Chapter 66
Chapter 66
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: ?
Chapter Title: Demonic Domain Shattered, Zhao Clan Pursuit
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Chen Shi shouldered his book box while carrying a Red Yi cannon over a man's length on his other shoulder. Li Tianqing hurried to keep up behind him, a large basket on his back piled high with black iron shot the size of human heads.
Ahead of them, Chen Shi's book box also held three or four black iron shot.
Each one weighed over twenty catties, packed full of black powder and inscribed on the outside with Great Five Thunder Talismans—pure yang ferocity in explosive power!
Whether the black powder or the Great Five Thunder Talismans, both were extremely unstable. The slightest mishap would set them off.
If one detonated, the others would inevitably follow. Forget two little Divine Embryo Realm cultivators like them—even a Transformation God Realm great cultivator at the third stage of that period would have their nascent soul blasted to oblivion. A Divine Descent Realm powerhouse at the fourth stage would likely meet a sorry end too!
Yet Chen Shi and Li Tianqing moved with light steps, no intention of flying into the sky, chatting and laughing as they went.
Their nonchalance came from the Calming Spirit Talismans Chen Shi had pasted on them, rendering the Great Five Thunder Talismans and black powder far less dangerous. Li Tianqing figured the talismans couldn't calm the spirits in the cannonballs. Strangely enough, though, his own mood felt perfectly steady.
Pulsing tremors heart-stopping in intensity echoed from the distant mountains between peaks. The pair climbed to a mountaintop and peered out, catching faint glimpses of brilliant light—likely divine radiance from erupting spell might, reflecting out from the valley and shimmering off the crystalline porcelain leaves blanketing the slopes in dazzling hues.
"After this job, I'm heading home."
Li Tianqing set down his basket on the peak.
"Little Ten, before I go, I'll give you a few sets of books—the old ones I brought on this trip. The Book of Songs, Book of Documents, Rites of Zhou, Doctrine of the Mean, Great Learning. Mostly the Master's works."
Chen Shi set down the Red Yi cannon and his book box from his back, retrieving a black iron shot from inside.
He asked,
"Do they test that in the county exam?"
"They do."
Li Tianqing licked his finger and held it to the wind, roughly gauging direction and speed.
"I took the scholar exam last year, and the literary test included it. If you pass scholar this spring, come this August in the second half of the year, we might take the juren exam together. The juren exam's only every three years—if you don't pass in autumn, you've got to wait another three."
Chen Shi wrapped gunpowder in a rag and stuffed it into the long cannon barrel, then rammed it tight with a stick.
"But juren's the provincial exam. You'd take it in Quanzhou, I'd take it in Xinxiang. Shame we can't go together."
Li Tianqing inserted the fuse into the Red Yi cannon.
"Truly a shame. But if we pass juren and go further, we can take the palace exam. Then everyone's heading to the Western Capital."
Chen Shi said excitedly,
"Then we'll compete—who gets top scholar!"
He brimmed with confidence. With Scholar Zhu's guidance, he was sure to stun the world!
He loaded the shot into the barrel and pulled out two Yellow Turban Strongman Talismans. As the slips burned, two golden-armored deities gradually materialized, growing ever clearer.
Li Tianqing praised,
"Awesome dog blood! Symbols drawn in Black Pot's blood pack several times the punch of regular dog blood. Truly badass!"
Chen Shi positioned the two golden-armored deities, resting the Red Yi cannon on their shoulders and having them steady the barrel with their hands.
Li Tianqing took out a little notebook and scribbled calculations. Chen Shi leaned over to look—strange diagrams covered the page, annotated with numbers.
"I've studied ballistics with the Red Yi folk for a while."
Li Tianqing calculated as he spoke.
"Red Yi are also called red-haired devils—red hair, green eyes, ancestors from Europa. They came to the Western Ox New Continent with the Three Treasures Eunuch's fleet. Red Yi cannons are their make. The one who taught me, Li Gen, was a ballistics tutor hired by the Li family. He said firing a cannon means calculating powder charge, shot weight, wind direction, target distance, and adjusting the barrel angle."
"So complicated?"
Chen Shi had thought you just load powder and shot then light it—didn't realize calculations were needed.
Good thing Li Tianqing knew this stuff. He finished quickly.
Li Tianqing fetched a ruler and caliper, measuring bit by bit against his paper figures.
"If you pass scholar or juren but flop the palace exam, you can try for the Divine Mechanism Battalion. They test ballistics—you've got to hit every shot without fail. If this cannon lands one, after I pass juren I'll test in! Pays well too, and with so many dead this time, it'll be easy to join!"
Following his instructions, Chen Shi adjusted the barrel aim and the deities' postures, shaking his head.
"Little Gold won't like you. Little Gold likes men like me."
Li Tianqing snorted.
"I think Little Gold looks at me funny."
Chen Shi pulled out a fire starter, grinning.
"You're imagining it. When Little Gold looks at me, her eyes sparkle...
Just then, the sky darkened abruptly. Dark beams shot from the mountains, streaking straight into the heavens to form a pitch-black canopy shrouding the firmament.
Darkness engulfed everything—no seeing a hand in front of your face. Only the glow from the two golden-armored deities provided faint visibility.
The pair stared in alarm and doubt, feeling boundless savagery surge within them. Heart demons danced wildly.
Untouched by heart-tempering, they didn't know how dire this state was.
Seized by heart demons, one would demonize—mindless stupor, acting on instinct alone!
The Evil Bodhisattva's demonic domain turned all life slowly to porcelain.
Chen Yindu's demonic domain demonized all life, then absorbed the demonized!
"Tianqing, something's wrong."
Chen Shi had just spoken when the sky cleared—sunlight gradually pierced down. Not only did the black canopy vanish bright and clear, even the Evil Bodhisattva's domain canopy disappeared!
The fiendish influence controlling them vanished without trace.
Li Tianqing gaped skyward in shock.
"What the hell happened? The demonic domain just crumbled... Could Grandpa and them have succeeded?!"
Joy surged through him. He laughed heartily.
"Little Ten, our plan worked! They did it! They slew the Evil Bodhisattva!"
Chen Shi scanned around. A gentle breeze stirred, rustling leaves across the hills—porcelain clinks where they met, mingled with emerging whispers.
Some leaves were reverting from porcelain to normal!
With the Evil Bodhisattva's domain shattered, the trees began gradual restoration!
Chen Shi crouched in thrilled surprise, checking ground weeds—these tenacious lives reviving bit by bit.
That's when Li Tianqing said,
"Little Ten! The Zhao camp folk are pulling out!"
Chen Shi jumped up, looking toward the Zhao camp. Embroidered Uniform Guards herded Zhao clansmen and a few porcelain dolls hurrying from the mountains, spurring Galloping Horse Talismans for speed.
Even more startling, those porcelain dolls were reverting to living humans step by step!
Chen Shi meant to light the fuse, but they'd already rounded a ridge, vanishing behind it.
Qianyang Mountain's peaks twisted wildly—too many variables for cannon measurement and calculation.
"Can't let them leave alive!"
Killing intent boiled in Chen Shi. He slung on his book box.
"Forget the cannon—use the black iron shot to blast the bastards! The Zhao clan roused the Evil Bodhisattva, killed so many—they pay with their lives!"
He bolted downhill, chasing the Zhao clansmen and Embroidered Uniform Guards.
Li Tianqing hesitated, activated the Galloping Horse Talismans on his legs, hoisted his black iron shot, and hurried after.
"Little Ten, Evil Bodhisattva's porcelainized beings are reviving. Without her influence, those Zhao porcelainized experts might recover too. If they do, we're no match!"
Far from just no match.
Forget Transformation God Realm Zhao Yanlong or Zhao Yanchu—even Golden Core Realm Zhao Yanliang: one core out, radiance ablaze, and the pair would scatter to ash.
Chen Shi paused.
"If they recover, we stop chasing."
Their speed outpaced the Zhao clansmen and Guards by much. Four or five li of mountain path, and they caught up.
The Zhao clansmen and Guards, tormented by evils these days, starved near cannibalism, stayed vigilant. They spotted the pursuers quick.
"It's that murderer who killed the young master!"
Someone recognized Chen Shi, shouting loud.
Dozens slowed at once. Zhao Yanlong, flesh slowly returning, heard and thrilled with shock, tears in eyes, laughing to the heavens.
"Ziyu, is that your spirit in heaven delivering this murderer to your father? Excellent! My fine son, Zhao Yanlong's pride!"
As he spoke, twenty-odd zhang separated them—within Noon-Midnight Evil-Slaying Sword range. Chen Shi gripped a black iron shot, surged his blood qi, hurled with force!
*Whoosh!* His strength immense, the shot screamed fast, instant atop them, smashing for one's head.
The Embroidered Uniform Guards had spells ready. One fired a Noon-Midnight Evil-Slaying Sword at the shot.
Boom!
Suddenly, like heavenly thunder igniting earthly fire, thunderflame erupted. Fireball two zhang across bloomed overhead!
Four or five Guards and Zhao clansmen pulverized in the blast below. Fire swelled, devouring an acre-space. In that acre, Zhao clansmen and a dozen Guards flew airborne, limbs and torsos spraying—no whole body left!
More horrific, the thunderfire's heat charred the airborne remains black in a blink!
Others' eardrums buzzed nonstop—no other sound penetrated. Thunder rolled in their skulls, world shaking.
The thunder sound loosened their souls, hence the quake sense.
They shook heads hard, as if to dislodge the ear din—still buzzing.
Zhao Yanlong blasted away by the shockwave, not fully human yet. Landing, his legs snapped crisply. Alarmed, he yelled to the nearest Zhao clansman.
"Pick me up quick!"
"What?"
The clansman, ears buzzing, yelled back.
"Pick me up!"
He heard this time, scooped Zhao Yanlong, fled forward.
Other Zhao clansmen followed fleeing, terrified of lagging into black iron shot range!
Chen Shi and Li Tianqing pursued from behind. Chen Shi grabbed another shot, hurled hard!
The shot whistled to the group's rear, about to land—suddenly a plump golden core rose, freezing it midair.
Chen Shi roared, sprinting forward while hurling another shot. *Clang!*—it struck the hovering one.
Boom!
Twin blasts! The airborne golden core powdered in the horrific explosion!
Among the fleeing below, Zhao Yanliang abruptly spewed blood, wilting.
The skyborne core had been his.
A late Golden Core expert, far beyond Zhao Ziyu—yet against Drug King's line firearms, he fell short. Two shots sufficed to shatter his core forever!
Zhao Yanliang's aura crumbled. He tried calling for aid, but surrounding Zhao clansmen and Guards fled heedless.
Stabilizing with effort, he heard rapid footfalls ahead. Looking up, a youth with book box hurtled near.
"It's this murderer..." He raised a hand, mustering mana for spell. Core gone, foundation remained—he could fight.
But scarce had his palm lifted when Chen Shi closed in, lightning-grabbed the hand, wrenched down—crack! Wrist snapped.
Zhao Yanliang shuddered in agony, cried out. Chen Shi flashed past, backhand palm to his occiput.
By Li Tianqing's arrival, this Golden Core great expert lay brains burst, sprawled dead.
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