The carriage jolted along the graystone path toward the Meteorite Mine. Del leaned against the wooden wall of the compartment; in his sea of consciousness, the “Eye of Silence” emitted a faint glow from high-load operation.
“Chip, strip away all sensory input, reconstruct energy observation perspective.”
Perspective switch complete. Current body status monitoring:
Western battle-qi circuits: completely shattered. The “meridians” Ian saw were actually remnants of the host’s ruptured muscle fibers and nerve bundles.
Eastern meridians reconstruction: slowly weaving based on ‘dantian crack.’ Current progress: 4%.
Core conflict: Host’s current ‘Western physique’ strength cannot support direct connection of ‘Black Buddha force.’
Del inwardly observed his abdomen. There, besides the ferocious crack, a viscous, dim cluster of energy with a chilling aura resided. It was the bone-offering energy he forcibly absorbed through Black Wind Sword before the altar collapsed.
This energy did not belong to the living; it was filled with a certain decayed, ancient-era sense of annihilation.
“Use this energy to deduce the possibility of the third form of ‘Black Wind Sword.’” Del commanded inwardly.
Deduction initiated. Detected extremely strong ‘material erosion’ logic in bone energy.
Deduction branch A: Strengthen sword form. Use bone energy to form ‘death qi coating’ on blade, enhancing cutting power.
Deduction branch B: Origin tracing. Analyze compatibility between bone energy and ‘Black Buddha Fist.’
“Choose B. I want to know why sword techniques can never surpass fist techniques.”
The carriage stopped at a desolate riverbank. The two escorting retainers were washing the horses by the river, faces full of impatience.
Del stepped down, gripping the mundane iron cross-sword. He closed his eyes, attempting to guide that wisp of viscous bone energy into the blade.
[Black Wind Sword · Martial Drill]
Del swung the sword.
As the cold energy poured in, the originally ordinary iron sword’s surface emerged with a layer of ashen-white mist like bone ash. The tip cut through air not with crisp breaking sound, but a low, sighing moan like the dead.
One swing, two swings… he was deducing how to fuse this death qi with black sand force.
“Chip, calculate sword technique ceiling.”
Calculation complete. Conclusion: Sword techniques are ‘converters.’ Due to small contact area at sword tip and 40% energy loss through blade medium.
Black Wind Sword extreme state (optimized by bone energy): can instantly wither vegetation within three meters, severely wound same-tier knights.
Del sheathed the sword and stood, watching the wild grass ahead wither instantly into charred black under the sword qi. To others, this move was already shocking enough, comparable to certain dark sorceries.
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But he shook his head.
He could feel that every time he used the sword, the Black Buddha phantom in his dantian appeared extremely “indifferent.” It felt like a child with a dull knife trying to imitate a giant’s punch.
“What if… discard the medium?”
Del dropped the iron sword, fingers closing slowly into the most primitive fist.
In that moment, the originally docile bone energy and black sand force within the blade seemed to meet their true sovereign—they instantly became wild and boiling.
[Black Buddha Fist Art · Ultimate True Image]
Del threw an ordinary straight punch forward.
This punch had no gorgeous death-qi atomization, no chilling moan.
Yet the already dried crack in his abdomen, drawn by this punch, erupted with near-greedy devouring force. His muscles, bones—even every cell—groaned in pain under this punch’s heavy force logic.
Bang!
Three meters ahead on the riverbank, a millstone-sized blue-steel rock did not wither like under sword qi—but collapsed.
Without warning, the entire rock disintegrated from within in an instant, turning into a pile of gray dust finer than flour.
“This is the difference.” Del looked at his cracked, bleeding tiger’s mouth, murmuring, “Sword techniques are ‘wind’—sharp yet ultimately drifting. Fist techniques are ‘sand’—the unyielding ‘obliteration’ will cast upon this world by the Black Sand Evil Buddha seated on the throne of bones.”
No matter how optimized, sword techniques are essentially cutting and bleeding. The essence of Black Buddha Fist is “erasure” at the level of physical rules.
“Chip, why does my body reject fist techniques so strongly?”
Logic analysis: Western physique structure is ‘force rises from ground, enters bone through muscle.’ Black Buddha Fist logic is ‘intent follows dantian, qi threads meridians.’ Host currently lacks true meridians. Every punch uses shattered nerves and vessels as high-voltage cables. Warning: At current constitution (3.3), forcibly releasing full-power Black Buddha Fist will carbonize host’s left arm instantly upon release.
“So sword techniques are my current ‘armor.’” Del picked up the fallen cross-sword, his gaze deepening.
He understood: until reaching the Meteorite Mine and finding Obsidian Adamant to recast meridians, he must not lightly use fist techniques.
That punch was a cross-plane dimensional strike, but the cost was the collapse of this flesh body.
Absorbing bone energy had indeed advanced Black Wind Sword’s calculation to new heights. It allowed Del to borrow a trace of “annihilation” intent without shattering his dantian.
At night, the two escorts slept by the campfire.
Del sat in shadow, feeling the bone energy in his body being parsed inch by inch by the chip. The resentment and spirituality of sacrificed beings from another realm turned into basic data, filling the blank of Black Wind Sword’s third form.
“Third form… doesn’t need to pursue destructive power.”
Del stroked the hilt.
“If the first form is the chaos of ‘Fills the Sky,’ the second is the piercing of ‘Annihilation,’ then the third form deduced from bone energy should be—‘Dream Entry.’”
Make the enemy, upon contact with the blade tip, have their five senses stripped by residual death intent in the bone—plunging into an apocalyptic illusion of collapsed royal rule and fields of bones. In that second of soul trembling, black sand force completes final material erasure.
“Chip, record third form concept.”
Recording… Named: [Black Wind Sword · Bone Speech]. Current completion: 15%.
Del closed his eyes, the colossal figure seated on the throne of bones endlessly revolving in his mind.
He knew that when he emerged from the Meteorite Mine, he would no longer need these cumbersome sword forms. Then, every step he took would make the earth tremble beneath the Black Buddha’s feet; every punch would dim the stars under that indescribable sense of annihilation.
But now, he must endure.
On this continent watched by Western gods, he was a heretic lurking in ruins, polishing his mask.
