Chapter 52: You Just Do What You Believe Is Right—The Rest Is Left to Me

Pang—!

Unlike the hurried, half-hearted shot before, this time, Chen Kong felt the searing agony in his body recede like a retreating tide.

In its place surged a power so overwhelming it defied description.

It was as if countless stars were boiling and roaring within him, igniting his very core.

This was no illusion.

His Stellar Energy Value had skyrocketed from a mere 150 to a staggering 300.

True, it still fell far short of Rongshan’s 900+—but for Chen Kong, it was more than enough.

Because the Black Gun — Night’s Dust — could amplify the power of its bullets based on the amount of Stellar Energy poured into it.

Previously, hesitation had held him back. He’d always held back, unwilling to commit fully.

And so, he’d never truly unlocked the gun’s potential.

But now?

Now, survival was all that mattered.

No more restraint.

No more fear.

With every fiber of his being, Chen Kong channeled his entire Stellar Energy into the gun.

And the result?

Even as Rongshan had sensed the attack and braced himself—his body encased in a blazing mantle of molten lava, ready to absorb the blow—the Void Pattern Bullet tore through his defenses like paper.

The lava cracked, split, and vanished in an instant.

As the bullet bore down on Rongshan’s forehead, time itself seemed to slow.

And in its wake, a shadowy figure—faceless, formless—appeared atop the bullet’s trajectory. A grim reaper, silent and inevitable, raising a scythe.

But just as the blade began to fall…

Mechanical Sanctum · Sighing Coffin!

At the very last moment, the invisible Iron Coffin—its optical camouflage dissolving—slammed into place, shielding Rongshan.

Boom!

The Void Pattern Bullet struck the sealed sanctum, causing the electronic patterns on its lid to flicker and fracture.

Chen Kong’s Void Pattern could neutralize attribute-based Stellar Energy, transforming it into formless, untraceable power.

But it couldn’t make solid matter vanish.

So while the Void Pattern dismantled the Intelligent Mechanism Class energy field protecting the coffin, it couldn’t breach the coffin’s core material.

The bullet struck—yet failed to pierce.

Rongshan remained alive.

“Rongshan,” said Tieguan · Claude, stepping forward after the dust settled. He reached up and pulled open the coffin’s lid.

Rongshan emerged, his face cold, stripped of all arrogance.

He turned toward Chen Kong, voice low and heavy.

“If this were a fair one-on-one,” he admitted, “I’d have lost.”

“Your final shot… I couldn’t block it. Couldn’t dodge it.”

“But the world doesn’t run on ‘what ifs,’ does it?”

“Still,” he added, “for your courage, I’ll make an exception.”

With a single punch, he shattered the nearby shelf.

And there they were—several trembling supermarket employees, huddled in the refrigerated section, using fish tanks as cover from the spreading flames.

Before Chen Kong could speak, Rongshan unleashed another torrent of molten lava.

The fire roared, extinguishing the tanks and forming a wall of searing flame that blocked every escape route.

Without the fish tanks, the fire advanced—fast, relentless.

Death was now only a matter of time.

“So,” Rongshan said, voice like ice. “Choose, Chen Kong. Save them… and miss your only chance to live.”

“Or walk away. Live alone.”

“Choose.”

No hesitation.

Chen Kong released his Stellar Source · The Dreamer.

Activated his First Stellar Core · Void Pattern.

And without a second thought, he charged straight into the raging inferno.

He didn’t need words.

His actions spoke for him.

But before he could reach the survivors, before he could use his Void Pattern to carve a path through the flames—

A massive coffin came plummeting from the sky, crashing down toward him.

In his peripheral vision, Chen Kong saw Rongshan’s smirk.

And suddenly, he understood.

Rongshan had offered a choice.

But he never said Claude would.

So why had Rongshan given him this chance?

Was it guilt?

Respect?

No.

He was afraid.

Afraid Chen Kong still had a trick up his sleeve.

Afraid of losing—again.

So he’d used this cruel, dishonorable ploy to force a mistake.

And the proof?

Right after Rongshan emerged from the Mechanical Sanctum, Claude had instantly reactivated the optical camouflage—hiding the coffin once more.

From the beginning, they never intended for Chen Kong to survive.

The “choice” was a lie.

A trap.

And yet—knowing he was caught.

Chen Kong gritted his teeth.

He leapt forward, ignoring the descending coffin, channeling his last reserves of energy into the Void Pattern, driving back the molten wave before the survivors.

The lava receded—just enough.

But now, he had nothing left.

No defense.

No escape.

And above him, the coffin came down—inevitable, crushing.

If it struck him, he’d either die or be left broken, trapped in the fire, waiting for death.

But at the very last second—

A figure appeared beside the Mechanical Sanctum.

One swift kick.

Crack!

Tian Dao’s foot struck the side of the coffin.

Like a meteor impact, the massive structure was flung sideways, screaming through the air.

The impact sent shockwaves through the metal, twisting it into grotesque shapes. Sparks erupted as it skidded across the floor, finally crashing into a pile of shelves—buried under debris.

Chen Kong stared, stunned.

Amidst the flying embers and swirling smoke, Tian Dao landed.

His silver-white hair danced in the heat waves.

His pale blue eyes—calm, cold—fixed on Rongshan and Claude.

No smile.

No mockery.

Only silence. A stillness so deep it felt like death.

To him, they weren’t men.

They were corpses.

“T-Tian Dao… Brother?!” Chen Kong stammered.

“Go, Kong,” said Tian Dao, voice steady. “Do what you believe is right. The rest… I’ll handle it.”

“Got it.”

Without another word, Chen Kong plunged into the fire, fighting through the flames to reach the remaining employees.

Meanwhile, Rongshan and Claude instinctively took a step back.

The weight of Tian Dao’s presence—oppressive, suffocating—pressed down on them.

Tian Dao spoke, calm as ice.

“I heard you like making people choose.”

“Fine.”

“I’ll give you one too.”

“Choose: bite your own tongue and die now…”

He paused.

Then—vanish.

In the blink of an eye, he reappeared less than half a meter from Rongshan.

Too fast for a shadow.

Too fast for a reaction.

Rongshan’s eyes widened in terror.

And on Tian Dao’s fingertip, a black orb of death energy coalesced—cold, hungry, eternal.

“…or die by my hand.”

Stellar Energy Technique — Black Azure!

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end