As Chen Chuan's blade came down, it felt as though it had struck something remarkably resilient and exceedingly solid.
Gazing at the scales covering his opponent, his eyes narrowed slightly.
He had read materials on jin from the Secret Snake Cult, which recorded that when the Mystic Snake jin was mastered to an extremely advanced stage, a fighter could cause mutated tissue to surface and form hardened scales, at which point even sharp blades would struggle to bite into them.
Yet Xu Xianwen had clearly not reached that level; otherwise, he would not have been wounded earlier. Now, however, he seemed to have entered this state through some particular method.
His assessment was correct. By releasing the medicinal potency stored within his body all at once and activating a prepared ritual, Xu Xianwen was able to elevate his jin power by an entire tier for a brief period, during which his hardened scales allowed him to disregard blade edges.
Having parried the strike, Xu Xianwen dissipated the incoming jin, twisted both arms, and tried to seize the blade.
Even though he could withstand slashing attacks, the length of the weapon still meant that only Chen Chuan could hit him, while he could not reach Chen Chuan. This left him at a distinct disadvantage, making trapping the weapon his top priority.
Chen Chuan gave him no such opportunity, swiftly withdrawing his saber and slashing again.
Xu Xianwen showed no sign of backing down either. With a savage expression, he lunged boldly into the path of the saber. Each time he met the blade, his muscles quivered as he forcefully jarred it aside.
Chen Chuan now noticed how his opponent's jin differed from before. Each time the blade cut into the flesh of Xu Xianwen's body or arms, a slippery, shedding force deflected it, making it impossible to deliver the full impact.
Furthermore, a jarring vibration was transmitted back toward him. Had he not used his Second Self to absorb it, his saber sequences would certainly have been disrupted, forcing him to readjust after every exchange.
Meanwhile, Xu Xianwen kept looking for an opening to press inward, his arms slithering like serpents, probing and parrying in an effort to lock Chen Chuan in close-quarters grappling.
After trading several blows, Chen Chuan recognized that Xu Xianwen was indeed far more troublesome with his heightened jin. However, without a weapon, the man ultimately needed to close the distance to pose a real threat. Chen Chuan immediately adapted accordingly.
He consciously began increasing his speed and widening his field of movement, creating distance before driving his slashes with the momentum of his body's charges.
With that, Xu Xianwen was instantly thrown onto the back foot.
The boost in jin had not made him faster than Chen Chuan. Having tried every trick to force his way into the inner ring, he was now stuck in the awkward position of being unable to keep up.
Every strike Chen Chuan delivered through rapid movement was devastatingly heavy. Even if Xu Xianwen could block them, each blow drove him backward or knocked him aside.
Under such concussive attacks, he could not mount an effective offense at all. He had no choice but to abandon his plan of closing in, focusing first on rapid maneuvering and dodging while seeking an opportunity.
The two clashed and chased back and forth along the lake shore like two mutually attracting magnets—drawing together swiftly the moment they parted. Every collision produced tremendous commotion, startling the surrounding waterfowl into taking flight and circling back down, while craters burst open one after another across the ground where they stamped down to exert force.
After fighting like this for a good five or six minutes, Xu Xianwen began to feel he could no longer hold out.
Though the scales on his body could ward off ordinary cuts, engaging bare-handed was inherently a major disadvantage. Each parry forced him to expend more stamina and jin to dissipate the force of the blade.
A moment later, the surge of excitement caused by the explosion of mutated tissue began to recede, and his mind gradually cooled.
He realized that even with more advanced jin, it could not make up for the lack of a weapon. Moreover, this open terrain worked against him while giving Chen Chuan ample room to wield his saber with sweeping dominance.
Thus, after deflecting yet another slash, he used its momentum to back away, whirled around, and sprinted straight toward the lake.
Chen Chuan had no intention of letting him escape so easily. Flicking his long saber, he leaped forward in pursuit.
Neither of them had been far from the lake to begin with, so in just a few breaths, they reached the water's edge. Neither paused, running straight ahead. The surface of the lake supported their treads as if it were solid ground, leaving only two churning trails of spray bursting far behind them.
After covering more than a dozen li across the water, Xu Xianwen's gaze darted about until he seemed to spot what he was looking for. This was his planned escape route—beneath Lulan Lake lay connections to several subterranean rivers; once he reached them, no one would be able to track him.
He turned his head, flashed a grin at Chen Chuan racing alongside him, and plunged into the water with a clean leap and a dull splash, vanishing in an instant.
Chen Chuan was hardly going to let him slip away. Tearing off his soaked duster, he leaped into the water as well, plunging straight into the depths in one breath. He smoothly shifted to internal breathing, and with a light stroke of his limbs, he carved a wake through the water, rapidly giving chase along the trail left behind.
Noticing Chen Chuan pursuing him underwater, Xu Xianwen did not care much at first. As a member of the Secret Snake Cult, his swimming abilities were exceptional. Yet after swimming several li, he was shocked to discover that Chen Chuan was drawing closer and closer, just as on land.
A vicious look flashed in his eyes. Wheeling around in mid-motion, he carved a wide arc to reach Chen Chuan's left flank, then unleashed a punch with all the momentum of his charge.
At this moment, not only could he operate underwater for prolonged periods, but his jin was also far easier to unleash to full effect beneath the surface.
Chen Chuan did not dodge. Shifting his saber to his left hand, he balled his right fist, twisted his body with his forward momentum, and met the strike head-on!
In an instant, fists collided!
It was just like the clash between the Wilderness faction and implant faction fighters underwater that day—the immense destructive force of both powers was borne entirely by their own bodies.
Xu Xianwen's muscles and scales rippled violently, sending concentric rings of shockwaves pulsing through the water around him. On Chen Chuan's side, his Second Self blurred into an illusory state, while a violent shockwave erupted where their knuckles met.
Both men were pushed backward by the force, but simultaneously kicked their legs, spun rapidly along the vortex, and closed in again, smashing together once more with tremendous power!
The impact was even louder than before, and the shockwaves radiating outward killed several small aquatic creatures nearby.
Yet neither stopped. They pressed forward, trading devastating blows again and again, gathering their entire body's jin into a single focal point before driving it toward each other with everything they had.
The battle inevitably devolved into a contest of attrition—a test of who possessed greater willpower and endurance.
This was inescapable. Because Chen Chuan was faster, Xu Xianwen would be overtaken no matter what. If he wanted to escape alive, he had to take Chen Chuan down first!
And this assault represented his maximum capability underwater; he had to hold out no matter the cost.
Chen Chuan had even less reason to back down. With his Second Self to divert damage, he had nothing to fear from injuries or prolonged attrition. He could keep this contest going indefinitely.
After clashing more than a dozen consecutive times, Xu Xianwen felt wave after wave of exhaustion radiating from his mutated tissue. His muscles could barely pull against the strain; this mode of fighting, burning through all his strength in repeated head-on collisions, consumed far too much stamina.
Furthermore, the jin awakened by the ritual was waning. Yet with the rhythm of combat locked in, he found himself unable to stop.
Crucially, he could think of no better countermeasure. He could only grit his teeth and endure, hoping Chen Chuan would collapse before he did.
He continuously drew vital essence from his heart to compensate for his depleted stamina and sustain the high-drain circulation of jin.
After countless exchanges, the two charged each other once more. This time, as Xu Xianwen drew upon his jin, he felt a sudden emptiness in his body. When their fists collided again, the bones of his hand cracked and shattered, the fracture spreading up his arm into his torso. The flesh and scales along the way burst apart, spraying clouds of crimson into the water.
Instead of backing off, he braced against the massive recoil and surged toward Chen Chuan with a twisted, ferocious grimace.
As long as he closed the distance, he still had a chance to reverse the situation using the grappling techniques of Mystic Snake jin!
Seeing him close in, Chen Chuan's eyes flashed. He did not retreat either; riding the recoil, he spun in place and whipped the Xuejun Saber out like a lash!
Driven by full-body jin, a shockwave flared along the plane of the cut!
Xu Xianwen took fright and scrambled to evade, yet was still grazed. A cloud of blood erupted and drifted into the current; the slash extended all the way across his chest, and his shoulder was nearly sheared clean off his body.
This blow completely extinguished any possibility of a counterattack.
Yet knowing flight was hopeless, he did not pull back. Instead, taking advantage of the saber passing, he pressed forward, trying to seize whatever slim chance remained. But no sooner had he moved than a fist slammed square into his face. His head swam with dizzying darkness, and all strength drained from his limbs.
Through his hazy consciousness, he suddenly felt a hand reach for his head. Jolted by a sense of mortal danger, he instinctively channeled jin to bat the hand away.
Seeing this, Chen Chuan clipped the Xuejun Saber to the fastener at his waist, grabbed Xu Xianwen by the hair, drew his short blade with his other hand, and plunged it savagely into his throat, running it clean through his neck!
Xu Xianwen's eyes flew wide. Summoning an unknown surge of strength, he clamped a hand onto Chen Chuan's arm, struggling desperately.
However, though Chen Chuan had stripped off his outer duster, he still wore his protective suit underneath. The ritual within it immediately began draining Xu Xianwen's vitality and blood in a relentless flow.
In merely a breath, Xu Xianwen's grip went limp.
Chen Chuan casually brushed the hand aside, took Xu Xianwen by the hair, withdrew the short blade, and swept it smoothly around his neck in a full circle. With a sharp lift, he severed the head from the shoulders. The headless corpse ceased its struggles at last, drifting limply in the water.
Chapter 387