Chapter 6: Hesitate for a Second, and I'll Give You a Sword
He showed not the slightest mercy.
Having been immersed in the cruel reality, Su Chen had gradually come to understand a simple truth: no matter the circumstances, one must never show the slightest bit of mercy or pity toward an enemy.
Without lingering any longer, Su Chen turned and left.
The Heavenly Punishment Forest.
Located in the northeast of Panyou City, the quickest route to reach the East Wasteland Academy in the shortest possible time was straight through the Heavenly Punishment Forest.
This was a world of fierce beasts, and rumor had it that deep within the forest, Condensing Spirit Realm beasts existed.
The dense forest blocked out the sun and sky.
Dusk descended, casting long shadows over the towering trees.
A desolate chill swept through the forest, making one feel deeply ill at ease.
When Su Chen reached the Heavenly Punishment Forest, night had fallen completely, and the gloomy sky felt so oppressive it was hard to breathe.
Under the cover of night, the Heavenly Punishment Forest echoed with the roars of wild beasts, accompanied by occasional miserable cries—proof that yet another martial artist had fallen prey to the beasts.
Many martial artists chose to enter the forest to temper themselves or to hunt beasts for profit.
Looking at the pitch-black forest before him, Su Chen's gaze was ice-cold. Just a few days ago, it was right here that Su Hao had crippled his Blood Wheel.
And now, he would take his very first step from this exact place.
The moment he stepped into the forest, Su Chen sensed a powerful fluctuation. Something unusual was happening.
Without any hesitation, he sped directly toward the source of the fluctuation.
A black bear standing over four meters tall was locked in a ferocious, life-and-death battle with a man.
"To think they are both in the Void Core Realm."
His eyes lit up. Su Chen neither made a move nor chose to leave. What he needed to do now was watch the fire from across the river, waiting until the man and the bear both suffered heavy injuries so he could step in and clean up the mess.
He had already begun practicing the Chaotic Swallowing Art. The most tyrannical aspect of this chaotic martial art was its ability to swallow any power for its own use, completely free of any backlash or sequelae.
Boom, boom, boom!
The life-and-death struggle between the man and the bear escalated continuously. Unable to withstand the tyrannical energy sweeping across the ground, the earth began to crack, spider-webbing in all directions.
Fresh blood stained the ground. The man and the bear were evenly matched, and if they kept fighting to the death, the only outcome would be mutual destruction. Knowing this, neither side dared to stop first.
Bang!
Struck by their most powerful collision yet, the bodies of both the man and the bear slammed heavily onto the ground. In the quiet night, one could even hear the sound of bones shattering.
A look of joy crossed Su Chen's face. Without a moment's hesitation or dawdling, he lunged forward like an arrow released from a bow.
He was closest to the black bear.
Because the bear's injuries were far too severe, even though it clearly saw someone approaching with malicious intent, it could only glare fiercely, utterly unable to stand up and fight back.
Using his finger in place of a sword, he fused his Sword Blood Wheel into the sword qi.
The sharp and tyrannical sword qi, carrying a chilling killing intent, pierced straight through the black bear's head.
Deep within his body, the Chaotic Swallowing Art rapidly circulated, wrapping strands of devouring energy around the black bear's soul and beginning to frantically erode it.
The Chaotic Swallowing Art could devour all forms of energy, including the souls of beasts and martial artists.
Su Chen knew very well that if he wanted to rapidly elevate his cultivation realm, he had to rely on the devouring power of the Chaotic Swallowing Art; otherwise, his cultivation speed would be severely limited.
As for whether it was cruel, Su Chen simply chose to ignore it. In a world where martial arts reigned supreme, the martial path was everything.
Fists determined life, death, and dignity.
As a Void Core Realm beast, the black bear's soul was swallowed into Su Chen's body, where he began to forcibly refine it using the Chaotic Swallowing Art. As for how much pure energy could be refined out of it, that remained to be seen.
In a mere matter of seconds, the black bear's soul was completely and forcibly devoured.
"Many thanks to Your Excellency for your timely assistance. I will surely repay this kindness a hundredfold in the future."
Seeing the young man cut down the black bear, the man felt a slight jolt in his heart, yet he managed to maintain his composure.
Under normal circumstances, he certainly wouldn't have placed a Foundation Establishment Realm martial artist in his eyes, but the situation now was somewhat different.
Having fought a life-and-death battle with the black bear and suffered severe injuries, let alone facing a Foundation Establishment Realm warrior, even an ordinary person could easily kill him at this moment.
"I am not helping you, nor do you need to thank me."
Feeling the terrifying killing intent erupting from the young man, the man's heart sank instantly. He feared the exact thing that was happening.
"As long as Your Excellency stops here, I am willing to offer a secret concerning the Heavenly Punishment Forest. How about it?"
"Speak."
"Your Excellency must promise me—"
Before the man could finish his sentence, a flash of sword qi tore through the void and struck his left arm. Accompanied by a miserable shriek that tore through the night, his entire left arm was severed by the sword qi, and blood spurted out like a fountain.
His face turned as pale as paper, sweat rolling down his brow as he gritted his teeth in agony. Never in his wildest dreams had the man imagined that this person would strike the moment he finished speaking without a second thought.
"Hesitate for a second, and I'll give you a sword. I wonder how many swords you can withstand."
Ruthless!
He had originally intended to use the secret to trade for his life, but now it seemed completely unfeasible. He had run into a madman who wouldn't even give him a chance to bargain.
"I accidentally obtained this torn map. Deep within the Heavenly Punishment Forest, there is a great fortuitous encounter."
Taking the torn map from the man's hand, Su Chen flicked his finger through the air. A sharp sword qi pierced right between the man's eyebrows. The moment his body collapsed, the man died with his eyes wide open, still unable to fathom why he was killed after already handing over the map.
Activating the Chaotic Swallowing Art once again, he immediately began to devour the man's soul.
Both the man and the bear were in the Void Core Realm. Having swallowed two souls, Su Chen immediately chose to cross his legs and sat down to begin refining and fusing the soul power.
The refined energy surged into every part of his body. Under the overlapping coverage of his three Blood Wheels, the energy gathered once more from his body into his Sword Blood Wheel.
Advancing in the Foundation Establishment Realm meant continuously pouring energy into the Blood Wheel. As the soul power of the two Void Core Realm beings poured in, Su Chen let out a long roar toward the sky, instantly breaking through the bottleneck and successfully advancing from the Level 7 Foundation Establishment Realm to the Level 8 Foundation Establishment Realm.
"Devouring really is the fastest way to break through."
He was extremely satisfied with the effects of the devouring.
In Su Chen's view, if one wanted to rapidly improve their strength, they could not afford to be bogged down by benevolence and morality. Slaughter was the stepping stone of martial cultivation, and no one could avoid it.
Retrieving the man's spatial ring, Su Chen turned his gaze to the torn map in his hand.
The torn map marked half a location, and locking onto it shouldn't be too difficult.
Only...
The location shown on the map was situated deep within the forest. If he encountered a beast above the Solid Core Realm—including Nascent Soul Realm beasts, Soul Palace Realm beasts, or even Condensing Spirit Realm beasts—how would he cope?
Should he go, or should he not?
Su Chen gazed deep into the forest, gripping the torn map tightly in his hand. Faced with a fortuitous opportunity, if he chose to give up simply out of fear of death, he might as well just find a hole to hide in. How could he ever speak of avenging his grievances, let alone stepping onto the peak of the martial path?
Opportunities were met by chance, not sought by demand.
His gaze gradually hardened, and Su Chen ultimately decided to press deeper into the forest to seek the fortune recorded on the map.
***
Chapter 7: Blood-Drinking Nether Bats
The forest under the night sky appeared exceptionally desolate.
Su Chen raised his vigilance to the absolute maximum. After all, the deeper one went into the forest, the higher the grade of the fierce beasts, and there was even a possibility of encountering the legendary Condensing Spirit Realm beasts.
With his strength at the Foundation Establishment Realm, he might still be able to fight a Void Core Realm beast, but the moment he encountered a Solid Core Realm or Golden Core Realm beast, his only option would be to turn tail and flee.
While searching for the location of the fortune based on the torn map, he hunted beasts along the way to devour their souls.
If he wanted to elevate his cultivation rapidly, devouring power was the fastest method.
"A Level 1 Void Core Realm beast, the Lunar Moon Wolf."
Staring fixedly at him with a pair of icy eyes, Su Chen instantly recognized the beast's grade.
"You'll do."
Far from showing the slightest bit of fear, he looked rather excited instead.
He took the initiative to strike.
Before he even arrived, his sword qi had already arrived ahead of him.
Back in the family's martial pavilion, Su Chen had acquired a fragmented, unpracticed sword technique called the Nine Tribulations Sword Manual.
Aside from being incomplete, this sword manual was extremely difficult to cultivate, which was why it had been left neglected and ignored in the pavilion.
Yet Su Chen had taken a liking to it, though he had only scratched its surface. Following the reconstruction of his Blood Wheel, the birth of his Three-Life Blood Wheel, and the awakening of his Chaotic Physique,
he unexpectedly discovered that the Nine Tribulations Sword Manual he practiced was gradually being comprehended on a deeper level without a sound.
The Blood Wheel fused into the sword technique.
A tyrannical killing sword qi carrying a faint sound of thunder instantly tore through the void, violently blasting toward the Lunar Moon Wolf.
Countless strands of killing sword qi roared forward like a tidal wave, sealing off all four directions: east, west, south, and north.
Raising its head to the sky in a long howl, the enraged Lunar Moon Wolf seemed utterly caught off guard that a human martial artist at the mere Foundation Establishment Realm would dare to take the initiative—this was sheer provocation!
It chose to meet the attack head-on, without the slightest intention of dodging.
In the Lunar Moon Wolf's eyes,
it was a dignified Void Core Realm beast, while its opponent was merely in the Foundation Establishment Realm. All it had to do was flick its wolf claws, and it could easily destroy the other.
And the result?
Bang!
The instant the wolf claws collided with the sword qi, the Lunar Moon Wolf instantly sensed that something was terribly wrong. The sword qi, carrying a thunderous killing intent, eroded fiercely, piercing straight through its wolf claws.
Accompanied by a miserable shriek, the pathetic Lunar Moon Wolf didn't even have time to react to what had happened before dozens of fierce sword qi pierced through its body, and it collapsed to the ground, dead.
Without a moment of hesitation, Su Chen immediately activated the Chaotic Swallowing Art, beginning to devour the soul power residing within the Lunar Moon Wolf's mind.
He didn't just hunt beasts; even if he encountered a solitary martial artist, Su Chen would show no courtesy whatsoever.
He would simply devour them.
He spent the entire night devouring.
In a secluded spot,
Su Chen sat cross-legged, circulating the Chaotic Swallowing Art within his body to rapidly refine the massive amount of soul energy he had swallowed, funneling it frantically into his Sword Blood Wheel.
Possessing the Three-Life Blood Wheel, which consisted of the Slaughter Sword Blood Wheel, the Dragon-Elephant Blood Wheel, and the Devouring Blood Wheel,
he only needed to channel power into one of them. Su Chen chose the Slaughter Sword Blood Wheel because it was his foundation.
Covered in sweat, Su Chen continuously formed hand seals, while the refined energy within his body poured endlessly into the Blood Wheel.
Such intense and rapid refinement and infusion, even with Su Chen operating the Chaotic Swallowing Art, proved somewhat difficult to handle, yet he gritted his teeth and persisted.
The sky slowly began to brighten.
Having cultivated throughout the night, Su Chen finally stabilized his cultivation at the peak of the Level 8 Foundation Establishment Realm. With just a little more push, he could assault the Level 9 Foundation Establishment Realm.
He skinned and cleaned the Lunar Moon Wolf, lit a fire to roast the meat, and as the enticing aroma of meat filled the air, Su Chen quickly ate his fill.
Once he was full and energized, he continued his hunt for fierce beasts to devour their souls.
"Su Chen?"
"Weren't your Blood Wheels crippled? Why are you appearing in the Heavenly Punishment Forest?"
Dozens of people walked over with curious expressions. Among them, a plump girl with passable looks asked with curiosity.
Disciples of the Wang family of Panyou City, led by the Level 6 Foundation Establishment Realm Wang Quan, had entered the Heavenly Punishment Forest to train.
The entire Panyou City had already spread the news: Su Chen, the former number one genius of the Su family, had his Blood Wheels crippled by Su Hao of the Su clan, and his cultivation had plummeted to the Innate Realm. Having lost his Blood Wheel, Su Chen was practically half-crippled, yet no one expected to see him here in the Heavenly Punishment Forest.
Wang Yuyin had once held a secret crush on Su Chen. Seeing him reduced to such a state, she felt a pang of pity, though her secret crush was long gone.
What use was a handsome face?
This world looked at strength. To a martial artist, the Blood Wheel was everything.
Choosing to ignore them entirely, Su Chen, having finished his cultivation session, prepared to leave.
"Such bad manners. No wonder his Blood Wheel got crippled."
"Forget it, he's already pitiful enough. Why kick a man while he's down?"
She was certainly glad she hadn't pursued Su Chen back then; otherwise, she wouldn't even have a chance to regret it now.
"What's that sound?"
Swoosh! Swoosh!
"Those are Blood-Drinking Nether Bats! Oh heavens, why are there so many Blood-Drinking Nether Bats?!"
As a cry of terror rang out, giant bats suddenly emerged from all directions. Entirely blood-red in color, their icy eyes emitted a terrifying, spine-chilling cold light, and waves of stench rolled in like a towering sea, suffocating and nauseating.
Blood-Drinking Nether Bats were a gregarious beast species that loved to prey on fierce beasts and martial artists alike. Emitting a foul stench and highly poisonous, whenever one encountered a group of these beasts, even a Golden Core Realm martial artist would find it difficult to escape alive.
The faces of the Wang family members were plastered with terror and despair. They never imagined their luck would be so terrible as to encounter such a horrifying beast troop.
"Everyone, gather back-to-back!"
Wang Quan's face had turned pale to the extreme. The people he had brought out this time were all core elites of the family; once lost, it would be an irrecoverable disaster for the family.
He had to find a way to get these people out.
Save whoever could be saved.
"Follow me and cut our way out!"
Just as they made contact, one of the Wang family disciples let out a miserable shriek. Isolated from the group, he was devoured by the overwhelming swarm of Blood-Drinking Nether Bats, leaving not even a skeleton behind. Even his blood was sucked completely clean, leaving only a pungent bloody stench that vanished into the foul odor of the swarm.
"Kill!"
Watching their kin devoured, Wang Yuyin and the others fought back their grief and hacked away frantically in terror.
Su Chen's gaze was likewise extremely solemn. He hadn't expected to encounter such disgusting beasts here either.
Countless Blood-Drinking Nether Bats swarmed the surroundings, sealing off every exit. If they wanted to get out, they had to forcibly carve a bloody path.
Blood-red mist shrouded the entire sky.
There was no dodging; they had no choice but to meet it head-on.
Under the overwhelming siege of the Blood-Drinking Nether Bats, the Wang family members began to dwindle rapidly. One by one, they were devoured—no bones, no flesh, completely consumed down to the last drop.
In less than two minutes, only half of the Wang family remained.
***
Chapter 8: Eight-Part Heavenly Dragons, Desolate Ancient Altar
Countless Blood-Drinking Nether Bats frantically swarmed toward Su Chen to devour him.
"So stinky."
The stench was overwhelming.
Su Chen's face was filled with disgust. Looking at the bats surging toward him from all directions, a Blood Wheel condensed above his head, inside which the phantom images of dragon and elephant galloped and roared.
"A Blood Wheel!"
Seeing Su Chen condensing a Blood Wheel not far away, Wang Quan, Wang Yuyin, and the others were completely dumbfounded. None of them could understand why Su Chen, whose Blood Wheel had supposedly been crippled, was able to manifest one once again.
What kind of Blood Wheel was this?
Everyone in Panyou City knew that the Blood Wheel awakened by the Su family was a sword, without exception for any core disciple, including Su Chen.
And now?
Looking at the Blood Wheel floating above Su Chen's head, they were nothing short of stunned and shocked.
A dragon roared, followed by an elephant trumpeting.
Nine illusory dragon shadows and nine illusory elephant shadows roared out from the Blood Wheel. Su Chen executed the Nine Dragons and Nine Elephants Technique, fiercely blasting outward in all directions.
Even when slaying the Blood-Drinking Nether Bats, he refused to consume them.
Such beasts were simply too foul-smelling; even Su Chen couldn't tolerate it and chose to forgo devouring them.
The Dragon-Elephant Blood Wheel shrouded Su Chen in its protection.
Boom, boom, boom!
The dense swarm of Blood-Drinking Nether Bats frantically battered the Dragon-Elephant Blood Wheel. Under the relentless impacts, blood slowly began to seep from the corner of Su Chen's mouth.
His gaze grew increasingly grave. If this continued, it would likely bring him immense trouble.
The Burial Tribulation Pen appeared in his hand.
This supreme treasure given to him by the Tower Spirit came with severe restrictions. Leaving aside the boundary restrictions alone, every time he used the Burial Tribulation Pen, it would consume his soul power.
In the Heavenly Punishment Forest, if his soul power were depleted and he suffered heavy injuries, he would be in mortal danger.
Gathering his soul power, he poured it into the Burial Tribulation Pen.
He began waving it through the air, drawing stroke by stroke.
Instantly,
thunder roared, and a tyrannical, peerless tribulation gathered rapidly beneath the tip of the Burial Tribulation Pen, forming an absolute forbidden heavenly tribulation that suppressed the surrounding area.
Bang!
Bang!
The Blood-Drinking Nether Bats that rushed into the range of the Burial Tribulation Pen instantly burst apart, turning into clouds of blood mist. Even so, the bats continued their frenzied attacks, rushing in from all directions like moths to a flame.
More and more Blood-Drinking Nether Bats were slaughtered, and the pooled blood flowed like a river.
"Over here!"
Seeing that Su Chen was able to withstand the onslaught of the Blood-Drinking Nether Bats, Wang Quan, Wang Yuyin, and the others felt a surge of joy and hurriedly moved toward Su Chen's direction.
The sea of blood on the ground emitted a suffocating stench; Su Chen truly could no longer endure this foul odor.
Break out!
Forcing himself to use the Burial Tribulation Pen continuously consumed his soul power. Once his soul power was entirely exhausted, he wouldn't even need the bats to finish him off—he would self-destruct from the depletion alone.
aided by the Burial Tribulation Pen, Su Chen accelerated, ruthlessly carving out a bloody path.
"Su Chen! You can't just leave us to die!"
"Brother Su, I beg you, take us with you!"
Watching Su Chen break out and leave, Wang Yuyin and the others were completely dumbfounded. They never expected that Su Chen would leave entirely on his own, choosing to ignore them completely.
The sea of blood on the ground and the pungent, bloody stench drove Wang Yuyin and the others to the edge of despair. They were terrified of death, but even more terrified of being devoured by the Blood-Drinking Nether Bats without leaving a single bone behind.
Ignored.
Watching his figure vanish entirely, despair was etched across everyone's faces. Wang Yuyin even stood there in a momentary daze before being instantly swallowed by the overwhelming tide of Blood-Drinking Nether Bats.
After fighting for a full minute, he finally broke out of the swarm.
Without a moment's pause, feeling the waves of weakness washing over his mind, Su Chen quickly departed.
As for the life or death of the Wang family, it had nothing to do with him.
Be a good guy? That would only cost him his own life. He was no saint; he wasn't going to save unrelated strangers.
The tyranny of the Burial Tribulation Pen left Su Chen deeply shocked, though the soul consumption was simply too high. If he encountered another ambush by fierce beasts, he would be in serious trouble.
A mouthful of blood spewed from his lips, and Su Chen shook his head helplessly. The number of Blood-Drinking Nether Bats was simply too vast; if not for the Burial Tribulation Pen, it would have been nearly impossible to fight his way out.
Two days later.
According to the markings on the torn map, Su Chen had roughly locked onto the specific location. Holding the Burial Tribulation Pen, he gazed at the increasingly dense, towering trees around him, ready to respond to danger at any moment.