Cultivation: Start From Simplifying Martial Arts Techniques

Substitute Evil, a unique technique of the Yan Dequan lineage, can be used to replace oneself with something eerie when facing a life-threatening danger.

However, using the Substitute Evil comes with a price. It requires cultivation and isn’t something that can be used casually by just capturing any evil entity and treating it as a Substitute Evil.

Using one’s own essence as a guide, infuse the evil energy daily without interruption. Only by doing so can the Substitute Evil protect you during crucial moments when your life is at stake.

At this moment, Yan Dequan’s face was pale. Activating the Substitute Evil had consumed a considerable amount of his essence, and without a period of recovery, he wouldn’t be able to restore it.

Apart from the depletion of his energy, what terrified Yan Dequan even more was Chen Fei’s actions.

The last time they met, they were evenly matched in their exchanges, and even in the overall situation, Yan Dequan had the upper hand.

But in just a few months, Chen Fei had broken through to the Visceral Tempering realm. However, the sword strike just now almost killed Yan Dequan on the spot.

If it weren’t for the subtlety of the Substitute Evil, Yan Dequan would truly not have escaped.

Yan Dequan couldn’t comprehend why Chen Fei’s strength had grown so much in just a few months. Unfortunately, no one answered Yan Dequan’s doubts, and at this point, he didn’t want to know. His only thought now was to escape as quickly as possible.

The farther away from Chen Fei, the better. Presently, Yan Dequan had no second Substitute Evil left to shield him from fatal injuries.

“The conversation hasn’t ended. There’s no need to leave in such a hurry!”

Chen Fei’s voice slowly came from behind, causing cold sweat to break out on Yan Dequan’s back. Yan Dequan had already fled forward at the fastest speed possible.

However, even so, Chen Fei effortlessly caught up. Fear surged in Yan Dequan’s heart—what kind of monster was he facing?

Wasn’t Chen Fei a disciple of the Primordial Sword Sect? It was a sect that one could enter by spending money, a martial art sect for cultivation. How could someone like Chen Fei emerge from there?

Such power shouldn’t belong to the Immortal Cloud Sword Sect, right? It shouldn’t be a dominant force like that. Primordial Sword Sect—it shouldn’t be like this.

It was precisely due to a trace of disdain for the Primordial Sword Sect in his heart, along with the information he had heard before, that Yan Dequan had formed a mistaken judgment.

“You and I have no grievances, no conflicts. The incidents from last time arose because you insisted on meddling in our internal matters, leading to the conflict.”

Yan Dequan halted his steps, and over a hundred enigmatic hands floated behind him, all watchful as they focused on Chen Fei. Knowing that he couldn’t escape, Yan Dequan intended to have a proper conversation with Chen Fei.

“Originally, there were no grievances, no conflicts. However, after these two clashes, there’s already a grudge between us.”

Chen Fei smiled faintly. With a flash of his figure, he had already arrived in front of Yan Dequan.

“Don’t go too far! If you have conditions, state them. There’s no need for violence!”

Yan Dequan shouted loudly, but Chen Fei showed no intention of stopping. Yan Dequan was both angry and resentful, but more than anything, he was afraid.

“Seal!”

Yan Dequan roared, and his essence surged throughout his body, then poured entirely into the enigmatic hands. The number of hands increased suddenly from over a hundred to nearly three hundred.

But Yan Dequan’s temples turned instantly pale, extending upward. His hair turned entirely gray. It wasn’t just his hair—his facial skin began to sag, and the flesh and blood under his skin seemed to be devoured, disappearing.

Chen Fei’s expression changed slightly. Yan Dequan was about to go all-out, sacrificing his own essence and flesh to the enigmatic hands in exchange for a temporary burst of power.

“Suppress!”

Chen Fei softly uttered a word, and an energy field instantly spread around, encompassing Yan Dequan entirely. Those enigmatic hands that had intended to charge were suddenly weighed down, their speed slowing and their formation appearing somewhat distorted.

“Let me go!”

Feeling this energy field again, Yan Dequan’s expression twisted. His hands formed frantic seals, and his entire body turned skeletal. His eyes bulged out as if they were about to pop.

In a critical moment, Yan Dequan was ruthless, completely disregarding the consequences. At this point, he only wanted to survive. If an ordinary person sacrificed almost all of their flesh and essence like this, they’d probably drop dead immediately.

Even for warriors, losing so much flesh and essence would not only obliterate their strength but would likely result in their death shortly after.

However, the methods of the Resisting Evil Bloodline were somewhat different from the conventional martial art system. Although Yan Dequan’s body was weak at the moment, his mental state was unprecedentedly strong.

Those enigmatic hands resisted the suppression of the energy field, rapidly flying toward Chen Fei, attempting to seal him within.

With this number of enigmatic hands, if they truly formed a formation, the icy power they generated wouldn’t be something an ordinary Visceral Tempering realm could withstand, and even Chen Fei wouldn’t be willing to give it a try.

Eternal Moment!

The Thousand Origin Technique rapidly activated, slowing down the surrounding world. Chen Fei took in various details, and in the next moment, he vanished from his original spot.

Chen Fei rarely used mental techniques on people because a person’s mind was enveloped by their physical body. Trying to directly attack someone’s mind through their body consumed a tremendous amount of energy and was prone to backlash.

Warriors had vigorous life force, which naturally provided better protection for their minds. Yan Dequan wasn’t a warrior, but at this moment, as he sacrificed his flesh and essence, his mental state was at its peak.

Naturally, Chen Fei wouldn’t be foolish enough to use mental techniques to attack Yan Dequan. There was no need for that.

Chen Fei’s figure flickered like a fish, and within the force field, gravity changed abruptly—more intense in one area and lighter in others. This disrupted the sealing of the enigmatic hands, and Chen Fei easily surged forward.

Wide-eyed, Yan Dequan watched Chen Fei. Due to the absence of flesh on his cheeks, his eyes looked unnaturally large, as if a bit more effort would cause his eyeballs to burst.

Yan Dequan cared little for his horrifying appearance. At this moment, he desperately controlled the enigmatic hands, attempting to stop Chen Fei. However, the unpredictable energy field made the hands utterly uncontrollable.

Yan Dequan’s strength had indeed skyrocketed, and he adjusted quickly, but there were still slight intervals in his movements. For the current Chen Fei, these intervals were more than enough.

As if taking a leisurely stroll, Chen Fei covered the distance to Yan Dequan in a few steps. The black sword in his hand had turned completely pitch-black at some point.

Raising the black sword high, as if passing judgment, Yan Dequan’s eyes were filled with despair and pleading.

“Don’t kill…”

Before Yan Dequan could finish speaking, the black sword descended. Yan Dequan instinctively raised his bony arms to shield himself.

But what could these skeletal arms possibly block?

“Boom!”

Within a radius of a few meters, the entire ground trembled violently, creating a deep pit in the alley. In the pit lay Yan Dequan, lifeless.

Chen Fei glanced at him, confirming Yan Dequan’s demise. He used his sword to flip open a pouch in Yan Dequan’s embrace and swiftly left the area.

The commotion here would likely draw the guards of Immortal Cloud City in no time. Staying here any longer would be troublesome.

“Chen junior!”

As Chen Fei had just crossed a few walls, a voice sounded. Chen Fei looked surprised as he saw it was Si Yuanhai.

Seeing Chen Fei unharmed, Si Yuanhai couldn’t help but release a sigh of relief. He quickly approached and said, “Did you activate the Enigmatic Jade earlier? 1 was worried something might happen to you, so 1 came over quickly.”

Si Yuanhai took a breath and continued, “I mentioned it to you before, right? When you activate the Enigmatic Jade, you should guide it toward yourself immediately; otherwise, it might attract my junior brother.”

“It did indeed attract him, and we even had a little brawl.” Chen Fei looked at Si Yuanhai and chuckled softly.

Si Yuanhai was someone who valued loyalty and friendship. Knowing that Chen Fei might be in danger, he had come after him. This alone made Si Yuanhai someone worth befriending.

When there’s trouble, he doesn’t hesitate and charges straight ahead.

“You’ve encountered each other and even fought? Is he chasing after us then? Let’s go first!”

Upon hearing Chen Fei’s words, Si Yuanhai’s eyes widened slightly, and he tried to pull Chen Fei away. In Si Yuanhai’s eyes, Chen Fei and Yan Dequan had probably clashed briefly, and it was likely that Yan Dequan was still chasing them.

“Yeah, let’s go first to avoid the guards of Immortal Cloud City.”

Chen Fei nodded. This wasn’t the place for conversations. It would be better to return to the small courtyard where Si Yuanhai was staying. They could discuss matters there.

Si Yuanhai was puzzled by Chen Fei’s words. What did Immortal Cloud City’s guards have to do with this? Had their confrontation caused unintended harm to others?

While confused, Si Yuanhai followed Chen Fei in swiftly leaving the scene.

Just as they had run a short distance, Si Yuanhai suddenly noticed the pouch Chen Fei was holding, and it looked very familiar. In the next instant, a lightning bolt of realization struck his mind. Si Yuanhai remembered where he had seen that pouch before.

A conjecture formed in Si Yuanhai’s mind based on Chen Fei’s expression and words earlier. However, he wasn’t entirely sure because Yan Dequan’s strength was formidable, much stronger than an average Visceral Tempering realm.

A couple of Visceral Tempering realms probably wouldn’t even be able to get close to Yan Dequan’s level.

Si Yuanhai didn’t immediately ask. With lingering doubts, they returned to the rented courtyard.

Si Yinan was pacing anxiously. When she saw her grandfather and Chen Fei return safely, she couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief, and a smile appeared on her face.

Yan Dequan had been a nightmare for Si Yinan in recent months. They had been constantly on the move, never staying in one place for too long, to avoid being tracked down by Yan Dequan.

The name Yan Dequan, the thought of him, it was all like a nightmare. Just hearing his name or thinking about him brought fear to Si Yinan.

“Grandpa, should we change our location now?” Si Yinan whispered. It had become a habit to relocate whenever there was even a slight possibility of trouble.

Si Yuanhai didn’t answer directly. Instead, he turned to look at Chen Fei, his gaze pausing on the pouch in Chen Fei’s hand for a moment. Then, he looked back at Chen Fei, his eyes carrying a hint of inquiry.

“He’s dead! If you were planning to leave Immortal Cloud City because of him, then you don’t need to go anymore,” Chen Fei said with a smile.

His suspicions confirmed, Si Yuanhai’s expression turned somewhat dazed. Si Yinan had been a bit confused initially, but seeing her grandfather’s expression, her eyes widened slightly.

Si Yinan immediately associated Chen Fei’s description with Yan Dequan.. Could it be that Yan Dequan was the person Chen Fei had talked about?