Roadmap to the Boundless Sky

All the people in the clearing stared at the silhouette in the smoke. They were stunned by his speed and strength.

They could see the trail he left behind, which stretched as far as their eyes could see. He had maintained his speed for at least this amount of distance.

This alone was astonishing. Even Third Limit elites had a hard time dashing for long distances, so this newcomer had great stamina. It was the only explanation for why he would have dared to come in such an energy-draining manner.

The Union and the Linacrox Union were sure that this wasn’t an ally. It clearly wasn’t Wilheim.

Because of Qi Qianyang, it had become uncertain just who would end up with the artifact. Now, another stranger had joined.

They had a feeling that things were going to become even more complicated, and it would be hard for them to wrap things up.

Qi Qianyang stared at the silhouette in the smoke. He was first shocked, then he saw who it was, and excitement filled his bones.

Amid the flying dust and smoke, Chen Chuan pushed down his hat and lifted the Frost King Saber. Even though he had stopped, the air around him was still blowing violently.

The friction against his skin had created so much heat that the air twisted slightly. There was also heat coming out of the forest behind him, along with the smell of burnt wood. Countless branches and leaves were dancing about as flames devoured them.

Chen Chuan looked at the clearing but didn’t see Xu Chan’s team. Still, he trusted Xu Chan’s experience. There was no way his entire team would have been wiped off.

Most of the Union and Linacrox Union’s main fighters were present. Qi Qianyang was here too. Judging by how they appeared to be in a stalemate, it seemed like they had been fighting before he arrived.

Chen Chuan shifted his gaze to the ball in Heros’ hand. The light coming out of it rose into the sky, but it had dimmed while being held by him. It seemed that the presence of living beings made it grow fainter.

He waited until the air around him calmed down before righting his hat and looking at all the people in the clearing.

Since most of the martial artists the Union and the Linacrox Union had sent into the merged space were here, it saved him the time of looking for them one by one.

There were no fair fights in the merged space, so he wasn’t going to underestimate these people. He immediately overlapped with his second self.

***

Xu Chan left the forest and reconvened with Captain Hai and the rest.

Captain Hai’s team hadn’t actually given up on the artifact. They just didn’t want to be hunted down, so they were following behind the guide. They had seen Xu Chan’s fight against Heros from a distance and were wondering how to join him when Xu Chan got out of the fight all on his own.

They found a vantage point after meeting up to observe the situation while waiting for a chance to strike. To their surprise, a new person soon joined the fray.

Captain Lu fixed his eyes on the smoke. Since it was blocking their sight and they were quite far away, he couldn’t see the person inside clearly. All he saw was a fluttering red scarf, which reminded him of that one strike from the sky on Ferris Wheel. It overlapped with what he was seeing now.

“Captain Xu, look! Isn’t that Lead Investigator Chen?!” he asked with excitement.

Xu Chan squinted in the direction. Even though he couldn’t see too clearly either, when he saw the line cutting through the forest, he was certain of it. “Yes, it’s him.”

“Oh no!” Captain Lu suddenly felt dread. “Lead Investigator Chen must have rushed over in a hurry to help us, but he’s all alone now! How can he possibly fight against those people? We need to think of a way to get him out.”

“Wait,” Xu Chan said calmly and put a hand on Captain Lu’s shoulder. “Lead Investigator Chen isn’t an impulsive person. He only ever acts when he’s certain he can win. He must have some kind of trump card or information we don’t know about. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have shown up in front of those people so blatantly. We should wait and see.”

Captain Hai and Captain Hu considered it, then agreed that it made sense. If someone didn’t understand the situation, they would choose to approach a situation slowly instead of showing up in front of a large group of enemies in such a flashy manner.

Could he have reinforcements? But they couldn’t think of anyone who could possibly come join him. Could the other Central Cities have sent more reinforcements?

“No matter what the situation is, we need to be ready. We can’t let Lead Investigator Chen fight alone,” Xu Chan said grimly.

***

Chen Chuan stepped out of the smoke. He had his jade mask on, so his face couldn’t be seen, but the lead investigator uniform made him easy to recognize.

Ingram stared at Chen Chuan. They had killed Lead Investigator Wen, and this person was definitely not Han Fu, so there was only one person left: Lead Investigator Chen Chuan.

Before coming to the merged space, Ingram had read up on him, but the records didn’t match the strength he displayed.

Ingram cast a glance at Dream Master. Sensing it, Dream Master looked over, and Ingram gave him a sign. Dream Master nodded.

The moment Qi Qianyang saw Chen Chuan, he became more excited. His fighting spirit burned, and he proclaimed loudly, “Lead Investigator Chen, the artifact is right here. You’re here for it, aren’t you? Don’t we also have a duel on schedule? Do you think we should get it settled today or wait for another day?”

“Doesn’t make a difference to me,” Chen Chuan said after casting him a glance.

“Alright. Today it is!”

Qi Qianyang ducked down and fixed his eyes on Chen Chuan. His muscles tensed, and he shot forward with a bang and a trail of smoke and dust.

He crossed hundreds of meters in a flash and reached Chen Chuan in the blink of an eye. While jumping, he moved his arms behind his waist and clenched them. Light gathered on them. Without a doubt, he was about to launch a fierce attack with the help of the momentum he had just built up.

Chen Chuan watched him as calm as water. When he got into the clearing, he had stepped away from his second self, but now, after a brief period of rest, he overlapped with his second self again.

He grabbed the Frost King Saber, and its sheath glowed faintly. Once Qi Qianyang got closer, Chen Chuan swung the saber diagonally upward and struck Qi Qianyang’s side.

His elbow and the top half of his body twisted at an awkward angle, and he froze for a brief moment in the air before a loud explosion rose into the air. Then, Qi Qianyang was sent flying sideways for dozens of meters and plunged into the river water. A large splash shot into the sky.

The moment Qi Qianyang was sent flying, the Linacrox Union moved. While staying a safe distance away, Dream Master stared at Chen Chuan, and light shone from his eyes. He launched a mental attack on Chen Chuan.

Desert Wolf, a mercenary skilled in throwing arts, attacked at the same time. He threw a spiked dagger at Chen Chuan just as Soldier Ant dashed forward.

Among them, only Dream Master could use spirit sense, but he wasn’t skilled in melee fights. Due to being born with a mental talent, he had focused on mental training, so he was confident that even if Chen Chuan had a protective item, he would be dazed for a moment.

Since Chen Chuan had needed to gather mental energy to use spirit sense in his brief clash with Qi Qianyang, there was, without a doubt, a gap in his defenses, so this was the best moment for Dream Master to attack.

Once a martial artist didn’t have spirit sense boosting their strength, they weren’t that much stronger than martial artists who had only mastered Heartborn Forces. Their physical bodies were vulnerable, and with a strong enough attack, they could be injured.

Two daggers zipped toward Chen Chuan and sunk into his outermost overcoat. They bent right after, as if they hit some kind of obstacle.

The wind charged over, and Soldier Ant arrived in front of Chen Chuan. Just like when he attacked Qi Qianyang, he pushed his fists together and brought the thick boxing gloves up high. All his refined force surged up to his fists, causing them to become bigger, and he swung them down at Chen Chuan’s head.

Before his fists could land, Chen Chuan pulled his saber above his head, as if it wasn’t at all affected by the laws of motion from the attack earlier. He swung it down, and Soldier Ant was cut in half, even though the saber was still in its sheath.

His hooded head and body were split into two even parts and fell apart with two thuds. The two bent daggers were also pushed out and clattered on the ground.

Ingram’s eyes went wide in shock, and he cast a glance at Dream Master, only to find the man shaking his head. It was a clear sign that his mental attack hadn’t done anything to Chen Chuan.

Chen Chuan slammed the saber into the ground with one hand.

Bam!

The air roared, and his overcoat fluttered. Most of the sheath sank into the dirt. Chen Chuan reversed his grip and slowly drew the Frost King Saber.

As the blade whistled, it released a murderous air, and the skin of most people present crawled.

Chen Chuan kept his eyes trained on them. All of them were his training dummies that were going to facilitate his growth.

The moment the saber was completely drawn, Chen Chuan vanished. There was only a pit filled with dust where he had previously stood.