Celestial Human Diagram

Chapter 326 - 57: Tailing

Unlike his reckless assault against Hong Fu, Chen Chuan’s attacks were now extremely cautious. Breaking through Zheng Tongtong’s defenses would require a degree of strategy and skill.

After a few exchanges, he witnessed firsthand how solid Zheng Tongtong’s fundamentals were. Every move, every block, was flawless, revealing no openings.

He had the strange sensation of facing a perfectly round iron ball. No matter where he attacked, it was all the same; he couldn’t find the slightest gap.

Zheng Tongtong had been on the defensive ever since the fight began. It wasn’t that she couldn’t counterattack; she was waiting for the right opportunity.

Chen Chuan could tell she had likely sensed that he was also holding back some of his Power. Thus, she was using the clash of their blades to wait for the gap when he switched between his Mutated Organizations.

Even when switching between two sets of Mutated Organizations, there was always a transition. The exertion of their power was still rooted in the same bones and muscles, so even if they could be used independently, forcibly pulling them against each other would only lead to injury. A minuscule pause was unavoidable.

If she managed to strike during that moment, he would be at a severe disadvantage.

Chen Chuan didn’t let up on his assault. He, too, was using the clash of blades to find the gap in Zheng Tongtong’s Power transition.

But it didn’t take long for him to discover that her transitional gaps were extremely difficult to grasp. They seemed to be shrouded in layers of cover and followed no fixed pattern. He immediately realized this was due to a complete set of advanced Breathing Techniques and Power coordination that he had yet to learn.

’At this rate, there’s probably only one way to break this stalemate: wait for her to attack.’

An attack was also a moment of vulnerability. That might be his chance.

After they had sparred for over half an Hour, Zheng Tongtong’s Sword Stance suddenly quickened. Her blades seemed to transform into a swift shadow, lashing out with three consecutive strikes.

Her timing was perfect, striking right in the gap as Chen Chuan was switching between his Mutated Organizations. Furthermore, these three strikes weren’t meant to wound him but to pump burst after burst of Power into his body.

The first Mutated Organization instinctively dissipated the force, but just as the second one took its place, another wave of Power surged in, forcing him to dissipate it again. But when the third strike came, the first Mutated Organization couldn’t be mobilized in time. It clearly couldn’t keep up with the rhythm.

At this point, there was normally no way out. Even if he released the restraints on his Mutated Organizations, he wouldn’t be able to muster enough Power in time.

Yet, despite seeming unable to resist, he made that choice anyway. This time, however, it wasn’t to stir his emotions and boost his combat strength. Instead, he used this action to mobilize the finer, harder-to-reach Mutated Organizations, forcefully nudging his Long Blade—already knocked aside—back into position.

CLANG! The force of the blow sent him stumbling back several steps, but once he regained his footing, he immediately corrected his stance.

After those three strikes, Zheng Tongtong seemed to have spent her momentum and couldn’t follow up. She looked at Chen Chuan with some surprise, then gave him a thumbs-up and praised him sincerely, "Junior Brother, that was a beautiful block!"

Teacher Zheng chuckled. "Not bad. Alright, let’s stop here for now."

Chen Chuan slowly exhaled. He had only managed that forced mobilization because his internal organs, muscles, and bones had recently been strengthened. Even so, he could feel waves of soreness and stiffness, and it seemed many of the finer, normally unused Mutated Organizations had been torn.

’Mutated Organizations aren’t all identical in their distribution and function, so of course, there are stronger and weaker ones. Forcibly mobilizing the weaker ones would naturally have this result. But this problem isn’t unsolvable. After this experience, I’ll definitely have to find a way to strengthen them.’

Teacher Zheng walked over. "I saw that. You figured out the knack of switching between different sets of Mutated Organizations on your own. That’s excellent. The two sets of offensive and Defensive Power Techniques I taught you, which use different Mutated Organizations, were meant to prepare you for this.

"But while the method you came up with may suit you well, I can see it still has its shortcomings. Therefore, I will teach you the Power and Breathing Techniques I know for this. You can absorb and study them to improve your application. Much of this is crucial, so listen carefully."

This time, he didn’t just give verbal instructions. He used the Realm Token to display a series of diagrams of Mutated Organizations on a screen of light. He demonstrated how each part of the Mutated Organization should exert force, how to adjust and shift them, and what kind of Breathing Technique should be used in coordination to make a Fighter’s transition between Mutated Organizations more natural.

Only through the coordination of Power and breathing could one truly use techniques. Chen Chuan’s previous switching method only involved Power, with almost no proper breathing coordination. Now, after hearing this explanation, it all clicked into place. He was confident that if he were to fight again, it wouldn’t be like it was just now.

In addition to this, Teacher Zheng also taught him a series of Force Application techniques, such as storing momentum, stacking force, guiding and releasing, and emptying. He concluded by saying:

"I’ve taught you pretty much all the key points of Power application and Breathing Techniques. If your only goal is to pass the assessment, you’re more than capable of doing so now. But if you want to pursue higher goals, this is still far from enough."

Chen Chuan nodded. He knew full well it was impossible to master all of this at once. For now, he had merely swallowed it whole. It would take long-term training and constant combat to truly experience, comprehend, and gradually internalize these skills.

Besides, a sparring partner as good as Zheng Tongtong was impossible to find elsewhere. He certainly wouldn’t miss such a rare opportunity.

Seeing the determined look in his eyes, Teacher Zheng said with satisfaction, "I can tell you don’t want to stop here. Very good. In that case, the rest of this semester’s lessons will be practical application and reinforcement training. I won’t set a time limit. Aside from rest days, you can come over anytime."

Chen Chuan nodded. "Okay. Thank you, Teacher Zheng."

"Then let’s continue training."

Chen Chuan agreed, raised his blade, and stepped forward to continue sparring with Zheng Tongtong, using live combat to experience and digest what he had just learned.

For the next few days, he went back and forth between the Profound Palace Building and Teacher Zheng’s residence. Time gradually passed, and it was soon the end of March.

One day, on the shared channel between him, Wubei, and Old Qi, he saw a photo posted by Old Qi. It was a picture of him with a little girl, likely his daughter. A birthday cake sat in front of them. Old Qi looked rather worn down, but the little girl was very cute and was making a funny face for the camera.

Chen Chuan checked the time; the photo must have been from yesterday. He asked, "Old Qi, how have you been?"

"Doing well. I paid the fine for that penalty notice, so that’s behind me. I can take commissions again. On a side note, I heard that ever since the Golden Shrimp Team disappeared, no one’s been picking up those anomaly commissions."

Chen Chuan said, "I’m in training right now, so I’m afraid I won’t have time for commissions for a while."

Old Qi replied, "No problem, Brother Chen. I’ll wait for your word. Whenever you need me, just give me a shout."

Chen Chuan added, "But Old Qi, please keep an eye out. If you see any anomalies that could cause widespread impact, let me know right away."

Although dealing with anomalies wasn’t an urgent priority anymore, as someone capable of handling such matters, he wouldn’t just stand by and do nothing if it was a large-scale incident.

Wubei spoke up just then. "Brother Chen, don’t worry. I’m keeping an eye out for you."

Chen Chuan said, "With you on the case, Brother Wu, I’m not worried." Just then, something occurred to him. "Old Qi, do you know where I can buy things that kids like?"

He had been in Central City for almost two months now. He planned to send some things from the city to his aunt, uncle, and younger cousins. Although you could find anything on the Realm Token, most of the recommended items were quite expensive.

Old Qi said, "I know just the place, Brother Chen. I’ll send you an address. You can’t go wrong buying stuff there."

A moment later, an address came through on his Realm Token. It was for a place called the Treasure Fruit Market, located on the edge of Yinglu District.

He glanced at the sky. It had been raining on and off for the past few days, but right now, the sky was a rare clear blue. He figured he might as well go get it done now.

So he changed his clothes, left the Profound Palace Building, and took the tram to the market. He found that it really did have a complete selection of goods. Not only did it have products from Central City, but also from the surrounding remote cities.

This saved him the trouble of running around. He first bought his aunt and uncle a set of scarves and gloves, as well as a man’s and a woman’s hat. For his uncle specifically, he got a Central City-made pipe, an ashtray, and some good tobacco that Old Qi had recommended.

For his aunt, he bought a bolt of high-quality fabric, a set of exquisite porcelain tea ware, and some local specialty foods from the cities around Central City. For his younger cousins, he got a few jars of candy and some assorted toys and trinkets.

He also spotted a beautiful, neglected record player and bought it on a whim. The shop owner even thoughtfully threw in a number of records for free.

He also picked out a pair of flashy decorative sunglasses made in Central City for Cheng Zitong. After paying for everything, he arranged for delivery. For security, however, he didn’t fill in a home address, instead listing the Baofeng District Patrol Bureau as the destination.

By the time he left, the sky had turned gloomy again. He quickened his pace and made it into the station just before it started to rain. While he was waiting for the tram, Wubei’s voice came from the Realm Token: "Brother Chen, it looks like someone is tailing you using a Boundary Point Domain."

Chen Chuan’s eyes flickered. "Are you sure?"

Wubei said, "They’re being very covert, but the same frequency has appeared around you several times, Brother Chen. It’s no coincidence."

Chen Chuan grunted in acknowledgment. "Can you tell where they are?"

Wubei replied, "The person is very cautious. They’re there one moment and gone the next. I was afraid of alerting them, so I didn’t try to track them immediately."

Chen Chuan said, "Don’t rush it. Just wait for an opportunity."

"Okay."

Chen Chuan’s first thought was Wei Wusheng. He was certain that Wei Wusheng had a Resonator working with him, and perhaps even a faction backing them. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have been able to pull off what they did.

Just then, the tram pulled into the station. He rose from his seat, picked up his Snow Monarch Blade, and followed the crowd into the car.

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