His gaze swept over Liu Ming's corpse like a dagger, and a surge of fury welled up within him like a bursting flash flood, causing his entire body to tremble slightly.
"Who is it! Who killed Ming'er?!"
Liu Zhentian roared in fury, a web of bloodshot veins surfacing in his crimson, ferocious eyes.
Boom!
A powerful wave of air actually radiated from his body, shattering the tea table with a bang and even cracking the stone pillars of the main hall.
Below, a crowd of clansmen trembled with fear, not daring to raise their heads.
"Patriarch, it was done by someone from the Ye Family! The Young Master had a dispute with the Ye Family while fighting over a vein of ore in the Tianyang Mountains, and was killed by Ye Han!"
A youth in green robes knelt prostrate on the ground, trembling as he spoke.
"The Ye Family!"
Liu Zhentian's gaze was so sharp it seemed capable of murder, making it impossible for anyone to meet his eyes.
The two words "Ye Family" were squeezed out one by one from between his teeth, brimming with boundless hatred.
"Patriarch, for the Ye Family to kill Liu Ming is simply going too far. Our Liu Family cannot swallow this grievance; it is time to strike against the Ye Family. This time, not only will our Liu Family seize the ore vein, but we can also take advantage of this opportunity to eradicate the Ye Family and exact our revenge."
An aged voice rang out. The old man was none other than the First Elder of the Liu Family, Liu Xi.
Liu Zhentian remained in a state of furious rage, only calming down after a long while.
However, terrifying fluctuations of Spiritual Power still faintly surged from his tightly clenched fists.
"This time, we will wash the Ye Family in blood! I will use the skull of that little bastard Ye Han as a blood sacrifice to Ming'er!"
Liu Zhentian said through gritted teeth, his voice dark and gloomy.
The pain of losing a son was like being sliced by a thousand knives!
"Humph! Truth be told, our Liu Family should have made a move long ago. Apart from Ye Baili, the Ye Family has no second Late Spirit Soul Realm powerhouse. If we summon the Liu Family's guardian beast this time, we will undoubtedly be able to wipe out the entire Ye Family in one fell swoop."
Liu Xi raised his brows slightly and let out a cold snort.
The Liu Family's guardian beast he spoke of was a powerful beast whose existence no outsider had ever known!
This was the hidden power of the Liu Family!
And this beast had been kept and raised by the Liu Family for well over a decade. Its strength had reached the Late Spirit Soul Realm, rivalling Liu Zhentian's without the slightest bit of inferiority.
With the Liu Family deploying this powerful beast for this operation, the Ye Family would undoubtedly be left utterly defenseless and completely annihilated.
"Prepare the troops. Three days from now, I will go to their doorstep in person and wash the entire Ye Family in blood!"
Liu Zhentian's fists creaked, a thick murderous intent welling up within his venomous gaze...
Chapter 22: Night Raid
After returning from the Tianyang Ore Vein, the news of Liu Ming being killed by Ye Han inevitably caused a sensation throughout the clan.
However, this news did not seem to bode well for the Ye Family.
The upper echelons of the Ye Family hastily convened a family meeting to discuss how to deal with the Liu Family.
Inside the Ye Family's estate, the assembly hall.
"The Liu Family has never been on good terms with us, and the bad blood between us runs deep. Furthermore, Liu Ming was Liu Zhentian's only son. Now that he has been killed by Han'er, given that old bastard's vengeful, domineering, and tyrannical personality, I am afraid he will inevitably strike at our Ye Family this time."
At the head of the table, Ye Baili rested his withered palm on the wooden chair, a hint of solemnity in his gaze.
Liu Zhentian possessed formidable strength; even the First Elder could not help but feel a deep sense of dread.
"Our Ye Family is no soft persimmon to be kneaded at will. In my opinion, Liu Ming brought this upon himself. Besides, the Liu Family has always been greedy and insatiable; these past few years they have already been growing restless, casting covetous eyes on our ore vein in the north. If not for Han'er making a move, I'm afraid our losses at the Tianyang Ore Vein would have been catastrophic."
A man in black robes let out a cold snort.
"That's right, the Liu Family was going to move against us sooner or later. Since that's the case, we might as well make preparations early and fight them head-on."
The Second Elder also nodded in agreement.
"If the Liu Family dares to come, I, Ye Kai, will be the first to slaughter them down to the last man!"
A white-haired elder said in a deep voice, instantly stirring the righteous indignation of the younger generation gathered below.
"That's right, what is there to be afraid of? Our Ye Family is one of the four great families of Yan City after all; we aren't lambs to be slaughtered at whim!"
"I just hope the Liu Family has the guts!"
"..."
Ye Baili furrowed his brows. How could he not know that a war between the Liu Family and the Ye Family was only a matter of time?
However, should they end up mutually bruised and battered, the other two great families would likely be the ones to reap the benefits.
Among the four great families of Yan City, the remaining Wu and Su families had long been coveting the Tianyang Ore Vein.
Although this ore vein possessed abundant resources, it was also a hot potato.
The other families were all watching like tigers eyeing their prey.
"No matter what, we must protect Han'er. He has yet to mature; we must never let the Liu Family harm a single hair on his head."
The First Elder looked at the crowd, his gaze solemn.
With Ye Han's talent, once his wings were fully grown, their Yan City Ye Family would sooner or later rise to become the overlord of this city.
With this thought in mind, a cold and stern look appeared in the First Elder's eyes as he continued,
"Pass down the order: patrols around the Ye Estate must be reinforced over the next few days. If the Liu Family truly dares to come, our estate will make sure they suffer heavy injuries to their bones and tendons!"
"Understood!"
The clansmen below nodded in unison.
The entire Ye Estate was shrouded in a tense atmosphere, giving off the unmistakable feeling of a storm about to break.
...
In the backyard, within a secluded courtyard.
On the bluestone slab path, Ye Han was practicing horse stances.
His gaze occasionally flickered to a manual while his arms traced gestures in the air.
"Sink your breath into the Dantian, draw out the fire attribute energy with both palms, and compress the Spiritual Power within your palms..."
This martial art was none other than the spiritual art obtained from Liu Ming's Qiankun bag, named the Great Sun Burning Heaven Palm!
This was a Grade Seven spiritual art, and in terms of grade, it was by no means inferior to the Sky Lion Roar.
Moreover, the Great Sun Burning Heaven Palm was one of the spiritual arts contained within the Liu Family's ancestral spiritual art manual—the Great Sun Burning Heaven Scripture.
To practice this spiritual art, the practitioner must possess fire-attribute Spiritual Power.
It required the cultivator to use extremely thick and powerful Spiritual Power to compress flames within their palms, condensing them into a miniature blazing sun.
As an alchemist, Ye Han's Spiritual Power possessed both fire and wood attributes simultaneously, allowing him to practice this Great Sun Burning Heaven Palm.
Swish!
After several hours of drills, a ball of blazing fire ignited in Ye Han's palm. He repeatedly compressed the fire-attribute Spiritual Power within his hand.
Hum—
Before long, the Spiritual Power condensed to its absolute limit, and a blazing sun slowly rose into the air.
Violent Spiritual Power fluctuations surged outwards into the surroundings like waves of heat.
Boom!
Ye Han's legs exploded with force as he leaped into the air and violently slammed a palm toward a large tree not far away.
Bang—
This palm strike felt as though he were bombarding it with a miniature sun, slamming fiercely into the thick trunk.
Unexpectedly, the formidable palm force directly pierced clear through the entire tree, leaving a charred, smoking fire-hole right through it.
"It finally worked. This palm technique is indeed tyrannical!"
Ye Han slowly retracted his palm force. Seeing the charred fire-hole in the tree trunk, he was secretly astonished by the destructive power of this spiritual art.
However, although he could unleash this spiritual art, it still lacked a certain refinement.
Ye Han always felt something was missing, so he continued his practice repeatedly right there, growing increasingly proficient.
And over the past few days, aside from practicing spiritual arts, Ye Han naturally did not forget to refine medicinal pills.
After all, this was his most proficient domain.
Furthermore, after acquiring the Emerald Heart Fire, out of the seven cauldrons of spirit pills Ye Han had refined, a full five of them had given birth to pill markings.
The improvement in pill flame quality had an obvious effect.
Just like that, three days flashed by in the blink of an eye.
However, to the Ye Family's surprise, the Liu Family had not made a single suspicious move.
This caused the Ye Family's vigilance to gradually relax.
And then, deep in the dead of night on the fourth day...
Tonight, the moon was dark and the wind was high.
The sky resembled a pitch-black hand, enveloping the entire Ye Family estate.
Swish, swish, swish—
Suddenly, amidst the pitch-black night, streaks of spiritual light surged over the perimeter walls and into the Ye Estate, transforming into numerous figures dressed in black.
Liu Zhentian stood at the very front, followed closely by over a hundred elite troops of the Liu Family.
"Who is there!"
Such a commotion immediately drew the attention of the Ye Family guards patrolling the area.
Without a word, Liu Zhentian enveloped his palm in Spiritual Power and struck directly at the guard's chest.
Bang!
"Argh!"
One of the guards was instantly blasted into a mist of blood!
That miserable scream tore through the night.
"Not good, the Liu Family is attacking!"
"Quick, grab your weapons!"
Suddenly, the entire Ye Estate erupted into chaos. Figures poured out from every direction, swarming forward.
"Kill! Kill! Kill!"
The Liu Family troops roared as they collided like a flood with the powerful figures of the Ye Family.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
In an instant, formidable Spiritual Power blasted everywhere.
Radiant spiritual lights soared into the sky across the entire Ye Family estate, accompanied by violent explosions and utter chaos.
"Humph!"
"Liu Zhentian, you really did come!"
An aged voice resounded, filled with astonishing fury.
Clad entirely in white spiritual light, Ye Baili shot out from the dark night like a streak of silk, his staff raised as he charged straight toward Liu Zhentian.
"Old bastard, you're courting death!"
Liu Zhentian's anger flared in response. With a gloomy expression, the Spiritual Power within his body surged forth without reservation.
He threw a punch accompanied by the sound of muffled explosions, colliding directly with the staff.
Bang!
The moment the two figures collided, they bloomed like fireworks, erupting with a fierce glare that illuminated the entire Ye Estate as bright as day.
Boom, boom, boom!
The two of them engaged in a fierce, intense battle.
Before long, a figure dropped down not far away.
"The Liu Family really did come after all!"
Seeing this scene, a chilling intent flashed through Ye Han's eyes.
"Little bastard, this old man has been waiting for you for a long time, and you've actually shown up of your own accord. Hehe, saves me the trouble of searching. Once I capture you alive, I'll peel your skin off piece by piece and make it into a human-skin lantern to burn as an offering!"
An aged voice rang out as the sinister face of an old man slowly emerged.
This person was the Fourth Elder of the Liu Family, Liu Shi.
Chapter 21: Iron Body Talisman
Swish—
A gust of violent wind swept in from afar, and an old man clad in grey robes, wreathed in Spiritual Power, intercepted Ye Han's path.
His eyes, as sinister and cold as daggers, looked at Ye Han as if gazing at a lamb awaiting slaughter.
This grey-robed old man was named Liu Shi, the Fourth Elder of the Liu Family.
Powerful fluctuations of Spiritual Power radiated from his body, proving he had already stepped into the Late Spirit Sea Realm.
Ye Han took a few steps back, frowning as his guard went up internally.
"Little bastard, I advise you to obediently submit and allow yourself to be captured, otherwise, once this old man makes a move, you'll likely suffer quite a bit of hardship."
Liu Shi pursed his lips, his voice hoarse and sinister, sounding like a glob of phlegm stuck in his throat.
"Old dog, I just hope you have the ability to back that up!"
Boom—
Ye Han clenched both fists tight. Instantly, a pale golden Spiritual Power surged out from within his body, wrapping around his entire armor-like form.
"Little beast, you're courting death!"
Liu Shi let out a cold snort, laughing out of extreme anger. To think a mere junior dared to provoke him—he was simply seeking his own demise!
With a swish, a grey figure shot forward like an arrow.
His withered palms likewise surged with golden light, enveloping his hands until they shone brilliantly like objects cast from pure gold, extremely dazzling.
"King Kong Heaven-Shattering Hand, go die!"
Hum—
Liu Shi soared into the air, his right palm violently striking out toward Ye Han. His Spiritual Power instantly transformed into a golden handprint several meters wide, roaring forward.
This King Kong Heaven-Shattering Hand was a top-tier Grade Seven spiritual art belonging to the Liu Family!
"Dragon-Siphoning Art!"
Hoo, hoo, hoo~
Ye Han gave a low, inner shout. An ancient dragon roar echoed from his Dantian as majestic Spiritual Power poured into his physique.
Boom!
In an instant, his cultivation surged explosively.
"What is this? Mid Spirit Sea Realm?!"
Turbid light burst from Elder Liu Shi's aged eyes. He had never expected Ye Han to possess a secret technique capable of rapidly boosting one's cultivation.
Moreover, at such a tender age, his cultivation was already on par with his own!
A fierce murderous intent flashed through Elder Liu Shi's heart: this child could not be left alive, or he would surely become a grave future threat!
Following the surge in his aura, Ye Han's palm instantly turned as red as a branding iron, after which the scorching Spiritual Power was frantically compressed into his palm.
With a hum, a crimson blazing sun condensed within his palm, hovering in place.
"Great Sun Burning Heaven Palm!"
Boom!
That miniature blazing sun blasted forth with formidable momentum, colliding head-on with the King Kong Heaven-Shattering Hand under the gaze of many onlookers.
Thud!
The two powerful offensive forces collided violently, erupting with a deafening crash as golden shockwaves rippled across the sky, kicking up gusts of wild wind.
The aftermath of the two spiritual arts swept outward in all directions, forcing both men back a dozen steps each.
"Great Sun Burning Heaven Scripture?!"
Liu Shi's pupils contracted sharply. After a brief moment of thought, he realized it must be the Liu Family's spiritual art that Ye Han had stolen and learned from Liu Ming!
"You truly deserve to die!"
Liu Shi gnashed his teeth, his expression turning violent.
To think that even this top-tier spiritual art of the Liu Family had been stolen and mastered by Ye Han.
This caused his murderous intent to skyrocket instantly.
Still, he had to admit that Liu Ming falling at Ye Han's hands was not entirely without reason.
Although Liu Shi's cultivation realm was a small tier higher than Ye Han's, during their previous clash of Spiritual Power, he had been completely unable to gain any upper hand.
"What kind of cultivation method did this brat practice? If I can get my hands on it, perhaps I too can break through to the Spirit Soul Realm."
Liu Shi was secretly shocked, his gaze gradually turning greedy.
"Humph!"
With a cold snort, Liu Shi executed a movement spiritual art, shifting like a ghost before dark energy surfaced on his palm and he struck out with a single blow.
"Mad Fiend Palm!"
Boom!
The terrifying palm wind crushed the air, heading straight for Ye Han's chest. This spiritual art was by no means inferior to the King Kong Heaven-Shattering Hand.
However, Ye Han agilely leaped, doing a backflip in mid-air to land directly behind Liu Shi. That palm strike missed, leaving the void vibrating and rippling in its wake.
Liu Shi's sharp gaze glanced back darkly, then he whipped his head around. His pre-charged palm force immediately clashed with Ye Han once more.
Bang, bang, bang!
His attacks were sometimes swift, sometimes tricky, resembling an endless rainstorm of blows that were both continuous and extremely vicious.
The palm wind whistled as it carved through the empty air!
Their close-quarters combat could be described as fraught with peril, every single move fatal. The slightest lapse in attention would result in being struck dead by the opponent's palm!
Even so, relying on his exceptional combat instincts, Ye Han repeatedly managed to dodge the mortal dangers.
"Humph! Let's see how much longer you can hold out. My realm is higher than yours after all. Within half an hour at most, you are bound to be defeated!"
Liu Shi said with a sinister tone. Yet despite saying that, torrential waves were churning within his heart.
Ye Han met every move with a counter and repeatedly dodged mortal danger; his combat experience seemed even more seasoned than his own!
Hearing those words from Liu Shi, Ye Han could not help but slightly furrow his brows.
He knew very well that Liu Shi intended to wait until his Spiritual Power was exhausted before launching a fierce onslaught!
"Looks like I need to end this quickly!"
Boom!
Trading a palm strike, the two palms collided, and leveraging the rebound force generated by the impact, Ye Han rapidly retreated over ten meters.
At that moment, a talisman materialized in his palm, and he poured his Spiritual Power into it furiously.
"Iron Body Talisman!"
Hum—
The yellowish talisman burst with brilliant light, transforming into a formidable force that integrated directly into his physical body.
In an instant, Ye Han's skin seemed to be plated with a layer of gold foil, and strange golden patterns traversed his muscular frame.
At that moment, Ye Han felt as though his physique had become extraordinarily tough, impervious to weapons and invulnerable to water and fire!
"Oh?"
Not far away, seeing Ye Han's skin turn so bizarre, Liu Shi also frowned. Suddenly sensing a bad omen, he spoke in a deep voice,
"We cannot drag this out any longer, or unexpected complications may arise!"
"Netherworld Ghost Hand!"
Swish—
Billowing black qi was released from within his body, turning Liu Shi's hands pitch-black. Even some black scales began to emerge across his palms.
This black qi was poisonous miasma!
Anyone injured by this Ghost Hand would suffer from poison attacking their heart within a few hours and perish!
Boom—
With a fierce and vicious look in his eyes, Liu Shi lashed out with the poison-wrapped hand, aiming straight for the vital spot over Ye Han's heart.
However, far from dodging, Ye Han stood his ground completely motionless.
"You're simply courting death!"
Liu Shi sneered inwardly. Even a Spirit Soul Realm powerhouse would have to treat this move of his with the utmost caution.
Yet this brat had no intention of dodging or defending himself.
If this wasn't marching to his death, what was it?
Clang—
"What?!"
However, the very next instant, Liu Shi's pupils violently constricted.
His palm landed on Ye Han's body as if striking indestructible metal, producing a metallic ringing sound.
Not only was Ye Han completely unharmed, but the poison qi on Liu Shi's palm was also entirely useless!
"What is going on?!"
Terror filled Liu Shi's heart. How had this fellow's physical body suddenly become so tough?
This was simply an indestructible body of King Kong!
"The Iron Body Talisman is indeed formidable."
Ye Han clenched both fists tight. His physique was now truly as unyielding as metal and stone, thoroughly indestructible.
Even a Grade Nine spirit sword would fail to leave so much as a scratch on his body!
Taking advantage of Liu Shi's shock and distraction, Ye Han rapidly mobilized his Spiritual Power and drew a deep breath.
Grade Seven spiritual art: Sky Lion Roar!
Roar—
The lion's roar echoed ferociously, carrying incomparably fierce sonic-wave power that transformed into an invisible wave of air, slamming head-on toward Liu Shi.
"Not good!"
Elder Liu Shi's expression changed drastically, but the speed of those sonic waves was simply too fast, crashing directly into his body almost instantaneously.
Boom—
In an instant, Liu Shi was blasted by the sonic waves until blood spurted from his seven orifices. Feeling as though his soul were being torn apart, his entire body was sent rolling more than ten meters away!
Puff—
Liu Shi coughed up a mouthful of fresh blood, collapsing onto the ground like a dead dog. His expression was one of agony, and his gaze toward Ye Han was filled with utter terror...
Chapter 22: Giant Rock Scorpion
On the jade-stone flooring, a trail of scarlet blood stained the ground, stretching for dozens of meters.
Following the trail to its end, Elder Liu Shi lay collapsed on the ground like a dead dog, his aura utterly withered throughout his entire body.