Breaking the Darkness, Seeing New Light

Breaking the Darkness, Seeing New Light The soil on the ground slowly parted, and a great ocher urn rose up from underground, settling onto the ground beside it. Cracks soon spread across the surface of the urn, and amid the cracking sounds, pieces peeled away and drifted off into the air, chunk by chunk. As a large pool of yellowed liquid flowed out onto the ground, a "person" was revealed within—body deathly pale, smeared all over with a thick gelatinous medicinal paste. The four limbs of this person had all been severed; only tubes were inserted and connected at his mouth and nose, linking to the outside to maintain the most basic breathing. And those above usually relied on this very thing to judge whether the person below was dead or alive. Chen Chuan walked forward. From that barely recognizable, resolute face, he could identify the other as none other than Chen Bitong. Only now his eyes were tightly shut, the functions of his body already sunk to a low ebb, looking like a candle guttering in the wind. Yet one could sense that a stubborn willpower was holding up this broken body, sustaining that last tiny bit of the flame of life. Seeing this, Huo Zhuifeng could not help but heave a sigh. After a single glance, Chen Chuan had already roughly understood Chen Bitong's physical condition. Fighters usually have tenacious vitality; as long as they get enough nutrition, they can recover on their own by relying on their mutated tissue. However, due to the long lack of high-energy nutrition, the mutated tissue in Chen Bitong's body had nearly atrophied; and if mutated tissue lacks nutrition for a long time, it will erode the body. If not for a possible suppressant contained in the life-prolonging pill used to keep him alive, he might have already died by now. Yet even so, the situation was not optimistic: apart from the vital organs not having been invaded, the rest of him had been filled by deformed, overgrown mutated tissue. Now if nutrition were supplied, it would surely be greedily absorbed by this mutated tissue first, which would instead hasten his death. The mutated tissue, which had nearly fused into one with his flesh and bones, had to be dealt with first. He now reached out and pressed the spot between Chen Bitong's brows, and a white-gold fire of spirituality flickered over his body. After it shone into Chen Bitong's body, the excess mutated tissue was rapidly dissolved and stripped away, while a gentle energy drawn by the spirit began to slowly repair the body riddled with wounds. After it continued for a dozen or so seconds, Chen Bitong's faint, barely-there breathing gradually grew more substantial, and his heartbeat began to grow forceful. Chen Chuan lowered his finger. Chen Bitong had now been pulled back from the brink of death; next, as long as he had enough nutrition and went through a period of recuperation, he would be able to gradually recover. But the wounds of the body were easy to treat; as for the spiritual ones... After a while, Chen Bitong's eyelids twitched as he tried to open his eyes. At first they were only narrowed into a slit, but he soon adjusted to the outside light and opened them fully. The instant his gaze met Chen Chuan's, seeing that still-resolute and bright look in his eyes, Chen Chuan knew he had not gone mad. He said, "Teacher Chen, how do you feel?" Chen Bitong looked at him and moved his lips, but at first could not produce a sound, as if he had forgotten how to speak. After a moment, in a strained, somewhat unfamiliar and feeble voice, he said, "Did... did it... succeed?" Chen Chuan knew he was asking about those scattered pure essence. He nodded and said, "Teacher Chen, it succeeded." Now, watching Chen Bitong and noting his condition, Chen Chuan thought that for a fighter to have held on until now had relied mainly on his own tenacious, unyielding willpower, and on the things weighing on his heart that he could not let go of. He had feared that after learning this news, Chen Bitong might let go of everything. Fortunately, after hearing it, Chen Bitong's eyes only grew brighter. Watching from the side, Huo Zhuifeng was deeply moved. Enduring the urn punishment for so many years was only possible in theory; an ordinary person would have gone mad long ago. Just look at the people buried here and it becomes clear—how did Chen Bitong hold on until now, knowing full well that there was no hope left? After saying that one sentence, Chen Bitong seemed to have regained a bit of his former feeling. In a dry, hoarse voice, he said, "...How long has it been?" Chen Chuan said, "Today is the sixth day of the first month, in the ninety-ninth year of Jianzhi. It has been exactly four years since you were imprisoned, Teacher Chen." "Four years, then." Chen Bitong was dazed for a moment, then asked, "Trainee Chen, how did you find me?" Under the nourishment of the gentle energy Chen Chuan had drawn over, the functions of every part of his body began to gradually recover. Chen Chuan said, "The former imperial household has been destroyed. I learned of your whereabouts from Gai Shuhe." A trace of surprise involuntarily appeared in Chen Bitong's eyes. The former imperial household had been destroyed? Four years? Had truly only four years passed? Huo Zhuifeng said, "Instructor Chen, there is no need to doubt it. Much has happened over the past four years. You can tend to your body first, then slowly come to understand." Chen Chuan said, "Teacher Chen, let me take you back for treatment first." He reached out and laid a hand on Chen Bitong's shoulder. At this, Huo Zhuifeng turned his gaze to one side. "You two go on ahead. I'll go take a look at those two, see what they're about." So saying, he headed toward a stretch of open ground. After he left, Chen Bitong asked, "Xiao Jin... is he doing all right?" Chen Chuan said, "Rest assured, Teacher Chen, he is doing well. He is now a trainee at Wuyi Academy. The Main Academy recently held a national tournament, and he took part in it as well. You should be able to watch his match." A complicated look appeared in Chen Bitong's eyes. He said, "Trainee Chen, please do not tell him for now." Chen Chuan nodded. Not telling Chen Xiaojin for now was prudent—otherwise it might affect his condition. Besides, he felt it would be safer for father and son to meet after Chen Bitong had recovered. Although Chen Bitong's hands and feet had been lost, there were now many techniques that could make him like an ordinary person again, and even restoring his strength was not impossible, so this was not something to worry too much about. He said, "Teacher Chen, I'll take you away." With that, a wisp of white-gold radiance flowed from his palm onto Chen Bitong, and then the two of them slowly rose from the ground. Seeing this, Chen Bitong grew even more astonished. Being able to wield such an ability undoubtedly revealed Chen Chuan's present identity. A martial artist! He could not help but glance at Chen Chuan. Over four years, it seemed a great deal truly had happened. Then he only felt the surrounding scenery suddenly blur. Having overdrawn himself so heavily, he had been holding on purely by a single breath just now; now that his mind and spirit relaxed, his eyelids grew heavy, and he then sank into a deep sleep. Carrying him, Chen Chuan made his way out of the convergence zone and headed back toward Anbei Dao. Although Haixi Dao's Central City had medical facilities, the entire Haixi Dao had not yet been incorporated into the Skyline, so it was not appropriate to arrange things there. Anbei Dao lay just north of Zhongjing, behind the Youdu army, which was more convenient for looking after him. When they neared the airship outside the city, a professional medical team was already waiting to receive him and take him to Central City. Chen Chuan got in touch with the person in charge of Central City's hospital and inquired about the techniques for restoring limbs. The other party said that using an implant was the most convenient, and it could basically guarantee a match with the original limbs. If one was unwilling to use an implant, there were currently drugs that could promote limb regeneration. It was just that the treatment cost would be somewhat higher and take longer—usually it might take five or six years to fully cure. If that was not used either, there was also regeneration transplantation, which was faster; at most one or two years would be enough, but at a higher cost. Chen Chuan understood the importance of a fighter's original limbs, so he had them carry out the last option. After sending Chen Bitong into Central City's medical treatment center, he specially assigned an orderly to follow up on the matter. Once everything was settled, he then entered the convergence zone once more and returned to the front lines. Everything at the Youdu front was as usual; the Cave Mystery View martial artists who had joined the war had now returned one after another. The Ring of the World had previously been subjected to frequent incursions, but perhaps because those beings had learned that the former imperial household had already been taken down, the number of incursions had gradually lessened, and the overall pressure was no longer so great. Now at the front, only the few martial artists sent by the military ministry remained. The war had now fully entered its final stage; military resistance everywhere had been basically cleared away. Chen Chuan felt that by the end of the month at the latest, he should be able to hand this whole affair over. And at this time, the package from the Tianji Sect finally arrived. After receiving it, Chen Chuan opened it and read the letter. It should have been written in Real Man Long Xian's own hand. It answered some of the questions he had raised, saying that the descriptions of the "Immortal Lodge" he had heard were not mistaken. He only reminded Chen Chuan that if the Immortal Lodge was to be used, it was best not to use one that others had used before; as for the "Immortal Seed" it could be reverted back into, that could be put to use, but one should not rely on it as the mainstay. He then added that cultivating the Aberrant Visage and the Visage of the Divine did not necessarily require the aid of the Immortal Lodge, so in this respect it might differ from the Visage of Man. Long Xian said he had consulted the Celestial Master on this. The Celestial Master had said that the various things Chen Chuan had heard must have come from some ancient deity; the external-use items given to him, such as the Immortal Lodge and precious materials, could be accepted after careful consideration, but if he wished to achieve anything in his cultivation, he must not walk the path the other had laid out. Reading this far, Chen Chuan could not help but nod. As expected of the Celestial Master—in just a few words, he had discerned that the things Chen Chuan had asked about came from some ancient deity. As for the methods of cultivation, he bore in mind Heavenly Master Lu's admonition from that day: not to seek from without, but to turn inward and question himself. In fact, what Elder She had told him was the same—he had only provided some of the external conditions Chen Chuan needed, without saying a single word about how exactly to cultivate. In his understanding, the Visage of Man had its own peculiarities; it was an intensely self-reliant cultivation, where each person had their own path, and outsiders could offer no biased help. So it was not just that Qiutong Jun had said nothing superfluous at the time—even if he had, Chen Chuan would not have listened. And the answers in this letter had basically resolved the doubts in his heart. Next, he could at ease break down the "Immortal Lodge" and revert it back into an "Immortal Seed." Just as he was thinking this, he sensed a fluctuation in the field. Turning his gaze, he saw that after so long a period of confrontation and attrition, Hongfu had gradually gained the upper hand; that streak of red had finally swallowed up the last wisp of crystalline mist. ... ...