Chapter 112: Are You Really Chen Mu?
Chapter 112: Are You Really Chen Mu?
Seven Silver Corpses, Annihilated with a Single Strike!
Although there were still thirteen Silver Corpses remaining, it was no longer a matter of numbers. The might displayed by that single strike had already revealed that these mere Silver Corpses posed no threat to Chen Mu.
Xu Hongyu was stunned.
Xiao He also paused in surprise.
Then, as they gazed at Chen Mu's back, a bright light flashed in their eyes... It was undoubtedly the Whistling Wind Intent. That meant the person by the Heavenly Righteous Heart Bridge was indeed Chen Mu!
Xiao He, finally confirming this fact, had no time to ponder how Chen Mu had comprehended the Whistling Wind Intent. Instead, she was more shocked by the sheer power and control displayed in his strike, which went beyond just the intent. Its terrifying force and exquisite precision had reached an indescribable level, even surpassing Xu Hongyu, who had achieved Sinew Transformation Perfection.
Such a strike could not have been executed by someone who had only achieved Sinew Art Minor Success, even with the mastery of an intent.
Chen Mu... His Body Tempering Realm was not limited to Sinew Art Minor Success. It was likely that he had reached at least the Great Success stage, or perhaps even the Perfection stage, just like Xu Hongyu.
How did he do it?
Xiao He's heart was filled with awe.
In comparison, Xu Hongyu was still in disbelief. The strike that had just appeared was so different from her initial impression of Chen Mu that for a moment, she almost felt like it was an illusion.
Could that really be Chen Mu?
From the first time she met Chen Mu, when he had not yet practiced the Body Tempering Art, her method of measuring his physique and constitution might not have been entirely accurate, but it was unlikely to be too far off. Chen Mu's constitution should not have been of a special type. Later, when Chen Mu managed to push the Skin Hardening Technique to its limit, she was surprised by her initial judgment.
When Chen Mu trained his muscles to the extreme and developed a Cross-Training Body, it further increased her doubts, but she kept these thoughts to herself. After all, everyone in this world had their unique qualities, and perhaps Chen Mu truly had a special constitution that she had not noticed.
But now...
The power of that strike was so concentrated, so terrifying, and so exaggerated... In her mind, even someone who had achieved Sinew Transformation Perfection would struggle to execute such a strike, one that was comparable to a Bone Forging Realm practitioner.
Moreover, the profoundness with which the strike was executed was undoubtedly the might of an intent.
Only such a formidable strike could have easily annihilated seven Silver Corpses in the blink of an eye.
In a daze...
Xu Hongyu felt that Chen Mu's figure overlapped with another—her father, father, Xu Yichuan. Years ago, in Yu City, he had single-handedly caused the third-generation descendants of all the inner city families to pale in comparison.
"Escape?"
Amidst the rustling of leaves, Chen Mu finally spoke, his tone calm as he stared at the withered figure beneath the ancient tree. "When did you start thinking that I needed to flee?"
The withered figure's face stiffened.
His sunken eyes, like hooks, fixed on Chen Mu, as if trying to see through him, inside and out.
"You're not a Green Robe Guard from the Demon Slayer Bureau... Who are you?" he rasped, his voice revealing an unprecedented intensity.
A Cross-Training Body?
No! No!
The person before them was a Bone Forging Realm practitioner who had also mastered the Whistling Wind Intent from the Eight Trigrams!
A Green Robe Guard from the Demon Slayer Bureau?
It was a joke!
With such a realm and strength, they would at least be a Deputy Magistrate in the Demon Slayer Bureau, and most likely a Chief Magistrate!
In the entire Yu Prefecture, there were not many who could make him wary, and Chen Mu was undoubtedly one of them.
"I'm just a swordsman, a Green Robe Swordsman from the Demon Slayer Bureau," Chen Mu said, holding his sword and stepping forward.
Swoosh!
Another strike was unleashed.
The nearest Silver Corpse didn't even have time to react before it froze in place. A black line appeared on its forehead and spread downward, splitting its entire body in two.
"Stop!"
The withered figure spoke in a deep voice, holding up the baby's head. The nearby Silver Corpses backed away in a circle.
He stared at Chen Mu intently. "Since you have such strength, I must have been mistaken. You three can go. Don't kill my Silver Corpses anymore, or you won't be able to save them," he said, referring to the two women.
As his words fell...
Another heavy figure emerged from the ancient trees behind him, standing guard by his side. Its skin had a faint golden hue, and although it wasn't particularly tall, it was undoubtedly another Golden Corpse!
The withered figure, who had summoned two Golden Corpses, did not command them to attack. Instead, he watched Chen Mu with a composed demeanor.
A person like Chen Mu was beyond his control.
Even with the two Golden Corpses left by his master, he could only ensure his own safety and not pose any threat to Chen Mu. The Silver Corpses he controlled were hard-earned, and losing one meant one less.
If it weren't for the presence of Xu Hongyu and Xiao He, he wouldn't even have the means to threaten Chen Mu. But now, with the lives of two women at stake, he had some leverage to face Chen Mu directly, after all, even though Chen Mu was strong, his two Golden Corpses were not weak either.
However.
Upon hearing the threat from the withered shadow, Chen Mu sighed.
"You still don't understand."
As his words fell, he took a step forward, walking towards the withered shadow.
A flash of coldness flickered in the withered shadow's eyes, and the baby's head it held was slightly raised. The Golden Corpse, towering at over two meters tall with a robust body like a small mountain, blocked Chen Mu's path.
But Chen Mu merely shook his head.
Then.
He leaped into the air and slashed his sword.
The Golden Corpse moved swiftly, not attacking Chen Mu but instead raising its two thick arms with a faint golden sheen to block its neck and head, protecting its vital areas.
However, Chen Mu's expression remained unchanged. In the depths of his eyes, amidst the darkness, a gentle breeze appeared, clinging to the edge of the fine iron sword. In an instant, amidst the myriad winds, a flash of lightning illuminated his eyes, causing a bolt of thunder to shine upon the entire blade, and within the intertwined breeze, a bolt of lightning suddenly spread across the sword's edge.
One slash, Thunderous Gales!
Hss!
The winds and thunder intertwined, and in the blink of an eye, the sword slashed through.
Chen Mu's figure swiftly passed by the Golden Corpse, appearing directly behind it, and continued towards the withered shadow.
Behind him.
The Golden Corpse stood frozen, its two arms raised to block its neck now marked with a black line. The line extended backward, crossing the neck, and then the entire head, along with the two arms, slowly slid along the black line, detaching from the body.
Thud, thud, thud.
The massive head and two severed arms fell to the ground, emitting dull thuds, their edges clean and emitting a faint golden glow, as if they were not human remains but statues crafted from gold and iron.
The headless Golden Corpse stood erect, not falling but also not moving, while Chen Mu's figure continued to stride forward calmly.
Silence enveloped the area.
Whether it was Xiao He or Xu Hongyu, they were both frozen in place, watching Chen Mu's figure as if it were a sculpture.
In the forest, only Chen Mu's footsteps accompanied his calm stride.
Initially, he thought Xu Hongyu's judgment was sound. In the deep mountains and dense forest, during the quiet night, there was no need to entangle with unknown enemies. They didn't know their numbers, origins, or if there were other ambushes.
Until twenty Silver Corpses appeared, including a Golden Corpse, forcing him to take action to break free. That was the end of it... He had always been decisive in his actions.
The Golden Corpse was strong.
According to the records, even ordinary Bone Tempering cultivators at the peak of the Small Accomplishment stage might not be able to defeat it, and only those at the Great Accomplishment stage could rival it.
But that was the extent of its power.
Corpse puppets couldn't learn techniques, forms, or intents. Despite their robust physiques comparable to Bone Tempering cultivators, in Chen Mu's eyes, they were merely passive targets, the only difference being whether he could penetrate their defenses.
And the answer was obvious. Perhaps they could block a single strike from his Whistling Wind Intent, but they couldn't withstand this move, 'Thunderous Gales', which combined the Whistling Wind and Thunderbolt Intents.
This was the most powerful sword technique he had created so far, and he had always wanted to test its power on a suitable target. Today, he finally got his wish, but even a Golden Corpse with a physique comparable to a Bone Tempering cultivator couldn't withstand this strike.
"Thunderbolt?"
The withered shadow's sunken eyes almost bulged out of their sockets, and its withered face revealed an expression as if it had seen a ghost.
Whistling Wind! Thunderbolt!
The person before him, barely thirty years old, had not only reached this level in Body Tempering, but also mastered two of the Eight Trigrams Intents. What kind of monster was he?
Not just in Yu Prefecture, but even in the entire Yuzhou, he would be considered a true prodigy, worthy of being listed as an Inner Disciple of the Seven Mysteries Sect.
Cold sweat instantly soaked his back as he watched Chen Mu approach step by step. Reacting swiftly, he turned and fled into the ancient woods behind him without any hesitation.
In the midst of his terror.
He ran frantically into the night, covering several hundred zhang.
Then his pace slowed, and he began to pant... Corpse refiners used their vital energy to refine and control corpses, and their own energy was naturally weak.
In a 619 book, there was no mistake!
"Those Silver Corpses are attacking the two women, and he has to go and save them. I still have a Golden Corpse, and he can't directly bypass it to come after me. As long as I can delay him for a moment, I can escape. I know these mountains well, and it's night, so he'll have a hard time finding me."
The withered shadow panted heavily but dared not stop, forcing itself to continue forward, its thoughts becoming increasingly chaotic.
He slowly came to a stop, clutching his chest as it heaved violently, and turned to look back.
The area behind him was pitch black, with no sign of anyone.
He let out a slight sigh of relief and turned back around, only to freeze in place.
Before him, less than three feet away, a face appeared between the ancient trees, illuminated by the faint moonlight. The face was expressionless, yet it seemed to be staring straight at him, and to his surprise, it was Chen Mu.
"You mentioned your master earlier, which suggests that you are indeed a remnant of the Heavenly Corpse Sect," Chen Mu said slowly. "How many of you are there, and who else is above you, aside from your master?"
The withered figure's face, which resembled dry tree bark, twitched slightly, and a hint of fear flashed in his sunken eyes, as if he had recalled something terrifying.
"I..."
He looked at Chen Mu, struggling to squeeze out a word, before black, polluted blood suddenly flowed from his mouth.
His body went limp and collapsed to the ground, his vitality rapidly dissipating.
Chen Mu's figure flashed forward, and he bent down to examine the body, his brow furrowed.
The man was dead, apparently having used some kind of poison to take his own life.
It was astonishing that someone who could control two Golden Corpses and twenty Silver Corpses, and could have been a dominant figure in a small region, would reveal fear in his eyes after just two questions and kill himself so cleanly. Chen Mu wondered what kind of terrifying person his master must be.
However, considering the Heavenly Corpse Sect's cruel and ruthless methods, it was somewhat understandable.
After a brief moment of contemplation, Chen Mu reached out and picked up the withered figure's corpse. He swiftly navigated through the dense forest and soon returned to the clearing, where he threw the body among the Golden and Silver Corpse Puppets.
"He's dead, took his own life, and didn't reveal anything," Chen Mu said, shaking his head as he looked at Xu Hongyu and Xiao He.
The atmosphere was silent, with Xu Hongyu and Xiao He staring at him with wide eyes, saying nothing.
Chen Mu noticed their gaze and, with a sigh, sheathed his Fine Iron Sword and approached Xiao He.
"It seems I have no choice but to silence you, now that you've discovered my secret."
With a swift swing of his sword, a tree branch above Xiao He's head was cut off.
Xiao He let out a startled cry and retreated two steps, her eyes wide with fear.
Chen Mu chuckled and put away his sword. Xiao He hid behind Xu Hongyu, still watching Chen Mu with unblinking eyes, yet remaining silent.
Chen Mu turned to Xu Hongyu, who was also looking at him, her eyes filled with a mixture of emotions - confusion, shock, and perhaps something else. The silence between them lasted for a while before Xu Hongyu finally spoke up in a low voice, "He Mingxuan... was it you who killed him?"
Chen Mu's expression was calm. "Yes."
Perhaps his rapid progress in strength was surprising, but by now, he was more than capable of taking care of himself. In front of Xu Hongyu and Xiao He, he saw no need to hide anything.
"And Yu Yao...?" Xu Hongyu asked.
"I saved her," Chen Mu replied.
Xu Hongyu gazed at Chen Mu, murmuring, "And the danger Xiao He faced earlier, you were the one who helped her, no wonder these events seemed unrelated at first, but now it all makes sense... you were the one behind it all."
Chen Mu carefully examined Xu Hongyu before turning to leave. "This isn't a suitable place to talk. Let's leave the mountain as soon as possible tonight. This person is likely a remnant of the Heavenly Corpse Sect, and there might be others."
Xu Hongyu nodded slightly. "Okay."
Chen Mu inspected the withered figure's corpse but found nothing except for the strange, baby-headed object, which seemed to be crafted from some unknown material and was likely used to control the Corpse Puppets. He decided to keep it.
Throughout the process, Xu Hongyu remained silent, lost in thought, while Xiao He stayed by her side, occasionally glancing at Chen Mu. It wasn't until Chen Mu finished and began to walk away that Xiao He finally spoke up in a soft voice, "You... are you really Chen Mu?"
"Probably," Chen Mu replied.
"You won't really silence us, will you?"
"I'll think about it."
(End of Chapter)
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