Chapter Fifty-six: A Battle to the Death!

Boom!

A thunderous explosion echoed through the forest as the golden giant finger collided with the blue light seal. Waves of spiritual power swept outward like a storm; birds scattered in terror, broken branches and splintered wood whirled through the air, leaving chaos in their wake.

Whizz!

A segment of the giant finger, dull and dark, suddenly burst forth from the swirling storm of spiritual power, hurtling straight toward Yang Yan!

Yang Yan was shocked to his core. He had never imagined that his full-force attack could be so effortlessly shattered by the “Severed Gold Finger.”

The Soul Devouring Seal was the strongest technique Yang Yan could currently muster; this time, he had poured the last dozens of threads of blue spiritual power within him into the attack, its might far surpassing the power he had wielded against Sun Zhixin during the martial gathering of the clans.

And yet, even so, he was no match for Xu Hongfei’s Severed Gold Finger! Though only a trace of energy remained on the giant finger, to Yang Yan at this moment, it felt as lethal as the scythe of Death.

He had already suffered minor injuries while battling Xu Shaoguang and his companions, and after enduring Xu Hongfei’s three consecutive spiritual attacks, his blood surged and roiled painfully within him. Worst of all, his sea of qi was utterly depleted—there was not a flicker of spiritual power left.

Yet to simply close his eyes and await death was clearly not an option for Yang Yan!

At the critical instant, Yang Yan mustered all his strength and raised the Crescent Shadow Frost Sword before him in a final act of defense.

Clang!

The giant finger crashed violently against the sword. Yang Yan felt an overwhelming force surge along his arm, spreading through his entire body—the grip on his blade faltered, and Crescent Shadow Frost was wrenched from his grasp. The nearly invisible attack from the giant finger struck full force against his chest.

Thud!

Yang Yan was sent flying like a bird with broken wings, tumbling backward six or seven meters before crashing to the ground. Blood sprayed from his mouth, his face pale as gold leaf, his breath weak and ragged.

“If not for the Blue Scale Soft Armor I chose earlier in the Treasury Pavilion, which absorbed most of the force, that blow would have ended my life!”

At this moment, Yang Yan felt as though his bones had shattered, his organs forcibly displaced, pain searing through him. He tried to struggle to his feet but found himself utterly powerless.

“You are indeed strong—perhaps worthy of the title ‘genius’.”

Xu Hongfei’s footsteps approached, his shadowed face still showing traces of astonishment, mingled with a hint of respect.

Yang Yan’s display of strength had far exceeded his expectations, even his understanding.

The Severed Gold Finger Xu Hongfei had used was a high-level Yellow Rank martial technique, the same grade as Yang Yan’s Soul Devouring Seal. Yet one was unleashed by a cultivator at the fifth level of the Sense Spirit Realm, while the other came from Yang Yan, only at the second level. The difference in power was vast.

Attacks that even peak fourth-level Sense Spirit cultivators could not withstand had been blocked by this second-level youth!

What shocked Xu Hongfei even more was that Yang Yan’s blue crystal light attack had secretly contained a trace of soul power, enough to momentarily blur his consciousness and leave his head spinning. Such a level of soul attack was beyond even Xu Hongfei’s current abilities.

“If you are allowed to keep growing, in less than five years, my Xu family may no longer be able to stand in Jinhuan City!”

As he drew closer, Xu Hongfei’s killing intent grew colder and stronger.

“Since ancient times, geniuses are destined to wither young. So, rest easy as you depart this world!”

He halted before Yang Yan, slowly raising his right palm. Dense golden spiritual power surged forth, gathering in his hand until it seemed cast from pure gold, dazzling and radiant.

“Even if I die, I won’t let you have your way!”

Yang Yan vowed fiercely in his heart. At the same time, he slowly closed his eyes, letting the icy killing intent within him reach its peak.

“So, you’ve finally given up struggling...”

Xu Hongfei sneered, sighing with feigned regret. His golden palm suddenly struck downward toward Yang Yan’s head.

Boom!

A deep explosion echoed through the woods. The expected bloody scene did not unfold—instead, Yang Yan, who had kept his eyes shut, suddenly lashed out with his own palm, meeting Xu Hongfei’s golden hand head-on.

“How... how is this possible?!”

Xu Hongfei cried out in disbelief, his face twisting as if he’d seen a ghost.

Yang Yan’s expression was cold. His eyes, filled with murderous intent, were now tinged with a faint, sinister black glow. The hand that met Xu Hongfei’s was also shrouded in a strange black radiance.

“Ah!”

Xu Hongfei shrieked, hastily withdrawing his hand. The golden spiritual power had vanished, seemingly devoured by the eerie black light. More terrifying still, a thin layer of dark ice was forming on his palm, spreading rapidly with every second.

A bone-deep chill swept through his hand and into his body, freezing even his meridians and blocking the flow of spiritual power.

Overwhelmed with terror, Xu Hongfei summoned all the metallic spiritual power within him, channeling it desperately into his stricken hand to drive out the cold.

At last, the black ice stopped spreading and began to melt. Meanwhile, Yang Yan—his face filled with killing intent, his pupils glowing with strange black light—was moving toward Xu Hongfei with mechanical, deliberate steps.

“No, impossible! He’s only at the second level of the Sense Spirit Realm—how could he unleash such a terrifying attack?!”

As Yang Yan advanced, grim as a demon from the netherworld, Xu Hongfei retreated, his face contorted with fear and disbelief.

“Could it be... Origin Spiritual Power?”

Origin Spiritual Power, as its name suggests, is a unique form of spiritual energy.

All things possess spirit, and as humanity stands atop all creation, it is greatly favored by the heavens. The secrets and potential hidden within the human body are immense, and Origin Spiritual Power is one such force.

This power is innate, buried deep within the body, rarely discovered or awakened by ordinary people. Only cultivators can find and harness it for themselves.

The attribute of one’s Origin Spiritual Power matches that of their innate spiritual body. For example, if someone is born with a fire physique, their Origin Power is also of the fire element. Compared to spiritual power refined from the outside world, Origin Spiritual Power is several times—sometimes dozens of times—stronger.