(AN: Chapter not edited.)
'Was I…wrong?' thought Chen Chen. After his transformation, his brain changed, and his soul mutated, allowing him to remain cold and logical in most situations. In such a state, Chen Chen felt closer and more in tune with Heaven and Earth, thus drastically increasing his comprehension and analytical skills.
However, his emotional process capabilities became chaotic. He should have turned into a completely logical and emotionless life form, but his obsession with Tong Ruobing allowed him to retain some of his emotions to keep his humanity.
And now, after hearing things from her point of view, the foundation of his obsession began to crumble, immensely affecting his soul.
'Could I have done things differently? Could I have been better?' Chen Chen asked himself.
He thought of the fortunate encounter he had. Maybe, he could have only studied the thing and heeded the warning that this technique was taboo. He could have studied the orthodox cultivation system from the Mechanical Puppet World and refined an Immortal Tier Puppet.
Instead of wallowing in self-pity and denial, he could have unwaveringly followed in Tong Ruobing's footsteps, never giving up on catching up with her.
'No, it's useless,' concluded Chen Chen. 'My fortunate encounter was too late. By the time I acquired it, there was not enough time to study it in depth and make any achievements.
'Things would have been different if I had it around the same time Tong Ruobing met Wu Meng. If so, my achievements would never be lower than hers.'
Chen Chen's mind was no longer chaotic as he returned to his calm, cold, and logical state. His gaze toward Tong Ruobing was no longer confused but full of determination.
"I only need to defeat you and prove I was correct," said the sect master of Origin Weapon Mountain. "Then, my objective will be to prove the Dao, become an Eternal, and finish my ascension as a true Half-Flesh and Half-Puppet Lifeform."
Tong Ruobing shook her head, "Your obsession has already created a major flaw in your Dao Heart. In your current state, there is a high chance of becoming a Pseudo Emperor even if you win.
"As for your goal of becoming Emperor? Although I won't say the chance is 0%, it's still close to that number."
Tong Ruobing squinted her eyes and did not mention the other anomaly he detected from Chen Chen, like, why did he want to become a new life form?
Why did he not consider fusing with a puppet as a unique body-refining technique? Chen Chen's idea of becoming a half-flesh and half-puppet creature indicates his mindset has fundamentally changed. And now, he no longer viewed himself as human.
'The price he paid was more severe than even he could have expected,' she analyzed.
"My flaw will be corrected after defeating you," replied Chen Chen. "As for those two? I still have a chance with the right planning."
Chen Chen remembered the power he sensed when the Heaven-Devouring Emperor tried to contact him. Such a power made his soul and very core tremble. Regardless, he never thought of giving up.
"So, you know?" she muttered, thinking about the despair she felt after knowing the power of these two monsters. She thought how much she lamented that it was a blessing and a curse to live in the same generation as two Heaven-Defying Geniuses.
"Yes."
"Do you want to partner with me to deal with them?" suddenly asked Tong Ruobing out of nowhere.
"What do you think?" replied Chen Chen, his voice colder than normal.
"I thought I should try."
[Destruction Flame Talisman]
Tong Ruobing went for a sneak attack and used one of her most powerful blows. She did not want to have a legion confrontation with Chen Chen for many reasons, the main being resources and wealth.
One of the advantages of her legion is she granted them innumerable talismans. So, her troops can essentially use money or resources to defeat her opponent. However, she knew it was the same with Chen Chen, and the latter was even wealthier than her.
During their Luck Trial, she suffered at the hands of his troops, who battle by spamming powerful Origin Artifacts. Logically speaking, this tactic should not be usable since Chen Chen would need to refine countless high-level Artifacts.
But Tong Ruobing did not want to take risks. She knew Chen Chen's refining talent was no lesser than hers, meaning his success rate of refining Quasi-Emperor Artifacts was ridiculous to the point he could grant 100his million troops each a weapon set.
So, she watched a terrifying black mushroom cloud envelop the surrounding million galaxies. However, she soon frowned. Her Divine Sense detected her attack was effective, but Chen Chen was still alive.
She saw only his partially destroyed head floating in the empty vacuum of space. Then, with his usual cold and indifferent eyes, Chen Chen said:
"I have transcended the weakness of Flesh Lifeforms–including the soul."
Bang!
A tear from the void manifested behind Chen Chen's head. Then, someone slowly walked out from the space crack. Tong Ruobing's eyes involuntarily squinted as another perfectly intact Chen Chen appeared.
At first, the new Chen Chen looked dull and listless; it was like it was a piece of wood with no life or soul–it looked like a regular or normal puppet. Then, his eyes changed and became more vivid, more alive.
Tong Ruobing noticed the coldness and indifference of the previous Chen Chen from this new one.
'Can he transfer his soul into a new puppet like Body Possession?'
The frown on her face did not change as she felt there was an anomaly.
'This new Chen Chen is a puppet; no, it's a combination of flesh and puppet–just like its former body. It's a perfect copy. But that's not where the anomaly I sense is.'
She thought briefly before noticing what she felt was wrong,
'I didn't sense the soul transfer.'
Tong Ruobing immediately became serious.
'Does that mean Chen Chen's understanding of the soul has reached a realm beyond my comprehension?'
Tong Ruobing refused to accept this fact. The main reason was her pride, and secondly, she also saw Chen Chen's displayed strength was only equal 4-Leaf, which is far from her.
'This could only mean there is something else at play.' She concluded he was using a unique method that was not easily noticeable. However, she was confident she would find the truth after a period of observation.
[False Divine Punishment Talisman]
Tong Ruobing waved her hand to summon a colossal talisman that covered the sky. Then, black lightning bolts descended from the heavens, similar to Heavenly Dao's Divine Punishment.
[Immortal Artifact Body]
An ethereal, noble, and immortal-like atmosphere emanated from Chen Chen's body. Then, his body took on the properties of an Immortal Artifact.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Chen Chen fought the black lightning bolts, his expression always the same. He felt no pain, and his actions were precise and methodical. So, after blasting thousands of thunderbolts, the talisman finally dispersed.
Meanwhile, Chen Chen had lost both his arms and one of his legs. Then, three small space cracks appeared to transfer new limbs to him. He reattached them as if they were accessories.
Tong Ruobing even noticed some of the internal damage from her attack was also healed by the metal energy released from these new limbs.
'What an odd body,' thought Tong Ruobing. Her Dao Companion was a body refiner, so she knew and had experienced the weirdness of them regrowing limbs or even their entire body from a drop of blood.
And technically speaking, Chen Chen's actions are the same result using different methods. However, Tong Ruobing found his technique incongruous.
Furthermore, she could not explain why. And this fact brought some unknown fear to her mind. Luckily, she is a top Heaven Chosen with the best Dao Heart and Willpower. So, she rapidly controlled herself, trying to analyze her opponent.
Her fear derived from the unknown. So, she only needs to discover all of Chen Chen's secrets and illuminate her mind.
[Matter Atomization Talisman]
Tong Ruobing wanted to see what would happen if she left her opponent without a single piece of atom in his body.
"It's pointless," said a voice that echoed in this vast emptiness. Then, a space crack appeared before another Chen Chen walked out.
"You cannot defeat me," said the third Chen Chen before rushing toward her. Tong Ruobing did not care about the latter's words. Although Chen Chen's methods were weird, that's only because of her lack of information.
In general, her opponent's strength could not warner her cares.
[Soul Annihilation Talisman]
A terrifying power entered Chen Chen's body to eradicate his soul. However, he only paused for a second before continuing his pursuit. Tong Ruobing tried a few more soul and spiritual attacks but soon discovered it was futile.
With each attempt, Chen Chen became more resistant until her attempt was utterly useless. This fact confirmed Tong Ruobing's suspicions that something was wrong with Chen Chen's soul–especially when she discovered she could not access or detect his Sea of Consciousness.
Bang!
She punched Chen Chen's body into oblivion for the third time before waiting.
