Lord of Prayer-Chapter 202 - 154: A Taste of Their Own Medicine (Part 2)
"Dixie," the shorter young man said, his gaze cold. "My name is Dixie."
"Do you have a nickname? Speaking of which, shouldn't all members of Omega have a cool nickname?" Zhou Chen asked curiously.
"I'm not an official member yet. I don't have the right to be granted a title." Dixie sheathed his tachi, one hand on the scabbard and the other on the hilt. He approached Zhou Chen step by step with a wary gaze, while Old Yang was already locked in combat with the other two Omega assassins.
"Well, that's a real shame. When it comes to style points, you're no match for me, the 'Joyful Sawman'."
Zhou Chen pulled the Blindfolded Sunglasses from his coat, flicked them open with a flourish, and put them on. The powerful Sensory Enhancement effect refreshed his senses, and he once again activated his God's Perspective.
"..."
Dixie's eyes were filled with vigilance. His intuition told him that this was an extremely dangerous opponent. And that bizarre nickname... 'He doesn't seem like a proper Ascender at all.'
'What kind of normal Ascender uses a chainsaw as a weapon? Don't tell me he's a member of the Saw Murder Association?'
The next second, Dixie's pupils shrank. Zhou Chen had vanished from his sight, leaving behind only a plume of pale white flame.
A horrifying buzz roared from behind him as the high-speed saw blade swung down.
In an instant, Dixie drew his tachi. A brilliant light flashed, tearing sharply through the air. It swept out in a silver curtain of light and collided with the saw blade, sending a shower of sparks flying.
—Secret Skill: Iaijutsu Slash!
A perfect Iaijutsu Slash, mastered through tens of thousands of grueling practice sessions. In terms of both killing power and speed, it had reached the pinnacle among Tier Two Ascenders. A mere sneak attack was nothing to him!
From Dixie's hand, the tachi named "Water Scenery" sent out ripples like ocean waves. Zhou Chen immediately found it hard to breathe, his movements hindered as if he were in the crushing pressure of the deep sea. Every motion required his full strength just to fight against the water.
The Tachi: Water Scenery thrust forward, striking like a treacherous viper straight for Zhou Chen's heart.
Under the Sensory Enhancement of his God's Perspective, Zhou Chen clearly perceived Dixie's every minute movement. He had already positioned the chainsaw horizontally across his chest to block the sharp thrust even before Dixie made his move.
With a DING, the tip of the blade struck the chainsaw. A massive force immediately transferred through it and surged into his arms.
—My Style Secret Technique: Rock-Breaking Force!
Destructive power capable of shattering rock transferred into Zhou Chen's arms, instantly shredding his sleeves and revealing taut, solid muscles.
A trace of shock flashed in Dixie's eyes. If a normal Ascender had taken that hit, their arms would have been shattered on the spot, bones broken and tendons torn. Yet this person's muscles merely bulged, and he seemed to have taken no substantial damage. 'Just how tough is his body?'
He flipped his blade, and volatile Essence gathered on its sharp edge, sweeping out with his low roar.
"You've got some tricks..." Zhou Chen muttered. Fiery Fire erupted from his Bloodthirsty Chainsaw as Essence surged wildly, blasting away the sweeping blade. His figure suddenly vanished, leaving only a ball of flame and a hastily concocted White Phosphorus Bomb in his place.
'An Alchemist!'
'Fuck...' The word flashed through Dixie's mind as he retreated explosively. With a BOOM, the pale fireball and the Aluminum Thermite detonated together like a brilliant firework, blasting the tulips into a chaotic sway and sending a massive amount of dirt shooting into the sky.
Every single spark from this firework was lethally dangerous. Stray sparks splattered onto the tulips, instantly igniting the beautiful sea of flowers in a blazing inferno.
The violent shockwave sent Dixie flying. A layer of transparent Armor materialized around him. It was an Alchemy Armor he had once redeemed from the organization, an item that had seen him through many missions and saved him from crises several times. It was one of his life-saving trump cards, but now it was riddled with charred black holes from the Aluminum Thermite, emitting wisps of green smoke. It was completely ruined.
Dixie hastily dismissed the Armor to avoid getting any Aluminum Thermite on his body, which would cause an excruciating, bone-deep burning pain. Aluminum Thermite was like a maggot clinging to bone; once it splattered on you, your only options were to neutralize it with a special Alchemy Potion, scrape away your own flesh to survive, or simply wait for death.
His expression was grim. He hadn't expected his opponent to be an Alchemist, one who could whip up a destructive weapon like Aluminum Thermite in the middle of a fight. If it weren't for his swift Body Technique and the defensive Artifact he possessed, he would have been burned to a crisp by the Aluminum Thermite.
Suddenly, the wind whistled behind him.
Without a second thought, he pushed off the ground. His shoes exploded as muscles rippled in his legs, channeling exquisite Power into the soles of his feet. He vanished like a Ghost, leaving behind a trail of afterimages, dodging Zhou Chen's attack using his footwork alone.
—My Style Secret Technique: Gale Step.
'Old Yang was right,' Zhou Chen thought as his strike hit nothing but air, and he couldn't help but frown. 'This guy is strong. He hasn't even used his Extraordinary Abilities yet, fighting only with pure close-quarters combat skills.'
'And he's fast. Incredibly fast. He's developed his body's muscular coordination to such a degree that even with the "precognitive" effect of my God's Perspective, it's hard to make it count. It's more useful for dodging his attacks.'
'Is this the monstrous successor cultivated by the Omega Training Camp?'
'If he doesn't die, he'll become a captain in the future. Old Yang's ex-girlfriend is a captain now; how strong must she be? And how strong is Old Yang, really?' Zhou Chen's mind raced. He glanced out of the corner of his eye at Old Yang, who was fighting the two Omega assassins with a dagger.
BOOM! A deafening roar tore through the air. Dixie leaped up from within the billowing smoke and dust, closing in on Zhou Chen at incredible speed in a split second. Visible waves rippled across his Tachi: Water Scenery as he brought it down in a powerful vertical slash. It clashed with the saw blade, disengaged for a moment, then struck again.
CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!
The sound of colliding steel was incessant. His masterfully refined Swordsmanship, combined with the Skills of his Alchemy Tool, made Dixie's assault as relentless as the tide. With every slash, the Power carried by his tachi grew more terrifying.
—My Style Secret Technique: Turbulent Sword Dance!
In that instant, Zhou Chen felt as if he had fallen into the deep sea, a lone boat in the ocean facing an increasingly violent storm, on the verge of being capsized by a tsunami at any moment.
In their brief exchange, the webbing between his thumb and forefinger had already been torn open, trickling a winding stream of blood. All the muscles in his body were straining to resist the wave-like pressure emanating from the tachi.
Sharp flashes of the blade forced him back relentlessly. This exquisite Swordsmanship was already so fast that even his "God's Perspective" couldn't keep up, and it was quickly becoming overwhelmingly destructive!
Zhou Chen's gaze was calm. Finding the right moment, he forcefully swung his chainsaw upward to clash with the blade. The immense force numbed his arm. After mitigating some of the power, he took the blow on his shoulder, using that precise instant to activate Fire Style. He successfully broke free from the powerful pull of the Sword Dance, escaping the increasingly terrifying, deadly tide and gaining a moment's respite.
After making a wish to heal his injuries, the bloody wound on his shoulder healed rapidly. He was drenched in sweat, panting heavily, his eyes fixed on Dixie as he contemplated a way to break the stalemate. A bold idea gradually formed in his mind.
'I wish to learn the combat skills Dixie has demonstrated!'
He made the wish in his heart, intending to steal and master the techniques on the spot.
'I've accumulated so many wish points, it's time to burn through some of them!'
Dixie charged forward with a grim expression, but he suddenly saw Zhou Chen pull the Bloodthirsty Chainsaw to his waist and assume a stance that was incredibly familiar to him.
The very stance he had spent years practicing day and night, accompanied by sweat and pain, repeating it tens of thousands of times!
It was so perfect, so practiced. Every detail was flawless, as if he himself were performing it!
His eyes widened in utter disbelief. The next moment, a clear light blossomed, tracing a brilliant arc through the air. It struck the stunned Dixie, sending him flying and splattering a trail of blood in the air.
That was—unleashed from Zhou Chen's hands—
—Secret Skill: Iaijutsu Slash!
