, his body would turn silver.
But after a year of exposure to the killing aura, faint blood-red patterns began to appear on his martial soul. If anyone were to closely observe, these patterns looked similar to the demonic tattoos on the King of Slaughter's face.
It was thanks to the influence of his martial soul that Yang Xiong hadn't fallen into madness. In fact, his mental power and physical state seemed to be on the verge of a breakthrough.
Yang Xiong even began to suspect that if he truly completed the City of Slaughter's trials, his body martial soul might undergo a qualitative change, perhaps even achieve a secondary awakening.
After all, body martial souls could awaken at the Silver or Gold level. But even in the Body Sect, no one had ever experienced a secondary awakening in the City of Slaughter. This place was considered the world's only miracle, one that even future generations wouldn't encounter.
One thing that puzzled Yang Xiong was that, after a full year in the City of Slaughter, he had yet to see Hu Liena or Tang San.
He wondered whether these two would come to the City of Slaughter or if the timing of their arrival had changed.
The biggest change Yang Xiong experienced in the City of Slaughter was his mastery over sword energy. Originally, Yang Xiong had prepared various weapons, especially swords, to survive long-term in the City of Slaughter.
At first, Yang Xiong could barely use sword energy, and regular long swords couldn't withstand the sword energy. They would break after a single strike.
But after a year of continuous slaughter in the City of Slaughter, the killing aura in him had grown stronger, and his body began to emit a blood-red aura. He was now able to unleash multiple sword energies, and the long sword no longer shattered. His mastery of the Seven Kill Swordsmanship had clearly improved.
After taking a ten-day rest, Yang Xiong prepared for his seventy-second Hell Slaughter Arena match.
As his number of matches increased, Yang Xiong gained a certain reputation in the City of Slaughter. He was feared by many, with a long list of victims under his belt. Ordinary people dared not provoke him.
But correspondingly, every time he entered the Hell Slaughter Arena, he would be targeted by everyone. Nine people would relentlessly attack him.
It was easy to defeat one person, but facing nine at once was an entirely different matter. The difficulty increased not by just nine times, but by dozens.
When Yang Xiong entered the arena again, the other nine participants exchanged glances. They each used their strongest abilities, recklessly charging toward him, showing rare cooperation between them.
Poison gas, flying daggers, hammers, steel ropes—all kinds of methods emerged one after another.
But Yang Xiong's long sword was extremely sharp, his swordsmanship precise, and every strike packed incredible power and speed. All the attacks were quickly blocked by his sword.
After half an hour, Yang Xiong had killed all nine of his opponents. During the battle, he had multiple wounds, and his stamina had been greatly depleted.
As soon as Yang Xiong exited the Hell Slaughter Arena, he was immediately surrounded by hundreds of people. It seemed they had been prepared for this, and two of them led the assault, displaying rare cooperation in the City of Slaughter.
Yang Xiong's expression grew cold. "Great Power King, Iron Claw King, I remember not provoking you. You organized such a large-scale attack against me. Looks like you've been planning this all along."
A middle-aged man with a huge iron claw said, "Xiong Ba Tian Xia, you've been fighting so frequently, leaving no room for others to survive. We've come to attack you so that we can stay alive."
Yang Xiong sneered. "Don't act so righteous. You just covet the treasures on me, don't you? If I remember correctly, you haven't participated in the Slaughter Arena's matches in the inner city for almost a year. You must be afraid to face me in the Hell Slaughter Arena."
Another middle-aged man with a huge hammer spoke up. "Why talk so much? If we kill you, all your wealth will be ours. We won't have to worry about facing you in the Hell Slaughter Arena anymore."
Before Yang Xiong could respond, a hidden arrow shot straight toward his face, clearly prepared for him in advance.
Yang Xiong slashed with his sword, cutting the arrow in half.
But the crowd, armed with weapons, charged at him, clearly intent on killing him.
Yang Xiong gripped his long sword and unleashed a sword energy that instantly split the frontmost few people in half.
The remaining attackers were only further emboldened, becoming more courageous, even fearless, in their assault.
Great Power King and Iron Claw King stood still, like ferocious beasts ready to pounce.
These two were famous in the City of Slaughter. Their exact ages were unknown, but one was known for his strength and fought with a giant hammer. The other, Iron Claw King, had an enormous iron claw, rumored to be able to tear enemies apart.
Both were Soul Douluo-level powerhouses. While they couldn't use soul skills, their physical strength far surpassed that of ordinary people, making them formidable within the City of Slaughter.
Yang Xiong had already participated in the Hell Slaughter Arena, exhausting a lot of energy. Now, suddenly facing the attacks of countless people, he was beginning to go a bit wild.
He was wielding an even heavier and sharper sword than before, gripping it with both hands, and fiercely attacking those who surrounded him.
At this moment, Yang Xiong couldn't afford to show any weakness, or he would be torn apart instantly.
(END CHAPTER)
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