"Xiao Yan..." The young physician furrowed her brows, sensing the ancient beast's formidable presence. Though she had always been confident in Xiao Yan, she now clearly understood that this ancient creature was indeed a formidable rival. "Some things cannot be avoided..." Xiao Yan smiled at her, then turned to gaze at Xun'er, whose delicate teeth were clenched against her full lips, her cheeks slightly cold. "Don't worry," he said, "even if the ancient beast doesn't initiate the conflict, I must step in. The ancient clan values martial prowess—only by doing so can we withstand the criticisms of others." Xun'er nodded slightly, yet the intensity of her gaze upon the ancient beast grew colder. Over the past few days, Xiao Yan had endured countless taunts from the ancient clan for her sake, and now, he was compelled to face off against the beast directly. Even with her composed nature, such circumstances stirred a growing sense of frustration within her. "Hehe, the young one shows good courage. Just be careful, and if anything happens, I'll step in to assist you..." Meng Tianchi stroked his beard, smiling. "Since you're my student at Gan Nan Academy, you're as much my disciple as anyone. I won't allow you to fall here in this ancient realm." The way he looked now suggested deep satisfaction that Xiao Yan had managed to meet the ancient beast's challenge—strength wasn't essential, what mattered more was the courage to face off against others. Without that courage, how could one possibly overcome the countless obstacles on the path of cultivation? "Ah, thank you, Director," Xiao Yan replied with a smile, then said no more, simply lifting his foot to the ground and swiftly moving through the crowd of eyes, entering the broad plaza and standing directly before the ancient beast. Gazing at Xiao Yan standing not far ahead, a subtle curve appeared on the ancient beast's otherwise cold face, stating, "Regardless of your strength, the fact that you've accepted this challenge has surpassed my expectations." Xiao Yan glanced at this prodigy of the ancient clan, renowned for his outstanding reputation—his striking black-and-white hair gave him an air of strangeness, and his entire presence exuded a coldness akin to that of a thousand-year-old jade ice. He seemed forged entirely from ice; merely gazing at him evoked a deep, pervasive chill. "You should know why I've come to you..." Xiao Yan furrowed his brows, then locked eyes with the ancient beast, speaking slowly, "I do know—but it's of no use." The ancient demon nodded slightly, not at all surprised by this response, and spoke softly: "Then... it will only be a matter of killing you." As the final syllable of the ancient demon's words settled, the sky above suddenly grew cold. The dual hues of black and white in his hair surged wildly, and the ancient demon himself vanished like a ghost. At the very instant his form disappeared, Xiao Yan's face was completely transformed into one of grave seriousness. This opponent was nearly as formidable as the Nine Heavens Sovereign of the Soul Palace. A single lapse in concentration would mean the most disastrous outcome. Xiao Yan was fully aware that if he lost to the ancient demon today, he would lose the full support of the ancient clan—no one would back him and Xun'er. Therefore, he absolutely could not lose this battle. "I stepped out of the Gamma Empire, wandered across the continent for ten years, faced countless enemies, and have survived countless near-deaths—what I've sacrificed far exceeds what a so-called genius like you has. I don't need the Divine Emperor lineage, but if you wish to kill me, you'll have to pay a price measured in blood!" Xu Xin suddenly clenched his palms tightly, and within him, his qi surged forth with unrestrained force. The sounds of his bones cracking and snapping echoed throughout his body as the surge of qi intensified. The vast wave of qi, carrying a scorching wind, rapidly warmed the cold air around, lifting the temperature of the world. At the same time, a resolute, powerful cry burst forth from his mouth. With the sound of impact, the vast aura on Xiao Yan's right fist rapidly coalesced. Then, with an odd, sudden flick of his arm, a remarkably powerful surge of force was generated and delivered straight at the space before him—simple, unadorned, and forceful. His right fist slammed into the void, but just as it was about to make contact, a long, slender hand suddenly emerged from the space, slicing through with a sharp, blade-like force and striking Xiao Yan's fist with lightning speed. The collision sent out a violent ripple of gusty wind. Cracks spread rapidly from beneath both figures across the ground, the powerful force sweeping through and pulverizing stones scattered across the plaza into fine dust. The three ancient clan elders stationed in the center watched the intense clash, their eyes briefly flickering as they swiftly ascended into the air, adjusting their hand seals and channeling aura to isolate the plaza. "Hmph!" On the field, Xiao Yan emitted a low grunt, pressing his foot against the ground and swiftly retreating. He glanced at his right fist, now bearing five claw marks, blood seeping through them and staining his palm completely red. Clearly, in their first encounter, Xiao Yan had suffered a slight setback—though a Five-Star Battle Sovereign, he simply couldn't match the Eight-Star ancient beast head-on. "Mountain-Opening Seal!" The ancient beast sneered, changing his hand seal, and launched a fierce palm strike toward Xiao Yan. Facing the beast's sharp assault, Xiao Yan's feet shimmered with silver light as he hurried back, successfully evading the attack. "Mountain-Opening Seal! Sea-Rising Seal!" "One palm fell short, and the ancient beast chuckled even more bitterly. With a series of hand seals dancing out in cascading shadows, a continuous stream of powerful palm imprints surged forth, crashing down upon Xiao Yan with overwhelming force. The Imperial Seal Technique had long been refined to a masterful degree by the ancient beast, and combined with his immensely potent qi, it flowed effortlessly—without a single hitch. 'Three Transformations of Heavenly Fire! First Transformation! Second Transformation! Third Transformation!' Faced with the relentless barrage of energy palm imprints sweeping in from all directions, Xiao Yan's expression grew increasingly serious. With a mere thought, he summoned the full power of the Three Transformations of Heavenly Fire, and his internal qi surged dramatically in an instant. 'Six Harmonies, Flowing Body and Measuring Rod!' Grasping his palm, the dark, heavy measuring rod materialized, and a dense array of rod shadows began to overlap and emerge one upon another. Within a brief moment, countless rod shadows filled the ten-zhang radius around Xiao Yan. Boom! Boom! Boom! Numerous energy palm seals fiercely struck the heavy staff defense net, triggering a chain reaction explosion. Powerful energy waves surged forth like a roaring flood, spreading out in all directions and causing the plaza to tremble violently. Surrounding spectators, watching the intense battle erupt almost instantly in the center, their eyes gleamed with growing excitement. Many were eager to see how the young prodigy from Zhongzhou—already regarded as one of the rising stars—would fare against this ancient clan's exceptional talent. "Steady in stance, Xiao Yan's expression remained serious. With a sudden surge of force, he drove his heavy measuring rod downward, and a vast flame ribbon stretching a hundred zhang in length erupted violently from the tip of the rod, swiftly sweeping toward the ancient beast in the distance. 'Trivial skill,' the ancient beast scoffed. 'What use is a technique of this power?' Facing the impressive flame ribbon, the ancient beast clenched his palm, and a dense, pale ice surged forth from within him, instantly covering his entire arm. 'Shatter!' With a powerful thrust, the ice-arm slammed into the flame ribbon, its intense force shattering it instantly under the collective gaze of the onlookers." "This is yours..." As the ancient beast raised his voice to coldly command, his expression suddenly grew stern. Amidst the shattered flame ribbon, a three-colored lotus, spinning rapidly, surged directly toward his face. Within the lotus, he sensed a subtle aura of destruction. "Explosion!" With a composed, icy demeanor, Xiao Yan altered his hand seal and roared. The three-colored lotus expanded at a speed imperceptible to the human eye, and within an instant, a terrifying flame storm surged forth, sweeping across the entire arena. "Boom!" The flame storm crashed down, instantly carving a massive crater—over a hundred paces in diameter—onto the ground, visible to all present. Even the surrounding aura shield trembled under the force. "Such a powerful technique... This young one is truly cunning. He concealed such formidable strength within the flame, allowing the ancient beast to remain complacent, thus achieving a decisive surprise." Gazing at the flame storm blooming steadily in the center of the arena, many of the stronger warriors nodded silently. The battle experience forged through countless encounters with formidable foes had indeed granted Xiao Yan certain advantages. Yet in the midst of the storm, Xiao Yan’s serious expression did not waver. Though the three-colored lotus flames were powerful, if the ancient beast were so easily defeated, then it would hardly merit his status as one of the Four Grand Commanders of the ancient clan. As the surging aura roared across the heavens, a sudden, icy voice, crisp and piercing, erupted throughout the realm, gradually deepening Xiāo Yīn's expression into one of growing gloom.