Almost the very instant the two spiritual impacts flared into being, they surged toward Yuan Congye and Tie Rugan.
Yet Jiang Linghuai and Mu Xiaoren stood directly in front of them; by all rights, the blasts should have struck them first.
However, just as the dazzling light was on the verge of slamming into them, it skirted cleanly around both men, its speed not slackening in the slightest.
It looked like a stream of water meeting an elevated mound, flowing naturally along the curvature of the surface.
Neither Yuan Congye nor Tie Rugan had anticipated that a spiritual impact could undergo such a variation, but trusting their instincts for danger, they had moved to evade in advance.
Yet what shocked them even more was that the rays of light actually pursued them.
Because a spiritual impact consisted of highly concentrated spiritual fire, it was normally beyond its caster's control once unleashed; even if its properties underwent changes, altering its direction was extraordinarily difficult.
Yet Chen Chuan's feat shattered all common sense as they understood it. Moreover, judging from his casual demeanor, this was no special technique, but something he could perform with an offhand gesture.
In the space of a thought, the spiritual impacts slammed into their bodies. This was no simple, fleeting blow, but a continuous barrage like rushing water, binding them firmly as it shoved them far into the distance.
Under this onslaught, Yuan Congye's Vajra Body, which could only be maintained for a short period, was the first to break.
The spiritual impact invaded his body without restraint. The colossal, surging concussive force was so violent that, had it been allowed to continue, he had no doubt it could tear apart and destroy his flesh in a matter of moments.
As things stood, releasing his Aberrant Visage early seemed the only way to withstand such an impact. But he did not wish to expose his Aberrant Visage prematurely, for the time had not yet come.
There was another option: allow his body to blow apart and regenerate afterward.
Yet the presence of that anomaly made him deeply wary. He could not be certain whether choosing the latter would draw its attention.
Thus he made a different choice, reaching out mentally to communicate with an enormous entity.
That was one of the variant beasts they had brought along beforehand—the Yuepinlong.
This variant beast possessed no unique abilities and moved sluggishly, rendering it largely useless in direct combat between figures of their tier. Its sole virtue was its thick hide and extraordinary vitality; once injured, its recovery speed was unfathomably rapid.
Several of them had performed a special ritual with it in advance: so long as they remained within the variant beast's domain, any force directed at them that exceeded their tolerance threshold would be borne by the beast instead, preventing instantaneous death. For this very reason, even though transporting it had delayed their journey, they had insisted on bringing it along.
However, the number of individuals who could form this bond was limited; at present, the ritual had only been bound to him, Tie Rugan, and one other primary attacker.
Now, he immediately activated the ritual. Tie Rugan had in fact been relying on this method all along to withstand damage. When only one person used it, it remained inconspicuous, but when both did so simultaneously, the resulting domain disturbance became glaringly evident.
Chen Chuan's eyes flickered slightly. He caught the shift at once, and combining it with the behavior of the two men, formed an assessment in his mind.
The active conscious entity on his external implant also ran rapid calculations, concluding that some form of ritual substitution was at work, pointing the source to the rear, within a certain area behind the airship.
The reason its presence had eluded detection initially was that it occupied a special, isolated domain space, establishing contact with the outside world only when the ritual was activated.
Chen Chuan turned the thought over. If his deduction was correct, this was likely one of the three things he had spotted earlier.
In truth, his aim was to apply relentless pressure and force out the enemy's trump cards one by one.
Now that he knew the source, he could devise a way to neutralize it.
Even as this crossed his mind, Yuan Congye and Tie Rugan, having been propelled far enough by the blast, mustered enough power to finally wrench themselves free from the spiritual impacts.
Yet looking across the distance at Chen Chuan standing midair, they felt a wave of troublesome vexation.
Although their relic had constrained Chen Chuan's speed, it could not restrict his spiritual impacts.
A martial artist of the Dongxuan View had no need to fear energy depletion, which meant that even while standing completely still, Chen Chuan could unleash spiritual impacts to hinder and severely threaten them.
And now that they had unexpectedly lost another person, their prior tactical plan would have to change.
Right at that moment, a clear, crisp voice rang in everyone's ears:
"Shift!"
In that instant, the surrounding airspace seemed to undergo a subtle shift. One by one, the figures of the former imperial household vanished from the battlefield, as though they had never been there at all.
This was the work of another variant beast, the Zhuanlinghong. It could generate an immense domain space and partition individuals within range into separate domain pockets. However, if a target resisted, a violent clash of wills would ensue, leaving it uncertain whether they could be sealed inside.
They had originally intended to deploy it when an opportunity arose in combat. Even if a powerhouse Xuanji martial artist like Chen Chuan remained unaffected or carried a relic that shielded him, the others lacked that capability, allowing them to isolate him from his companions.
Yet the battlefield situation had shifted. Both Chen Chuan's overwhelming dominance and the appearance of that anomaly forced them to take a step back and regroup their strategy.
At this very moment, that same voice echoed once more through the minds of everyone in the former imperial household:
"Everyone, I have just calculated the omen. That inner demon is exceedingly vicious. To remain unharmed by it, two conditions must not be violated. First, the standard body must not be lightly broken or dispersed—"
The group felt a chill. This meant their bodies could not suffer destruction. One of the greatest advantages of the Dongxuan View was complete indifference to physical harm or body destruction; this condition essentially sealed that capability away.
Under normal circumstances, that would still be manageable, but they were facing Chen Chuan. Against such an opponent, every single blow was brutally savage. Even though they possessed means of evasion, who could guarantee they wouldn't make a single mistake?
"Second, one's intent must not falter; one must maintain their standard spirit. Only with a whole body and steady spirit can one evade this inner demon."
The meaning was abundantly clear: one must never slip into a blank or senseless state of mind while their body was being broken. Yuan Rong's demise just now had clearly happened because his body was blown apart at the exact moment his spirit was assaulted.
Tie Rugan asked at this point, "Senior Priest Mizhu, I've heard that inner demons recognize neither kin nor friend. Will it affect the puppet court as well?"
Mizhuzi replied, "From what I have observed, this art exerts its toll on them as well.
"However, this demon possesses a singularly terrifying trait: anyone who sets foot in its domain and lingers, even for a moment, silently enters into a pact with it. Thereafter, no matter where one goes, one will be stalked by this inner demon.
"If no means of dispelling it is found, then whenever one's body is injured and one's intent falters in the future, this inner demon can manifest instantly and devour them.
"Though the demon knows neither friend nor foe, this trap was laid by the puppet court. They know the method of removing it, so they have no cause for worry; we, however, must exercise extreme caution."
Hearing this, the others felt a wave of dread. They had not expected this anomaly to cling to them indefinitely. Still, that was a matter for later; now that they knew how to avoid triggering it, they merely needed to remain vigilant.
The crux lay with Chen Chuan. His performance had far exceeded their expectations, costing them a comrade right at the outset.
Fortunately, they had come well prepared today. Yuan Rong's death was not without value—at least it had forced out some of the opponent's cards, allowing them to reorganize their tactics.
On Chen Chuan's side, seeing the surrounding enemies vanish from sight, he exerted his will. The spiritual fire he had unleashed earlier rose into the air, streaming back into his body strand by strand, thread by thread.
The platinum streams of light momentarily illuminated the entire night sky above the convergence zone.
This was his unique, highly activated capability—even the spiritual fire discharged in a spiritual impact became like a living creature, able to return into his body.
He immediately contacted Mu Xiaoren and Jiang Linghuai. There was slight interference at first, but soon their domains and spiritual fires flared in the distant sky one after another, confirming they were unharmed.
Mu Xiaoren said, "Officer Chen, this should be the domain power of some high-tier aberrant creature. For now, its intensity seems modest; breaking free when it partitioned us wasn't difficult. But there's no telling if its intensity can increase. I'll draw up a contingency plan for this."
Jiang Linghuai remained silent. He had no aptitude for planning and strategy, but whenever needed, he would charge straight to where he was required.
Chen Chuan nodded. Though the enemy had concealed themselves, their next assault would surely be more targeted.
Yet the skirmish just now had exposed plenty of information about them, and a strategy to eliminate the foe was already taking shape in his mind. When he engaged them again, he would raise the intensity of the fight.
Yet he would not cling stubbornly to a single approach. If a clear opportunity presented itself, he would immediately unleash his full power to annihilate every invading foe in one stroke.
At this point, he reached out mentally to Wen Mingzhong in the rear: "Mr. Wen, is everything all right on your end?"
Wen Mingzhong was currently holed up inside a fortified underground bunker in the rear. Before him lay a sand painting depicting a little figure with a massive head and a tiny body. Originally, its body had been quite small, but now it had swollen a full size larger.
He wore a grave expression. This anomaly was exceedingly perilous; once its head-to-body proportions reached a natural balance, there was a risk of losing control.
Still, under today's circumstances, deploying this anomaly was remarkably fitting.
He replied, "Officer Chen, the 'Diner' is stable for the moment. But to be safe, we should try to avoid having it appear again in the near future."
Chen Chuan understood and replied with an affirmative.
In any case, the enemy was unaware of this limitation, and the intended deterrent effect had already been achieved. From here on, the foe would surely go out of their way to avoid triggering it.
He had barely exchanged two sentences when the surrounding scenery abruptly underwent an eerie shift.
He looked up. It seemed the enemy was making their move once again.
Chapter 1404