Chapter 317: Breaking Point

Chapter 317: Breaking Point

’This...’

It wasn’t just Cao Li who was surprised. Even Yi Chen himself was surprised by the results.

Seeing the approaching sword, he had used his spiritual energy on it to forcefully deviate its direction, but he had not at all expected that, in his attempt to deviate the sword’s path, he would end up gaining complete control of it.

’...Doesn’t that mean that my spiritual sea is vaster than hers? But how...she’s already at the Ninth Qi Absorption Stage.’

An intense frown formed on his forehead as he tried to reason things out.

’Could it be...she had let go of her control at the last moment?’

It wasn’t just him who was trying to rationalise things. Cao Li was also doing the same at this moment.

’No, I must be overthinking. Even if he possesses spiritual energy, there’s no way that he would have a vaster spiritual sea than I. That must have been a fluke!’

Cao Li shook those absurd thoughts from her mind the very next instant and directed her spiritual energy towards the sword, attempting to regain control of it again.

"This..."

Feeling a sudden force trying to regain control of the sword, Yi Chen immediately turned his head towards Cao Li and saw her leaning on one side of her shoulder while staring intently at the sword.

’Yes, it’s the best time to confirm my doubts.’ Thinking on those lines, Yi Chen immediately bolstered the sword, which was several feet away from them, with a dense layer of spiritual energy and battled it out with her invading energy.

The two energies clashed and struggled as the sword hummed while emitting an intense white light, still hovering in midair.

Though intense, this exchange lasted for only a couple of breaths’ time, and its result left both sides in disbelief.

"This can’t be..." Cao Li widened her eyes, seeing that she was clearly overpowered by Yi Chen. Since she had clearly witnessed it this time, she knew that it was no fluke.

A similar emotion also welled up in Yi Chen’s eyes as he looked at the sword he had complete control over.

’My spiritual energy is really stronger than a Ninth Qi Absorption Stage cultivator...’ he thought with excitement evident in his eyes as he moved the sword right next to him a second later.

To ensure that it wasn’t misused by Cao Li again, he placed it inside his storage ring the next instant.

"With the sword gone, you can’t use anything else here to harm me now, can you, Madam Cao?" Yi Chen asked with a victorious grin.

"Hmph!" Cao Li snorted in anger at those words and said with narrowed eyes, "So what? So what if you can overpower me with your spiritual energy?

Despite that, you’ll still fail to get the information you want out of me. How pitiable isn’t it?"

She finished with a teasing tone, clearly knowing that no matter how strong Yi Chen is, in this exchange, she held the leverage since he wanted the information only she was privy to in the entire Black Rock Kingdom.

Hearing her words, Yi Chen’s mood immediately soured as he was forced to see the reality as it was.

His small victory didn’t matter at all as it didn’t bring him any closer to getting the truth out of her.

Glancing at her disdainful expression that carried a hint of ridicule, Yi Chen clenched his hand in irritation.

"Keep acting tough! We’ll see how long that act of yours will las-"

Cough! Cough!

.

Cough!

.

Feeling a sudden sense of irritation in his throat, Yi Chen started coughing a few times.

’This shitty weather...’ he cursed in his mind while trying to control the stuffy sensation in his throat.

Meanwhile, Cao Li, who witnessed this scene, rolled her eyes and was about to say something, but just then saw a few droplets flying out of Yi Chen’s mouth and landing just a few inches away from her.

She immediately flinched while carrying a disgusted expression on her face and dragged herself a few feet away.

’This...’

Clearly witnessing this scene, Yi Chen was reminded of her final remark, which he had regenerated.

[Remark (3/3): Is a clean freak]

He made an expression as if her reaction was only natural before finally controlling his coughing fit.

Clearing his throat, the next second, he felt a little better and finally focused his attention on Cao Li, who still held the disgusted expression on her face.

’Wait a minute...’

Yi Chen’s eyes suddenly narrowed in thought as an irrational plan came to his mind. It was so irrational that he almost shoved it aside the moment he thought of it.

’No...it’s still worth a try...’

He thought while staring at Cao Li’s figure, which was lying on the ground a few feet away from him.

Deliberately opening her status panel, Yi Chen’s eyes fell on her remark, which was still the same as it was back then.

’Maybe because it’s a severe condition, the system mentioned it...’ he reasoned with himself while taking a few steps in Cao Li’s direction.

Sensing Yi Chen’s footsteps, Cao Li raised her head to meet his eyes, the previous disgust on her face turning into mockery as she asked the next second, "What? Planning to torture me again?"

Yi Chen wasn’t swept away by her provocation this time and asked instead, "Are you sure you don’t want to co-operate? If you keep acting like this, then I’ll have no choice but to resort to a more extreme method..."

A part of him wished that she would agree, as he was still not sure whether the plan he had in mind would work or not.

However, if Cao Li were so easy to persuade, she would have already told him everything he wanted to hear.

"Maybe if you puncture your heart with that sword, I might think of co-operating. It’s a fair deal, don’t you think?" she asked with an innocent smile, while ridicule was apparent in her eyes.

"Very well then." Yi Chen took a deep breath and, lifting her up by her neck, placed her on the chair, which was still in good condition.

While at it, he directed the Video Capturing Stone with his spiritual energy and placed it at a suitable spot so that the two of them were clearly visible.

Meanwhile, seeing Yi Chen’s deliberate actions, Cao Li couldn’t help but grow a little worried, wondering how he planned to torture her next.

’What if I end up dying accidentally...’

A sense of worry began invading her heart as the option of revealing everything to Yi Chen started taking shape in her mind.

However, she crushed that worry that very moment. Not because of courage but because of fear.

A fear so deep-rooted that she felt dying was a much better option.

’What of it? So what if I die?! It’s much better than revealing everything only to face the family head’s wrath later on...’ she thought with gritted teeth while glaring towards Yi Chen.

At least that’s what she thought until she witnessed Yi Chen’s following actions.

KKK-TUH!

A wet, guttural sound of mucus came from Yi Chen’s throat, and the next second he spat it out on his palm.

Seeing the disgusting blob of saliva on Yi Chen’s palm, an intense frown immediately formed on Cao Li’s face, which switched to a revolted one the moment she saw him closing his fist and rubbing that saliva all over his hand.

"So..."

Seeing the rapidly changing expressions on Cao Li’s face, Yi Chen drew her attention the next second and asked, showing his slimy hand to her.

"Now suppose this hand was to land on your face...How would that make you feel, Madam Cao Li? Let’s find out now, shall we?"

"You-NO!"

Cao Li’s eyes widened in horror at seeing Yi Chen’s hand closing in on her. However, that only prompted Yi Chen to keep moving his hand towards her face.

Fear, disgust and revulsion took over her being at that very moment as she struggled with all her might to fall off the chair.

However, already anticipating such actions, Yi Chen had pinned her to the chair with his other hand, leaving no path for her to escape.

"NO! DON’T!"

"PLEASE NO!"

"STOP! I SAID STOP!"

She exclaimed with quickened breath, trying hard to move her head away from the approaching hand, but failed as Yi Chen’s hand arrived just a few inches away from her face.

Seeing his slimy palm just a few inches away from her face, she was already on the verge of breaking, but just then, the disgusting smell of saliva pervaded her nose, making her finally lose herself.

"I’LL ANSWER!"

"I’LL FUCKING ANSWER EVERYTHING, SO PLEASE STOP!"

She roared in panic, and just when she thought that her words had fallen on deaf ears, Yi Chen’s approaching hand finally stopped.

"Alright, I’ll give you ten seconds then. Answer it truthfully." Yi Chen declared while retracting his hand a few inches away and, with an impatient expression evident on his face, asked, "Why did the Violet Heaven House create the Brown Flu virus?"