High Above

Beneath a tall building in Shenwei District, Chen Chuan took advantage of the brief lull to consume a few tubes of nutrition paste, pondering the direction of his own jin. His thinking was that what he practiced was the Zhouyuan Jin technique, which was what distinguished him from others, and this crucial advantage could not be cast aside. Second, in combat, he needed a force capable of delivering a decisive blow—just like the various types of jin he had seen before, which, once fully unleashed, were virtually unstoppable. In his case, this could be seizing jin, grappling jin, or loose-hand jin. Whichever he employed, it had to be harmonious and unified. Whatever technique he executed, it required a corresponding offensive jin, with the ability to transition swiftly and smoothly between them. To others, this might seem unthinkable, but his body possessed an extremely high coverage of mutated tissue, backed by the foundation of Zhouyuan jin, making it entirely feasible. Most importantly, once he possessed sufficient foundations and means of support, combined with such firm conviction deep within his heart, his spirit would reflect into physical reality, turning his belief into truth. First was the loose-hand jin. When he fought Chen Bitong and the others earlier, he had used furnace breathing to stimulate the destructive jin taught by Chen Bitong, as well as the Cloud-Collapsing Hand passed down to him by Instructor Wen. Comparing the two types of jin, one focused on wide-area destruction while the other centered on concentrated destruction; each had its strengths, and each had its flaws. The former required the second self as backing to transfer the damage, and it demanded a certain buildup of momentum when unleashed; without adequate buildup, its full power could hardly be displayed. After his prolonged practice, the Cloud-Collapsing Hand had grown faster and more covert, packing no small amount of power, and it integrated more cleanly with furnace breathing. However, because these offensive methods had already been honed to relative completeness by others, reaching his hands without need for modification, it was difficult to infuse his own distinct characteristics and will into them. Therefore, relying on these two jin techniques as his loose-hand offensive methods was sufficient, yet he could not shake the feeling that something was lacking. If it felt intuitively amiss in spirit, it meant they did not fully align with his true self. Thus, he still needed to forge a different path and find what truly suited him. At this thought, he could not help reflecting that the next limit was named "martial artist" for good reason. It seemed only those who carved out a path truly their own could bear that title. For now, although he had yet to figure out a heart jin suited to himself, many things could not be achieved overnight. After all, he had only grasped these skills today, and his foundation of experience was still lacking. He believed that after other fighters embarked on this path, they likewise needed time to hone and perfect their own jin. Going forward, perhaps he could try sparring and exchanging blows with more fighters. His advantage lay in the freedom to experiment by trial and error, making bold attempts because his second self could absorb and transfer his injuries—something no other fighter could match. Furthermore, Wuyi Academy had Hongfu available as a sparring partner, a privilege unattainable to fighters outside the academy. In the days ahead, he would make full use of this advantage to perfect his personal jin. Of course, cultivating his spiritual power could not be neglected either. Currently, the depth of his spirit was supported by his second self, so the spiritual strength of his original body still needed to be raised as much as possible. Otherwise, if the second self were battered into dispersing during combat, his own prowess would diminish as a result. He had to do everything he could to shore up this weakness going forward. In fact, from this battle, what he gained was not merely an increase in spiritual power; his second self had also taken a major stride forward. And if he could elevate the second self to his current level or even higher, then once it achieved final completion and merged with him a second time, he ought to be able to reach or even surpass that boundary that existed only in theory. Just as he was lost in thought, his boundary credential rustled with static for several moments before a signal attempted to contact him. He glanced at it and connected. "Student Chen, is that you?" Pan Xiaode's voice sounded through the boundary credential. Chen Chuan said, "Student Pan? It's me. Were you looking for me?" He turned the matter over in his mind. Pan Xiaode did not seem to hold any duties outside; if there were an operation, it would normally be arranged collectively by Wuyi Academy. Contacting him now—had something happened? Pan Xiaode said in an excited tone, "I'm right above you." "Above?" Chen Chuan raised his head and looked at the towering buildings flanking both sides. But he quickly realized what Pan Xiaode meant and looked higher toward the airship aloft. Right away, he saw someone step out near the airship's porthole and wave at him—it was indeed Pan Xiaode. Somewhat surprised to find him there, Chen Chuan said, "Student Pan, I see you." Pan Xiaode waved vigorously at him again and said, "Are you on a mission down there?" Chen Chuan said, "I just finished a mission and am taking a break." "Hey, what a coincidence! Student Chen, if you have time, why not come up and sit for a while? I've got everything here, communications are convenient, and if you need to go anywhere, I can drop you off later. It's much better than staying on the ground." From Pan Xiaode's words, he seemed to have the authority here. Chen Chuan felt this was fine too; currently, information relay depended entirely on the airships drifting in the sky. For mobility as well as signal transmission, it was indeed far superior to remaining below. Without hesitation, he agreed. Pan Xiaode seemed to turn around and say something to someone else. After a moment, he said, "Um, Student Chen, see that building beside you? It's hard for the airship to touch down, so head up to the roof. We'll pick you up from there." Chen Chuan glanced over. It was an office building of fifty or sixty stories. There was likely no one inside right now. Although the building was currently sealed off, he had no need to go through the interior. He took a few strides toward it, building up speed, then stepped onto the exterior wall and ran straight up along the face of the building, quickly arriving on the roof. In the distance, the airship slowly drew near and descended. It seemed to be coated with a certain spray; as it approached, the vast swarms of insects circling nearby dispersed to either side. Once it hovered above him, a rope ladder was lowered from above. He reached out and caught it. The rope ladder carried him upward, and once near the opening in the underside of the cabin, he gave a light tug, vaulted upward, and landed calmly inside. Pan Xiaode was waiting right there. He clapped his hands in delight and said, "Student Chen, I spotted you from above just now and thought I'd say hello." Chen Chuan asked, "Student Pan, how do you happen to be here?" Pan Xiaode said, "Well, the biggest airship company in Center City, the Sky Shark Airship Company, belongs to my family. With such a massive requisition of airships this time, the academy sent me over to coordinate and deploy defenses for them." Upon asking, Chen Chuan learned that most of the airships in Center City—both transport and combat vessels—were custom-ordered from Sky Shark, which even took orders from the military. Yet unlike other companies nowadays, this firm did not involve itself in other business ventures, nor did it maintain its own armed forces; it resembled a traditional company of the old era. Pan Xiaode had never mentioned any of this before; he had kept an exceptionally low profile. As the two spoke, two expressionless security officers appeared behind them. Pan Xiaode introduced them as personnel dispatched by the Government Affairs Department, responsible for security aboard the airship. The two men came forward, shook hands with Chen Chuan, and communicated a reminder through the boundary credential: "Captain Chen, while resting here, please do not disclose any information not released to the public." Chen Chuan understood. Termed security personnel, they were essentially monitors meant to prevent sensitive information from leaking. He responded, "Understood." Pan Xiaode asked warmly, "Student Chen, have you eaten?" Chen Chuan said, "I've been busy on missions since the early hours of the morning. Haven't gotten around to eating." Pan Xiaode checked his wristwatch. It was 11:45 AM. He said, "I haven't eaten either—I've been coordinating and overhauling the airships this whole time. Come on, we can eat together." Chen Chuan nodded readily. Pan Xiaode led him to a banquet parlor located in the upper-middle deck. Since this airship was originally a sightseeing vessel, it featured expansive transparent windows allowing diners to view the ground below while eating. Chen Chuan walked to the window and looked out. There were dense swarms of insects everywhere. Indistinct from the ground, from high above they could be seen forming several clusters of grey insect clouds gathered tightly together, standing out with particular prominence in several locations. Pan Xiaode walked over and said, "All these insects come from the Confluence, right? To be honest, it was the first time I'd ever heard of that place, not to mention the idea of two worlds colliding. It really gave me quite a scare." He looked at Chen Chuan and asked curiously, "Have you been there, Student Chen?" Then he quickly added, "Oh, if it violates security regulations, don't mind me, Student Chen." Chen Chuan said, "There's nothing secret about it. I have indeed been there. Once you reach the third limit, Student Pan, you'll encounter it as well." Pan Xiaode clenched his fist and said with fiery determination, "I really want to go down like you and fight those mercenaries, drive back the creatures from the Confluence, and help us get past this invasion crisis sooner. I'm not strong enough right now, but next time, I'll definitely catch up." Chen Chuan looked at him. Pan Xiaode was clearly trusted deeply by his family, which had briefed him on some of the situation regarding the two worlds, yet it seemed they still had not told him plainly about the matter of Fumu splitting. Just then, two servers rolled in a dining cart and laid out platters of delicate dishes across the table. Pan Xiaode invited him, "Let's eat first." Chen Chuan nodded, but at that moment, his steps paused slightly. Pan Xiaode asked, "Student Chen, what's wrong?" Chen Chuan said, "Nothing." From the very beginning, he had been maintaining the Spiritual Illumination Reflection Method, absorbing quintessence from the other world. And just moments ago, he had suddenly sensed a faint ripple emanating from the other side. An ordinary person might have assumed it was due to instability in the fissure—it did resemble that to some degree—but he did not believe that was the case. It was very likely that a tear had been ripped open earlier, and the pure substance was venting outward. Looking at it this way, it would probably not be long before that pure substance dispersed into this world.