Transforming into a stunningly beautiful fox spirit, leaving a scar on the heart of a prodigy.

Chen Tianyou's fist landed first.

Without the purple light or the support of backbone, it's just the fastest punch a cultivator in the early stage of the Cave Profound Realm can throw.

The force of the punch pierced the air.

Chen Xuan dodged the punch by sidestepping, his shoulder colliding with Chen Tianyou's chest.

Both of them groaned simultaneously, and the jade bricks beneath their feet shattered into pieces.

Another corner of the secret room collapsed.

Chen Xuan lost his sword.

It wasn't knocked away; he just let go and threw it away.

The sword was stuck in the paving stones three steps away, making a buzzing sound.

He clenched his fists.

Chen Tianyou also clenched his fists.

The two stared at each other for a moment, then attacked simultaneously.

Their fists collided.

The sound of bones cracking came simultaneously from their wrists. Chen Tianyou had two broken finger bones, and Chen Xuan's hand was split open, with blood flowing out from between his knuckles.

No one backed down.

Su Chang'an sat behind the collapsed stone pillar, hugging his knees, looking at the two blood-covered people in the field.

She didn't make a move.

It's not that I don't want to, it's that I can't.

This fight wasn't meant for her.

It was a call meant for the Chen family, a call meant for God, a call meant for themselves.

Chen Tianyou's knee came up.

Chen Xuan twisted his waist to dodge, but his elbow struck Chen Tianyou's ribs.

Click.

Another one broke.

Chen Tianyou grunted, but didn't back down. He grabbed Chen Xuan's wrist with his left hand and slammed his right fist down on him.

Chen Xuan took the punch.

His head tilted slightly, his mouth split open, and blood flowed from between his teeth.

He didn't fight back.

He stared into Chen Tianyou's eyes.

What were you thinking when you hit me?

Chen Tianyou was stunned for a moment.

This moment is enough.

Chen Xuan's fist shoved into his abdomen.

Chen Tianyou bent over, nearly vomiting. He held on, veins bulging on his forehead, and let out a hoarse roar as he headbutted Chen Xuan on the bridge of his nose.

Blood gushed from the nose.

The two of them took two steps back at the same time, and then rushed forward at the same time.

There is no method or structure.

Chen Tianyou's punching style was the orthodox "Po Jun Quan" of the Chen family, expansive and powerful, with every move carrying the shadow of the imperial family. But as the fight progressed, his punches became increasingly chaotic and wild, as if he were smashing away what he had learned over the past fifteen years, punch by punch.

Chen Xuan's fighting style was completely unpredictable from beginning to end.

He grew up in a sealed cave. There was no master to teach him routines, no martial arts techniques to tell him how to throw a punch. Every punch he threw was earned through crawling and rolling through piles of corpses, leaving only the most primal instinct for survival.

Fast. Ruthless. No turning back.

Another punch exchanged.

Chen Tianyou staggered backward from the blow, his back slamming into the black iron wall. The runes on the wall shattered upon impact.

He was panting heavily when he looked up at Chen Xuan.

"What gives you the right?"

The voice was very low. It sounded like a question to Chen Xuan, but also like a question to himself.

"You were only three years old when you were thrown into that hole. You had no bones, no spiritual roots, nothing at all."

He took a breath.

"I'll take your bones, give you the best elixirs, and practice the best techniques. The Chen family has given me everything they could."

He stared into Chen Xuan's eyes.

"What makes you think you're better than me?"

Chen Xuan wiped the blood off his face.

"You really want to know?"

Chen Tianyou didn't speak. He propped himself up against the wall and threw another punch.

This punch carried all the resentment he had harbored for fifteen years.

It's not that he didn't try.

The Supreme Bone was rejected every three months. Each time, he would roll on the ground, gritting his teeth, but he never uttered a sound of pain. He cultivated desperately, desperately trying to prove that he deserved the title of "Chosen One".

But the bones didn't recognize him.

The technique doesn't recognize him.

Even his own body doesn't recognize him.

He was like a thief wearing someone else's clothes, always feeling guilty wherever he went.

That punch was his complete answer to the past fifteen years.

Chen Xuan accepted it.

A fist slams into a palm.

Chen Xuan slid his foot back half an inch, his five fingers clenched, and he gripped Chen Tianyou's fist tightly.

"You want to know what makes me so special?"

Chen Xuan spoke.

"I rely on that person."

Chen Tianyou's fist struggled in his palm.

"There are no elixirs, no cultivation techniques, and I can't even see the sun." Chen Xuan's voice was very calm, as if he were talking about something that had nothing to do with him.

"She used her own flesh to make soup for me, and her own blood to grow spiritual herbs for me. She gave me everything she could."

"Just like the Chen family?!"

Chen Tianyou asked, puzzled.

"It's different," Chen Xuan said. "When she gave it to me, she never asked me for anything."

Chen Tianyou loosened his grip.

It wasn't opened by itself; it loosened itself.

Chen Xuan did not overlook this flaw.

Knee down.

Chen Tianyou bent over.

An elbow slammed down.

Chen Tianyou knelt on one knee.

He braced himself against the ground, trying to stand up. His fingers dug into the shattered jade bricks, breaking three of his nails.

He stood up.

He got punched again.

The punch landed on his face. He spun halfway around and crashed into the corner of the stone platform, breaking two more of his ribs.

He stood up again.

Su Chang'an frowned slightly.

It's not that I feel sorry for Chen Tianyou.

It was out of concern for Chen Xuan's hand. That fist had been used so many times that the bones were deformed.

When Chen Tianyou stood up for the third time, one of his eyes was already swollen. The other eye was still fixed on Chen Xuan.

"You said she never asked you for anything." Chen Tianyou spat out the blood in his mouth. "And you? Did you ask her what she wanted?"

Chen Xuan's fist stopped in mid-air.

"I'll give her whatever she wants," Chen Xuan said.

"Then what's the difference between you and the Chen family?"

The room fell silent for a moment.

Chen Tianyou laughed. His laughter caused the wound at the corner of his mouth to bleed again.

"The Chen family gave me their best, making me their vessel. You gave her your best, making her your…"

He didn't finish speaking.

Because Chen Xuan's fist had already arrived.

This punch was different from the previous ones. The previous punches were meant to knock him down, this one was meant to shut him up.

Chen Tianyou's body was lifted into the air.

He flew seven or eight steps, his back slamming into the wall at the deepest part of the secret chamber. The black iron wall was dented by the impact, and runes shattered all over the floor.

He slid down and sat on the ground.

I didn't get up this time.

It's not that I can't stand up.

I don't want to anymore.

Chen Xuan walked over.

Standing in front of Chen Tianyou, looking down at him.

Chen Tianyou tilted his head back. Blood smeared half his face, but his one eye, which wasn't swollen, was still bright.

"Answer me," Chen Tianyou said.

Chen Xuan stared at him for three breaths.

Then squat down and look him in the eye.

The difference lies in—

The light in Chen Tianyou's eyes flickered for a moment, then shone again.

It wasn't anger, nor was it resentment.

It's a sense of relief.

He leaned against the wall, looking up at the half-collapsed ceiling of the secret chamber. Gravel was still falling softly.

"You win," Chen Tianyou said.

Chen Xuan stood up.

"I didn't win."

"You've never won."

Chen Tianyou was stunned for a moment.

Then he burst out laughing.

He laughed until his ribs ached, and then blood oozed from the bloody, mangled hole in his chest.

"That's right." He closed his eyes. "I've never won."

Chen Xuan turned around.

He walked to where the sword was stuck and pulled it out. The dark red bloodline on the sword had faded and mixed with the blood on his hands, making it impossible to tell which was whose.

Su Chang'an walked out from behind the stone pillar.

She glanced at Chen Tianyou, then at Chen Xuan.

"Gone?"

"I'm gone."

Chen Xuan walked to Su Chang'an's side and extended his hand.

Su Chang'an placed his hand on it.

He didn't grip it tightly. He just held it lightly.

The two walked toward the exit of the secret room.

Chen Xuan did not turn around.

But he paused as he stepped across the threshold.

"Chen Tianyou".

There was no sound behind me.

"You don't want that bone, and neither do I." Chen Xuan's voice wasn't loud, but it carried through the echoes of the black iron wall. "It doesn't belong to you, and it doesn't belong to me."

He paused for a moment.

"It belonged to that three-year-old child. But that child is dead."

The room remained quiet for a long time.

Then came a very soft laugh.

"Get out." Chen Tianyou's voice came from the base of the wall, weak and listless. "Don't let me see you again."

Chen Xuan left.

Su Chang'an stood beside him without saying a word.

The passage was long, and the sound of their footsteps echoed in the darkness.

After walking about a hundred steps, Chen Xuan spoke.

What I just said.

"Um?"

"I didn't ask you what you wanted."

Su Chang'an turned his head to look at him.

The kid's face was covered in blood, his nose was swollen, his mouth was split, and he had a bruise around his eye.

But his eyes were very bright.

"What do you want?" Chen Xuan asked.

Su Chang'an did not answer immediately.

She raised her other hand and flicked Chen Xuan's swollen nose.

"I want you to wash your face clean. It looks awful."

Chen Xuan did not dodge.

His lips twitched slightly. The movement was very small, mostly covered by scabs and wounds.

But Su Chang'an saw it.

The two walked deeper into the darkness, their footsteps fading into the distance.

The secret chamber behind them collapsed completely.

The rubble and dust buried the unclaimed Supreme Bone beneath the ruins.

The purple light flashed one last time.

It's gone out.

-

A sliver of light shone through the end of the passage.

Su Chang'an felt Chen Xuan tighten his grip on her hand.

She didn't break free.

Chen Xuan thought to himself that he had fought many battles in his life. He fought against demonic beasts, against his inner demons, and against fate.

But this was the first time he had someone waiting for him after he finished playing.

That person even complained that his face was dirty.

pretty good.

The light grew brighter and brighter.

Anxious shouts came from outside the secret room from Chen Mu and the others.

Chen Xuan held Su Chang'an's hand and walked towards the light.

His back was very straight.

It's not because the bones are hard.

It's because someone was nearby.

......

The knife fell in the ancestral hall, its blade slicing away bones with chilling cold; a young child, his voice piercing the air, left a pool of blood.

Fifteen years of suffering against the outsiders, and in one day I tore out the last fragments of my purple light.

I'll abandon my bones and bare my fists to fight, and lay down my armor to enjoy the rest of my life.

The ruins and shattered jade are unrecognized; hand in hand with Fox Spirit, we return to the sun.