Infinite Slaughter System: I Kill, Therefore I Ascend!-Chapter 195: The Preliminaries! 8

The stage shifted once more as the mist of the Dao Heart Formation fully dispersed and the deeply moved competitors regrouped. Each of them had experienced things they never thought nor expected in this tournament, and this Dao Heart Test had shown them who they truly were deep down.

Meanwhile, the Divine Deva Overseer set his hands into motion, his spirit sense sinking into the arena’s grand array as lines of light flared across the platform, forming a new and intricate pattern that pulsed with a strange yet subtle aura, neither sharp like killing intent nor heavy like soul pressure.

The power of Karma!

In the stands, discussions broke out at every level.

"Test of karma, huh? How are they going to measure that? It’s supposed to be invisible."

"Isn’t karma something only those old monsters in the Ninth Realm can touch?"

"They say if you perfect all Six Paths arts, you can faintly grasp it. If anyone can quantify karma, it’s our sect."

Even some elders were leaning forward, slightly curious. Whatever else could be said of the Six Paths Demon Sect, when it came to sin, cause and effect, and the weight of deeds, they were specialists.

At the center of the stage, a tall and circular platform rose up that was ringed with six smaller arrays in the colors of the Six Paths. Above it, a faint and translucent wheel slowly manifested - like a simplified Wheel of Reincarnation - its spokes etched with symbols that represented the path of slaughter, of hunger, of humanity, of divinity, of bestiality, and of desolation.

The Divine Deva Overseer stepped forward, his voice carrying clearly.

"The fifth and final test of the preliminaries: the Test of Karma! Each of you will step into the center and allow the Wheel of Karma to illuminate the threads you have woven with your deeds." He announced broadly.

The fellow smiled faintly. "Do not worry too much as this is not the heavenly karma that determines your reincarnation, but the subset relevant to our Six Paths arts. Still... it will be informative."

A ripple of uneasiness ran through the competitors, wondering of their little secrets and thoughts would be revealed by this?

"The light will reveal the density and nature of your karmic threads." The Divine Deva Overseer stated calmly.

He continued the explanation the next moment. "Karma of speech, karma of action, karma of blood, karma of lust. We will grade them from D to S according to their value for cultivation along your chosen Path. The higher the rating, the more suitable your history is for our sect’s methods."

"Begin." He instructed with a grand gesture.

A thin, pale-gold beam descended from the translucent wheel, striking the center of the platform and lingering there, waiting for its first victim - *cough* - contestant.

For a while, it was mostly an amusing spectacle of disgrace and revelations.

Various known and unknown disciples among the competitors walked into the light as thin and colored threads manifested around them, some coiled loosely around their arms and legs, some tangled around their necks, some slithering like vines toward more... private regions.

A supposedly devout, pure-looking Divine Deva Hall female disciple who always preached chastity froze in horror as hundreds of faint pink threads snaked down her lower abdomen as the stands erupted in jeers and laughter.

"Hah! Senior Sister ’Ice Lotus’ my ass!"

"Looks like her karma is... very well cultivated down there!"

By contrast, a burly fellow with the nickname ’Butcher Qiang’ from Asura Blood Hall stepped forward, only for a mere handful of thin, dark-red strands to appear around his fists.

"What the...?! only that much???" Someone blurted despite themselves.

"So... all that talk about slaughtering a city was just... bragging?"

"Pffft, no wonder his killing aura always felt so fake!"

The test quickly turned into a public showcase as holy virgins were exposed, fake killers were revealed, and more than a few faces went red for reasons unrelated to blood.

Then the names that actually mattered started being called.

"Next person, Cao Xian!"

A ripple of interest moved through the True Human section and the lower sect stands as the third daughter of Deva Elder Cao Ling walked calmly onto the platform, white-and-gold robes swaying, her fox-like eyes curved in a lazy smile.

She stood still as the beam of light fell upon her.

Threads manifested - many threads for sure - but not where most people were craning their necks to see.

There was nothing around her lower abdomen, with no pink threads, nor any such entanglements as her ’virgin status’ was confirmed as clean as freshly laundered clothes

Instead, dense clusters of silvery-gray threads coiled tightly around her forearms, wrists, and fingers, then snaked outward through the air in all directions, vanishing into the distance like invisible puppet strings.

The Divine Deva Overseer’s eyes flickered. "Interesting..."

In the stands, True Human disciples murmured excitedly.

"Those are karma threads from her creations, right?"

"Yeah, look at how many are linked outward. Every talisman, every construct she’s sold that caused mayhem is showing up."

The Divine Deva Overseer nodded slightly, projecting his voice.

"Cao Xian, True Human Path. Primary karma: indirect causation via created tools, weapons, and constructs. Minimal sexual karma. Killing and speech karma within average ranges. Overall rating... A Rank, highly compatible with the True Human Way of the Six Paths!"

Polite applause rose from the True Human section. On the high platform, Path Saint Pang Po smirked around a mouthful of food and gave a thumbs-up without pausing her chewing.

Cao Xian flicked a glance at Li Ling, but he still looked bored.

Her lips curled into a wry smile as she stepped down. "I’ll make you look my way properly one day, you little demon..."

"Next person, Shi Gaolin!"

The muscular Hungry Ghost Path disciple strode into the light, cracking his neck.

The beam fell and this time, a swarm of thick, inky-black threads snapped into existence around his fists, forearms, and legs.

They were short, seemed heavy, and were around him coiled tightly, like chains soaked in resentment. A modest cluster of faint, pinkish threads also spiraled around his waist and down toward his hips, but compared to his killing karma, they were secondary.

"Oho, look at that density."

"Now that’s proper Hungry Ghost karma."

On the high platform, Path Saint Hei An’s empty black sockets seemed to gleam approvingly.

The Divine Deva Overseer nodded.

"Shi Gaolin, Hungry Ghost Path. Strong malevolent yin killing karma, moderate lust karma, minimal speech karma. Overall rating... B Rank, suitable for Hungry Ghost path cultivation!"

Shi Gaolin grinned, initially being satisfied with this result, but when he turned his head and saw Li Ling still gazing off into the distance like none of this mattered, a shadow crossed his face.

’Tch! Laugh while you can! Let’s see you laugh when fists are talking!’ He thought darkly.

"Next person, Shen Jian!"

Attention shifted to the Divine Deva Path stands as the handsome young swordsman with the arrogant face ascended the platform, his back straight with pride.

When the light fell upon him, the results drew a different kind of reaction.

There were no threads around his lower body, perfectly clean. He had no notable killing karma around his limbs either, a few thin threads here and there from training duels and minor altercations.

Instead, nearly all his karmic threads were clustered from his mouth up to his throat and jaw, a thick braid of pale-gold and gray lines coiled there like a glowing scarf.

"Pfft, that tracks, big karma from the mouth!" Someone muttered with a sneer.

"So much scolding and ordering people around, it left karmic scars..."

The Divine Deva Overseer chuckled with satisfaction at his Path Junior.

"Shen Jian, Divine Deva Path. Primary karma is from orders, judgments, and verbal condemnations that altered others’ fates. Minimal lust karma, moderate indirect blood karma through commands. For our Divine Deva standards, his karmic load is excellent. Overall rating... A Rank!"

Shen Jian exhaled in relief, shoulders relaxing as he glanced toward the high platform where Shen Ziyan sat, lips curled in a faint, satisfied smile.

Then his gaze dropped to Li Ling... who was still uninterested.

"...Of course, what is an A Rank ant to someone like you?" Shen Jian thought, equal parts reverent and frustrated, his back losing a bit of its straightness.

"Next person, Hu Lili!"

Excitement immediately surged in the Wild Beast Path section as they cheered loudly, not caring for the scathing looks from others.

The tiger-like beauty bounded onto the platform, her ponytail swishing and her golden eyes bright. She grinned as the light fell on her, utterly unbothered.

There were no threads at all below her waist, so her reputation as a battle maniac who ignored romance was vindicated. Instead, an intricate web of deep crimson and dark-green threads coiled around her heart and along her veins, pulsing faintly with phantom bestial roars.

Some tendrils extended outward, faintly shaped like the shadows of massive beasts - tigers, wolves, serpents - before fading back into her chest.

The crowd gasped.

"That’s bloodline karma..."

"She’s butchered so many demon beasts and absorbed their essence it’s literally wrapped around her heart."

The Wild Beast Path Saint, Wang Kuangnu, bared her canines in a wide grin.

"Hu Lili, Wild Beast Path. Primary karmic accumulation through slaughter and consumption of demon beasts, excellent for bloodline and beast essence refinement. Minimal lust karma, moderate speech karma. Overall rating... A Rank, extremely suitable for the Wild Beast path!" The Divine Deva Overseer announced.

Hu Lili blinked at the threads, then at the Path Saint’s delighted expression, then scratched her cheek.

’So killing all those weak lifeforms is good karma? Nice, I’ll keep doing more of that!’ She thought to herself, thoroughly pleased.

Her eyes slid over to Li Ling. 𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞

"He better survive to the finals, I want to see what happens when my beast blood hits his slaughter rule." She muttered with excitement as he claws unfurled despite herself.

"Next person, Wang Feng!"

The atmosphere shifted, as a faint edge of malice and uncontrolled belligerence seemed to emanate from one place.

Wang Feng, the red-haired brute of the Asura Blood Path, marched into the beam of light, his eyes blazing with confidence and his chin high. He met the gaze of the crowd head-on, as if daring them to flinch in his presence.

Thick ropes of dark-red killing karma wound around his fists, arms, shoulders, and legs. It was messy, jagged, but undeniably heavy, making the Asura Blood Hall disciples nod with satisfaction as this was a true killer loyal to the way.

Then people’s eyes dropped lower, immediately seeing a tangled mass of murky red and dirty pink threads were wrapped around his lower abdomen and down between his legs.

Worse, those threads were intertwined with his killing threads, knotted directly together!