Blood hung thick in the air over a small village.
Corpses lay everywhere in the village, all of them strangely mummified, as though their blood had been drained dry.
Inside a spacious house, three figures sprawled in their chairs. The table before them was covered in half-eaten food, while three corpses lay on the floor nearby.
One was a young man whose limbs had been severed at the roots. Another was a boy with a snapped neck. The last was a naked woman.
Unlike the terror etched on the corpses, the three in the chairs looked delighted, utterly unbothered by the blood-soaked air.
As they enjoyed themselves, footsteps suddenly sounded in the distance.
All three snapped alert, their expressions turning wary.
One of them, a gaunt man, burst into curses.
"It must be those Spirit Hall bastards coming after us!"
"Damn it, we only drained a few peasants. Do they have to hound us like this?"
Another man turned to the burly figure in the middle, whose left eye bore a vicious knife scar. "Boss, what do we do now?"
The burly man's face darkened, and cruelty flashed in his eyes.
"Spirit Hall has its sights on us. Even if we escape this time, they'll come after us again."
"Rather than let them hunt us without end, we might as well kill the deacon pursuing us, then flee somewhere no one can catch us."
The gaunt man hesitated. "But the world is vast. Where could we go?"
"Are we supposed to flee overseas?"
The burly man shook his head, a gleam entering his eyes.
"No. I've heard there's a paradise for the fallen in the Extreme West. It shelters people like us. Once we're inside, even Spirit Hall won't be able to come in and arrest us."
(I found sources saying Slaughter City is in the Extreme West and others saying it's in the Extreme North. Does anyone know exactly where it is?)
The gaunt man and the other man lit up at once.
"Boss, are you sure that's true?"
"Most likely," the burly man said with confidence.
"Then let's go there!"
"But before that, we need to kill the Spirit Hall bastard who's been chasing us."
"He's hounded us the whole way. I've put up with him long enough!"
"Good!"
A carriage rolled slowly along the main road.
Qi Father drove while chatting with Qi Mother and Qi Dao inside the carriage.
Suddenly, his nose twitched, and he frowned.
"What a strong smell of blood!"
Muttering to himself, Qi Father grew wary.
"Ah Rou, A Dao, something's wrong. Stay alert!"
With that, Qi Father urged the carriage faster.
Inside the carriage.
Qi Mother and Qi Dao's eyes narrowed, their expressions turning grave.
At the same time, three figures ahead of them suddenly stopped walking.
The burly man in the middle grinned.
"Who'd have thought we'd run into a few little ants?"
The gaunt man beside him licked his lips. "I didn't get enough of that Spirit Hall Soul Master's blood. A little dessert after the meal sounds perfect."
"I hope whoever's coming isn't an ordinary person. I'd hate to miss out on Soul Master blood."
The other man let out a sinister cackle.
"Come on. Let's go to them."
A savage smile spread across the burly man's face as he turned toward the middle of the road.
The other two followed close behind.
"Whoa!"
Three figures suddenly darted out from the roadside. Qi Father yanked on the reins, every hair on his body standing on end.
The reek of blood clinging to the three before him was overwhelming.
Inside the carriage, Qi Mother's expression changed slightly, and she instantly released her Ruby Martial Soul.
Peerless trembled at Qi Dao's waist. It only settled when he placed his hand on the hilt.
Outside, Qi Father held the reins in one hand and released his Martial Soul with the other, his eyes full of caution.
He did not act rashly. He simply stared at the three men opposite him.
"Gentlemen, what is the meaning of this?"
"If money is what you lack, I can offer you some."
Qi Father ran a Soul Hunting team himself. What kind of people hadn't he seen?
Yet these three put far more pressure on him than any of the so-called "desperadoes" he had encountered over the years.
So he decided at once to pay his way out of trouble.
But after hearing his offer, the three men merely smiled in amusement.
"Second, Third, this fellow wants to give us money. Should we take it?" the burly man asked with a grin.
The gaunt man replied darkly, "If we kill him, won't his money be ours anyway?"
The tall third man licked his lips. "He's a Soul Master, too. I can already smell the sweet scent of his blood."
"Boss, let's do it. I can't wait any longer!"
As he spoke, his features twisted into something ferocious, and thick black fur sprouted across his body.
Four Soul Rings slowly rose from beneath his feet.
One white, two yellow, and one purple!
A Four-Ring Soul Ancestor!
Qi Father's pupils contracted. Fear flashed through his eyes, and he shouted, "Ah Rou, A Dao, run!"
Qi Mother and Qi Dao immediately rushed out of the carriage.
The three men's eyes lit up when they saw them.
"Haha! An unexpected surprise."
"Three Soul Masters. Heh, heh."
"Boss, there's one for each of us."
"The woman's mine!"
"Third, she's my prey!"
"You two fools, stop fighting over her!"
Meanwhile, Qi Mother and Qi Dao made no move to flee as Qi Father had told them.
"What are you doing? I'll hold them off."
"Dad, it's no use. Even if Mom and I leave you behind and run, they'll catch us in no time."
Qi Dao stared at the four Soul Rings around the tall man, his face so dark it might have dripped water.
From their conversation, there was no doubt these were the Fallen Soul Masters of the Douluo I era.
Because of Spirit Hall, Fallen Soul Masters in Douluo I were nowhere near as rampant as the Evil Soul Masters in Douluo II.
But Qi Dao had never expected to face a crisis like this the moment he left the starter village.
All three of them were Soul Ancestors at the very least!
Qi Father fell silent. Despair crossed Qi Mother's face.
Was today...
The day their entire family died here?
They had not yet seen Qi Dao grow up. They had not yet watched him become a powerful Soul Master whose name was known far and wide.
"Oh my, what's this?"
"Have you been scared out of your wits before the fight's even begun?"
"That'll take so much of the fun out of it."
The gaunt man grinned and activated Martial Soul Possession. His face instantly turned savage and sinister, and several spider legs sprouted from his back.
Clearly, his Martial Soul was some kind of spider.
His Soul Ring configuration was the same as the tall man's.
Last came their boss, the burly man.
He released his Martial Soul as well: a blood-red cleaver.
And his Soul Rings...
Two yellow, two purple!
"Damn it!"
Qi Father growled as he stared at the three men. Veins bulged along the arm gripping his iron sword.
Qi Mother trembled slightly, but she turned to Qi Dao and asked gently, "A Dao, are you afraid of dying?"
Qi Dao took a deep breath and pictured the Peerless Sword in his mind. The warmth that washed through his spirit instantly steadied him.
He slowly drew his sword and gave it a casual slash. Then he looked at Qi Mother and said calmly, "Mom, of course I'm afraid of dying!"
"But..."
At that, a chilling light seemed to blaze from his eyes, and his tone changed.
He whipped his gaze toward the three men, nothing but resolve left in his eyes!
"Whoever comes for my life, I'll bite a chunk of flesh out of them!"
Before you continue