Chapter 137: Vital Force Projection, Overwhelming Blood Shifting

Chapter 137: Vital Force Projection, Overwhelming Blood Shifting

Outside the camp tent, cold winds whispered through rustling branches, their shadows dancing in firelight across the canvas. Inside, flickering illumination bathed the space as Su Chen and Hong Hai stood barely three meters apart, locked in a tense stare.

"Who dares intrude?" Hong Hai's voice cut through the air, his expression calm yet chilling. Any ordinary person would have crumbled under his ferocious aura.

Unfazed, Su Chen's lips curled into a smirk. "You're poisoned."

"Hmph. Even poisoned, I have more than enough strength to kill you!" Hong Hai made no effort to hide his arrogance. Yet his refusal to move seemed oddly defensive, betraying his bravado.

A quiet chuckle escaped Su Chen before his aura suddenly shifted. Like a thunderclap, he surged forward in a blur of motion.

"Reckless fool!"

Seeing the attack, Hong Hai's face hardened. Remaining rooted like a mountain, he raised his palm, condensing droplets of mystic water that shimmered eerily in the dim light. As Su Chen's fist descended, Hong Hai's hand snapped upward, unleashing a gale-force counter.

Crack!

Fist met palm in an explosive collision, the sound reverberating like a thunderclap before fading. Both fighters' expressions darkened slightly—Hong Hai had poured nearly ninety percent of his current strength into that strike, yet Su Chen stood untouched, his eyes gleaming with surprise.

"Vital Force Projection!" Su Chen identified the technique unique to Blood Shifting cultivators. He hadn't expected Hong Hai to still possess such power despite his injuries. "But you're nearing your limit, aren't you?"

Without hesitation, Su Chen charged again, determined to test Hong Hai's endurance. The cultivator's composure shattered—his figure erupted skyward like a hunting hawk, feet propelling him forward as torrents of Vital Force swirled around his arms.

"Draw Cut Art!" Su Chen roared, his Steel Saber singing from its sheath in a blazing arc. The blade carved a crescent of light toward Hong Hai, who countered by sheathing his arms in a transparent Vital Force armor.

Clang!

The steel blade struck the energy armor, sending metallic resonance shivering through both combatants. Shockwaves rippled outward, their faces stinging from the force.

"What kind of Vital Force is this?!" Hong Hai gasped as strange energies flooded his system—waves of water, searing fire, metallic sharpness, and earthen suppression. "Has he cultivated five elemental arts simultaneously?"

This wasn't his immediate concern—the real shock was surviving Su Chen's onslaught at all. How had this man reached the Bone Tempering realm without perishing in Vital Force conflicts?

"Feeling queasy?" Su Chen's sudden question caught him off guard.

"What nonsense—" Hong Hai began, but his stomach lurched. Before he could stop it, an undignified belch erupted, carrying the scent of half-digested food.

"You—!" he snarled, realizing Su Chen had orchestrated this humiliation. Before he could retaliate, another wave hit his gut. A thunderous flatulence escaped, leaving him crimson-faced. A Blood Shifting master reduced to such indignity!

"Little brat! You only know underhanded tricks?" Hong Hai roared, his Vital Force dimming imperceptibly. "Then die by this—Great River Palm!"

His technique erupted in tidal waves of energy, but Su Chen's Steel Saber met it with a deafening scream as Vital Forces clashed. The tent trembled from the storm of power.

Just as Hong Hai unleashed his final strike, Su Chen whispered, "Feeling death yet?" Hong Hai barely registered the words before a hidden blade slashed from Su Chen's sleeve—Sleeve Hidden Blade!

The Crane Feather Saber cleaved through flesh and bone. Hong Hai's body split apart, Vital Energy dissipating like smoke.

Outside, Qiao Qiliang stood torn between dread and awe. Had Su Chen truly slain a Blood Shifting cultivator? The implications sent his mind reeling—Bone Tempering overcoming Blood Shifting was supposed to be fantasy, yet here it was.

"Stop gawking! Help move the chests!" Su Chen's voice broke his trance. Qiao rushed in, finding Hong Hai's bisected corpse exactly as described. The reality of Su Chen's power settled heavily upon him.

He shifted his gaze to Su Chen. Compared to Hong Hai, Su Chen remained remarkably unscathed—aside from slightly disheveled sleeves, not a drop of blood stained his clothes. He still carried himself like a refined nobleman.

“Truly terrifying!” Qiao Qiliang muttered.

“What did you say?” Su Chen asked, puzzled.

“Nothing.”

“Stop standing there. Come help carry the crates,” Su Chen urged.

…

“Yun Shu, I’ve bad news—the Pill Formula is fake!”

On the outskirts of the Funiu Mountains, another group had set up camp. Unlike the Hong Clan, however, they were preparing to leave the forest.

Hearing this, Luo Yun’s eyes widened in fury. He leapt up, exclaiming, “Fake? How could it possibly be fake?”

He struggled to believe it. Just as Qiao Qiliang had suspected, Hong Hai had risked his life to protect the Vital Energy Pill, sacrificing most of his team. Now it turned out the entire effort had been for a counterfeit? Was this some cruel joke—testing whether their group had too many members to begin with?

“I knew the Hong Clan scoundrels wouldn’t hand over the Vital Energy Pill so easily! Damn it, there’s definitely a trap!” a Luo Clan member spat bitterly.

Luo Yun’s expression darkened. At least he’d come prepared—he’d brought a clan alchemist to verify the formula. Without him, they might have returned home with the counterfeit, rendering their efforts useless.

He scanned the camp, his voice grim. “Everyone, rise! We’re turning back immediately. The Hong Clan hasn’t yet left the Funiu Mountains. We’ll ambush them tonight and seize the true Pill Formula!”

“Yes!”

Luo Yun selected four elite warriors to accompany him ahead, leaving markers for the others to follow. Moving swiftly through the dark, silent woods, they reached a clearing within half a candle mark, spotting faint light flickering between the trees.

“It’s ahead!” Luo Yun’s face lit up. He lowered his voice, took a long stride forward, and quickened his pace.

Soon, the silhouettes of three camp tents came into view. But as they drew closer, something felt off. One tent had been destroyed, another left in disarray.

Luo Yun hesitated briefly before continuing alone. He hadn’t gone far when he spotted a corpse inside the first tent.

“Something’s wrong!”

His face paled. He dashed forward, flung open the tent flap, and froze—Hong Clan members lay dead inside. At the second tent, he recoiled in shock.

“It’s Hong Hai’s body!”

The gruesome sight made Luo Yun’s heart pound. Hong Hai was dead—killed by whom?

“Wait,” he murmured, stepping forward to search the corpse. Finding nothing, his expression soured. The Pill Formula wasn’t on Hong Hai. Had someone already taken it?

“Yun Shu,” one of his men called, approaching with the others. “All the Hong Clan members are dead, but we couldn’t find Hong Shan’s body.”

They took one look at Hong Hai’s corpse and gasped, but quickly recovered.

“Let’s go,” Luo Yun ordered. “We’ll find Hong Shan. The Pill Formula might be on him.”

…

Deep in the forest, the clash of blades and staves echoed violently, turning the woods into a battlefield of chaos.

“You cowardly dogs! Dare you face me one-on-one?” Hong Shan roared, his eyes blazing. Sweating heavily, he gripped his staff, surrounded by Pure Land Sect members who circled him like predators, their killing intent palpable.

He Quan scoffed coldly, “You’re a fool if you think we’re that stupid. Hong Shan, today you die!”

“Forget the talk!” a burly man bellowed. “Together—we avenge our brothers!” He lunged forward, feinted an attack, then retreated, baiting Hong Shan.

Hong Shan prepared to strike but saw the man’s fake assault, angering him further. With a furious roar, he swung his iron staff sideways, the weapon slicing through the air with brutal force. But the large man dodged effortlessly, avoiding direct combat.

At once, the others swarmed him, exploiting the opening. Ding Yi fired hidden blades to distract him. Hong Shan’s strikes missed, his rage mounting.

He’d lost count of how many times they’d mocked him—provoking him with feints, then striking when he retaliated. Each cycle drained his strength while they remained unscathed. Worse, their underhanded tactics left fresh wounds on his body.

Finally, Hong Shan fixed his bloodshot eyes on He Quan. It was that man who’d repeatedly wounded him and taunted him the most. Now, he’d make him pay.

“Haaaa!”

With a thunderous cry, Hong Shan’s aura surged. He charged forward like a living mountain, startling He Quan, who paled before regaining his composure.

“Now!”

The others, though rattled, quickly attacked to disrupt him. But to their shock, Hong Shan ignored their blows entirely, focusing solely on He Quan as if determined to kill him at the cost of his own life.

He Quan panicked, retreating desperately. The tight circle fractured, creating an opening. Hong Shan seized it, bursting through the encirclement with lightning speed.

“He’s escaping!” a short man cried, but it was too late.

“After him!” He Quan snarled, his face twisting with fury.

“Hold!” Ding Yi intervened, shaking his head. “Don’t chase a desperate foe.”

“But Deputy Sect Leader,” the large man argued, “Hong Shan’s already exhausted! Give us time, and we’ll kill him. Why hold back?”

The others glared, their frustration evident. Ding Yi sighed, “Don’t forget—there’s still Hong Hai. If they reunite, we’ll be the ones walking into a trap.”

Their silence confirmed his words. The earlier battle had made them forget Hong Hai. If the brothers met, their forces would be useless.

“What a waste!” He Quan clenched his teeth, his face a mask of bitterness.

“Shall we keep following the Hong Clan?” the short man asked.

Ding Yi nodded, “Yes—but not now. After they exit the Funiu Mountains, we’ll strike then. This time, we’ll leave no one alive!”

“Agreed!”

…

Whoosh!

Hong Shan dashed through the woods, his footsteps swift as wind.

“They didn’t follow?”

Glancing back, he found no trace of pursuit. Only when he confirmed the Pure Land Sect had truly abandoned the chase did he relax.

“Pity,” he muttered, disappointment on his face. He’d hoped to join forces with Hong Hai and crush the Pure Land Sect together.

“First, I’ll regroup with Hong Hai—then we’ll destroy the Pure Land Sect!”

As he quickened his pace, a sudden chill prickled his skin, spreading like fire through his body.

“What’s this?”

He turned sharply, eyes widening—just as a blade flashed before his eyes.

Swoosh!

Hong Shan barely dodged the strike, his heart nearly stopping, sweat pouring from his forehead.

Su Chen didn’t waver. Reversing his grip, he swung the saber sideways. Hong Shan kicked his iron staff upward, parrying the blow with both hands.

Clang!

The impact sent violent vibrations through both weapons, numbing Hong Shan’s arms. He grasped the staff with both hands, preparing to counter—only for a shadow to descend from above.

“Someone’s behind me!”

Hong Shan spun, blocking the strike just in time. A low shing echoed as his staff met the blade.

“Sleeve Hidden Blade!”

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end