Round 1: The River of Souls

Preface: Many elements of the battle for blood have been borrowed from and plagiarized from Thorin’s “Stories of Mages.” We offer our sincere apologies and thanks!
The sky burned like fire.
The icy currents here became gentler—though this was only relative to the main River of Souls, which flowed endlessly through the vast void between realms. Some say the River of Souls has no beginning or end, flowing from eternity to eternity; others claim it forms a circular path around heaven, hell, and all other worlds. But no one can fully understand the River of Souls, not even the gods.
The River of Souls washed over this fractured land, with toxic mists lingering over its network of tributaries. The desolate lands were unstable, disappearing and reappearing amid the ceaseless currents, changing shape. A smell of sulfur and blood drifted on the wind. Occasionally, one or two creature-like figures could be seen wandering in the distance, only to vanish the next moment.
A small group moved along one of the River of Souls’ tributaries. There were about a dozen of them, carefully avoiding seemingly dangerous areas—though in reality, they were just relying on luck, struggling forward through the water and mud.
The little demon Pipi led the group, flying in the air using his bat wings. His long green limbs made meaningless movements from time to time, while his triangular tail swung back and forth unconsciously. His head, with tiny horns, scanned the surroundings nervously—not only to watch out for potential threats but also for his increasingly irritable and impatient companions behind him. They also had to be wary of the unpredictable River of Souls. They had ended up in this strange, desolate place due to a sudden surge, losing their boat. Fortunately, they hadn’t been carried too far into the depths of the river—otherwise, they would have had no choice but to drown in its endless waters.
Pipi wasn’t an native of this fragmented realm separated by the River of Souls. Lowly demons like him usually ended up serving as spies for more powerful demons in the abyss or being summoned by evil spellcasters as magical pets. Given his cunning nature, these roles suited him well—he excelled at them. He preferred these jobs to being a scout in a bloody battle, let alone being captured by a few reckless fools from the Material World who had ventured into the abyss and now tried to leave hastily as guides. Good heavens, did they even know how vast the abyss was?
“You sneaky little bastard!”
A sharp pain struck Pipi from behind, sending him stumbling. He rolled through the air before flapping forward, only to be pulled back by the chain tied around his neck.
“Stop! Stop!” Pipi screamed angrily, emitting a low, grating sound, like burning coal grinding together. He dodged another strike from behind. “Why are you hitting Pipi again?”
“Hmph… because I’ve had enough of your reckless guidance!”

It was a hulking minotaur, its muscles bulging, its bare torso covered in hair and knobby growths—that even served as natural armor. It swung its massive flail; fortunately, it had retained a shred of sanity and used the handle, otherwise Pippi would already be a mess of flesh.
“Strong Mr. Vale…”
Even in such a desolate and terrifying environment, her voice remained sweet and tempting. She seemed to be using the same language as Pippi, but the syllables sounded slightly hoarse in her mouth, yet more so lazy—as if the most favored concubine, lying naked on her bed, was calling for her king to come to her.
The minotaur shook its head, seemingly confused by her voice.
“Stop your enchantment!” A mage in black robes paused his staff, sending a thin bolt of lightning at the source of the voice—
Though it was just the simplest lightning strike, it seemed to cause her immense pain. She collapsed in the mud, her curvaceous limbs trembling uncontrollably.
This caused a slight stir among the group. The travelers’ eyes were almost entirely drawn to that weak, beautiful body; they gazed at her scaled limbs, smooth back, curved horns emerging from her black hair, and the glimpses of her form that occasionally revealed itself…
“Enough!” The black-robed mage’s voice rang like a bell, waking his somewhat dazed companions: “Don’t rush! We can do whatever we want to this succubus, but our main goal now is to find a portal to get out of here!”
Whatever we want to do—this promise was like a carrot tied to a donkey’s nose, tempting them to keep marching on.
Pippi smirked disdainfully. He had seen the true face of that beauty whom these fools thought was a rare treasure—a seven-foot-tall statue-like body with giant bat wings and eyes glowing with evil light… But fine, maybe this succubus could throw this bunch of fools into chaos, giving him a chance to escape…
After a day of aimless wandering—though there was no day or night here, only perpetual humidity and an unchanging deep red sky—their body clocks still reminded them they needed to rest.
The black-robed mage used magic to set up a tent, went inside to meditate, while the minotaur Vale, with Pippi chained around its wrist, sat by the tent to guard and rest…
The other adventurers also lay down in groups, trying to stay as far away from the succubus as possible.
Pippi didn’t sleep. Though he was a low-level Qasse demon, he was quite smart.
The succubus noticed Pippi’s gaze as well.
She made a shushing gesture, her expression a mix of mischief and indescribable charm. Then she quietly lowered herself, resting her chin in her hand, her dreamy eyes fixed on a warrior’s back—her gaze utterly intoxicated, as if a young girl in love were secretly peering through the curtains to watch her hero.
Soon, the warrior began tossing and turning.
“Stop it! You fools!”

When the mage tore back the tent and stepped out roaring, he only just managed to stop the minotaur from swinging its flail. The mage held a clearly high status in the group, and most people quickly stopped fighting and shouting, except for the first two. The warrior was already grappling with another companion in a chaotic mess, even biting each other, with half of their bodies submerged in the river. The water, which usually felt icy and soul-chilling at the slightest touch, now seemed meaningless to them. The mage stood there angrily, helpless. The instigator of the whole chaos curled up innocently, seemingly asleep, but the mage knew that if he had come out any later, things would have gotten completely out of control! The warrior raised his head from the water, holding a large piece of flesh from his opponent in his mouth—somehow torn off. The loser struggled desperately below, splashing water everywhere. “You despicable, cunning Tanari scum!” The mage didn’t try to separate the two of them; they had already drunk enough of the poisonous River of Death water. Prolonged exposure or even just a small amount could cause terrible memory loss and confusion, and even if they recovered from the enchantment, they wouldn’t live long. So he vented all his anger on the succubus. The mage waved his staff and recited a spell—the pretending-to-sleep succubus immediately screamed in pain, curling up. This time it wasn’t fake, as countless tiny snakes seemed to be writhing beneath her delicate, fair skin, trying to break through, and her body seemed to be distorted by some invisible force. “Please stop!” The succubus’s beautiful voice became distorted by pain. “Someone, save me!” The adventurers formed a semicircle, watching silently, afraid of the mage’s powerful magic and indulging in the pleasure of watching a beautiful woman suffer. After a long while, the mage finally stopped his spell. With a dark expression, he said, “If I find you using your enchantment to seduce my people again, I’ll turn you into the ugliest demon! I swear it! Don’t test my patience any further!” Vows in the Bottomless Abyss never meant much—Pippi thought disdainfully. After the incident, the group was reduced to nine members: the cloaked mage, the minotaur, the little demon Pippi, the succubus, and five well-equipped adventurers.