A Thought Through Eternity

Chen Heng’s expression grew ugly. He formed a hand seal, and the protective light around him spread out, creating an even greater amount of mist around him as he continued fighting Bai Xiaochun in the forest amidst the thunderstorm.

The more they fought, the more Chen Heng was surprised by the outer sect disciple from the Spirit River Sect before his eyes. He had previously evaluated Bai Xiaochun extremely highly, but after personally experiencing it now, he understood that he had still underestimated his opponent.

Continuously killing more than ten clansmen, including some at the eighth level of Qi Condensation wouldn’t be difficult with such abilities. That was by no means in the capabilities of a normal Qi Condensation disciple even for a large sect like the Spirit River Sect. The resources that their disciples received were clearly much better than those of cultivator clans, but the disparity shouldn’t be this great.

“His skin is too sturdy. What body-cultivation technique has he cultivated to actually achieve such heights? Even his strength and speed had been cultivated!” Chen Heng flourished his large sleeve, and the mist surrounding his body surged to forcibly push Bai Xiaochun away. But Bai Xiaochun disregarded the possible injuries and once again charged forward. A rumble echoed out and Chen Heng’s face paled even further.

“The most terrifying aspect is the speed of his recovery! If his cultivation had reached the eighth level of Qi Condensation… I wouldn’t be able to match him!” Chen Heng was unable to comprehend how a person who had been so badly wounded could actually still have this kind of explosive power. If it was anyone else who had sustained those wounds, they would have been knocked out long ago.

It was precisely Bai Xiaochun’s situation at the moment. However, even though he was quickly burning himself out, he still continued to persevere.

“The faster I kill him, the faster this will be over. Moreover, as long as I could get rid of him, less complications will arise!” A chilling light flashed in Chen Heng’s eyes. But then Bai Xiaochun’s eyes suddenly flashed and he abruptly backed away. He formed a hand seal with both of his hands as the purple cauldron appeared once again, heading straight for Chen Heng with a roaring sound.

Chen Heng squinted and all of the mist surrounding his body coalesced into a large hand that blocked the large cauldron. The large cauldron did not actually have any strength to it and instantly shattered the moment the two came into contact.

When Chen Heng saw this, he knew that he had been fooled. Although there wasn’t much change in his expression, fierceness still appeared his eyes.

“Red Demon**!” He faintly spoke, and in an instant, a large amount of blood covered his whole body, from head to toe. In the blink of an eye, he had turned into a red-skinned person.

Just when he transformed into a red-skinned person, Bai Xiaochun’s left leg immediately arrived in a roundabout kick, spiralling in Chen Heng’s direction, rending the wind. This kick’s force was already his full strength.

Chen Heng sneered. Just as Bai Xiaochun’s left leg approached him, Chen Heng suddenly raised his right hand, swinging it to his side. It immediately collided with Bai Xiaochun’s left leg.

“Hong!”

A loud sound, similar to the muffled thunder, rang out. A cracking sound echoed within Bai Xiaochun’s body as tears streamed down his face from pain. He suddenly backed away, looking at Chen Heng with widened eyes, his heart beating madly.

“How can this fellow’s strength suddenly increase? When he used the Red Demon technique, his whole body turned red and it actually made him this formidable!” Bai Xiaochun’s heart was trembling in fear. His left leg had already been bent out of shape, and even though his skin was not torn, his flesh was still crushed and his bones were broken. He was breathing heavily as he gasped for air. He was unimaginably exhausted from the escape and his wounds were worsening.

There were many times when Bai Xiaochun had felt that he could not go on any further, only to realise that his body had quickly recovered just in time. He was extremely amazed at the shocking recovering ability that seemed like it could slowly heal even the heaviest of injuries. Based on his observations, perhaps this was an effect of the Unending Longevity Technique?

On Chen Heng’s end, his right hand looked normal, but if one looked closely, they would notice that it was trembling. The skin outside his body was redder, and as for his insides, all of his bones were fractured.

“You have your body-cultivation technique, but my Fallen Chen Clan has one as well!” Chen Heng dashed forward with a speed quicker than before, surpassing even Bai Xiaochun’s. It was as if he was now a completely different person filled with inexhaustible strength.

In the blink of an eye, the two of them renewed fighting in the forest.

A roaring sound echoed out. In this fierce battle, Bai Xiaochun’s right leg was injured, and his left leg was broken. His body was unstable as he unsteadily backed away. The danger of dying was getting stronger, this Chen Heng before his eyes was by far the strongest foe that Bai Xiaochun had encountered.

Seeing that he was in danger, Bai Xiaochun’s eyes were bloodshot as he suddenly raised his right hand, his palm was pitch-black. The power of the Throat Crushing Grasp was unleashed like a black-coloured lightning, heading straight for Chen Heng’s neck.

There was a strong gleam in Chen Heng’s eyes. He had previously seen this move and was mindful of it. His whole body flashed with a red light, and in the instant that Bai Xiaochun’s right hand neared, he grabbed ahold of it, viciously twisting it in the process. Kacha, the bones in Bai Xiaochun’s right arm immediately shattered.

This scene made Chen Heng furrow his eyebrows. He had never thought that it would be this easy, but his heart shook as he immediately backed away, recalling the previous hand-to-hand engagements where Bai Xiaochun had ruthlessly exchanged being wounded for the kill. Chen Heng ferociously pulled his neck away as he backed away.

Simultaneously, Bai Xiaochun’s left hand, covered by a black glow suddenly neared, whistling past Chen Heng’s neck, and without a pause, hooked itself on Chen Heng’s shoulder.

The power of the Throat Crushing Grasp exploded with a loud cracking sound.

Chen Heng’s face immediately paled as beads of cold sweat dripped down. His left shoulder blade was completely shattered just now, and the excruciating pain that came from it made him growl.

His whole body shone with a brilliant red light, surging with energy as he reached out to grab Bai Xiaochun’s left hand. Bai Xiaochun attempted to withdraw it, but Chen Heng’s speed was just as fast and caught Bai Xiaochun’s palm.

“Die!” Chen Heng’s eyes were also bloodshot as he formed a hand seal with his left hand with a low growl, aiming a finger right between Bai Xiaochun’s eyebrows.

Bai Xiaochun’s eyes flashed coldly. His body suddenly twisted, cracking echoed out as he let his left hand’s fingers to break. He spun his body, his right leg ripping through the air as it landed on Chen Heng’s body with a bang.

Chen Heng threw up blood as he backed off. The hand grabbing Bai Xiaochun couldn’t help but loosen up in that moment, allowing Bai Xiaochun to quickly fall back.

More than a dozen zhang opened up between the two of them after Bai Xiaochun backed away. Both his hands were already useless. His whole right shoulder was shattered, and even if he could still raise his left arm, he could no longer use the Throat Crushing Grasp since his fingers were broken.

(ED note: one zhang is approximately 3.58 meters, or 3.64 yards.)

Both his legs were trembling, his left leg was contorted, and his right leg was covered in blood, the kick just now had apparently exacerbated it.

He could stand by leaning against a tree right now. He viciously bit his tongue, resisting the urge to fall unconscious. His breathing was laboured, he had already reached his limit. From his upper and lower body, he could only freely move his left arm, and as for the rest, they were already numb. However, he didn’t truly show it, in his face, he still put on a battle-ready appearance.

As for Chen Heng, his eyes were now crimson as his left shoulder was completely shattered, making him unable to even raise his left hand, rendering it completely useless. A few bones in his chest were broken, causing fresh blood to continuously seep out from his mouth.

“I have underestimated you!” Chen Heng glared at Bai Xiaochun as he spoke in a hoarse voice. He had never thought that with his level of cultivation, killing this heavily injured Bai Xiaochun would actually be this difficult. To Chen Heng, the other party’s body-cultivation seemed to be similar to the secret technique of immortality because with these kind of wounds, Bai Xiaochun had yet to die.

However, he had practically displayed all of his techniques and had even used the Red Demon Technique.

“But, it’s about time that this battle comes to an end!” Chen Heng took a deep breath, and in the blink of an eye, the red colour on his body seemed to turn into gas, rising from his body. It coalesced in mid-air, turning into blood mist while his body quickly returned to its normal colour. His whole being seemed to be weakened. Even if it was Chen Heng, he too felt that this was a difficult life-threatening battle. The person before his eyes had too strong of a desire to survive, had an amazing recovering ability, and his method of exchanging injuries for lethal attacks was shocking.

“Red Demon Secret Technique, Blood Blade… Chop!” Chen Heng bit his tongue and spewed out a mouthful of blood which instantly turned into a blood mist, merging with the surrounding mist. The mist immediately roiled and in the blink of an eye, it actually turned into a long blood-coloured blade!

This illusory blade was more than a zhang long and there were actually countless illusory faces within, each producing an wretched screams. Chen Heng pointed at Bai Xiaochun and and following his motion, the long blood-coloured blade headed straight at him!

After displaying this Secret Technique, Chen Heng’s whole body weakened even more and he leaned on the a tree by the side, his face was pale and his hair had even slightly greyed.

“Die!” He looked at Bai Xiaochun with ferociousness in his eyes.

A sense of danger stronger than ever before filled Bai Xiaochun. He even felt that no matter how hard he tried to dodge, he would still be unable to avoid it. It was as if his fate had been sealed by some higher existence.

On the ground before of him, a fissure had opened up. Behind him, the tree had withered in an instant. The long blood-coloured blade neared… chopping down at him!

Bai Xiaochun trembled and his pupils shrunk. He did not want to die. He was afraid of dying. But even with the Unending Longevity Technique restoring his wounds, it was still difficult to change the situation. His body trembled as he watched that long blade approaching. Suddenly, an idea flashed through his mind. Without hesitation, he raised his left arm and waved forward. With the wave of his hand, a black light immediately flew out from his body and enlarged in the blink of an eye. It stopped in front of his body and turned into a… large pot!

It was the Turtle-shell Pot!

The instant that this large pot appeared, that long blood-coloured blade landed directly on top of it, and a deafening sound rang out. With it, the blood-coloured long blade trembled and actually… cracked. With a loud explosion, it crumbled into countless pieces.

As for the Turtle-shell Pot, there wasn’t even the slightest hint of a crack on it, but after it was struck, it immediately turned into a black light and returned back to Bai Xiaochun.

“Impossible!” Chen Heng shuddered, spewing a huge mouthful of blood. He could not believe that he had witnessed such a scene. Chen Heng was already weakened when he used this technique, and now that it was destroyed, he suffered a backlash. His spiritual energy was depleted and his sight gradually blurred.

“That… What was that!”

“That is your Turtle Grandfather!” Bai Xiaochun barely escaped death with fresh blood seeping out from the corner of his mouth. His body was unstable and he slid down the tree behind him, sitting down as he laughed bitterly.

“It’s a pity I don’t have any more weapons left…” He had already felt that the vitality in his body was quickly diminishing. In reality, everything before his eyes was already blurred. He wanted to summon his wooden sword again, but he just didn’t have the strength to; he wanted to summon his Turtle-shell Pot, but realised that he didn’t even have the Spiritual Qi needed to do it, let alone opening his storage pouch.

“No matter what secrets you possess, once you die, everything will be mine.” Chen Heng was panting, similarly exhausted in this moment. However, he was still in a slightly better condition than Bai Xiaochun. He glared at Bai Xiaochun, falling silent for a few breaths, and after which, with much difficulty, he got up and took a longsword out of his storage pouch, then walked towards Bai Xiaochun.

Bai Xiaochun also stared at Chen Heng without a speaking anything. There was a vacant look in his eyes as he thought about his village, Zhang Fatso One, Li Qinghou, the Spirit River Sect, and many more figures. Du Lingfei, Hou Yunfei, Hou Xiaomei…

Step by step, Chen Heng walked in front of Bai Xiaochun, lowering his head as he looked down at Bai Xiaochun who was filled with a deathly atmosphere. He had seen through the fact that Bai Xiaochun’s whole body was already wasted to the point that he was not even able to open his storage pouch, and the Spiritual Qi in his body was completely depleted.

“Remember my name. The person who killed you is… Chen Heng from the Fallen Chen Clan.” Chen Heng slowly raised the sword in his hands. The sword that would normally fly about with a wave of his sleeve now felt heavy in his hands.

“Killing a Heaven’s Chosen feels great.” Chen Heng resisted the exhaustion prompting him to fall into unconsciousness, and with a ferocious look in his eyes, the right hand holding the longsword fiercely struck down on Bai Xiaochun’s chest.

But just when Chen Heng struck at Bai Xiaochun, Bai Xiaochun’s only useable left arm suddenly jabbed the ground nearby. A cracking sound spread as the bone in his arm immediately broke. The sharp tip of a bone jutted out of his skin, extending to a more than three cun.

(ED note: one cun is 1/100 of a zhang)

In the next moment, he lifted his body up, then he brandished his left arm as fast as the remaining bits of his strength allowed. In the instant that the longsword pierced through his chest, his arm landed on Chen Heng’s neck and the tip of the bone… pierced directly into the other side of Chen Heng’s neck.

After completing all of this, Bai Xiaochun collapsed. His breath was fleeting as he fell completely unconscious.

Chen Heng was shocked, all of this happened too fast, allowing him no time to react whatsoever. His exhausted body could not avoid it at all. Blood flowed from both his mouth and neck, covering the ground around him. He wanted to stop the blood, but it just kept flowing. He stared blankly at the sharp tip of Bai Xiaochun’s bone protruding from the left arm that was stained with blood. It was absurd, it was ridiculous; his eyes revealed dissatisfaction with the outcome. His future, his mission, all of it had just turned into a miserable laughter.

“Was that… the final strike...” Chen Heng staggered back a few steps and slowly collapsed, breathing his last breath. Even in death, both his eyes were still wide open.

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4th guaranteed chapter of the week.

Translated by: Nat Nat

Edited by: Crimsonguard, Arch