Chapter 396: Reality and Illusion
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Su Cheng slowly drew back his leg, followed by a thunderous crash!
Had the positioning anchor not blocked that kick, it would have surely ended the original host's life!
Crawling up from the shattered rock debris, the original host narrowed his eyes, feeling murderous intent permeate the air. At this point, there was no turning back!
Su Cheng channeled his power, unleashing a sword beam toward the direction the original host had charged from. Instantly, he pivoted his blade to parry the massive scythe hurtling toward his face.
Chu Youwei's skills were no joke either. With a graceful, swing-like movement, she parried Su Cheng's massive sword, drew her own blade from her waist, and lunged forward, thrusting the long sword straight at Su Cheng's chest.
But this apocalyptic power was no joke either. Su Cheng kicked the blade, sending the giant sword flipping through the air before him, forcing Chu Youwei—who thought she'd found her chance—back!
But that wasn't enough. Su Cheng needed Chu Youwei to stay far away!
As the sword swung in a wide arc, Su Cheng struck its blade with a palm strike. The sword flew sideways, slamming heavily into her frail body.
As punishment, this was sufficient.
Su Cheng had no time to waste on Chu Youwei. The matter between him and this so-called "True Su Cheng" needed to end.
Darting past Chu Youwei, he swiftly drew Zero Two and lunged forward, delivering a horizontal slash!
"Cloud Clearing!"
This was the first divine technique Su Cheng had used thus far. The rest seemed to be variations from the Frostsword Manual—downward strikes, upward thrusts, or aerial cleaves?
After all, such techniques were unnecessary against mere minions.
The sword qi swept across the heavens, severing even light itself. Wherever it passed, metal shattered and stone crumbled, leaving not a blade of grass standing!
The sword energy stretched ten thousand miles, spanning the nine heavens. Truly clearing the clouds meant leaving not a single trace of them!
Even when resisting with every ounce of strength, even when anchoring oneself above all mortals, before power beyond the world, one ultimately felt powerless.
His immortal robe, tattered like a beggar's cloak, was stained crimson. His internal organs shattered by the impact, the original owner could only cling to life by shielding his heart with true qi, barely managing to rise to his feet.
He never imagined that a mere imposter could shatter his dignity with a single sword strike.
"Impossible! This can't be! I possess the cultivation of a Transcendent Spirit! I'm clad in a divine artifact! This is impossible!"
Surveying the utter devastation around him, the original owner never imagined this outcome.
No one could restrain those three direct disciples, and no one could suppress Zero Two.
"Cheng Liang! You betrayed me! It was you! You sold me out!"
Cheng Liang remained silent. Instead, Shangguan Rou stepped forward and spoke.
"You're the imposter! Did you think we couldn't tell?"
Hearing this, everything became crystal clear. The loser was destined to be discarded!
But he refused to accept it. Why?
That man had stolen his life. All of this should have been his!
"You can't kill me! The Immortal Lord will save me! You can't kill me!"
The words were spoken with obvious desperation. The original host had finally grasped the sheer chasm between their powers.
This power far exceeded mortal comprehension. Even with a divine artifact at his disposal, he was no match for Su Cheng.
Su Cheng couldn't help but laugh. "Heh, the Immortal Lord you speak of—is that fellow called 'Thief of Jade and Fragrance'?"
"That's right! I'm the Immortal Lord's man! You can't kill me! The Immortal Lord won't let you get away with this!"
Su Cheng couldn't help but think this guy was a bit too confident. Was he being treated like a dog, yet still convinced the other party actually liked him?
What kind of person was the Great Fox?
How long had he known the Great Fox? They'd known each other since childhood!
That damn Big Fox is my man, and you claim to be hers?
"Then have her come save you. It just so happens I haven't seen her in ages either."
As for not letting him off? Hah, as if letting him go would earn him the Big Fox's forgiveness…
The massive sword named Zero Two rested against the original host's neck. Su Cheng's gaze had shed its bloodthirsty madness, returning to its usual calm—though now tinged with contempt.
To Su Cheng's surprise, he saw fear of death in this original host.
On this point, Su Cheng felt he differed greatly from the original host. The man before him bore no resemblance to him whatsoever.
Regarding death, Su Cheng felt only resentment.
In this war against the gods, those fortunate enough to survive must carry the honor and courage of the fallen, continuing to live on.
The peace they enjoyed today had been bought with the lives of countless heroes. The so-called defensive lines were walls built from corpses. A casualty ratio of fifty-seven to one could hardly be called a victory in any war.
This meant that every assault launched by ten Hunters required the sacrifice of five hundred and seventy lives.
Even so, this hard-won peace is not eternal.
Only by completely rewriting the rules can the world they once knew, this world before them, and countless similar worlds, achieve true peace.
Put another way, Su Cheng dared not die. He didn't know how to face the old friends he had already lost.
He could not bring himself to tell them that the revered leader they trusted had failed.
This war had never offered a retreat, from the very beginning.
Su Cheng had already devised a plan. Especially after witnessing Li Shiyao's manipulation of time, he truly recognized this world's uniqueness and glimpsed the hope of reviving them!
The ink-black sword blade, assembled like building blocks, possessed no true edge. Yet it appeared capable of crushing a person to death with a single blow.
Zero Two was pinned down by the anchor point. Though it was utterly meaningless, the original host simply couldn't accept death calmly.
"Youwei! Kill this imposter!"
As the black mist-formed blade sliced through her neck, the original host could only gamble—that Chu Youwei still wanted to keep up the charade.
But Chu Youwei, having just taken a solid blow, was only now coming to her senses.
After all, she was a Divine Rank martial artist. Even a single slap carried considerable force.
Hearing the original host's shout, Chu Youwei snapped back to her senses!
Stomping her foot on the ground, the giant scythe instantly snapped back into her palm as if drawn by a magnet!
As the scythe whirled around her forearm, Chu Youwei shot forward through the air, the blade slashing straight toward Su Cheng!
The strike carried immense force and momentum. Though Su Cheng was cloaked in authority, there was no need to take an attack he could dodge head-on.
It wasn't so much repelling him as Chu Youwei simply pulling the original host back to create distance, shielding her behind her back. Her fierce eyes locked onto Su Cheng.
But at that very moment, something happened that neither Chu Youwei nor anyone else could have anticipated.
A cold touch pressed against her forehead. Yes, she had prepared herself for death, but what about her master, whom she had known for only three days? Would he be willing?
The jet-black apocalyptic demon sword hovered at her brow. Chu Youwei could feel the terror of facing death head-on.
Yet what overwhelmed her more was heartache.
Feeling like a child without a home once more, Chu Youwei desperately wanted to step forward. She wondered if the dagger at her throat would slit her windpipe first, or if the massive sword before her would shatter his bones first.
She heard no sound of a heart breaking, nor did she feel fear. Only nausea and injustice filled her.
The sharp dagger pressed against her throat, yet she felt no fear—only a complete loss of strength.
She couldn't understand why. Even though she had lived this life twice, she hadn't been able to change anything.
"What? Why aren't you pretending anymore? Get out of the way! Or I'll kill her!"
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