Celestial Human Diagram

Chapter 336 - 67: An Old Acquaintance

With the shriek, Chen Chuan saw the signs of fading on his Second Self surge once again. In that instant, he could barely see anything but its faint, ethereal silhouette.

The duration of their overlap was being rapidly diminished.

Meanwhile, everything around them—the concrete bricks and shards of glass—was trembling incessantly. He could also see the surrounding Esoteric Ritual patterns gradually fading. The ritual was fighting back against the supernatural phenomenon.

Fortunately, he had anticipated the phenomenon’s power and added a large quantity of Ritual Materials this time. Besides, he was standing right here, absorbing the brunt of the assault, so he wasn’t worried about it escaping.

Ignoring the Raccoon Cat’s screeches and the sound of tearing, he bent down and picked up the stone fragment that had been the back of the Raccoon Cat Stone Carving’s neck. He had conveniently shattered it into a small, squarish block.

He withstood the supernatural phenomenon’s screeching assault, tossing the other stone fragments away one by one before finally placing the block in his hand at the very center of the ritual.

Once it was in place, he backed away from the center, picked up his pen, and drew the final stroke of the outer binding circle. The moment the line was complete, he heard a faint whimper. The stone block trembled a few times, then flipped over.

’The ritual worked.’ In that single instant, the feeling of being assaulted vanished from Chen Chuan’s body. He walked back into the circle and picked up the stone block.

The moment he touched it, faint signs of dematerialization appeared on his body.

He had already planned this out. He would take it back, then polish and carve it so he could carry it with him at all times. Given the unique nature of this supernatural phenomenon, it might have uses beyond just training.

Back in his car, he started the Gard Car and headed back to the Profound Palace Building. The past day and night had been long. He hadn’t rested since You Xing’s attack. ’I can finally get a good rest when I get back.’

Just as he was thinking about rest, a weary Ancheng walked out of a Processing Bureau station. He stood in an open area for a moment before using his Realm Token to contact another trainee.

A moment later, a voice came through. "What is it?"

Ancheng said, "You must have heard. The new guy took his second test. I don’t know the exact numbers, but it’s clear his evaluation has surpassed ours." His tone grew heavier. "One of us will inevitably be eliminated."

The voice on the other end was sarcastic. "Didn’t you say that by sharing information, we could snatch the opportunities that were meant for him? We’ve certainly done plenty these past days, but it seems useless."

Ancheng retorted, "I did say that, but who could have predicted he’d improve so much, so suddenly? Who could have seen that coming? An improvement like this just proves he was hiding his true strength before. You can’t blame me for misjudging. Besides, the Bureau must have noticed how hard we’ve been working."

The other voice replied, "But in the end, the Bureau only cares about who’s most likely to reach the Third Limit. He’s already proven himself. What’s the use of us working so hard now?"

As they spoke, an alert sounded on both of their Realm Tokens. The Processing Bureau had a job for them. It was just as they’d thought: the more capable they appeared, the more tasks the Bureau assigned them.

The reason the Bureau hadn’t assigned Chen Chuan any missions lately was precisely because these two had been the first to learn about and snatch up every single task meant for trainees.

The problem was, none of that mattered more than the potential to reach the Third Limit. As long as Chen Chuan’s evaluation score was higher than theirs, the Bureau would never give up on him, no matter what they did.

Ancheng said with a sigh of resignation, "Let’s just do the job for now."

The other person said, "Remember what you said before? If the new guy reaches the Third Limit first, we might as well just admit defeat."

"Impossible! I will never admit defeat!" Ancheng said through clenched teeth. "Then let’s just see who reaches the Third Limit first."

「Several more days passed. It was now April.」

Chen Chuan left Teacher Zheng’s home. Instead of returning to school, he drove his Gard Car to a craft shop in the Yinglu District and placed the half-carved Stone Token on the counter in front of the owner.

The owner immediately secured the stone with a foot-operated clamp and took a hammer and chisel from his toolbox. Chen Chuan’s requests had been strange—the owner wasn’t to touch the object directly, nor could it be left at the shop for carving. But he ran a small business and was just happy to have a customer, so he did his best to accommodate.

Fortunately, the customer’s requirements for the carving weren’t too demanding; he just needed a simple relief of a Raccoon Cat.

He had already carved most of it on his last day off; today was just for the finishing touches.

Chen Chuan watched him begin to chip away at the stone with a CLINK, CLANK, CLINK. Not wanting to disturb him, he waited off to the side.

’I have an idea about this supernatural phenomenon,’ he thought. On his last day off, he’d finished photographing the book he’d gotten from You Xing and had sent the pictures to Director Lei. ’It’s highly likely there’s information about this phenomenon in that book. Once I understand it better, I might be able to put it to good use.’

After about half an hour, his Realm Token buzzed with an incoming call. He answered it, and Ni Qianqian’s voice came through. "We just received a report. Wei Wusheng killed another Fighter."

Chen Chuan’s voice was grim. "Another one?" After the incident at the Fighting Hall, Wei Wusheng hadn’t stopped. He just kept looking for opportunities. This was the third killing in just a few days.

It wasn’t that the Processing Bureau didn’t want to watch him, but with so many cases to handle daily, they couldn’t possibly focus all their resources on individual Fighters scattered across the city. As for the Fighters themselves, even knowing they were in danger, they disliked the attention and oversight from the Processing Bureau, often resisting it outright.

Ni Qianqian said seriously, "Wei Wusheng has a highly skilled Resonator backing him, possibly even a whole team. The Bureau’s technicians have tried to trace him several times and failed. I’m calling to remind you again to be careful."

Chen Chuan said, "Thanks for the warning, Sister Ni."

Even though Wei Wusheng had a team, perhaps even a corporation, backing him, Chen Chuan could tell that he always did the killing himself, never delegating it to others.

A few days ago, he had asked Teacher Zheng how to deal with this type of Horizontal Training Fighter. Teacher Zheng told him that unless one’s technique was exceptionally high, there was almost no way to handle someone who had mastered Horizontal Training.

The reasoning was simple: technique is all about creating openings to defeat an enemy. But if none of those openings can lead to a fatal blow, they are functionally useless.

Moreover, most experts in Horizontal Training were also skilled at escaping. Often, even if you managed to seriously injure them, the moment they sensed trouble, they would immediately flee, provided they were still thinking straight.

Chen Chuan found this assessment very reasonable. Wei Wusheng was exactly that type of person—the moment he sensed danger, he’d turn and run. Therefore, to deal with someone like him, you had to defeat and kill them in an extremely short amount of time, using power that was on a completely different level.

’That would be difficult for me right now,’ he thought. ’To be completely sure of victory, the only way is to reach the Third Limit.’

"Sir, it’s ready."

Chen Chuan looked up. The shopkeeper placed the finished Stone Token, about half the size of his palm, on the counter. He gave it a look. It featured a lifelike Raccoon Cat, with a cloud-and-thunder pattern bordering the edges. Just as he’d requested, a hole had been drilled through the top for a cord.

The owner’s craftsmanship was excellent. Chen Chuan was quite satisfied. Now he could carry the token with him at all times.

He paid, took the token, and walked out as the owner called after him, "Take care, sir! Please come again!"

After leaving Yinglu District, he drove back toward the Profound Palace Building. As he neared the plaza, he suddenly spotted a familiar figure walking along the roadside. He took a closer look, slowed down, and rolled down the window. "Senior Brother Lu?"

Lu Fang looked over, surprised. "Junior Chen?" Then he broke into a smile. "I was just thinking that this isn’t far from Wuyi General Hospital and wondering if I might run into you. And here you are."

Chen Chuan asked, "What brings you to Central City, Senior Brother Lu?"

Lu Fang smiled. "I always felt Yangzhi was too small. I figured I’d come to Central City to see more of the world, so here I am."

Chen Chuan glanced at the second-hand Realm Token Lu Fang wore, then met his eyes. "You’re here about Senior Brother Shen, aren’t you?"

Lu Fang fell silent for a moment before finally nodding.

Chen Chuan said, "There’s a place not far from here, the Jinwei Hot Drink Shop. It’s pretty nice. It’s been a while, Senior Brother Lu. Why don’t we go there and catch up?"

Lu Fang looked over his shoulder. The drink shop was just down the street on their side. Its storefront was low-key and understated, not garish and flashy. He agreed.

Chen Chuan first drove to the plaza to park his car, then walked back to join Lu Fang. They entered the shop together and found a table.

Once inside, Lu Fang involuntarily relaxed. The record player, the old-fashioned tables and chairs, and the normal lighting made him feel as if he were back in Yangzhi City. It was a world away from the garish light screens outside, which always felt unreal to him—like walking on cotton, never able to find solid ground.

Chen Chuan ordered two drinks. "How long have you been in Central City, Senior Brother Lu?"

Lu Fang said, "I arrived in late March, so it’s been almost half a month. I just found a place to stay a few days ago. I had some free time today and thought I’d come see what Wuyi General Hospital looked like. I never expected to be so lucky as to run into you, Junior Chen."

Chen Chuan asked, "Are you trying to find Zhao Qian?"

Lu Fang took a deep breath, lifted his hot drink for a sip, then set it down. Looking up, he said, "Yes. Since you’ve already guessed, Junior Chen, I won’t hide it. After the fall of the Mutual Aid Association, Zhao Qian is the only member left who was involved in what happened to Senior Brother Shen."

Chen Chuan said, "Zhao Qian is a Third Limit Fighter now. Did you know that?"

Lu Fang nodded. "I know. But I’m not here to pick a fight with him. I know I’m not strong enough for that. It’s just..." He looked at Chen Chuan earnestly. "Senior Brother Shen’s sister was taken by Zhao Qian. I want to find her, or at the very least, find out what happened to her."

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