King of Slaughter Submits

But handing over the Asura Demon Sword...

The King of Slaughter was torn by inner conflict.

He truly could not bear to hand over the Asura Demon Sword. Though he had made no progress all these years, it was still something to hope for.

The hope of becoming a god—how could he give that up so easily?

Pei An neither knew nor cared to know about the King of Slaughter's complicated thoughts.

There was not a ripple in his eyes, and the sword in his hand never stopped moving.

Pei An did not unleash any burst of power. He simply left bloody marks on the King of Slaughter's body, one slash after another.

Feeling the increasingly frenzied power within his body, his own weakness, and the agitation of that consciousness inside him, the King of Slaughter finally made his decision.

Becoming a god was certainly tempting, but he had never truly seen any hope. It was merely one more thing to hope for.

But now his life was at stake. If he could not even keep his life, there was no point in holding on to it.

"Stop! Stop attacking, Pope Pei! I'll give it to you, I'll give it to you!"

The King of Slaughter dodged a slash and cried out repeatedly.

Yet Pei An ignored him, continuing to silently swing the Sword of the Living Judgement.

The King of Slaughter could tell that Pei An had not yet obtained what he wanted. None of those strikes had been intended to kill.

He wanted more...

At first, Pei An had only wanted the Asura Demon Sword. But the King of Slaughter had refused to cooperate, so he changed his mind.

Sometimes, hesitation came at a price.

The King of Slaughter gritted his teeth, seemingly making some sort of resolve.

"Pope Pei, stop! I am willing to submit to you. The City of Slaughter is willing to submit to Spirit Hall!"

Previously, the City of Slaughter and Spirit Hall had not been in a superior-subordinate relationship. They had merely cooperated for mutual benefit.

Other than the Asura Demon Sword, the only thing the King of Slaughter could think of that might tempt Pei An was this.

And, as it happened, he had guessed correctly.

Pei An stopped swinging his sword.

With a slight wave of his hand, Bibi Dong behind him also withdrew the purple spider silk that had nearly covered the entire hall.

"Swallow this."

Pei An turned his hand over, and a crystal-clear, luminous green sphere appeared.

The King of Slaughter stared at the luminous green sphere in Pei An's palm, swallowed hard, and cautiously asked, "What is this?"

"Does it matter?" Pei An gave a cold smile, his glass-colored eyes fixed on the King of Slaughter. "Or do you think you still have room to choose?"

The King of Slaughter had no answer.

The knife was in another's hand, while he was the fish on the chopping block. He truly had no room to choose.

As for the purpose of the luminous green sphere in Pei An's hand, he could more or less guess it.

It was nothing more than a means to restrain him.

If he swallowed it, he would most likely never be able to defy Pei An's orders again. His life and death might rest on Pei An's whim.

Still hesitating, the King of Slaughter saw Pei An gradually growing impatient. He steeled himself, took the luminous green sphere from Pei An's hand, and swallowed it in one gulp.

He could clearly feel that the instant the luminous green object entered his body, it moved directly toward his heart.

Before Pei An, he did not dare resist. He could only let the luminous green object enter his heart's veins.

It eventually settled in his heart. The King of Slaughter instinctively tried to stir it with his power, but his expression changed instantly. His face twisted in agony, his features contorting painfully.

Pei An's calm voice sounded beside his ear. "Don't try to touch it."

"As long as you do nothing underhanded, it will not harm you. Live as you normally would."

"Of course, if you do... the consequences..."

Pei An did not continue, but the King of Slaughter understood perfectly well.

He did not doubt for a moment that the thing lodged in his heart could take his life in an instant.

What alarmed the King of Slaughter even more was that the bead's power restricted not only this body, but even his true body!

He even knew about that...

For the first time, the King of Slaughter felt as though someone had seen through him completely from beginning to end.

Before Pei An, it seemed he could hide nothing at all.

"The consciousness inside you has already been suppressed by me once more. Obey obediently, and you will still be the King of Slaughter."

Pei An sat upon the King of Slaughter's throne, propping his face up with one hand, his eyelids lowered.

"Yes. This subordinate will certainly follow your lead in all things, my lord!" The King of Slaughter decisively knelt to declare his stance.

Though his freedom had been restricted, at least he had kept his life.

The saying that both life and freedom could be cast aside for the sake of freedom did not apply to the King of Slaughter.

He only wanted to live. Living on his knees was still living.

"Hand over the item."

Pei An did not care about the King of Slaughter's display of loyalty.

From the moment the King of Slaughter swallowed that bead, his life and death rested on Pei An's whim. This beast feared death, so he would not dare be disloyal.

If Pei An had not wanted Tang Chen to awaken, he would have struck to kill long ago. Why would he waste time bickering with the King of Slaughter here?

Pei An could not be certain whether Tang Chen, while inside the King of Slaughter's body, had heard news of the Clear Sky Sect.

If that fellow went mad and chose to make a desperate final stand despite being heavily injured, any accident would be troublesome.

Pei An had never underestimated Tang Chen.

An Extreme Douluo with a Clear Sky Hammer martial soul, who might also be prepared to die—the danger he posed was self-evident.

Of course, from the moment the King of Slaughter swallowed the Life Bead Pei An had given him, the situation had already changed.

Even if Tang Chen's consciousness awakened now, Pei An could kill him with a single thought.

Still, it was not bad to leave the King of Slaughter alive for the time being to manage the prison that was the City of Slaughter.

As for Tang Chen's consciousness, it could remain suppressed.

"Yes!" the King of Slaughter hurriedly replied.

Dark crimson patterns emerged between his brows, and a greatsword appeared in his hand.

Blood energy coiled around the blade. With its appearance, even the temperature around them seemed to drop a few degrees.

The Asura Demon Sword—the inherited divine artifact the Asura God had left behind on the Douluo Continent.

Without needing Pei An to say more, the King of Slaughter proactively presented the Asura Demon Sword with both hands. "My lord, here."

His fawning appearance was like that of a lapdog wagging its tail.

Pei An raised a hand, and the Asura Demon Sword flew from the King of Slaughter's grasp into his own.

His brows furrowed slightly.

Tang Chen's connection to the Asura Demon Sword had not yet been severed.

There could only be one inheritor for a god's trial.

In other words, as long as Tang Chen did not die and his connection to the Asura Demon Sword remained intact, no one else would have a chance.

With that thought, Pei An's gaze upon the King of Slaughter gradually turned dangerous.

He bore Tang Chen no ill will, but if he truly had to act, he would not hesitate.

The King of Slaughter did not know what Pei An was thinking. He only felt a chill run down his back.

But since Pei An had said he would let the King of Slaughter live, he would not go back on his word.

Just as he was about to ask whether the King of Slaughter could leave Tang Chen's body, a flicker of dark crimson light flashed across the Asura Demon Sword.

Pei An raised a brow, sensing something unusual.

The connection was gone?

To accomplish that...

It could only have been the master of the Asura Demon Sword.

Pei An looked toward the sky beyond the hall, his gaze deep and distant.

It seemed this Asura God had already given up on Tang Chen and was preparing to shift his attention elsewhere.

But was his new target Pei An, or Bibi Dong...?