Chapter 57: Bloody Handprint

The attendant’s pupils contracted sharply!

Just as Chen Ling’s blade was about to slit his throat, a gray shimmer flashed, and his palm was suddenly empty.

Chen Ling’s palm strike grazed the attendant’s neck, breaking the latter out in a cold sweat. He lunged back half a step and stabbed the short blade back at Chen Ling!

Forgot that he could steal weapons...

Empty-handed, Chen Ling had no choice but to dodge. This brief gap allowed the attendant to put some distance between them and barely steady himself on the roof of the train.

"This speed... how is it possible?" The attendant looked at Chen Ling in astonishment. "You’ve also mastered a Divine Path?"

He seemed to think of something, his expression shifting rapidly.

"No, you’re not an ordinary rookie law enforcer... Who are you? A follower of the Jiangtian Sect? Or a member of the Dusk Society?"

Seeing his identity exposed, Chen Ling stopped pretending. He had to kill this guy as soon as possible... he knew too much.

Even without a weapon, Chen Ling could still fight hand-to-hand with his own speed. The killing techniques he had learned from Han Meng were no joke.

Chen Ling changed his footwork, closing in on the attendant at high speed. The latter, having been caught off guard once, seemed wary of close combat and kept trying to create distance with his pistol and the short blade.

As Chen Ling gradually closed in, the attendant had no choice but to retreat, soon reaching the end of the last carriage with nowhere left to go.

The dark brown coat fluttered on the roof of the train, and steam mixed with wind and snow gradually engulfed their figures.

At the same time, in the direction the train was traveling, a narrow tunnel approached rapidly!

The tunnel was extremely narrow, with less than a head’s clearance from the top of the train. Both men, locked in a life-or-death struggle, saw the wall rushing toward them and were shocked!

Just as they were about to hit the tunnel, Chen Ling reached up to his chin and tore hard!

A layer of skin flew into the air.

Vroom—!!

The train shot through the tunnel like a cannonball, the compressed air emitting a low roar.

Disordered light and shadow flashed by. Dozens of seconds later, light returned to the roof of the train. On the dented cargo car, the attendant climbed up in a disheveled state...

"Damn it, almost got caught."

Just as he was about to hit the tunnel, he had used his "Steal" skill to take the sand and dirt filling the cargo car, causing the canvas below to collapse suddenly, allowing him to hide inside and escape disaster.

He barely managed to steady himself when he saw a blood-red leopard crouching a few steps away, a pair of scarlet eyes staring fixedly at him.

A leopard??

The moment he saw this thing, his pupils contracted sharply.

He didn't have time to wonder why a leopard would appear out of thin air on this train before he raised his gun to shoot. At that moment, the scarlet blur flashed across the roof like lightning!

Sharp claws sliced through his wrist, and the gun, along with his wrist, tumbled off the carriage.

Immediately after, the leopard tore at his neck and face like a madman. The shrill screams echoed through the wind and snow, soon drowned out by the roaring train.

Clang—clang—clang...

After an unknown amount of time, the leopard finally slowed down... It stood up and transformed into a human silhouette.

He raised his hand and gently wiped the hot blood from his cheek. Behind the scarlet, it was Chen Ling’s calm face, suppressing a hint of madness.

Blood dripped from the corner of his mouth. He casually picked up a handful of snow from the roof, stuffed it into his mouth, rinsed for a moment, and spat it out.

"This skill... is unexpectedly useful," he muttered to himself.

This was his first time facing an opponent with a Divine Path skill. Although he won in the end, the opponent’s bizarre ability left a deep impression... However, he estimated that this man was at most a second-stage practitioner.

The first-stage skill was stealing objects, and the second-stage skill was stealing faces... but strictly speaking, neither of these skills had much offensive power.

A thief is a thief; in terms of direct combat power, they are still inferior to the "Martial" path.

Chen Ling looked at the unrecognizable corpse, hesitated for a moment, then bent down to strip off all its clothes and kicked the naked body under the train, where it was quickly crushed into pulp by the steel wheels.

Immediately after, he crumpled up the attendant’s uniform and threw it into the cliffside, where it vanished.

"Sorry, the foundation of the Martial God Path... can't just let you have it."

The Fire-Tamperers and he shared the same target: the Ancient Armory of the Martial Path. Although he was only at the first stage and alone, Chen Ling didn't intend to give up just like that... He planned to take a gamble.

The Fire-Tamperers were enemies, but if used correctly, they might become his own weapon.

Chen Ling glanced at the passenger car, a plan forming in his mind, madness flickering in his eyes once more!

At this moment, Chen Ling could clearly feel his twisted Divine Path rejoicing, his empty chest pounding, and every cell in his body waiting for him to dance between life and death.

He knew this was his twisted Divine Path changing his personality again...

But this feeling really wasn't bad!

[Audience Expectation +12]

[Current Expectation: 61%]

……

"Who do you think will come back first, Number 13 or Number 8?"

In the passenger car, Zhong Yaoguang and another peer sat in their original seats, cracking sunflower seeds and chatting.

"Probably Number 13. After all, that law enforcer leading the Third District looked like he could run."

"I think I heard gunshots just now, over at the back of the train. Someone must have finished it..."

"I feel like it’s Number 8. After all, Number 8 is at the third stage. Having learned that skill, killing someone isn't hard for him."

"Makes sense..."

Just as they were talking, a figure in a dark brown coat landed lightly by the carriage door and stepped inside, bringing a flurry of snow with him.

"Number 13 came back first, actually," Zhong Yaoguang laughed. "Why did you take so long?"

"That kid pretended to run out, but actually hid on the roof. It made me run a whole lap before I found him. Exhausting," Chen Ling said, cursing as he walked casually to his seat.

"Pretty smart..."

"It shows, since he was the first one to discover us," the other law enforcer replied.

"Here, have some seeds."

Chen Ling picked up two seeds, cracking them as he looked around the carriage.

"The other one hasn't been caught yet?" he asked casually.

Jiang Qin had run at the same time as him. If he had chosen the right path, he might actually have had a chance to escape...

Chen Ling didn't care if others died, but he hoped Jiang Qin would live.

Chen Ling looked at the thick dark brown coat he was wearing, feeling a bit worried.

"Not yet, don't know what's going on."

"...Forget it, I'll go take a look." A faint shimmer flashed in Chen Ling’s eyes as he stood up and walked toward the carriage door.

"No need."

Just then, a figure walked into the carriage, facing him, and walked slowly toward him...

The moment he saw that person, Chen Ling’s pupils contracted slightly.

He saw a blood-covered "Jiang Qin" dragging a corpse through the carriage, stopping in front of Chen Ling... The corpse in his hand was the other Jiang Qin.

"Jiang Qin" raised a blood-stained palm and patted Chen Ling on the shoulder.

"All identities successfully stolen. Good job."

With that, he brushed past Chen Ling.

Chen Ling stood frozen for a long time, then looked down slightly.

On the dark brown coat, a scarlet bloody handprint was shocking to behold.