A Pawn's Passage

Chapter 1364: Martial Arts Practitioner vs Martial Arts Practitioner

After seeing the future through the Guizang Lantern, Qi Xuansu instinctively wanted to react violently, intending to strike first before getting ambushed.

Qi Xuansu might appear somewhat smooth and composed on the surface, but deep down, he was aggressive. However, his experiences over the years had greatly changed him. The first thing he learned in dealing with people and matters was to restrain his anger. In other words, he had learned to suppress the inner violence and act rationally.

Thus, Qi Xuansu suppressed that violent impulse and chose to persuade Hun Chowen patiently instead of striking first.

Of course, Qi Xuansu could have struck first. Hun Ahau, still hesitating over whether to stop him, would never have expected such a sudden attack. He might even have died at Qi Xuansu’s hands.

But in doing so, while Qi Xuansu might feel satisfied, the aftermath would be impossible to clean up.

Whether he killed or merely gravely injured Hun Ahau, there would have to be an explanation afterward. Qi Xuansu could not attack without cause and would have to brand Hun Ahau as an accomplice to treason. After all, Hun Ahau clearly knew the truth yet failed to report it, even shielding his brother.

But if both of Cusco’s highest commanders were branded traitors, it would inevitably trigger a massive mutiny among the army. The Southern Continent was not like the Central Plains. Here, personal allegiance mattered deeply. Thus, things were far more complicated.

If such chaos erupted, Qi Xuansu might succeed in preventing the Western Daoist Order from escalating the situation, but he would also damage the overall strategy, effectively solving one problem by creating a bigger one.

This was clearly not what Sage Qingwei or the Daoist Order wanted to see.

For the sake of the bigger picture, Qi Xuansu ultimately chose to placate Hun Ahau. He did not expect him to sacrifice his brother, but after capturing Hun Chowen, Hun Ahau would still need to step in to stabilize the situation and hold the Cusco army together.

Meanwhile, Huangfu Ji and Hun Chowen were already fighting in earnest, each revealing their Manly Immortal True Form.

Huangfu Ji possessed a Manly Immortal True Form based on the Great Shaman True Form, which stood 5 meters tall.

But Hun Chowen’s Manly Immortal True Form looked entirely different. Though it was also 5 meters tall, only the clothing on his lower body remained intact. Everything else had been torn apart. His skin bore no trace of life, appearing instead like a grayish-white stone covering his entire body.

The sheer terror of Hun Chowen’s strength could be seen from the blood qi enveloping his entire body.

Under normal circumstances, as a Pseudo-Immortal Martial Arts Practitioner, Hun Chowen always restrained himself. But now, he no longer concealed his aura. His blood qi surged wildly, like a blazing sun that would be lethal to ghosts and spirits. If he were to roar, it would be like thunder, powerful enough to shatter a Diviner’s wandering soul instantly.

The strength Hun Chowen displayed was built purely on his physique and blood qi. In a sense, he was still human in form, but no less formidable than ancient beasts.

Huangfu Ji could have achieved the same effect, but he was no longer at his peak. Thus, he was slightly inferior to Hun Chowen in both physique and blood qi. He was already being suppressed by Hun Chowen’s aura.

In the next instant, Hun Chowen vanished, reappearing just over 3 meters in front of Huangfu Ji, his fist clenched and driving straight toward Huangfu Ji’s face.

His speed was beyond Huangfu Ji’s expectations, almost unbelievable. In that lightning-fast moment, Huangfu Ji had no time to dodge and could only thrust a finger toward Hun Chowen’s throat.

He used a finger rather than a fist because it was longer, giving him a slight advantage in reach.

The strike was swift and carried that slight advantage in reach because if Hun Chowen did not evade, his throat would be pierced first.

Forced to change tactics mid-motion, Hun Chowen grabbed Huangfu Ji’s wrist at the critical moment. Though Huangfu Ji’s fingertip had already touched his throat, it only left a small crimson mark.

Among all the opponents Huangfu Ji had faced, Hun Chowen was not the strongest and was far inferior to Joseph. But in the present situation, even the slightest misstep could cost him his life.

Hun Chowen suddenly roared, causing Huangfu Ji to momentarily lose focus. Then, Hun Chowen swept his arm across, smashing into Huangfu Ji’s crossed arms and forcing him backward.

Huangfu Ji’s feet sank into the ground, carving two deep ravines as he struggled to halt his retreat. His hands trembled slightly, and veins bulged along his arms in a terrifying display.

Countless points of light lit up across Hun Chowen’s body. Each one was an acupoint, shining brilliantly from head to toe.

The human body contained over 1,200 acupoints, among which 365 were considered major acupoints. The three Dantians connected by the meridians formed a network through which innate qi flowed endlessly. Qi Refiners centered their practice on the Three Dantians, but Martial Arts Practitioners focused entirely on the acupoints.

Thus, a refined acupoint became indestructible. If a Martial Arts Practitioner managed to refine all 1,200 acupoints, they would become a Manly Immortal.

At present, Hun Chowen had refined over 1,000 acupoints. In other words, he only needed to refine over 100 more to achieve the Manly Immortal state. He was no weaker than Huangfu Ji at full strength.

Huangfu Ji likewise revealed his body spirits within his acupoints.

Hun Chowen inhaled deeply, then exhaled.

It was as if a great wind swept across heaven and earth, filled with surging blood qi comparable to heavenly winds. Even a Diviner at Huangfu Ji’s level would be affected by such wind. However, Huangfu Ji was not a Diviner. He only felt a faint wave of heat.

After both sides gathered their strength, Hun Chowen moved.

From Huangfu Ji’s perspective, Hun Chowen merely leaned forward slightly, as if about to sprint. But that was only an afterimage. The real Hun Chowen had already charged toward him. Huangfu Ji had to rely on instinct rather than sight to determine his trajectory.

Hun Chowen’s punch was utterly unadorned, relying purely on unimaginable physical power. The devastating strike only slowed when it came within a meter of Huangfu Ji. At that instant, Huangfu Ji also struck. His fist intention condensed to the extreme, turning from intangible to tangible, offsetting Hun Chowen’s overwhelming force. Then their fists collided with a thunderous impact.

At that moment, nearly half the palace trembled. Massive shockwaves spread outward, turning everything in their path into dust. The ground beneath them transformed into a glass-like substance, as the blood qi of two Pseudo-Immortal Martial Arts Practitioners exceeded the heat of blazing fire and melted the stone tiles.

In this direct clash, Huangfu Ji suffered a moderate loss. Hun Chowen’s punch carried a hidden force that shook his internal organs. Without his indestructible body, Huangfu Ji would have been severely injured within a few strikes. But with it, as long as his body spirits remained intact, such injuries were insignificant and quickly healed.

Hun Chowen naturally realized this. He knew that to deal with a Martial Arts Practitioner, he must first target their body spirits. Since these were extremely yang and rigid, the best method was to overcome hardness with softness.

Thus, Hun Chowen took a deep breath and gathered his strength again. Huangfu Ji shifted from defense to offense, throwing a punch toward him.

Hun Chowen extended his palm and blocked Huangfu Ji’s fist.

When a Pseudo-Immortal Martial Arts Practitioner activated their circulating blood qi, it not only awakened their body spirits but also hardened their skin, flesh, and bones.

Their clash was like two great bells colliding before separating again.

Hun Chowen then unleashed the Western Daoist Second Calamity Palm, a supreme technique passed down from the Golden Horde.

Hun Chowen’s right palm surged forward with a gale-like wind and a thunderous force that could collapse mountains. Though it appeared simple and direct, it contained spiraling power that formed a vortex around it. Anyone slightly weaker would be dragged in, as if they were willingly throwing themselves into the strike.

At the same time, Hun Chowen struck with his left palm, which was extremely soft, seemingly weightless. But at the level of a Pseudo-Immortal Martial Arts Practitioner, one’s control over force had reached a miraculous level, capable of being immensely hard yet perfectly soft. The brilliance lay in the intent. This palm was a transformation of the ordinary into the extraordinary, not to be underestimated in the slightest. If struck directly, it would likely shatter all bones, dissolving flesh into pulp, leaving nothing but a husk of skin.

The two palms—one yin, one yang—struck simultaneously from both sides. Though the posture seemed strange, Martial Arts Practitioners could achieve what ordinary people could not, adapting endlessly.

Suddenly, every joint in Huangfu Ji’s body erupted with thunder-like cracks, like war drums resounding across heaven and earth. He threw a punch, and his slightly bent arm snapped straight. From chest to shoulder, elbow, wrist, and fist, a chain of explosive sounds rang out. The force of the punch tore through the air, merging countless thunderclaps into a single resounding blast.

Though Huangfu Ji blocked the extremely yang palm, the extremely yin palm struck his arm. The acupoints throughout his entire arm were violently shaken, and his body spirits in that arm flickered out like candles in the wind, extinguished one by one.

The two separated immediately after contact. Huangfu Ji’s entire arm trembled violently, effectively crippled, leaving him unable to strike again for the time being.

After all, one fist was no match for two palms.

At that critical moment, Qi Xuansu finally arrived.