Chapter 48: Majestic Appearance and Splendid Demeanor

The bushes rustled softly; Tu Shan Ge looked over vigilantly, only to see a bewitchingly beautiful, tall woman emerge from the thicket.

She dressed coolly and boldly, a red robe fresh as blood, like a seductive ghost in the deep mountains and old forests that sucks marrow from people.

"You are, that..."

Tu Shan Ge scrutinized her for a moment, then his expression suddenly turned gloomy: "You're Xiao Yu? Zhou Zhou Chuyu? Damn it! Is there something wrong with your brain?!"

He cursed loudly:

"I don't know where you got this cultivation from, but has a dog eaten your heart? You want to kill Young Master? If not for Young Master, you'd still be pleasing that old dog Yang Shan beneath his crotch! Wang Ba! Damned thieving woman!"

"Noisy."

Zhou Zhou Chuyu glanced sideways, took out a colorful Liu Xiao Ruler, which instantly left her hand and shot straight for the crown of Tu Shan Ge's head.

Tu Shan Ge pushed forward with both hands, his divine power manifesting as layers of rippling floating light, but it blocked only for a few instants before the Liu Xiao Ruler drove straight in, poised to smash his skull.

Seeing this, Chen Heng pointed with his finger; with a "Ping!" sound, his prenatal breath collided with the Liu Xiao Ruler, causing the talismanic weapon's spiritual light to scatter immediately as it was knocked flying.

"What rank of prenatal breath is this?"

Zhou Zhou Chuyu was surprised inwardly, quickly formed a hand seal to recall the Liu Xiao Ruler, and guarded the vital points of her body.

Since Yin Yin Gonghao transmitted the Qi Refining Technique to her, Zhou Zhou Chuyu had boasted that her prenatal breath was thick, steady, supreme, and pure; ordinary Qi Refining scholars could hardly withstand even one exchange with her, and even those with higher Qi Refining cultivation would find it difficult.

But Chen Heng merely flicked a strand of prenatal breath with his finger and easily knocked the Liu Xiao Ruler away; such a method was truly astonishing.

One must know that the Qi Refining Technique she comprehended could cultivate the "Strange Calamity Mother Essence" of ninth rank lower grade; what could surpass it by a notch was ninth rank middle grade, or was it... ninth rank upper grade?

"You have already commanded talismanic weapons so many times, yet prenatal breath still exists within your body?"

Zhou Zhou Chuyu retreated several more steps: "How did you detect me?"

The nature of "Strange Calamity Mother Essence" penetrates the netherworld, separates forms and scatters shadows, and enters or exits existence as trivial matters; although she had not yet cultivated true qi, the prenatal breath within her body had been tainted with a fraction of such properties, so concealing herself from others and shielding her qi mechanism was not difficult.

But the "Tai Shi Yuan Zhen" that Chen Heng studied and practiced was even one notch superior; it could capture 129,600 types of spiritual qi, serving as the general outline for all origins and myriad truths.

No matter how extraordinary "Strange Calamity Mother Essence" might be, how could it escape the domain of the One Origin Spiritual Qi?

As early as the moment Zhou Zhou Chuyu peered at him, Chen Heng had already perceived her qi mechanism; he merely noticed that this woman possessed a mid-grade flying talismanic weapon and worried that striking the snake without killing it would bring harm upon himself, so he had been pretending to be ignorant all along.

Today he deliberately spat blood to show weakness, and sure enough, Zhou Zhou Chuyu took the bait, no longer keeping her distance, and killed her way over.

Though his thoughts spun a hundred ways, Chen Heng's face bore only a slight smile, and he paid her no heed.

"You are still the same, wiping the moon and wearing the wind, transcendent beyond all things, looking as if you do not belong to the mortal world..."

Zhou Zhou Chuyu stared blankly at Chen Heng, as if wanting to use her gaze to gently caress his face inch by inch.

The forest light first shone; the man by the stream wore white robes like snow, unadorned and unpretentious.

Light and shadow between the tree gaps swayed across his clear and refined profile, casting beams of halo, like a magnificent, moving ink-wash landscape painting, wherein the figure possessed a majestic appearance and splendid demeanor, brilliant as clouds and radiant as sunset glow.

Zhou Zhou Chuyu remained silent for a long time, then suddenly let out a low laugh, her gaze complex: "You saved me, yet I must kill you... Won't you ask? Won't you ask why?"

"You plot against me, so I kill you; that is all, why waste more words!"

Chen Heng spoke no more.

He formed a hand seal and exhaled a great wind that sent withered leaves swirling into the sky and reversed the stream to rush toward the heavens; everywhere one looked were chaotic, broken debris, while Zhou Zhou Chuyu hurriedly took out a golden lamp, hung it above her head, released brilliant flowing splendor, and protected everything within three zhang around her.

That great wind lasted for dozens of breaths; when it finally subsided, countless thick fogs had arisen from somewhere around them, dim and heavy, so that without the illumination of the golden lamp, one could hardly see a few steps away.

"Daoist arts?"

Zhou Zhou Chuyu swept her hand, making the golden lamp's brilliance even brighter; she sneered and said:

"You have already undergone a battle of laws; how much prenatal breath can you have left now? I advise you to surrender early; perhaps I might still spare your life."

In an instant, a faint voice came from within the fog:

"Although not much remains, it is enough to kill you."

"Here!" Zhou Zhou Chuyu's eyes lit up, and she sent the Liu Xiao Ruler flying from her hand.

Light splendor swept wildly, dozens of large trees were directly blasted apart, yet there was no resistance, nor was there any flesh and blood flying about.

Buzz!

A wisp of emerald light shot over, striking the golden lamp atop Zhou Zhou Chuyu's head and causing it to sway; just as she intended to recall the Liu Xiao Ruler, the Thunder-Fire-Peal Primordial Pearl transformed into a rainbow arc and intercepted it mid-air.

With no other choice, Zhou Zhou Chuyu took out a white-hair great brush to block the attacking kill of the Green Bamboo Thorn.

At this moment, the golden lamp above her head had dimmed considerably, its firelight faint, and it seemed on the verge of being broken.

After fighting for another half-teacup's time, Zhou Zhou Chuyu grew increasingly alarmed; since she had cultivated the Qi Refining Technique transmitted by Yin Yin Gonghao, she had resolved to suppress opponents with surging prenatal breath and simply push straight through.

But Chen Heng's prenatal breath was not only thicker than hers, but his skill in battling laws was also superior.

The Green Bamboo Thorns darted through the air, like a dense and continuous giant net, several times breaking through the encirclement of the white-hair great brush and stabbing toward the vital point between her eyebrows.

Had there not been a golden lamp shining above her head, she would have been killed long ago.

And just as Zhou Zhou Chuyu gradually began to falter,

Deep within the white fog, Chen Heng also frowned secretly...

He cultivated "Tai Shi Yuan Zhen"; although this Qi Refining Technique was of extremely high rank, making his prenatal breath thick and vast, it was ultimately not limitless or inexhaustible.

After all, he was still only at the third layer of Qi Refining.

He had fought with Tong Gaolu, self-detonated a talismanic weapon sacrificed with his essence blood, and now faced Zhou Zhou Chuyu, an opponent whose prenatal breath was clearly also remarkable.

By now, he vaguely felt a sense of near exhaustion.

"I cannot drag this out with her any longer; I must take a risk and kill her quickly!"

As Chen Heng's thought turned, the Primordial Pearl and Green Bamboo Thorns, whose offensive had been like a tide and relentlessly pressing, suddenly slowed; perceiving this change, Zhou Zhou Chuyu, whose forehead was beaded with sweat, immediately rejoiced.

She fiercely lifted her prenatal breath and poured it into the Liu Xia Ruler; the jade ruler, flawless and bright throughout, emitted a bursting sound from thin air, and with just one collision, sent the Thunder-Fire-Peal Primordial Pearl flying far away, rolling dozens of zhang outward.

Afterwards, the Liu Xia Ruler swept out a circle of fierce rosy light; brushed once by this rosy light, the thick white fog immediately scattered considerably; brushed again, the scene before one's eyes gradually became clear.

Forcibly using a talismanic weapon to break Chen Heng's "Small Wind-Summoning and Fog-Creating Art" was also a significant loss for Zhou Zhou Chuyu.

She panted slightly for a moment, then forcibly rallied her spirit, only to see Chen Heng turning to flee beneath a large tree.

"Young Master, you have lost."

Zhou Zhou Chuyu sealed Chen Heng's path with a white-hair great brush, then immediately pursued. When the two were not far apart, Chen Heng suddenly halted his steps, transformed into a streak of Bai Jin Guang, and lunged forward. He fully urged his escape light, arriving before Zhou Zhou Chuyu in an instant.

Zhou Zhou Chuyu felt surprised in her heart, yet her hand movements did not cease.

Carrying a momentum as vast as waves, the Liuxiao Ruler fell heavily!

Chen Heng activated the One-Qi Mirror Universe, which turned into a faint halo of luminescence, forcibly holding it up. It paused slightly in the air, but in merely an instant, that ring of light was crushed to powder, and the Liuxiao Ruler continued its descent with unweakened force.

Buzz!

Although the Yiqi Yiqi Jingyu only delayed things for a few instants, it bought Chen Heng a few breaths to cast his technique.

He formed a seal with one hand, and a torrent of energy like a waterfall and waves rose from his body, condensing into a layer of semi-transparent armor. The moment the Liuxiao Ruler clashed with the Qi Armor Technique of the Ultimate Great Completion Realm, a roar like thunder splitting the mountain erupted, shaking people until they felt dizzy.

Seeing Chen Heng, regardless of the consequences, still trying to close in.

Though Zhou Chuyu did not know his intent, she urged her escape light and hurriedly retreated backward. At the same time, she infused fetal breath into the Liuxiao Ruler again, causing the magical power of this talisman artifact to surge once more.

Boom!

After a stalemate of three or five breaths, under Zhou Zhou Chuyu's life-risking assault, the Qi Armor Technique suddenly crackled and popped, cracking inch by inch like shattered porcelain. In the blink of an eye, only a thin layer remained, barely holding together.

At this moment, Chen Heng did not transform into light and retreat; his expression remained calm.

Crack—

That thin layer of Qi Armor was finally worn away completely. The Liuxiao Ruler fell without obstruction, and Chen Heng's head was directly blasted apart, sending dust and debris flying in all directions!

But the scene of flesh and blood flying everywhere that Zhou Zhou Chuyu had expected did not appear. In the original spot, only a broken small golden figure lay quietly in the deep pit.

"How could this be?"

Zhou Zhou Chuyu quickly turned her gaze, and saw that not far away, Chen Heng was standing leisurely, a smile on his face.

"This..."

In the instant their eyes met, immense fear swallowed Zhou Zhou Chuyu.

She felt as if she had been pulled into a boundless expanse of water and sky, where only a dark, deep abyss surrounded her, so black that one could not see a finger held before the eyes.

From the seabed, a massive fish-dragon leaped out, opening its mouth to swallow her whole!

Taking advantage of the moment when Zhou Zhou Chuyu's consciousness was stunned by the "Fish-Dragon Appears Instantly" technique, Chen Heng seized this excellent opportunity and arrived beside her.

By the time Zhou Zhou Chuyu struggled free from the entanglement of the illusion and opened her eyes, drenched in cold sweat, Chen Heng had spread his arms as if to embrace her.

"Do you understand? Only at this distance can true qi be driven into your body without fail."

Chen Heng's arm clamped her shoulders, his voice calm:

"Actually, I still have a small half-dao of 'Han Dou True Qi' remaining..."

Before the look of terror on Zhou Zhou Chuyu's face could even show.

Chen Heng spat out a beam of cold, dark blue-green true qi. With a "puff," he extinguished the golden lamp at the crown of her head, temporarily freezing the flow of her entire body's fetal breath.

Half a meter behind Chen Heng's head, the Liuxiao Ruler, which had been flying toward him, fell with a plop. Having lost its master's control, its spiritual light went out.

"Master..."

From afar, Tu Shan Ge called out in a Xiao Daze.

Chen Heng paid him no mind now.

He simply took out a string of Thunder-Flame Thunderbolts and smashed Zhou Zhou Chuyu's head to pieces! Red and white matter splattered all over the ground!

Although her fetal breath was not bad, her physical body was far inferior to Tong Gaolu's, unable to withstand the Thunder-Flame Thunderbolts without limb damage or loss of vital energy.

Under the power of this medium-grade talisman artifact, with just one collision, her soul scattered and her corpse rotted away.

"Master... did you kill her?"

Tu Shan Ge rubbed his face hard.

In the previous exchange, Chen Heng's One-Qi Mirror Universe had been crushed, and his Qi Armor Technique shattered. If not for the "Golden Figure Substitutes Form" disaster-transferring technique, he would have been killed outright by the Liuxiao Ruler.

Even though Tu Shan Ge held great confidence in Chen Heng, he felt the outcome of this duel was uncertain.

Yet in the blink of an eye, Chen Heng froze Zhou Zhou Chuyu's fetal breath flow with "Han Dou True Qi," then without hesitation, used ruthless hands to kill her on the spot.

"If I don't kill her, am I supposed to stay and fall in love?" Chen Heng said without turning back.

"I didn't mean that, it's just..."

Tu Shan Ge looked at the headless female corpse on the ground, hesitating to speak:

"I just feel that Master should have captured her and asked what grievance this woman had, and why she did such a thing." Tu Shan Ge scratched his head and said hesitantly:

"She was clearly saved by Master, yet she developed evil intentions. There must be some story behind this, right?"

"Why so much nonsense? When she attacked, it meant only one person could survive here. Besides..."

Chen Heng's body swayed, and he spat out a mouthful of blood; his vital energy instantly withered.

"I might not have been able to capture her alive anyway."

He gave a bitter smile.

And from afar.

Tu Shan Ge watched this scene, but instead of stepping forward to support him, he channeled his divine power, looked alertly around, and his expression became solemn.

"This time it is not a performance; he is indeed exhausted and has no more true qi..." Chen Heng said helplessly:

"Pull me up, and stop looking around everywhere."

Hearing these words, Tu Shan Ge hesitantly stepped forward, helped Chen Heng to a spot under a large tree, but remained on guard.

Chen Heng knew the fox's suspicion had been aroused, so he stopped persuading. He simply took out talisman money in his hand and began to absorb the spiritual energy within.

After two cups of tea's time, his vital energy gradually recovered, and his pale face slowly regained its ruddy color.

"Master, shall we go?"

Seeing Chen Heng stand up, Tu Shan Ge handed him the Universe bag and talisman artifacts from Zhou Zhou Chuyu's body, urging: "The treasures in the Tong Manor are still waiting. Although the Rong family doesn't dare to usurp them, it is better to get them sooner."

Chen Heng nodded.

But just as he was about to leave, he suddenly turned back and pointed with his finger.

The Yuan Bead released a bolt of thunder-fire, enveloping Zhou Zhou Chuyu's corpse.

This fire surged forth with fierce momentum and extreme heat; in but a short while, it incinerated the headless female corpse into black ash, which the wind blew away, scattering it into the void of the mountain stream.

"Master, why did you grind her bones and scatter her ashes?" Tu Shan Ge, stunned by the scene, asked, "Could it be you feared she might rise from the dead?"

Chen Heng not only did not deny it, but his expression grew even more serious.

"I indeed harbor such concerns, yet after being consumed by thunder-fire of utmost yang brilliance, even a ghost or specter would lack any vessel to manifest a form, would they not..."

Still not at ease, Chen Heng swept his spiritual perception across the area; seeing that no residual qi fluctuations remained in this stream-forest, he wrapped his embryonic breath around himself, transformed into a white radiance, and shot up into the sky.

Not long after his departure.

Yin Yin Gonghao slowly stepped out from the void; he gazed at that streak of white fleeing light, a flicker of intent stirring in his eyes, but as if mindful of something, he sighed and shook his head.

"Son of Chen Yushu, hm! I dare not provoke your father, so I'll let you off this time, but your days of suffering are yet to come!"

Yin Yin Gonghao sneered coldly: "You actually still aspire to seek the Great Dao? Among these Eight Sects and Six Clans, these Twelve Noble Families, which one would transmit cultivation methods to you?! And how could you possibly escape Chen Yushu's grasp? Just obediently accept your fate, you pitiful worm!"

He pointed a finger, and Zhou Zhou Chuyu's soul form coalesced upon the ground, muddled and confused; only after a long while did her eyes gradually regain their liveliness.

"Master..."

Zhou Zhou Chuyu realized she seemed transparent, her body so light it had no weight; a gust of wind blew, and she felt she might drift away at any moment: "I..."

"You have lost. Had Chen Yushu's son not yet reached the Purple Palace Realm and thus been unable to perceive your primordial spirit, you would never be standing here speaking with me."

Yin Yin Gonghao's face wore an expression of sorrow:

"Do you know? If you were a disciple of the Huzhao Sect, I would have the ghosts and gods of the Underworld escort you through reincarnation; if fate allowed in your next life, you could re-enter our sect gates to study the Great Dao. If you were a true disciple of the Huzhao Sect, I would refine a new body and flesh for you, contend with the Lord of Heaven for precedence, and grant you an extended great destiny! If you were a Dao Son, forget it... let us not speak of that!"

"But I am merely a mortal who obtained a fortuitous encounter."

Zhou Zhou Chuyu lowered her head; though she now lacked the shackles of a physical body, she still felt chilled to her very core:

"Master, how do you intend to deal with me?"

"I have already said it." Yin Yin Gonghao lifted his head and sighed.

"..."

As if recalling something.

Since the death of Daoist Daoist Yangshan, this was the first time terror had appeared on Zhou Zhou Chuyu's face.

"Master! Do you truly intend to degrade me into the form of a beast?!"

Yin Yin Gonghao merely waved his hand, and Zhou Zhou Chuyu immediately fell into unconsciousness; in her final moments, she heard only words filled with infinite regret.

"In truth, you ought to have addressed me as Grandmaster; had your mother not refused to cultivate the Dao back then, she should have been my foremost disciple..."

It is unknown how much time passed.

The sun had already set.

Zhou Zhou Chuyu was suddenly awakened by intense hunger and thirst; she stumbled to her feet, looking around in bewilderment.

It was still that same stream-forest, yet for some reason, the trees and thickets had suddenly grown vastly taller, as if increased by more than tenfold.

But the sudden hunger gnawing at her belly allowed no room for further thought; trembling, she made her way to the edge of the small mountain stream.

Yet when she lowered her head to drink, Zhou Zhou Chuyu was suddenly struck dumb.

On the mirror-clear surface of the water, only a faint brown puppy was clearly reflected; its body was emaciated, one ear was missing a chunk, and it appeared exceedingly filthy.

Is this... me?

Zhou Zhou Chuyu screamed in terror, but what emerged from her throat was only a hoarse beastly sound.

"Wang Wang!"

Within the True Dharma Realm.

Chen Heng detonated six or seven talismanic artifacts; flames leapt upward, rolling smoke and dust into mushroom-shaped clouds, while Tong Gaolu's physical shell gradually began to disintegrate.

"Hmm, this is..."

Grasping that primordial spirit, Chen Heng's brows and eyes instantly lit up with joy; he could not help but burst into loud laughter, as if a heavy stone had been lifted from his chest, filling his entire being with an unprecedented sense of relief.

"Excellent Dao technique! Excellent Dao technique!"

Chen Heng's mind swayed with emotion:

"For this method to fall into the hands of Tong Gaolu and Daoist Yangshan was truly like casting a bright pearl into darkness! If cultivated to great completion, within these Nine Provinces and Four Seas, there shall be a place for me, Chen Heng!"

Two-in-one.