Chapter Eighty-Three: His Life Is Mine to Claim!

Feeling the waves of icy spiritual energy emanating from Yang Yan's palm, Liu Zhengqing and Sun Zhixin were momentarily taken aback, but soon understood what was happening. Without drawing attention, each of them placed their free hand upon Zhang Lin and Zhang Fei, channeling the spiritual power from Yang Yan’s body to the other two.

“Is there any way to break this formation? Would attacking the ‘Crimson Refining Cauldron’ do any good?”

At this moment, Yang Yan turned his head slightly and asked Liu Zhengqing in a low voice.

“Unless we can destroy that little cauldron in a single blow, it will simply absorb the spiritual power from our attacks and release even fiercer flames in return!” Liu Zhengqing replied gravely.

“I see…” Yang Yan frowned upon hearing this. To attack the ‘Crimson Refining Cauldron’ suspended in midair, they would have to use spiritual power projection. Of the five, only Liu Zhengqing and Yang Yan himself were capable of this.

Spiritual power projection meant compressing one’s inner power to a single point and releasing it in an instant—much like the ‘spiritual pulse’ attack Xu Hongfei had used when ambushing Yang Yan, channeling compressed energy through the meridians in his finger.

To achieve this, a cultivator needed two things. First, their strength had to be at least at the fourth rank of the Perceiving Spirit Realm, so their spiritual power would be robust enough for compression. Second, their meridians had to be tough enough to withstand the shock of such compression.

Although Yang Yan had not yet reached the fourth rank, the unique properties of the pale blue spiritual energy within him allowed him to project his power outward.

But to destroy the ‘Crimson Refining Cauldron’ in one strike—Yang Yan knew he had no such assurance. That was a genuine high-grade spiritual artifact; with his current strength, destroying it was all but impossible.

Worse, a failed attempt might backfire and leave them in even greater danger.

Yang Yan glanced over his companions. Even with the aid of his pale blue spiritual energy, Liu Zhengqing and the others were struggling to endure the scorching flames. His power was not limitless; eventually, it would be depleted. If they did not find a way to break the formation soon, their situation would become ever more perilous.

“If we can’t destroy the ‘Crimson Refining Cauldron,’ then our only option is to target these crimson energy barriers…” Yang Yan thought as his gaze roamed over the walls of red light surrounding them.

Earlier, when he had punched the barrier, he’d sensed something strange—the stronger the attack, the more powerful the backlash.

“In that case, we must find the weakest point and concentrate our strongest attack there. Perhaps then we can break the formation!”

His spirits lifted at the thought. Yang Yan scrutinized the barriers, searching for the weakest spot.

On the surface of each barrier, waves of energy rippled outward. All the barriers appeared identical, offering no discernible difference.

As his frustration mounted, a sudden realization struck him. With a hint of excitement, he whispered to Sun Zhixin beside him, “Zhixin, use your soul power to search for the weakest spots on these barriers. I’ll check the front and left; you handle the other two.”

Surprised by his sudden words, Sun Zhixin paused in her efforts to resist the flames with her spiritual energy. Strangely, when Yang Yan called her ‘Zhixin,’ she did not feel the least bit uncomfortable; instead, an indescribable feeling stirred within her. Never before had a man addressed her so intimately.

She turned her head slightly to see Yang Yan already focused, waves of invisible soul force emanating from his brow. Composing herself, she mustered her own soul power and swept it methodically across the crimson barriers.

“Young Master Leng, look at Yang Yan and the others—it seems like they’re trying to break the formation!” Xu Shaoguang had also noticed their unusual behavior and voiced his concern.

“Hmph! Futile struggle. Once trapped by the ‘Spirit-Burning Fiery Array,’ even a fifth-rank Perceiving Spirit cultivator couldn’t escape. For those five, breaking the formation is nothing but a pipe dream!” Leng Yuetian sneered. “Ignore them. Focus on channeling your spiritual power and increasing the array’s might!”

Though Xu Shaoguang remained uneasy, he could only nod and pour more fire-aligned spiritual power into the ‘Crimson Refining Cauldron.’

“So that’s how it is…”

Under the probing of his soul power, which spread out like a spider’s web, Yang Yan finally discerned the pattern in the energy distribution of the crimson barriers.

Each wall was formed by three energy nodes, scattered like raindrops rippling outward from a center point. The three nodes on each barrier were arranged in a triangular pattern, their energy waves overlapping like three intersecting circles. The center of the triangle, formed by connecting the nodes, was the weakest point in the energy coverage of the entire barrier.

Yang Yan glanced at Sun Zhixin, who now wore a look of delight—she, too, had discovered the formation’s secret.

Their eyes met, and understanding passed silently between them as they once again spread their soul power, carefully measuring the strength of the weak points on all four barriers to determine the optimal spot to attack.

Observing their actions, Liu Zhengqing realized they were at a critical juncture and refrained from interrupting. As for Zhang Lin and Zhang Fei, they were too busy fending off the relentless flames to spare any attention.

“This is it!” Moments later, Yang Yan’s eyes snapped open as Sun Zhixin nodded in agreement. They had pinpointed the key spot on the barrier before them.

Yang Yan indicated the location to Liu Zhengqing, then spoke to them with grave determination. “On the count of three, we’ll strike together with our strongest techniques at that point. Once we break free, help me hold off Leng Yuetian…”

He paused, a chilling killing intent flashing across his face.

“As for Xu Shaoguang—his life is mine to take!”