Chapter 17: Bones Like Iron and Gold

Pang Jian's confidence soared. Killing Zhang Heng and Zhang Hu made him realize he could win against cultivators in the Qi Practicing Realm.

Despite this, Pang Jian did not impatiently rush out of the encirclement and instead opted to observe the situation.

Zhou Qingchen had broken through the encirclement on the left of Pang Jian and had long since disappeared.

Occasionally, Pang Jian would hear Hong Tai, the leader of the assault party, advancing while riding his python.

The area in front of him, where Hong Tai and his python first appeared, was where Han Duping chose as his breakout route.

Han Duping had been able to gradually break through the encirclement as a shiny silver ball in the beginning but was now being intercepted.

Several members of the Shadow Specter Sect were holding large black iron shields to block him. The silver ball collided fiercely with the black iron shields but several people worked together to resist the impact and prevent Han Duping from advancing.

Han Duping found himself at a loss for what to do.

Shangguan Qin had originally planned to use Han Duping to find an opportunity to escape but had been intercepted by three members of the Shadow Specter Sect. Although armed with a red jade staff, she was surrounded. The three members attacked her while mercilessly taunting her.

Among those in the Meridian Opening Realm, Shangguan Qin was the weakest. Thus, although she was in the same realm as one of her opponents, he was still stronger than her.

She felt extremely distressed. Had it not been for Hong Tai's order to keep her and Ning Yao alive, she would have succumbed to serious injuries long ago.

Although Zhou Qingchen had boosted the morale of the loyal servants of the Zhou Clan, they were also struggling in the battle against the Shadow Specter Sect.

While they were on par in cultivation realms, they were significantly outnumbered. Each person faced two to three opponents and inevitably met a swift defeat.

In battles with significant differences in strength or numbers, determination and courage alone often were not enough to make a substantial difference.

On the other end of the battlefield, Ning Yao and Ning Yuanshan also made no progress in breaking through the encirclement, even after Zhang Heng's departure. On the contrary, their situation only grew more dire.

A golden short spear impaled Ning Yuanshan, pinning him to the trunk of a large tree. He could only stare helplessly at Ning Yao.

Ning Yao now faced the joint assault of a Meridian Opening Realm cultivator and four Qi Practicing Realm cultivators. They planned to deplete Ning Yao's spiritual power and capture her alive.

Meridian Opening Realm.

Pang Jian found that he could identify those in the Meridian Opening Realm.

Meridian Opening Realm cultivators could either emit a faint spiritual light from their bodies or disperse it outward through their weapons.

Meanwhile, those at the Qi Practicing Realm mainly relied on the strength of their bodies and lacked the flow of spiritual power.

It became clear to distinguish between those in the Qi Practicing Realm and those in the Meridian Opening Realm at a glance.

The Meridian Opening Realm cultivator leading the attack against Ning Yao suddenly noticed Pang Jian while Pang Jian was sizing him up.

"Both the Zhang brothers have died." The Meridian Opening Realm cultivator pointed at two Qi Practicing Realm cultivators and said, "Two of you, go and kill him. Be careful, that kid's a bit suspicious."

"Got it." The pair rushed toward Pang Jian.

Pang Jian no longer had the luxury to simply observe. He rallied his spirits to prepare for the next battle.

Once again, he drew his bow and let loose an arrow. However, the two approaching members of the Shadow Specter proved to be more agile than the warhorse as they swiftly evaded Pang Jian's shots.

Soon, they reached Pang Jian and wasted no time to launch a coordinated attack from both sides.

The death of the Zhang brothers caused them to become cautious and they did not dare to act rashly.

The shorter of the two wielded a dagger and aimed straight for Pang Jian's heart. The other held a long whip and sought to snare Pang Jian's lower body to destabilize his stance.

The two of them coordinated their attack seamlessly. This was clearly not the first time they had launched a joint attack. As Pang Jian was about to raise his Dragonwood Spear to block their attacks, the long whips entangled his right ankle, causing him to stumble.

"How are you still standing?" The one wielding the long whip had pulled with all his might but was astonished to see the staggering Pang Jian regain his balance.

The shorter one wielding a dagger took the opportunity to close the distance. Pang Jian's Dragonwood Spear was useless in close-quarters combat.

The dagger thrust toward his abdomen. With the long whip still wrapped around his right ankle, Pang Jian could not evade and instead blocked with his left arm.

Shunk!

The dagger stabbed Pang Jian's arm.

Fresh blood spewed from the wound, but his bones showed no signs of fracture from the dagger's thrust. They held as resilient as iron and gold, staunchly resisting the blow.

"It didn't break?" The one wielding the dagger was relentless. In the blink of an eye, he swiftly delivered two more slashes to the wound.

Clang! Clang!

Pang Jian's arm bone emitted a strange metallic clash akin to steel striking steel.

Although under intense pain, Pang Jian did not give his assailant a chance to strike again. He grabbed the assailant's head and fiercely slammed it against his own.

The assailant's nose bone was broken with a resounding crunch and his face was covered in blood.

Using his hand like an iron hook, Pang Jian grabbed the assailant's arm and forcefully yanked it, dislocating his shoulder and causing his arm to hang limp.

Disregarding his own bleeding arm, Pang Jian then gripped the assailant's shoulder with one hand while hammering punches into the assailant's chest with the other.

Crack!

The assailant's ribcage exploded. He sprayed a mouthful of blood onto Pang Jian's face and neck.

After confirming the assailant's death, Pang Jian crouched down without hesitation and seized the whip entangled around his ankle.

The second attacker from the Shadow Specter Sect had just witnessed his companion's death and was now being forcefully pulled over by Pang Jian's terrifying strength. He staggered as he was propelled toward Pang Jian.

Pang Jian was taller and sturdier than his peers. That, combined with his bloodied face and cold, fierce eyes instilled true fear in the heart of the second attacker.

As he was about to reach Pang Jian, the attacker hastily let go of his long whip before turning around and fleeing.

No longer restrained by the whip, Pang Jian did not hesitate to give chase. Without a word, he caught up to the attacker and delivered a powerful punch to his back.

Bang!

The second attacker from the Shadow Specter Sect fell to the ground and died, meeting the same fate as the Zhang brothers.

"Two useless pieces of trash," someone sneered, swinging their legs as they sat on a broad tree branch near where Han Duping tried to break through.

The young man was dressed in exquisite attire. The leaves of the tree obscured his face.

Neither those engrossed in battle nor the observing Pang Jian had noticed his presence before he spoke.

With just a glance, Pang Jian determined this person was not the same as the two who attacked him. He was definitely not a cultivator in the Qi Practicing Realm.

"Meridian Opening Realm," Pang Jian muttered to himself.

As the man swung his legs, a distinct ripple of spiritual power emanated from him, akin to the blooming of a flower.

This person could release spiritual power from his feet, indicating he had long since broken through to the Meridian Opening Realm. His cultivation was likely extraordinarily profound and refined.

Pang Jain had yet to encounter an opponent in the Meridian Opening Realm. Despite his surge in physical strength and the tempering of his ribcage and arm bones, he still lacked the confidence to confront an opponent of this caliber.

He cautiously sized up the person on the tree while secretly searching for opportunities he could take advantage of.

"There's something strange about your body," The person said, floating down from the tree. He landed lightly like a feather and walked straight toward Pang Jian. "There's no spiritual power circulating in any of your meridians, meaning you've yet to reach the Meridian Opening Realm. However, some of your bones are as sturdy as cultivators in the Marrow Cleansing Realm. How surprising."

After he landed, the cultivators attacking Shangguan Qi all scattered away in fear.

They treated him like a terrifying wild beast.

He ignored Han Duping and the disheveled but stunning Shangguan Qin as he made his way toward Pang Jian.

"Jin Yang. Don't take unnecessary risks," a hoarse voice called out from behind a black iron shield. "You're too important. Let me test the young man. If he's a Marrow Cleansing Realm expert pretending to be a Qi Practicing Realm cultivator and something happens to you, I won't be able to justify it to our Sect Master."

A man stepped out from behind the giant shield. He wore a golden robe, with a matching golden mask adorning his face.

The mask on his face had jagged fangs at the corners of its mouth, giving him a fierce appearance, like a demon straight out of hell.

"I've heard your voice before!" Han Duping stared at the formidable figure from inside the large silver ball. "Perhaps we've met before!"

Only the man's eyes were visible through the mask. He neither confirmed nor denied Han Duping's words.

"A Marrow Cleansing Realm cultivator this young would not be from someone from the lower world." Jin Yang chuckled. Waving his hand indifferently, he said, "Don't worry. He's not one of those heaven-blessed talents."

Seeing as Jin Yang had made up his mind, the masked man stopped trying to persuade him.

Pang Jian felt uneasy at their conversation. The young man named Jin Yang from the Shadow Specter Sect did not appear to be in the same profound cultivation realm as Hong Tai, but his status seemed higher than Hong Tai's.

Jin Yang was not the leader of this operation. Before this, he had merely been an observer.

Being targeted by such a person after piquing their curiosity was not desirable for Pang Jian.

Pang Jian's gaze flickered as he tried to find a way to break through the encirclement. However, he quickly realized the Shadow Specter Sect had stationed hidden attackers everywhere.

He felt helpless. No matter how he tried to flee, Jin Yang would catch up to him.

Blackwater Pond, withered bone, restricted area!

These words flashed through Pang Jian's mind like lightning.

Pang Jian turned around, desperately rushing toward Blackwater Pond where a withered bone of the Celestial Phoenix stood.

𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮

"Interesting. Instead of seeking a last glimpse of hope, he's retreating into a dead end." Jin Yang laughed as he steadily closed in on Pang Jian. "That bone of the Celestial Phoenix doesn't contain any mystical power. I examined it earlier. We had Zhang Heng lead you here precisely because of Blackwater Pond."

The terrain around Blackwater Pond was well-suited for an ambush. Thus, they arranged for Zhang Heng to bring the Zhou Clan and the others here under the pretext of exploring the withered bone.

He did not think that Pang Jian could conjure any tricks with Blackwater Pond and that withered bone.