Chapter 14 - 10: Liuyun Breaking Realm, Unrivaled in Cyan Cloud

Chapter 14: Chapter 10: Liuyun Breaking Realm, Unrivaled in Cyan Cloud

A Foundation Establishment Stage Magic Corpse was the strongest enemy Lu Chen had encountered since coming to the Ancient Cultivator’s Tomb dungeon.

Unlike the rigid attack patterns of the Cyan Profound Puppet, and unlike ordinary Magic Corpses that were easily suppressed by the Purple Mist Divine Light, Ye Chenglin not only possessed rich combat experience, but the Purple Mist Divine Light also had very little suppressive effect on him.

This was perhaps because Lu Chen’s current Cultivation was too low, resulting in his Purple Mist Divine Light lacking much power. Or perhaps Ye Chenglin had already reached a realm where he no longer feared the sunlight. But no matter which it was, Lu Chen could no longer suppress this Magic Corpse with the Purple Mist Divine Light and wait for an opportunity to secure a one-strike kill like before.

Therefore, he had to abandon all opportunistic methods this time and face Ye Chenglin head-on. Although fighting a Foundation Establishment Stage Magic Corpse with his Qi Cultivation Second Level Cultivation seemed like a complete suicide mission from every angle, Lu Chen felt he wasn’t entirely without a chance of winning.

Leaving aside the fact that Ye Chenglin was heavily injured and only had one arm left—restricting him to drawing Talismans single-handedly—just the fact that he hadn’t prepared any Talismans in advance was enough to greatly discount his Power.

If Ye Chenglin were in his prime, Lu Chen naturally wouldn’t dare act so recklessly. Unless he upgraded all his Skills to the Realm-Breaking Level and his own Cultivation reached at least the Qi Cultivation Fifth Level, Lu Chen felt he would have no chance at all. But in Ye Chenglin’s current state, his Power was definitely a far cry from its peak. As long as Lu Chen could figure out his trump cards and get used to his attack patterns, there should be a decent chance of winning.

He thought, "I wonder how much of his original skill this Foundation Establishment Stage Magic Corpse still retains..."

With this thought in mind, Lu Chen once again pushed open the Bronze Gate and saw Ye Chenglin behind it.

"Who. Are. You?"

Lu Chen took the Magic Sword out of his Storage Pouch and gave the same answer as he had the first time. "Cyan Cloud Sect handyman, Lu Chen."

After saying this, Lu Chen lunged fiercely toward Ye Chenglin. Knowing perfectly well that his opponent possessed masterful Thunder Techniques, Lu Chen naturally had to try every possible way to close the distance between them.

After all, aside from his Qi Sword, he had no other effective long-range attacks. Yet, whether in power or speed, his Qi Sword fell far short of Ye Chenglin’s Thunder Technique. Engaging in Magical Combat from a distance would undoubtedly be a hopeless endeavor.

However, Lu Chen’s sneak attack didn’t yield much of a result. He had barely covered ten meters when Thunder Talismans transformed into pitch-black lightning and shot right toward his face. Faced with this ferocious lightning, Lu Chen’s figure began to flow continuously. Every dodge left a residual shadow in its place, creating a certain confusing effect.

[Flowing Cloud Step: Great Success 15/4000]

[Effect: When executed, it can instantly increase your speed and leave behind an afterimage in place]

Relying on his initial sneak attack and his early precautions against Ye Chenglin’s Thunder Technique, he managed to dash an extra ten meters compared to his first attempt, reaching a total distance of twenty meters. Just eighty more meters, and he would be right in front of Ye Chenglin.

Unfortunately, these remaining eighty meters became an insurmountable chasm for Lu Chen. His Body Technique was certainly good, but to Ye Chenglin... it was merely just that. Good. After all, no matter how fast he was, could he be faster than flashing lightning?

CRACKLE CRACKLE.

Drawing Talismans in the Air with a single hand, Ye Chenglin gathered a massive number of Thunder Talismans before him. Immediately after, this dense cluster of Thunder Talismans shot forth, covering every possible area where Lu Chen could dodge.

Undoubtedly, Ye Chenglin’s method of winning by sheer numbers was highly effective. If one Thunder Talisman couldn’t hit the target, then simply throwing a few more would do the trick. Even though he had lost most of his memories, his combat instincts were still carved into his very bones, allowing him to choose the most suitable fighting style in an incredibly short time.

Facing this nearly impenetrable barrage of Thunder Talismans, Lu Chen had absolutely no other choice but to protect himself with his Purple Mist Divine Light. After all, he hadn’t yet reached the point where he could precisely dodge every single bolt of lightning amidst such a dense storm of Thunder Talismans.

BOOM!

The dense cluster of Thunder Talismans landed on Lu Chen, triggering a violent explosion. When the dust from the blast settled, Lu Chen lay half-dead in the crater blasted out by the Thunder Talismans. Standing atop the mountain of corpses, Ye Chenglin glanced at him calmly before casually tossing out a few more Thunder Talismans.

Second challenge, failed!

[Flowing Cloud Step: Great Success 20/4000]

...

Upon reviving once again, Lu Chen didn’t lose heart; instead, he began to analyze his mistakes from the second failure. Reflecting on failures after a battle was an instinct Lu Chen had cultivated after hundreds of resurrections. After all, one couldn’t afford to make the same mistake twice, especially when the price paid was one’s own life. As the saying goes, lessons from others fall on deaf ears, but lessons from harsh experience stick after just one try.

Though Lu Chen currently seemed to be playing a game, the immersive mode made it feel as if he was truly experiencing everything within the dungeon. Whether it was the thrill of dancing on the edge of a blade while fighting the Magic Corpses, or the sheer helplessness of death—all of it felt incredibly real, so real that Lu Chen simply couldn’t treat it as just a game. And it was precisely this authenticity that allowed him to gain something new with every resurrection.

After another five minutes of summarizing and reviewing, Lu Chen stood up again and commenced his third challenge.

Three minutes later.

Having failed the third challenge, Lu Chen spent another five minutes analyzing the process of his defeat, pondering what mistakes he had made this time and whether there was any room for further optimization. Through this repetitive cycle, Lu Chen’s Skill Proficiency in the Flowing Cloud Step began to increase at an astonishing rate.

...

After the 130th challenge failed.

[Your Flowing Cloud Step meets the upgrade conditions and has reached Breaking Realm]

[Flowing Cloud Step (Max): Breaking Realm]

[Effect: Body like flowing clouds, allows one to walk on air]

He thought, "My Flowing Cloud Step has reached Breaking Realm. This time, I should be able to get close to that Foundation Establishment Stage Magic Corpse..."

Lu Chen stood up and skillfully pushed open the heavy Bronze Gate as if he were just going home. Having crossed swords with him over a hundred times already, Lu Chen completely skipped the process of exchanging pleasantries with Ye Chenglin. The instant he opened the Bronze Gate, he charged toward Ye Chenglin with all his might. A sneak attack? Going all out was simply his way of showing respect to a formidable enemy!

Seeing this, Ye Chenglin acted exactly as he had the previous 130 times; after a brief silence, he directly began Drawing Talismans in the Air.

"Left..." Lu Chen muttered softly as he rapidly changed direction. In the next second, a Thunder Talisman materialized out of thin air on his left, brushing right past him.

"Above..." Lu Chen fiercely bent at the waist, gliding close to the ground. At the exact same time he ducked, another Thunder Talisman transformed into lightning and shot past him.

After dodging this second Thunder Talisman, Lu Chen didn’t rush to advance. Instead, he leaped high into the air.

"Below..." The moment Lu Chen launched himself into the air, the ground beneath his feet suddenly softened into a muddy swamp. Had his reaction been even a fraction of a second slower, he might have stepped into the trap, losing his balance and leaving himself utterly at his opponent’s mercy.

Ye Chenglin raised his head, locking eyes with Lu Chen in the air not far away. In Ye Chenglin’s eyes, Lu Chen saw an expression he had never seen before. It was a look of... sheer astonishment.

Obviously, Ye Chenglin had never expected that a mere Qi Refining cultivator like Lu Chen could dodge his Thunder Talismans one after another. What was more, it seemed like he had foreknowledge of every single attack.

Though Ye Chenglin couldn’t figure it out, he didn’t bother dwelling on it either. His remaining right arm blurred into an afterimage, drawing dozens of Thunder Talismans in the blink of an eye. Upon manifesting, these Thunder Talismans immediately transformed into black lightning and flew toward Lu Chen.

Not yet having reached the Foundation Establishment Stage, Lu Chen currently didn’t possess the ability of Sword Flight. In other words, he shouldn’t theoretically have any capacity to maneuver while in mid-air. However, that only applied under normal circumstances.

"Flowing Cloud Step!"

Lu Chen stomped on empty air, and the invisible atmosphere instantly rippled outward like waves of water. Using this reactionary force, he constantly twisted, turned, and leaped through the air, weaving his way between the countless Thunder Talismans.

Before long, despite previously being utterly unable to get close to Ye Chenglin, he had actually arrived right in front of him. Gripping his Magic Sword with one hand, Lu Chen calmly looked down at Ye Chenglin below.

"This time, it’s my turn to play a card."

"Swordsmanship... Water Dragon Roar!"