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Chapter 146 Enemies Meet on a Narrow Road

Watching the messenger's departing figure, Lin Junshi casually brushed the crumbs off his hand.

He looked at Zhao Zongzhen again, his face regaining some of its usual composure, but the coldness in his eyes remained: "Junior Brother Zhao, let's wait here for a moment. We'll pass by when Chen Yue enters Panshi Lane. Otherwise, if we go too early and scare that kid away, wouldn't we be wasting this opportunity?"

Upon hearing this, Zhao Zongzhen slowly nodded, a faint smile appearing on his face.

Upon learning that Cheng Fengjun had broken through to the Refining Realm, his concerns vanished.

What are the chances of someone who has just entered the Marrow Refining Realm, even if they are exceptionally talented and have outstanding combat power, against Cheng Fengjun, who is also skilled in actual combat and has just broken through to the Dirty Refining Realm?

"Senior Brother Lin has thought things through thoroughly."

Zhao Zongzhen picked up a black piece again and placed it on the chessboard, casually saying, "With Junior Brother Cheng's current strength, dealing with Chen Yue should be a sure thing. However, Chen Yue is somewhat unpredictable, so just in case, we should go and watch the game, so we can have someone witness it."

If Junior Brother Cheng accidentally goes too far, we can be there to offer some advice and prevent any gossip.

Upon hearing this, Lin Junshi burst into laughter again, his laughter filled with smugness and chilling intent, as if he could already see Chen Yue being beaten bloody and severely injured in Panshi Alley, suffering a miserable defeat.

"Junior Brother Zhao is absolutely right! We should definitely witness it! Wouldn't it be a shame to miss such a wonderful exchange?"

Lin Junshi's eyes flashed with a cold light: "Junior Brother Cheng could defeat someone in the Dirty Refining Realm when he was in the Marrow Refining Realm, and now that he has broken through to the Dirty Refining Realm, even I have to be careful and dare not claim victory. So what makes Chen Yue so special?"

Zhao Zongzhen nodded slightly, offering no rebuttal.

The Panshi Sect has been established for hundreds of years and has never lacked brilliant talents who can defeat those above them.

Chen Yue's combat prowess displayed at the Bone Forging Realm proves that he might be one of them. Cheng Fengjun is also this type of person, but with a deeper foundation and an earlier breakthrough.

In Zhao Zongzhen's view, Chen Yue's fate was almost sealed.

The two said no more, and only the occasional crisp sound of chess pieces falling filled the courtyard.

Outside Panshi Lane, the crowd's attention gradually shifted from the two disciples who had just entered the deep cave entrance to the front of the line.

The disciple on duty glanced expressionlessly at the roster in his hand, then looked up at Chen Yue, who was waiting quietly, and said in a flat, emotionless voice, "Next, come forward."

Chen Yue did as instructed, taking two steps forward and standing in front of the disciple on duty who was in charge of registration.

This disciple was about thirty years old, with an ordinary face, but sharp eyes and a steady aura, clearly indicating that he was also at the Marrow Refining Realm.

He asked in a businesslike manner, "Name, cultivation level, and weapon you carry."

"Chen Yue, early stage of Marrow Refining Realm." Chen Yue reported the information, pausing slightly.

weapon?

He did indeed wear the longsword he brought from Youlin County at his waist, but the Kuanglan sword technique was ultimately of a lower grade. Facing the complex mechanisms and final guardians that might appear in Panshi Alley, it might not be as direct and powerful as using the Mighty Vajra Palm with bare hands.

"unarmed!"

The disciple on duty noted down the words "bare-handed" and, without looking up, continued, "You're already an inner disciple. Are you here to challenge the clearance record and compete for a top-ten ranking?"

"Yes," Chen Yue replied calmly.

The disciple on duty nodded and pointed in a direction behind him: "Since this is a challenge record, you must enter through this gate. The strength and variations of the traps and mechanisms inside are different from those of ordinary promotion channels. Finally, you must pass the practical assessment by the disciple on duty before it can be counted in your score. Please store your personal weapons here temporarily."

He pointed to a weapon rack with a restraint on it next to him.

Chen Yue did as instructed, unfastened the long sword from his waist, placed it in the designated spot, and the blade made a slight sound as it touched the wooden frame.

"In addition, I need to inform you that the final guardian of the challenge record channel will be the person on duty that day."

The disciples on rotation vary in cultivation level, techniques, and fighting style; none are fixed, and no one can predict or change them. The sect's principles emphasize that luck is also an indispensable part of strength.

Chen Yue nodded, indicating that he understood.

Within a sect, one-on-one duels and a degree of fairness are still valued, but the outside world is inherently full of uncertainties.

Taking luck into account may be cruel, but it's also a realistic approach.

Chen Yue said no more, then turned and walked towards the deep, dark doorway.

Behind him, the disciple on duty watched Chen Yue's back and the corners of his mouth twitched up very slightly, as if he had already foreseen the scene of Chen Yue being carried out unconscious.

The moment you step into the cave, the light and noise of the outside world are instantly shut out.

Sparse fluorite stones were embedded in the stone walls on both sides, barely illuminating the rough and uneven stone road surface underfoot.

The air was cold and damp, filled with a somber smell of earth and rusty metal.

Silence reigned, save for the soft echoes of my own footsteps and long breaths in the passageway.

Chen Yue did not rush in immediately. He stood at the entrance, his eyes slightly closed, his Hao Xin Pan Shi Gong flowing naturally, and the mental power in his sea of ​​consciousness slowly spread outwards, sensing the slightest disturbance in the airflow.

"Three steps to the left, there's a hidden compartment in the stone wall—the third stone slab on the ground ahead has uneven weight distribution and a hole underneath—"

On the upper right stone top, there is a hanging object that sways slightly in the wind.

In just three breaths, Chen Yue had already gained a preliminary three-dimensional perception of the environment within ten zhang of the entrance.

He suddenly opened his eyes, a glint of light flashing in them. Without further hesitation, he shot out like an arrow released from a bow.

"Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!"

Three hidden compartments in the left stone wall suddenly popped open, firing out dozens of short crossbows with their front ends flattened.

The sharp, piercing sound of the crossbow bolt enveloped the spot where Chen Yue had just stood and the surrounding area within a few feet. However, Chen Yue had already moved two steps to the side, and the bolt grazed the hem of his clothes before striking the opposite stone wall with a dull thud.

Chen Yue kept walking and was about to step on the third stone slab in front of him when his figure suddenly became elusive. He lightly touched the edge of the stone slab with his left foot and slid forward several feet with the help of the momentum.

The moment Ji Ping's toes left, the stone slab flipped downwards with a crack, revealing a dark pit underneath!

"Ugh!"

A fierce wind pressed down from above, and a huge log crashed down from the upper right with the force of thunder, blocking the way. The timing was perfect, just when the challenger had avoided the sinkhole and was exhausted and had not yet generated new strength.

However, the moment Chen Yue appeared after hitting the log, his forward momentum increased instead of decreasing. At the same time, his body suddenly fell to the left, almost parallel to the ground, and he used a wonderful movement technique from the Lingxu Thousand Layer Steps, Lingxu Layer Shadow.

"Boom!"

The log slammed heavily onto the ground behind him, sending shards of stone flying and dust billowing, but Chen Yue was already far away.

The journey ahead is fraught with traps and mechanisms, each one more interconnected than the last, increasing the danger tenfold.

If you were hit by these traps, you wouldn't necessarily die, but the injuries would definitely be severe.

The other ordinary promotion path is definitely not this difficult. Only this recording mode truly takes ingenuity to the extreme.

After about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, the narrow passageway ahead suddenly opened up, revealing a stone chamber about ten feet square.

At the far end of the stone chamber stood a humanoid metal puppet about nine feet tall.

The puppet has an ancient and simple design. It stands quietly and silently, yet it exudes a profound and weighty aura.

In the center of his chest, there is a palm-sized circular area that is slightly concave.

"Puppet Spirit Weapon—the final stage of the mechanical part." Chen Yue stopped in his tracks.

According to the rules, simply hitting the circular mark on the chest of the puppet spirit soldier will temporarily paralyze it, allowing you to pass this level.

His gaze swept over the puppet, and he was about to step forward when he suddenly sensed something and looked up at the other side of the stone chamber, at the heavy, tightly closed stone door.

Behind the stone door, a faint, scorching, and ferocious aura emanated, firmly locking onto the stone chamber where they were located.

"The gatekeeper?"

Chen Yue's eyes narrowed slightly. He could sense that the aura behind the stone gate was definitely not from the Marrow Refining Realm.

"The Refining Realm?" A guess arose in Chen Yue's mind.

He recalled what the disciple on duty had said about luck being a part of strength, and it seemed that his luck today was not very good.

Chen Yue did not retreat. He took a step forward, his figure as fast as lightning, and rushed straight at the motionless puppet spirit weapon. On his right palm, blood and qi gathered. Before the palm wind arrived, the sharp energy had already stirred up the dust in the stone chamber.

The deepest part of Panshi Lane.

This is not an enclosed space; the ceiling is open, and you can even faintly hear the voices of disciples coming from the distant entrance.

Cheng Fengjun, dressed in gray, stood quietly in the center of the gate tower.

His hands hung naturally at his sides, and his aura, like a drawn sword, carried a sharp intent that could tear everything apart, permeating the entire guarding platform without reservation.

"The speed is not slow, they've reached the Puppet Gate so quickly."

Sensing the energy fluctuations emanating from the stone chamber ahead, Cheng Fengjun's eyes flickered slightly, but her expression remained indifferent.

After a dozen or so breaths, the energy fluctuations emanating from the stone chamber in front disappeared, and then the stone door slowly rose.

Chen Yue stepped over the slowly rising, heavy stone threshold, and a wide-open space appeared before him, about twenty feet square and three feet high, with rough, hard rock walls on all four sides.

His gaze locked onto the figure in the very center almost the instant he stepped inside.

Cheng Fengjun!

Chen Yue's eyes narrowed slightly. As expected, she was at the Refining Realm. He hadn't expected it to be Cheng Fengjun.

"Chen Yue!"

Cheng Fengjun spoke, her voice not loud, but with a metallic quality that resonated clearly in the surroundings.

"Admit defeat now, and you'll suffer less physical pain. I've never been particularly interested in hitting you!"

His tone was flat, yet it carried a condescending scrutiny and undisguised contempt.

Chen Yue didn't reply, but a slight smile appeared on his lips.

Cheng Fengjun narrowed her eyes upon seeing Chen Yue's expression, and then a smile appeared on her face as well.

hum!

A series of pale blue water curtains intertwined and converged on the surrounding mountain walls, the water shimmering and rippling gently.

Outside Panshi Lane, in the open space in front of the gatehouse.

The crowd whispered among themselves, their eyes occasionally glancing at the deep cave entrance, speculating about how far Chen Yue, who had just entered the challenge record, would go, and which senior brother guarding the gate would he encounter.

"Look! The water curtain is lit up!"

Someone pointed to the side of the gatehouse and exclaimed in surprise at the huge, usually dark and dull stone wall.

Suddenly, pale blue ripples appeared on the stone wall, and then a clear, dynamic image, like a reflection in water, appeared on the surface of the stone wall.

In the center of the image are two figures standing opposite each other on the gate tower.

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