Book 3, Chapter 258: Regicide

The shepherdess arrived at the palace and faced off against the noblewoman. Then, they began fighting in the court.

At this point, all the security guards in the private booths and the theater tensed up.

Even if they limited their fight to the stage and had made preparations for the fight, the security guards couldn’t be lax when faced with a fight between two Third Limit martial artists.

The two women were wearing armor, and when they fought, things might go flying, or they might throw something, which could lead to the audience getting hurt. The people watching from the booths were all powerful, influential people. If any one of them got injured, it would lead to devastating consequences.

The shepherdess fought fiercely against the noblewoman on stage. Even without the holographic walls crumbling, the clashing of spears and clanging armor let the people sense just how much power they put into their strikes.

The spectators could tell that the two were really going for each other’s necks.

At this point, the theater adjusted the frequency of the Realm Passes so that the spectators could see the fight well.

Since the average person could not even dream of seeing Third Limit martial artists fight, this alone was worth seeing the show again.

The Third Limit martial artists in charge of security kept their eyes trained on the two actresses’ movements, worried that something might go wrong.

The music also became intense and fervent to fit the intensity of the fight.

The theatrical effects were in full swing.

Chen Chuan couldn’t understand the meaning of the song, but as the loud music gained a majestic flair, he had a feeling that it was trying to stir up a certain emotion and make it burn with the intensity of a raging volcano.

The shepherdess, or rather, the armor started moving faster and more fiercely. The fight was so nerve-racking that the spectators held their breaths.

After three minutes, the shepherdess thrust her spear into the noblewoman’s chest. Shocked, the noblewoman fell to her knees.

At that moment, the music came to an abrupt stop.

Chen Chuan could sense that the noblewoman’s surprise was real and not an act. But all the spectators were still immersed in the story and didn’t notice anything wrong.

He stood up, and right after, some of the excited spectators stood up as well to clap. They had been drawn deeply into the story and were satisfied with the performance.

The shepherdess lifted her rusty sword skyward. The majestic and exciting music started playing again. This time, it sounded like it was going to go on forever, like the flowing tide.

The spectators clapped in excitement, but this wasn’t the end. There was still the final act.

No one knew what happened at the end of the story, because the palace had been reduced to rubble. In the western version, the shepherdess cleared the knight’s name, and the king made her and the knight nobles, thus making them the king’s royally-appointed subjects. The shepherdess even found a way to treat the knight. As the curtains fell, they got together.

But there was a different version in the eastern continent.

The story there ended with regicide.

In the eastern version, the king sent his court swordsmasters to recruit the exhausted shepherdess, but she rejected the offer.

Because the king had to pay.

The shepherdess cast aside her broken spear and picked up the rusty sword to kill the court swordsmaster and the king.

On the stage, the shepherdess lifted the sword skyward in the direction of the light before bringing it down slowly to point it forward. This was a sign that she was going to swing it at royalty.

The music reached its climax. The rhythm became faster, and the music grand. It sounded like crashing waves and pouring rain.

Chen Chuan took a look and found that the sword was pointed at where Mr. Quan was, though he didn’t know whether this was just a coincidence.

He cast a glance at Chen Bitong, only to find that the man was watching him.

Suddenly, he understood what was going on. Chen Bitong had figured out that something was wrong a long time ago, or rather, he knew the cause of the problem, which was why he had asked Chen Chuan to stay. He wanted Chen Chuan to save Mr. Quan.

This might be his way of saying thank you for teaching Chen Xiaojin. Chen Bitong was also strong enough to provide backup if anything went wrong.

But Chen Bitong might also be doing this to make it seem like Chen Chuan was on his side. If he saved Mr. Quan, it would be far too easy for certain people to let their imaginations run wild. However, as someone with the responsibility of protecting the innocent, Chen Chuan wasn’t worried about fighting in public to protect an important political figure.

He cast a glance at the suit of armor. With the music playing in the background and his own emotions resonating with it, he could sense his biofield surging violently and growing in intensity.

At the climax, the shepherdess jumped toward the private booth where Mr. Quan was with her rusty sword pointed at him.

Chen Chuan swiftly came to a conclusion that after killing the noblewoman, the divine song drove the shepherdess to the peak of her strength, and this particular attack had power far surpassing what it should normally have. It would be difficult to block it head-on.

Chen Bitong might have thought about this too and was thinking about stepping in if Chen Chuan made any mistakes.

You might be the stronger martial artist, but this isn’t a real martial arts fight. The cause behind it is an anomaly. Just watch it from the back, he thought.

With his eyes trained on the shepherdess, Chen Chuan focused and lowered his center of gravity. With a loud boom, he jumped out of the private booth and drew the Frost King Saber.

They moved toward the ceiling of the hall. Just as they were about to crash into each other, Chen Chuan spun in midair and thrust his saber into the gap of the helmet.

At the same time, his second self blurred intensely. Even so, Chen Chuan didn’t look away. The dormant consciousness in his saber stirred awake, as if it was absorbing something from the armor. He ignored it and twisted the saber upward.

The helmet flew into the air, as if he had cut it off. Long, platinum hair fluttered in the air. The shepherdess’ eyes appeared dazed.

Chen Chuan passed her by and landed right under the spotlight on the stage. With a fling of his saber, the air howled.

Since the shepherdess’ jump had been interrupted, she fell from midair and landed on one knee. A moment later, the helmet fell with a clatter on the aisle behind her.

The spectators watched in shock. Everything had happened too quickly, and they couldn’t figure out whether this was a newly added scene or whether something had happened.

The security guards in the private booths reacted without delay. They moved to the front and used their bodies to shield their clients while watching the stage with grave expressions.

Tan Zhi, Pan Xiaode, and Qi Huixin watched in dumbfounded silence. When Chen Chuan said that he was going to stay in another booth, they hadn’t thought much about it and simply believed that he had run into a superior or a friend. They weren’t expecting him to fight against the shepherdess’ actress.

Chen Chuan cast a glance at the helmet. If he was correct, the helmet controlled the actress’ mind. Perhaps she believed that she was still acting. This also meant that this anomaly needed a carrier, or it wouldn’t be able to bring out its power.

That made things easy.

He lifted his saber and positioned the hilt in front while putting the back of the blade on his shoulder. Then, he lowered his center of gravity before taking a step forward. The next moment, he moved so quickly that he appeared as a blur in the people’s Realm Passes, even though the domain frequency had been adjusted. The Realm Passes weren’t able to display his movements clearly.

In an instant, he arrived in front of the shepherdess. As the saber came hurling down, the armor controlled the shepherdess’ body to bring the rusty sword up. It was supposed to parry Chen Chuan’s attack, but with a loud snap, the rusty sword broke in half. Then, without slowing down in the slightest, the saber touched the shepherdess’ forehead.

But the blade didn’t slice through her head. It stopped, and a perfectly controlled refined force seeped into the shepherdess’ body, causing her to freeze. Chen Chuan stayed in that stance for a while.

After a pause, the shepherdess’ armor fell on the stage piece by piece. In the end, she unclasped her fingers, and the broken sword landed on the floor as well. She then fell face-first after it.

Chen Chuan pulled his saber back and straightened his back. The armor needed a carrier, so without a body that could serve as its host, it was useless.

Of course, the most important part was that he had defeated the shepherdess in a direct confrontation.

Based on his experience killing supernatural beings, this was the key to defeating the armor. This action ended the show.

Once it was done, Chen Chuan looked up. The security guards had stepped aside once they saw that the danger was neutralized. Mr. Quan went to the edge of the booth to look down. Chen Bitong appeared in the cubicle beside his and gave a nod.

Mr. Quan seemed to have expected this and said into the Realm Pass, “Mr. Bao, deal with this.”

Bao Yun came forward and said, “Everyone, I’m sure you know just how unique the divine song is. Sometimes, it affects the actors as well. The production team informed us about this beforehand.

“After careful consideration, we decided not to give up on presenting the show to all of you, despite the risks. We just couldn’t let you miss such an exciting production. That’s why we’ve made full preparations. We set up security measures before the start of the show. This man… Captain Chen has several achievements under his belt. With him here, we could all watch the show at ease.

“I just find it a pity that the show wasn’t able to reach its end.”

“No. It’s not a pity. The shepherdess’ desire to kill the king presented to me the most exciting show,” Mr. Quan declared.

Then, he turned to Chen Chuan. “Also, Captain Chen, thanks to your help and your mercy, the actress wasn’t injured too badly. She’ll have no cause to regret the show. I thank you on her behalf.”

After that, he started clapping. The politicians in the other booths joined as well, leading the spectators to cheer for him too. Their claps were like roaring waves.

Medical officers swiftly entered the hall and took out the unconscious actress.

Chen Chuan cast a glance at Mr. Quan and Chen Bitong before looking at the people clapping for him. Calmly, he looked away. Then, with the Frost King Saber in hand, he exited the stage amid the roaring claps.

Soon, he was upstairs again and in the private booth. Chen Bitong handed the Frost King Saber’s sheath back to Chen Chuan. “Thank you, Captain Chen. I will be at the training center almost permanently after this day off. If you have time, please come find me.”

Chen Chuan nodded. “I will.”

After a slight pause, he looked at Chen Bitong, “May I know the real reason behind this show, Instructor Chen?”

Chen Bitong fell silent for a moment before saying, “Of course.”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep