182: Meeting

As if feeling a gaze from across the void, Yan Chen's tightly closed eyes suddenly snapped open, like two golden lamps piercing through the mist, looking accurately toward the Bone Forging Road, clashing with Chen Linsheng's gaze.

For a moment, the air seemed to freeze.

No words were spoken, but Chen Linsheng clearly saw many emotions in the other's eyes: the unwillingness of defeat in the Martial Examination and the blazing Battle Intent after dormancy; the alertness of being in a foreign land facing unknown dangers; and even a faint, vague sense of recognition and... alliance, coming from the same Jiuqu Prefecture and being fellow Martial Artists of Great Qi.

The corner of Yan Chen's mouth seemed to move very slightly, as if giving some kind of warning or reminder. Immediately after, his gaze swept over a shadow behind Chen Linsheng, his eyes turning cold, and then he closed his eyes again, continuing to resist the illusions of the Heart Refining Bridge.

Chen Linsheng's heart tightened, and he immediately pushed his perception of Tracking Perfection to the limit.

Sure enough, in the shadow of a rock crevice about fifty zhang behind and to his side, he captured two extremely faint auras that almost blended into the environment! Cold, obscure, carrying a faint scent of blood and a twisted meaning, originating from the same source as the White Lotus Cult Agent he had fought on the platform before!

"Two Shadow Guards... lurking here, are they waiting for me and the Puppet to both be injured, or are they simply Tracking me?" Chen Linsheng's eyes were cold. The White Lotus Sect was indeed persistent, still lurking like venomous snakes even in this Secret Realm.

He did not alert them, pretending not to notice and continuing to regulate his breath, but in his heart, he had already marked these two as targets that must be eliminated.

Having finished his rest, Chen Linsheng set off once again.

The next stretch of road was exceptionally steep, the gravity had increased to about seven times, and the fire Puppets had turned into small battle formations of three, coordinating more seamlessly. Chen Linsheng spent more time than before to clear three such checkpoints, gaining five fire source crystals, with the count reaching "Twenty-Eight".

Just as he had defeated the last group of battle formation Puppets and was slightly out of breath, a sudden change occurred!

Not far above, the sound of intense fighting, the bloodthirsty roars unique to the Wolf Clan, and... the clear yet hurried clanging of metal accompanied by rapid breathing could be heard!

That sword chime... sounded familiar!

Chen Linsheng's heart stirred, and his figure quickened as he swept upward.

Rounding a corner, the scene ahead suddenly opened up.

This was a relatively open slope, where a siege was currently taking place.

Surrounded in the middle was none other than Mu Qingxue, her white clothes already stained with blood and dust!

The Autumn Water Longsword in her hand still shone with a cold light, its sword momentum like a sweeping blizzard, carrying a bone-chilling coldness, but she was clearly lacking strength, and the sword light was no longer as dense as before. There was a deep-to-the-bone claw mark on her left shoulder, blood soaking her clothes, her face as pale as paper, and her aura fluctuating.

Those besieging her were actually two groups of people!

One side was three young warriors of the Northern Desert Wolf Clan, each wounded but with undiminished ferocity, their scimitars like wolf fangs tightly entangling Mu Qingxue's sword light. The other side consisted of two young armored soldiers from Army Breaker Manor! They did not join forces with the Wolf Clan; instead, they also seemed to be attacking Mu Qingxue, their blade momentum ruthless and every move lethal, while also keeping an eye on the Wolf Clan, making the scene chaotic and dangerous.

"Hand over the fire source crystals and that 'ice heart lotus' on you, and we'll spare your life!" a Wolf Clan warrior grinned hideously, his blade slashing directly toward Mu Qingxue's face.

"Traitor! Colluding with the Barbarians, you deserve to die!" an Army Breaker Manor soldier shouted harshly, his blade energy cold as he cut off Mu Qingxue's path of retreat.

Mu Qingxue gritted her silver teeth, saying nothing, her sword light dancing as she struggled to hold on, but anyone with a discerning eye could see she was at the end of her rope, and her defeat and death were only moments away.

Chen Linsheng's eyes suddenly turned cold.

He didn't know why Mu Qingxue appeared on the Bone Forging Road, or what conflict she had with the people from Army Breaker Manor, but seeing an old acquaintance from his hometown and a companion who had once fought alongside him in such a desperate situation, he could not stand by.

Without hesitation, and without even giving any warning.

Chen Linsheng moved!

Under seven times gravity, his figure still turned into a blurred pale golden afterimage, like a Vicious Beast that had been dormant for a long time, suddenly pouncing into the fray!

His target was aimed directly at the Army Breaker Manor soldier who was swinging his blade toward Mu Qingxue's back!

That soldier had sharp senses and, realizing a foul wind was attacking from behind, blocked with his blade in great alarm.

"Clang—!!!"

Chen Linsheng's fist, carrying the majestic momentum of the Mountain Suppressing Seal and the spiral penetration of the Python Dragon Strength, smashed heavily onto the blade!

An unimaginable giant force transmitted through, and the soldier felt his arm vibrate violently. The Yanling Saber was actually knocked out of his hand by this punch! The skin between his thumb and forefinger split, his chest's blood and Qi surged, and he stumbled back, his eyes full of horror.

Chen Linsheng's punch succeeded, and without stopping, he used the momentum to turn sideways, his left elbow like a spear, striking the ribs of the other Army Breaker Manor soldier who was trying to flank him. That soldier hurriedly swung his blade in a horizontal slash, but Chen Linsheng's right hand shot out like lightning, his five fingers like hooks, grabbing the soldier's wrist and twisting it with a sudden burst of power!

"Crack!" The sound of the wrist bone breaking was clearly audible, and the Yanling Saber fell from his hand once again.

Two Army Breaker Manor soldiers, in a single encounter, had lost their weapons, and one was injured!

All of this happened too fast; only then did the three Wolf Clan warriors react.

"Another one coming to die!" the leading Wolf Clan warrior roared, abandoning Mu Qingxue, and together with the other two, three scimitars whistled through the air, slashing toward Chen Linsheng.

Chen Linsheng snorted coldly and advanced instead of retreating.

The Five Viscera Absorbing Essence Art within him operated at full power, his Heart Fire Origin Qi rising, giving his palm strikes a scorching and fierce power; his Lung Metal Origin Qi was sharp, enhancing penetration. A pale golden Golden Garment Qi membrane faintly appeared on his body's surface, enduring two slashes of blade light, making a friction sound and leaving two white marks, but failing to break his defense.

Meanwhile, both of his palms shot out, palm shadows flying like two moving mountains, boldly crashing into the Wolf Clan's web of blades.

"Bang bang bang!"

Palm power and blade light collided fiercely, Qi energy overflowing, causing cracks to appear in the rocks on the ground.

Chen Linsheng fought one against three and did not fall into a disadvantage at all! He even faintly took the initiative by virtue of his superior strength, defense, and adaptation to gravity. Every palm strike he threw made the Wolf Clan warriors' blood and Qi surge and their arms go numb.

Mu Qingxue's pressure was greatly reduced, allowing her to catch her breath. She looked with complex eyes at the pale golden figure blocking the way ahead like a reef, and without any hesitation, she forced a breath of True Qi, and her sword momentum rose again!

This time, however, her goal was no longer defense, but to coordinate with Chen Linsheng. Her Sword Qi was like a rainbow, specializing in attacking the Wolf Clan warriors' weak points such as joints and eyes. Her cold Sword Intent and Chen Linsheng's fierce palm power formed a wonderful complement.

Although the two had never practiced together, they were both people with rich combat experience and extremely high Comprehension Ability. Now, entrusting their lives to each other, they actually cooperated with extraordinary tacit understanding.

Chen Linsheng's palm power was majestic, crushing from the front and attracting most of the firepower; Mu Qingxue's sword was light and agile, entering through gaps and stabbing with a lethal sword at every critical moment.

In less than ten moves, a Wolf Clan warrior's blade momentum was shaken off by one of Chen Linsheng's palm strikes, and Mu Qingxue's sword light, like a venomous snake's tongue, instantly pierced his throat.

Five more moves, and another Wolf Clan warrior was forcibly pushed back three steps by Chen Linsheng, losing his balance. Mu Qingxue struck with a sword from mid-air, her icy Sword Qi piercing through his chest.

The last leading Wolf Clan warrior was terrified. He feinted with a blade strike, turned around, and fled, sprinting wildly down the mountain.

Chen Linsheng did not pursue but instead turned his cold gaze toward the two injured Army Breaker Manor soldiers.

The two had picked up their weapons by now and were huddled together, their faces extremely ugly. They hadn't expected this suddenly appearing Martial Artist to be so powerful, nor had they expected Mu Qingxue to have such assistance.

"Who are you? Why do you interfere with our Army Breaker Manor's capture of a rebel?" one soldier shouted, his voice harsh but his heart weak.

"Rebel?" Chen Linsheng's voice was calm, but it carried a bone-chilling coldness. "I only saw you together with the Northern Desert Wolf Clan, besieging a heavily injured Central Plains Martial Artist. Is this how the rules of Army Breaker Manor are enforced?"