The Heart Still Beats, the Blood Still Runs Hot

The outcome has already been decided on the field outside the villa.

The side walls of the villa were also collapsing one after another, leaning to the east and west, as if the battle was raging.

Yungu's offensive was swift as an eagle's beak, forceful and direct. Although his spear and halberd were flying around, they always aimed only at the head and vital points.

Chen Ying's figure was like a wisp of icy white cloud.

Sometimes it can swirl into a vortex, rising and falling lightly.

Sometimes it would lengthen into a sharp, fierce white beam of Gang Qi.

Liu Yan was covered in blood, with gunshot wounds and sword wounds.

Even when he's not injured, he can't fight two opponents at once for long.

Now, after undergoing a heart transplant and recovering from injuries, even his attempts to escape are repeatedly thwarted by Chen Ying.

"I have died here?!"

Liu Yan parried the spear thrusts repeatedly, then turned and roared, "You dare to return my heart? Let's fight again!"

"Old Liu, that's a really lame joke."

Chu Tianshu slowly walked in from where there was no door, rubbing his hands together as if he were washing them.

This is a unique set of energy-based massage techniques to relieve the soreness and numbness in my hands from the heavy palm strikes I just delivered.

"The last person who dared to keep his word against an animal like the emperor and wanted to fight him one-on-one was already chopped into mincemeat on the banks of the Wu River."

Chu Tianshu smiled, "One shouldn't try to gain Hegemon-King like Xiang Yu..."

"Although you are not worthy to be compared with Liu Bang, you claim to be the legitimate successor of the Liu Family, so others will naturally be more wary."

Before he finished speaking, he stretched out his right hand and gave Liu Yan a perfunctory push.

Thirty or forty meters apart, the courtyard was filled with corpses, all stained with blood.

The flowerbed tiles were all cracked, and broken branches and leaves were scattered everywhere.

Chu Tianshu's palm strike was like a mysterious, silent, and colorless gesture.

Without a trace, it touched Liu Yan's waist, turning the white fabric around his waist slightly black, seemingly carrying an aura of sorrow, shaped like a handprint.

Liu Yan's waist tensed; he was determined to take the blow head-on.

Unexpectedly, the palm strike, which had been solid, suddenly shifted to his side and unleashed its power.

BOOM!!

A handprint appeared on Liu Yan's cheek, and his head tilted to the side.

A gun was immediately thrust into his forehead.

The gun was originally meant to stab him in the eye, but he managed to dodge it.

The forehead of the White Dragon Bloodline is truly tough. After the spear pierced through the skin and flesh protection, it embedded itself in the forehead bone, only going in half an inch before getting stuck.

Chu Tianshu took a big step and rushed behind Liu Yan, throwing out his right fist and then instantly retracting it.

Liu Yan's head was hit and a noticeable dent was formed.

Wisps of black smoke rose from the pit.

Since his battles with Zhao Qinglang and the Wolf Head Swordsman, Chu Tianshu has been pondering the intricacies of the techniques day and night. His application of the "Heavenly Heart Sorrowful Demon Slash" is no longer limited to swordsmanship.

That strike, though it was a fist, actually carried the Saber Intent.

The Saber Intent annihilated the soul, delivering the final blow to Liu Yan's already weakened soul.

Chu Tianshu glanced at the token display and saw that another Evil Spirit had arrived. Only then was he certain that the evil spirit was truly dead, and he stepped back a few paces.

Yungu shook his spear and withdrew it.

Liu Yan's body lay sprawled on the ground.

Through the hole in his back, you could still vaguely see the newly replaced heart; the main blood vessels had been reconnected, and it was beating rapidly.

"His soul should have already dissipated, so how come his physical body is still alive?"

Yungu marveled in amazement.

Neither his Formation-Breaking Spear nor Chen Ying's Cold Elixir Sword left ordinary wounds.

It was already astonishing that Liu Yan could still fight after being stabbed so many times, but that couldn't compare to the miraculous state of "soul dead but body still alive" at this moment.

"My Saber Intent can annihilate not only the soul but also the spirit."

Chu Tianshu examined the corpse and pondered, "If it had been his original heart, it might have continued beating for another ten days or so."

"But this heart can only beat for two or three more days at most before it stops."

He raised his head, met Yungu's gaze, and then looked at Chen Ying.

The three of them wore similar expressions.

Chen Ying quickly glided away, ran to the tree trunk, and dug out the dragon blood heart.

Unfortunately, that heart had already stopped beating.

When she brought the heart, held by her sword, close to Liu Yan's corpse, there was no connection between them.

"It seems that since the soul has been destroyed, it's impossible to put that heart back in; we can only try to recreate its current form."

As Yungu spoke, he planted the spear to the side, squatted down, and pressed down on Liu Yan's neck, feeling the flow of blood in the body.

"Hey! How did he grow up like this? Dragon bloodline, so amazing..."

Whether it's Chu Tianshu, Yungu, or even Chen Ying who cultivates Dao of Alchemy, they all pay great attention to the circulation of qi and blood.

A Taboo corpse possessing the White Dragon Bloodline —that's an extremely rare find!

All three of them, without prior arrangement, wanted to investigate further.

Chu Tianshu squatted down, felt the corpse's pulse for a while, and then suddenly remembered something.

"Oh, right, we haven't dealt with the Incense-Bearing Child for those two yet."

He took out a silver needle, dabbed it with some of Liu Yan's blood, and silently chanted an incantation.

The silver needle twirled at his fingertips, indicating the direction.

"Liu Yan's Incense-Bearing Child is a goddess chosen by an evil sect. In many evil sects, goddesses like her are often puppets, but this woman is a ruthless character who shares Liu Yan's despicable nature."

Chu Tianshu looked at Chen Ying, "You should handle this, Daoist Master."

Chen Ying took the silver needle. "I'll be right back."

"And Yeming's accomplice, the president of the One-Character Spiritual Cultivation Society."

Chu Tianshu looked around. "Yeming was killed too cleanly."

Yungu laughed and said, "There were a few people who weren't dead in the courtyard originally, but during the fight, I swept up some pebbles and they all passed out."

"Two of them possess an aura similar to that of the Sect Leader Yeming."

Chu Tianshu had already discerned the difference between those few people among the many corpses.

He reached out and pulled a Divine Bat Envoy towards him, placing his foot on the bat's chest and causing a slight tremor.

The messenger exhaled sharply, and as soon as he awoke, he saw the hand hovering above him, with a windmill mark spinning in the palm. His eyes became dazed.

Without the remote control of the Sect Leader Yeming, these messengers found it difficult to resist Chu Tianshu's bewitching charm.

Do you know where your association president is?

"Know."

Yungu asked, "Should I go, or should we go together?"

Chu Tianshu smiled and said, "Since the general is willing to make this trip, I'll take a shortcut."

You really want me to go?

Yungu was a little surprised. He touched the cigarettes on his person, took out a cigarette case, and said, "I've already eliminated two rivals through this alliance, so I've made my money."

"Aren't you afraid that I'll leave this time and never come back, hiding away and watching the tigers fight from the sidelines?"

Yungu seemed afraid that Chu Tianshu wouldn't understand, so he explained a few more words.

"You are not one of the Seven Souls, and Chen Ying cultivates Dao of Alchemy; her aura will appear weaker than her true strength."

"Now, nearly thirty days have passed, and the connection between the Seven Souls is becoming increasingly strong."

"The others will think that Chen Ying is the weakest and most isolated link, and that I can just sit back and watch them come looking for me, only to run into you, this jinx."

Chu Tianshu simply laughed it off.

"General, if I were to forcibly detain you, or even attack you, would you then feel justified in turning against us?"

Yungu shook his head, took out a cigarette, and lit it.

"Sigh, I've been seen through."

He puffed out his cheeks and exhaled a perfectly round smoke ring.

"A showdown is inevitable sooner or later, so it's best not to get too close."

"I see you are a person who is determined to eliminate evil and can clearly distinguish between right and wrong. Even if I am defeated, you will not kill my Incense-Bearing Child, will you?"

Chu Tianshu opened his mouth and blew.

He blew away all the annoying smell of smoke.

"Since I clearly distinguish between good and evil, I won't attack you casually. If there's really no other way, I'll drag it out until the very end so you can have a fair fight."

Chu Tianshu took off his wristwatch from his left wrist and wiped the screen.

"Besides, it's not necessarily true that there's no way out."

Yungu's eyes flickered. "Although there are signs of a great era for cultivation, it is still a relatively recent revival. Do you have a way to deal with the Grotto-Heaven?"

"Cannot."

Chu Tianshu smiled, "But what we're standing on now is just the ruins of Grotto-Heaven; its potential is high, but its power is weak."

"You were chosen before you achieved the Taboo, and you are too deeply restrained by the ruins of the Grotto-Heaven. Our Taboo outside don't have so many restrictions."

Yungu asked curiously, "How much do you know about the Grotto-Heaven?"

"I don't know much about it."

Chu Tianshu said frankly, "But behind me is an entire nation's cultivation system, and a nation that particularly likes to preserve historical records. There are still various records about the Seven Po Cave-Heaven and speculations about ancient masters."

He had actually already relayed the message back to the Special Investigation Bureau.

Helai and Feng Jianhua are in seclusion.

This time, the matter was handed over to Mist-and-Rosycloud Wanderer, who was originally in charge of internal disciplinary work.

There's nothing we can do about it; he's relatively free, and I heard he's currently buried in the database, working day and night on research, which has sparked a lot of discussion.

"Is that so?"

Yungu, amidst the smoke, was lost in thought for a moment.

"If I had the chance, I would really like to go back and see Divine Land is like today."

(End of this chapter)