Chapter Fifty-Four: Hatsune’s Awakening

The battle erupted once more. This time, Zhou Potian seemed possessed by madness, his blade swinging in broad, sweeping arcs. Golden gene energy surged around him, and with each strike, it was as if a mountain crashed down—utterly terrifying.

Zhou Potian had been right: as long as their identities remained undisclosed, both sides had held back, reluctant to use their most powerful gene techniques. But now that their cover was blown, all hesitation vanished. What Zhou Potian now unleashed was the rarest gene technique of the Heavyblade profession—“Mountain-Cleaver!”

The force of the blade was like a mountain—one strike, one mountain! This was among the most formidable gene techniques of the Heavyblade path.

Lin Chuyin met him head-on, utterly unyielding. Their blades clashed; a tremendous force surged through her, nearly wrenching her heavy blade from her grip and sending her body flying backward. The exhaustion had taken its toll. Barely steadying herself midair, she hurtled over ten meters before landing, only to stagger back a dozen more steps before she could finally stand firm, her face ashen.

The other Golden Evolvers also pressed the attack. Fu Hui and Luo Yu, both at the end of their strength, could only muster what little energy they had left to meet the charge. But they were steadily pushed back, blow after blow.

In the distance, the Silver Evolvers of the Celestial Palace gasped in horror at the scene.

“Deputy Captain!”
“Deputy Captain!”

Their hearts leapt to their throats. Should the three deputy captains fall, freeing up the enemy Golden Evolvers, none of them would escape with their lives.

Yet almost immediately, the Silver Evolvers of the Wolfbane charged in as well, and battle erupted anew—dangerous and chaotic, leaving them no chance to keep watching Lin Chuyin and the others.

“Why haven’t you left?!” Lin Chuyin’s furious roar rang out again.

“Deputy Captain!…”

The Silver Evolvers panicked. At last, someone shouted, “Go! Split up and run! No matter what, escape and report this to the Captain. We must avenge our fallen brothers!”

Eyes reddened with rage, hatred, and frustration, some even brimming with tears. But after that desperate outcry, they understood—the tide had turned, defeat was certain. To stay was only to throw their lives away. With a final roar, they scattered, fleeing in all directions.

“Don’t let a single one escape!” Zhou Potian bellowed. He lunged again, heading straight for Lin Chuyin.

Blood trickled from Lin Chuyin’s lips, sweat pouring off her body like rain. Even moving a finger now felt like an insurmountable effort.

But this was not the time to fall. Nor could she retreat.

If she fell, if she retreated, those Silver Evolvers would almost certainly be slaughtered to the last. Whatever the cost, she had to keep standing—long enough for her brothers of the Silver rank to escape.

As long as she stood, these Golden Evolvers would be unable to break off and pursue the others.

With that thought, she cast aside all else.

Suddenly, a terrifying golden light burst from her, her pupils blazing gold. An overwhelming surge of gene energy erupted from within her.

“Chuyin!” Luo Yu screamed in disbelief.

“Chuyin!” Fu Hui’s eyes widened as well.

Lin Chuyin gave no reply. She charged forward, her features twisting into a fierce snarl, golden afterimages trailing from her eyes, all trace of human emotion gone.

Her heavy blade swept toward Zhou Potian in a sudden, horizontal arc.

Boom!

The force of this strike far surpassed anything she’d unleashed before. Its speed even outstripped that of the most frenzied blade-masters.

A look of terror—and anger—flashed across Zhou Potian’s face. But his own blade was already swinging, too late to pull back. He could only draw a deep breath, gathering all his gene energy in an instant.

Boom!

Their heavy blades collided.

It was as if a train had struck him; Zhou Potian’s weapon spun from his hand, clattering to the ground, while he himself was hurled dozens of meters, crashing down hard.

He spat a mouthful of blood.

Defeated in a single blow!

But as soon as he hit the ground, he sucked in another breath, gene energy surging, and leapt upright, retreating wildly without a second thought. He didn’t care about his injuries.

To face Lin Chuyin in this state was too frightening—she seemed like a god descended to earth, ferocious beyond measure.

He dared not meet her head-on.

Because… she had gone berserk.

Berserk—a unique ability of Golden Evolvers. What explodes is the “gene seed,” the very foundation of their cultivation. This is the ultimate weapon of a Golden Evolver driven to the brink.

The “gene seed” within an Evolver is a vast reservoir of gene energy, operating in some mysterious fashion. By violently shattering it, all that pent-up energy is released in an instant, granting power several times greater than usual.

The more advanced the cultivation art, the more devastating the berserk power.

Though Lin Chuyin and her companions had clearly been at the end of their strength, Wolfbane’s four Golden Evolvers had failed to bring them down—why? Because the Wolfbane group knew that even if their foes looked battered and ready to fall, they still held their ultimate trump card: berserk.

That’s why Golden Evolvers are so hard to kill—everyone fears the horror of berserk. Defeating a Golden Evolver is easy; killing one is nearly impossible—unless you are prepared to go berserk yourself.

In that fleeting moment, the berserk state grants them power several times, even tenfold, their usual strength. Who would dare confront such terrifying force head-on? Death would be certain.

But for all its might, berserk is a mutually destructive move. Once triggered, there’s no turning back. It lasts only minutes at most, after which weakness sets in at a pace visible to the naked eye, followed by unconsciousness. The Evolver’s very genes are devastated by the torrent of unleashed energy: at best, their evolutionary stage drops or their path is forever blocked; at worst, they die outright.

That’s why it’s called the “last resort.”

Lin Chuyin’s berserk eruption was terrifying to the extreme. Not only Zhou Potian, but the other Wolfbane Golden Evolvers also scattered without hesitation.

Luo Yu and Fu Hui, however, rushed to her side.

“Chuyin, why?!” Luo Yu was on the verge of tears, staring at Lin Chuyin’s fierce, vein-bulging face in agony.

Fu Hui’s jaw was clenched so tightly it seemed his teeth would crack. He growled through gritted teeth, “Didn’t we agree that I would do it?!”

Lin Chuyin’s voice rasped, “I’ve already gone berserk. I’ll cover you—go!”

“I won’t leave! I’ll go berserk too! I’ll kill them all!” Luo Yu was trembling, her eyes bloodshot.

“If you push them too far, they’ll go berserk as well. Luo Yu, don’t waste time… Go! Don’t let my death be meaningless!” Lin Chuyin suddenly turned, glaring at her, voice hoarse and low.

In her berserk state, her gene energy was utterly out of control—even her mind was affected. It took immense will just to keep from losing herself.

“Chuyin…” Luo Yu trembled all over.

Fu Hui’s face twisted in pain, but at last, he gritted his teeth, seized Luo Yu’s arm, and pulled her away. “Let’s go!… Don’t let Chuyin’s sacrifice be for nothing!”

With those words, he dragged Luo Yu away at a run.

“Chuyin!” Luo Yu’s wail was heartrending, tears streaming down her face.

Lin Chuyin did not pursue the fleeing Golden Evolvers. Her slender figure, at that moment, became like a mountain—standing between the four Wolfbane Evolvers and Fu Hui and Luo Yu.

Her gold-lit eyes gleamed with a fierce light. She drove her heavy blade into the ground beside her, like a golden deity standing guard.

The four Golden Evolvers stared at her from a distance but dared not approach. Watching the two escape, their expressions remained cold, indifferent.

For they knew all too well—

The gunfire was about to begin…