"Well, I'm just a little bat. Wouldn't catching me dirty your hands, my lord?"
The King of Slaughter was dumbfounded. It never expected that such a powerful being could exist in this world.
A being far stronger than Tang Chen by countless magnitudes!
This was a god—a terrifyingly powerful god!
And merely for the sake of tempering a junior, this god rendered it completely immobile...
What could it do in the face of such strength? It felt utterly hopeless!
If commanded, could it dare to disobey?
The strong should display their might, and the weak should show humility.
A certain general once said: "I am strong. I have no idea what humility even means."
Upon hearing this, Zhongli glanced at the King of Slaughter with an expressionless face.
This so-called King of Slaughter was rather pragmatic and knew how to adapt to circumstances.
The so-called King of Slaughter was none other than Tang Chen, who had been parasitized by the Dark Gold Bat.
Others couldn't discern its true form because it used Tang Chen's body as a vessel. But Zhongli could see its true nature clearly.
Ignoring the King of Slaughter, Zhongli seated himself on the only throne in the room. With a casual wave of his hand, a tea set appeared before him.
With the Dark Gold Bat's sharp perception, it could tell that the tea set wasn't retrieved from a storage soul tool.
Instead, it had been conjured in an instant.
Realizing this, the Dark Gold Bat felt even more terrified.
"Sit down. Occasionally cleaning up the Slaughter City should be quite fulfilling," Zhongli said calmly as he released his grip on the creature.
The Dark Gold Bat was no ordinary entity.
As an ancient species, it wouldn't even leave a soul ring behind when killed.
It had managed the Slaughter City with meticulous precision. Could anyone claim it wasn't intelligent?
Once the hand of fate let go of its vital point, it abandoned any thoughts of escape. It quickly nodded in agreement.
Faced with such overwhelming strength, whatever the other party said was the truth.
What was the big deal about cleaning up the Slaughter City?
As long as it remained alive and the city wasn't completely destroyed, it could always rebuild.
There was no need to risk its life for those weaklings against an enemy who could annihilate it with a single move.
"You are absolutely right, my lord," the King of Slaughter said, forcing a smile. It wasn't that it wanted to act this way; it had no other choice.
Whatever this lord said was law.
"These people are the most heinous criminals of the Douluo Continent. Letting them kill each other in the Slaughter City..."
Before the King of Slaughter could finish speaking, Zhongli waved his hand to interrupt, saying, "I do not believe this is pure slaughter."
Indeed, the Slaughter City of old had been very pure. It existed solely for the act of killing.
But now, the Slaughter City was entirely controlled by desire—killing driven by lust and greed.
Such killing was no longer pure, and this also revealed something else:
The inheritance grounds of the God of Asura had been tainted by the influence of the God of Rakshasa!
The thought was laughable. The God of Asura, who naturally countered the God of Rakshasa, had allowed his inheritance grounds to be influenced by his nemesis.
If not for the consent of the God of Asura, the God of Rakshasa could never have achieved such a feat.
Hearing this, the King of Slaughter's expression changed. It cautiously glanced at Zhongli.
The way this lord sat—it was quite overbearing...
After a brief moment of contemplation, the King of Slaughter nodded and said, "Your wisdom is unparalleled, my lord!"
"The Slaughter City of old was indeed an arena of pure killing. But then, one day..."
"I... I have no choice either."
The King of Slaughter spread its hands helplessly, its face flashing with a trace of resignation. It was the same old story: the weak always get oppressed, just as it was happening now.
"That was the God of Rakshasa. She also achieved her godhood here."
"If even 'he' doesn't care, how could I dare disobey Lady Rakshasa's will..."
As it spoke, a tinge of grievance appeared on the King of Slaughter's face.
If the God Asura had been managing the Slaughter City, it would never have been able to act as it did.
With his presence, the rising star Rakshasa God could never have gained a foothold!
But it was just a Dark Gold Bat, after all!
Faced with the divine will of the Rakshasa, how could it not comply with her arrangements?
Zhongli leisurely sipped his tea. He could tell whether the Dark Gold Bat was lying.
"The God Asura... has been tainted."
The King of Slaughter: "!!!"
It felt a chill run down its spine, cold sweat tinged with blood dripping from its forehead.
It knew well how powerful the God of Asura was.
And yet, the tone of this mighty being before it sounded like one evaluating a junior...
Just thinking about it made the entire bat feel uneasy.
"Ah, yes, yes, tainted!"
The King of Slaughter scratched its head and echoed nervously. If it could, it would have fled a long time ago!
Meanwhile, in the Divine Realm, two gods furrowed their brows.
After a moment of sensing carefully, their expressions became quite colorful.
Him. It was him again!
Both of them had "met" Zhongli before and naturally recognized this mysterious figure.
Among them, the God of Asura had even "sparred" with Zhongli.
As for the God Rakshasa, though she hadn't fought Zhongli directly, she could sense his terrifying presence. Her divine consciousness dared not even approach him.
"The Asura has been tainted?"
The corner of Rakshasa's lips lifted slightly. Excellent, perfectly said!
How could there be pure slaughter in this world?
As long as there is life, there is desire!
Slaughter born of desire is the true orthodoxy!
If this ideology could be overturned, wouldn't her God Rakshasa position ascend to the rank of a God King?
"This one... he suits my taste. With just a few words, he discerned that Asura is no longer the pure God of Killing he once was."
Perhaps the Asura of old was indeed pure, but after "slaying" the Dragon God, he must have lost his original purpose.
"I've been tainted?"
The God Asura murmured, falling into contemplation.
Upon reflection, his current actions did indeed seem to stray from his initial intentions.
"Perhaps it is precisely because of this that I seek to pass on my godhood and leave this position behind?"
At this thought, Asura glanced at Tang San. He realized, to his slight disappointment, that he no longer felt as optimistic about this successor as he once had.
"Zhongli, or should I call you the Martial God."
"Sooner or later, we will have a battle. Then, I will see if you truly have the right to say such things!"
With that, the God of Asura withdrew into silence. He had many plans to expedite.
---
Back in the Slaughter City, Zhongli and the King of Slaughter were observing the unfolding events. Zhongli's expression remained calm, unmoved.
During the Age of Archons, even a minor skirmish was countless times more horrifying than this.
A scene of this scale didn't even register in his emotions.
But the King of Slaughter was terrified. The power Wang Chen wielded was unlike anything it had ever seen!
He appeared to be a Soul Sage, yet his "soul rings" weren't restricted by the Slaughter City's rules and could be used freely.
What shocked the King of Slaughter most was that even the Title Douluo it had granted "special privileges" to was no match for Wang Chen!
The boy shouted things like "village," "bonds," and "Martial God Zhongli" before directly slaying the Title Douluo.
The King of Slaughter: "..."