The five seconds of time freeze ended in a flash. Within that short span, Ma Xiaotao and the others had already slaughtered half of the Death's Hand bandits.
As time resumed, the Death God Envoy instantly sprang up and shouted in rage, "Damn it! How dare you provoke the dignity of the Death God Envoy? You insects, go die!"
He shrieked furiously, but the three black-cloaked men behind him stood calmly, watching the scene with schadenfreude on their faces. The Death God Envoy, fueled by rage, was just about to counterattack when, in the blink of an eye, he vanished.
His sudden disappearance startled the three black-cloaked men, and puzzled expressions formed on their faces. As confusion lingered, their eyes turned toward Ma Xiaotao and the others, who were still slaughtering bandits below.
"Shrek…" the man in the center muttered, a fierce gleam in his eyes. Without warning, his aura exploded—three purple, four black, and two red soul rings surged up from the ground. The aura of a Title Douluo swept across the battlefield and instantly blasted Ma Xiaotao and the others off their feet.
At that very moment, Elder Xuan and Elder Lin appeared in the cave behind the students, shielding them. Their gazes locked onto the black-cloaked man with nine soul rings. Elder Xuan spoke heavily, "Super Douluo."
"Hehehe, it's actually Heavenly River Douluo and Gluttonous Douluo in person. I am Ghost King Douluo, Guigu. What an honor," the black-cloaked man greeted with a mischievous smile, as though reuniting with old friends.
"You know us?" Elder Lin frowned, unable to recall any information about this Guigu. Despite being a Super Douluo, it was as if he had appeared out of thin air. The lack of any prior record made Elder Lin feel an ominous sense of unease.
"Elder Lin, Ziyang is missing!" Elder Xuan's anxious voice echoed in Elder Lin's ears, and panic flickered across her face. Just as she was about to ask more, Jiang Nannan's voice rang out.
"Elder Lin, Elder Xuan, no need to worry about my brother!" said Jiang Nannan. She had been paying attention to Zhu Ziyang the entire time and understood what he was doing. "That was my brother's fifth soul skill. He should be fighting the Death God Envoy right now. Once he kills him, he'll reappear."
Though still uneasy, Elder Lin could only nod at her explanation—there were more pressing matters before them. She said, "Xuanzi, attack! Xiaotao, be careful!"
With that, she summoned her Martial Soul—a blue-green oil-paper umbrella appeared in her hand. This was her Martial Soul: the Heavenly River Umbrella.
Elder Xuan also released his Martial Soul. Horns sprouted from his forehead, and his body bulked up. The two Super Douluo launched an assault on Guigu.
Guigu remained unshaken. Behind him, the two other black-cloaked men also activated their Martial Souls, revealing a total of sixteen soul rings. Among them was another Title Douluo, whose aura was on par with Guigu's.
"Demon Spirit Douluo, Ai Zihao!" the second Super Douluo introduced himself before transforming his hands into claws and lunging toward Elder Lin and Elder Xuan.
The sudden development left Ma Xiaotao and the others briefly stunned. But as the four Super Douluo left the cave to engage in battle outside, they quickly regained composure. This level of combat was beyond their involvement—their task was to continue eliminating the bandits.
Ma Xiaotao targeted the last black-cloaked man, a Soul Sage. The rest of the team each charged into the remaining bandits.
Meanwhile, not far from the main battlefield, Wang Yan and the Reserve Team trembled in a hidden corner. Only after the Super Douluo exited the cave did they dare come out. Led by Wang Yan, they hunted down the fleeing enemies.
—
Back to the moment time freeze ended.
Zhu Ziyang had dashed to a precise location and immediately activated his fifth soul skill, Hell Duel Arena. This was how he and the Death God Envoy vanished at the start.
Inside the Hell Duel Arena, both Zhu Ziyang and the Death God Envoy reappeared. The Death God Envoy scanned his surroundings with growing panic. Zhu Ziyang, too, was experiencing his first time inside this mysterious realm.
The space contained a single ancient dueling platform. It was elevated, and its floor was formed from massive ten-meter stone tiles. The platform itself was a square, each side over a hundred meters long, encased by an invisible boundary.
"Who are you? What is this place?" the Death God Envoy finally spotted Zhu Ziyang. His hood had fallen off, revealing a withered face twisted with anger and faint dread. This eerie space filled even him, a man soaked in blood, with deep unease.
Zhu Ziyang raised his Stillness Fate Ending Scythe and sneered, "This is the execution ground of the real Death God. You, who dares sully that title, will now be judged!"
He wasted no time. Soul rings shimmered behind him. Although the Arena nullified soul ring abilities, Zhu Ziyang, having refined his rings through second awakening, was unaffected. He activated his second and third soul skills. The Stillness Fate Ending Scythe glowed brilliantly as he charged forward.
The Death God Envoy panicked and summoned his Martial Soul—a skull-topped staff—but was horrified to find all six of his soul rings locked down by a gray mist. His abilities were completely sealed.
Without soul skills, he was little more than a regular soul power user. He dropped to his knees and cried, "Mercy, please!"
But Zhu Ziyang wasn't moved. The Arena demanded a battle to the death—if he spared the man, he wouldn't be able to leave.
Instead of slowing, he accelerated.
The Death God Envoy saw this and scrambled to flee. But the Arena was only so big—there was nowhere to run. Desperate, he tried intimidation: "You'd better let me go! If not, the Holy Emperor won't spare you!"
"Holy Emperor?" Zhu Ziyang paused and asked, "Who's that?"
The Death God Envoy laughed maniacally. "The Holy Emperor is a god above this world! He commands two Ultimate Douluo and over twenty Title Douluo. I was personally appointed by the Holy Spirit Cult's leader! If you touch me, the Holy Sect will crush your entire Shrek Academy!"
"Holy Spirit Cult?" Zhu Ziyang's heart skipped. It was the first time he'd heard this name. He asked, "Did you say the Holy Spirit Cult has two Ultimate Douluo and more than twenty Title Douluo?"
"Of course!" the Death God Envoy declared proudly. "Right now, two of the Holy Spirit Cult's enshrined elders are in my lair. Both are level 96 Super Douluo! I see you also wield death energy. I can recommend you to the Holy Sect!"
"I see…" Zhu Ziyang ignored the invitation, instead thinking hard. If what this man said was true, then the evil soul masters had indeed risen—not just scattered individuals anymore, but an organized sect with real power. That was bad news for Shrek Academy.
"So, what do you say?" the Death God Envoy thought he had won him over, not realizing Zhu Ziyang was already within two meters of him.
Zhu Ziyang smiled coldly. "No need to say anything. In your next life, be a good person."
The Stillness Fate Ending Scythe came crashing down. In the Death God Envoy's shocked eyes, it cleaved through his neck.
His last sight was of his own body falling backward.
The Death God Envoy—dead!
After the kill, the Red Spider Lily Flower mark on Zhu Ziyang's forehead flickered, but he had no time to inspect it. The space around him shimmered again, and in the blink of an eye, he returned to the real world—back inside the cave.
But just as he reappeared, a terrifying explosion tore through the cavern's grand hall.
(End of Chapter)
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