"Those damn bastards actually called me a centipede."
Giratina's grumbling voice rang out in Lin Chuan's mind, as if it held a grudge.
Lin Chuan stood in the arena, panting heavily. He couldn't help but laugh, and some of his physical exhaustion eased.
Giratina's skills worked much like Self-Created Soul Skills.
It could use them itself, but they still consumed Soul Power.
Even with him effectively fighting as two Spirit Emperors combined, using them simultaneously had left him exhausted, and his Soul Power had drained rapidly.
"The match is over! 9411 wins and completes a hundred consecutive victories!"
The deep voice carried far through the silence.
Long after the referee had finished speaking, someone finally started shouting like mad. A tidal wave of cheers surged through the arena, one after another.
Lin Chuan could feel Soul Power nourishing him.
It came from the nine people who had died in the arena, and his exhausted body recovered considerably in an instant.
Most of it was absorbed by the Hell Slaughter Arena.
Then there was the Barrier holding him firmly at Level 60.
Since he hadn't hunted for his Sixth Soul Ring yet, his Soul Power had remained stuck at Level 60.
Refining it wouldn't raise his level either.
Once he obtained his Sixth Soul Ring, the Soul Power he'd refined might raise him by three or four levels at once.
This time, the King of Slaughter didn't tell the crowd to quiet down.
Instead, he held an oddly shaped Blood Cup and swirled the thick, scarlet liquid inside as he slowly drifted down to the center of the arena.
His hoarse yet clear voice echoed in everyone's ears once more:
"Congratulations, young Jade-Faced Yama."
As soon as he spoke, the sconces on the surrounding walls cast a dim yellow glow, illuminating the entire arena.
The stone balls clenched in the mouths of several grotesque statues carved into the jagged walls—creatures that bore some resemblance to the King of Slaughter—glowed red as well.
Something was clearly wrong with the atmosphere.
But the crowd, already deeply poisoned, couldn't sense it. They continued shouting "King of Slaughter" with reverence and abandon.
Looking down at Lin Chuan, the King of Slaughter spoke again.
Only Lin Chuan could hear him this time.
"Jade-Faced Yama, I'll make an exception and appoint you as a guest elder. You can skip the requirement to clear Hell Road, and I'll grant you the title of 'Slayer' as well. Your status will be second only to mine."
"From now on, you can enter and leave the Capital of Slaughter freely."
A path of crimson stone slabs laid itself out.
The King of Slaughter descended from the air, one step at a time.
His eyes stayed fixed on Lin Chuan, and his massive, three-meter-tall frame exuded tremendous Pressure.
"Hell Road is no easy path to cross, and the Divine Slaughter's Domain is no easy thing to obtain."
"You already possess a domain. I hope you understand that you only have one life..."
Here came that familiar routine again.
The Divine Slaughter's Domain seemed to be nothing more than a mark—a mark that would draw Asura God's attention.
And anyone who cleared Hell Road would obtain the Divine Slaughter's Domain.
This was the inheritance of a God King, after all.
Hell Road wasn't all that dangerous to him. He could even pick up an enhanced domain along the way. What was there to lose?
The King of Slaughter was probably worried about exactly that, since he himself was undergoing a divine trial.
Lin Chuan couldn't help wondering if the King of Slaughter was afraid someone would steal his divine trial.
But the King of Slaughter was already half-dead in his current state. Lin Chuan had no intention of giving up.
Bibi Dong, hidden in the shadows, naturally had no idea what he was thinking.
Seeing him hesitate, she furrowed her brows, feeling as though he was hopelessly stubborn. She wanted to discreetly remind him.
After all, she knew exactly what advantage he'd have with two domains.
He'd come all the way to the Capital of Slaughter, only to start worrying about his life now?
"No need. Please open the entrance to Hell Road, King of Slaughter."
Fortunately, Lin Chuan understood the situation. He fell silent for only a moment before rejecting the offer.
Hidden in the shadows, Bibi Dong unconsciously breathed a sigh of relief.
Even she hadn't noticed that her heart, frozen for so long, had begun to feel again.
Half a year ago, she'd returned to the Capital of Slaughter to check whether Spirit Hall's genius with Innate Full Soul Power was still alive, and she'd been drawn to this young man.
Curious about his secrets, she visited every few days and gradually learned a great deal.
She always appeared without a sound.
She'd watched Lin Chuan train and painstakingly develop his Self-Created Soul Skills.
His every move drew her gaze, her curiosity burning with an almost obsessive intensity.
Only when everyone watching the arena—everyone but her—had been sacrificed, and Lin Chuan had entered Hell Road, did she come back to herself.
She was just about to leave when the King of Slaughter appeared beside her.
"Have you taken my Capital of Slaughter for an inn? You've been dropping by for half a year, yet you've never even bothered to greet me."
"Even with the title of Slayer and strength approaching that of a Limit Douluo, I'll still warn you as the King of Slaughter: this isn't a place for you to snoop around or scheme."
A trace of disdain appeared on Bibi Dong's lovely face. Her pale purple skirt stirred in the windless air, occasionally revealing the slender, long legs wrapped in flesh-colored stockings beneath it.
She snorted.
Her red lips parted, and her cool voice carried the arrogance of someone accustomed to command:
"If you have the time, King of Slaughter, you should get your head checked. I'm a Slayer. I have the right to enter and leave the Capital of Slaughter freely."
"As for whether I'm plotting against the Capital of Slaughter, I'm happy to watch those disgusting Evil Soul Masters slaughter one another and dwindle in number."
Her words were utterly unapologetic. That was the confidence strength gave her.
Ignoring the King of Slaughter's fury, Bibi Dong glanced at the Hell Road entrance that had just closed, then left.
Hell Road was a winding stone path, barely wide enough for one person. It stretched upward into the darkness, beyond sight.
On either side, a Magma Sea surged and roared. Bubbles rose and burst across its crimson surface as if it might erupt at any moment, while dark red tongues of flame occasionally shot several yards into the air.
The surroundings were shrouded in darkness. Only the eerie red glow of the magma revealed a few meters of the twisting path ahead.
Lin Chuan knew the situation here inside out.
Before attempting the trial, he'd even taken the time to recall the events of the story and prepare for the dangers ahead.
The air in the Capital of Slaughter and Bloody Mary were two components of a combined toxin. Drink too much, and you'd be poisoned.
Hell Road was where that poison was triggered.
It drove people mad, made them turn on their own kin, and robbed them of reason.
Bloody Mary was made from Soul Masters' souls. Drinking it could boost one's mental strength and Soul Power.
When it came to souls, Giratina was the progenitor of all Ghost-types, and the king of the Distortion World.
As the execution ground for the main world's trash, it controlled the souls of humans and Pokémon after they died.
There was no soul it couldn't refine, and no toxin it couldn't eliminate.
So Lin Chuan didn't need to worry about it. The toxins from Bloody Mary had long since been completely removed.
"Come on out, Giratina. You're the one I choose!"
He called out in his mind.
Lin Chuan swept his right hand, and Giratina appeared on Hell Road.
"Kid, what do you want from me?"
"This Hell Road is nothing special. Those stinking bats up ahead aren't even as good as the bats from my old world."
Lin Chuan didn't argue. He simply ran ahead at full speed.
Before long, Giratina's usual contemptuous, arrogant voice rang out:
"There's a big one in there too, but it's still pretty weak."