Hell Road, Three Gods of Slaughter

The bats did not swoop down at once.

They hung upside down from the rock walls, thousands of red eyes fixed on the entrance to Hell Road. The three had gone more than a hundred paces when the last glimmer of light from the slaughter arena vanished behind them. Only then did the first shriek pierce the darkness.

Hu Liena stopped. "Above us."

Yuan Yu swept his blade overhead, and the gust from it knocked aside the first four bats to dive. More dark shapes plunged after them, wings overlapping until they blocked the path ahead and behind.

The stone path beneath their feet was only half a foot wide. On either side lay a blood pool with no visible bottom. Crowding together would only hamper them, so Tang Yin took out a rope, tied one end around his waist, and tossed the other to Hu Liena.

"I'll take the middle. She'll sense what's coming. You cover the rear."

Yuan Yu took the rope and looped it around his wrist. "Why am I in the rear?"

"Your blade is longer."

"That's almost a decent reason."

Hu Liena turned and glared at them. "Keep talking. I'm sure they'll wait until you've finished before eating you."

A faint red glow veiled her eyes. Though her Soul Skills were sealed, her mental perception remained keener than most. Before the first bats drew near, she called out their positions.

"Twelve above left, another group on the right-hand wall. The path breaks thirty paces ahead."

Tang Yin raised his hand and fired a dozen Bone-Piercing Nails into the darkness. As bats dropped from the air, he launched his Sky-Reaching Divine Claw. Its chain hooked firmly around a stone pillar across the gap, and he swung over first. Hu Liena followed close behind. Yuan Yu jumped