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*****
At the extreme northern border, where the ice meets the ocean.
Above the ice, the wind howls and the blizzard roars, but beneath the ice, the sea is strangely calm.
A group of massive ice turtles lie quietly on the seabed, atop the ruins of a shattered altar.
...
Thousands of years ago, in the northern seas.
Eight Titled Douluos flew above the sea, each displaying their flying martial soul abilities, maintaining a vigilant posture.
If members of the Four Elemental Academies were present, they would surely recognize these eight individuals as the deans and vice-deans of the academies!
"Could something unexpected happen?" someone suddenly voiced, with a strong sense of concern in their tone.
"No worries. If there's a life-or-death crisis, that girl will seek our help," another person said calmly, with soul power already circulating in their palms, evidently ready to act at any moment.
Just then, a wave of soul power fluctuations emanated from below the sea's surface, followed by a figure clad in azure, emerging from the water carrying a massive octopus head.
Upon seeing the azure figure, the tense expressions on the faces of the eight Titled Douluos relaxed.
"This seventy-thousand-year soul beast was indeed formidable, but fortunately, we managed to slay it in the end," Shui Bing'er said, looking at the deans and vice-deans with a relieved smile.
This was her third trial as the Ice God, to slay a fifty-thousand-year-old octopus lurking deep in the northern seas.
With her sixty-fifth rank in soul power, she had engaged in a fierce battle with the octopus for a long time, ultimately delivering a fatal blow with her powerful soul skills from a hundred-thousand-year soul ring.
[Ice God's third trial completed!]
[Received Ice God's reward: All soul rings upgraded by a thousand years, Ice God divinity integration increased by 5%!]
Accompanied by the artifact's notification, Shui Bing'er's six soul rings appeared, four purple and two black.
However, immediately after, the content of the Ice God's fourth trial suddenly appeared on the artifact.
[Ice God's fourth trial: Slay one thousand Evil Soul Masters!]
Contemplating the difficulty of the fourth trial, Shui Bing'er narrowed her beautiful eyes slightly.
"One thousand Evil Soul Masters? Where can I find them?"
As the deans looked at the content of the Ice God's fourth trial displayed on the artifact, a look of difficulty crossed their faces.
Currently, Evil Soul Masters were not nonexistent on the continent, but most of them were scattered. It would take quite some time to find one thousand of them.
"If that's not feasible, we'll send out all the soul masters from the Four Great Academies to capture one thousand Evil Soul Masters!" the dean of the Blaze Academy said bluntly, his only solution being to send everyone out.
"That's a method, but it would attract too much attention. We might risk being discovered by the Martial Soul Hall," the dean of the Stormwind Academy shook his head, indicating that this method was unreliable.
"There's a place where many unscrupulous soul masters gather," suddenly, the dean of the Tianshui Academy pondered aloud.
At this, all eight Titled Douluos present instantly understood.
"The City of Slaughter!"
Shui Bing'er was not familiar with this, but fortunately, the dean of the Tianshui Academy explained it. After a few minutes, she had a rough understanding of the City of Slaughter.
"I will enter the City of Slaughter alone."
Shui Bing'er quickly made a decision, determination flashing in her eyes.
She had already learned from the dean of the Tianshui Academy about the rules of the City of Slaughter: accumulating a hundred consecutive victories under the condition of losing one's soul power.
If all eight deans and vice-deans entered the City of Slaughter together, there was no guarantee that everyone would come out alive.
...
Several days passed as Shui Wuya and his companion, Shui Wuya, searched along the intersection of the ice and the ocean, but they had yet to find any trace of the Ice Turtle clan.
However, on this particular day, they arrived at a city near the extreme northern seas of the Sun Moon Empire.
The town was called Sunset City, where the sun rose and set. In the eyes of the common folk of the Sun Moon Empire, Sunset City was where the sun descended.
After finding an inn in the city to stay, Shui Wuya sat down in the room, his mind delving into contemplation.
The next moment, he saw a crimson world in his mind's eye!
A crimson sky, crimson buildings, and air tinged with the scent of blood, instantly making Shui Wuya understand the environment Shui Bing'er was currently in.
City of Slaughter!
"Ancestor, why are you going to the City of Slaughter?" Shui Wuya was somewhat dumbfounded. The City of Slaughter was no good place; a slight mistake could easily lead to death.
"This is my fourth trial as the Ice God. I have to slay one thousand Evil Soul Masters here," Shui Bing'er replied calmly upon hearing Shui Wuya's voice from the room.
Her indifferent tone made Shui Wuya understand that Shui Bing'er was already aware of the risks of the City of Slaughter.
For a moment, silence filled the room.
"Don't worry, I will make it out of the City of Slaughter alive. Besides, I still have your help, don't I?" Shui Bing'er seemed to sense the reason for Shui Wuya's silence and immediately spoke to ease the tension.
"Alright, Ancestor. According to the rules of the City of Slaughter, you need to slay nine hundred people here to qualify to leave," Shui Wuya responded.
With ten people per group and a hundred consecutive victories required, regardless of whether he adjusted the difficulty of the fourth divine trial, one had to slay nine hundred people to leave the City of Slaughter.
Therefore, he had no intention of modifying the difficulty of the divine trial this time.
"Ancestor, I'll send you some things."
Suddenly, Shui Wuya activated his ability, and a batch of supplies that had been stored in his storage soul device instantly appeared by Shui Bing'er's side.
Shui Bing'er immediately opened and inspected them; there were plenty of food, healing pills, and some poison.
These things might not be noteworthy outside, but in the City of Slaughter, they were quite valuable, especially the poison!
After sending the supplies, Shui Wuya's mental exhaustion caused him to retreat into his body.
Shui Bing'er was accustomed to Shui Wuya's sudden disappearances. The gentle expression on her face disappeared, replaced by a hint of fierceness.
Although she had only been here for a few days, she already knew that in the City of Slaughter, only by being ruthless could one survive!
...
In the extreme north, at a border between the Star Luo Empire and the Sun Moon Empire.
The biting cold wind pierced through. Despite being deep into the night, a tent remained brightly lit.
"General, the Sun Moon Empire has been unusually quiet for the past month. This is not normal," the chief of staff of this army reported to the border defense commander, overseeing the enemy's movements over the past month.
"Something indeed seems amiss, but Duke Baihu is currently observing the Soul Master Tournament in the Star Luo Empire. It may be difficult for him to return anytime soon," the commander shook his head helplessly.
"General, I suggest we report the situation immediately and request Duke Baihu to return to the border. Otherwise, if the Sun Moon Empire attacks, our army will likely fall into chaos," the chief of staff said firmly. Out of wariness of war, he knew he had to do this.
(End of this chapter)