Forge a path to success

"Please, buddy. Stay," Chu Hengkong said. "Give me a hand."

The tentacle girl began to sigh, just like Chu Hengkong whenever he encountered a situation he didn't know how to handle, he would sigh deeply.

"Chu Hengkong, you're a fucking bastard!" she said. "How dare you say that to me? I'm so pissed off, we've already broken up, what am I supposed to do?"

“But I really don’t want you to leave.” Chu Hengkong smiled. “Don’t worry about it, it’s just pointless sadness. Have a pleasant journey.”

The tentacle girl took off her pirate hat and tossed it into the air. Her eyes narrowed into crescents as she laughed, just like Vande's.

"What are you talking about? Of course I'll help you!" she said. "We're such good buddies!"

It's true that some people part ways because of interests; they leave because they value profit too much, more than feelings. But true friends don't act that way. They might berate you mercilessly if a project falls through, or even break your phone and throw it in the water if a business fails, but the next time you need help, they'll drop everything and rush to your aid. Because you're brothers, and brothers help brothers without needing a reason.

Would someone like that give you a long explanation of why the partnership is ending? Of course not. If he really wanted to leave, he'd find a quiet time, pack his bag, and walk away, leaving a note saying he's going out to buy cigarettes. He's telling you all this just to express his frustration; he wants to have a proper talk with you to figure out the next steps.

"Seriously, where do you want to go next?"

“Dustless Land is actually worth a visit, but its history is too short.” Tentacle Girl counted them off one by one. “Fun Paradise is easy enough… but it’s too idiotic and not for me.”

“It suits you very well,” Chu Hengkong said.

"I need to find an ideal destination." The tentacle girl began to ponder. "Historical, friendly, mysterious, academically rich, and safe. It has to be safe. Well, finding such a place in the anime world isn't easy. Let me think about which tag to delete..."

"The Divine Tree City-State?" Chu Hengkong said casually. "Jing Sha is also in the Senluo Secret Realm. By the time I get back, the route should be open."

"You've got it! This is it!" the tentacle girl exclaimed excitedly. "Next time, we'll go to the Jingsha City-State for a historical and cultural study!"

"Then it's a deal, until we escape the desolate wilderness."

"I'll try to leave tomorrow."

"It would be great if we could just run out like that."

Outside the captain's cabin, the sky was clear and the colorless sea had unknowingly filled the world again, carrying the pirate ship as it sailed under the bright sun. They leaned against the mast, feeling the exceptionally fresh breeze.

It is precisely because people have expectations beyond their goals that they have the motivation to live a happy life.

The tentacle girl waved her tentacles at him, then transformed back into silver tentacles that replaced his left arm. The fantasy world began to fade, and Chu Hengkong closed his eyes in the gentle sea breeze, returning to reality.

Chapter 200 So-called Growth

Chu Hengkong woke up in a soft feather quilt.

The blanket was large; folded in half along the middle, it resembled a sleeping bag and could completely envelop him. It lay on a carpet-like straw mat, next to a small bookshelf piled high with drafts. A few bone-white hairs were visible on the mat, and he realized this might be a "bed."

He reached out to the bedside and touched a warm, furry piece of fur.

"Did you succeed?"

Red hair cascaded down like a waterfall in his field of vision, and Qingxia leaned over. She lay beside the straw bed, never leaving its side like a wild animal guarding its cubs. Chu Hengkong quickly withdrew his hand and stood up, coughing twice: "You'd better keep your distance, it's easy to cause misunderstandings..."

As soon as the words left his mouth, Chu Hengkong wanted to slap himself. This kind of speech was completely unlike him; it sounded like a shy college student possessed by some unknown person. Qingxia lowered her head and sniffed his scent.

“You’re much better than before,” she said confidently. “You did it!”

Chu Hengkong got up and stretched. He did feel a significant reduction in pressure, and his body felt lighter than ever before. This was because he no longer needed to focus on suppressing the Immortal Machine. Other subtle influences that had been lingering in his mind also faded away. There were no sudden surges of desire, no impulses of depression or despair. He felt as good as when he first became a master craftsman.

"Let me test it."

He reached out and touched Qingxia's cheek, his hand sliding down her face to her smooth shoulder. Such close contact would have been enough to stir his heart before, but now his heart beat steadily, in sync with his emotions.

He was completely satisfied, speechless with emotion: "I'm healed!"

Qingxia tilted her head, grabbed his hand, and blinked: "Do you want to do it?"

"How could you suddenly say something so absurd? Your thinking is jumping around way too fast! It's an order of magnitude faster than running in real life!"

Qingxia frowned and said, "General Chu, you're being strange. If you didn't want to do it, why were you flirting with me?"

"Is this what you call flirting?!"

"My grandfather told me that it's considered flirting for a man to touch a girl's face."

Damn it, she actually said something so common sense! Am I the one who lacks common sense this time?!

“A libertine who harasses a respectable woman shall be torn apart by five horses.” Qingxia raised her hands threateningly, “Just like what Mr. Shang Yang promoted during his reforms!”

"Show me more respect for Shang Yang."

Qingxia crossed her arms, grabbing only Chu Hengkong's wrists. Without a second thought, Chu Hengkong broke through with a strike and a chop. Qingxia raised an eyebrow, grabbing with only one hand, but secretly using three more units of force. Chu Hengkong let her hold his left wrist, the hidden force in his palm breaking through the blockage of qi and blood, his right hand sliding out nimbly like a snake.

"Huh? What's going on?"

Qingxia looked bewildered. Chu Hengkong, who was usually completely under her control, was now acting like a slippery eel. Chu Hengkong beckoned with his finger: "Being more serious is fine too."

"Then let's get serious!"

With a flick of his fingertips, a sonic boom erupted as Chu Hengkong intercepted his opponent's fingers mid-air with a two-finger strike. Grabbing, entangling, seizing, and stabbing—the incredible speed created countless afterimages, fluttering like butterflies between their palms. In the blink of an eye, the two exchanged 65 blows. Qingxia's attacks proved ineffective, while Chu Hengkong remained unscathed.

He pushed open the window, jumped out, and taunted, "Looks like General Fei has been napping for too long and isn't fully awake yet."

"You cunning villain, daring to use provocation!" Qingxia slammed her fist down. "Then I'll fall for your trap!"

They leaped out of the hut one after the other. The villagers felt two gusts of wind sweep through, whipping up fallen leaves, but they couldn't see who had caused them. In less than a breath, the two reached the waterfall. Qingxia picked up a pebble and casually hurled it; the pebble turned to gray light and struck Chu Hengkong in the abdomen. Chu Hengkong let the pebble hit him, his muscles flowing like liquid as he channeled the impact down his bones, directly into the earth.

The guided impact created a semi-circular crater beneath Chu Hengkong's feet. He used the momentum to propel himself forward, his prosthetic left arm extending and swinging out like a lasso towards Qingxia's upper body. Qingxia ducked, and the wand barely grazed her hair as it passed. She used both hands to grab the wand, trying to pull Chu Hengkong away instead.

Both stood still, grappling with each other using their bodies as a medium. Their wrists shifted back and forth like a tug-of-war rope, yet neither was truly evenly matched. One second passed… three seconds… five seconds! Still a stalemate!

Qingxia grinned, as if wanting to praise the other's progress. A crimson light flickered in her mouth, and her blood and qi formed a miniature magic array, ready to unleash the "Roar" from shadow magic. At that moment, the wrathful wrist she had been holding suddenly shrank, shrinking back to Chu Hengkong's side like a small silver snake. He stood still, raising his left arm; the metal structure in his palm coalesced and transformed, forming a cannon muzzle.

Bio-disintegration rays are emitted.

Unlike the Immortal Machine's sweeping and powerful attacks, Chu Heng's ray flashed by in an instant, like a crimson spear. That crimson spear pierced through the roaring sonic patterns, instantly disintegrating the blood and energy forming the spell. The attacks of both sides intertwined, annihilated, and simultaneously rose into the sky, forming a crimson pillar of light outside the settlement!

Chu Hengkong voluntarily clasped his hands together, stopping the activation of the rays. Qingxia's hair danced in the air currents as she clapped her hands happily.

"Wow, that's amazing! You've gotten so much stronger." Qingxia stopped. "In a calm state, I might not be able to defeat General Chu."

"I thank you for putting down my arrogance," Chu Hengkong said irritably. "I'll have another match with you when I reach level 3."

Surpassing a vegetative patient whose heart has stopped beating is hardly an achievement; it merely narrowed the vast gap between him and Qingxia by a little.

"Being able to fight Jingxin is pretty impressive~" Qingxia tried to pinch his ear, "Besides, don't you also have an evil technique that prevents you from breathing but doesn't work?"

Chu Hengkong brushed her hand away: "I already told you that it's a prestigious and righteous sect, and don't talk to me in such a doting tone."

"Yes, I know, I did it on purpose."

"That's why you're so infuriating!"

Qingxia stood up with a grin and asked, "So, General Chu, do you want to advance now? After absorbing my blood, you'll be more than qualified to become Xu Lie Xin."

The conditions for transforming from a rigid body into a "Heart of Asura" are "controllable and powerful explosive force" and "a core organ that provides that explosive force." The requirements for meeting the definition are quite broad; for example, mechanically modified energy furnaces and elemental energy sources can all be recognized as "Hearts of Asura."

After enduring a series of torments from Jinye City to the present, Chu Hengkong has become a wondrous being who can fight the Fear Messenger and Qingxia without batting an eye. His heart is far stronger than that of most Xu Lie. With the One Heart Ritual successfully completed, he only needs to slightly adjust his body structure with the help of the Immortal Machine to smoothly enter the Ascension Ritual.

However, Chu Hengkong has no immediate plans to advance.

"The heart and bones still need meticulous refinement. I plan to begin the transformation only after the body modification plan has been further optimized." He naturally used the term "body modification" because the Immortal Machine was still calculating the modification plan at this moment. "And we also need to ensure a safe environment."

"Find a safe zone in the desolate wilderness."

“Relatively safe,” Chu Hengkong corrected. “Let’s at least wait for the stone to evolve and for the Holy Pillar to recover somewhat before making any plans.”

"Or 'bang' during the battle!" Qingxia suddenly spread her arms wide.

"Upgrades don't happen that quickly."

"It can be done in a flash in an emergency." Qingxia waved her hand. "Well then, I'm going out hunting now. I guess I helped you out this time..."

She leaned closer to Chu Hengkong and whispered, "Could you come see me tomorrow when you're free?"

Without waiting for a response, she skipped away like a deer. Chu Hengkong shook his head helplessly. Even now, he was still not good at dealing with Qingxia. He only knew that he owed her another favor.

The more you socialize, the more debts you accumulate. How can you pay them off later?

Chu Hengkong walked towards the settlement, pondering how to repay the favor. He naturally had to fulfill Qingxia's earlier request, and if he could leave the Despairing Wilderness, he needed to find a safe place for the settlement's warriors—this was half a favor, half an obligation. Besides that, if he had any spare capacity, he planned to investigate Qingxia's background.

This centaur girl didn't appear in the Desolate Wilderness for no reason; her various anomalies are closely related to her origins. Even with the Heart-Binding Technique, suppressing one's true nature for a long time in daily life is a painful thing. He at least needs to help Qingxia find out the original habits of this tribe before he can correct her current way of life.

He knew that someone must know about this.

"Qingye, where is Silar?"

"I haven't seen him all day. He's probably near the Holy Pillar."

Qingye appeared stealthily behind him, as abruptly as if she had fallen out of thin air. She looked at him with admiration: "As expected of Mr. Chu, you were able to spot me even though it was just a small thing."

"I didn't sense it; I was just guessing."

"what?"

“With such a commotion, someone must have come to investigate. Since we haven’t seen Ji Huaisu yet, it must be you,” Chu Hengkong said. “Your skills have improved considerably, much better than before.”

Qingye touched her nose: "I have been diligently cultivating myself~"

They walked together toward the center of the settlement, just as they had on the day they received the Remnant Heart Technique. Strangely enough, although only a few days had passed, it felt like several months had gone by.

When they arrived at the training ground, they saw many researchers busily working around the area, seemingly setting up the venue. Slar's short, small figure was nowhere to be seen; instead, it was Chongming, that street urchin-like fellow, standing next to the stone seed, muttering something to himself.

As the two approached, he pushed up his sunglasses with his middle finger and said sarcastically, "Oh! The two half-baked buddies are here again!"

"Say what you will," Chu Hengkong said, completely unconcerned.

"One treats the garbage from a funeral procession as a treasure, while the other appeases the heretics to save his own life. The Remnant Heart Secret Technique has been passed down for so many years, and you two are truly the most shameful disgraceful," Chongming sneered.

"Oh dear, it seems Commander Chongming doesn't know any fog magic." Qingye made a face. "Commander Chongming is jealous~"

"What nonsense are you spouting, you bastard! I don't need that crappy invisibility ability at all!"

"They're really in a hurry," Chu Hengkong exclaimed in surprise.

"Damn it, you've been training for days and haven't improved your skills, but your shamelessness has certainly grown." Chongming looked the two of them up and down, then suddenly said, "You heartless one, Guang Shi Qing Ye, what is your goal?"

"Yes, I want to find the Remnant Heart Fate Master and bring him back to change Shura Island!" Qingye said cheerfully. "If he refuses to come, I will cultivate myself to become the Fate Master and change Shura Island!"

Chongming took off his sunglasses and rubbed his temples hard. The facial muscles under the bandages began to twitch, displaying an expression of extreme distress that was somewhere between mockery, absurdity, and disappointment.

With a final, forceful wave of his hand, he completely abandoned Qingye and stared at Chu Hengkong: "You, speak!"

"I want to bring the dead back to life," Chu Heng said calmly. "Then I'll find a place to retire and live out my days, occasionally going on trips."

Chongming turned around, found a large water glass, and gulped down two big mouthfuls of water.

"Damn it, you little geniuses," he said expressionlessly. "Is this the conclusion you've reached after your training?"

"Yes." "What's the problem?"

The two nodded cheerfully. Chongming nodded as well. The cold hatred seemed to have been peeled away from his bandaged face. The corners of his mouth curled up slightly, as if he wanted to laugh.

“Excellent!” the man exclaimed. “That’s right!”

"......?" X2

The expression, a mixture of mockery and disdain, vanished like mist, and Chongming burst into laughter, patting them forcefully on the shoulders like an overly enthusiastic older neighbor. His change in attitude was so swift, it was as if he were an actor changing masks, leaving the two bewildered and bewildered.

"Your ideals are your own business, and your life is in your own hands! Do you harbor a ridiculous dream? Then go for it!"

Qingye pointed at him, staring blankly for a long time: "You...you didn't say that before!"

Chongming flicked his cloak and raised his hand to the sky with a rather imposing gesture. His cloak fluttered violently behind him.

"What's swayed by a few words is nothing but a bubble," the man laughed. "What remains consistent with oneself is a dream!"

"What kind of idiotic logic is this! Your approach is purely idealistic, relying on sheer force to solve problems!!"

"Then what are you if you don't even have any presence?" Chongming laughed. "Someone who doesn't even understand the specifics, relying on seniority and presence to say things that sound reasonable, do you really think that will shake your plans?"

That's immature! That's foolish! Principles and methods are just for show; you can figure out the methods and meaning as you go, without worrying about what others say. If you believe it's right, just do it!

The two fell silent for a moment. Qingye recalled how easily she had wavered earlier, while Chu Hengkong remembered his own reluctance to voice his desires. Chongming lay down, resting his head on his hands, and said lazily, "Don't be misled by reason or logic. Those things must be shattered with your swords. Believe in your own heart! Believe in your own dreams! As long as you can do that, you will be a resilient and independent person!"

"No problem. You are now qualified to step onto the battlefield. Come with me for a war meeting to prepare for the next move."

Chapter 201 Inside and Outside the Mist

"Hey, Eyeball! When does the formation test start?!" Chongming shouted.

"It's only half-installed, what's the rush?"

Vande leaped out from behind the sacred pillar, clutching a blueprint in its tentacles and wearing a straw work hat on its head. It gave a few instructions to a researcher who ran up to it, then turned and said, "Tomorrow! At least tomorrow night."

"Too slow! Get it done today!"