Howling, chilling winds tore past his ears as Lu Xuan landed steadily.
Before him stood a massive, heavy black iron gate dozens of meters tall, like a giant beast lying dormant in the abyss.
With a teeth-grating creak.
The gates slowly opened to either side, and dazzling blood-red light suddenly poured out.
Immediately afterward, accompanied by the perfectly synchronized clash of metal.
A dense mass of black-armored knights blocked the gateway like a torrent of steel.
They were encased in thick black armor, even their faces concealed behind cold faceplates, exuding a suffocating air of lethal menace.
Their leader sat astride an exceptionally tall armored warhorse, a massive black longsword gripped tightly in his hand, like a god of death.
"You have broken the rules!"
A low, hoarse, utterly icy voice came from beneath his faceplate, carrying the weight of an unquestionable judgment.
"So? What if I broke the rules?"
Not only did Lu Xuan show not the slightest fear, he casually spread his hands instead, a mocking curve lifting the corners of his mouth.
"Besides, weren't your watchdogs outside the ones who insulted me and blocked my way first? I just helped you clear out some trash."
The lead black-armored knight visibly froze for a moment. It seemed that in his many years stationed in Slaughter City.
He had never seen a newcomer who so thoroughly refused to play by the script, let alone dared to provoke him to his face.
He tightened his grip on his longsword and snorted coldly:
"Hmph! Arrogant brat! Regardless, you must be punished! Only by defeating me will you earn the right to enter!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the surrounding black-armored knights swiftly retreated to either side like an ebbing tide, clearing a vast dueling ground.
"Remember, I am the Terror Knight, Scott!"
Boom!
The warhorse abruptly accelerated, its four hooves pounding the ground with heavy booms.
Scott and his horse moved as one, becoming a streak of black lightning that charged straight at Lu Xuan with a brutally bloody aura.
The cold spear tip tore through the air, and a fierce, tangible killing intent bore down on him head-on like a violent tempest.
Facing this charge of Thunderous Might, Lu Xuan merely shook his head in utter boredom. "How dull."
The next second, dark-red killing intent of the utmost purity, a hundred times more terrifying than Scott's, erupted with Lu Xuan at its center!
"Asura Domain!"
Slaughter City's rules did indeed seal Soul Masters' Soul Skills, but the Innate Domain that came with a Martial Soul fell entirely outside the restrictions of these damned rules!
The dark-red domain instantly enveloped the charging Scott.
The once-menacing Terror Knight felt as though a mountain of crushing weight had descended upon him.
His speed plummeted, and the Soul Power within his body was firmly suppressed.
"Come to think of it, can Soul Bone Skills be used here?"
Lu Xuan rubbed his chin, a flicker of curiosity crossing his eyes.
Since he had a question, he would simply put it to the test!
An eerie light flashed in his eyes, and his External Soul Bone Skill instantly activated-Fear Illusion!
(A bit of my own setting here: the original only said Soul Skills couldn't be used, but it never said Soul Bone Skills couldn't be used, right?)
(Also, since Soul Power wasn't sealed, did that mean Soul Tools could be used too?)
Scott's body abruptly stiffened mid-charge. His warhorse let out a mournful cry, its forelegs buckling and pitching him straight off its back.
"No... no! Stay away! No, no, no!"
Having crashed heavily to the ground, Scott had no attention to spare for the pain. He writhed on the ground in terror, clutching his head with both hands and letting out utterly harrowing screams.
Clearly, he had never realized that this seemingly young boy before him.
Not only possessed an Innate Domain that ignored the rules, but actually possessed an extremely rare Soul Bone as well!
By now, Scott had plunged completely into the abyss of the illusion, forced to relive the most terrifying nightmare of his life over and over.
Lu Xuan watched coldly from the sidelines. He could actually have used his skull skill or Torso Soul Bone skill to kill him instantly.
But once he turned this fellow to stone, he would have no way to get his identity token for entering Slaughter City.
Only after a long, long time did Scott finally struggle free of the illusion, drenched as though he had been hauled out of water and gasping for breath.
When he looked at Lu Xuan, none of his earlier arrogance remained in his eyes, only deep awe and fear.
"You... you have passed my test. You are qualified to enter Slaughter City."
The Terror Knight's voice was painfully strained, even carrying a hint of a tremble.
What he found most incomprehensible was that every newly arrived Soul Master would fall into extreme panic and shock upon having their Soul Skills sealed.
Yet this young man before him seemed as comfortable as if he had returned to his own backyard.
With trembling hands, Scott held out a black token to Lu Xuan.
Lu Xuan casually took it. The token, made of neither metal nor wood, was engraved with a hideous skull, beneath which was carved a string of scarlet digits: 9148.
Lu Xuan: ...
This number both slipped in a stealth ad and mocked a certain world's number-one top laner whose sun was just rising.
A little unlucky.
"This is your proof of identity in Slaughter City. Please enter. Someone will receive you at the city gate."
Gripping the token that radiated a cold aura, Lu Xuan strode forward without sparing even another sidelong glance for the Terror Knight slumped on the ground.
Ahead stood an enormous city gate as black as ink, giving off an intensely oppressive, suffocating feeling.
Directly above the gate hung four large characters that seemed to have been written in blood-Slaughter City.
Before the gate, two rows of black-armored warriors stood silently like statues. Before Lu Xuan could even present the identity token in his hand, a woman with a graceful figure and a black veil over her face had already emerged from the shadows with a measured, swaying gait.
"Welcome to Slaughter City."
The woman's voice was alluring to the bone and extremely pleasing to the ear. She came before Lu Xuan and dipped into a slight bow, then stepped aside and made an elegant gesture inviting him in.
She did not look down on Lu Xuan because of his height or age.
His expression unchanged, Lu Xuan followed the black-veiled woman through the city gate.
After passing through the dim gateway passage, the scene before him suddenly opened up, yet it made Lu Xuan narrow his eyes slightly.
This was an oppressive world of blue and purple.
The lamps hanging on either side of the streets gave off only these two eerie colors, stretching everyone's shadows into twisted, bizarre shapes.
To his slight surprise, there were quite a few figures moving along the broad streets.
But most of these people wore numb expressions or had sinister eyes, hurrying along without a single one turning to spare another glance at him, a newcomer who had just stepped inside.
Apart from everything being shrouded in dark, oppressive colors, at first glance, this legendary hell on earth seemed no different from ordinary cities outside.
Yet Lu Xuan's keen senses were screaming warnings-beneath this seemingly peaceful surface surged nauseating bloodshed and madness.
The black-veiled woman immediately began executing her fixed code, introducing Lu Xuan to everything about Slaughter City.
Before you continue