Chapter 48

Rumor has it that the entrance to Slaughter City is hidden in a small town, a town that looks ordinary yet exudes an eerie aura.

The houses here are irregularly arranged, with walls mostly showing an aged, dull gray hue. On the narrow, winding streets, the stone pavement has been smoothed by time to an extreme smoothness.

Occasionally, a few old oil lamps line the streets, emitting a weak, flickering light that seems about to go out at any moment.

The town is permeated with a faint smell of blood and decay, making people's breathing unconsciously become oppressive.

Occasionally a gust of yin wind blows, making those old doors and windows creak, as if countless resentful spirits are wailing.

In the center of the town stands an ancient well; its water is dark and deep, as if hiding many unknown secrets. The surrounding trees are oddly shaped, their trunks twisted, as if recounting what once happened here.

This town is like a forgotten corner of the Douluo Continent, quietly waiting for those about to step into Slaughter City.

But the town, usually as silent as if forgotten by time, today presents a completely different scene.

The originally deserted street suddenly becomes bustling like a market, crowded to the point of overflow. People pour in from all directions, each with different expressions and purposes.

The narrow street is instantly filled with a bustling crowd, the noise rising and falling.

In front of those dilapidated houses, people now fill the space, talking fearfully or excitedly, or curiously looking around, as if searching for something.

Every corner of the town seems infused with vitality and energy, forming a stark contrast with its former desolation, as if a grand celebration were quietly unfolding here.

The crowd, for no apparent reason, gradually begins moving toward the town's inconspicuous tavern, one after another drawn to that unnoticeable tavern as if guided by some force.

These people walk at varying speeds, their figures weaving through the lanes; at first only a few scattered individuals, then more and more join.

As the crowd continually gathers, the area around the tavern becomes lively, and the tavern, once ordinary, has now become the focal point of the entire town.

This tavern is extremely ordinary, looking very shabby—just a low wooden house with a worn roof and mottled walls.

A large crowd has gathered before the tavern; although it is already evening, the tavern oddly remains closed, and those assembled grow increasingly impatient, each more irritable than the last, and fights have begun to break out.

At this moment, a waiter slowly walks out from inside the tavern. He is of medium build, with ordinary features, dressed in simple clothing, and his expression is very calm.

His appearance immediately draws the crowd's attention, but he simply stands there silently, as if waiting for something, or observing the gathered crowd.

A bald man with a fleshy face and fierce appearance, impatient, grabs the waiter's collar and shouts: "Aren't you just a waiter? What are you pretending for here! Wasn't it said that those who come today can obtain the qualification to enter Slaughter City? What exactly is the test? Tell me clearly, old man!"

The waiter's expression does not change; he coldly says, "You'd better let me go, or you won't want to know the consequences."

The bald man's face turns green then white, but he finally releases his grip.

"You'd better hurry up and say what the test is! Otherwise, I'll make you know what cruelty is!"

The waiter leisurely adjusts his collar; although he is only a Soul Elder, he has the great tree of Slaughter City behind him, so he does not fear these thugs.

The waiter speaks with a calm face:

"Today we have gathered everyone here because the Spirit Hall's actions have become increasingly extreme lately, and many members dispatched from the tavern have already been killed by them."

"The number of people dying at their hands keeps growing; the owner is dissatisfied, so we want to gather all our strength to resist the Spirit Hall's pursuit!"

"Everyone who has come here has hands stained with a sea of human blood, powerful soul masters, but for that very reason the Spirit Hall has already issued arrest warrants for all of you."

"The Spirit Hall is mighty; a lone individual acting alone is like throwing an egg at a stone! And the mastermind behind the Slaughter Tavern! My master! He is the captain of the enforcement squad under the Slaughter King! A powerful Title Douluo!"

"Entering Slaughter City equals receiving the Slaughter King's protection; your lives are thus safeguarded! The Spirit Hall lacks the ability to slaughter its way into Slaughter City!"

"And those who can enter Slaughter City are none other than true powerhouses; you can do anything you want, like what you like, with no legal restrictions—there it is a paradise for evildoers!"

The bald man and the surrounding fallen soul masters are startled in their hearts—there is actually a Title Douluo providing protection! Their desires blaze wildly; they can't wait to go to Slaughter City to enjoy themselves, and cheers erupt around the waiter.

Since being hunted by the Spirit Hall, these evildoers tremble at everything; they have nowhere to enjoy themselves, each day living with their heads on the chopping block.

The fallen soul masters have long been impatient, shouting, "What exactly is the test? Can you hurry up and say it!" Their ferocious faces are filled with bloodlust and distortion; they would rather rush to Slaughter City immediately to release the madness and desire pent up inside them.

The waiter continues, "To enter Slaughter City, one must undergo the trial of slaughter, and this time the task for those wishing to enter Slaughter City is to resist the Angel Legion dispatched by the Spirit Hall!"

"As long as you survive, you qualify to become a member of Slaughter City!" The waiter speaks with fervor, eager to watch the upcoming slaughter! Anyway, with Slaughter City's guarantee, the Spirit Hall's people wouldn't dare kill him! The Spirit Hall cooperates with Slaughter City, sending criminals here—surely they wouldn't kill a partner's employee? This kind of speech, the waiter can say is perfected; each time he can drive those evildoers to work for the tavern, Slaughter City always gets quality thugs, and he can also satisfy his own desires with these lunatics.

But what he didn't expect was that those originally ferocious, fanatical lunatics now stare at him with icy eyes, wishing to devour him alive.

The noisy entrance of the tavern suddenly falls silent, and the whole atmosphere turns eerie.

Beads of cold sweat appear on the waiter's forehead involuntarily, "What's wrong? You don't want to go to Slaughter City anymore? That's a place all evildoers dream of!"

"If I could kill the Angel Legion, I'd still come to your lousy Slaughter City! You want to harm me! You damned thing! Die!"

That bald, muscular man can no longer suppress his inner agitation; with a sudden roar, he directly initiates martial soul possession.

White, yellow, purple, purple, black—five soul rings flashing with strange light appear beneath his feet; a blood-red axe exuding a strong bloody scent materializes out of thin air, firmly gripped in his sturdy hand.

One sees his eyes flashing with ferocity; without hesitation he swings the axe, bringing a fierce gust, and fiercely chops at the waiter.

The waiter didn't even have time to utter a scream before being violently hacked to death under this ferocious attack; bright red blood spurted out, staining the ground, while the bald man merely gave a cold snort, stuck out his tongue to lick the blood on the axe, and showed an intoxicated expression.

This bald man is named Sang Biao; he has slaughtered several villages before, a true man-slayer, with an explosive temper. This waiter lacked strength yet pretended, and now he is directly chopped to death by Sang Biao.

Sang Biao's action instantly throws the surrounding fallen soul masters into a frenzy, each as if their inner madness factor had been ignited. Their faces are written with excitement, that twisted expression like a devil's.

The fallen soul masters openly display their inner joy, each shouting approval with raised voices; the sound echoes before the tavern, carrying a chilling meaning.

The deafening shouts seem about to break through the heavens and earth outside the tavern, filling the entire space with their twisted pleasure and wanton madness.

The fallen soul masters are intoxicated by this blood and violence, enjoying the stimulation brought by cruelty, completely immersed in this decadent atmosphere, unable to extricate themselves.

They crowd around Sang Biao, kick open the tavern door, look down on the two trembling waiters inside, and shout:

"Hurry up and give each of us a Bloody Mary! Otherwise we'll kill you!"

The two waiters are dumbfounded; they never expected that the senior who had just been brandishing his power would be killed outright, so they quickly bring the Bloody Marys; this wave of thugs is the fiercest they've ever encountered, and the status of Slaughter City's waiters gives them no sense of safety.

Then he reached out and pressed the red button under the table, he had to let the master take action, otherwise the consequences would be unimaginable—these lunatics couldn't be controlled by a weakling! Just as the evil soul masters were reveling in their frenzy, a powerful aura swept in like a violent wind, the captain of the Slaughter King's enforcement squad, a Title Douluo who could shake one side of the continent, appeared.

His appearance came without any sign, as if he had stepped directly out of the void, clad in black knight armor, his whole body exuded a chilling aura, powerful soul power undulations spread outward like a tide.

Those thugs, under his intimidating presence, didn't dare to breathe, their bodies trembled uncontrollably.

The originally arrogant Sang Biao immediately put on a fawning expression, "Sir, are you here to take us to the City of Slaughter?" He was quite clever, bringing all the fallen soul masters present with him; if you cause trouble for everyone over a mere waiter, will anyone still come to your City of Slaughter in the future?

As expected, the captain didn't intervene for a mere waiter, just a Soul Elder, "My title is Jail Suppressor; if you want to enter the City of Slaughter you must complete the trial, and your trial is to fend off the Angel Legion!"

The bald man immediately said bitterly:

"Ah? Fight the Angel Legion? Is that for real?"

"'Even the most ordinary members of the Angel Legion are Soul Kings; the strongest here is just me, a single Soul King—how could we fight?' If it weren't for seeing that this person before him is a Title Douluo, he would have already hacked him to death with an axe! The Jail Suppressor Douluo gave him a cold glance: 'In this operation, I will also take action; you just need to survive the battle.'"

Actually, it was the King of Slaughter who issued the order, demanding that the development of the Angel Legion be restricted. Two months ago, the Angel Legion, which had been peacefully staying in Martial Soul City, suddenly reappeared on the continent, and it seems they have changed leaders. They have been carrying out various exterminations of fallen spirit masters, dealing a heavy blow to the sources of evil in the City of Slaughter. Therefore, the King of Slaughter ordered the Suppress Prison Douluo to wipe out the Angel Legion completely.

Even the strongest among them is nothing more than a Spirit Saint; a single Title Douluo is enough to take them down.

Sang Biao is actually still unwilling; he's just a beast. You want him to risk his life? What a joke—I'm not going to the broken City of Slaughter! 'Ah! Sir, I suddenly remembered I have some matters at home; shall we postpone the trial until tomorrow?'

The Suppress Prison Douluo could clearly see what Sang Biao was thinking, and snorted, 'You can't escape now—the Angel Legion has already arrived!'

(End of chapter)