Infinite Slaughter System: I Kill, Therefore I Ascend!-Chapter 210: The Round of 8, Shi Gaolin versus Bai Yegui! 1
"Next match, Bai Yegui Versus Shi Gaolin!"
The moment the pairing was announced, the Hungry Ghost Path’s section of the stadium changed.
It wasn’t the same loud bloodthirst as the Asura stands, nor the excited animalistic baying of the Wild Beast disciples.
Instead, it became tighter and sharper, like a room full of starving men watching two bowls of food and knowing only one could be eaten.
Because this wasn’t just a match, this was Hungry Ghost Hall versus Hungry Ghost Hall.
And worse... this was the Hall’s favorite disciple going against the Hall’s unwanted miracle.
Shi Gaolin stepped onto the stage first, halberd resting across one shoulder, muscles packed and steady, expression calm enough that an outsider might think he was merely about to spar.
Across from him, Bai Yegui walked out with the same quiet stillness he always carried, eyes like deep cold water, expression unreadable, and his aura restrained in a way that made it feel more dangerous, not less.
The crowd erupted anyway.
"Shi Gaolin!"
"Bai Yegui!"
"The Twin Monster of Second Life!"
"For Hungry Ghost pride!"
In the Hungry Ghost pavilion, disciples were split down a line they didn’t dare admit existed. Many had followed Shi Gaolin for years, watching him rise by effort, discipline, and calculated brutality.
Other disciples who were newer, louder, and more opportunistic had begun worshipping Bai Yegui after the explosive duel with Li Ling made him a legend overnight.
On the Hall Masters’ platform, Gu Mugui sat forward slightly, fingers tapping his knee, eyes fixed on Shi Gaolin with a mixture of pride and tension he refused to show too openly.
’Do not let emotion ruin you, Gaolin.’ The Hall Master thought seriously.
Shi Gaolin exhaled once and looked across the arena.
"Junior Brother Bai!" He called out, voice carrying clearly.
Bai Yegui paused and met his gaze with a look of interest as Shi Gaolin cupped his fists with genuine formality.
"I know you understand what the Hall is like. It is a meat grinder that takes us disciples and pits us against each other for the purpose of selecting the most capable." Shi Gaolin said.
He paused, then continued, with a serious tone. "Because of this, you were... treated poorly."
A ripple ran through the stadium because even in a demonic sect, apologies were not common, especially not delivered so openly in front of rival Halls and Path Saints.
Shi Gaolin’s eyes didn’t waver though, as he spoke clearly.
"The Hall saw you as uncertain due to your previously unknown origins as well as your strange background. And so because of this, the Hall chose to suppress you in order to squeeze out the real you from the lie you presented. I won’t pretend it was the correct choice, but it was consistent with how our path functions."
He lifted his halberd slightly, then lowered it again with a sigh.
"I can be described as a disciple raised by resources and guidance, though I did not earn those alone. Hall Master Gu noticed my talent, and I walked the road that was laid out for me."
He looked Bai Yegui in the eyes.
"You, however, did not get a road laid out for you, instead you had to carve it for yourself."
Then he bowed his head slightly.
"So, as a fellow Hungry Ghost disciple... I apologize. Not for the Hall’s nature, but for the needless cruelty that came from it and the suffering you underwent."
For a second, there was silence, then the reaction hit as Shi Gaolin’s words were parsed.
Some Hungry Ghost disciples looked stunned, a bunch of them looked embarrassed, and some fellows even looked grudgingly respectful.
Even the disciples from other Halls murmured, surprised that a man with such a fierce body and brutal reputation could speak like this without stumbling.
"He’s not just a brawler it seems."
"He’s thinking like a leader, he’s got a good brain."
On the platform, Gu Mugui’s mouth twitched, pride rising despite himself.
’Good. Good. This is how you win people before you win fights!’
Bai Yegui listened without changing expression even once and when Shi Gaolin finished, he nodded.
"I accept your apology." Bai Yegui said gently.
A visible relief ran through the Hungry Ghost stands and some even smiled, as if the tension had been defused.
It was a hidden danger for the hall to have a talented disciple emerge who held grudges against them, especially with Bai Yegui’s talent that was currently one tier below Li Ling’s, a veritable monster never seen before in the history of the sect.
Shi Gaolin’s lips rose in a slight curve, as if he had just done what was necessary, now he would be able to remain the winner no matter how the fight turned out!
Then Bai Yegui added, in the same calm tone. "I forgive you... because I no longer care about you."
The stadium seemed to freeze again as Shi Gaolin’s small smile stiffened and Hall Master Gu Mugui’s tapping fingers stopped
The Hungry Ghost disciples who had relaxed immediately tensed back up, eyes narrowing, shock and irritation spreading amongst them.
Bai Yegui’s gaze became slightly emotional.
"Before this tournament, I thought my grievances were large and that the Hall’s treatment towards me mattered. I even thought that being known or unknown mattered, planning to wow the world one day and take that as my revenge as well as a form of catharsis."
Bai Yegui then folded his arms with a strange smile as he continued.
"But after seeing the talents gathered here... after witnessing monsters... I realized something."
His eyes turned slowly toward the direction of Li Ling, who was watching the ongoings with a raised eyebrow, then returned to Shi Gaolin.
"That in the face of such talent, such completion, such rivals... my grievances were petty!"
The words hit harder than any insult shouted in anger because Bai Yegui didn’t sound hurt or coping, but rather sounded certain and enlightened.
Shi Gaolin’s brows tightened but Bai Yegui wasn’t done as he continued.
"And you Shi Gaolin... you certainly speak like a leader."
He let that hang as if it were praise... then he dropped the bomb!
"But someone who needs a so called ’leader’s mind’ to compensate for strength and talent that those at my level possess... is destined to become fodder for us."
The Hungry Ghost Hall, who had firmly joined Shi Gaolins side after he spoke diplomatically on their behalf, completely detonated at that!
"ARROGANT!"
"Who does this bastard think he is?!"
"He’s insulting Senior Brother Shi!"
Even some sect elders frowned, because while demonic sects valued ruthlessness, they also valued hierarchy, and Bai Yegui was stepping on his entire hall as if it were a piece of trash by the roadside he could topple at anytime.
Bai Yegui didn’t care about the reactions and thoughts of peons, as he stared directly at Shi Gaolin.
"Everything hinges on strength as well as potential and you happen to lack both, which is why you need strategy, diplomacy, and to manage people."
Bai Yegui’s tone remained almost conversational. "Those are skills for the weak."
Shi Gaolin’s eyes darkened as a pulse throbbed at his temple and for the first time in this entire match, his calm cracked visibly.
His halberd slid down from his shoulder and struck the ground with a heavy thunk, the sound echoing across the stage.
The crowd went quiet again, sensing the shift.
Shi Gaolin’s voice dropped. "Say that again."
Bai Yegui smiled faintly with the superiority of a being that stood above his peers. "You heard me loud and clear."
The Hungry Ghost Hall’s stands were boiling now, half furious, half exhilarated.
Gu Mugui’s gaze sharpened into something cold because the apology as well as the diplomatic effort had been perfect until Bai Yegui had taken it and smashed it on the ground.
Shi Gaolin’s grip tightened on the halberd, and spoke in a voice that was steady but edged with killing intent.
"If everything hinges on strength, then prove it with your own ability, not with words!"
A low hum rose as his Hungry Ghost power gathered, the air around him chilling as frost flakes formed due to the sheer volume of sinister power accumulating.
Bai Yegui’s shoulders loosened as he relaxed... then he laughed.
"You want proof?" Bai Yegui asked with an amused tone.
He lifted a hand and beckoned, casual as a noble allowing a servant to approach.
"I’ll allow you the first move, because you’re too weak!" He added, eyes narrowing slightly.
It was the kind of insult that couldn’t be answered with anything but violence.
Shi Gaolin’s jaw tightened and for a moment, he looked like he might speak again, but he didn’t.
He chose the only answer that mattered in the Six Paths Demon Sect.
He lowered his stance, pulled his halberd back, and then surged forward as the arena tiles cracked under his foot!
A cold wind burst behind him as his Hungry Ghost Yin power wrapped tight around his body like armor, compact and efficient, not wasteful.
The crowd held its breath and some disciples leaned forward unconsciously while others clenched fists with tense expressions.
On the platform, Gu Mugui’s eyes narrowed into cold, malevolent slits.
In the center of the stage, Bai Yegui stood still, calmly waiting as if he were about to catch something thrown lazily rather than face a killing strike.
Shi Gaolin’s halberd came down in a brutal arc, aimed to split Bai Yegui from shoulder to hip, and the entire stadium waited to see what kind of method the fellow would use to answer that blade!
