Chapter 1352: "Heavenly Vigor"
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Chu Tianqiu stumbled again amid the deafening noise, but he knew he absolutely could not stop.
Perhaps after all these years, he was the only "participant" who could stand on this step—
Celestial Dragon was right there!
He pulled out the "Dreamwalk" from his pocket, bit it fiercely in his mouth, and his consciousness began to blur.
He had never tried to swallow so many eyeballs at once; time itself seemed to slow for a second.
It felt as if something had already activated.
Then he summoned all his focus to maintain his sanity, stretching out his right hand toward Celestial Dragon, but the room started shaking wildly again.
The distance between them remained a single palm's width. The final step after seventy years was harder than any before.
"Considering I've never done anything bad in my life..." Chu Tianqiu gritted his teeth. "Can't you let my life go smoothly just once..."
Celestial Dragon's brows were tightly knit, his body swaying as if he was about to open his eyes.
In the midst of the violent shaking, that palm's distance was finally closed.
Chu Tianqiu gently touched Celestial Dragon's fingertip.
A look of joy instantly appeared on his face. Though this step was harder than any other, he had truly done it.
What an incredibly perilous and long step.
As an ordinary person, he had touched the supreme "god" of this place.
Chu Tianqiu instinctively looked up. All the plans were on track; as long as he immediately—
Before he could even finish thinking through his next move, he found time had frozen.
Celestial Dragon's brows relaxed slightly. The room stopped shaking. Even the three people fighting behind him fell still.
All sounds abruptly vanished. Chu Tianqiu turned around and saw the three of them frozen in place like statues.
This was...?
"Chu Tianqiu."
A voice sounded not far from Chu Tianqiu, making him tremble slightly.
He turned his head and saw Qi Xia.
He hadn't lied—he was really waiting here.
"Qi Xia... what exactly..."
"Swallowing that many eyeballs really can trigger the craziest 'Dreamwalk'." Qi Xia, covering his own wounds, said, "Chu Tianqiu, the 'dream' is about to start. There's no time. Listen to me: leave everything to me from now on. You just need to keep the 'Dreamwalk' stable. Right now, help me remove that Azure Dragon from the dream..."
"Wha...?" Chu Tianqiu was stunned. "What do you mean... you're going to handle it yourself? Do you know who you're about to face?"
"It's fine... this is a 'dream'," Qi Xia murmured. "This is a world ruled by the subconscious. I'll make Celestial Dragon think I'm Azure Dragon."
"You..." Chu Tianqiu paused. "You mean with 'psychological suggestion'..."
He felt this task was far from easy.
"That requires precise timing and rhythm of suggestion. I'm the only one who can do it," Qi Xia said, grabbing Chu Tianqiu's arm. "Leave the hardest part to me. Go hide quickly."
"Qi Xia..." Chu Tianqiu looked at him with concern. "Our goal is to crack open a rift in Celestial Dragon's dream, isn't it?"
"Exactly," Qi Xia said. "I'll not only crack a rift—I'll shatter his dream completely. Then I'll protect you as you escape."
"What about you?" Chu Tianqiu asked.
"I... let's not talk about that. Time is too tight. Get ready to move!"
...
Qiao Jiajin and Zhang Shan saw that the moment Chu Tianqiu touched Celestial Dragon, he closed his eyes. Celestial Dragon's expression beside him had relaxed, as if entering an even deeper sleep.
"It worked..." Zhang Shan wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth. "Chu Tianqiu... great..."
"Tianqiu..." Qiao Jiajin lay on the ground, painfully clutching his chest.
But Azure Dragon was enraged again. He completely stopped using "Heavenly Vigor" and instead unleashed his strongest "Soul Capture".
He swore to tear Chu Tianqiu away from Celestial Dragon's side for good.
Zhang Shan and Qiao Jiajin instantly felt their limbs bound. In the distance, Chu Tianqiu, who was in a deep sleep, slowly furrowed his brow. He felt a force pulling him backward.
"Big guy..." Qiao Jiajin gritted his teeth from the ground. "I've got this bastard Azure Dragon pinned down... come over and give him a kick..."
"Damn it..." Zhang Shan also gritted his teeth. "He beat you to the ground—can you see the situation?"
Neither could move. Despite their terrifying strength, they couldn't use it.
Who could possibly help now?
Anyone who had heard Azure Dragon's voice would be controlled by "Soul Capture". No matter who entered this room, the battle wouldn't change. A sense of despair began to envelop them.
But fate seemed to have its own plan.
Who said Azure Dragon's opponents were only three "Heavenly Vigor" users?
Just as Azure Dragon was frantically using "Soul Capture", just when Chu Tianqiu and the other two were completely immobilized—
The "Deaf Heavenly Vigor" appeared.
As the saying goes: a scholar dies for his bosom friend.
A single "word" flew out of Qiao Jiajin's pocket at that moment.
It shot out like a powerful dart, bursting with infinite force, flying straight toward Azure Dragon's body without hesitation.
Since Azure Dragon had completely abandoned "Heavenly Vigor", his body was unusually fragile. The character "Shi" seemed to have awakened some memory, spinning upward toward his heart.
Azure Dragon never expected such a turn. He couldn't dodge in time. A massive force struck his chest in an instant.
He stared in disbelief, looking down at the bloody hole in his chest. Before he could even curse "ant," the character was already embedded deep inside.
Qiao Jiajin and Zhang Shan immediately regained movement. They used their last strength to get up, gritting their teeth, and as Azure Dragon was incapacitated, their fists like missiles began to bombard his body.
A thunderous sound erupted. Azure Dragon's internal organs were repeatedly struck in quick succession.
He staggered backward, unable to withstand the violent assault.
"Big guy!" Qiao Jiajin yelled, running toward Zhang Shan. He jumped and delivered a flying knee toward him.
Zhang Shan understood instantly. He stepped forward, caught Qiao Jiajin in midair, and using the momentum, spun him around several times before throwing him like a nuclear bomb toward Azure Dragon.
Azure Dragon had just recovered and opened his eyes wide when he saw a steel-like knee flying at him, slamming into his face with unimaginable force.
This time, he had no way to defend against their attack. His waist bent backward nearly ninety degrees, blood arcing from his mouth.
Finally, Azure Dragon slowly fell to the ground.
His powerful physique kept him alive, but blood kept flowing from his mouth.
Qiao Jiajin steadied his breathing and walked slowly to Azure Dragon's side.
In disbelief, he reached out and pulled the "character" from Azure Dragon's heart.
The character was now twisted and completely shattered. It was lifeless, just like an ordinary piece of scrap metal.
"Damn..." Zhang Shan stared at him in shock. "You're really versatile—you even had a hidden weapon up your sleeve?"
"Uh... this..." Qiao Jiajin didn't know how to answer either. He had only taken a souvenir from the "Cangjie Chess"; how did it become such a powerful hidden weapon?
The two stood together, enduring their injuries, and found that Azure Dragon had completely lost his combat ability, just vomiting blood on the ground.
But they didn't dare kill him now, because Chu Tianqiu was still in "Dreamwalk". So what was the situation?
Qi Xia was nowhere in the room; Chu Tianqiu was nowhere either. For the moment, the two of them were like headless flies.
(Today's chapter is the third update. Tomorrow will have at least four updates to finish, and I will start a live stream on my Douyin at 8 PM on October 31st. Interested friends can come chat, but I can't guarantee my brain will be completely clear, haha. Thank you all for your continued support. I'm truly grateful.)