Chapter 768 - 119: Long Blade Defeats the Enemy

BOOM! Under the impact of their immense power, the platform beneath Wilhelm’s feet suddenly collapsed and shattered.

But in both of their eyes, the world seemed to slow down. Debris from the shattered platform and splinters from the exploding spear drifted slowly outward, while the two men seemed frozen in mid-air.

Their gazes met in mid-air.

Only then did Wilhelm get a clear look at his opponent. He was dressed in the attire of the Dashun Military, his cloak and scarf fluttering behind him. What had shattered his spear was a gleaming Long Blade.

Chen Chuan’s eyes were fixed on him. His strike had shattered his opponent’s weapon. ’Against an attack like this, an unprepared opponent would have no time to adjust,’ he thought. ’I could press my Sword Stance forward and take his head in the next instant, even if his strength is comparable to mine.’

This was the advantage of seizing the initiative.

But Wilhelm was, in fact, prepared. Amid the fragments of the exploding spear, he still gripped a white core that was roughly the same length as the Snow Monarch Blade.

The spear’s unique design used its outer shaft to disperse force. The exploding shaft had just absorbed a massive amount of Power, while the impact had knocked the Snow Monarch Blade slightly off course.

In that very instant, Wilhelm gripped the core and thrust it fiercely toward Chen Chuan.

The next moment, a faint light emerged from the spear’s tip.

This was undoubtedly Spiritual Power. In a clash between equals, the battle could end in an instant without a means to defend against it.

Chen Chuan stared ahead, his gaze deep and calm, without a ripple. The Snow Monarch Blade in his hand was now slightly off course. ’To bring it back on target would normally require an adjustment,’ he knew. ’And that would be enough time for him to run me through.’

Yet at this very moment, his Long Blade snapped back with extreme speed. It was a Second Stage Strength!

And as it swung forward, a faint light also bloomed on the blade’s surface!

BANG! The Long Blade squarely struck the side of the spear core. The two flares of Spiritual Power collided, causing the surrounding light to dim for a split second as the very air seemed to twist.

Only Spiritual Power could counter Spiritual Power, but after the two flares of light clashed and dissipated, what followed was the impact of pure Power between the spear and the blade!

The Fanhe Book that Wilhelm practiced heavily emphasized the unity of mind and body. To cultivate the body was to temper the spirit, and to temper the spirit was to polish the body. Therefore, his attacks condensed both into a single, unified strike.

A single strike carried both a spiritual and physical impact, each complementing the other to create a more destructive effect.

Normally, few could block this thrust. If there was even the slightest disharmony between a Fighter’s mind and body, he could tear open that unstable connection and deliver a fatal blow.

This clash, however, was a great surprise. ’As a practitioner of the Fanhe Book, I can sense that his mind and body haven’t achieved perfect harmony,’ Wilhelm thought. This was normal; under most cultivation systems, a Fighter’s physical and spiritual progress was unbalanced. That was precisely the weakness he sought to exploit.

But to his surprise, he had failed to budge his opponent. ’His physical strength is far superior to mine. Even his Spiritual Power is a notch higher. Normally, as long as one is lacking—be it spirit or body—I can find a flaw. But his strength in both areas surpasses my own!’ This meant that not only had he failed to break his enemy’s momentum, but he himself was now being suppressed by the recoil.

A wave of Power traveled from the spear core into his body. Although most of it was absorbed by the Mutated Organization within the spear, some still slammed into the Mutated Organization within his own body, hampering his ability to exert his Power. He could foresee that his spear would eventually be knocked aside, creating a slight opening.

In high-intensity combat, even the slightest gap could decide the outcome. An experienced opponent could exploit such a deviation, maintain the advantage, and gradually widen it to claim victory.

In a battle between two closely matched opponents, this process was almost irreversible—unless the attacker made a mistake.

But he would never bet on Chen Chuan making a mistake. ’Someone at our level wouldn’t make such a basic error.’

At this point in the fight, it seemed he had already lost. But just then, a light like twinkling stars ignited in his eyes. The Mutated Organization in his body, which had been suppressed by the impact, suddenly surged with activity. It was no longer hampered—in fact, it seemed even tougher than before.

This was because he had practiced and undergone the trials of suffering recorded in the Fanhe Book.

After enduring these trials, whenever he felt he was in a desperate situation, he could catch a second wind. He could not only recover from any damage sustained but also become even stronger than before.

And because he had already undergone three such trials, he could make this adjustment a total of three times. Each time, his physical condition would be elevated. ’After the third,’ he believed, ’my power will be unrivaled.’

As if unaffected by the previous impact, he instantly stabilized the trembling spear core and forced it back to meet the Snow Monarch Blade’s descending slash.

This time, not only had his physical strength increased, but his spirit had also been elevated from slightly weaker than his opponent’s to a notch above. That slight edge was enough for him to leverage the full strength of his Power. ’Now, I just have to parry his blade by a fraction, and I can seize the offensive!’

A faint light now clung to both weapons. But the Power of the Heart Force overflowed, so their energies began to clash and contest each other even before the weapons made physical contact.

Chen Chuan immediately sensed the overall increase in his opponent’s strength and guessed he had used some kind of Secret Transmission.

’At this point, I could just merge with my Second Self and break through any obstacle,’ he thought. But he chose not to.

When his blade clashed with the spear again, the Power he wielded underwent a new transformation. It instantly absorbed his opponent’s Power without issue, and he unleashed a third, horizontal slash, completely unhindered.

This was the Screw Force from Fan Mo of Lianwei Zhongyu.

He could imitate this type of Power from the Old National Church, but not with the same fluid perfection as Fan Mo. He didn’t need to, however. He just needed to be able to absorb the force and quickly launch another attack.

’My own strength is still greater than his,’ Chen Chuan noted. ’As long as I maintain my offensive momentum, I’ll have the advantage!’

Their powers clashed once more. Wilhelm’s enhanced physique still couldn’t completely resist the impact of the Power that seeped into him. However, his tenacious spirit only grew more fervent, and his body instantly underwent a second transformation.

Not only that, but feeling the unparalleled pressure from his enemy, he built upon the second transformation and instantly triggered his third.

This time, his strength, speed, and spirit all rose to a level unprecedented in his life as a Fighter. With a turn of the spear core, he seemed completely unaffected by the clash and proactively went after the Snow Monarch Blade.

Chen Chuan’s eyes were profound, like a bottomless pool. With a flash of light, the Snow Monarch Blade met the charge.

The instant the two weapons made contact, there was none of the violent collision from before.

The force surging from his opponent seemed to vanish into a void. Simultaneously, a power almost double what he had just used erupted from Chen Chuan’s blade.

Assistant Ling’s Piercing Void Force!

He was now in mid-air and couldn’t channel the enemy’s Power into the ground, but he could transfer it directly to Hong Fu. And while he couldn’t concentrate and unleash several times the force into a single point like Assistant Ling could, merely doubling it was more than enough.

The blade sent the spear core flying with a BANG. The flash of the blade shot forward and, with a SHINK, sliced across Wilhelm’s neck.

Wilhelm’s eyes flew wide open. Although his head had been severed, it hadn’t yet separated from his body.

But in that instant, the immense shock of impending death allowed him to see the fourth trial of suffering—the one he had never been able to overcome.

This trial required a complete transformation on the verge of death, and he was feeling it with absolute clarity.

In this moment, though his body was dead, his spirit was not.

An intense will to survive caused his spirit to feed back into his body, driving the spear he could no longer feel to move. ’After a move like that,’ he reasoned, ’Chen Chuan’s power must be at its limit, beginning to wane.’

’If I can just bring my spear around, I can kill him in one strike. Then, with the intense spiritual stimulation from this victory, I’ll pass the trial. I’ll be able to reattach my head and ascend to a new level of cultivation!’

But before the spear could swing around, Chen Chuan’s Long Blade changed direction. The flash of the blade, far from diminishing after the slash, was surprisingly brought back. Gripping it with both hands, he raised it high.

What he was now using was the Flying Dragon Fist Strength!

Flying Dragon Fist Strength was meant for fists, but the principle was the same: continuous, circular attacks in mid-air, with one move flowing into the next. It could even borrow an enemy’s momentum, ensuring one’s own power was never exhausted.

And this move could be called the Flying Dragon Slash!

The blade in his hands chopped down fiercely. SHINK! The flash of the blade shot downward, SWOOSHING through Wilhelm’s body. A semicircular arc appeared in the air, as if it had sliced the very dust in the atmosphere in two.

Although they had exchanged several moves in the sky, their speed had been so great that only now did they begin to fall.

With a soft thud, Chen Chuan’s feet touched the ground. Wilhelm landed at the same time.

Dust and debris rained down around them with a continuous pitter-patter.

Chen Chuan stood with his blade, his gaze fixed on Wilhelm. The latter remained in his spear-wielding stance. After a moment, the light in his eyes faded. The spear core in his hand fell to the ground with a CLANG. His head toppled off, and his headless body split down the middle, the two halves collapsing to either side and kicking up a cloud of dust.

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