Chapter 71: The Hell Slaughter Arena
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Blood Tiger simply walked away, and Li Luochen followed the black-veiled woman.
The black-veiled woman was still stunned by the strength Li Luochen possessed. She hadn't expected this man, who appeared somewhat decent, to be so powerful.
"Are you setting me up? Did you deliberately lead me so far?" Li Luochen asked coldly, his expression indifferent.
"Hmph! Who told you to lag behind? You're quite strong—do you know who Blood Tiger is? He's undefeated for forty-eight consecutive matches in the Hell Slaughter Arena, killing dozens of Soul Douluos. He's even slain two or three Title Douluos!"
The black-veiled woman sized up Li Luochen from head to toe. Was this man really that formidable?
Next, she continued leading Li Luochen toward the Hell Slaughter Arena. Under her guidance, Li Luochen came across a peculiar structure. The building was circular—or more accurately, an irregular cone shape. Its base was the widest, gradually narrowing as it rose. At about thirty meters above the ground, the diameter stabilized, extending upward until it reached fifty meters.
The black structure exuded an oppressive atmosphere. The black-veiled woman explained to Li Luochen that this Hell Slaughter Arena was located at the very center of the City of Slaughter, underscoring its critical importance to the city.
Upon entering the Hell Slaughter Arena, Li Luochen immediately went to register. Along the way, he eliminated a few riffraff and earned several Bloody Marys.
Li Luochen directly entered the competition, beginning his journey of slaughter.
To Li Luochen, the City of Slaughter was not a place suitable for normal people. Therefore, he didn't want to waste even a single day here. After achieving a hundred victories to claim the championship, he would challenge the Hell Road and leave. He had already decided—his battles would begin today, starting now.
Staying too long could drive one mad, potentially affecting future generations' genes. It was best to leave as soon as possible.
The City of Slaughter truly wasn't a place for humans. But to become stronger, Li Luochen temporarily abandoned his humanity—JoJo!
Thus began his journey of slaughter. In this dark world filled with bloodshed and depravity, he not only had to secure victory after victory but also ensure his survival to escape alive.
Three days after entering the City of Slaughter, the number of fallen individuals Li Luochen had killed had already exceeded a hundred. Yet, he had only participated in five matches. The truly terrifying aspect of this place wasn't the enemies within the Hell Slaughter Arena—it was the relentless ambushes after battles, when one was at their weakest.
Fortunately, Li Luochen was well aware of the rules and never let his guard down. With swift and decisive strikes, he obliterated any attackers. None of the fallen were left intact—all were shattered by Li Luochen.
On the ground lay yellow, white, and red remains—brains, gallbladders, and entrails everywhere. Overnight, Li Luochen gained fame for his brutal methods, earning the nickname "Staff Demon."
Under the Staff Demon's hands, no one remained whole. Moreover, the fact that he had repelled Blood Tiger upon his arrival struck fear into the hearts of many fallen warriors.
From that point on, Li Luochen's life became much quieter. Indeed, establishing dominance early was the best strategy. A month passed, and Li Luochen's number of victories in the Hell Slaughter Arena had increased to twelve. Fewer people dared to ambush him, but his opponents grew stronger.
As his number of victories increased, he learned another rule: in each new match, his opponent's participation count in the Hell Slaughter Arena couldn't be less than his own by more than five times—unless everyone else had fewer matches than that threshold.
A year later, Li Luochen achieved seventy-seven victories. Every opponent he faced met a gruesome end. To his surprise, one Soul Douluo dropped a soul bone—a head bone. When this happened, the arena erupted in chaos. After leaving the arena, Li Luochen was repeatedly ambushed. Head bones, in particular, were crucial in the City of Slaughter, as they helped resist the overwhelming killing intent.
That day, Li Luochen crawled out from a mountain of corpses, activating his Tyrant Dragon Spine Bone to amplify his strength. One staff strike per fallen warrior—if that wasn't enough, then two.
That time, Li Luochen killed hundreds of fallen warriors, piling their bodies into a mountain. A massacre of a hundred foes in a single battle—he truly had the makings of a tyrant.
After that, no one dared to provoke Li Luochen again. The fallen understood that the Staff Demon had the ability to protect his soul bone.
When not engaging in slaughter, Li Luochen spent his time reading books, painting, or practicing tai chi in his room—not to cultivate his temperament, but to suppress his killing intent. Since surpassing fifty victories, the accumulated killing intent caused him to lose his temper occasionally.
This wasn't good. Being swayed by emotions could lead to a quick death, like Blood Tiger losing control in the streets. Controlling his killing intent sooner rather than later was necessary.
Indeed, this approach yielded some results. At the very least, Li Luochen could think calmly again. He only needed twenty-three more victories. The Hell Road would be another formidable challenge.
Now, as Li Luochen walked the streets, the fallen regarded him with respect—not out of admiration, but out of awe. Li Luochen was currently ranked first on the leaderboards, while Blood Tiger held second place with fifty-seven victories.
Moreover, Li Luochen noticed that since achieving sixty consecutive victories, Blood Tiger had been observing his matches. He suspected something was off about Blood Tiger.
Those with over fifty victories wouldn't face each other. Was Blood Tiger trying to decipher his tactics and target him specifically? Too naive—they wouldn't meet.
With seventy-seven victories under his belt, Li Luochen estimated it would take another six months to reach a hundred victories. He was close—almost ready to leave this bizarre place. Staying any longer might drive him insane.
Absorbing the killing energy here was particularly prone to altering one's personality. The old Li Luochen was somewhat arrogant, sharp-tongued, carefree, and mischievous.
The current Li Luochen radiated killing intent, his expression cold and stern, resembling a ruthless Asura who viewed life as worthless.
To prevent himself from becoming twisted, Li Luochen began reciting the core socialist values. In his free time, he painted or practiced calligraphy.
Indeed, the ancients were right—music, chess, calligraphy, and painting had unique uses. Li Luochen felt he no longer needed to visit Yue Xuan; he could regulate his killing intent on his own within half a year.
When it came to cultivating one's mind and nurturing life, who could compare to the wisdom of ancient Chinese sages? Their forethought allowed future generations to reap the benefits—standing on the shoulders of giants truly was advantageous.
From then on, Li Luochen visited the Hell Slaughter Arena once every two days and secluded himself for five days afterward. Due to his high number of victories, few dared to challenge him openly. He could only participate anonymously, and when the time came, someone would summon him.
After spending a year in the City of Slaughter, Li Luochen's soul power had increased by one level, reaching level fifty-nine. However, there was still a significant gap to level sixty. His ultimate attribute made progression painfully slow.
Nevertheless, his overall strength had skyrocketed. He was confident he could defeat ten versions of his former self. Like Master Ye, he could proudly proclaim, "I'll fight ten!"
{T/N: Referencing the iconic scene from 'Ip Man'.}
"Master, Blood Tiger is here. He says he has something to discuss with you," the guard at Li Luochen's door reported.
Due to Li Luochen's immense reputation in the City of Slaughter, he had sought to recruit a servant. The competition was fierce—over a hundred applicants fought for the position, and only six remained standing.
In the end, Li Luochen chose one: Lin Chengkun, forty-one years old, the youngest among the six. His spirit was the Unicorn Black Dragon Wyrm, a dragon-type spirit with Dark Holy Dragon lineage. A Soul Sage with twenty-one consecutive victories in the slaughter arena.
Li Luochen found him relatively young, reasonably strong, and possessing a decent spirit. As for whether he feared betrayal? Hehe, Dugu Bo's specially crafted poisons should suffice.
Returning to the present
"How did he find me? Let him in and see what tricks he's up to."
Li Luochen gave the order.
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