The First Life-and-Death Battle

"Indeed," Lin Lang said. "I heard Legion Commander Xu mention that this girl named Ye Guyi is in dire need of money. I wonder who she's spending it on."

"Very well, perhaps I'll have a chance to meet her in the future," Kong Bo said. "The next match is mine, and I'm ready. I wonder if the soul master on the other side is ready as well?"

After Ye Guyi killed the evil soul master opposite her with a single sword strike, the staff went up to clear the floor. Kong Bo also prepared to take the stage. Once the cleaning was finished, the host said in an excited tone, "A spectacular match, ladies and gentlemen! The next bout is also a heavyweight clash. Although it is a Great Soul Master division match, one of the contestants is the well-known Blood-Drinking Sword Demon, while the other is a newcomer who goes by the name... Left-Path Sage Doctor."

"Blood-Drinking Sword Demon!" "Blood-Drinking Sword Demon!" "Blood-Drinking Sword Demon!" The audience in the stands erupted in cheers. Hearing the roar of the crowd, Lin Lang looked nervously toward the Evil Emperor.

"Your Majesty, he has to fight the Blood-Drinking Sword Demon. This Blood-Drinking Sword Demon is a level 25 Great Soul Master, and he comes from a prestigious background as a highly favored disciple. He has never been defeated in the Underground Soul Fighting Arena. Brother Kong Bo is only level 23; can he win?"

"If he doesn't win, he needn't bother coming back," the Evil Emperor said. "With such a fine soul tool and such a powerful martial soul, he can't beat his opponent?"

Under the gaze of the crowd, both contestants stood in the Underground Soul Fighting Arena. The man opposite Kong Bo wore a scarlet mask and, with a casual wave, a scarlet longsword appeared in his right hand. He flicked his wrist, performing a sword flourish. "Since we're both here, I am Locke. My sword never slays a nameless ghost!"

"If you wish, you may consider me a phantom or a madman. You may call me... Zandik," Kong Bo replied. "Level 23 soul engineer, martial soul... Red Moon."

"A level 23 brat, playing at being mysterious in front of me?" Locke's tone turned deeply contemptuous. "My sword is thirsty; let your blood quench its thirst!"

Locke's body then lit up with a yellow soul ring, providing him with a boost—a four-hundred-year soul ring. A sinister red light flickered on the edge of his Blood-Drinking Demon Sword, and he charged toward Kong Bo.

Kong Bo's heart stirred. The metal tetrahedron in his right hand transformed into four Moon Shuttles. With a wave of his right hand, two Moon Shuttles circled his body, while the other two flew toward Locke.

"Oh, flying swords? Not a bad soul tool!" Locke said. "But what truly makes a soul master powerful is the martial soul itself!" He swung the Blood-Drinking Demon Sword, preparing to deflect the two incoming shuttles.

At that moment, a deep yellow soul ring lit up on Kong Bo. To keep a lower profile, Kong Bo used the power of the Red Moon to process the soul ring, sealing some of its energy to make it appear as a century-level ring. The instant the two shuttles were about to make contact with the Blood-Drinking Demon Sword, Kong Bo released his first soul skill—"Moonlight Blessing," targeting the two Moon Shuttles lunging at Locke.

This was Kong Bo's favorite tactic. His Moon Shuttles could resonate with his martial soul and, naturally, be amplified by his soul skills—a feature many soul tools lacked. Kong Bo loved using this method to ambush his opponents.

Locke's Blood-Drinking Demon Sword had already parried the two shuttles, but now that Kong Bo had amplified them, the sword nearly flew from Locke's grip. He hurriedly activated a deep yellow soul ring, and a blood-red slash was instantly released from his Blood-Drinking Demon Sword. This was Locke's second soul skill, an eight-hundred-year "Blood-Colored Slash." Its target was not Kong Bo, but the two shuttles, intended to clear his path.

"Break!" Locke successfully knocked the two Moon Shuttles away with the blood-red slash. He let out a sigh of relief, holding his Blood-Drinking Demon Sword and watching Kong Bo opposite him with wary eyes, his previous arrogance entirely gone. Meanwhile, Kong Bo kept his left hand behind his back, pacing slowly around Locke, observing the sweating man through his bird-beak mask.

Although Locke could not see Kong Bo's eyes, Kong Bo's posture made his skin crawl. Locke's martial soul was the Blood-Drinking Demon Sword, which relied on absorbing the blood of enemies to increase his strength. His teacher was the infamous Third Elder of the Holy Spirit Cult, the Nether Douluo. He fought in the Underground Soul Fighting Arena partly to train and partly to absorb the blood of the strong to enhance himself, and he had remained undefeated during this time.

But in Locke's eyes, Kong Bo felt even more evil than he was. Locke was merely a bloody, brutal killer, whereas Kong Bo was mysterious, insane, and powerful—like an evil god hiding in the abyss. This evil god was in no rush to show his fangs or his spells, nor did he possess the aggressive hostility typical of soul masters in combat. He circled Locke, smiling as he observed him.

"If this is the extent of your strength, then farewell." Kong Bo extended his right hand toward Locke, and the two Moon Shuttles each fired a scorching beam of fire at him.

"Hmph, is this all you have? How arrogant!" Locke once again lit up his deep yellow soul ring, and a "Blood-Colored Slash" cut toward the two fire beams. At that moment, a piercing pain struck his back. He looked down to see two Moon Shuttles protruding from his chest; these were Kong Bo's other two shuttles.

"You..." Only then did it dawn on Locke that Kong Bo was not limited to operating only two Moon Shuttles.

"Is this all you have, Mr. Locke? You truly bore me." Kong Bo snapped his fingers. The two Moon Shuttles that had pierced Locke from behind pulled out of his body and flew above his head along with the other two. All four Moon Shuttles fired scorching fire beams at Locke simultaneously. Locke's screams filled the entire Underground Soul Fighting Arena until he was burned to ashes, leaving nothing behind.

"Mr. Locke? Mr. Locke?" Kong Bo tilted his head toward the ashes. He intentionally lowered his voice, and with the help of the soul tool amplifiers, the entire Underground Soul Fighting Arena heard him. Kong Bo sighed, "There's nothing left. What a pity."

Kong Bo then looked up at the host of the Underground Soul Fighting Arena. "Mr. Host, can you announce the results of the match now?"