Apotheosis Begins with Tai Chi

His eyes were bleary and his grin was lecherous; it was obvious he’d had too much to drink.

Chen Cheng had originally planned to kill him today.

But, to Chen Cheng’s surprise, an unplanned variable had appeared today: Liu Yikai.

This man was also a Secret Disciple of Cloud Platform Hall, Qin Zhao’s right-hand man.

He hadn’t been here for the past few days, yet today he had shown up. And from the looks of it, he hadn’t drunk much; he was perfectly sober.

Chen Cheng’s fingers, which had been fiddling with a Crescent Dart, couldn’t help but loosen their grip.

’For this kind of ambush, I have to be absolutely certain of success before I strike. Otherwise, if I fail once, I’ll alert the enemy, and I’ll never get another chance.’

’If Liu Yikai weren’t here, even if my Hidden Weapons missed, I could rely on the strength I’ve gained over the last seven days to secure a quick victory and retreat. But against two opponents, there are too many variables.’

Chen Cheng had no choice but to carefully reconsider.

’If the risk wasn’t manageable, he’d rather abandon the opportunity than force an attack.’

”Senior Brother Zhang! Senior Brother Liu! Something terrible has happened—!”

Just as the group was about to enter a brothel, a frantic shout suddenly echoed from the distance.

Liu Yikai immediately turned and went to meet the person.

Most of Zhang Shan’s drunkenness also vanished in an instant, as if he had forcibly suppressed it with his Transforming Force.

The newcomer was still some distance away. After meeting with Liu Yikai, he deliberately kept his voice extremely low.

Even with Chen Cheng’s sharp hearing, he could only make out fragments of their conversation.

”Senior Brother Qin... the Pang Family... danger...”

Anyone else would not have understood what it meant.

But for Chen Cheng, these fragmented words were enough to piece together the truth.

’During the Martial Selection, Qin Zhao challenged Pang Wanhe and ruined the Pang Family’s plans. That must have struck at the family’s core interests.’

’The Pang Family’s retaliation, though slow, had finally come.’

’The crucial part was this: if they eliminated Qin Zhao, Pang Wanhe, who was second on the Golden List, would naturally move up a rank. He would reclaim the title of Lin Kui of the Golden List, reviving the Pang Family’s original scheme.’

Chen Cheng quickly sorted through his thoughts and began planning his next move.

Meanwhile,

As expected, Liu Yikai’s expression changed drastically after hearing the messenger’s report. He immediately activated his Blood Qi and fled the scene with an incredibly fast Body Technique.

Zhang Shan hesitated for a moment before following at top speed.

Both were Seven Blood Secret Martial Artists, and with the boost from their Cloud Peng Leg Technique, their speed was too fast for the naked eye to follow. An ordinary person would only be able to see their afterimages.

WHOOSH—!

But at that exact moment, a sharp whistle suddenly screamed past Zhang Shan’s ear.

He was already moving at his maximum speed; an ordinary Arrow couldn’t have caught up to him.

However, the whistling sound had been launched after he started moving but arrived ahead of him. It came from a hidden corner, perfectly placed to intercept his path.

SLICE!

Zhang Shan didn’t have the habit of constantly maintaining a Transforming Force Barrier. Or perhaps it was because he had just forced himself sober from a drunken stupor and hadn’t yet returned to his normal fighting condition.

There was only the sound of a sharp blade slicing through tough leather.

A Crescent Dart, roughly the size of a child’s palm, spun past his throat.

His body continued to rush forward at extreme speed, his legs still pumping powerfully.

But his head had already separated from his neck. Inertia flung it more than a hundred meters behind him, leaving a brilliant, gory trail across the decadent, lantern-lit street.

WHOOSH—CLANG!

Liu Yikai was running ahead. Another Crescent Dart shot toward his throat as well.

However, it was instantly deflected by his Transforming Force Barrier, leaving him completely unharmed.

He didn’t dare to stop, not even to glance back, terrified of being overtaken by the hidden expert from the ’Pang Family’.

He desperately accelerated, pushing his Blood Qi to its absolute limit, clenching his jaw so hard he nearly shattered his teeth.

But no matter how he accelerated, he felt something latched onto him from behind, something he could not shake off.