Chapter 118(2): Morning Light (Part Two)

Chen Chuan turned his attention to the area above the altar. After a moment, the flames from the torches swayed violently. Then, the Flying Head showed up from the shadows above. It charged down to the sacrifice with her long hair flowing around her like a dark shadow that was about to envelop the area beneath her.

Chen Chuan took two steps forward and crossed around six meters. With a roundhouse kick, he struck the head with deadly precision and flung it off the altar.

The Flying Head let out a familiar screech from having its meal time interrupted and tried to get closer to the altar again, but Chen Chuan stayed next to it and kept on kicking it away. After countless kicks, the Flying Head vanished again.

Chen Chuan stood still for a while before taking out the yellow jade from his pocket, only to find that it had turned entirely black. He gave it a light squeeze, and bits of it fell through the gaps between his fingers.

The yellow jade had helped him withstand some of the damage from the Flying Head. From the day after, he would have to shoulder it on his own.

He noticed that the Flying Head had lingered for a far shorter period than before, indicating that preventing it from feeding was an effective strategy to defeat it.

With a swing of his arm, Chen Chuan left the temple. Once he told Gu Mingde and the other agents about the situation, he went to the tent prepared for him to rest and guide the growth of his mutated tissue.

The next morning, Chen Chuan went into the old temple again. The process was practically the same as yesterday’s. He was able to successfully keep the Flying Head away from the sacrifice.

After the two ceremonies of the day, the damage his second self sustained became much heavier. Still, it was within an acceptable range. This was truly a battle of attrition. The damage inflicted on his second self by the source of the Flying Head was prolonged, continuous, and cumulative. Judging by the progress, barring unforeseen events, the battle would last at most another day or two.

On the third day, Chen Chuan readied his body for battle and went into the old temple again. When the sacrifice was ready and the ceremony began, the source of the Flying Head showed up, but he was able to successfully ward her off until she was forced to disappear again. This time, it was only around for a few minutes.

He was confident he should be able to eliminate it completely by the next ceremony.

***

The sun traveled its course through the sky. The day dragged on, only to pass in a flash. When the sun began setting and the agents outside saw that it was time for another ceremony, they suddenly cried out and pointed at the area beyond the mountain.

“Look, Captain Gu!”

Gu Mingde was shocked. Numerous black dots were flying in from all directions. All of them were Flying Heads. After a rough estimate, he counted around fifty of them.

He immediately understood the situation and shouted, “They must be coming from the other Flying Head Cult gathering spots! Mr. Chen’s strategy is working! Prepare to engage! Prevent them from entering the temple!”

“Roger!” the agents shouted back and brought their guns up to start firing. Around a hundred people had gathered on the mountain. The thunderous gunshots shocked countless birds. Occasionally, some Flying Heads were gunned down, but around a third of them still shot into the old temple through the holes in the building.

Gu Mingde looked toward the old temple with a grim expression. They had done what they could. Chen Chuan would have to deal with the ones who entered by himself.

***

Meanwhile, Chen Chuan was waiting for the source of the Flying Heads to show up again. He knew how to keep it away from the sacrifice without much trouble now, but just as it was about to show up, countless Flying Heads flew in. The newcomers started interfering with Chen Chuan trying to block the source of the Flying Heads.

He had a feeling that if he let the source of the Flying Heads eat the fresh blood and meat, it would recover and make things more troublesome.

Killing intent flashed in his eyes. He took two steps forward and grabbed the source of the Flying Heads under his arm. Then, he pulled his pistol out, turned around, and began shooting. The sound of gunshots rang nonstop. The Flying Heads panicked and flew in random directions. After Chen Chuan emptied the magazine, he threw the pistol away and started swinging his saber, still with the source of the Flying Heads clamped under his arm.

With every swing, a Flying Head fell. When he dealt the final swing, no more Flying Heads were left in the large hall.

Just then, he heard a long, deep sigh, and he felt his arm clamping on empty air. When he looked over, he saw ash falling down, along with clumps of black hair.

At that moment, Chen Chuan saw his second self’s body swaying like there were ripples traveling through him from a heavy hit. He looked so transparent that Chen Chuan could barely see him.

Chen Chuan’s mutated tissue also felt an unprecedentedly strong stimulation.

He scowled.

Using his breathing technique alone was no longer enough to guide the growth, not at this point.

Chen Chuan sucked in a deep breath and removed his cloak to begin practicing Principal Sanshou. Yet even after going through the entire routine a few times, he felt that he could not keep up with the growth of his mutated tissue, so he tried to imitate the stances from other refined forces, along with the techniques He Xiaoxing had taught him.

He tried everything he could think of, and time trickled by as he performed the moves. It was still not enough, though, so he grabbed the Frost King Saber and started using the Heavy Slash Force. Saber refined force started flying everywhere, and the blade shone brightly with each slash. The torn carcasses of the Flying Heads on the floor were ripped to shreds from the aftershocks of the refined force.

Chen Chuan kept going the entire night. When the first ray of light shone through the hole, he finally set the saber down. Then, he looked up, and his eyes sparkled briefly.

He exhaled long and hard and sheathed his saber. After some thinking, he picked up the ash and hair from the floor, smoothed out his clothes, placed the saber over his shoulders, and headed out.

***

The agents outside were waiting for him anxiously. Gu Mingde’s chin was even covered in stubble. No one had slept that night.

After the Flying Heads went into the old temple, Chen Chuan did not come out like he usually did. They did not know what had happened inside, so if Chen Chuan did not come out until the sun rose, they were going to start thinking of ways to charge in.

Just then, they heard footsteps. The ones who had been sitting stood up and turned to the old temple.

As the footsteps grew clearer, they saw Chen Chuan with a saber over his shoulders walk into the light. His figure gradually came into focus, and finally, he stood under the morning sun.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep