Xiao Yan gazed at Cao Ying's gentle, smiling expression. Naturally, he knew that even if he stepped aside now, the Ye family would still secure its spot among the five major clans. Yet Cao Ying had already made her position so clear—retiring at this point would seem to weaken his stance. Moreover, Xiao Yan had a strong interest in Cao Ying, who was widely regarded as a rising powerhouse of the Dan Tower. He knew she would also participate in this Dan Assembly, and that she would inevitably become his main rival. By engaging with her now, even briefly, he could gain a solid understanding of her capabilities, thus avoiding being caught off guard later. While the contest of soul power might not fully reflect the strength of a cultivator's alchemy skills, it would still offer a clear glimpse into her abilities, providing a general sense of her overall strength. Given all these reasons, Xiao Yan naturally wouldn't undertake such an initiative step, so he now needed to address Cao Ying's challenge in the coming days. With his mind firmly resolved, Xiao Yan slowly nodded, his gaze steadily fixed on Cao Ying, and said, "Miss Cao Ying, please." Upon hearing this, Cao Ying's smile grew even more graceful, and she gently covered her mouth, laughing softly, "Mr. Xiao Yan truly possesses an outstanding demeanor... However, if that's the case, then I shall have to step forward and make my move." As her laughter settled, Cao Ying slowly extended her long, fair hands, forming a peculiar hand seal. As the seal took shape, Xiao Yan suddenly noticed a vast and powerful soul force rapidly coalescing within his palm. Gently, one could even see the outline of the hand seal subtly emerging from the distorted space. Xiao Yan fixed his gaze on Cao Ying's hand seal, his brows slightly furrowed, silently marveling. This hand seal seemed capable of summoning and concentrating spiritual energy to form an attack—though the spiritual energy gathered on his own hand seal wasn't significantly stronger than that of the earlier spiritual phoenix, the actual power output between the two was vastly different. In other words, Cao Ying's unusual hand seal possessed a remarkable ability to both concentrate and amplify spiritual energy—an effect that was rather similar to... a combat technique? "Heard this, Xiao Yan's heart instantly stirred, and his eyes warmed as he gazed intently at the peculiar hand seal that Cao Ying had maintained. He had once heard from Tian Huo Master about this technique—though it had left him somewhat puzzled. Tian Huo Master described the 'spirit technique' as a method of spiritual cultivation, whereas what Cao Ying had just demonstrated was clearly an offensive technique involving attacks on the soul, with no trace of cultivation at all. 'Could it be that spirit techniques are divided into offensive and cultivative categories?' Xiao Yan murmured to himself. Such a situation could only make sense with this explanation. Nevertheless, he was deeply eager for Cao Ying's hand seal technique—having it would greatly enhance the power of his soul force, offering him a unique means of self-preservation." The spirit technique is much like the combat technique in battle. If a strong cultivator of spirit energy lacks such a technique, they can only rely on their powerful spirit energy to face opponents. However, when confronting someone who possesses a spirit technique, such a cultivator will inevitably fall behind—this is precisely the situation currently facing Xiao Yan. Cao Ying possesses a spirit technique that allows him to fully unleash the power of his spirit energy, yet Xiao Yan can only rely on his vast reservoir of spirit energy to defend. As a result, he naturally suffers setbacks. Xiao Yan's gaze remained fixed upon Cao Ying's unusual hand seal, as though he were determined to memorize it completely. Noticing Xiao Yan's intense focus, Cao Ying smiled slightly, then swiftly transformed his hand seal into a series of dazzling, fluid images, issuing a clear, cool command. "Spirit Primordial Seal Palm!" With the sound of the drink, the immense spiritual power in Cao Yingyu's hands instantly solidified. A spiritual hand seal, identical in shape to her palm, shot forth like lightning, tearing a dark rift right through the space before her... Though the spiritual hand seal was intangible, the unusual pressure it exerted was enough to make even those far away feel short of breath. Naturally, Xiao Yan could not afford to be negligent—his face grew serious as a surge of powerful spiritual energy erupted from his brow, then coalesced into a colossal spiritual fist, which he slammed directly into the spiritual hand seal. "Boom!" The Soul Fist and the hand seal collided with a thunderous crash in an instant, sending out rippling gusts of invisible force from the point of impact. The plaza's floor surged with an wave of compressed energy, and the hard stone plates burst with a loud "pop," shattering into fragments across the ground. Faced with the overwhelming, intangible pressure, Xiao Yan was sent reeling backward by several steps before finally coming to a halt. At this point, he was less than ten paces away from the red line. "One more time!" Though the first real encounter had clearly favored Cao Ying, Xiao Yan's face showed no sign of defeat. Instead, he lifted his head with determination, his gaze blazing with intensity as he fixed it on Cao Ying and spoke firmly. Seeing that Xiao Yan had only retreated a few steps to support his own palm, a look of astonishment flickered in Cao Ying's spring-water-like eyes. While she was well aware of the strength of her own palm strike—indeed, even some seventh-rank senior alchemists found it difficult to withstand—it was Xiao Yan who had managed to hold his ground... "This young man truly isn't ordinary. Perhaps at this Dan Festival, he will rise as a true rival to Dan Chen—my own worthy opponent." Her gaze shimmered, and her smile grew even more radiant. Naturally proud and competitive, Cao Ying didn't merely enjoy being unbeatable; she cherished the chance to truly encounter someone of equal caliber. Dan Chen had been one such person, but she had always kept her close to the Dan family, fearing any unforeseen mishaps, and rarely ventured out unless there was a major event. Now, after observing Xiao Yan, she felt an undeniable urge to engage. Taking a deep breath, her full chest rising and falling gently, Cao Ying extended both hands, forming distinct, unusual hand seals, then swiftly and dynamically interlaced her palms as if engaging in a dual performance. And as the patterns of her hands changed, mighty, boundless soul energies began to swirl between her palms, creating an unusual soul pressure that caused many in the hall to visibly shift in expression. Though the attendees were no ordinary people, few had ever witnessed someone wield soul energy to such an extent. In today's era, cultivation of qi was the mainstream, and soul energy—though often mentioned—remained a mere companion to qi development. Thus, Gao Ying's mastery of soul energy left them all in awe. Cao Ying's swift hand seals suddenly froze, her hands now forming an utterly strange and unprecedented gesture—so unfamiliar to ordinary observers that they would be completely bewildered, as this pattern bore no resemblance whatsoever to any known combat seals. As the seal took shape, a gentle smile flickered across Cao Ying's face. Then, with a sudden motion, her left hand gently pushed forward! The moment her hand moved, a mighty palm seal surged forth—powerful and resolute, surging like a charging tiger descending from the mountains. A deep, resonant roar of a tiger echoed through the very souls of every person in the hall. In Xiao Yan's eyes, the intangible, immense palm seal rapidly expanded, causing his hair and robes to flutter and billow in the resulting gust. The floor before him, already shattered into fragments, crumbled into ash with a series of crisp cracking sounds. "Roar!" As the palm seal grew ever larger within his vision, a deep, resonant roar erupted from Xiao Yan's throat. He shifted his stance, transitioning from a fist to a palm, then rapidly flicked his fingers, forming several seals—though slightly awkward at first. The imprint had just formed when the immense palm seal suddenly arrived, crashing forcefully onto Xiao Yan's palm! "Boom!" An invisible ripple surged outward like a wave, propelling Xiao Yan's seated body backward, leaving a deep furrow in its wake. "Thud!" Xiao Yan drove his palm into the ground with a powerful strike, creating a depression nearly ten feet deep before his body stabilized. He slightly tilted his head, and there, the red line had now shrunk to only about three meters. Another clumsy encounter, yet the fervor in Xiao Yan's eyes grew ever more intense. Fixing his gaze on Cao Ying, he smiled and said, "Again!" Cao Ying's face slightly flushed; taking a deep breath, she gradually transformed the hand seal in her right hand. Then, a vastly more powerful palm seal erupted—like a storm—carrying a thunderous roar that resonated throughout the hall. As the soul-storm-wielding palm seal swept out from Cao Ying's palm, Xiao Yan's eyes widened suddenly. He swiftly changed his fist into a palm, then into a seal. As Xiao Yan began to unfold his rather clumsy hand seals, an immense surge of spiritual energy surrounding him started to rapidly coalesce along a unique, special trajectory! Observing Xiao Yan's clumsy hand seals, Cao Ying's eyes widened suddenly, and for the first time, a look of astonishment appeared on her face—because Xiao Yan's seals were exactly the same as those she had previously performed!