Heaven’s Shadow

Chapter 196: Pursuing the Truth

Lu Chen’s gaze locked with Ah Tu’s. In the quiet of the night and the darkness of the forest, a night breeze blew over the treetops, causing leaves to rustle faintly.

A faint light, like green flames, shone in Ah Tu’s eyes, much brighter than before. Despite the many bird and animal corpses around, there wasn’t much of a bloody smell—perhaps the blood had dried over time.

Ah Tu began to pant deeply, as if in pain. Its eyes flickered with a wild light, as if two opposing thoughts were clashing violently in its mind, tearing at each other.

The green flames in Ah Tu’s eyes flickered erratically, growing bright and dim like a candle in the wind. Lu Chen watched silently, his expression stern, a hint of coldness in his eyes. Ah Tu seemed different tonight, torn between calmness and frenzy. The darkness around it surged and swelled, like a gathering storm.

In the quiet forest, the drop of a pin could be heard. No one expected a sudden standoff in the dead of night.

The darkness gathered into waves, washing over them. The green fire in Ah Tu’s eyes grew brighter and brighter, on the verge of exploding. The forest seemed to hold its breath; all creatures were silent, even the trees seemed to shrink back in fear. From the depths of the darkness, as if from a demonic presence, a pair of eyes watched with excitement.

Suddenly, Lu Chen spun around and dashed into another dark part of the forest. Ah Tu, who had been growling lowly, looked up in surprise, the green light in its eyes flickering as if startled.

The darkness, quiet as the sea, suddenly burst apart like a wave. Shouts, snarls, and eerie noises filled the air, sending a chill down the spine. Even Ah Tu instinctively stepped back. Its attention diverted, the green light in its eyes dimmed.

With a loud bang, someone groaned in pain. Two figures tumbled out of the darkness, still locked in combat, using deadly and ruthless moves, aiming to kill.

As they fell, one figure, Lu Chen, was visible. His eyes flashed with black light, his aura cold and lethal—a stark contrast to his usual harmless appearance as a servant disciple. Opposite him was a petite figure with an exquisite face, attacking like a deadly ghost. It was Bai Lian.

Their battle mirrored their last encounter, devoid of the elegance of immortal cultivators, using only vicious, cunning techniques to kill each other as quickly as possible.

Blood splattered instantly, droplets staining Bai Lian’s fair, beautiful face like red dew on a morning flower, a shocking sight.

As they fell, Bai Lian had already clawed into Lu Chen’s chest, her fingers summoning a storm of ice and snow that pierced his chest in an instant.

But the cold stopped there. Almost simultaneously, a hand shot out from the darkness like a demon’s, grabbing Bai Lian’s slender neck.

Lu Chen, like a raging demon, rushed forward. Bai Lian groaned in pain, her fingers trembling, the icy wind exploding in Lu Chen’s chest, turning into blood-colored shards.

Lu Chen growled, his face twisted in pain. His entire body felt like it was in an ice pit, but his blood seemed frozen, numbing him to the pain. The black flames on his fingers burned into Bai Lian’s flesh.

Bai Lian screamed, her body thrown back against a tree with a loud crash, causing the surrounding leaves to tremble and fall like rain.

In the forest, a killing rain!

The air seemed to suddenly fall silent, all noise dying away. Then, the sound of falling leaves and Lu Chen’s pained breathing, and Bai Lian’s twisted gasps filled the air.

Ah Tu’s eyes lost their green glow almost entirely, as if stunned by the sudden scene. It hesitated, then slowly approached Lu Chen and Bai Lian.

As it got closer, Ah Tu could see Lu Chen, slightly bent over, gasping and coughing softly. His chest was a mess, and his right hand was extended forward.

He was gripping Bai Lian’s neck, pinning her against the tree, her pale face close to suffocation.

The forest was deathly quiet.

Ah Tu watched the strange pair, hesitating before taking another step forward. Suddenly, Lu Chen turned and looked at Ah Tu, raising his free left hand and pointing a finger at it.

Lu Chen stood above, pointing down. With this motion, a series of crisp cracking sounds, like ice breaking, echoed from his chest, and fresh blood gushed out.

Ah Tu immediately stopped. It looked up at Lu Chen, the finger pointed above it, and in his eyes, deep within, there seemed to be wild, burning black flames, surging with an overwhelming tide of darkness. He stood there in the darkness, like a god or a demon.

Ah Tu’s fur stood on end, and after a moment, it lowered its head and lay down under the pointing finger, showing complete submission and reverence.

Lu Chen glanced deeply at the black dog, then turned to look at Bai Lian. His gaze was as violent as that of a demon, cold as the ice and snow on his chest. He stared at the angelic-looking girl for a moment, then coldly asked:

“Is this fun for you?”

Bai Lian, held up by an iron grip, hung in the air with a pained expression. Yet, for some reason, as she looked at Lu Chen’s face, she still managed a smile.

“Yes, it’s fun,” she said, looking straight at Lu Chen, a hint of defiance in her eyes.

Lu Chen’s grip tightened, and Bai Lian gasped in pain, her body twisting like a fish thrown on dry land.

“You’re pushing me to kill you,” Lu Chen said coldly.

“You wouldn’t dare kill me!” Bai Lian retorted almost immediately. She kicked her legs a few times, seeming to struggle for breath, her body starting to go limp.

Lu Chen silently observed this girl, who seemed to embody both light and darkness, beauty and cruelty. After a while, he suddenly let go.

Bai Lian gasped as she fell to the ground, clutching her neck and taking deep, desperate breaths. It took her a while to recover.

Lu Chen watched her quietly, then sighed. “You’re right, I don’t dare kill you.”

The darkness in the forest had gradually calmed down, no longer surging like a tide, and seemed to carry a serene and peaceful atmosphere.

Lu Chen walked over to Ah Tu and sat down on the ground beside it. The menacing aura that had surrounded him dissipated, and he seemed to revert to his usual gentle and seemingly useless self.

Ah Tu, more familiar with this demeanor, leaned against him, nuzzling his leg, as if nothing had happened.

On the other side, Bai Lian also approached after a brief rest. After the life-and-death struggle, she seemed to forget everything that had happened, sitting down naturally across from Lu Chen and Ah Tu, as if nothing had transpired.

There was a faintly strange atmosphere.

Lu Chen looked at Bai Lian and said, “I thought we had an understanding.”

Bai Lian asked, “What do you mean?”

Lu Chen replied, “That we should keep our distance and not interfere with each other.”

Bai Lian thought for a moment and said, “I thought so too, until I saw Ah Tu again.”

Ah Tu lifted its head to look at her. Lu Chen reached out to pat its head, stroking its fur. “Hmm?”

Bai Lian stared at him, as if trying to read his expression. “This dog has the aura of a blood-feeding secret technique.”

Lu Chen shook his head firmly. “There’s no such thing!”

Bai Lian sneered. “Do you think you can brush me off with that? I’m not mistaken.”

Lu Chen fell silent for a moment, then suddenly said, “Don’t forget that in this vast world, there’s more than one blood-feeding secret technique. There might be other powers or methods you’re unaware of. And even if it is a blood-feeding secret technique, it’s not exclusive to you. What makes you think you can jump to conclusions?”

Bai Lian replied, “I know that. In fact, even if this dog does have a blood-feeding secret technique, I wouldn’t care. But the most important thing is, this dog didn’t go mad or die after being subjected to the technique!”

She sneered, looking at Lu Chen. “Don’t tell me you don’t know what that means?”

Lu Chen quietly stroked Ah Tu’s head but remained silent, not saying a word for a long time.

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