Chapter 531 – Battle … … … Lin Ming suddenly felt a burning hot energy surge through his feet, sending his spirit soaring into the heavens. After this energy charged into his body, it recklessly rushed through his meridians, spreading in all directions. All sorts of illusions presented themselves in Lin Ming’s mind. It was like a manic power that had long been repressed in his heart began to wildly gallop around. It crashed through his body, causing his blood to boil... “This is infernal energy?” Lin Ming looked at Zha Na’s corpse; this really was the energy that was dissipating from his body. Before, Lin Ming had been relying on the Blood Slaughter Token to absorb a small amount of infernal energy so he hadn’t noticed it, but now that such a massive amount of infernal energy had entered him, Lin Ming suddenly felt his deepest and most primitive desires aroused. It was as if the darkness lurking in his soul was rising to the surface! He wanted blood, he wanted to kill, he wanted to indulge in and ravage beauties! At this time, Lin Ming’s mind throbbed with an inexplicable desire and pleasure. He wanted to vent these feelings and lash out like a beast. This sudden change caused Lin Ming’s heart to go cold. He quickly calmed his mind and entered the ethereal martial intent, allowing his mood to settle. Lin Ming had practiced the ‘Overbearing Soul Tactic’ for a very long time. In addition to the great power of his spiritual sea, the frantic infernal energy only erupted for an instant before it was suppressed. “This infernal energy can really disturb a person’s mind. No wonder the people of Polaris City are so crazy and strange. It’s probably because the infernal energy has seeped into their souls over a long time.” As Lin Ming remembered the ecstatic expression that Zha Na had when he absorbed infernal energy, as well his disturbed green eyes, he couldn’t help but let out a loose breath. If he couldn’t manage to suppress the infernal energy, it was possible that he would be controlled by it. In the end, he might even become a zombie that only knew to kill. Lin Ming silently closed his eyes. After a few breaths of time, he opened them again. This time, his eyes once again shined with a clear and pure brilliance. Atop his arm, the blurry Heavenly Demon Tattoo became a bit more solid, and that hideous demonic face also became fiercer. “This boy’s mental strength is really stable.” A Giant Demon said as he stared at Lin Ming, his expression solemn. “This is his first time at the killing arena. When an average person absorbs infernal energy for the first time, they will become irrational and rabid due to the influx of infernal energy. But, this fellow actually just closed his eyes for a moment to recover. He’s not simple at all!” “Mm. Zha Na was originally one of the strongest of the strong in Skysplit Tower’s first level. He had accumulated a great deal of infernal energy and that fellow sucked up over half of it. Yet he was still able to maintain his calm. This sort of turbulent infernal energy can cause the desires and impulses of even geniuses to spiral out of control!” “Heh… how interesting.” Beside the two Giant Demons that spoke, a Fey woman said. She exuded a thick sexual appeal. She drained the red liquid in her glass, her eyes flashing with excitement as she licked her lips. Seeing the Fey woman’s response, the Giant Demon laughed. “Bloodrose, are you thinking of seducing him? Don’t be too confident, or your plan might fail and he’ll be the one to use you.” “Haha! I don’t need you to worry about me. As long as they are a man, there is no way they can control their inner desires.” The Fey woman said, her giggle like the tinkling of bells. On the arena stage, several male slaves quickly rushed up and dragged away Zha Na’s corpse. But, they left behind Zha Na’s spatial ring. According to the customs of the arena battlefield, all of the deceased’s belongings, including spatial rings, went to the victor. The only thing that Skysplit Tower kept after the death of a participant was the Blood Slaughter Token. “Sir, this is yours.” A male slave brought Zha Na’s spatial ring and cautiously handed it to Lin Ming. “I have a question for you.” Lin Ming stopped the slave who was putting away the corpse. The slave was shocked scared. He quickly said, “What question does sir have?” “What are the conditions for entering the second level?” The slave respectfully said, “Sir, according to the rules of Skysplit Tower, in order to enter the second level, a contestant must obtain a 12 win streak at the first level, or obtain victory to the point that no one dares to challenge them.” “I understand.” Lin Ming casually tossed a low-grade Blood Demon Crystal at the slave. A 12 win streak wasn’t too difficult. Presumably, all of the geniuses with higher cultivations directly went to the second level of Skysplit Tower or even higher. Within the first level of Skysplit Tower, there was no one here that made him feel threatened. “Will anyone else come up?” Lin Ming asked. His eyes swept over the area where the Giant Demons were. The tide could turn at any moment. Before, it was the humans that were being forced back by the Giant Demons. But now it was the Giant Demons that were being forced back by the humans. “This boy, he must really think he’s invincible.” In a corner of the arena, a large Giant Demon fellow crushed the glass in his hands. This Giant Demon wore black clothes and carried a nine foot long claymore on his back. His strength was also amongst the elites of Skysplit Tower’s first floor. Within the first elite group, there were also those that were weaker and stronger. This large Giant Demon fellow was stronger than Zha Na. “You want to go up? That boy’s thunder is quite tricky, it has the ability to restrain our cultivation methods. If I’m not wrong, then that thunder should come from a medium-grade earth-step Thunder Soul.” “As if I would place a medium-grade earth-step Thunder Soul in my eyes. I just don’t know whether or not that fellow has any other abilities.” “Heh, so what if he does? Don’t you also have final resort abilities?” “That’s right.” The black-clothe Giant Demon laughed and then stood up. “I’ll fight you!’ The black-clothed Giant Demon jumped up. He directly leapt over the audience. His ten foot tall body carried the weight of a several thousand jin claymore. As he landed onstage, it was like a massive hammer struck the ground, directly breaking apart the tiles where he landed. “Ho!” After the black-clothed Giant Demon landed, he let out a savage roar like a wild beast. His shout was deafening. His naked upper body was wrapped with thick steel chains. As he moved, these thick chains struck each other; this Giant Demon looked like he was a massive gorilla. Lin Ming looked at the black-clothed Giant Demon. Just from the strength of his aura, he could tell that his opponent far surpassed Zha Na. “That is the Carnage Demon Sect’s Claymore King, Gu Yue.” Several people in the stands instantly recognized this black-clothed Giant Demon. “The Carnage Demon Sect is a fifth-grade sect, and Gu Yue is a direct disciple. His strength can be ranked in the top ten. This time, that boy is shit out of luck.” “Gu Yue, kill him! Kill that boy!” All of the Giant Demons in the arena raucously shouted. There were even several Fey women screaming as they took out their bellybands and wildly waved them in the air. Gu Yue took out the claymore from his back. He flourished the blade, struck the floor with the tip and caused the tiles to shatter. He crudely smiled and said, “Boy, if that last battle was everything you had, then just sit there and die.” “Black Sun Shining Sky!” The claymore chopped down, and a black light appeared in front of Gu Yue’s blade. At this time, a billowing demon essence formed a massive black sun around Gu Yue’s body. Black flames burned around him, turning the ground into molten lava. Lin Ming’s spear thrust out. Thick arcs of Blood Extinguishing Demon Thunder drilled through that black flames, directly piercing through the black sun. However, when crimson lightning wanted to break through the black flames, it was actually caught by the demonic essence. “Heh! All you can do is repeat this move? Then go die!” Gu Yue grinned fiendishly. His Black Sun Shining Sky wasn’t suppressed by this power of thunder, it was extremely resilient. With the black sun binding the Blood Extinguishing Demon Thunder, he rushed at Lin Ming. Bang! A terrifying shockwave surged outwards, lifting all of the tiles of the floor. All of the tiles on the floor melted, and even a shallow section of the darksteel floor underneath was melted. During this explosion, Lin Ming’s figure flew backward. Only his clothes had been slightly burnt. “Humph, you’re quite good at running. But, just because you can escape for a moment doesn’t mean you can do it forever!” Gu Yue unfolded his arms and thick beams of demonic essence shot out from his body. They rapidly spread all around him, completely surrounding him and Lin Ming. In just several breaths of time, hundreds of beams formed from demonic essence wove together in a tight net that completely enveloped the two. Lin Ming calmly looked around. All he saw were countless thick beams of demonic essence wildly waving around, as if they were black pythons dancing in the air. “Hehe, Gu Yue has even used his Blacksnake Prison. This fight should be finished soon. It’s said that the Blacksnake Prison is an inescapable net that covers the heavens and earth. Now, this boy can only meet Gu Yue in a frontal collision, and this is what Gu Yue specializes in the most!” All of the Giant Demons in the arena grew excited as they saw this. The talent of the Giant Demon race was mostly represented by their strength as well as their defensive and offensive capabilities. But, they were inferior to humans in speed. If Lin Ming’s speed was limited by the Blacksnake Prison, then he could only confront Gu Yue head on. If a human were to attack a Giant Demon in a vicious melee, then that was simply asking to die. “Let’s see where you can run now!” Gu Yue howled, “Black Sun Shining Sky!” Bang! A black sun appeared once more around Gu Yue’s claymore. This one was larger than before, and blazed with an even hotter energy. Although Gu Yue was rampant and cruel, he still didn’t underestimate Lin Ming. This strike contained a full 30% of his true essence. He grasped his claymore with both hands and cut down. The black sun was like a flaming black meteor that crashed towards Lin Ming! With the Blacksnake Prison all around, there was simply nowhere to run. In this face of this blazing black sun, Lin Ming chuckled as he said. “It looks like all you can do is repeat this move too?” “Humph! You’re at death’s door and you're still acting glib! Go die!” The nine foot long claymore cut down! Just as the blazing black sun approached, Lin Ming lightly flicked his finger. Three Thunder Souls gathered as one; the Divine Demon Thunder Soul roared out! Pu! With a barely audible piercing sound, the Divine Demon Thunder Soul sunk into the blazing black sun and broke out from the other side. With a speed that was almost invisible to the naked eye, it approached Gu Yue’s throat. “Screw off!” Because of the incredibly compressed energy of the Divine Demon Thunder Soul, Gu Yue thought that this was an ordinary hidden weapon. Without a second thought, he punched out at it. In truth, this weapon was too fast so he couldn’t send out a stronger attack. However, even if Gu Yue’s fist had been tempered, or even if it were wrapped in demonic essence, how could it possibly compare with the incomparably sharp Divine Demon Steel Needle? Gu Yue’s protective true essence was pierced through by the Divine Demon Steel Needle like it was thin paper, directly slicing through. The Divine Demon Steel Needle didn’t slow at all nor did it change trajectory. Without the least bit of difficulty, it drilled through Gu Yue’s throat! Puff! Gu Yue’s throat was pierced through, and his neck exploded in a bloody mess. He stared with wide eyes filled with shock. The Divine Demon Steel Needle had been too fast, he hadn’t even been able to properly react in time…