Chapter 556 - The Vortex’s True Form!
Chapter 556: The Vortex’s True Form!
“Bastard!” Meng Chao roared. His saber moved like a blood-soaked dragon that went straight for the imitator.
The imitator grinned and used his knee to press against Xiang Wei’s headless body to send it forward.
Meng Chao did not want to leave behind his own marks on Xiang Wei’s body, so he could only dodge sideways.
The imitator curled up behind Xiang Wei’s corpse, then sprung forward and bounced away. He swung his saber downward with an unstoppable momentum, and his stance was the exact same as that of Meng Chao.
Meng Chao was prepared for it from the start. Bloody Soul drew a sharp arc in the air. The two sabers clashed briefly, creating a shower of sparks, before separating. The sparks did not disappear even after a long time had passed.
The two men were forced three steps back by each other’s momentum. They then placed their sabers horizontally in front of their chests and engaged in a silent stalemate.
It was at this moment that Meng Chao finally saw the other’s appearance.
He found that this imitator did not just have the same face, appearance, and gaze. Even his height, shoulder width, arm span, upper-lower body ratio, muscle distribution, and bone distribution were basically the exact same as his.
Meng Chao could not help but suck in a sharp breath.
He had just finished his training in the wild, which had lasted a few months, a few days ago.
In those months, he camped out in the wild. He crawled through forests and crept through the plains all the time. He also often ate the freshest monster flesh as food.
Not only did his fighting strength improve by leaps and bounds because of it, he had also grown up by 3 cm and gained 7.5 kg in weight. His shoulder width and arm span had also become different from before. His muscle distribution had also been adjusted to the point that it was almost perfect for close-quarters combat.
Throughout the training, he worked madly and seldom came into contact with other humans.
If the enemy had copied his appearance based on how he looked at Noble Descent Hotel when he killed the Demonic Abyss Eye, the impersonator would be very different from the current Meng Chao.
Yet it had been just a few days since Meng Chao returned to Dragon City. How could the enemy make a perfect copy of his current self?
It was no wonder why Man-eating Shark Zhou Chong and Snake-eye Mo Lan, who were his comrades since the day before and one of whom had even fought against him, could not tell that this Meng Chao was not real!
Meng Chao used his peripheral vision to look at Rattlesnake Xiang Wei’s head and body.
It was clear that Xiang Wei was dead, considering his head was separated from his body.
Even if Su Mulian shifted his injuries to her own body, it would be impossible for her to resurrect him.
And based on the bloody wounds on his neck and body, it was clear that they were caused by a chain saber viciously tearing into him.
If Meng Chao had not figured out the scheme in time and let Rattlesnake Xiang Wei be killed by the imitator as well as a few witnesses who “escaped through sheer luck” return to the surface, Meng Chao would never be able to clear his name.
Fortunately, even though he could not stop the imitator from killing Xiang Wei, he managed to catch his tail.
‘Next, as long as I can kill or capture this imitator or even keep him around until the main army of the gangs arrives so that they find out that there are two Meng Chaos fighting here, all of the Vortex’s schemes will be destroyed!’
Meng Chao’s mind raced, and he saw hope.
Bloody Soul’s light tore through the smoke in the area and enveloped the imitator.
The imitator did not just imitate Meng Chao’s appearance. He also imitated the characteristics of Meng Chao’s fighting style, his body constitution, and spirit energy magnetic field until they were no different from the original.
He had also cleared most of his branch meridians and could send his spirit energy to the ends of his nerves and each hair on his body, so he possessed great endurance and would never experience fatigue.
He, too, possessed the upgraded versions of Reckless Bull Force, One Hundred Saber Techniques, Demon Subduing Pole, and other basic skills that Meng Chao was used to.
He also liked using basic skills that had practically no openings to exploit so that he could form unending chain attacks while seldom using killing moves that required a lot of preparation and had long cooldown times.
Just like Meng Chao, he used a heavy saber in his right hand and a light chain saber in his left hand. He moved like a phantom, but had a fierce momentum.
The more they fought against each other, the more shocked Meng Chao became. He felt like he was now in a hell made of mirrors and was fighting against his mirror self in a fight where the victor would never be decided.
However, no matter how well the other person had disguised himself, there was one thing that it could never imitate fully.
Meng Chao had Kindling. He could use contribution points in exchange for healing and strengthening his cells’ regeneration speed and power.
Because of it, Meng Chao did not mind being heavily injured with the imitator.
Even if both of them fought and ended up so tired that they lay sprawled on the ground and could not stand, it would be fine.
No one could ever conceal the truth, after all, so when the main fighting forces of the gangs arrived and tied the two Meng Chaos up, then brought them to Saber Jin Wanhao, Man-eating Shark Zhou Chong, and the others, at that time, Meng Chao would see who would be in a more embarrassing situation!
Since one of them did not mind being heavily injured, and the other was in a hurry to run away, Meng Chao’s psychological advantage kept accumulating. He gradually gained a winning momentum, and the hand of victory slowly reached out toward him.
In just half a minute, they had exchanged 372 attacks.
Dozens of deep wounds had appeared on their bodies.
Meng Chao’s body burned with a bloody-red fire. It was as if he did not know fatigue nor fear pain. The more he fought, the fiercer he became.
And no matter what, the imitator was not the real “Eldest Disciple of the Ultimate Style”. His speed and strength clearly fell by a visible amount, and his breathing became quick and disorderly. Slowly, he was unable to keep up with Meng Chao’s rapid rhythm.
Whoosh!
Meng Chao fired his chain saber again.
The imitator also threw his chain saber, making it travel like a viper.
The two chain sabers locked with each other and released a piercing flame and electrical arc.
Meng Chao gave a vicious tug to draw them closer to each other.
Then, he released the chain saber without hesitation and grabbed the saber hilt with both hands. Bloody Soul pushed forward with an indomitable momentum and swept horizontally at the imitator like a propeller from an armored airship.
The imitator also swung his red saber.
The two sabers clashed against each other for the 109th time.
At the moment the sabers clashed with each other, Meng Chao’s eyes shone with a light that was as bright as a supernova explosion.
There was one skill that the imitator could not possibly master, and it was Fear Bomb that was created with the scenes of the apocalypse at its core!
The imitator’s pupils shrank.
His mental defense was not destroyed in one blow because of Meng Chao’s Fear Bomb, but he could not help shuddering.
Meng Chao seized this fleeting chance and released all his spirit energy into the Red Radiance Jade crystal marrow that supported Bloody Soul.
Crack!
Bloody Soul instantly grew brighter and turned into a crystalline work of art.
Of course, it was a murderous work of art.
And no matter what, a fake was a fake.
The imitator could carefully create a red saber that looked like Bloody Soul on the outside, but the real Bloody Soul was created from a rare Red Radiance Jade crystal marrow that was found in the depths of the Red Radiance Jade mine.
It was a treasure that could only be discovered by chance.
Humans had had a firm grip over the large Red Radiance Jade mine under Raging Waves, so it was impossible for the imitator to get the same Red Radiance Jade crystal marrow as Meng Chao’s.
So, it was impossible for his saber to be as sturdy as Meng Chao’s Bloody Soul.
That’s why Meng Chao had intentionally taken the stance that made it seem like he was ready to die with the imitator and engaged in the simplest and crudest of clashes. Hence, while the imitator was unaware, he dwindled away the red saber’s durability.
With the final slash, he finally broke the fake red saber and used the attack’s momentum to pierce the imitator’s chest. Then, he lifted the imitator and pinned him against the wall.
It was now all over.
The imitator’s eyes protruded, and he stared at his chest in disbelief while he coughed up mouthfuls of blood.
He moved his limbs like a worm to remove the burning Bloody Soul from his chest, but it was impossible.
Rapid footsteps came from the distance. Meng Chao also heard a lot of machinery, so everyone probably came in motorized armor.
With such a major lineup, it was definitely the major fighting force of the gangs.
“You’re done for.” Meng Chao stared at the person who looked like him.
Even when they were close to each other, he still could not see any flaws in his appearance.
Unfortunately, no matter how good his disguise was, it was useless.
“I don’t care who you are, the game is over. When the major forces from the gangs arrive and see two Meng Chaos, everything will come to light!” Meng Chao said clearly.
The imitator blinked and smiled again.
With quite a lot of effort, he swung his arms as if he wanted to clap and cheer for Meng Chao.
But since he had a heavy saber stuck in his chest, it was difficult for him to clap.
He could only give Meng Chao a thumbs up. He even shook his thumb a little at him.
“You’re good, Meng Chao. You actually managed to destroy my plans repeatedly and even guessed how I would react. It’s no wonder why the White Spirit, Earthquake, and the Demonic Abyss Eye lost to you in the end!”
The imitator’s smile became strange.
His voice also gradually became different from Meng Chao’s.
It was a rustling sound, as if vermin were crawling all over the place. It was a strange sound that caused great discomfort.
The imitator laughed and said, “But I’m different from them. Our game has just started.”
Meng Chao felt his skin crawl.
Judging by the imitator’s tone, he actually placed himself higher than the White Spirit, Earthquake, and the Demonic Abyss Eye.
Could it be that he was an it and a Supernatural Entity?
But if it were really a Supernatural Entity, even if Meng Chao’s return to the past had caused a butterfly effect so the Supernatural Entities had not yet evolved to their final form, it should not have been so easy to kill one of them.
“Wh-Who in the world are you?” Meng Chao asked sternly.
“You can call me Vortex.”
And just as Meng Chao expected, the creature said a name that made him shudder.
The man’s eyes turned into two bottomless vortices.
“As a reward for you being able to force me to this point and make me reveal my real self, I can give you… a small hint about the next stage of the game.” The Vortex smiled in a bizarre fashion. “The person you killed is the youngest and favorite son of Black Bone’s gang leader.
“Black Bone lost a lot of elites during the explosion in Leprosy Village this morning. The gang leader is currently furious, and to make him happy, his beloved son decided to go after your life, but you stabbed him through the chest and he died a horrible death. Take a guess, with how hot-tempered Black Bone’s gang leader is, how is he going to deal with you?”
“Wh-What ?” A bad feeling rose in Meng Chao’s heart. “The people I killed are all wanted criminals and former Reaper Squad members!”
“Yes, aside from this one.”
Vortex looked down at its pierced chest, then at Bloody Soul, which was stuck in the wall. It was a unique weapon that had no copy in Dragon City and was Meng Chao’s signature weapon.
Vortex cackled.