Slaughter Among the Kings

The essence of the blood pool was nearly exhausted, its liquid almost completely turbid. Waves of baleful energy surged skyward, and the phantom shadows of gods and demons flickered in and out of view, accompanied by the howls of fiends and ghosts.

Xiao Chen stood tall upon the altar of multicolored diamond skulls. Shrouded in a mist of blood, he seemed a man made of gore, yet he radiated a powerful aura of life and energy.

One of his feet had already stepped into the Perfected Man realm; the other might follow at any moment. The divine abilities and combat techniques of his past had returned, and he could once again display the glory of bygone days.

"Who are you?!" several foreign kings demanded in unison.

"The Skeleton King."

"You lie! You are not the Skeleton King!" At that moment, the former Yellow Diamond Skeleton King's subordinates arrived—ten skeleton generals leading hundreds of fire seed beings, flying in from the sky.

"Rebel against a king—death!" Xiao Chen said as they approached. Though he did not move, an oppressive, terrifying pressure radiated from him, cowing them.

"He is definitely not the Yellow Diamond Skeleton King!" the ten skeleton generals shouted in unison. "He must have assassinated our king and taken his place. Kill him and avenge our king!"

The ten skeleton generals and the hundreds of fire seed beings charged forward at once. The energy of their fire seeds roiled violently, surging madly toward the altar and Xiao Chen.

"RUMBLE…"

The already ruined underground palace shattered once more. Rubble flew through the air, the earth split apart, and torrents of energy swept toward Xiao Chen and the little white beast.

"All you rebels must die!"

With that, Xiao Chen took a step forward on the altar of multicolored diamond skulls and pressed his right palm down into the void. The Lingxi Sword Wave thrummed outward. Centered on him, annihilating ripples spread in deceptively slow undulations, but formless energy already saturated every corner of the void.

"Pfft!" "Pfft!" "Pfft!" …

The ten skeleton generals bore the brunt of the attack. Facing Xiao Chen, who had one foot in the Perfected Man realm, they could not resist. The Lingxi Sword Wave was the most ruthless and potent killing art. Six of the ten generals were instantly shattered into clouds of bone dust that scattered across the sky. The remaining four had their skeletal frames completely fractured, not a single intact bone left.

As for the hundreds of fire seed beings that followed, they fared even worse. Like moths diving into a flame, they were rushing to their own destruction. The Lingxi Sword Wave, a divine technique for mass slaughter, radiated outward from Xiao Chen in all directions, sweeping every enemy on the battlefield.

One after another, the fire seed beings exploded. White bone powder drifted through the sky like patches of ghostly mist. In the end, the remaining four skeleton generals were also annihilated, body and soul. Not a single one of the hundreds of fire seed beings escaped; all were reduced to ashes.

"Ya-ya… ya-ya…" Keke had shaken off her daze. Sensing the powerful aura of life around Xiao Chen, she became very happy and lively.

The kings were startled—not so much by Xiao Chen's combat power, but by the divine techniques he displayed. They seemed to be unlike the usual Skeleton Clan abilities.

Farther away, Yan Qingcheng and Ying Yin exchanged startled glances.

"Too fast, I couldn't see clearly."

"But in terms of killing power, it really looks like the Lingxi Sword Wave," they whispered quickly.

"You are not the Skeleton King. Who are you?!" the Death Spirit King stepped forward from the void, his towering, sinister evil spirit form exuding a dense, emotionless pressure as he glared at the blood-drenched man.

"Death Spirit King, we are both of the death lineage. Do not be incited by others," Xiao Chen said calmly, meeting his gaze.

"We have found the mark left by our king before his death. He was killed by you!" the War Clan experts roared from outside the arena, charging forward. The War Clan were few in number, but every one of them was a true warrior. Only eight of the dozen or so who had entered the ancient ruins remained.

All eight War Clan experts rushed forward. The other foreign kings watched coldly, waiting to see the depths of Xiao Chen's power.

The moment the eight experts surrounded him, Xiao Chen moved. He was swift as lightning—his former divine techniques and combat skills had fully returned, and the Eight Aspect Extreme was naturally restored, pushing him to the utmost speed.

"Bam!" "Bam!" "Bam!" …

Xiao Chen struck without holding back. The first palm pierced through one man's chest, shattering his internal organs. The second palm crushed another man's head, obliterating his features. The third palm… his hands carried a demonic force. One by one, all eight experts were killed with a single strike each.

"Ssss—"

Whistling sounds tore through the air as countless needle-thin rays split the sky, carrying thick miasma. Several dozen experts of the Scorpion Clan launched a surprise assault from afar. Without question, they suspected Xiao Chen was responsible for their king's death.

"Om—"

Xiao Chen directly activated the Origin Heavenly Sound, stepping fully into the Perfected Man realm. The killing power of that syllable was now even more terrifying.

"Puff!" "Puff!" "Puff!" …

Clumps of blood mist exploded in the sky. Several dozen Scorpion Clan cultivators were annihilated, body and soul, in an instant.

"Kill him!"

Two foreign kings stepped forward, charging at Xiao Chen—the Vampire Bat King and the Goblin King.

The Vampire Bat King was a queen with a pair of bat wings, a devilish figure curved with seductive allure, yet she had a demon's face, pale purple with blood-red fangs gleaming. She was particularly interested in Xiao Chen's life essence and wanted to drain it immediately. She transformed into a streak of black light, her bat wings cleaving through space like heavenly blades aimed at Xiao Chen's body.

"Clang!"

Xiao Chen met her with a palm edge, clashing against her wing with a metallic ring.

In a flash, the Vampire Bat King retreated, streaking across the sky before rising high. "He's not that strong! All kings, attack together and kill him! The King's Banner is yours; his life essence is mine!"

Seeing the Vampire Bat King acting with such ease, the slower Goblin King hesitated no longer. He charged forward, his short, green-skinned body like a jade-green fiend. He spat out a cloud of foul gas that enveloped the area.

Unlike the cunning bat, the Goblin King left himself no retreat, striking directly.

Xiao Chen's palm flickered with crystalline radiance, dispersing the foul gas. He reached out in a way that seemed unstoppable, sealing all directions—every angle was covered by that crystalline, bloodstained hand.

"Pah!"

The Hand of the Supreme Being slammed down. The Goblin King felt his own hand shatter, excruciating pain overwhelming him.

Foreign kings varied in strength, from the fourth to the ninth heaven of the Fish-Leap realm, and some had even reached the Perfected Man realm. The Goblin King was relatively weak; facing Xiao Chen, who had stepped into the Perfected Man realm, the result was predictable.

The Hand of the Supreme Being's overwhelming power spiraled up along the Goblin King's arms. Not only were his palms shattered, but both arms instantly turned to bloody pulp, severed at the shoulders.

"Aaaah!"

The Goblin King screamed and tried to retreat, but how could he outrun Xiao Chen's Eight Aspect Extreme?

In a flash, Xiao Chen caught up. His palm edge swept sideways, and with a wet thud, the Goblin King's head was severed. The skull flew sideways, trailing a spray of blood. But Xiao Chen quickly swept out a beam of light that reeled the corpse back, depositing it into his spatial ring.

At that moment, the Vampire Bat King halted in midair. She had been using the Goblin King to probe Xiao Chen's strength. Seeing his terrifying combat power, she no longer wanted to be in the vanguard. "What are you all waiting for? Attack together and kill him! Don't you want the King's Banner?"

Shadows flickered as several foreign kings rushed forward to surround Xiao Chen. Some of them kept an eye on Keke, preventing the little beast from intervening. Their intent was clear: kill Xiao Chen and seize the King's Banner.

But in the narrowest of gaps, Xiao Chen burst through the heavy encirclement and soared into the heavens, going straight for the Vampire Bat King. At this moment, the Eight Aspect Extreme displayed its true speed. Even the Vampire Bat King had no time to flee.

"Kill him!" the Vampire Bat King called to the other kings as she unleashed her own divine technique. Her wings cut through the void like blades, emitting terrifying ripples.

But Xiao Chen's hand caught one of her razor-sharp bat wings with a solid grip. Then, with both hands, he tore violently. With a wet rip, he shredded the wing that was tougher than refined metal.

Shadows flew and kings shouted, charging into the sky to surround Xiao Chen.

In agony, the Vampire Bat King howled a soul-crushing sonic wave. Space collapsed, and annihilating black holes appeared around her, erupting outward from her center.

But Xiao Chen did not retreat. He countered with the Om Syllable Heavenly Sound, charging forward relentlessly. A fierce melee ensued. The kings pursued from behind while Xiao Chen focused on killing the Vampire Bat King.

"RUMBLE…"

The sky thundered constantly, space shattering again and again. The Vampire Bat King's terrifying sonic waves possessed uncanny power, repeatedly colliding with Xiao Chen's Om Syllable.

Seeing the kings closing in, a vicious grin slowly spread across her face. But in that instant, her smile froze.

"Pfft!"

Xiao Chen used the Eight Aspect Worlds to teleport a war sword, piercing straight through her heart. He twisted violently, and her body nearly collapsed. Her sonic waves stopped. The Om Syllable Heavenly Sound annihilated her.

Though her body was broken apart, it did not completely disintegrate. Xiao Chen collected the pieces into his spatial ring. The bodies of foreign kings were rich in life essence, the finest materials for his rebirth.

The power of the Perfected Man realm was fully displayed. Though he had only one foot inside, it was enough to allow him to face ordinary foreign kings with contempt.

Shadows flickered as six figures rushed in, encircling him. The Death Spirit King and the Zombie King were among them. The kings eyed the war sword in Xiao Chen's hand with burning greed. The Death Spirit King's voice was icy: "You… used us!" But he could not openly admit to having participated in the killing of the War King.

"Kill him!" the Zombie King ground his teeth in fury. He had been promised the King's Banner but never got it, used as a mere mercenary.

Six kings attacked together. Even a true Perfected Man expert would frown at such a combined assault. Their union shattered this stretch of heaven, sending chaos light slashing out, returning the area to its most primordial state.

If Xiao Chen had not possessed the Eight Aspect Extreme, he might well have been killed within that chaos.

He streaked hundreds of zhang across the sky and launched a ferocious assault against a single foreign king.

The Reverse Chaos Strike combined with the Demon-Suppressing Strike. The sky tore apart with crisscrossing, terrifying beams of light. A phantom of a gloomy demon palace appeared, pressing down toward that king.

"BOOM!"

That foreign king was impaled and sent crashing into the deep earth, spitting blood.

"Fsssh—"

Whistling sounds rang out as the other five kings arrived, relieving the pressure on their comrade and allowing him to emerge from the earth. The phantom demon palace that had been pressing on him faded.

"We must kill him!" That was the thought of the six foreign kings. If he was this terrifying before truly entering the Perfected Man realm, how could they—Fish-Leap realm kings—contend with him once he actually achieved it?

Around the Zombie King, demonic clouds surged and corpse aura billowed. Wave after wave of energy crashed forward like angry tides pounding the shore, like meteorites striking the earth—an unstoppable flood of brute force.

Xiao Chen withdrew the war sword and brought out another of his former techniques—the Perfect Vase Seal!

Above his head, a great crystal vase manifested, translucent and sparkling, radiating a blinding, dazzling brilliance. A torrent of blazing sacred light surged from the vase, scattering all the demonic clouds and utterly shattering the sky-filling corpse aura.

The sacred light illuminated the ten directions, like ten suns blazing in the sky. Thousands of rays and auspicious colors shone to every corner. The whole sky was brilliantly lit. Thunder boomed, the heavens shook. The Zombie King, struck by that light, was sent hurtling away with a solid thud.

The other five kings were alarmed and rushed to aid him, all launching their own divine abilities at Xiao Chen. The heavens were filled with blinding light as the kings engaged in a fierce melee.

"That is…" Yan Qingcheng's peerlessly beautiful face was filled with shock. If she had any doubts before, now she was almost certain—this was the divine combat technique of that man from years past. The Lingxi Sword Wave, the Origin Syllable, the Four Supreme Strikes, the Perfect Vase Seal, and the Eight Aspect Extreme all proved that these were his signature arts.

The Third Princess of Great Shang was also extremely shocked, but she thought of another point. "Isn't that Martial War-Soul also capable of his techniques? Could this man have learned them through some special opportunity?"

Years ago, Xiao Chen's body had been shattered and had fallen into the Demon Well beneath the Dead City—everyone knew that. How could he have survived the Demon Well that had devoured even half-ancestors? But if someone had cultivated his techniques through some mystical coincidence, why would the clever, mischievous white beast be guarding him? It had once followed Xiao Chen and would not easily accept another master.

All this left Yan Qingcheng and Ying Yin utterly stunned and uncertain.

Several foreign kings kept a close watch on Keke, preventing the little beast from intervening. But in the battlefield, Xiao Chen had already gained the upper hand, fighting six kings alone without losing ground—more offense than defense.

"ROAR…"

The Death Spirit King let out a low, rumbling howl. Death energy covered the sky, and shadows blotted out the world. This was his supreme technique—the Nether Shadow Space.

Xiao Chen was suddenly pulled into it. Thousands upon ten thousands of howling souls rushed toward him, seeking to tear him apart. Among them were even the heroic spirits of the Death Spirit Clan, terrifyingly powerful combatants.

Xiao Chen directly activated the Origin Heavenly Sound, killing several hundred souls in a single blast, and even obliterated one powerful heroic spirit entirely, body and soul.

But he dared not linger long. He already knew about the Nether Shadow Space—it connected to the Death Spirit Clan's holy land of heroic spirits, where probably some unimaginably powerful entities dwelled. Indeed, deep within the shadows came powerful energy fluctuations, rapidly approaching.

Eight hazy worlds appeared around Xiao Chen. The Eight Aspects rotated, erupting with a power that could destroy heaven and earth. He directly tore open the Nether Shadow Space and stepped out calmly.

The Death Spirit King's body was half-shattered from the blow. Severely wounded, he quickly retreated.

All this happened in an instant. As Xiao Chen burst out, he launched a devastating attack on a foreign king before him. The Eight Aspect Worlds enveloped that king, merging heaven and earth, yin and yang, then exploding with flashes of chaos that directly crushed him out of existence—body and soul annihilated.

Xiao Chen was quite regretful—he had not been able to collect that king's corpse.

A terrifying pressure caused the remaining five kings to change color. They converged and pressed forward to kill.

The Eight Aspect Worlds manifested, enveloping all five experts and isolating them in different worlds. Xiao Chen, holding his war sword like a god of slaughter, charged into the Swamp Aspect where one foreign king fought desperately. Xiao Chen attacked with the sword while summoning the power of the Thunder Aspect and Mountain Aspect worlds.

Mountains collapsed their momentum; thunder shattered their forms!

In the end, that foreign king's body was nearly broken. With a single sword stroke, Xiao Chen cleaved off his head. Blood surged skyward, and the corpse was collected into his spatial ring.

Then Xiao Chen turned to the Heaven Aspect World, using the Origin Om Syllable to annihilate another foreign king.

Three of the six kings had fallen in the blink of an eye, greatly easing Xiao Chen's burden. He charged into the Earth Aspect World, calling on the power of the other worlds, rotating the Eight Aspects to grind one of the kings into pieces.

Four of the six kings were dead, leaving only the severely wounded Death Spirit King and Zombie King.

"Worthless!"

The Asura King gave a low shout. He and Mao Nu had put aside their conflict for the moment and no longer fought to the death. He struck his palm through the void, reached into the Eight Aspect Worlds, and pulled out the Death Spirit King and Zombie King.

"Sss—"

The war sword in Xiao Chen's hand sheared off a section of the Asura King's sleeve, nearly cutting his arm. But it showed just how formidable the Asura King was.

Several kings moved at once; seven or eight followed the Asura King as he pressed forward.

The little beast Keke saw the danger. She let out a "Ya-ya" and swept out seven-colored divine light, sending several experts flying, then rushed to Xiao Chen's side to fight alongside him.

The Golden Lion King had recovered his combat power. Seeing Keke move, he once again charged forward with the Basde Ancient Spear.

"I already know who you are!" the Golden Lion King said, staring fixedly at Xiao Chen.

The other kings all showed strange expressions. Many had already made some connection. Though they had not been active in that era when Xiao Chen silenced the world's experts, they had heard many tales about him.

Several foreign kings now guessed his identity. But they were all deeply unconvinced—even if it really was Xiao Chen of old, so what? It was only because the Hundred Races had not emerged in that age.

Far away, Yan Qingcheng and Ying Yin showed expressions of utter disbelief. The Five-Colored Peacock King, Gold, and the little Winged Dragon Leina looked at one another in confusion.

The Demon Well devoured all living beings—how had he escaped death and returned? This was the key problem that left those who guessed the truth stunned and uncertain.

The most powerful Asura King and Golden Lion King attacked simultaneously. The other kings had no more reservations; nearly twenty foreign kings struck together. The mere aftershocks of that power caused nearby peaks to collapse directly.

Even if Xiao Chen had truly reached the Perfected Man realm, he could not face so many foreign kings at once. If he actually received their combined attack, he would likely be annihilated in a single exchange.

Keke understood the depth of danger. She quickly expanded Paradise Lost, enveloping both Xiao Chen and herself.

"Do you think hiding in there will save you?" At that moment, from a distant sky came pulses of dread that shook the soul. The Asura Heavenly King, who had been absent for days, stepped through the void. His green hair flew wildly, and the entire world trembled with each footfall as he approached.

Xiao Chen held his war sword, his battle intent soaring. Together with the little beast Keke, he was undaunted even by an army of thousands. Ensconced in Paradise Lost, they were already in an invincible position.