I Can Merge Techniques

The night was as black as ink, a darkness so thick it wouldn’t yield, like congealed sludge without a speck of light.

Outside the window, a black shadow hovered eerily, perfectly still.

Its blood-red eyes glinted with greed, but held an even more heart-stopping, pathological obsession.

It stared fixedly through the crack in the window, its gaze locked unblinkingly on the young figure upon the bed.

’This is the most perfect body I have ever seen in my life, the most perfect man...’

The shadow’s heart pounded wildly as its tongue darted out to lick its dry, chapped lips. It was the very image of a starving wolf catching the scent of a peerless delicacy, the desire in its eyes practically overflowing.

The qi and blood of a typical Martial Artist, while vigorous, were ultimately riddled with impurities and could hardly be considered refined.

This young man, however, was completely different.

As he lay quietly on the bed, a faint rumbling, like the resonance of some Great Dao, seemed to echo from within his flesh and bone. This was the path of the Saint of Flesh, pursued to its absolute extreme—a path one in ten thousand might walk.

To the senses of her Evil Technique, this living, breathing body was a priceless, humanoid herb in the prime of its growth—an irresistible temptation!

’If I can just drain this man’s vital essence...’

’Even a single mouthful would be enough to shatter the shackles that have bound my Cultivation for years, allowing it to skyrocket!’

The black shadow could no longer suppress the greed in her heart. With a slight flick of her fingertip,

the tightly shut window opened silently, without the slightest sound.

Her figure flickered. Like an elongated, ghostly shadow, she drifted silently into the room and landed without making a sound.

She didn’t rush to act, however. Instead, she slowly moved to a spot three feet from Chu Fan’s bed.

The closer she got, the richer and more potent the pure Yang Qi and blood that washed over her became, making her breathing turn ragged and heavy.

Her abdomen, which had been deathly still for many years, was suddenly filled with a long-forgotten, intense hunger.

’Too perfect... That strong, powerful heartbeat sounds just like a war drum, beating a resonant, forceful call to battle...’

She slowly raised a hand as withered as a twig.

Her long, pitch-black fingernails shimmered with a chilling, eerie green light.

Her eyes hid a lethal killing intent as she slowly reached for Chu Fan’s chest.

However, the roles of Hunter and prey often reverse in the blink of an eye.

The very instant her fingernails were about to touch Chu Fan’s chest—

Chu Fan, whose breathing was steady and who seemed to have long been fast asleep, twitched a finger on his left hand. It was an incredibly subtle movement, almost too fast to perceive.

The Demon-locking Chain, wrapped around his left wrist like a bracelet, instantly came to life, emitting a faint Spiritual Light!

SWISH!

A soft whoosh cut through the air.

The Demon-locking Chain, like a bolt of black lightning or a venomous python suddenly waking from hibernation, shot toward the eerie black shadow with a bone-chilling cold!

"Hm?!"

The black shadow’s reaction was as fast as lightning.

Ambushed at arm’s length, she managed to unnaturally twist her neck ninety degrees to the left in a hair’s breadth escape!

The Demon-locking Chain whistled past her ear, shearing off a lock of black hair that drifted to the floor.

With an ordinary hidden weapon, that dodge would have meant escaping danger.

But this Demon-locking Chain was a Spirit Soldier specifically designed to subdue demonic evils. Propelled by the Demon-locking Technique, it would not miss its mark so easily!

The chain, having missed its target, abruptly reversed course in mid-air. Like a spirit serpent striking backward, it coiled back toward the vital spot on her neck!

CLACK!

In the nick of time, the black shadow’s hand shot out like a claw, her five fingers precisely clamping down on the chain winding toward her throat.

However, the moment her fingertips touched the chain, its body erupted in a dazzling Spiritual Light!

Sharp spikes erupted from it, instantly piercing the thick layer of Protective Primordial Qi covering her palm!

TZZZZZZT—

A piercing sound, like a red-hot branding iron searing rotten flesh, suddenly exploded inside the room.

As searing pain shot through her, the seemingly sentient Demon-locking Chain rapidly wound itself around her several more times. It snaked up her arm, and in the blink of an eye, had her upper body and both arms bound so tightly she couldn’t move!

Meanwhile, Chu Fan, who in her eyes was nothing but a lamb for the slaughter, showed not the slightest hint of sleepiness.

His eyes snapped open, a sharp light exploding from within. With a sudden exertion of his core, he shot up like a fully drawn bow being released, his presence awe-inspiring!

BOOM!

He unleashed a kick, powerful and heavy, swift as lightning.

The air cracked with a piercing sonic boom as the kick landed squarely on the black shadow’s abdomen!

"Ugh!"

The woman’s pained grunt erupted in the dim room, shattering the night’s silence.

The seemingly ethereal black shadow was sent flying like a cannonball toward the main door by this terrifying physical force!

Chu Fan gave her no chance to breathe. He followed close behind, leaping into the air and making a grasping motion with his right hand.

WHOOSH!

The Black Abyss Sword by the bed seemed to sense its master’s killing intent. With a clang, it flew from its sheath, transforming into a streak of black light that shot straight into his palm!

The moment his five fingers closed around the hilt, Chu Fan’s aura instantly switched from calm and restrained to wild and violent, Evil Qi flooding the air!

While still in mid-air, his sharp Sword Intent had already condensed, becoming an unstoppable force!

"Slash!"

Gripping the sword with both hands, Chu Fan used his downward momentum to bring it down in a vicious slash at the woman staggering toward the door!

This woman was no ordinary foe. Facing a strike that could split mountains and shatter stone, she ignored the searing pain from the chains. With a single thought, thick black Demonic Qi instantly condensed before her, forming a strange, semicircular shield in a desperate attempt to block the blow.

BOOM—!!

Wielding an unstoppable force, the Black Abyss Sword crashed down on the Black Shield, the impact terrifying to behold.

This strike condensed his terrifying physical strength and his tangible Evil Qi Blade Gang!

Although it was only Divine Ability Realm Third Heaven Primordial Qi, it was enhanced by several powerful Traits. A single slash could sunder mountains and cleave peaks!

The seemingly indestructible Black Shield was instantly covered in spiderweb cracks, like brittle glass. And then—

With a loud BANG, the shield shattered into dust, dissipating into a cloud of black qi!

The sword’s momentum, barely slowed, carried its matchless power as it slammed down upon the woman’s protective Demonic Qi!

The force of the blow sent her flying backward. She smashed through the wooden door and landed hard in the courtyard’s flowerbed, throwing up a cloud of dust!