Chapter 211: The True Power of the Demon-Back Fist!

"How is this possible?"

Old Hu’s face was etched with profound disbelief!

He simply could not imagine it. Although he had only used one of the most rudimentary forms of attack—concentrating his entire body's surging spiritual energy into a single point and unleashing its explosive power to shatter an opponent's defense—it was a move that carried nearly eighty percent of his strength. Such a fierce strike would normally force even a typical ninth-level Spirit-Refining expert to treat it with the utmost caution.

Yet, the result he expected—a guaranteed hit—never materialized. Instead, he had secretly suffered a small loss in their brief exchange.

He was horrified to discover that the moment his highly aggressive, terrifying metal-attribute spiritual energy touched Yang Yan’s palm, a strange, faint blue vortex of spiritual energy had emerged from within the boy's hand. His own metal-attribute energy had dissipated instantly, much like residual snow under the scorching sun.

It felt as if his spiritual energy had been absorbed by that eerie blue energy within Yang Yan’s body.

"This brat is truly strange!"

Having failed to land a hit, Old Hu’s face was filled with shock, and he retreated rapidly. He surged his internal metal-attribute energy to purge the lingering traces of the faint blue energy from the meridians in his palm.

He had heard rumors from Oba Niu’s men regarding the recent Artifact Refining Competition, which inevitably touched upon Yang Yan’s rather unusual, faint-blue spiritual flame.

While he was not an artifact refiner, he understood the basic principles: an artifact refiner’s innate spiritual essence must be of the fire attribute to ignite their internal energy and produce spiritual flames. Thus, the flames conjured by all refiners usually stayed within the spectrum of fiery red—even with slight variations like pale or deep red. A blue flame like Yang Yan’s was unheard of.

Presumably, this fellow used that faint blue energy when refining, but such energy was intensely cold—the exact opposite of the nature of fire. How could energy filled with such chilling power possibly give rise to a spiritual flame?

Old Hu’s heart was filled with shock and bewilderment; what Yang Yan displayed had far exceeded his understanding.

Compared to Old Hu’s shock, the expression on Xue Qing’s face could only be described as horrified.

For someone as naturally composed as her to display such a loss of composure, one could imagine how staggering the sight of Yang Yan going head-to-head with a peak Spirit-Refining expert without falling behind had been for her.

As a peer of Yang Yan’s, she knew better than anyone how difficult it was to break through in spiritual cultivation. Although she had always been known for her prowess in artifact refining, few knew that her innate talent was equally impressive. Her innate spiritual body was of the fifth grade—a level of talent that could be considered quite excellent even among the younger generation of the entire Feiyun Empire.

Although she had spent most of her years immersed in the study of artifact refining, she had never neglected her own spiritual cultivation for a single day.

While soul power was the most important aspect of artifact refining, there were requirements for the refiner’s own strength. If a refiner’s internal energy was insufficient to sustain the process until completion, even the most exceptional soul power would be useless—a clever housewife cannot cook without rice.

Furthermore, with the improvement of one’s spiritual cultivation, the corresponding soul power would also increase slightly. Though the enhancement might not be too obvious, it was an auxiliary benefit of leveling up, something that would require dozens of days of bitter cultivation in the Holy Spirit Pagoda to achieve.

Had Xue Qing not just broken through to the Spirit-Refining realm recently, it would have been absolutely impossible for her to successfully refine high-grade spiritual artifacts.

Since her breakthrough two months ago, she had barely even stood firm at the first level of the Spirit-Refining realm, let alone reached the second. Thus, she understood the difficulty of advancing in cultivation better than anyone.

Yet now, this youth, even younger than her, had taken a full-force blow from a peak Spirit-Refining expert head-on without any tricks.

Even though Yang Yan had created miracle after miracle at the Artifact Refining Competition, repeatedly shattering her perceptions of their peers, this scene was simply too shocking.

A seventeen-year-old youth, already strong enough to contend with a peak Spirit-Refining expert? Had she not seen it with her own eyes, she would never have believed it even if she died!

Even with the reality unfolding before her, Xue Qing rubbed her eyes in disbelief, feeling as if she were in a dream.

After a long while, she finally accepted the reality, and a sense of defeat naturally emerged upon her beautiful, cold face.

What so-called artifact refining genius? What so-called pride of the younger generation? Compared to this youth, those glorious titles were not even worth a fart...

"Come, again!"

After their lightning-fast clash, Yang Yan’s eyes were filled with joy.

Since he had entered the Spirit-Refining realm, every level of progress had been extremely difficult. Fortunately, he had refined a significant portion of the energy from the seal a while ago, and his cultivation had reached the peak of the fourth level of the Spirit-Refining realm.

When he was at the third level, he could barely contend with peak Spirit-Refining experts by giving his all. Now that his strength had improved, facing Old Hu was undoubtedly much easier than his previous encounters with Tang Zhen or Lu Qingshan.

It seems I really have that Tiger-Headed Profound Ice Python to thank! Yang Yan sighed inwardly.

The fierce beast had intended to drag Yang Yan down with it in its final moments, but who could have foreseen that its final attack, fueled by all its life force, would be completely suppressed and sealed by the primordial spiritual energy within Yang Yan? It had not only failed to take his life but had instead granted him a massive opportunity.

Yang Yan had already decided that once this incident was resolved, he would find time to fully refine the energy within the seal. He expected that by then, his strength would at least reach the seventh level of the Spirit-Refining realm.

Once he reached that level, Yang Yan was confident that defeating peak Spirit-Refining experts would not require much effort. As long as they were not true Spirit-Sea realm experts, he would have the qualifications to contend with anyone.

"Kid, I must say, you truly are a genius. Even calling you a monster would not be an exaggeration. At such a young age, you possess not only extraordinary talent in artifact refining but also such profound accomplishments in spiritual cultivation."

"Thank you for the compliment!"

Facing Old Hu, whose expression had suddenly turned calm, Yang Yan remained outwardly composed and spoke in a flat tone, though he furrowed his brow imperceptibly.

He did not believe that this old man was here to discuss his cultivation talent.

Yang Yan’s intuition was correct. The next moment, Old Hu’s face turned incredibly sinister, and a cold voice emanated from his lips.

"However, so-called geniuses are always meant to die young. I have lived for so long and seen countless geniuses and monsters of the younger generation. If they were allowed to grow freely, becoming top experts on this continent would not be impossible. But unfortunately, I have seen more of them fall, and their deaths were often quite miserable. Perhaps today, you will follow in their footsteps!"

As the cold voice fell, a brilliant golden light suddenly erupted from Old Hu’s somewhat hunched, thin frame. Even his pupils turned a dark, metallic gold, radiating intense light like two dazzling bulbs.

Covered in dense metal-attribute spiritual energy, Old Hu approached Yang Yan step by step, looking like a deity descended from the heavens. The metal-attribute energy surrounding him acted like countless sharp blades; with every step he took, the swirling energy lashed out like a tornado, colliding with the ground and emitting a continuous hissing sound. Occasionally, large boulders in the wilderness caught in the path of these sharp wind blades were sliced in two, their cross-sections as smooth as mirrors, as if cutting through tofu.

Seeing the terrifying momentum radiating from Old Hu, Yang Yan’s expression slowly turned solemn.

He understood the old man’s intent. As an outsider, time was running out, so the old man intended to use his full power to finish him off quickly.

Discerning Old Hu’s plan, a subtle arc appeared on the corner of Yang Yan’s mouth.

Now that his strength had reached the peak of the fourth level of the Spirit-Refining realm, he would no longer be forced into the desperate, "trade one life for another" style of combat he had used before. He would treat this old man as a whetstone to see exactly how much he had improved in actual combat.

As Yang Yan set his mind, Old Hu, shimmering with golden light, slowed his approach. Without further talk, he slowly raised his right arm and pointed two fingers sharply toward Yang Yan!

As Old Hu made his move, the countless sharp wind blades surrounding him obeyed his command, rapidly converging into a swirling, serpentine torrent. With his fingers thrust forward, the golden torrent of spiritual blades, dozens of feet long, roared toward Yang Yan like a giant python!

*Clang! Clang! Clang!*

Wherever the golden spiritual python passed, it collided with the ground, creating sounds like clashing iron. A massive trench, half a foot wide and five to six feet deep, appeared instantly. As the python surged forward, the trench extended toward Yang Yan’s feet, stirring up yellow dust that obscured the sky, making the world look as though the apocalypse had arrived.

"Xue Qing, retreat quickly!"

Just as Yang Yan prepared to commit himself to the battle, he noticed Xue Qing standing nearby, staring at him blankly, frozen in place.

Seeing this, Yang Yan hurriedly shouted in urgency.

Hearing the call, Xue Qing snapped out of her chaotic thoughts. Realizing the ferocity of the incoming attack, her face paled. Such an attack was not something she could block, and given the strength Yang Yan had already shown, staying here would only make her a burden. Without further hesitation, she tapped the ground with her toes and flashed out of the range of Old Hu’s attack.

Seeing Xue Qing safely clear, Yang Yan breathed a sigh of relief. Staring at the approaching golden python, he did not hesitate. His hand swept across the Universe Bag, and a long, dark-red blade appeared—the high-grade spiritual artifact he had refined at the competition: the *Supreme Blade: Red Lotus Dance*.

The moment the blade appeared, Yang Yan’s hand seals changed rapidly. The rich red light on the blade’s surface began to flow into his palm at an astonishing speed, leaving the blade itself as nothing more than a piece of scrap metal stripped of its spirit.

Yang Yan had no time to mourn the loss of the artifact. As the intense red light surged into his arm, a feeling of overwhelming power filled him, igniting his fighting spirit.

"Wind-Swirling Golden Scale Python!"

Old Hu roared. His palm rotated sharply, and the roaring python of wind blades began to spin wildly, faster and faster, until it was nearly a blur!

Metal-attribute energy was inherently suited for attack, possessing an unstoppable sharpness. Under the rotation of such power, its destructive force grew exponentially!

"Back-Piercing Demon Fist!"

Facing the majestic golden python, Yang Yan did not retreat; instead, he stepped forward. A strange energy flowed through his right arm.

Although this energy lacked the sheer scale of Old Hu’s attack, it felt profound and carried a subtle, dangerous aura!

After the explosive roar, Yang Yan’s fighting spirit peaked. In a display of sheer power, he thrust his right arm forward, aiming directly at the incoming golden python!

With his improved strength, Yang Yan had gained a deeper understanding of the *Back-Piercing Demon Fist*. This technique demanded a forward-charging spirit and a fearless heart to unleash its full potential.

Even when facing a far superior opponent, as long as one faced them with a fearless, winning mentality, the power of the *Back-Piercing Demon Fist* could far exceed imagination. Unlike common techniques that relied solely on internal energy, this technique borrowed the power of the artifact’s spirit. Such power was profound and difficult for most to tap into. Although the spirit within a spiritual artifact was still weak and lacked true sentience, it was vastly superior to mindless spiritual energy.

Because of that sliver of intelligence, attacks launched using the power of an artifact’s spirit possessed a unique "spirituality" that common techniques lacked.

This spirituality formed a mysterious connection with the user’s intent. If the user was fearful, the power would diminish; if the user was fearless and pressed forward, the spirit would sense it, drawing out deeper power.

Yang Yan had learned this through life-and-death battles. As these conclusions were verified time and again, his resolve hardened. The *Back-Piercing Demon Fist* he unleashed now was combined with his fanatical fighting spirit, and the terrifying energy it erupted with did not disappoint him.

*BOOM!*

The moment Yang Yan thrust his arm out, a massive, solid-looking red fist shadow appeared before him. As he swung his arm, the fist shadow shot forward as if teleporting. The sheer impact blasted the air apart, creating a momentary vacuum in its wake!

The massive fist shadow slammed into the roaring golden python with an unstoppable momentum!

*BOOM!*

In the blink of an eye, the two powerful techniques collided. A thunderous explosion shook the entire earth, yet neither technique dissipated. Instead, they entered a state of intense, grinding stalemate!

The metal-attribute spiritual blades spun like a drill, slicing into the massive fist shadow and emitting ear-piercing, metallic clashing sounds.

Despite the relentless cutting, the massive fist shadow did not waver; it moved forward, slowly but with unwavering determination.

Old Hu, witnessing this, felt a surge of horror!

He could not imagine that even after unleashing his strongest technique, he was falling into a disadvantage against a youth in his teens!

During their first lightning-fast exchange, he had suffered a small loss and was shocked by Yang Yan’s strength, but he had attributed it to his own carelessness. He had not truly treated Yang Yan as an equal.

He had expected that after unleashing his strongest technique, Yang Yan would be blasted into dust. He knew he didn't have much time; although Oba Niu was currently holding off the two peak Spirit-Refining experts with secret arts, he knew that wouldn't last long. He had planned to capture Yang Yan with thunderous speed and retreat to the Dragon Empire.

But now, his plan was falling apart. This battle was not the one-sided victory he had expected; instead, he was losing ground in a clash of martial arts!

If news of this got out, his reputation in the Dragon Empire would be destroyed, and he would never be able to show his face in the cultivation world again.

Thinking of this, Old Hu’s face turned vicious. He roared, pouring all his remaining metal-attribute energy into the golden python. He was using his full strength.

Yet, facing the stubborn, dying struggle of Old Hu, Yang Yan sneered.

The *Back-Piercing Demon Fist*, executed with his full strength, was combined not only with his intense fighting spirit but also with a trace of black primordial spiritual energy drawn from the depths of his spiritual hub! Because that primordial energy merged perfectly with the red fist shadow, it was invisible to the naked eye.

With such a combination of powers, Yang Yan did not believe he could lose to this golden python!

"Break for me!"

Yang Yan roared like thunder. As if the massive red fist shadow heard his call, the red light flashed rapidly, and a terrifying energy erupted from it. Under the overwhelming, invincible momentum of the fist shadow, the golden python shattered in a spectacular display of destruction!