Chapter 317 - Northern Star Reaper Hand

“What, I’m not allowed to kill him?” Chen Fan looked at that Extreme Profundity Sect disciple with a vague smile.

The eighth-level disciple’s expression stiffened. Next, a fiercer light flickered in his eyes, and he looked at the Cloud Heaven Palace disciples and said, “He Changzai, what do you think?”

He had realized that Chen Fan was no simple opponent. Someone who could easily kill an injured eighth-level Yuanfu realm expert had to be, at least, as strong as eighth-level experts.

Thus, he wanted to drag the Cloud Heaven Palace’s disciples into the fight. He didn’t want their side to die fighting Chen Fan and end up benefiting the Cloud Heaven Palace.

The leading eighth-level Yuanfu realm disciple from Cloud Heaven Palace, He Changzai, raised his eyebrow. Naturally, he understood what the other person meant. He answered, “Fine, let's collaborate to deal with this brat. Let’s see how strong he is!”

“Alright, then. We shouldn't prolong this. More interference could complicate matters,” said the Extreme Profundity Sect’s youth with a unibrow.

“Alright!” He Changzai nodded.

“Flaming Desolate Fist!” He Changzai shouted. He leaped off the ground, delivering a powerful punch toward Chen Fan with the force of a soaring roc.

Rumble!

A cacophony of fiery sparks erupted, engulfing the vicinity as the flames from his punch scorched the air, emitting a deep rumble.

“Dire Flames!” The unibrow youth pointed with his finger, his finger emitting a dazzling light that tore through the air, accompanied by a resonating chi noise.

Piercing noises rang out in space.

Poof, poof, poof, poof, poof...

Countless attacks shot toward Chen Fan, sealing all ways of retreat. The finger strikes were like a volley of arrows aiming to riddle Chen Fan.

Chen Fan relied on his sharp eyes to move around and dodge them. His cultivation gathered in his hand as he rubbed his hands together; with a resounding creak, the Heaven Piercing Spear materialized in his grasp. His tendons and bones hissed as the silhouettes of ancient wild elephants manifested behind him.

“Break!” Chen Fan shouted, his voice rumbling like thunder. The air directly exploded.

His muscles tensed like taut bowstrings, channeling immense power to the spear's tip.

A rumbling sound rang out, and it seemed like a mountain river had reversed its flow, and the stars were shaking violently. The palace itself groaned under the strain of such formidable strength, its structure beginning to crack.

In a single thrust, the spear obliterated everything in his path. The Flaming Desolate Fist technique disintegrated instantly, while the barrage of finger lights was torn to shreds by the spear’s invisible force.

Boom, boom, boom...

Poof, poof, poof...

The qi in the area stormed, and explosions rang out, accompanied by fierce gusts of wind,

Wha, ahhh.

He Changzai, the unibrow youth, and the others flew back from the impact, blood spraying from their mouths as they struggled to regain their balance.

“How is this possible?”

He Changzai and the others’ faces turned pale in disbelief.

Though not in perfect condition, two groups had joined forces to attack Chen Fan. Collective strength like that could even threaten someone at the ninth level. Yet, he had destroyed their attacks with one strike.

The overwhelming force crashed into them like the weight of a mountain, leaving them reeling in its wake.

“Could he be a genius on the Influential Figures Leaderboard?”

“Impossible. I know everyone on that list, and he's not among them!”

“......”

He Changzai and the unibrow youth’s groups were rattled, struggling to maintain their composure before Chen Fan's incredible strength.

Realizing the futility of their situation, He Changzai and the unibrow youth swiftly issued the order to retreat.

“Withdraw!”

Chen Fan didn’t go after them. Instead, he entered one of the doors.

Beyond the door was a small area, less than ten square meters wide, with a stone platform upon which rested a purple wooden box. Inside, he discovered an ancient martial arts manual.

Chen Fan walked over and picked up the secret martial arts manual.

“Northern Star Reaper Hand!”

On the cover of the secret manual were a few ancient-looking words. Chen Fan opened the secret manual, and his eyes immediately lit up.

The Northern Star Reaper Hand was a lower-earth tier martial skill.

“Great. I lack a powerful martial skill. Practicing this Northern Star Reaper Hand will compensate for that shortcoming.”

Chen Fan put the martial arts manual away with a smile.

He walked out and entered the other two doors, each revealing exceptional Grade-3 treasures of considerable value.

Chen Fan didn’t leave immediately. Instead, he started practicing the Northern Star Reaper Hand in the palace.

......

Inside the palace, Chen Fan’s primeval force surged. A creamy-white palm silhouette appeared.

This palm silhouette was very strange. It only had three fingers, like a bird’s claw.

Twisted runes, crafted from star qi, adorned these fingers, spelling out the characters for “Absolute,” “Destroy,” and “Cripple.”

Chen Fan waved his palm, and this star qi claw struck out.

Bang!

With a rumble, it collided with a large, iron-coated pillar within the palace. Despite leaving a discernible inch-deep imprint, Chen Fan was disappointed with the outcome.

The Northern Star Reaper Hand, a legacy lower-earth tier martial skill, should have wielded far greater power. Yet, his earlier palm strike failed to even match the power of a lower-profound tier martial skill.

“What did I do wrong?”

Chen Fan’s eyes flickered, puzzled.

The difference in strength between martial arts tiers was significant, with each tier exponentially stronger than the last.

Lower-earth tier martial skills were rare treasures even in the Spring Autumn Sect, with disciples considering themselves fortunate to acquire an upper-profound tier technique.

However, his attacks using the Northern Star Reaper Hand were unexpectedly weaker than even a lower-profound tier martial skill’s attacks. If word of this were to spread, many would die laughing.

“Maybe I made a mistake. Is my primeval force not following the specified route?”

Chen Fan picked up the Northern Star Reaper Hand’s manual and reread it carefully. He executed the move again, ensuring the qi flow was correct. Still, its output didn’t increase by much.

"It's not a matter of circulation. Then what could it be?" Chen Fan was distressed.

He had finally obtained a powerful martial skill, but its performance had been lackluster. It left him disappointed and puzzled.

Chen Fan also did not suspect this secret martial arts manual was fake.

Although he had limited knowledge of Nebulous Divine Palace’s history, he knew they wouldn’t use fake martial arts to fool their sect’s disciples. That was simply impossible.

“Northern Star Reaper Hand...” Chen Fan's mind raced, tirelessly working to discover the cause behind his inability to master the technique.

He did not give up just like that. Instead, he kept draining his primeval force to practice the martial skill, trying to discover the problem.

However, there was no hint of improvement even after a night passed.

“Northern Star Reaper... Northern Star Reaper...” Chen Fan repeated the name to himself, his mind tirelessly searching for answers. Occasionally, sparks of insight flickered in his eyes, hinting at a revelation.

Suddenly, a brilliant light flashed in Chen Fan’s eyes. He muttered, “Reaper... reaper... Could it be that I need to have the intent to kill when I strike? This is a great killing technique. A reaper has to annihilate everything with a single palm.

“That must be it. So, to cultivate this technique, I first have to understand the concept of reaping lives. When I strike, I must infuse the idea of reaping lives into my palm. That is the only way it can be called the Northern Star Reaper Hand!”

Chen Fan clapped and laughed as he finally figured out the key point.