Forge a path to success.

Chapter 62 Wild Ambition Spreads
The city, engulfed in war, flickered between light and shadow, fragmented sunlight weaving through the fiery rain. Those lights emanated from the battlefield reflected in the water, from the afterimages of the soaring dragons. It was as if an invisible giant held the sky in its grasp, shaking it violently; the entire airspace trembled violently, giving rise to blinding flames that fell into the sea, scorching the illusory images and stirring up towering waves amidst mournful cries.

The battlefield was too far from the ground for anyone to know the situation or the outcome. But people could see it—in the flying sparks and the surging tides. They saw the seven-colored light transform into flowing venom, the churning black mist collapse into a hazy void; they saw a mad spirit with a bird's head and a snake's body howl to the sky, spewing blue flames and battling a jade-like dragon; they saw a skeleton riding a skeletal horse thrust out a mortal sword, clashing with a crimson halberd in mid-air.

Their battle tore the sky apart, and that towering figure stood amidst endless light and fire, resisting demons with his blood and courage, and confronting heretics with his martial arts. He was once weakened, once on the verge of death, but he rose again, just as he had built a city in the sea decades ago, just as he had led his people to repel the demonic tide twenty years ago.

He will win, he will definitely win, because he is an unparalleled general, because he is the invincible lord of Huilong City!
"Huilong, go into battle! City Lord, go into battle!!"

Exhilarating roars echoed throughout the city as the once-retreated warriors rose again in the light. The dragon's radiance healed their wounds, making their blood boil. They took up their weapons once more and charged towards the invading Scourge and demons. The standard weapons had truly wounded the bodies of the heretics; these were clearly just mortals who couldn't even set foot on the path, yet they now displayed a bravery no less than that of the Ascended.

On a floating island, in a warehouse filled with relics, a demon with a bird's head and a snake's body reappears, its fiery eyes scanning the sky.

"Even mortals who have not yet found their way have the power to fight; the power of the Ancient Dragon Totem is indeed terrifying," it said to the contractor.

"She was a true guardian deity. If it weren't for her power being used to maintain the water curtain, I probably wouldn't even have had a chance to rise to power before I died long ago." The contractor's voice remained flippant. "The mirror is still there, isn't it, Bessen?"

“Of course.” Bessen, the fragment of the ambitious demon Arik F. Bessen, methodically advanced its plan. It tidied the belongings within its temporary body and walked towards the warehouse door. “I will use this mirror to disrupt the battlefield. Prepare for the summoning; when the message arrives, call upon my true self—”

Bessen opened the door, and a man with silver tentacles stood in the entrance, holding a blood-stained knife. The blade severed the arm that was blocking his way, and a tentacle shot out like a spear, shattering a snake's head!
"Things don't seem to be going well on your end," the contractor said. "Should we change the backup plan?"

"Change! Change! Change!!!" Bessen roared as it retreated. Its remaining eight snake heads simultaneously erupted, shattering the warehouse walls and ceiling. The firefly crows, sensing the anomaly, rushed to help, but few responded, as most lay dead in pools of blood. In the short time it took to exchange a few words, Chu Hengkong had wiped out the nearest crows; he cleared the area to kill this demon in one fell swoop.

"You're still alive?" Even someone as knowledgeable as Bessen found it hard to believe. The scene before the curtain broke should have sealed Chu Hengkong's fate. He was on the sky island closest to the rift, the one who faced the Demonic Gale at the closest distance. That was the erosion of a powerful Outer Path of the Point 4. Even a skilled hand, with all its abilities, should have been turned into a glowing corpse.

But he was still alive! Not only alive, but also full of energy, with no sign of fatigue in his eyes, and even his tentacles had become shinier than before. Chu Hengkong stepped forward with his knife in one hand, the blade aimed directly at Besen's right eye.

“I’m not so fragile that I’ll be blown over by the wind,” he said.

Bessen's eyes gleamed with a bright blue light, and two beams of fire shot out like lasers. Several glowing corpse crows leaped into the warehouse, firing blood-red bullets from specially made short guns. Chu Hengkong deflected the fire with his sword, enduring the crows' barrage of bullets with his light armor. Like a ranger, he wielded his sword in reverse, sweeping past Bessen and leaving a long, narrow wound on the snake's body. At the same time, his tentacles extended and danced wildly, killing three crows with a single sweep.

He spun around, brandishing his blade, the blade and tentacles each repelling a swarm of crows. Bessen's main body swung its claws, which he parried with his rock blade. The rock blade trembled with the force, and using techniques honed from the Steel Blade School, he broke the claws apart. Taking advantage of the opportunity, Chu Hengkong kicked out, smashing the biting snake head once more.

“I admit I underestimated you,” Bessen whispered. Perhaps because its true form was outside the city, it seemed more “human” than usual.

Bessen flapped its wings behind its head and retreated. Two of its nine snake heads were gone, and there were two rather large wounds on its body, but no blood flowed out. Only when it was this close could one see that its body was still a puppet. The snake body was made of refined brass, and the bird head was made of animal bones, bird feathers, and gemstones. Through the wounds, one could see countless relics flowing inside its body, which was the flesh and blood of this puppet.

A false body possessed. Chu Hengkong thought of Tina and her dog. This demon hadn't yet possessed a human body, so the Black Workshop used relics as its vessel. This meant he had to adjust his fighting style; he sheathed his sword and switched to fighting bare-handed. He stared into the demon's eyes.

"Where is Kanin?"

"Where he belongs," Bessen said, clenching his fists. "Go and claim the victory he deserves!"

The demon stomped one foot, unleashing a scorching ring of fire. Deadly blue flames blazed towards them. Chu Hengkong used his tentacles to hook onto an exposed steel bar—the most effective way to avoid the flames. Besen had specifically studied his movement patterns and could predict his strategy. As the tentacles extended, Besen opened his mouth and fired two fire arrows, aimed directly at the steel bar below. As Chu Hengkong leaped, he would be pierced through the chest by the flames and die.

The tentacles extended and then suddenly slammed down—a feint! Chu Hengkong wasn't afraid of the demon's flames because he carried the jade carving of the swirling dragon. The jade dragon emanated a cool, refreshing power; it was this carving that had protected him from the aftershocks of the demon's appearance, and it was because of it that he was unafraid of the raging fire. He charged into the ring of fire alone, drawing his sword almost touching Bessen, the blade nearly half-slicing into the brass snake's body.

Three snake heads shattered, and a large amount of debris flowed from the wounds. This irreversible strike almost cleaved the snake's body in two. Besen was momentarily at a disadvantage; after all, it was only a divided spirit without a real body, and it was difficult to contend with Chu Hengkong in close combat. Therefore, it did not use conventional means to retaliate. Instead, it pressed its index fingers and thumbs together, forming a triangular claw mark. The blue flames in its eyes twisted, forming two bird-like runes.

"The fire in the heart will not be extinguished, and the ambition will spread like wildfire." Just as Chu Hengkong was about to swing his sword, his body trembled. A sharp pain shot through his chest and abdomen, as if he were being burned by a raging fire. The burning heat seemed to have a spirit, gripping his heart and invading his body. He suddenly opened his mouth and spat out a ball of burning blue flesh and blood.

"cough--!"

Chu Hengkong clenched his teeth, but flames continued to seep from between them. His eyes burned, his breath was labored, and the nameless flames surged wildly within him, seeking an outlet with a violent force.

Chu Hengkong's movements slowed down, and Besen's four snake heads lashed out in succession. He barely managed to parry three bites with his knife, but the fourth snake head bit his shoulder. Besen seized the opportunity to spew out a fireball, which blasted Chu Hengkong straight out of the warehouse!

"Clearly possessing a resolute will, yet lacking ambition?" Bessen unleashed three fireballs in quick succession. "Then be consumed by the flames! Those who cannot reach the heights will ultimately become food for those higher!"

Chu Hengkong managed to roll away, dodging the fireball, but was thrown back by the blast wave. He could have used a defensive maneuver to dodge, but the flames within him prevented him from making any further moves. The demon's power was strange and inexplicable; even the jade carving of the dragon could not completely withstand it.

Strangely, only the tentacles could move freely at this moment, and the flames seemed to dislike the sticky limbs, not spreading even a little to the left arm. Bessen swung its claws, unleashing waves of flames. In desperation, Chu Heng hooked onto a steel bar and used the elasticity of the tentacles to leap up.

His mind raced as he floated in the air. He was temporarily out of moves with the Dragon Township Fist Technique, his combat relics were useless, and now wasn't the time to use that talisman. What else could work? What else…?

There's still medicine!
The steel bars snapped, and Chu Hengkong plummeted to the ground, crashing head-on into a massive fireball. He abandoned any chance to dodge or defend, using his tentacles to retrieve the unfinished Chang Le Dan. The burning inner fire rendered him incapable of even chewing, so Chu Hengkong steeled himself and plunged the tentacles directly into his esophagus!
"...??"

Bessen, who was spewing fireballs, was momentarily stunned. He had never seen an enemy like this before, willing to take the hit head-on rather than let the entire tentacle pierce his esophagus. This masochistic act was less of an attack and more of a sacrifice... a sacrifice...?
Besen suddenly recalled the ambiguous tentacles and the various suspicious points during the battle. It immediately realized that it was a ritual during the battle! Chu Hengkong was indeed a contractor as well; he was sacrificing pain to summon his contracted demon!
He could survive facing the demonic storm head-on, and he could still move despite being struck by the Heartfire… All these strange occurrences were easily resolved in front of the “Contractor,” which must be the power of Chu Hengkong’s contracted demon! Besen suddenly realized, and he immediately changed his moves, using azure flames to draw a counter-summoning magic circle. This magic circle closely resembled the “sealing” formation during ascension, but it lacked the central triple circle, and the outer symbols only represented the “sea” of demons.

He hastily chanted an incantation directed at his own kind: "In the name of my true form, my burning ambition, Arik Fida Bessen. Return to the Abyss, you mad spirit of nothingness—"

"Drink!" Chu Hengkong brandished his tentacles like a sword!

"what?!"

However, no new demon appeared. Chu Hengkong burst forth from the flames, striking Bessen's head with a lightning whip. The unrestrained force spread throughout the demon's body, destroying several mechanisms within its relic-like form, immediately slowing Bessen's movements. Its blue eyes blazed with fire, the entire demon burning with rage: "What tricks are you playing? Are you insulting me?!"

"Utterly inexplicable!" Chu Hengkong responded coldly. The medicinal power spread like a clear spring, seeping into his body and instantly alleviating the burning pain. Bessen tried the same trick again, casting another spell, but Chu Hengkong sprinted around the demon at incredible speed. As he ran, he continuously threw water bullets, which, at excessive speed, merged into a dense mass, their overlapping trajectories resembling a wheel spinning around Bessen. Thirty, seventy, one hundred…

The water bullets, though causing little damage, were relentlessly fired, driving Bessen to a frenzy. It thrust out with its claws, unleashing pillars of fire that vaporized the fly-like, annoying water bullets. But Chu Hengkong somersaulted through the air and continued hurling, this time hitting Bessen squarely on the head, causing the demon to freeze abruptly.

The limbs, torso, and head—all the places that had been hit by the water bullets—simultaneously felt a needle-like pain. Fine cracks spread across the snake's body, followed by hundreds of wounds bursting open at the same time!
Dragon Village Fist Technique - Chaotic Stars. A secret technique that uses high-frequency strikes to embed force into the enemy's body, simultaneously unleashing a devastating burst of damage!

"Nonsense...a secret technique from Dragon Village...?" Bessen was stunned. "A skillful hand...?"

Bessen moved haltingly like a broken machine, hundreds of stray beams of light and fire erupting from its wounds, instantly transforming the surroundings into a demonic realm where there was nowhere to stand. Chu Hengkong silently gripped the Perception Necklace, ignoring even the enemy's attacks, his eyes fixed solely on the burning relics within the wounds. Necklace, gloves, jewels. Bessen's fireballs. Daggers, feathers, leaves. Charred lungs. Needles, thread, a mirror…

He saw a jet-black mirror in the fire, its edges adorned with purple diamond fragments, exactly like the mirror Mrs. Ansa had given him. Chu Hengkong instantly returned from extreme agitation to extreme stillness. He crouched down, took a step forward, and drew his sword, the rock blade piercing the black mirror's surface.

Bessen's body exploded with a bang.

(End of this chapter)