The old man launched a punch, and He Yiming blocked it with his forearm, yet in that single exchange of offense and defense, both men had already sensed the terrifying nature of this Yin Sha Armor.

The old man’s eyes were sharp and bright. He asked in a low voice, "Does the Yin Sha Qi you possess come from Ghost Cry Ridge?"

He Yiming paused slightly, immediately understanding that this elder must have entered Ghost Cry Ridge before; upon sensing the Yin Sha Qi within, he instantly recognized its origin.

"Your discernment is sharp, Elder. This is indeed the Yin Sha Qi acquired from Ghost Cry Ridge."

The old man’s expression grew increasingly grave. "As far as this old man knows, the Yin Sha Qi of Ghost Cry Ridge is the most supremely cold and yin energy in heaven and earth. Any human who comes into contact with it for even a month will be affected by the Yin Sha Qi and driven mad." He paused, examining He Yiming closely, a hint of wariness even visible on his face. "I observe that you appear to have absorbed the Yin Sha Qi into your body, yet you certainly do not seem like a madman. May I ask the reason for this?"

He Yiming replied without hesitation, "It is because my constitution is unique, thus I do not fear the Yin Sha Qi."

Since the elder had generously imparted the cultivation method for the tangible armor to him, He Yiming felt it inappropriate to deceive him regarding this matter.

Furthermore, He Yiming only stated that his constitution was special and that he merely didn't fear the Yin Sha Qi; he mentioned nothing else. Thus, even if the elder was surprised, his suspicions would not stray elsewhere.

Indeed, the elder nodded, a look of sudden comprehension dawning on his face.

The Yin Sha Qi of Ghost Cry Ridge was renowned throughout the world. If there were a method to neutralize it, someone would have certainly discovered it over tens of thousands of years. Since there was no known antidote, and He Yiming could wield it with ease, the only logical explanation was his singular, special constitution.

In this vast world, there are countless wonders. While possessing such a miraculous constitution is rare, it is not entirely unheard of.

However, this was a matter of individual destiny; others could only envy it but could not force it upon themselves.

The elder nodded slightly and said, "Be careful."

With that, he exhaled again, and the three existing ethereal flowers burst forth anew, re-cloaking him in armor.

Having experienced the potency of the Yin Sha Qi, the elder immediately became fully alert, even re-equipping the shattered pieces of his armor.

A vast amount of true qi swirled around him. The old man rapidly stepped back, then threw a punch across the air.

A rumbling roar abruptly exploded in the air, and a massive force impacted towards He Yiming's chest as if it were a tangible object.

Although the ethereal Yin Sha Qi was formidable, it was ultimately just an unsubstantial form. It could not exert its true effect until it made contact with something concrete. Especially when struck by powerful true qi, it immediately dispersed to the sides.

He Yiming sighed inwardly. This elder possessed immense experience, and because he had visited Ghost Cry Ridge, he knew how to counter the Yin Sha Qi: use true qi to forcibly push it away, thereby avoiding direct contact.

With a cold chuckle, He Yiming held his palm up before his chest. After testing the armor’s might, his competitive spirit was ignited. He wanted to see just how powerful this formidable Venerable truly was.

Of course, seeing the opponent fighting bare-handed, He Yiming chose not to use the Five Elements Ring.

Defeating a bare-handed Venerable by using an imitation artifact would offer him very little benefit.

A massive sound of colliding metal and stone erupted before He Yiming's chest. Although the fists’ force was projected across the air and did not physically connect, this pure clash of raw power caused both their bodies to tremble slightly.

Especially He Yiming, who was involuntarily forced to retreat.

His toes barely grazed the ground before he had retreated to the mountainside. Only then did he realize that the elder had actually restrained the majority of his true qi in that first punch. Otherwise, under that single strike, the cracking of his armor would have been far more serious than just the forearm splitting.

In He Yiming's mind, there was a strange realization: the sheer power this elder could unleash with just the strength of his fists surpassed even that of Gabri and the others when they used weapons.

Having achieved his objective with one strike, the elder immediately sprang up, circling He Yiming and delivering rapid-fire punches that created continuous, loud sonic booms in the air.

Feeling the powerful impacts coming from all directions, He Yiming calmed his mind. His feet rooted themselves to the ground like massive suction cups. Then, holding his palm like a blade, he began executing the Thirty-Six Slashes of Mountain Splitting, one move at a time.

This Metal-element battle technique, capable of challenging opponents of higher tiers, truly possessed immense power. Once unleashed, the surrounding airflow was immediately affected, becoming sharp and cutting, like blades and axes.

Although the might of the elder’s fists and feet was formidable, each strike met the edge of the blade-like strikes, resulting in booming explosions.

However, after fighting for a short while longer, He Yiming suddenly realized he was beginning to tire.

With every collision of true qi, his own was heavily depleted. Although the ambient energy from heaven and earth surged wildly into his Baihui acupoint above his head, it seemed insufficient to sustain such a massive expenditure over a long period.

He Yiming inwardly cursed. What was wrong with this old man? Even at this stage, he refused to use a weapon. Moreover, the power emanating from his fists and feet was simply exaggerated, beating him to the point where he could barely breathe.

In the next instant, the elder sent another punch across the air, its whistling force pressing down and unsettling He Yiming’s mind.

Suddenly, a light flashed in He Yiming’s eyes. He seemed to witness a strange scene.

At the bottom of the sea, that peculiar fish swayed its body, swimming in an odd manner. And now, under the elder’s fierce barrage of fists and palms, this area had become another underwater world.

He Yiming took a deep breath. This time, he did not choose to meet the force head-on. He retracted his palm, and his body began to twist in a peculiar manner.

He moved like a long ribbonfish, undulating his body like a snake.

The surrounding air, influenced by the elder’s punch energy, whistled past He Yiming, carrying the extremely sharp, potent force of the blows. But when this power reached He Yiming’s vicinity, it suddenly became gentle and inert.

He Yiming’s contorted body acted like a series of rolling hills, continuously diminishing this force layer by layer until, as it brushed past him, it was no longer worth concern.

The elder’s eyes widened once more. He could not believe what he was seeing.

If the Yin Sha Qi earlier had given him a great shock, this miraculous movement technique that allowed him to swim freely within the elder's fist winds shocked him even more deeply.

Gritting his teeth, a powerful desire to win surged within the old man’s heart.

He roared again, his fists weaving like the wind, unleashing his full, unrestrained strength.

In an instant, the entire mountain hollow erupted with flying sand and rolling stones, true qi churning incessantly. The elder’s movement technique was pushed to its limit. While far less exaggerated than that of White Horse, his turns and twists displayed a peculiar, unique spectacle of their own.

Especially when he exerted his full power, countless waves of potent true qi pressed down on He Yiming. Looking at him now, there was no semblance of sparring; it seemed he would not rest until He Yiming was dead.

Yet, He Yiming wore a strange, enlightened smile on his face.

His feet executed even more bizarre steps; his neck twisted, his hips swayed, convulsing as if afflicted by epilepsy.

Simultaneously, immense fighting intent boiled forth from him, his true qi churning nearly as fiercely as the elder’s. The only difference from the elder was that He Yiming seemed capable of releasing true qi from his entire body—not just his fists and feet, but even his twisting backside discharged quite intense true qi.

His twisting movements appeared utterly clumsy, yet they concealed some profound principle of heaven and earth. No matter how immense the power of the elder’s blows, the moment they made contact with his body, they were instantly dissolved in segments.

It was like a gust of wind that could never topple a range of continuous, undulating mountains that seemed endless.

He Yiming had thoroughly integrated the movement techniques learned from the sea creatures during this time into the Cloud and Rain Soaring Technique, and he was displaying them to the fullest in this moment.

At this point, in the elder’s eyes, He Yiming had transformed. He no longer seemed like a person, but a colossal fish, churning in a raging, turbulent sea.

His punches and palm strikes, however powerful, could not inflict the slightest injury.

This miraculous movement technique neutralized all long-range attacks. Only by closing the distance and compressing He Yiming's space for maneuver might there be a sliver of hope for victory.

But looking at the gray-black, supremely bizarre armor covering He Yiming, the elder felt a surge of apprehension and helplessness.

Although he was utterly confident in his own strength, when facing the powerful Yin Sha Qi emanating from Ghost Cry Ridge, he had no absolute certainty of resistance.

While he had also spent nearly a month in Ghost Cry Ridge in the past and did not go mad in the end, that Yin Sha Qi had been uncontrolled. As for the Yin Sha Qi swirling around He Yiming now, he would rather die than believe it was not being manipulated by someone.

So, staring at He Yiming enveloped by gray-black swirling vortexes, the elder truly felt like a turtle stuck on its back—nowhere to apply force.

After a few more exchanges, He Yiming’s footwork became even more masterful. No matter where the massive true qi originated, he treated it as a powerful undercurrent in the ocean, easily evading all of them with his strange twisting method. Even if these currents continued to wind around him, a slight twist here and a slight sway there was enough to effortlessly slip away.

The elder let out a long sigh. He leaped into the air, performed a somersault in mid-flight, and landed smoothly in a corner of the hollow.

Then, he called out in a loud voice, "No need to compete anymore."