After a brief standoff, Yang Dianfeng launched the first move. He thrust his Breaking Soul Spear forward, using no soul skills—just probing.
Chen Feng stepped into his Divine Dragon Nine Shadows footwork. With a faint shimmer, two illusions split off to the left and right.
Yang Dianfeng reacted quickly. His left hand stayed still while his right hand twisted the spear's shaft. The tip of the Breaking Soul Spear vibrated violently in both directions.
Chen Feng was forced to raise his Seven Kill Sword to parry.
"Clang!"
The metallic clash rang out, and both fighters stepped back simultaneously.
This marked their first true weapon clash. The soul power carried by their martial spirits gave both men an unusual sensation.
Chen Feng's Seven Kill Sword possessed piercing power. Even in a simple martial spirit collision, the sharp soul force surged up through Yang Dianfeng's arms, almost forcing him to drop his spear.
But just as quickly, the Breaking Soul Spear absorbed the invasive energy.
Chen Feng was mildly surprised. Although he'd read about the Breaking Soul Spear's peculiarities, only now did he truly understand how remarkable it was.
Not only could it suppress mental energy, but it also absorbed physical force. The Seven Kill Sword's piercing attribute had been swallowed in an instant by the black spear.
"Again!"
Both of them were visibly more energized.
"First Soul Skill—Shock!"
Yang Dianfeng roared. His yellow soul ring lit up, and a shockwave burst from his body, amplifying his momentum to its peak.
The black spear twisted in his hands like a raging black dragon. His control was airtight, his strikes like thunder—oppressive and unrelenting. Even Yu Tianlong, watching from the side, felt suffocated.
He silently assessed: in a fight at equal levels, even he would struggle to take that move head-on.
Chen Feng retreated and weaved through the onslaught. His swordsmanship and footwork worked in tandem, yet he remained on the defensive.
At first glance, it seemed Yang Dianfeng had the upper hand, pressing forward with fierce attacks. But in truth, Chen Feng was still recovering, his soul power greatly depleted after killing two Spirit Hall Soul Kings. He simply didn't have the reserves to go all out.
"Why are you running? Isn't the Seven Kill Sword supposed to be the strongest offensive martial spirit? Don't you dare face me head-on?" Yang Dianfeng barked.
Chen Feng replied coolly:
"Is footwork not part of combat?"
Yang Dianfeng paused, momentarily stumped.
"Fine then—keep running! Third Soul Skill—Blast!"
His purple soul ring lit up.
The Breaking Soul Spear surged with black light, and its offensive aura skyrocketed to terrifying levels.
He spun it into a wide-area assault. Dozens of spear shadows swept out, sealing all eight of Chen Feng's escape routes.
Then—
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
A series of thunderous explosions. Even the air seemed to distort. Chen Feng's face turned pale as he was forced to stagger backward.
He hadn't been directly hit, but the blast radius alone had affected him.
The Seven Kill Sword was unrivaled in single-point offense, but had no advantage when it came to AOE soul skills.
His black hair flowed wildly, his body battered, and his breath ragged.
"Third Soul Skill—Swift Sword Like the Wind!"
At last, with nowhere to run, Chen Feng activated his third ring—a 3,000-year-old purple soul ring. Gritting his teeth through the pain, he chose to meet the attack head-on.
He needed to know: could the Seven Kill Sword, famed for peerless offense, truly overpower the Breaking Soul Spear?
Yang Dianfeng's eyes lit up.
"Good! That's more like it!"
Then, his fourth soul ring activated.
The entire Breaking Soul Spear darkened, black light rippling over it as its power surged to a fearsome level.
ZING!
Chen Feng's pupils glowed blue as he channeled his spiritual power into the Seven Kill Sword, combining physical and mental force.
In the next instant, both supreme-offense martial spirits collided.
To the spectators, it felt like a black flash of lightning had torn across the field, soul power shockwaves rippling outward like a storm.
Chen Feng stumbled back three steps and violently coughed up a mouthful of blood. His chest was soaked red.
Yang Dianfeng, while he didn't stumble back on foot, was blasted ten meters away, his boots gouging deep trenches into the ground.
More shocking than anything, his pupils had gone completely white. His body locked up mid-stance.
He was frozen.
Chen Feng gasped for breath. He had no more soul power left.
"Seven Kill Sword Technique!"
With the last of his strength, he drew a final strike. A glowing blue 'Kill' character formed in midair, rushing toward the immobilized Yang Dianfeng.
"Stop!"
Yang Wudi's eyes widened. With a shout, he leapt into the arena. His pitch-black spear appeared—thicker and more ornate than his grandson's.
He moved fast, a blur as he stepped between Chen Feng and Yang Dianfeng.
CLASH—
Yang Wudi's Breaking Soul Spear collided with the glowing 'Kill' character.
To his surprise, the sword aura disintegrated on contact, vanishing like smoke.
Chen Feng stood there pale-faced. His martial spirit had already dissipated—his soul power completely drained.
Without that support, even the awe-inspiring 'Kill' character lost its might.
But even so, the intent behind that strike made Yang Wudi's expression shift.
"The fight is over. Yang Dianfeng has lost."
Yang Wudi announced calmly.
"But you won by spiritual power. Your mental strength is astonishing—it might even rival that of a Soul Sage."
Chen Feng said nothing, standing still, breathing heavily.
Yu Tianlong rushed to support him, then turned and shouted:
"What do you know?
When we arrived, Spirit Hall ambushed us. Chen Feng took on two Soul Kings, two Soul Ancestors, and several Grandmasters alone, and killed them all.
That's why his soul power was depleted.
Otherwise, you think Yang Dianfeng could've lasted this long against him?"
"What!?"
Yang Wudi was dumbfounded.
A mere Soul Ancestor defeating that many opponents, including two Soul Kings?
That was unthinkable.
Even his grandson couldn't manage that.
No wonder Chen Feng had only used his third soul skill during the fight—he hadn't had the power to activate his self-created techniques.
Yu Tianlong helped Chen Feng off the field. As they left, he added:
"And do you think Chen Feng's internal injuries were from your grandson's spear?
That damage came from taking a Soul King's fourth soul skill head-on.
Yang Dianfeng only happened to reopen the wound."
Chen Feng gently patted Yu Tianlong, motioning for him to say no more.
Yang Wudi stood frozen.
Only now did he fully realize—his grandson had lost utterly.