Chapter 78: Taking Away Subordinates
Thank you to our new Patrons: Josh, Nilist, Neopolitansoso, Foolie, Resid Kuliyev, Bodybags87, Jaden Henderson, spiritwolf86, Kyle Bates, Macabre Threener, Jakob Harris, Koner !!, Elan Jones, NaasH NS and Shon Ducusin! You are what makes this possible! We are up to Chapter 190: Blue Lightning Elders Arrive at Shrek on Patreon!
There's something for free patrons too! Free Patrons receive 1 chapter in advance :)
I've also recently started a new translation, please check it out and show your support! It's called Douluo: Brains Over Bloodline. As always, Patrons will have unrestricted access to all of my stories including futures ones!
---------------------------------------------------------------------
After pondering for a moment, Li Luochen stored the divine-bestowed soul ring in his storage-type soul tool. It could be absorbed at any time when he reached a bottleneck, so he decided to save it for later.
"King of Slaughter, I need to take two people with me. As a God of Slaughter, I should have this privilege, right?"
Li Luochen asked directly. Now that he was a chosen one of the gods, his words carried weight!
"It's fine. Who are they? I'll have them brought here." The King of Slaughter didn't dare to get angry at Li Luochen's words. He couldn't afford to anger a divine chosen one—once angered, there would be no second chance. He truly didn't dare to provoke Li Luochen.
Li Luochen looked at the King of Slaughter before him. Hmm, he preferred the King of Slaughter's previously defiant demeanor, but alas, it was irretrievable now.
"Dai Tianxing, the Blood Tiger, and Lin Chengkun."
Li Luochen wanted these two. Dai Tianxing had already pledged loyalty to him, so taking him out wouldn't be an issue. Besides, Li Luochen wasn't afraid of dealing with someone on the verge of becoming a Soul Douluo. As for Lin Chengkun, Li Luochen felt more at ease—he had been serving as his gatekeeper for over half a year and had proven reliable.
Both were in their forties. Dai Tianxing, at forty-five years old, was already level eighty, while Lin Chengkun, at forty-one, was level seventy-four. Both were geniuses—Dai Tianxing had the potential to become a Title Douluo, and Lin Chengkun also had a chance.
These two would serve as Li Luochen's loyal subordinates, bolstering the high-level combat power of Shrek Academy. In this era, Soul Douluos were regional powerhouses, and Title Douluos were rare resources.
For now, there shouldn't be more than thirty Title Douluos on the continent. Li Luochen was satisfied with Soul Douluo-level strength. Moreover, both Dai Tianxing and Lin Chengkun were still relatively young—they could likely reach the Title Douluo rank by their sixties or seventies.
While Title Douluos were hard to recruit, talented Soul Douluos and Soul Sages were easier to attract. After all, Shrek Academy currently only had one Title Douluo—the Poison Douluo. Flandre and Zhao Wuji were Soul Douluos, and the rest of the teachers were Soul Sages.
The lineup was already strong, but more was always better. In the future, even the gatekeepers of Shrek Academy would need to be Soul Douluos. Hmm, perhaps add a rule banning Master Yu from entering. Hehehe.
Not long after, the emissary of the City of Slaughter led two men out. On the left stood a man with golden hair, towering over two meters tall, with a muscular build exuding bloodthirsty energy—this was Dai Tianxing, the Blood Tiger.
On the right was a man with black hair and deep purple eyes, his face eerily handsome with an unsettling aura—this was Lin Chengkun, the Black Dragon.
These two were the dragon and tiger guardians Li Luochen had recruited in the City of Slaughter. Dai Tianxing had been in the City of Slaughter for seven years, while Lin Chengkun had been there for four.
However, Dai Tianxing had been framed and thrown into the city, and Lin Chengkun's case was similar. He had been betrayed by a supposed friend who promised to explore the City of Slaughter together for opportunities, but the friend died early on, leaving Lin Chengkun stranded there.
Both had the potential to become Title Douluos. Regardless, they were subdued by Li Luochen using poison—a slow process, but not insurmountable. On the Douluo Continent, many still valued honor and martial ethics.
"Alright, then I'll take these two and leave. Farewell, King of Slaughter." Li Luochen departed with the two men, offering a simple goodbye to the King of Slaughter.
The King of Slaughter felt some anger at Li Luochen's dismissive attitude but was powerless to act. Not only did Li Luochen have a strong background, but he was now favored by the gods—all he possessed was granted by the divine. There was nothing the King of Slaughter could do.
---
Meanwhile, Li Luochen led Dai Tianxing and Lin Chengkun out of the City of Slaughter. The familiar sunlight bathed their bodies, giving them a sense of reconnection with the outside world. The warmth of the sun felt comforting yet strangely unfamiliar.
Li Luochen understood that the two had spent too long in the City of Slaughter. They had thought they would die there, never expecting to see the light of day again.
Not only did they bask in the sun's nourishment, but they also activated their spirits. Rings of soul energy appeared around them, each representing optimal configurations: yellow, yellow, purple, purple, black, black, black.
However, Dai Tianxing's soul power had already reached level eighty. All he needed was a soul ring to become a true Soul Douluo. At forty-five, he was well on track to becoming a Title Douluo before sixty.
"Have you enjoyed enough? Here's your antidote for the month. It's been half a month since the last dose—you can take it now." Li Luochen took out two pills, and upon seeing them, Dai Tianxing and Lin Chengkun immediately swallowed them.
They had willingly taken the poison, hoping Li Luochen would keep his promise to bring them out. Fortunately, their gamble had paid off. Even if they had pledged loyalty, the outside world was far better than the City of Slaughter.
At this moment, Dai Tianxing, now relaxed, began to lose control of his killing intent. His killing intent began to merge with the bloodthirsty aura of his spirit. With fifty-seven victories in the City of Slaughter, Dai Tianxing harbored a significant amount of killing intent.
Moreover, surpassing fifty victories required a head soul bone to stabilize the sea of consciousness; otherwise, one could easily go berserk due to the overwhelming killing intent. Now, Dai Tianxing was experiencing such a rampage of killing intent.
Li Luochen considered what to do. A thought crossed his mind, and he took out a head soul bone with orange-yellow markings and black streaks.
"This is a bargain for you." Without hesitation, Li Luochen pressed the head soul bone onto Dai Tianxing's forehead. This head soul bone had been obtained in the slaughter arena, dropped by a Soul Douluo whose spirit was a type of tiger—it was likely from his eighth soul ring, with a cultivation of just over forty thousand years. A tiger-type head soul bone suited Dai Tianxing perfectly.
When Li Luochen first obtained this head soul bone, he had been besieged by countless challengers. He had fought his way out of mountains of corpses and seas of blood, terrifying the fallen warriors into submission to claim it.
Now, it was an investment. A forty-thousand-year head bone was incredibly valuable—even Title Douluos would covet it. Beside him, Lin Chengkun stared at the head soul bone, practically drooling. The allure of soul bones to soul masters was immense.
Li Luochen shot Lin Chengkun a strange look. Was it really that serious? If I weren't here, would you have killed to seize it? Still, a ten-thousand-year head soul bone was something even Title Douluos desired.
At this moment, Dai Tianxing felt a cool sensation in his sea of consciousness, and his blood-red eyes gained a hint of clarity. Though he had lost control earlier, he hadn't forgotten anything. His master had given him a head soul bone to help suppress his killing intent.
He knew exactly where this soul bone came from. Initially, he had even considered seizing it for himself, but after witnessing Li Luochen slaughter those who tried to take it, he abandoned the idea. He had assumed Li Luochen kept it for himself, never expecting it to be given to him. This meant Li Luochen must already possess a head soul bone.
With his enhanced mental strength, Dai Tianxing suppressed his killing intent and bloodthirsty aura. However, something unexpected occurred—the two energies merged! The bloodthirsty aura, a hallmark of his spirit, the Demon Marked Blood Tiger, became dominant.
His variant spirit, the Demon Marked Blood Tiger, was even stronger than the royal family's White Tiger. Its bloodthirsty aura had a berserk quality, giving Dai Tianxing the confidence to fight opponents of higher levels.
Now, the accumulated killing intent and bloodthirsty aura from the City of Slaughter had fused, birthing a domain unique to his spirit—the Bloodthirsty Domain. Under its influence, all attributes increased by ten percent, allowing Dai Tianxing to unleash 110% of his combat power within the domain.
Moreover, the Bloodthirsty Domain had additional effects—it reduced the opponent's senses and lowered all their attributes by five percent.
------------------------------------------------------
Support my writing journey: patreon.com/EphemeralShadow