Under the circumstances of this confrontation, even if He Yiming were an absolute fool, he would never unleash the full power of the Five Elements Merged strike.

But the moment the twenty-third stance of the Thirty-Six Felling Mountains was released, it was enough to cause the Metal element within the power of Heaven and Earth to rush towards him in a frenzy.

Before this stance, even the true Venerable Lord had been forced back a single step in helplessness.

Although the current twenty-third stance was not executed gradually, starting from the first stance, and although this technique had not truly reached the unbelievable might displayed that fateful night, and although He Yiming did not wield the One Hundred and Eight transformed Great Broadsword,

What stood before He Yiming was not Venerable Lord Xu Zili of the Heavenly Pool, but Jin Zhanyi, who had yet to complete his summiting success.

The hand held high above his head shimmered with a metallic sheen. From any angle, it no longer appeared to be a human palm, but rather a terrifying weapon.

When that palm reached its apex, He Yiming struck downward without hesitation.

Without the slightest pause, the powerful, sharp True Qi emitted a piercing shriek, slicing through the space before him, tearing through the confinement imposed upon him, bridging the gap between the Three Flowers and the Tripod Stance, charging toward Jin Zhanyi with an unstoppable momentum.

Around Jin Zhanyi, a stable and powerful True Qi, formed by the establishment of the Tripod Stance, permeated the area. When this True Qi spread, even ordinary experts of the Three Flowers realm would be suppressed and restrained by it.

This was the greatest advantage of achieving the Tripod Stance.

However, when He Yiming’s palm cleaved out, all restraining power dissolved under the sheer force of the strike.

The astonishment in Jin Zhanyi’s heart reached an unbelievable level. He was shocked not only by the immense power unleashed by this attack, but even more incredibly, he recognized the origin of this stance, a technique that should never have appeared in the Northwestern region.

Taking a deep breath, Jin Zhanyi finally retreated with the swiftness of a fleeing bird.

Just like Xu Zili that night, under the overwhelming pressure of this stance, no one would choose to meet it head-on if any other option existed.

He Yiming heard a rushing sound, like receding water; the web-like net of restrictive energy that had been converging around him vanished instantly.

Yet, He Yiming did not relax. He took a step forward, closing in like a shadow, the power of the twenty-third stance in his hand steadily increasing.

He was like a colossal axe, shattering the surging billows of the great tide, reaching the source of the water, intending to cleave it utterly apart.

A change flashed in Jin Zhanyi’s eyes, stirring a battle intent so intense it bordered on the extreme.

Perhaps, only after He Yiming broke through his Tripod defense net did he finally regard this young man, merely in the Three Flowers realm, as a powerhouse worthy of being his equal.

His figure ceased retreating; instead, he launched a punch of his own.

As this punch shot out, the Water element energy surrounding him vanished completely. In its place emerged a power so profoundly stable it was beyond measure.

He Yiming felt a strange sensation surge within him.

Moments ago, he had used the Earth element technique, the Heaven Upholding Seal, to counter Jin Zhanyi’s offense. Now, Jin Zhanyi was meeting his Thirty-Six Felling Mountains with an Earth element technique. This reversal of offense and defense was changing too rapidly, making it impossible to grasp.

A massive roar erupted from the point where the two collided.

The might of He Yiming’s Thirty-Six Felling Mountains was actually met and absorbed by Jin Zhanyi.

Although half of Jin Zhanyi’s legs were already sunk into the ground, he had, after all, successfully received the blow entirely.

At this moment, Jin Zhanyi’s legs below the knee were deeply embedded in the earth, and furthermore, the web-like cracks had spread far outward.

The fact that Jin Zhanyi only needed to transfer part of the pressure into the ground to cause such terrifying repercussions demonstrated just how profound the strength contained within the Thirty-Six Felling Mountains truly was.

A sharp gleam flashed in He Yiming’s eyes. Had this strike been launched with the Great Broadsword, Jin Zhanyi, even armed with the Dragon Spear, would likely have been cleaved in two.

But their exchange was not a battle to the death. If he had accidentally killed his opponent, the survivor might not have fared much better.

He was preparing to press his attack when an icy chill, bone-deep, suddenly washed over him.

Near Jin Zhanyi, he had experienced this feeling once before.

In the Li Family settlement of the small city, right before Jin Zhanyi had hurled his Dragon Spear at the assassin, He Yiming had felt that same hair-raising dread.

Almost the instant this sensation arose, He Yiming understood: Jin Zhanyi was about to counterattack.

His thoughts raced, and his body instinctively made the correct judgment.

Applying slight pressure with both feet, he floated away like the wind.

Then, he watched as Jin Zhanyi pulled his body free from the mire, radiating a potent Metal aura—a power so immense that even He Yiming felt a pang of inadequacy.

Compared to He Yiming’s Great Broadsword, this aura might have lacked a certain wild ferocity, but in terms of sharpness, it was far more terrifying.

This was the fundamental difference between a spear and a blade, yet in terms of sheer destructive force, they were perfectly matched.

In a haze, Jin Zhanyi seemed to transform into a colossal spear, thrusting straight forward, plain and unadorned.

Just like He Yiming’s Great Broadsword, there was no trickery involved.

Facing this heaven-shattering thrust, every hair on He Yiming’s body stood on end; he could even detect a faint scent of death.

Unlike that previous encounter, this spear had locked onto him. Though Jin Zhanyi held no Dragon Spear, He Yiming likewise held no weapon.

Simultaneously, He Yiming sensed the return of that powerful confining force around him.

This was the Tripod Stance. Once established, it conferred the power to solidify space, providing an overwhelming advantage in combat.

It was then that He Yiming finally understood why, after witnessing the battle between Xiong Wuji and Yang Hao, Jin Zhanyi had altered his plans to challenge them. In Jin Zhanyi's eyes, those individuals no longer possessed the qualifications to challenge him.

He let out a soft sigh. If this were yesterday, He Yiming might have resignedly chosen to meet the attack head-on or used an Earth Evasion technique to briefly escape.

But now…

He Yiming’s body continued to retreat. He moved like a wisp of wind, seemingly weightless, yet his body maintained a precise distance of barely one foot from the tip of Jin Zhanyi’s finger.

This mere foot felt like an insurmountable chasm—always visible, yet forever unattainable.

As the two retreated, He Yiming’s speed of retreat perfectly matched Jin Zhanyi’s speed of advance. It was as if Jin Zhanyi was pushing He Yiming backward; the distance between them neither shrank nor grew.

The aura surrounding Jin Zhanyi intensified, reaching its zenith.

Yet even so, he could not narrow the gap by even a fraction.

Finally, the peak intensity, which could not be sustained indefinitely, began to wane. As this aura ebbed to its lowest point, Jin Zhanyi’s figure abruptly halted. He looked at He Yiming with a complex gaze, seemingly trying to penetrate his very essence.

He Yiming offered a faint smile, his expression devoid of joy or sorrow, yet filled with an extraordinary feeling.

Jin Zhanyi drew a long, deep breath and stated, "I am impressed."

At their level of martial cultivation, they were perfectly capable of attacking an enemy using the locking of vital energy (Qi lock).

When Jin Zhanyi unleashed that fierce, reckless attack using his body as the spear, he had completely locked onto He Yiming.

Due to the mutual attraction of their vital energies, even if He Yiming had fled to the ends of the earth, he could not have escaped that spear thrust.

It was the same logic as when He Yiming executed the Thirty-Six Felling Mountains and locked onto his opponent’s vital energy—Jin Zhanyi had no way to evade and could only meet the challenge directly.

However, when Jin Zhanyi thrust that spear, he suddenly discovered that He Yiming had become wind—a wind utterly impossible to grasp.

Under the influence of this wind, the vital energy lock he had established became precarious, and in the next instant, even he could no longer be certain if what he sensed was still He Yiming’s presence.

Thus, he was forced to rely solely on his sight to track He Yiming's location.

But without the guiding tether of vital energy, once the Metal aura peaked and inevitably began to decline, even Jin Zhanyi lacked the reserves to continue; he was forced to stop his pursuit.

All of this transpired in the blink of an eye. One attacking, one defending, the roles swapped, and then swapped again.

Three exchanges, lasting merely a few breaths, were completely over.

But these few exchanges had already forged a completely different inner assessment of each other; they had begun to truly regard one another with seriousness.

He Yiming sighed softly, "Luck."

Indeed, evading that vital energy lock was not solely due to the power of the Wind element; much of the success came from the interwoven influence of the Cloud and Mist powers.

However, He Yiming had employed the concealment method from the Book of Wind, Cloud, and Mist, allowing Jin Zhanyi to sense only the Wind element, remaining completely ignorant of the Cloud and Mist energies.

This was hardly surprising. Even Xu Zili, who had studied the secret manual day in and day out for decades, remained ignorant due to his lack of Wind element talent; Jin Zhanyi, having just encountered it, was even less likely to perceive it.

Jin Zhanyi waved his wide sleeve, and the intense aura surrounding him completely dissipated.

He Yiming paused for a moment, immediately understanding his opponent’s meaning. In truth, his own fight was not yet concluded; he still held the Heaven-Overturning Seal, the Flower of Wind and Fire, and even the Freezing power and the Petrification technique in reserve.

But he understood that Jin Zhanyi must also have held back. If they had truly forced a decisive confrontation, neither possessed an absolute guarantee of victory.

Slowly, the powerful battle intent radiating from He Yiming also receded.

Jin Zhanyi laughed heartily, "Brother He, Jin has a request."

"Speak."

"I wish to ask you to join forces with me, to fight the Qilian Twin Devils." Jin Zhanyi's eyes held a look of intense hope.

He Yiming shook his head without hesitation, his tone admitting no room for negotiation: "No."

Ps: That's four chapters tomorrow, sigh…