Apotheosis Begins with Tai Chi

Chapter 351: Chapter 171: Mountain and Sea (Part 2)

Chen Cheng was not asleep.

He sat cross-legged on the bed by the window, his eyes slightly closed, silently circulating the Four Gods Profound Body cultivation technique.

Suddenly.

His ears twitched slightly.

From the far end of the long street, the faint sounds of footsteps and conversation could be heard, growing closer as they moved toward the inn.

“So, Brother Fang? I didn’t lie, did I?”

Zhao Dongping laughed wantonly, his voice slurred with drink:

“I already asked around. Coming to Yunlei Mansion and not visiting the Dream Pavilion is a total waste of a trip! HIC—”

“You’re right! I really drank my fill tonight! Hehe…”

Fang Lang’s voice was a little clearer, but his laughter was far more vulgar than Zhao Dongping’s:

“Once we’ve settled this business of joining the Sect, we’ll find some time to come back and have some real fun!”

“Heh! Sounds like you didn’t get your fill tonight, Brother Fang…”

Zhao Dongping said with a laugh:

“Then it’s a deal. Next time we’re here, we’ll battle it out ’til dawn!”

“Battle, battle, battle! Battling is the best! Hehehe…”

Fang Lang grinned widely, his laughter growing ever more vulgar. Suddenly, his laughter cut short, and his eyes shot open:

“Watch out!”

TING—!

As Fang Lang roared his warning, a Flying Locust Stone was deflected by the Transforming Force Barrier before his forehead, striking a nearby brick wall and sending a shower of sparks into the air.

TING—!

He was, after all, a great master with Nine Pillars of Blood Qi, and his reflexes were lightning-fast. He thrust out his right arm, and the Transforming Force Barrier on his palm deflected another Flying Locust Stone aimed at Zhao Dongping.

The moment the projectile was deflected, he had already dropped into a crouch, ready for battle.

“Brother Fang, did you really think I was drunk?”

The drunken haze on Zhao Dongping’s face vanished instantly. His eyes narrowed, his once-dazed gaze becoming as sharp as a knife:

“My Transforming Force Barrier, just like yours, is always protecting my vital points!”

“It’s not that simple!”

Fang Lang said in a low voice:

“The Transforming Force imbued in those two Hidden Weapons was strong enough to shatter your Transforming Force Barrier!”

“Th-that’s impossible!?”

In disbelief, Zhao Dongping’s eyes quickly scanned their surroundings.

He was an expert in Archery, so his eyesight was naturally excellent. Even in the dead of night, the dim light from the moon and stars was enough for him to spot any unusual movement in the vicinity.

“The attacker is on the left!”

Zhao Dongping shouted in a low voice:

“Follow me! Retreat into the alley on the right! The path is winding and there’s all sorts of cover, which will make it difficult for them to use their Hidden Weapons!”

WHOOSH—

Before he could finish speaking, a sharp whistle cut through the air as something shot out from a dark corner to their left.

A chill went down Fang Lang’s spine, and he instinctively moved to deflect the object with his Transforming Force Barrier.

But Zhao Dongping, who had already gotten a clear look at the object, roared urgently:

“It’s a Divine Fire Thunder! You can’t just block it! You have to catch it securely! Otherwise, it’ll explo—”

“What’s so hard about that?”

Fang Lang chuckled, his tone dismissive.

He had a foundation of Nine Pillars of Blood Qi. ‘Catching a mere iron ball, one with far less power than myself, should be child’s play, right?’

He extended his right hand, fingers curved in a grasping motion and palm cupped inward, just as he was about to securely catch the iron ball in mid-air.

TING—

But at that very moment, a short, crisp sound of impact came from behind the iron ball.

The moment the sound rang out, the expressions on the faces of Fang Lang and Zhao Dongping changed drastically.

Never in their wildest dreams would they have imagined another Hidden Weapon trailing behind the iron ball.

The Divine Fire Thunder was just bait; the true killing move was using the second Hidden Weapon to strike it and detonate it in mid-air!

The key was that the speed, accuracy, and force of the second Hidden Weapon were all controlled to absolute perfection.

If it had been the slightest bit faster, it would have struck the Divine Fire Thunder prematurely. If its aim had been off by even a hair, it would have missed the rapidly flying device.

Even more critical was the force: too much would have altered the Divine Fire Thunder’s trajectory, while too little would have failed to detonate it…

The depth of the calculation and the brilliance of the technique were enough to make their blood run cold.

BOOM—!!!

Before the echo of that crisp impact could fade, a thunderous explosion, like a cannon blast, tore through the dead silence of the night.

Fang Lang and Zhao Dongping tried to dodge, but how could their reflexes possibly be faster than such a sudden, catastrophic event?

In that instant, reflected in their shrinking pupils, the Divine Fire Thunder erupted.

The epicenter of the blast was less than an arm’s length away and level with their heads.

They saw with perfect clarity as a ball of searing white light suddenly swelled, as if someone had dragged the sun down right before their eyes.

The moment the ball of light burst, flames surged outward in all directions like a tidal wave, and a pillar of fire shot toward the sky.

Before that destructive power, Fang Lang’s Transforming Force Barrier was as brittle as a sheet of thin ice, shattering in an instant.

Zhao Dongping’s Transforming Force Barrier was even more fragile, disintegrating in a flash.

Immediately after, the immense force, carrying with it shrapnel from the blast, instantly pierced, tore, and mangled their bodies…

Flesh, bone, and tattered clothing—everything was swept into the pillar of fire, hurled into the air by the shockwave, then rained down as a bloody shower of viscera and debris.

When the flames subsided, only a shallow, scorched crater remained. A few charred remains of the bodies were scattered around its edge.

RUMBLE…

An Iron Lump rolled quietly across the ground. After being coated in filth, blood, and scorched flesh, it came to a rest beside a piece of a corpse.

…

Guards patrolled the area around the Futong Inn all night.

After noticing the loud explosion and flash of light in the distance, the guard captain took only two men to investigate, while the rest continued their patrol.

The northeast corner of the inn.

A guard had just rounded a corner of the building.

The moment his shadow disappeared around the corner, a dark figure hugging the base of the wall leaped silently up to the eaves of the second floor and slipped through a half-open window.