The detached Three-headed Bat was nailed into the high black rock strata by the Sea God's Trident.
The valiant middle-aged man had fainted on the ground.
All had settled.
Luo Yu looked around, observing the environment.
At this moment, they were on a giant platform, with a winding path extending downwards, its destination unknown.
Ahead was only darkness.
A feeling of dry heat surged from below, coupled with the smell of blood, causing discomfort.
Luo Yu was about to refer to the map to find two special locations marked on it.
But he was interrupted by voices from the outside.
"Brother Yu, what... what is happening?"
Bi Bidong's face was filled with surprise, pointing at the Three-headed Bat above and then to the middle-aged man on the ground.
Bossi stared with her beautiful eyes, covering her mouth in shock as she looked at the man.
Hulena's charming eyes were filled with confusion.
Luo Yu shrugged.
"This matter is complicated if you say it's complicated, and not so much if you say it isn't."
"Isn't that nonsense," Bi Bidong rolled her eyes, clearly unsatisfied with Luo Yu's answer and considered it perfunctory.
Unable to restrain herself, Bossi asked, "Brother Yu, isn't that Tang Chen who has been missing for many years? Why is he here?"
Bi Bidong's eyelids twitched, even more shocked.
"What?"
"You're saying the Slaughter King is the legendary Hao Tian Douluo, Tang Chen?"
Bossi nodded.
"Yes, he is Tang Chen."
"Whether in appearance or aura, he's the spitting image. I can't believe I hadn't recognized him earlier."
Luo Yu smiled and said, "Of course you didn't recognize him; he was previously possessed by that beast, and both his appearance and personality had changed."
"How could this happen?" Bossi's eyes were somewhat dull, expressing disbelief, "I know Tang Chen's strength; how could he have fallen to such a state?"
Bi Bidong also found it inconceivable.
A man's reputation precedes him.
Tang Chen's renown had spread throughout the upper echelons of Soul Land; his strength far surpassed Tang Hao by countless times, even the Hao Tian title Tang Hao bore was inherited from him.
And yet, he had been tormented to this state by a Three-headed Bat?
Hulena stood nearby, her small mouth slightly agape.
As a goddess of the Martial Soul Hall, she naturally understood this once formidable Ancestor of the Haotian Sect from the archives she had read.
It was precisely because of the disappearance of the Hao Tian Ancestor that the Martial Soul Hall had been able to suppress the Haotian Sect comprehensively and expand its influence.
And now he was found here?
"Brother Yu, what in the world is going on?" Bi Bidong couldn't hold back her curiosity any longer and grabbed Luo Yu's arms.
"Husband, did you already know that the Slaughter King was Tang Chen? Is that why you didn't kill him?" Bossi mused.
Luo Yu rubbed his forehead.
"With so many questions, who do I even answer first."
"Let him answer your questions himself."
With that, he gestured grandly towards the middle-aged man on the ground.
The man was pulled to his feet, standing up.
Luo Yu's eyes narrowed, a strong Amethyst Gold light flashing through them as he unleashed a psychic shock.
The middle-aged man immediately groaned.
Blood seeped from the corners of his mouth.
His eyes suddenly opened.
They revealed a pair of weathered tiger-like eyes, mixed with a tinge of the haze of just waking up.
Upon awakening, his first choice was to pull back.
He viewed the unfamiliar young man before him with wariness.
"Hey!"
"Who are you!!"
Luo Yu humphed.
"Don't bite the hand that feeds you."
He shifted his gaze to the side.
The middle-aged man followed Luo Yu's eyes, and saw the Three-headed Bat pinned down by the Sea God's Trident.
His pupils shrank.
His teeth clenched with a crack, his eyes seeming to spout flames of hatred.
However, he didn't immediately rush over.
Instead, he turned back to face Luo Yu and bowed with the fist-to-palm salute.
"Thank you, kind sir, for the rescue!"
"I apologize for any offense caused just now, please forgive me."
Luo Yu nodded and praised with a click of his tongue:
"He truly is the Ancestor of the Haotian Sect."
"He's got a brain, too."
"Quick to react."
Hearing such comments about himself from a young man, Tang Chen was incredibly uncomfortable.
Back before he was controlled by the bats, everyone spoke to him with courtesy; nobody dared to address him in this tone.
But then he remembered that it had been this young man who had saved him, so he refrained from getting angry.
"How did you come to know my identity?"
Tang Chen was somewhat amazed; even his own son didn't know about his journey to Slaughter City in search of the Deities' inheritance, so how could this young man know?
Luo Yu said, "What if I told you I observed the stars at night and calculated it, would you believe me?"
"This..."
Tang Chen was stunned, obviously thinking that was a bunch of nonsense.
He hesitated for a moment before bowing with his hands clasped again.
"Regardless, I thank you, my benefactor, for the rescue. I, Tang Chen, will remember this favor."
"Should you ask for anything in the future, I shall not refuse."
Luo Yu took a serious look at Tang Chen, smacking his lips, and waved his hand:
"Forget it, you couldn't even protect yourself."
"What help could you possibly be? Just take care of yourself."
Tang Chen's eyes narrowed.
Was he being rejected?
The mighty Hao Tian Douluo, the Ancestor of the Haotian Sect, rejected by a youngster?
Luo Yu rolled his eyes. "What, you got a problem with that?"
Tang Chen was utterly confused.
Fuck, this youngster.
It's been years since I've been out in the world.
Do the young people these days all talk this bluntly?
It must be because this kid doesn't understand who I am.
Yes, that must be it.
Tang Chen found what he thought was a reasonable explanation.
He straightened his back.
Once he realizes what an Ultimate Douluo is, what the Hao Tian Ancestor is, he'll understand my status and weight in Soul Land.
"Tang Chen, weren't you off seeking the inheritance of the Deities? Why are you here?"
Bossi walked over, looking surprised as she asked.
At the sound of the familiar voice he had dreamed of, Tang Chen's strong body shuddered.
He turned his stiff neck.
He saw the slender figure, the unearthly stunning face, and that flowing sea-blue hair.
"Bossi... Bossi?"
"What are you doing here?"
Bossi said blankly, "I'm the one asking you, you know."
Tang Chen was dumbfounded.
"I get it, I get it!!"
"It must be because you found out I had disappeared, so you came specially to save me, right?"
"Hahaha, I knew it, how could a youngster possibly rescue me."
He pointed at the bat nailed high above.
"Good grief, you even brought out the Sea God's Trident to save me."
Tang Chen's face lit up with excitement and joy.
The goddess he had once hopelessly pursued had actually come to Slaughter City with a Divine Artifact to save him.
What did this mean?
It meant she had thought it through and had feelings for him!!
As for Luo Yu, he had already been relegated to an inconsequential background character in his mind.
What's the joke, what's a young kid amount to? Could he beat a Three-headed Bat?
If Bossi had taken action, that would make total sense.
Watching Tang Chen's thrilled expression,
Bi Bidong, Bossi, and Hulena all stood there with blank faces.
Especially Bossi, who appeared somewhat embarrassed.
"Ahem."
"Tang Chen, let's calm down first."
"Things might not be quite as you imagine."