Chapter 029

Chapter 29: Bridge Technique

The insect tide was approaching once more.

That lake had only bought them a brief moment of rest; it could never hold off the tide for long.

“Careful,” Wen Zhao warned.

Wang Jie turned his head just in time to see a flash of yellow light—a mutated hornet, blazing toward them. Its aura pulsed with the power of eight seals.

Wen Zhao scanned the surroundings: “Five eight-seal insects have surrounded us. Insect Ruo Ruo, that little lass, actually controls this many eight-seal insects.”

“How do you know there are five?” Zuo Tian suddenly asked. As he spoke, a dense swarm of mutated hornets surged in. From his rear right, a sharp stinger slashed through the air, aiming straight for the back of his skull.

There was no way for Zuo Tian to dodge—it was far too fast. But then, his shadow suddenly came alive like a ghost, crashing into the stinger and knocking it aside, saving his life.

Even Wen Zhao was stunned by the scene. [His shadow moved?]

The redirected stinger, whether by fate or chance, flew straight toward Wang Jie.

With a sharp kick, Wang Jie knocked it aside. But from beneath the earth, a massive black mutated scorpion burst forth. Its stinger tore through the air, sweeping in a wide arc. That dark green sheen on the spike—clearly venomous.

Wen Zhao leapt away using Armor Eight Steps. Wang Jie followed suit, his form flickering behind her. But Zuo Tian—he didn’t know Armor Eight Steps, and now he stood directly within the scorpion’s attack range.

Above them, mutated hornets fell like a dark storm, blotting out the sky.

“Go,” Wang Jie shouted as he pivoted and fled in another direction. Wen Zhao cast a glance back, then followed. She knew exactly why Wang Jie had brought Zuo Tian along—he wanted him dead.

Talk of cooperation, resisting a common enemy, preserving the greater good… all lies.

In this cruel age of the apocalypse, survival came with one unshakable truth: I can die, but my enemies must die first. It wasn’t just Wang Jie who believed this—Zuo Tian did too.

Armor Eight Steps was a close-range dodging technique, not one that could be used for extended escape. Though both Wang Jie and Wen Zhao knew other footwork techniques, even their speed couldn’t fully outrun the insect tide. All they could do was avoid being cornered.

“This way.”

“That’s… toward Upper Capital City?”

Wang Jie’s eyes sharpened: “What do you think happens when the bugs meet the mutated beasts?”

Wen Zhao instantly understood.

Since they couldn’t destroy the insect tide themselves, nor allow it to drain Upper Capital City’s strength, the only path left was to lead it toward the mutated creatures. For now, they were still within the safety zone. The next step meant entering the danger zone.

Behind them, an endless swarm of insects chased them. The eight-seal insects pursued relentlessly. Above and below, they were everywhere.

And with each passing moment, the imprint power within them drained away.

Even replenishing it while fleeing wasn’t enough to keep up.

They had feared nightfall would bring more insects—but they had forgotten: night belonged to the plants.

Mutated flora bloomed in the darkness. The stronger they were, the more they surfaced at night. Strange, but true.

As twilight sank behind the hills, Wang Jie and Wen Zhao raced into the danger zone. When night finally fell, enormous mutated plants rose from the ground—ushering in a savage battle between flora and insect tide. Occasionally, beastly roars rang out in the dark.

The two ducked into an abandoned skyscraper, crouching low, concealing their auras.

Their eyes met.

“You know the Breath Concealment Method too,” Wen Zhao said softly.

Wang Jie looked out the window, watching the insect tide split around the building in search of them. “We couldn’t avoid their sight during the day, but night is different. Especially in a high-rise—bugs rarely fly this high.”

“You underestimate Insect Ruo Ruo.”

“And you underestimate the danger zone. In ten years, Hua Xia only built five bases. Despite expanding the safety zones, they’re still tiny. Mutated plants played a huge role in that. They help cull countless insects.”

Wen Zhao didn’t argue. After another glance outside, she took out some cataclysm materials and handed them to Wang Jie.

He accepted them directly. “Thanks.”

“I should thank you. If not for you, I’d already be in her hands.”

“You wouldn’t die.”

“But it wouldn’t be pleasant.”

Wang Jie maintained his concealed aura, absorbing imprint energy without the slightest leakage. Wen Zhao’s eyes widened. “That’s not an ordinary concealment technique… is it Toad Breath? One of the Eighteen Ultimate Techniques? How do you know so many combat arts?”

“Is that a lot?” Wang Jie had no intention of explaining. So it was called Toad Breath? He’d seen someone squatting like this on a Sky Projection as a child. It looked like a game, so he copied it. Turned out he had talent and managed to learn it.

This kind of breath concealment didn’t just hide one’s cultivation—it allowed him to absorb imprint power without leaking a trace. Extremely useful.

Wen Zhao gave him a long look. “Sometimes, I wonder if you’re really a native… or a special disciple from the sect.”

Wang Jie tilted his head. “Special disciple?”

She nodded, then suddenly stood. “Let’s change locations. Insects are coming.”

Wang Jie followed her to a lower floor.

“Your way of observing is really practical. Earlier I only sensed three eight-seal insects—you instantly spotted five. Is that the Bridge Technique you mentioned?”

“Correct.”

“What exactly is it?”

Wen Zhao looked up at the starry sky. “If you ever leave this planet, you’ll understand. For now, even if I told you, you wouldn’t.”

Wang Jie didn’t press further.

Not long after, the entire building trembled. Something was tearing it apart.

Wen Zhao frowned. “Insect Ruo Ruo isn’t stupid—she’s forcing us out.”

Wang Jie groaned. “How do creatures like heavenly insect people even exist? She’s just eight-seal herself, yet she controls the insect tide and several other eight-seal insects. Completely unreasonable.”

“The universe doesn’t care about reason,” Wen Zhao said as she stood again. Time to move.

They kept evading the bugs.

Meanwhile, Insect Ruo Ruo decided she was sleepy. Staying up too late would ruin her skin. Before she lay down, she gave one final order: demolish every skyscraper in the area. Let’s see where they’d hide next.

Little Zhao, you’re dead.

And that nasty man, too.

As the sky began to pale, Wang Jie nudged Wen Zhao awake. “Time to go.”

She had kept watch most of the night—only one hour ago had Wang Jie swapped in for her. With dawn nearing, discovery didn’t matter anymore.

Even so, Wang Jie hadn’t slept well. They’d relocated three times as buildings crumbled around them, barely avoiding detection.

Now, without the cover of night, it was time to run again.

Wen Zhao stood, pulled water from her storage ring to wash her face and brush her teeth. With her back to Wang Jie, she donned a clean veil.

Wang Jie…

Smashed through a window, and the two leapt out, fleeing at once.

Insect Ruo Ruo caught sight of them and shrieked, “There they are! This small one, give chase!”

A sea of insects surged after them.

Once the insect tide passed, that whole region was cleared. The dangerous mutated plants, dominant at night, had all been trampled. Even the mutated beasts had retreated, unwilling to provoke the swarm.

Since they had to run anyway, Wang Jie figured they might as well lead the insect tide in circles—cleanse the danger zones around Upper Capital City while they were at it.

As for cataclysm materials, they picked them up while fleeing. It was getting easier.

What they missed, they could come back for later. No one else was competing with them.

After all, who in Upper Capital City dared venture out?

Not everyone had the strength to survive inside an insect tide.

For three days straight, they fled and fought, gradually adjusting to the rhythm.

Both Wang Jie and Wen Zhao stood at the peak of Blue Star’s current power. The insect tide was vast, yes, and there were many eight-seal insects, but none that could kill them outright. In time, they adapted to the swarm’s assault.

Wen Zhao’s Bridge Technique ensured they never reached a dead end, even allowing moments of rest.

Insect Ruo Ruo, despite all her efforts, couldn’t catch them. Frustrated, she kept sending more bugs.

But since they were in the danger zone, the increasing bug presence also drew more mutated beasts and plants into the chaos.

Back at Upper Capital City, cultivators began to notice the strange behavior of the insect tide—looping around the base, clearing the surrounding danger zones like… walking a dog.

Two more days passed.

Wang Jie reached the sixth step of Armor Eight Steps.

Clearly, live combat was the best teacher.

Wen Zhao also achieved the sixth step, and she was on the verge of nine seals.

[So fast.] As one of the first wave of trial takers, she had gone from seven to eight seals, and now nearly nine. Wang Jie finally understood why Armor One Sect staggered the descent of their disciples—it was the only way to keep things fair.

By the time the third wave descended, Wen Zhao would be ready.

“Now, begin the eighth set of beginner calisthenics.”

Wang Jie froze. [What? Now? Again? It’s early!]

All around, the sky was dark with insects. Wen Zhao’s sword slashed forth, sharper and more powerful than ever.

“You hold them off for a bit. I need to exercise.”

Wen Zhao stared at him, dumbfounded. “What?”

“One-two-three-four,” Wang Jie began moving.

Wen Zhao was speechless.

Ahead, the massive black mutated scorpion charged forward, its venomous stinger plunging down.

“Wang Jie, are you insane? You’re doing exercises now? Even if you’re about to break through, this is not the time!” She rushed to intercept. Seeing a mutated butterfly diving toward him, she gritted her teeth and used Armor Eight Steps, circling him with swift steps, sword flashing.

Sweat rolled down Wang Jie’s brow. [I don’t want this either! But if I don’t, the wristguard will melt me!]

Eyes shut, he focused. Not only would he do the exercise, but he would absorb the cataclysm materials too.

Wen Zhao’s heart sank. She shouted, “Wang Jie!”

But he didn’t respond.

She wanted to abandon him—but without Wang Jie’s cooperation, she couldn’t escape the tide on her own. There wasn’t even time to collect the fallen materials around them.

In the distance, Insect Ruo Ruo blinked. [What’s that evil man doing? Some kind of weird ritual?] She grew cautious.

Wen Zhao’s eyes gleamed. Streams of light shimmered in her pupils. Suddenly, the entire battlefield changed.

The insects vanished from her view, replaced by swirling streams of airflow—that was her Bridge Technique. She could now perceive threats by the flow of energy, ignoring the weak and focusing only on the strong.

To an observer, it looked like the attacks from five-seal insects simply didn’t exist. She let them strike her body as she focused on slashing at a massive mutated scorpion.

A hit forced her back. Blood spurted from her lips. But the scorpion’s tail was severed, and it staggered away.

It was as if she had cast aside her own safety, all for a single sword strike. She turned, slashing at another eight-seal insect.

Attacks landed again and again. Her veil fell. Her arms, legs, and back were covered in wounds. Venom burned through her flesh, exposing bone.

She had reached the limits of Armor Eight Steps.

Dead insects carpeted the ground layer after layer. And still, she stood guard over Wang Jie.

Among them lay the body of the massive mutated scorpion.