The Golden Ranking's Rewards Revealed, the Divine Realm's Hypocrisy!

Across Douluo Continent.

Countless Soul Masters were shaken to their core.

"Tang Chen really did defeat Qian Daoliu!"

"Of the three Peerless Douluo back then, Tang Chen really was the strongest!"

"So that promise was why Spirit Hall never attacked the Clear Sky Sect!"

"The Golden Ranking has revealed the whole story!"

"If Tang Chen is stronger than Qian Daoliu, why is he only ninth?"

Comments kept appearing across the sky.

Inside Spirit Hall.

Qian Daoliu watched his younger self in the vision, his expression calm.

He did not deny the outcome of that battle.

"Tang Chen did beat me."

Qian Daoliu looked up at the Golden Ranking.

"But what happened to him afterward?"

Inside the Clear Sky Sect.

Pride shone even brighter in Tang Xiao's eyes as he watched.

But soon, he frowned again.

His grandfather had defeated Qian Daoliu.

He was also widely acknowledged as the strongest on Douluo Continent.

How could Tang Chen rank only ninth?

Every eye turned to the sky.

The Golden Ranking's vision was not over.

The real reason Tang Chen ranked ninth might lie in what came next.

The vision shifted.

Tang Chen stood alone in a dim space.

There were no mountains around him, and no ocean waves.

Only endless darkness and a blood-red glow suspended deep within it.

Tang Chen held the Clear Sky Hammer, nine Soul Rings slowly revolving around him.

His gaze settled on what lay ahead.

There, a blood-red longsword floated in midair.

Terrifying divine power swirled around the blade.

The Asura God's inheritance.

Golden text appeared across the sky.

[Tang Chen found the Asura God's inheritance.]

[He began the Asura God Trial.]

Across Douluo Continent.

Countless Soul Masters looked up at the sky.

"The Asura God's inheritance?"

"Tang Chen actually obtained a god's inheritance!"

"No wonder he could defeat Qian Daoliu. He was already on the path to godhood!"

Inside the Clear Sky Sect.

Delight spread across the faces of Tang Xiao and the elders.

They had thought the Golden Ranking would show only Tang Chen's past victories.

They had never expected him to have obtained the Asura God's inheritance as well.

"Grandfather really is the strongest!"

"Once Grandfather completes the trial, he can inherit the Asura God's position!"

"When that happens, what will Spirit Hall amount to?"

The elders looked up at the sky, their eyes full of hope.

Within the vision.

Tang Chen walked toward the blood-red longsword, step by step.

With every step, the darkness around him grew more solid.

Endless killing intent surged toward him from all sides.

His body bore the crushing pressure of divine power, yet he did not stop.

He reached out and gripped the Asura Demon Sword.

Boom!

Blood-red light shot into the sky.

The entire realm of darkness shook violently.

All nine Soul Rings around Tang Chen blazed at once.

The might of a Peerless Douluo swept outward in every direction.

Text appeared across the sky once more.

[Tang Chen passed the Asura God's First Trial.]

[Tang Chen passed the Asura God's Second Trial.]

[Tang Chen passed the Asura God's Third Trial.]

The vision kept changing.

Tang Chen fought powerful Soul Beasts across a wasteland.

With one swing of his hammer, a mountain split apart.

Wielding the Asura Demon Sword, he cut through a sky full of blood-red light.

He completed one trial after another.

And his power continued to grow.

But just as he was about to face the final trial, an eerie purple glow appeared deep in the darkness.

It slipped silently into Tang Chen's body.

Tang Chen stopped dead.

A trace of purple flashed through his eyes.

A dark aura tainted the blood-red light on the Asura Demon Sword.

Golden text slowly appeared across the sky.

[The Rakshasa God's power descended.]

[Tang Chen was corrupted by Rakshasa Divine Power.]

[The Nine-Headed Bat King seized the chance to parasitize him.]

The next moment.

The enormous shadow of a nine-headed bat slowly emerged behind Tang Chen.

All nine heads opened their mouths at once.

Black currents poured into Tang Chen's body.

Tang Chen raised the Clear Sky Hammer, trying to drive out the foreign power within him.

But it had already seeped deep into his blood and soul.

His body convulsed as he struggled.

Blood-red divine markings appeared across his skin, only to be swallowed by purplish-black light.

Asura Divine Power and Rakshasa Divine Power clashed inside him.

While the two divine powers fought, the Nine-Headed Bat King took complete control of Tang Chen's body.

The vision in the sky changed.

Tang Chen stood at the heart of Slaughter City.

Behind him, the Nine-Headed Bat King's shadow blotted out the sky.

The presence that had once belonged to Clear Sky Douluo had given way to bloodlust and evil.

More text appeared across the sky.

[Tang Chen failed the Asura God Trial.]

[The Nine-Headed Bat King parasitized Tang Chen.]

[Tang Chen's consciousness was suppressed.]

[The Nine-Headed Bat King took Tang Chen's place and became the King of Slaughter.]

Slaughter City.

Upon the throne.

Tang Chen slowly lowered his head.

A grim, blood-red glow shrouded his once-resolute face.

Countless crimson bats flew through the hall.

He sat on the throne, looking down at the kneeling Soul Masters below.

From that day on.

Clear Sky Douluo Tang Chen was gone from the world.

Slaughter City had gained a King of Slaughter.

Silence fell across Douluo Continent.

A moment later, comments erupted across the sky.

"Tang Chen was parasitized by the Nine-Headed Bat King?"

"The King of Slaughter is Tang Chen?"

"So the ruler of Slaughter City was once Clear Sky Douluo!"

"Tang Chen was strong enough to defeat Qian Daoliu, and this is what became of him?"

"No wonder he's only ninth!"

"This isn't Tang Chen at his peak!"

Countless Soul Masters drew sharp breaths.

Only now did everyone understand why Tang Chen ranked ninth.

It was not that he lacked strength.

He had been corrupted during the Asura God Trial and ultimately parasitized by the Nine-Headed Bat King.

The Tang Chen shown on the Golden Ranking was already a shadow of his former self.

And even so.

He still possessed Level 99 Soul Power.

He could still rule Slaughter City.

That only made the strength he had possessed at his peak all the more staggering.

Inside the Clear Sky Sect.

The joy had vanished from the faces of Tang Xiao and the elders as they watched the sky.

Tang Xiao stared at the King of Slaughter in the vision, his fists slowly clenching.

"Grandfather was corrupted by the Rakshasa God's power."

"The Nine-Headed Bat King seized the chance to take over Grandfather's body."

One elder turned pale.

"This isn't Grandfather's true strength."

Tang Xiao was silent for a moment, then looked up at the sky.

"The Golden Ranking isn't finished yet."

"Grandfather must still have a chance to recover."

Sea God Island.

Bo Saixi stood before the Sea God Hall.

When she saw the Nine-Headed Bat King parasitize Tang Chen, her face grew grave.

She had known Tang Chen once.

She knew the talent and resolve that man possessed.

Yet now Tang Chen was trapped in Slaughter City, his body controlled by an evil power.

Bo Saixi looked up at the sky.

"Tang Chen..."

She spoke softly to herself.

No one answered.

The vision in the sky gradually dimmed.

The Golden Ranking's account came to an end.

The will of the Heavenly Dao once more resounded across Douluo Continent.

[Heavenly Dao Golden Ranking, ninth place: Clear Sky Douluo, Tang Chen.]

[Reward: Million-Year Soul Ring.]

[Reward: 100,000-Year Titan Soul Bone.]

[Reward: improved Martial Soul quality.]