Atlas of Heaven and Man

Zhao Qian looked at that person, but hanging there, he no longer had the strength to speak. His lips moved, and only a hoarse sound accompanied by blood seeped out.

That person waved his hand and said, "Alright, alright, don't say anymore. I know what you mean. Don't worry, now that I'm here, whether you live or die, I will fulfill your request. In the worst-case scenario, I will be responsible for sending your body back."

Chen Chuan glanced at that person. That person showed no intention of stopping him, revealing a lack of respect for the employer.

He didn't know what that person was thinking, but since he had clearly expressed his intention to attack him, he wouldn't ignore it.

At this moment, he withdrew his knife, letting Zhao Qian fall to the ground, then walked forward, grabbed Zhao Qian's collar, and dragged him towards the car.

And that person just stood on the guardrail, watching with interest.

After walking a distance, Chen Chuan flicked the back of his foot and picked up the two-handed longsword that had fallen to the ground, grabbing it in his hand. Then, he came to the car, threw Zhao Qian onto the trunk lid, and stabbed him in the chest with the longsword. With a clang, he pinned him there.

Zhao Qian only trembled slightly, and then there was no other reaction.

He was now almost unable to move due to his severe injuries. He couldn't pull the sword out himself, but as a Third Threshold combatant, his vitality was strong, so he wouldn't die for a while.

Chen Chuan, holding the Snow Monarch Blade, returned to his original position and looked at that person.

Chen Chuan raised his blade, holding it horizontally in front of him, then tilted his body slightly, a gleam of light flashing from the blade, and said, "Chen Chuan!"

Lying on the car, Zhao Qian barely turned his head to stare at Chen Chuan. He believed that Chen Chuan must have taken medicine in advance, which was useful against his half-crippled self, but now he was facing a proper Third Threshold combatant. Once the drug's effects wore off, he would be exposed.

He could still live, he could live to go back!

Toad Blade spread out his arm blades and slowly squatted down, his thigh muscles tensing and bulging as if they were about to burst his pants. At the limit, he suddenly leaped, instantly jumping from the guardrail more than twenty meters away.

Chen Chuan spun around in place, his longsword suddenly thrusting upwards. Toad Blade crossed his arm blades downwards, his back arching like a shrimp.

With a clang, the arm blades rested on the spine of the blade, and then a straight force pressed down on the blade. This included not only his entire body weight but also the force of the jump.

Chen Chuan immediately judged that if the blade was pressed down, the opponent could push straight in along the spine of the blade, and the arched back seemed to be accumulating power, which would be released in a powerful and rapid manner.

Therefore, he did not withdraw the blade or change his move, but used his strong tendons and bones to withstand the force, and with a step, his waist and abdomen exerted force at the same time, slightly lifting the longsword upwards!

Toad Blade felt that the force could not be sent out and used this force to somersault upwards, smiling at Chen Chuan in mid-air as he passed over his head.

After flipping over, he landed lightly on the other side of the ground, but he did not stop. As soon as his feet touched the ground, he quickly ran around Chen Chuan, the two blades hanging down from his arms dragging directly on the ground, the tips of the blades scraping sparks on the ground as he ran.

Chen Chuan had learned something about fighting styles from training with Teacher Zheng these days and immediately knew that the other party was trying to find a rhythm. If he followed, he would be drawn into the other party's rhythm.

Although this would consume more energy for the other party than for him, for a combatant of this level, this consumption could almost be ignored.

Teacher Zheng had told him not to worry about the other person's rhythm, but to attack according to his own rhythm and his own ideas.

So he didn't let the other party lead him, but stood still, holding the hilt with both hands, holding the blade up, carefully sensing the changes in the other party's aura.

Seeing that he was unmoved and instead waited attentively, Toad Blade did not continue, and after circling twice, he suddenly rushed in from his side and rear.

After Chen Chuan noticed this, he immediately spun around and slashed, but at this moment, he suddenly felt that something was wrong, changed his move and blocked with the horizontal blade. With a clang, Toad Blade spat out a section of mutated long tongue from his mouth, which was only a palm's distance from his face when it was blocked.

Toad Blade himself took the opportunity to advance, suddenly rushing within the range of the Snow Monarch Blade, and clipped the two arm blades at Chen Chuan.

Chen Chuan moved one hand forward from the hilt, grabbed the middle and rear of the longsword, and deflected it left and right, timely deflecting the slashing arm blades while retreating.

Toad Blade now seized the advantage of the attack, further accelerating the rhythm of the attack. His body maintained a forward-leaning angle, his feet continuously pedaling behind him, and the two arm blades were placed in front, constantly waving and slashing at Chen Chuan at small angles.

The advantage of the two weapons was that they could take turns attacking, both offensively and defensively. After rushing into the inner circle, they were fast and fierce, and the offensive could be continuous.

Chen Chuan focused, shielding himself, trying to step back and create space to prevent his opponent from continuing to stick close, striving to reverse the unfavorable situation. As the blades clashed, a dense sound of metal striking echoed in the arena.

Although the opponent's attacks were fierce and swift, Chen Chuan defended steadily. The results of his training with Teacher Zheng were now on display. No matter how troublesome the force on the opponent's arm blades or how quickly their moves changed, the two separate sets of altered tissues within his body could repeatedly withstand and dissolve the attacks, keeping up with the changes in a timely manner.

Moreover, as long as the altered tissues were strong enough, even if some areas weren't noticed immediately, he could quickly adjust and compensate after discovering the gaps.

Besides, because the altered tissues were comprehensive enough, he still had some in reserve, lying dormant, waiting for the right opportunity.

At this moment, he calmly felt the power on the blade and the rotation of the opponent's force. Even a Third Threshold combatant must have gaps in their breathing, which meant adjustments in their altered tissues. That process of transfer was the weakness.

Toad Blade launched a series of sudden and fierce attacks, but consistently failed to break through Chen Chuan's solid defense. Several times it looked like he was about to be cut, but he was narrowly blocked each time. Through continuous pulling and moving, Chen Chuan was gradually distancing himself.

He was surprised by Chen Chuan's resilience, but also became more excited. After another powerful and sudden attack that forced Chen Chuan to fully parry, he took a deep breath, and his heart began to pump blood strongly, which would provide him with greater strength and faster speed.

Chen Chuan immediately sensed that he was building momentum.

Opportunity!

In that instant, he mobilized those altered tissues that had remained dormant, and while deflecting one arm blade to the side, he suddenly slashed diagonally, quickly cutting into the gap between Toad Blade's twin blades!

At this time, one of Toad Blade's arm blades had already been blocked, and the other was connecting, but Chen Chuan's slash was faster and would strike Toad Blade's body before his arm blade could pierce Chen Chuan's chest and abdomen.

Toad Blade couldn't help but be shocked. Chen Chuan's sudden outburst disrupted his rhythm because this was precisely the moment when he was adjusting and building momentum.

He had believed that after the previous rapid attacks, he had thoroughly understood Chen Chuan's capabilities and that there was no possibility of any problems, but problems had arisen.

It was like spilling water, but being told to catch it all back just as it was about to hit the ground, making him extremely uncomfortable. At this moment, he could only forcibly pull his altered tissues to retreat and defend, but this action, in addition to the cost of damaging himself, also sacrificed his original smooth movements.

Chen Chuan saw unnatural twists in his body and limbs. He was all too familiar with this because he had done it himself in the past, relying on a solid foundation.

However, he had his Second Self to back him up, allowing him to use it without hesitation at critical moments. His opponent did not, so his breathing and the mobilization of his altered tissues would be disrupted.

So, his second strike quickly followed. The purpose of this strike was not to injure the enemy, but to consolidate his advantage while taking the opportunity to adjust his own breathing and altered tissues.

By the time his third strike came out, the power in his body had been fully mobilized, and he had established his rhythm. But that wasn't enough. If he couldn't kill his opponent in one go and allowed him to recover, he would be caught in a repeated back-and-forth.

And this person opposite him was ultimately superior in experience and skill, making the situation unfavorable for him. Therefore, he had to secure victory during this offensive.

So, he released the suppression of his altered tissues, and countless mixed emotions surged up, which, under his calm suppression, were transformed into greater power and faster speed.

Toad Blade realized something was wrong because Chen Chuan's attack rhythm and power suddenly rose to another level.

This fast and powerful attack, without the need for extra force changes, was enough to make him use all his strength with just simple slashes. Therefore, after only seven or eight strikes, he felt that the dissolution of his altered tissues couldn't keep up.

If this continued without any change, he could foresee that he would inevitably be cut down in the end. So, he immediately took self-rescue measures. He kept his body still, but under the traction of the altered tissues in his legs, his toes curled up and his heel pressed down, exerting force in an instant, trying to jump backward to escape the range of the battle.

Once he reached the outer circle, he could reorganize his offense.

However, as soon as his body moved, Chen Chuan's breathing suddenly became scorching hot. He stepped forward, seeming to create an afterimage in an instant, and slashed down with his long blade, the light of the blade flashing across Toad Blade's body.

Toad Blade froze in place.

He was wearing blue-purple protective glasses, making it impossible to see his eyes, but they clearly reflected Chen Chuan's shadow. After a while, a crack appeared on them, and the shattered lenses popped out, falling to the ground.

A bloody mark appeared in the middle of his face, starting from his brow and extending to his chest and abdomen. As the range grew larger, blood kept seeping out. On the surface, he didn't seem to have any major injuries, but in reality, half of his head had been split open from the middle.

Toad Blade first knelt on one leg, then leaned forward, crashing heavily to the ground, raising a cloud of dust.

Chen Chuan turned his wrist and shook his long blade, looking at him apologetically and saying, "I'm sorry, you're very strong, but I couldn't hold back."

Toad Blade twitched once and then stopped moving completely.

……

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