Forge a path to success

She fought against evil. She battled against heretics. She fought for the survival of others, and was willing to die for her own pursuits. She loved this life and enjoyed the feeling.

Fighting on the brink of death, surviving amidst suffering. This is what a person with a broken heart should be like; this is the reason for the creation of the path of the broken heart!

"Endure pain, suffer torment, and spend a thousand times more difficult time than other paths in order to gain that meager bit of strength!"

If the hard-won achievements are used to kill each other on one's own land...

What, then, is the meaning of our lives?

With a roar, Qingye slashed down with his long sword.

The sword, no longer lost, charged forward, breaking through the Night Walker's defenses for the first time.

Disregarding injury and death, it was a frenzied swordsmanship. As a price, after unleashing this attack, Qingye was riddled with openings. But miraculously, even fighting in such a life-or-death manner, Qingye remains unharmed.

He instinctively held back. No, that's not it. His very first strike was already stronger than the blows he delivered in his fight with Ji Huaisu. He should have killed this man long ago. Once the mask is on, no emotions remain.

So, is he confused?

Was it he, a man with a broken heart who had already died in battle, who was now swayed by these foolish words...?

"……madness!"

The short sword traced a winding trajectory. It thrust towards the brow, then turned to strike the shoulder, and finally cleaved at the heart—a three-hit combo aimed at vital points, delivered almost simultaneously. Qingye trembled the blade, deflecting the strike with a large movement, then lunged forward, sideways, and rammed her with her shoulder.

Imitating Wu Xiu's Iron Mountain Lean, he interrupted Ye Xing's next sword strike. Ye Xing took a step back, his short sword slashing towards his throat like a guillotine, but Qing Ye's long sword struck first, the two swords, which were supposed to be a pair, clashed in mid-air, triggering a clear and melodious resonance.

Still unharmed.

No results have been achieved yet.

There is indeed a world of difference in basic skills. But a sluggish and undisciplined swordsmanship cannot shatter the young man's frenzied fighting spirit—

"Stop using the suffering around you as an excuse to escape!" Nightwalker roared. "What can a girl with a mere 2-point mass do? You're just unwilling to admit your mistakes!"

"I will find the master of the Broken Heart Fate," Qingye said firmly. "Then I will bring him back to Shura Island and force those foolish adults to unite and change this murky place!"

"Don't be ridiculous. Do you think the Lord of Fate is some kind of nice guy?" Ye Xing increased the pressure in his hands, forcing Mian Sheng to retreat step by step. "Do you think you can change that man's mind with just your words?"

"If the Lord of Remnant Heart abandons his mission, then I will!" Qingye shouted. "I will become the one who changes Shura Island!!"

The intense emotions poured into the longsword caused Mian Sheng to emit a radiance like the sunrise.

The long sword fell straight down. A relic that resonated with the broken heart, it cleaved through the night's path.

Both retreated simultaneously. Nightwalker sheathed his sword and unleashed a reverse-blade attack once more. The ink-black slash leaped up like a dragon, but Nightwalker no longer swung her sword; instead, she swung her hand to meet the attack. Black shadow threads wrapped around her fingertips, and the giant shuriken that had been thrown earlier flew back, guided by the shadow threads, blocking Nightwalker's first strike.

The shuriken split in two from the center, its shadow scattering and flashing with dazzling sword light. The second strike was a vertical slash that sealed off space. Qingye leaped upwards fearlessly, her movements far slower than Yexing's sword. Yet, in mid-air, she transformed into a wisp of mist, the short sword merely passing through without wounding her.

She ensured her safety just before being hit. It was a secret technique that Qingye had developed herself during her training over the past few days.

Absorbing the fog of history with sinful bones, he instantly condenses it into mist. In a literal sense, he achieves invincibility through the art of turning mist into heart.

The cross-shaped slash that sealed off space was broken, and thanks to the protection of the Residual Heart Technique, Qingye was unharmed. In mid-air, Mian Sheng was drawn from its sheath… meeting the relentless, cold sword light!

He drew his sword in the night, slashing with ruthless cruelty. His first two strikes were deceptive reverse-blade techniques, but only now did he truly strike, aiming for a fatal blow. His short sword changed color as it was drawn, transforming into the deep darkness of the night. The man's emotions were infused into the sword, and the distorted color spread to the surrounding world with each strike.

In an instant, the battlefield transformed into a black and white world like an ink painting. Dust, slashes, breaths, the movements of the two figures—everything slowed down the moment the sword was drawn. At the very moment Ye Xing truly wielded his blade, the entire world became a still, black-and-white space!

The flow of thought without intention, the art of time turning in vain.

He is the Remnant of the Heart, a Nightwalker, and he too possesses his own renowned technique. Even weakened to a low-quality level, it is enough to briefly control time—the Time-Shifting Technique!

In the utter silence of darkness, only the dagger of night moved silently. There was no way to dodge it, no way to defend against it; fate had been decided from the moment the blade was drawn, and the night's slash would surely sever the enemy's head.

With nowhere to hide, Qingye watched the blade hurtling towards her. The short sword's edge magnified in her eyes, but suddenly it shifted. Her long sword emitted a light, a dazzling white light like a comet. The sword light bathed her, causing movement that shouldn't exist in the still world.

The strike, which should have stopped, fell, the sword light as dazzling as a shooting star!

That was the secret technique of the Path of Broken Heart, "Thousand Nights Instant Star," created by the master of Broken Heart himself. In the heat of battle, one sharpens their inner energy, unleashing it all in a single strike, transforming life into a dazzling meteor streaking through the night. It was an unwavering determination to win, a madness to survive; under the starlight illuminating a thousand nights, even time itself would yield!

Starlight swayed and fell, illuminating the pitch-black world. Time, which had been stagnant, began to flow once more, and amidst the light, only the clang of a long sword remained.

The longsword of the Nightfall Blade pierced Nightwalker's side. Dark blood dripped down the blade, and Nightwalker's eyes returned to their clouded state.

The girl stubbornly raised her head, meeting the gaze of her ancestor.

“You win, Mr. Longyu,” she said, “but I did nothing wrong.”

Then the mist dissipated, and the dagger pierced her chest. Qingye missed her only chance; she cleaved through time, but failed to kill her enemy.

But she wouldn't think that way; life and death, victory and defeat, were things that were obvious to everyone.

Running away is pointless, so fight. That's all.

Nightwalker drew his dagger and watched the girl fall into the black earth. The blows of their strikes blew away the sand and gravel of the battlefield, revealing many black, withered bones, their arms raised as if in a silent embrace.

In the eyes of the night traveler, images of their former lives appeared: human faces and withered bones overlapping, melting and becoming indistinguishable.

“Yes,” the man said softly, “you did nothing wrong.”

He sheathed his dagger and walked into the mist. His back was so lonely, like a prisoner staggering with guilt through the years.

Chapter 193 Are you saying I have schizophrenia?

In the dim darkness, pain struck irregularly. She dreamt of evil spirits wielding sharp needles, torturing sinners by piercing out their nerves with long needles. The legend of Shura Island said that after their nerves were pierced, sinners would turn into a lump of lifeless, rotting flesh, watching helplessly as their bodies decayed and turned into withered bones.

Then the evil spirits put the chopped nerves back into the corpse, and all the suffering experienced after death erupts in an instant, causing the sinner to let out a long, lingering wail. At that time, the demons sit on mountains of corpses, drinking wine and taking pleasure in the sinners' cries; that place is called hell.

Qingye knew these were all just idle rumors. Nothing remains after death. But right now, she was in a desolate wilderness of despair, where the nightmares would become reality. So, was she perhaps in her own imagined hell, destined to tumble down with the blackened bones, falling into the depths of a desolate wasteland—

"Qingye, wake up."

"!"

Qingye was awakened. She was lying on a strong, cold shoulder, silver arms bent behind her, securing her waist like ropes. Not far ahead, bloody needles vanished in shadow, and the man lifted her up slightly.

"Mr. Chu..."

"Hurry up once you're awake," Chu Hengkong said. "It's hard to walk with only one hand."

She wanted to wrap her arms around Chu Hengkong's neck, but her hands hung limply at her sides; too weak to even support herself. "Never mind," Chu Hengkong said. He continued walking awkwardly, and Qingye lowered her head and rested her head on his shoulder, wanting to find a place to bury herself.

It was obvious that Mr. Chu wouldn't have just happened to leave the settlement and then stumble upon her, who was seriously injured. He must have been following her these past few days, which explained the faint sound of his footsteps... There are no free lunches in the Misty Forest. The fact that she had been able to repeatedly obtain food after her injury was, of course, because Chu Hengkong had used a chain of misfortunes...

So even though I had nightmares, I didn't see any monsters...

"...I'm so sorry! I've caused you trouble!" Qingye said loudly.

"No apology allowed!" the assassin snapped, his stern expression startling even her.

"It is never wrong for people to risk their lives to become stronger!"

Qingye reflexively pulled her neck back, a movement that caused a sharp pain in her wound. She said weakly, "But I've put you at risk too..."

“This is my own decision, and it has nothing to do with you,” Chu Hengkong said. “Don’t be bound by concepts like ‘collective.’ You risked your own strength and fought for your own dreams. Since your actions did not harm anyone else, you don’t need to apologize to others.”

"Ok."

Qingye wanted to express her gratitude, but felt that words would be useless to this man, so she lowered her head silently, keeping this kindness hidden in her heart. They walked in silence for a while, entering the now deserted arena. The dilapidated murals came into Qingye's eyes, reminding her of their encounter depicted in the paintings.

"Waaaaah!" the girl groaned.

"What are you up to now?" Chu Hengkong said helplessly.

"Um, I unconsciously thought of a few days ago, when I was feeling shy."

"..." Chu Hengkong was speechless for a moment, "Do you really have to torture yourself when you're seriously injured?"

"I didn't mean to! Whenever I'm feeling down, I can't help but think of those embarrassing memories..."

"Look on the bright side, at least you have a good figure."

"Wow, Mr. Chu, you, you, you actually made a dirty joke at me! I misjudged you!" Qingye shouted.

"Then what should I say? Should I lie through my teeth and say that it was too dark and I couldn't see anything, and that my skin temporarily lost its sensation so I didn't feel anything when we were squeezed together?" Chu Hengkong laughed. "Take it easy. Embarrassment comes from self-imposed limitations, which is unnecessary for you."

"You're talking nonsense! How could any woman not feel embarrassed about this!"

“Your sister Huaisu will exaggerate it into a glorious past, saying that when I killed the Fearbringer, I wasn’t even wearing armor, I was just wearing a knife, and I was so sexy that even the assassins in the team were secretly watching me,” Chu Hengkong said. “Of course, that’s just a metaphor, I wasn’t secretly watching you.”

Qingye pouted: "You're making yourself sound guilty by emphasizing it like that..."

"Really do not have."

"There's no need to emphasize it a second time!"

This nonsensical chatter gradually put Qingye at ease. She knew Chu Hengkong didn't usually talk like this; it was, in a way, a killer's consolation, a senior's care for a defeated junior. But this roundabout concern made her feel at ease.

"I won't lose again," Qingye mumbled groggily. "Next time... I'll definitely... win."

With Qingye unconscious on his back, Chu Hengkong became more alert, preparing to face the impending nightmare. His gaze pierced through the mist, looking towards the forest beyond the river.

At the edge of the forest, a horned demon was manifesting fear. Its muscles were bulging, its face ferocious, and it roared as it held an iron club.

But suddenly, the running demon lost its balance, fell backward comically, and plunged into the fog. Then it mysteriously disappeared, as if swallowed by the mist.

A few seconds later, three small, puppy-sized creatures emerged from the mist. They were tiny, pink things with long, claw-like nails. They peered at Chu Hengkong with curiosity, yet dared not approach due to the man's menacing aura.

Chu Hengkong transformed his left hand into a long sword.

The little pink creatures darted back into the forest, startled by him. Chu Hengkong remained motionless until all sound vanished from the mist.

He tightened the straps of the Nightfall suitcase on his back and turned to walk on. His keen senses told him that the pink creatures were still silently watching him from the forest.

There must be people in the settlement. Chu Heng thought to himself, he must never set foot in the jungle again.

·

An hour later, at the settlement.

Chu Hengkong placed Qingye on the bed, gulped down a large mouthful of water, draped his coat over the stool, and the hastily wrapped bandages, soaked with blood several times, had long since turned dark red.

He hadn't had time to take care of himself during his few days away from home. Considering the risk of nightmares materializing, he dared not sleep, as he still had to help Qingye slay nightmares at night. On the way back with this girl alone, he fought three groups of strange and powerful evil spirits, their strength and variety of methods leaving him in awe.

Ji Huaisu stood by the door with his hands on his hips, a forced smile on his face. Chu Hengkong raised one hand.

"Wait until I finish speaking before you get angry." Chu Hengkong raised a hand. "The jungle is dangerous. Starting today, we'll take turns finding food. You and Qingxia will take turns guarding the settlement. Someone must guard the stone seeds."

"Okay." Ji Huaisu nodded. "And then?"

"Qingye is making good progress. She has learned a very powerful technique. We can send her to assassinate people later." Chu Hengkong put down his hand. "I'm done."

"Oh, you're done?" Ji Huaisu began to grind his teeth. "Then, Mr. Chu, can you explain the ridiculous logic behind your past three-day absences without saying goodbye? If you two were serious about this, you would both be dead by now!"

“Night Walker won’t,” Chu Hengkong said. “If a martial artist like him wanted to kill me, he would issue a challenge to me face to face. Besides, Qingye has passed his test, so he won’t make a move again.”

Ji Huaisu's eyes twitched: "Then, what if Xiaoye doesn't pass?"

“If she fails, she dies.” Chu Hengkong said calmly. “I’ll be responsible for bringing her body back and asking Bernhard to give her a proper burial.”

Ji Huaisu poked his forehead hard with her middle finger: "That's why I'm talking about you martial arts fanatics!!"

"You have to take responsibility for your own choices." Chu Hengkong said nonchalantly. "Captain, you should understand me. I was all set to collect the body, but carrying a living person back like this is exhausting..."

"Go away, you heartless bastard!" Ji Huaisu made a face. "I need to treat Xiao Ye, go rest over there. I'm warning you, Detective Chu, from now on, don't take any more risks without my orders!"

"I'll do whatever you say, officer."

Chu Hengkong waved his hand, went back to his room, lay down, and covered his eyes with a cloth. A few seconds later, the cloth was pulled back, revealing Vande beside his pillow, his eyes filled with resentment.

"You went out to play without me."

"I'm afraid other envoys will come smelling the scent if I bring you along." Chu Hengkong grabbed it, "How much stuff have you sorted out?"

These past few days, Vande has been busy helping Ji Huaisu record knightly knowledge, and his handwritten notes alone have piled up into two large stacks. Its tentacles twitched, brimming with pride: "A mountain of knowledge! Let me tell you, we've hit the jackpot this time! We've got the cultivation methods for Discipline Knight's Path 1-4! Low- to mid-quality Discipline Seal - Holy Judgment, all covered! And we've figured out most of the key principles of the array, the core mechanism of the Holy Pillar!"

"Don't try to bluff, you've bluffed about the most important part..."

"There's also some extremely useful intelligence, crucial to our survival," Vande said mysteriously. "Once I've sorted it out, there's a good chance we can survive this time!"

"Then it all depends on you, archaeology master." Chu Hengkong yawned. Seeing how listless he was, Fan De couldn't help but ask curiously, "What happened to you? You haven't slept for days, have you?"

"I've also been practicing the Heartbreak Secret Technique these past two days..." Chu Hengkong's voice was muffled.

"The results of it?"

"A pile of shit."

With a rhythmic breathing sound, Chu Hengkong closed his eyes. His thoughts sank into his abyssal body as the secret technique circulated, causing the body to shrink and fade, like a transparent soul flowing towards his heart.

His heart contracted and relaxed, and after an exceptionally strong thud, his ego, like a drop of ink falling into water, returned from the outside world to himself, surging into the ocean of his own being.

The 48th "One Heart Ceremony" has begun.

·