"Hmm, it's a bit different from before! They actually call out numbers now."
Ning Rongrong descended from the spectator stands and arrived at the competition area. After handing her token to the staff, she was led to a resting area.
Though "resting" might be too generous—it was more like a cramped little room.
Once everyone had gathered, the door on the other side opened.
The ancient Roman-style coliseum's circular structure surrounded them, and the participants emerged from their cages like wild beasts being released.
There were no rules in the competition—the Hell Killing Arena was the only rule.
The killing field wasn't particularly large, but it could easily accommodate ten people. Those emerging from each room eyed each other warily.
No one would dare entertain any foolish thoughts at this moment—after all, their lives were on the line.
Those who came to participate in the Hell Killing Arena might as well have had "desperado" written on their foreheads.
"Seriously, my style really doesn't fit here!" Ning Rongrong muttered to herself.
There were ten people in the arena.
Eight men, two women...
"Well, counting me, that makes two women."
And that other woman—seductive in appearance, with a curvaceous figure that gave off a venomous vibe.
"Her brows are already open... Hmm, probably not a virgin anymore."
Wait.
Why am I even paying attention to this?
I must be getting influenced. Truly, the City of Slaughter is a naturally wicked place—it can even affect a terrifyingly powerful Sovereign like me.
"As for weapons... I'll go with a gun."
Every support-type dreams of close combat, but isn't kiting the enemy what a magical girl should do?
The clock hands in her left eye's spatial pupil rotated, and a pistol instantly materialized in her right hand.
"Of course, Kurumi had to make it look exactly the same..."
Has she awakened some strange fetish or something?
Ridiculous. Absolutely ridiculous.
She's just a spirit beast, yet she dares tease her master like this? Just wait until we get back—she's in for a world of pain.
Ning Rongrong swept her gaze over the nine opponents.
Some wielded cleavers, others great axes, while that alluring woman she had noticed earlier actually brandished a whip.
"Tch, let's just finish this quickly."
After all, this was her first match, and her opponents weren't particularly strong—just a bunch of Soul Ancestors and Soul Kings.
"Let the match... BEGIN!"
With the referee's shout, the arena erupted in roars.
The spectators, like gamblers in a Roman coliseum betting on gladiators, screamed themselves hoarse.
"Girl, you're out of luck running into me!"
A buzz-cut man wielding a tiger-toothed cleaver erupted with soul power and immediately charged at Ning Rongrong from the closest position.
Bang.
Just as he was a few meters away, the man suddenly collapsed.
A bloody bullet hole was engraved in his forehead, his eyes wide open, his face frozen in disbelief.
"As I thought, the suppression here is much weaker."
Her martial soul was bound by the Dragon God's laws, and Ning Rongrong wasn't yet strong enough to resist them.
On the Douluo Continent, her abilities were restricted by her martial soul—even at the Sovereign realm, she couldn't use many long-range attacks.
Unless she borrowed the Dark Devilgod Pearl's power and relied on Tokisaki Kurumi to resist the martial soul's restrictions.
For example, when she devoured those imprisoned Soul Masters earlier, it was only possible because the Dark Devilgod Pearl had fused with her, granting Kurumi—now the spirit of the Nine Treasure Glazed Pagoda—those abilities.
If she had to rely on her own power, she'd probably have to reach the Transcendent realm before she could break more of these seals.
But here, she could actually materialize zhenqi to kill enemies from a distance.
It was a bit unbelievable.
"First one down." Ning Rongrong's face lit up with excitement.
Finally—a real fight!
"Trace-less."
Her figure vanished, reappearing in front of a burly man wielding a giant axe.
"Brat, I'm not like the guy you just killed."
Ning Rongrong didn't bother flanking him. The man reacted instantly, gripping his hundred-jin axe with both hands and swinging it down with all his might.
But in the next second—
The man's face twisted in fury, his hands trembling as they clutched the axe handle, veins bulging on his forehead.
His bloodshot eyes, however, betrayed sheer terror.
Two fingers lightly pinched the blade of his descending axe. No matter how hard he strained, he couldn't pull it free.
"Too weak. Is this all you've got?" Ning Rongrong said flatly.
"Don't look down on me, brat! This is the City of Slaughter!" The man released the axe handle and swung a fist the size of a sand pot—his final, desperate attack.
Swoosh—
Ning Rongrong stood several meters behind him. With a flick of her fingers, the giant axe she had been holding spun through the air like a boomerang—
—and split the man clean in half.
Two dead in an instant.
Both were instant kills.
Ning Rongrong's actions drew the attention of the other Soul Masters in the killing field.
Normally, battles in the arena were hard-fought—everyone tried to kill their opponents without getting injured themselves.
Because even if you won, leaving the arena with severe injuries was a death sentence.
"Oh? Are you all coming at me now?"
The remaining eight participants stopped fighting and distanced themselves, their gazes locking onto Ning Rongrong.
"Pointless. No amount of struggling will change your fate."
"Hmph, I remember you." A sinister-looking man with a receding hairline glared at her. "You're the newcomer brought in by the envoy. You tried to steal my Bloody Mary earlier, didn't you?"
"Oh, now I remember." Ning Rongrong snapped her fingers. "That did happen. What a coincidence running into you here—seems you've chosen the path of death."
"Hmph! There are seven of us, and you're just a rookie. The advantage is ours!" The balding man turned to his temporary "allies." "Let's take her out first, then settle things among ourselves. Deal?"
"Fine!" The seductive whip-wielding woman licked her lips. "But her body is mine. Don't kill her right away—I want to play with her a bit."
"Freak."
The balding man rolled his eyes. Even now, she was still thinking about that?
Sure, only one person could leave the killing field alive.
But no one actually did that kind of thing mid-battle.
"Hmph, in the end, I'll be the one standing anyway, won't I?" The woman smirked. "Or are you planning to abandon our alliance and turn on me instead?"
"Tch." A spiky-haired punk gritted his teeth. "If we fight you, we might still have a chance. But if we don't team up against that white-haired girl, we're all dead!"
"No holding back. If anyone tries to conserve strength to take advantage later, we won't stand a chance."
"Obviously."
As the group gradually agreed to cooperate, the seductive woman grinned.
"Ara~? Are you guys really okay with scheming so loudly in front of me?"
"Trace-less."
Her toes lightly tapped the ground, leaving behind an afterimage.
Bang.
Bang.
Bang.
...
Apart from the seductive Soul King woman, everyone else collapsed simultaneously.
Their faces still bore their previous expressions—they hadn't even had time to react.
"Wha—?!" The woman trembled in shock.
"Soul skill... Can you use soul skills?!"
"Who knows~?"
While she was speaking, Ning Rongrong had already appeared behind her.
"Damn it, DIE!"
The woman's face twisted hideously as she swung her whip with all her might.
But then she realized—her body wouldn't move.
"Y-You... What did you do to me?!" Frozen mid-swing, she could only watch as Ning Rongrong raised her gun and aimed at her head.
"I don't like that predatory look in your eyes."
"Goodbye."
The bullet pierced her skull. The woman collapsed, lifeless.
The Hell Killing Arena match was over.
As Ning Rongrong walked out of the arena, the staff began cleaning up the nine corpses.
None of them noticed the marks Ning Rongrong had left on the bodies—or rather, on the corpses.
Within a certain timeframe, these bodies would slowly disappear.
All of their time... would be devoured.