Chapter 465: Call for Help and Sparring (Part 2)

Zhang Minglu first nodded, then shook his head. “That price is ‘optional.’ She doesn’t actually have to choose it. But for her, playing chess is the greatest pleasure, and she’s willing to pay any price for it.”

Gao Liangwei and Li Meng didn’t quite understand, so Zhang Minglu added, “I’m not completely clear on the specifics. All I know is that her chessboard artifact has many abilities, and one of them is ‘Match Play.’ From what she’s told me, activating this ability absorbs her life force. Her inability to get up and walk is likely a symptom of that life force drain.”

“Absorbing life force…”

Li Meng remembered what Wenren Yizhi looked like; she had indeed given him the impression of being drained of life force.

“Is that wise?” he couldn’t help but ask. “In the long run…”

“When she agreed to join the Strategy Research Room, her condition was that we wouldn’t interfere, so we can’t really say much,” Zhang Minglu said. “Besides, her ability is rather special—she can assist others from extremely long range.”

Li Meng nodded. ‘Being able to borrow her power regardless of distance just by holding one of her black and white chess pieces really is incredible.’

“Let’s take a week to get the team acclimated,” Gao Liangwei said. “The Human Federation has already decided. We’re launching a decapitation strike against the Fire Worship Cult next week.”

“Next week, huh.”

“The Human Federation is in unanimous agreement. We can’t give those cultists any more time, or they’ll just orchestrate more terrorist attacks.”

…

「Outside Pinglu City, deep within a valley.」

Two people were locked in a fierce battle within the forest.

Guan Tong controlled a flurry of Shadow Blades, sending them slashing toward his opponent from every direction, but they were shattered by an energy shield before they could make contact.

“Hah!”

Shi Jingyi let out a sharp cry, then pushed off the ground and dashed in front of Guan Tong, throwing a punch at his abdomen.

A flame seemed to burn around her fist, but it was a pale, bluish-white and emitted a surging, powerful aura.

Shadows formed a thick layer of Shadow Armor on Guan Tong. The moment Shi Jingyi’s fist struck, the bluish-white “flame” spread across his entire body, completely devouring the pitch-black Shadow Armor in an instant.

Guan Tong’s expression flickered. He activated Body Shifting to swap places with a shadow high above him, simultaneously dispelling the burning Shadow Armor and opening his Shadow Realm.

In the pitch-black darkness, he continuously sent Shadow Blades slashing at Shi Jingyi, but she seemed completely unaffected by the dark, easily deflecting his attacks and using Repulsive Extreme Step to rapidly approach his real body.

When sparring with Shi Jingyi, Guan Tong would never use an attack like “Small Space,” just as Shi Jingyi would never use her extremely lethal Vibration-Breaking Fist. They were both holding back.

Thus, when Shi Jingyi’s fist came to rest against Guan Tong’s chest, they both stopped.

Guan Tong dispelled the Shadow Realm and asked curiously, “Can you see in pure darkness? How did you know where I would attack, and where my real body was?”

Shi Jingyi smiled. “I can’t see you, but I can sense the fluctuations of your Psychic Power. That way, I know where you are even with my eyes closed.”

“…”

Guan Tong was speechless for a moment. ‘I can sense Psychic Power fluctuations too, but only at close range.’

‘But to sense them from such a great distance… only she could probably do that.’

‘It showed that her observation and application of an energy form like Psychic Power had reached an unbelievable level.’

“Then what was that flame on your fist just now?” Guan Tong was curious about this as well. “That flame… I remember it’s the effect of ‘Condensation,’ right? Can it be used for offense?”

“Yes. It can spread rapidly upon contact with an opponent. You felt it, didn’t you? If you hadn’t dispelled your Shadow Armor defense in time, it would have burned right through your entire body.”

“I definitely felt it… I think your use of Psychic Power is approaching the realm of Unity of Heaven and Man,” Guan Tong said with sincere admiration. “It would probably take anyone else five or even ten years to catch up.”

Guan Tong had once hoped to shore up his weaknesses by mastering his Wordless Book while simultaneously learning Shi Jingyi’s methods for energy manipulation.

At first, it went well. He was able to master things like the body’s acupoints and Psychic Power Flow.

But as Shi Jingyi continued to evolve—developing advanced applications like Mind Martial Techniques, Condensation refinement, and sensing the flow of Psychic Power—he found he could no longer keep up.

To this day, he still hadn’t learned a single Mind Martial Technique. It wasn’t just a matter of not working hard enough; the deeper he went, the more he felt the immense strain and frustration caused by the gap in their natural talent.

“It’s true.” Shi Jingyi made no show of false modesty. “Martial Arts are heavily dependent on talent. Back at the training hall, even with the same hands-on instruction, a talented student could master a technique in a week or a month. A less talented one might take half a year to a year and still not grasp it.”

“…I guess I have no talent for Martial Arts, then.”

Shi Jingyi stated objectively, “You have talent, just not on the level of a genius.”

After speaking, she couldn’t help but break into a smile. “But you have your own path. You don’t need to get hung up on this.”

“Yeah.”

Guan Tong knew his foundation was the Wordless Book; there was no need to be unhappy just because he wasn’t a Martial Arts prodigy.

“Let’s rest for a bit, then go for another round. I think there are still areas I can optimize.”

“Alright.”

During this time, the two of them would spar and train together whenever they were free.

Guan Tong didn’t know what Shi Jingyi got out of it, but he felt that he benefited immensely every time.

His fighting style leaned toward being a “controller.” Although he occasionally used Body Shifting and Small Space for close-quarters combat, he still fought by manipulating shadows most of the time.

This control-oriented fighting style wasn’t afraid of numerous enemies or enemies with a variety of tricks; its greatest weakness was a strong, “Basic System” type of enemy who was simply direct and brutal.

The so-called Basic System involved maxing out a single attribute—especially a combination of speed and killing power, or speed and strength—which was quite tricky for Guan Tong to handle.

Lucifer was a typical example. Relying on the extreme speed and cutting power of his wings, he could easily break through the shadow’s restraints and pose a serious threat to Guan Tong’s physical body.

And Shi Jingyi, in fact, also used this type of combat style.

She almost never bought or used items powered by Psychic Power, relying solely on using it as energy to complement the various Martial Arts she cultivated. This pure fighting style easily put Guan Tong on the defensive, allowing him to gain a lot of combat experience from each sparring session.

The two sat down to rest in the shade of a tree. Shi Jingyi leaned her head against the trunk, her eyes squinted as she watched the sunlight filter through the gaps in the leaves, looking utterly content.

Guan Tong saw the faint smile on her lips, and his heart stirred. ‘Although I’ve never mentioned it,’ he thought, ‘I always feel more relaxed when I’m with Jingyi. In an era like this, being able to relax is an experience that money can’t buy.’

He felt it was related to Shi Jingyi’s personality. Faced with an illogical and terrifying disaster like the Apocalypse Rules, she never seemed to complain. She wasn’t like the pessimists who spent their days cursing fate, nor was she like the nihilists who drifted through life in a stupor.

She simply did what she had to do every day: teach and practice Martial Arts. It seemed simple, but in this era, it was incredibly rare, as it required an extremely stable mental core. A person who could calmly accept all the good and bad things that happened would indeed make others feel at ease in their presence.

After sitting for a moment, Guan Tong asked, “Nothing strange has happened since that incident in Lu City, right?”

“No. What about you? Have the Parasites targeted you in any way since then?” Shi Jingyi asked, looking at him.

“No, but they definitely won’t give up. They’re sure to make another move in the future… That’s why I’m planning to go to the Black Banner Country and take the initiative after I get back from Fahe. Otherwise, constantly being on guard against those guys is mentally draining.”

“Guan Tong, you mentioned the Parasites’ leader, the Prophet… is he really human? Why would the power behind the Parasites choose to communicate with a human rather than another Parasite?”

“I don’t know. But I’m confident that when we find him, we might be able to get some answers.”

“Mm. I’m rested. Ready for another round?”

“Bring it on. I’ll switch weapons this time.” Guan Tong took the Silver Hunter from his Storage Ring.

Shi Jingyi’s eyes fell on the gun, and she recalled, “I remember this. It’s the gun you used to fight the Living Dead in Yunhua City… It looks like it’s changed quite a bit since then.”

“Yeah, I’ve enhanced it several times since then. Its power has increased a lot. Let’s see if you can defend against it.”