Chapter 599 - 171: Shadow Divine Technique, Path of Deceitful Killing; Resentment Soars to the Heavens, One Thought Becomes a Demon

The night was as black as ink, and thick clouds veiled the moon. A night breeze swept across the ground, rustling the fallen leaves in a corner of the training grounds. Chu Fan was bare-chested, his eyes tightly shut. He stood as still as a solitary mountain peak in the dark night, his posture erect and unmoving. After a moment of silence, he abruptly opened his eyes and exhaled a long, turbid breath. The white mist instantly dispersed into the night. Deep within his pitch-black pupils, a ghostly shadow vanished like a shooting star, leaving no trace. [Technique: Ghost Shadow Illusionary Body Step (Second Limit Break 3/7000) (Traits: Ghost Fire Burning Soul; Shadow Step;)] Chu Fan’s gaze instantly fixed on the newly appeared Trait, his expression flickering slightly. [Shadow Step: The shadow is the path. With a thought, the body arrives. The void offers no distance, movement is unhindered. Hide one’s form in a mustard seed, cross reality in a square inch. Reach an enemy’s back in the span of a thought. This is a seamless method, a Shadow Divine Technique. It is also a method of assassination, the Path of Deceitful Killing. Wherever this body is, the law of shadow resides.] THUMP! THUMP! Chu Fan could hear his own heart pounding like a drum, the sound thundering in his ears. The astonishing information contained in those few lines of description was enough to make any Cultivator lose their composure. "’With a thought, the body arrives. The void offers no distance...’" His mind reeled as if battered by monstrous waves. He valued this "Shadow Step" far more than the "Ghost Fire Burning Soul" he’d gained from the first Limit Break! The former was still bound by the shackles of ordinary Martial Arts. The latter, however, had already touched upon the profound realm of "space"! This was a true Shadow Divine Technique, a supreme Instant Body Skill! Although he had a vague sense that such a heaven-defying ability must have its limits—and the description did state it could only move him to "an enemy’s back"—that did nothing to dim its brilliance. This meant that, as long as the conditions were met, he would possess the ability to launch surprise attacks of unpredictable, ghostly speed! ’I must test it immediately.’ Suppressing his excitement, Chu Fan swept out his Divine Sense and instantly detected Mo Yunzi’s aura inside the house. "Mo Yunzi, come out." The next moment, Mo Yunzi’s graceful figure emerged from the shadows, her robes fluttering as if she were a wandering spirit. She hurried forward, and upon seeing Chu Fan’s face, she paused, a flicker of surprise in her eyes. In Chu Fan’s eyes, a rare, fervent excitement burned—the kind of gleam that appears when a deep desire is fulfilled. The last time she had seen such a look in her Sir’s eyes was when he was holding that incredibly precious bottle of "Red Flame Stone Marrow Pills." "Sir, has your Cultivation improved again?" Mo Yunzi asked softly, her tone filled with unconcealed anticipation. Chu Fan didn’t answer. He simply raised a hand, pointed toward the nearby Body Tempering Pool, and said in a low voice, "Go stand over there by the Body Tempering Pool." Though filled with confusion, Mo Yunzi’s trust in Chu Fan was absolute. She did as he said, drifting over and landing steadily on the other side of the Body Tempering Pool. Seeing Mo Yunzi in position, Chu Fan’s figure flickered. With a light tap of his toes, he shot backward like a great bird taking flight. Thirty zhang... fifty zhang... eighty zhang... He continued moving back until he was over a hundred zhang away before he landed firmly. The night wind howled, whipping his black hair about wildly. A distance of a hundred zhang would be an insurmountable chasm to a mortal, but to a Cultivator, it was merely a matter of a few leaps. Chu Fan focused his mind, cleared all distracting thoughts, and prepared to activate the "Shadow Step" Divine Technique. ’It’s not working. I can’t lock onto the target.’ Chu Fan furrowed his brow, pondering inwardly. To use "Shadow Step," he first needed to lock onto the target with his Divine Thought or aura. At a distance of over one hundred zhang, that faint "pulling sensation" was intermittent and barely perceptible, making it impossible to form a complete and stable "Shadow Path." Clearly, a hundred zhang was beyond the current limit of "Shadow Step." Chu Fan wasn’t discouraged. He began walking slowly toward Mo Yunzi, testing the distance with every step. Ninety zhang... The connection was still vague and difficult to grasp. Sixty zhang... He could feel something, but it was extremely unstable and could break at any moment. Thirty zhang... The connection grew stronger and clearer, but it felt like he was just missing the final piece to achieve a complete lock. Chu Fan patiently adjusted the distance, his steps slow and steady. The moment he stepped within fifteen zhang of Mo Yunzi— HUM! An invisible string in his mind seemed to have been abruptly plucked, letting out a soft hum. In his perception, the shadow behind Mo Yunzi instantly came alive, transforming into an "anchor point" with a powerful pull and emitting a strange fluctuation. ’Locked on!’ ’So, the current limit is fifteen zhang?’ Chu Fan stopped, his gaze fixed on the slender figure fifteen zhang away, musing to himself. Although this distance wasn’t great, in a life-or-death battle, fifteen zhang was more than enough to decide the victor. ’Shadow Step!’ The thought flashed through Chu Fan’s mind. There was no howling wind, no explosive roar of Primordial Qi. Not even the slightest ripple disturbed the surrounding air. WHOOSH! In the next instant, Chu Fan’s figure vanished into thin air. On the other side, just as Chu Fan’s figure disappeared from her sight, Mo Yunzi suddenly felt an icy chill on the back of her neck. A familiar aura had appeared behind her without any warning, so close she could almost feel his breath on her ear. "...!!!" Mo Yunzi’s body instantly went rigid. She turned her head stiffly, only to see Chu Fan’s calm face right before her, close enough to touch. "S-Sir?" Mo Yunzi was deeply shaken. Lost in a daze, her voice was filled with disbelief. "Just now... I didn’t see you set up a’Netherworld Array.’ H-How did you do that?" In her view, this kind of "Shrinking Inches" Spatial Shift could only be achieved with a precise Teleportation Array, like the "Netherworld Array" she knew of. But a moment ago, this place had been empty, without the slightest fluctuation of an Array! "It wasn’t a’Netherworld Array.’" Chu Fan shook his head slightly without offering further explanation. The brilliant light in his eyes grew even more intense, showing just how satisfied he was with the effects of "Shadow Step." He took a few steps to the side and used "Shadow Step" again and again. After these repeated attempts, he had a general grasp of the rules governing "Shadow Step." First, its maximum range was fifteen zhang. It was a divine skill for close-quarters combat and sudden ambushes, but it would be difficult to use for long-distance travel. Second, the target had to be a living creature with a life force. Flowers, grass, and trees wouldn’t work, nor would stones or swords. Even a Treasure Plant that contained immense Spiritual Mechanism was not a valid target. It seemed this Divine Technique used the unique "shadow" or "Soul Fire" of a living being as a springboard for teleportation. Third, after one use, the special qi mechanism in his body would enter a temporary dormant state and would require five breaths’ time to recover, meaning he couldn’t use it for continuous, rapid attacks.