Forge a path to success

Chu Hengkong raised his left hand and said coldly, "Your boxing skills are utterly terrible!"

Chapter 167 The Hand of Misfortune

Luo Hun was trapped deep in the pit, the explosive force of his fists within his body causing his mind to go blank.

He couldn't understand how he had been injured. There was no reason why a martial artist of the second rank could have harmed him in the mist. Was it a high-grade relic that was guaranteed to hit him? Or was there a high-rank bloodline hidden within his body? Even with his experience, Luo Hun couldn't figure out the answer.

Luo Hun braced himself on the sand to his feet. He saw the assassin standing arrogantly, not seizing the opportune moment to pursue, but instead, as if announcing his move, drawing his left fist to his waist right before his eyes. A straightforward straight punch was about to land. Luo Hun abandoned his now-ineffective mist movement technique, and instead stretched out both hands, creating a wall of mist in front of him.

"Sink—"

The punching motion was invisible, the trajectory of the punch was unclear, only the sound of the fist exploding and piercing through the mist could be heard. The lightning-fast strike pierced through the mist and hit Luo Hun's abdomen, causing the envoy's tall body to arch like a shrimp!

There was no time for Luo Hun to think; the assassin was already behind him. Chu Hengkong struck with his right palm and left fist, unleashing all his strength in the impact, his elbow slamming into Luo Hun's spine. The assassin's bent body was straightened abruptly, and then Chu Hengkong raised his right leg high above his head, delivering a vicious kick from above, returning the blow that had been dodged earlier!

The soul suspended in mid-air involuntarily uttered, "Impossible...!"

This isn't an emotionally driven exclamation, but rather a situation that is objectively impossible. The Historical Mist is an ability bestowed upon every member of the procession by the Funeral God; its essence is the manifestation of the eternal time of the Second Abyss, possessing an innate ability to suppress all beings of point 6 and below. If this person were a Heavenly Eye cultivator, it would be one thing, but even a mere Bonewalker, no matter how talented, could not possibly penetrate the mist!

Chu Hengkong opened and closed his left fist, constantly trying out new arm techniques, a satisfied smile on his face.

"Van De, what's the principle behind this?"

—What a joke! Don't you understand yourself?!

Behind the battlefield, the Eye Demon cheerfully raised its tentacles: "I was afraid that my rank was too low to suppress it, so I stuffed in the material of misfortune!"

……doom?

The oldest delusion?

Reason instinctively rejected the association, yet intuition endorsed this absurd conclusion. The silver arm exuded an ominous presence, its structure resembling the body of a worm, segment by segment nested within the original, decaying arm. Rusty iron chains were wrapped around it, intersecting several times as if acting as a "lock" to seal the arm.

There's no mistake. It's that one. The moment he recognized the chains, Luo Hun confirmed his guess was correct. But the power of the Illusionary Demon shouldn't be lost; even if a fragment of its spirit had fallen, such a high-ranking being shouldn't have any of its members left behind.

This is a relic that "should not" exist; its origin must be confirmed. Luo Hun then charged towards the suspicious-looking demon, suddenly throwing a punch mid-charge, clashing with Chu Hengkong's kick.

“I haven’t given you permission to escape yet,” the assassin said.

Luo Hun withdrew his arm, mist swirling around his limbs, turning his fists and feet into withered bones. Gray power, a sign of aging, condensed at his fingertips. He crouched low and thrust, a claw aimed at his throat. Chu Hengkong placed his right hand behind his back, striking Luo Hun's wrist with a chop to deflect the thrust, then parried a hook punch aimed at his side with a backhand.

Luo Hun raised his knee to strike Chu Hengkong's groin, but Chu Hengkong, arriving first, kicked Luo Hun's shinbone, then slammed his heel down to bite Luo Hun's instep. The nail-like stomp caused Luo Hun's bone claws to sink into the ground. Taking advantage of this opportunity, Chu Hengkong unleashed a powerful kick, a whip-like side kick that struck Luo Hun's chin.

Luo Hun tilted his head back sharply, his claws attempting to grab Chu Hengkong's ankles again. However, this time Chu Hengkong reacted faster. He spun around, retracted his leg to dodge the attack, and then unleashed a left fist that swung half a circle like a bell, striking Luo Hun in the chest once more! Luo Hun's offensive completely collapsed!

"I see... I underestimated you!"

Luo Hun realized the reason for the turn of the battle. The prosthetic arm not only provided a means to penetrate the fog, but also allowed Chu Hengkong to focus entirely on the battlefield without having to suppress his arm.

This man's martial arts skills were astonishing; in terms of technique alone, he surpassed the vast majority of martial artists he had ever seen. This skill allowed him to overcome the insurmountable barrier of physical ability and fight against enemies stronger than himself.

but……

"The advantages that martial arts skills bring are limited!"

Luo Hun retreated several steps, leaning forward like a wild beast preparing to pounce. Mist enveloped his sides, making his flesh appear aged and his blood dried up. In the blink of an eye, he transformed from a robust man brimming with vitality into a skeleton covered in thin skin. Gray fur grew on his skin, and his skull became deformed and protruding, resembling the decaying head of a beast.

The Fallen Soul stared at the assassin with empty eye sockets, two points of gray soul fire igniting within them. "Conversion to Divinity," the former Bone-Praying cultivator murmured. Its fists had become skeletal claws, and gliding-wing-like periosteum sprouted from the sides of its arms. The Fallen Soul leaped high, soaring into the sky like a skeletal bat, gray spheres covered in needles forming between its claws.

"Fear is real."

With a swift strike, Luo Hun vanished, its claws disappearing and reappearing eerily from Chu Hengkong's left, shrouded in mist. Chu Hengkong shattered the sphere with a palm strike, his vision suddenly darkening as a torrent of painful memories flooded back, making him feel as if he were trapped in a nightmare. This was Luo Hun's tool for levying taxes, the terrifying authority that Van Salal bestowed upon every envoy.

Taking advantage of the moment when Chu Hengkong was suppressed by the True Spheres, Luo Hun soared higher, its wingtips almost brushing the bottom of the sand sea. More True Spheres of Fear generated between its periosteum, numbering 10... 100... a full 370! Even if only one-tenth hit, it would be more than enough to shatter the spirit of Point 3. Luo Hun opened its palm and struck at the mist. "Go!" The 370 True Spheres vanished simultaneously, reappearing in the mist at different distances and directions, shooting towards it with the speed of their initial strike.

"Don't take this head-on!" Vande shouted. "We'll get hit too!" "We're going to die!" The researchers grabbed it and fled in panic. Chu Hengkong raised his left palm, a drop of murky rainwater rolling in his palm. The droplet grew larger as it spun, and the assassin clenched his fist and crushed it, the murky droplet bursting out.

"Damn it!"

The force surged into the air, and a torrential downpour began in the deep sea valley. Raindrops flowed across the surface of the true sphere, infusing it with the turbid power. 370 deadly attacks scattered and fell to the ground, none striking. The unharmed assassin moved forward in the rain. This was the most direct manifestation of the power of misfortune—a torrential rain that disrupted probability and isolated attacks. At this moment, probability was in the assassin's hands!

The lost soul in the rain felt dizzy and realized it was being affected by misfortune; its wide-range attacks had lost their effect. It increased its speed to dodge the raindrops, and the shadow of fear formed lightning-shaped darts between its claws.

"Thunder-Shaking Sword!" Fallen Soul hurled a projectile as swift as lightning, imbued with the elemental power granted to it by the Nightmare King! The power of thunder, amplified by the rain, traveled to the earth, forming a net of lightning resembling a ghostly face. The experienced messenger now used the environment to his advantage. Meanwhile, the assassin on the ground also swung his arm, raindrops flying from his fingertips, which, infused with his spirit, formed hard blades.

The rain blade and the thunder sword collided in mid-air, clashing and shattering simultaneously. Taking advantage of the chaos, Chu Hengkong rushed into the rain, his fallen souls like messengers of the gods, relentlessly hurling lightning bolts. Each time, the assassin struck first, using the rain blade—a weapon of disadvantageous nature—to break the thunder sword. The thunder sword was more destructive and faster, yet Chu Hengkong, with astonishing judgment, always found its weak points, breaking it with the effortless rain blade, using this opportunity to close the distance. This perfectly illustrated the difference in skill between the two.

In the blink of an eye, Chu Hengkong had closed in on Luohun's base. He leaped across the stones, chasing after it into the sky like a wolf biting a bat. "Don't even think about it." Luohun stirred up a large amount of mist, and the historical fog carried away stones that should have long since vanished, leaving Chu Hengkong without a foothold. Luohun grabbed a new bolt of lightning and slammed it down. At that moment, it saw its own skeletal face. The lightning sword exploded an inch in front of it... and a mountain of ice rose from the ground!

"Smash his head, Akong!!"

Ji Huaisu swung her sword towards the sky, her sword wind transforming into an iceberg pointing straight to the heavens. Behind the iceberg, Ye Xing silently swung his blade, and in a split second before instinct could react, the entire iceberg shattered into thirteen thousand neat squares. The shattered iceberg collapsed and fell, but the assassin had already reached the summit before that strike. He leaped up, stepping on the broken ice crystals, above Luo Hun, towering over the head of the evil god's messenger!

Luo Hun thrust his lightning sword upwards, but Chu Hengkong caught it with his prosthetic arm, crushed it, and smashed his iron fist, crackling with electricity, into Luo Hun's facial bones! "Hah!!" Luo Hun was slammed into the ground, rolling and bouncing like a pebble on water. It bounced over the horrified and excited monsters, over the howling researchers, and crashed into the pitiful houses made of white sand.

Chu Hengkong landed a little later, supporting himself on his thighs as he breathed slowly. His body was riddled with bloody holes; even at full power, his Undying and Indestructible Technique could only resist the erosion of aging, and he still bore the injuries inflicted by the old man's gift. But he didn't stop, his fierce gaze remaining unchanged. At the same moment, Luo Hun stood up, its skull riddled with cracks; this messenger had also been driven to the brink of desperation!

"Particle 2? Not even a Walker. Just an ordinary Steel Bone." The soul fire in Luo Hun's eyes was so fragile it was about to go out. It opened the Book of Revelation it carried with it, and destiny led it to the enemy's name. "How absurd. You should have died in the Netherworld God Kingdom, perishing together with the Immortal Machine... but you've actually survived until now! You've even come to Lord Vansalal's territory!"

What a terrifying man! I must kill you!

Chu Hengkong clenched his fists and charged towards the exhausted enemy. Luo Hun spread its arms wide, the soul fire in its eyes extinguished, and the power that sustained its existence seeped into its bones, amplifying its final attack. Its bone claws lashed out at Chu Hengkong from both sides, faster and faster, piercing through countless streaks of light-like palm shadows. This was one of the few remaining abilities Luo Hun possessed after being transformed by Fan Salal. A punishment inflicted on those who should have died, a annihilating attack created to uphold a righteous destiny.

"Afterglow Fist: Light After Death!"

Chu Hengkong remained with his hands behind his back, facing the barrage of punches and palm strikes with a single hand. The rapidly striking fist shadows formed opposing two-colored whirlwinds, but this time the assassin couldn't maintain the balance. The gray wind generated by Luo Hun's punches was gradually closing in on Chu Hengkong… 50 centimeters, 30 centimeters, 10 centimeters… the distance was now almost inches, the claws nearly touching the assassin's eyes! Luo Hun had completely gained the upper hand!

Luo Hun stared intently at the enemy's wounds, at those old, unhealed scars inflicted by his own hands.

"You've managed to force me to this point with your Qi of a Thousand Autumns, which is quite remarkable... However, even secret techniques have their limits. Your speed and reaction ability can no longer be improved because your life force has been exhausted. No matter how hard you force yourself, you can't muster any more energy."

The soul-destroying roar resounded like a great bell: "Stop deluding yourself into thinking you can turn the tide. This moment marks the end of your fate!"

Finally, the assassin responded to his words.

"You seem to have made a mistake."

Chu Hengkong raised his head and said calmly.

"I haven't used the Qi of a Thousand Autumns yet."

------

Astonishment, shock, confusion, doubt—no emotion existed in the empty sockets of his eyes, yet the shift in the bone claws proved the inner turmoil. Chu Hengkong let the fallen soul's claws pierce his eyeballs, raising only one finger to his chest. A burning aura flickered at his fingertip, like a crimson fire burning in the dark night.

"Now, we're using the speed of One Qi for a Thousand Autumns!"

With a single finger strike, he pierced Luo Hun's thoracic vertebrae in an instant. Thousands of palm shadows vanished in an instant, and Luo Hun's hands were sent flying into the sky.

Chu Hengkong withdrew his hand and thrust again, unleashing thirty-six piercing palm strikes in an instant. The dense palm shadows pierced through the skeletal body, shattering Luo Hun into dust!

Chapter 168 Let's dream together after get off work

He died of a broken heart.

Unharmed and invincible, the Mistbringer was a force even the Blood Knight could not overcome. The Tax Collector, long a symbol of terror, was decisively defeated in close combat by the new assassin…

It shattered into dust!

This fact, along with the silhouette of the Silver-Armed Assassin, was deeply imprinted in the minds of the monsters. They emitted unconscious sobs, cries, and laughter; the voices of the crowd merged together into an exhilarating roar that stretched across the sea of ​​sand.

"He won!" "Well done!!" "Losing all hope!!"

"That man has defeated the messenger of fear!"

Another messenger appeared at the entrance of the valley at night, his gaze sweeping over the excited monsters beneath his mask. Ji Huaisu immediately erected an ice wall and stood guard before it, wielding the Boundless Sword.

“The situation isn’t good for you,” Ji Huaisu said. “It’s now two against one.”

Night Walker sheathed his black sword.

"My job is to assist in tax collection. The current tax official is dead, so there is no point in me staying here."

His figure vanished like a phantom, leaving only a faint voice in the mist.

"Let's meet again on the battlefield."

There was no sign of the Nightwalker anywhere, and the messenger left decisively. Ji Huaisu dispersed the ice wall and finally relaxed, while the monsters cheered even louder: "Even that Nightwalker has retreated..." "The newcomers are stronger!" "An unprecedented victory!"

That's not the case at all, Ji Huaisu thought. The messenger known as Night Walker was astonishingly strong. Unlike the Fallen Soul who relied on the mists of history, his swordsmanship revealed the spirit of a martial artist who had once reached the pinnacle of skill. In his prime, he was probably a very high-ranking Remnant Soul. Even now, with only a broken body remaining, he would need to exert all his strength to decide the outcome.

She turned around, a healing flame igniting in her palm. Chu Hengkong maintained his stance, determined to decide the outcome, without moving an inch.

"Ah Kong," Ji Huaisu said anxiously, "Hold on!"

The assassin blinked. "It's alright..." he said slowly. Then his face was shrouded in blood, and the Undying Technique he had been barely managing to maintain came to an end. The injuries inside and outside his body erupted simultaneously, and a large amount of blood surged into the sky.

"—Ah Kong!"

It wasn't for show that he hesitated to use the "One Qi for a Thousand Autumns" technique. Rather, it was because the assassin's condition was already extremely poor before the battle even began. The monsters only knew that he effortlessly annihilated the Fallen Soul, forgetting that just minutes before, Chu Hengkong had been struggling between life and death because of the old man's gift. He could only throw a punch by forcibly utilizing the power of his prosthetic arm; using the secret technique again would have been fatal. Therefore, he fought only with his left hand in the latter half of the battle, and only used the secret technique at the decisive moment.

However, Luo Hun was unaware of this. It probably thought it had been completely outmaneuvered and killed by its opponent...

Would you say I've finally gotten my revenge?

The cheers around him abruptly ceased, and the figures of the crowd blurred in his vision. Chu Hengkong smiled silently as he disappeared into the murky darkness.

He knew he would fall into a dream again, but he didn't know what kind of nightmare he would face this time.

·

When he opened his eyes, he saw pure white—white clothes, white bed, white room, even the window screens were white. The air was filled with the smell of disinfectant, and the IV drip was falling drop by drop, occasionally accompanied by the rustling sound of newspapers turning pages.

He forced his head to turn, catching the only unusual sight. A man in a suit sat beside the hospital bed, the open newspaper like a black and white wall, obscuring half of the man's body and blocking Chu Hengkong's view. Everything seemed so familiar that he remained stunned for a long while before mumbling:

Good morning, boss.

"I'm not well," the man in the suit said. "It's rare to have a dream where I meet you. I hope it ends soon."

"…………"

Chu Hengkong closed his eyes. He opened them again. The time on the front page of the newspaper matched his memory perfectly; the scene of this dream was the day after he was sniped by Shax.

“That’s not what you said,” he protested weakly.

"You actually still remember what you said back then. The dream at the border of Heavenly Prison is even more realistic than I imagined."

"Indeed, it looks just like the real thing."

The newspaper turned a page. The shopkeeper took a sip of tea. Chu Hengkong wanted to wipe his face, but couldn't lift his hand because of the equally terrible situation in his dream. He stared blankly at the ceiling.

"This is a dream, right?"

You're asking a question you already know the answer to.

“I really don’t think this makes sense.” He tried to explain his thoughts. “If this is my dream, you should at least show some concern for me, instead of acting like this… indifferent.”

"Is this your dream?" the boss laughed. "Ah Kong, how did you come to that conclusion?"

"Because I'm sleeping."

"What I want you to realize is, how can you prove that you are the master of this dream, and not just a character in it?" the boss said with amusement. "Perhaps this is my dream, my way of reminiscing about the time I visited the assassin. Or perhaps it is the dream of some unimaginable, incomprehensible creature, and you and I are just fleeting bubbles in that dream."

Chu Heng opened his mouth, then closed it again. This happened several times, like a salted fish being thrown ashore.

"This dream felt so real," he said finally.

"You realize you can't prove it. This is the core contradiction at the border of Heavenly Prison. The people in the mist are like bubbles in a dream, unable to prove their existence. The survivors of the great war are outside the black box, unable to provide proof of the reality inside. In the end, only the gods who have their backs on the heretical path can 'prove' themselves..."

The boss talked on and on, as if he were explaining his own papers and patents back in the day. Whenever this happened, Chu Hengkong felt dizzy and wanted to jump out the window.

"Okay, boss, let's compromise," the assassin said desperately. "I just finished a tough battle, I'm exhausted, I don't have the strength to continue. This is your dream, and I'm just a character in your dream. Can we talk about something else?"

“Okay.” The boss replied readily. “Then please disappear as soon as possible. I don’t want to waste any more energy in my dreams.”

"You're mad at me."

"I do not have."

“Then you shouldn’t have said those things by my bedside,” Chu Hengkong pointed out the key point. “I am seriously injured right now.”

"You could have solved the problem in a more efficient way, but you ended up like this."

"...Which time are you talking about?" Chu Hengkong tried his best to think. According to the context, the boss in the dream should be talking about the time when he killed Shax on Earth, but the conversation just now also contained content based on the information of the Submerged Realm. The content of this dream was a mess, and he couldn't tell which time the other party was talking about for a moment.

"every time."

Chu Heng was speechless.

“I’m not as smart as you—” he tried to defend himself.

"Ah, Chu Hengkong, the first thing you did after waking up was to try to provoke me," the boss said coldly.

"I just..." Chu Hengkong sighed, "I'm just so glad to be able to talk to you again, even though it was just a dream."