471: Chapter 471 Who told you I'm a psychic?

The burning firewood emitted a crackling sound, becoming the only clear movement at this moment.

The blazing fire surged upward, drawing out long shadows of the two opposing figures.

When the wind blew, the shadows twisted and swayed on the ground, like tooth-baring and claw-waving monsters.

As if in the next second, a world-shaking battle would erupt here once again.

Everyone nervously held their breath, gazing at the scene in the middle.

Fang Cheng clenched his fist, which was still steaming with heat, his gaze like a bottomless cold pond.

It was as if that earth-shattering punch just now, comparable to a missile bombardment, had nothing to do with him at all.

"Monster?"

He softly repeated the word, with no emotion audible in his tone, as if examining a label that had nothing to do with him.

Immediately afterward, he raised his eyes, his burning gaze firmly nailed onto Old Master Chen Hongye.

"No, you got it wrong."

Fang Cheng's voice wasn't loud, but it clearly reached the ears of everyone present.

"I am not a monster."

"I am here to collect a debt from you… to repay the blood debt you owe my father for over a decade!"

The two words "blood debt" resounded as powerfully as gold and stone, stirring up a high-pitched echo in the silent night sky.

Even the flickering bonfire seemed to tremble slightly from this wave of sound.

Hearing this, Old Master Chen Hongye was similarly stunned for a moment.

A momentary stagnation appeared in those crimson eyes, replaced by a trace of astonishment.

"Wait!"

He raised a charred hand, interrupting with a hoarse voice:

"What does your father's matter have to do with this old man? The person who killed him was not me."

"Is that so?"

There was no expression on Fang Cheng's face, only a calm tone stating facts as he unhurriedly asked in return:

"Then you better explain, why would an old monster like you who has been lying in a coffin for many years recognize my father?"

"Why are you clear about his cause of death? Even recognizing me at a glance, and being so certain of the Bloodline ability I possess?"

With every question he asked, he took a step forward.

The soles of his shoes stepped on the scorched, shattered stones on the ground, making a slight "creaking" sound.

Yet it struck Old Master Chen Hongye's heart like a heavy hammer, and also struck the heartstrings of everyone present.

Hearing this, everyone understood in their hearts, secretly muttering:

That's right, why would you, a monster, understand someone who passed away long ago so well, and even recognize Fang Cheng at a glance?

There must be some unspeakable trickery in this.

"Ha!"

Old Master Chen Hongye laughed out of extreme anger, as if he had heard some incredible joke, though his laughter was somewhat dry and harsh.

"This is what you call evidence? It is simply the nonsense of an ignorant child!"

He took a heavy breath and shook his head contemptuously:

"There are too many people in this world who knew Fang Shijie, and even more who know the news of his death."

"According to your twisted logic, wouldn't every single one of them be the murderer?"

Facing this mockery, Fang Cheng's expression remained as calm as still water.

He stopped his steps, gazing at Old Master Chen Hongye from afar across a distance of dozens of meters.

A trace of imperceptible light flashed within those deep eyes.

"When all the coincidences in an incident point to the same person, it is no longer a coincidence, but a clue."

Fang Cheng said slowly, his voice turning cold:

"I don't need to prove that you are the murderer; I just need you to prove yourself… that you are innocent."

"If you don't explain clearly what happened back then, how can you expect me to believe you?"

As the words fell, the sneer on Old Master Chen Hongye's face instantly froze.

He was no fool.

On the contrary, an old monster who could live for over a hundred years already had a mind as cunning as a fox.

He stared fixedly at Fang Cheng's placid face, and in a flash of lightning, finally caught on.

"...I see."

The crimson light in Old Master Chen Hongye's eyes slightly converged, replaced by a gloomy coldness after being played for a fool.

He said word by word:

"Good brat… You were fishing for my words?"

The corners of Fang Cheng's mouth rose slightly, forming an equally contemptuous arc, his smile cold and dangerous.

"You can choose not to speak."

Then he raised his right fist, which was stained with blood.

Wisps of white Qi were steaming up from the bloodstains on his knuckles, as if a volcano ready to erupt at any moment was hidden inside his fist.

"However, I must remind you that for that punch just now, I only used seventy percent of my strength."

Fang Cheng's gaze fell upon the charred depression on Old Master Chen Hongye's chest, his tone as flat as if discussing the weather.

"I am not too sure if, with the next punch, this proud body of yours will still be able to… stand and speak like this."

These words were spoken with peerless dominance and a compelling Aura.

But no one present would think he was just bragging.

After all, Old Master Chen Hongye's miserable appearance and the conservatory that had already been reduced to ruins were the most direct and shocking proofs.

Fang Cheng stood tall in place with an air of arrogance, yet calmly calculating in his heart.

Seventy percent strength wasn't exactly deceiving the opponent either.

If he unleashed the Demon Back at the same time as wielding the Qilin Arm, his punching strength could still increase by 100% on top of the base value.

However, that required a prerequisite.

The opponent would still have to stand blankly in place like before, waiting for him to finish charging up, and then take a solid punch square on.

Through that punch just now, Fang Cheng had roughly figured out the defense limit of Old Master Chen Hongye's body which possessed solidified abilities.

If the old monster in front of him wanted to challenge it once more and take his fully erupted Demon Back Qilin Fist head-on.

The outcome would definitely not be as simple as a severe injury.

Even if he couldn't smash him into powder with a single punch, he could punch a chilling blood hole right through his body!

Old Master Chen Hongye's pupils constricted slightly, obviously deterred by Fang Cheng's words, but he still stubbornly questioned:

"That move just now, isn't that your ultimate trump card?"

"Do you take me for some wet-behind-the-ears greenhorn who is easy to fool?"

"With this level of attack, even most S-rank Ability Users would find it difficult to execute a second time in a short period."

"Ultimate move?"

Fang Cheng's tone carried a hint of playfulness:

"No, that was just my ordinary punch."

Meeting Old Master Chen Hongye's hesitant and uncertain gaze, he said unhurriedly:

"Next, you will have the opportunity to truly witness my sure-kill serious punch."

Hearing this, Old Master Chen Hongye involuntarily gasped a breath of cold air.

Once again scanning Fang Cheng up and down with an inspecting gaze, as if trying to completely see through this greenhorn before him.

"Are you truly a Physical Body Enhancer? Not a mental Ability User?"

"Who told you that I am a mental Ability User?"

Fang Cheng asked indifferently in return.

Old Master Chen Hongye was instantly rendered speechless.

He couldn't possibly say that he used wicked arts to eavesdrop on news last night and ended up being misled, right?

Wouldn't that be slapping his own face?

Fang Cheng stared sharply at Old Master Chen Hongye.

He knew very well in his heart that if he wanted a scheming old fellow like this to obey.

The most effective means was to display absolute strength capable of completely crushing him.

Right now, using the remaining might of that punch to deter the opponent and force him to spill the secrets regarding his father from back then was undoubtedly the best choice.

However, Old Master Chen Hongye was an old monster who had lived for over a hundred years after all. After a brief shock, a bit of composure actually returned to his eyes.

"Hehe…"

He suddenly let out a cold laugh, like an old crow croaking in the cold night.

"Young people, they just love to talk big with empty words."

"If it weren't for this old man being awakened early and failing to fully complete the Fusion of the Chen family's Bloodline ability, it wouldn't be so easy for you to break my defense with mere fists."

"Besides, even if you execute your ultimate move and destroy this body of mine, so what?"

Old Master Chen Hongye forced himself to straighten his broken body, seeming to want to maintain his remaining dignity.

"The Physical Body is merely a boat crossing the world; if one is destroyed, this old man can at worst wait a few years, a few decades, and simply find another one amidst the sea of humanity."

"To me, what is lost… is merely a little time."

"But what about you, Fang Shijie's son? You better think this through clearly."

He paused, shifting the topic, and within those crimson eyes flashed a cunning light of insight into human hearts.

"If you punch and shatter my soul condensed within this Physical Body today, this old man can easily vanish into formlessness and seek another place elsewhere."

"From then on, the world is vast and wide, and you will never dream of finding even a trace of me again."

He bared his mouth, revealing a grim smile, and said faintly:

"And the secret regarding your father's death… will also sink to the bottom of the sea forever, never to see the light of day again!"

The implication was that he completely didn't care about the survival of this body, but instead used the so-called "truth" as an amulet to checkmate Fang Cheng.

After hearing this, Fang Cheng fell silent for several seconds.

Then he nodded, seemingly not surprised by this answer.

"Since you don't care about this Physical Body, then I will give you a better choice."

Fang Cheng reined in his killing intent, proposing conditions in a calm tone:

"As long as you tell the complete truth about my father's accident back then, I can voluntarily give up this mission and let you leave."

"You can completely continue to use this body to do whatever you want; no matter what happens next, the two of us will not interfere with each other."

As soon as these words were spoken, a trace of obvious temptation flashed in Old Master Chen Hongye's crimson eyes, as if he were weighing the pros and cons.

Hearing this, Second Young Master Chen Xuan standing not far away changed expression instantly, no longer caring about fear, and hurriedly shouted out:

"Mr. Bai, don't believe this monster's ghost talk, he is stalling for time, we…"

"How noisy!"

Before he finished speaking, Old Master Chen Hongye fiercely glared over.

"When elders are speaking, how is there any place for a Junior to interrupt!"

As soon as the words fell, Second Young Master Chen Xuan only felt an invisible giant force suddenly slam into his chest, a sweet taste rising in his throat.

He was actually shaken so violently by this stern shout that his blood surged, unable to speak a single word more.

For a time, the scene fell into dead silence once again.

Pan Wendi and Bailing looked somewhat nervously at Fang Cheng's back.

Lin Chuqiao furrowed her delicate brows slightly, seemingly calmly analyzing the current situation.

Fang Cheng's gaze never left Old Master Chen Hongye.

Beneath his calm eyes were high-speed running thoughts.

How powerful his punch just now was, he knew very well in his heart.

With the shocking and terrifying wound on Old Master Chen Hongye's chest, if it were any normal living person, even an S-rank Ability User, they would have long been a cold corpse by now.

However, the opponent only looked miserable in appearance, not only able to stand here and converse with him, but even having the surplus strength to launch attacks and injure people from afar.

Behind this, there was naturally the special nature of Old Master Chen Hongye's Bloodline ability.

His Physical Body's defensive power was already extremely strong, and ordinary attacks found it hard to break the defense.

Besides that, those eerie red incantations attached to his body surface were also playing a peculiar role.

Fang Cheng could perceive that they were endlessly repairing Old Master Chen Hongye's injuries.

Although the speed was slow, it was exceptionally effective.

And most crucially, Fang Cheng knew clearly that the opponent was not a living person at all, but merely a lonely ghost possessing a shell.

Even if he went all out to completely destroy this shell, it probably wouldn't have any substantive effect.

Just as Old Master Chen Hongye himself said, he could well abandon this body, find another container anew, and vanish from the public eye forever.

By that time, he would completely lose this once-in-a-lifetime clue.

Moreover, from the very beginning, Fang Cheng did not harbor the purpose of having to grind the opponent to ashes.

His primary goal in intervening in the Chen family incident was always to pry the intelligence he wanted out of this old monster's mouth.

Whether it was the whereabouts of his uncle, or the truth about his father's death accidentally learned just now.

It was precisely based on these considerations that Fang Cheng suppressed his killing intent and proactively proposed the conditions for peace talks.

The two remained silent for a moment, and the originally tense atmosphere slightly eased.

Seeming to perceive the fading of the killing intent on Fang Cheng's body, Old Master Chen Hongye's tense body also relaxed slightly.

After weighing the pros and cons in his heart, he seemed to have figured it out, and then cleared his throat and spoke:

"Speaking of which, this old man is not without an ultimate trump card."

Old Master Chen Hongye coldly snorted through his nostrils, trying to retrieve a bit of face for his previous wretchedness.

"Just now it was merely seeing that you were young and vigorous, and letting you have a move. If I truly unleashed all my means, who would win and who would lose remains unknown!"

Immediately following that, he shifted the topic again, putting on a magnanimous appearance:

"However, seeing that your filial piety is commendable, this old man sees no need to bicker with a Junior like you."

Saying this, he shook his head and sighed helplessly:

"Very well, since you are so persistent in your father's matter, we can be considered friends who got acquainted through a fight. Whatever you want to know, as long as this old man is clear about it, I can tell it to you."

Old Master Chen Hongye said with affected airs, his words carrying a hint of magnanimity, as if he were not compromising, but bestowing a "favor" upon a Junior.

Second Young Master Chen Xuan listened anxiously on the side, but didn't dare to interrupt, only stomping his feet secretly.

Lin Chuqiao and the others cast their gazes toward Fang Cheng, awaiting his decision.

Fang Cheng ignored the other party's boasting and cut straight to the main point:

"What is your relationship with my father? Why do you know him so well?"

"Speaking of which, your father and I can be considered to have a transgenerational friendship."

Old Master Chen Hongye's tone instantly turned gentle, and a trace of benevolent smile even squeezed onto his face.

As if the fiendish ghost that wanted to devour people just now was merely everyone's hallucination.

"Back in the day, I deeply appreciated that young man Fang Shijie: intellectually gifted, extraordinarily courageous, a rare and fine talent."

"Sigh, what a pity, Heaven is envious of great talents…"

A benevolent and sorrowful expression appeared on his face as he sighed a long sigh of regret:

"If Shijie were still alive and saw how promising his son has become today, he would surely be very gratified."

After Old Master Chen Hongye feigned emotion for a while, he immediately shifted the topic:

"Right, may I ask for the honored name of this young friend?"

"We aren't that familiar yet."

Fang Cheng replied with an indifferent tone: "Besides, before asking someone else's name, shouldn't you introduce yourself first?"

Old Master Chen Hongye dryly chuckled, not getting angry at all, but instead extending an olive branch:

"Hehe, with your strength, young friend, you are actually fully qualified to join our organization and become a core member. By then, we will be one family…"

Fang Cheng raised his eyebrows slightly, keenly grasping the keyword.

"What organization?"

Old Master Chen Hongye's smile became meaningful:

"You don't know? It's the organization your father once joined."

He paused deliberately, spitting out three words one by one:

"Utopia."