The Bone Dissolving Soft Palm, outwardly appearing yielding and harmless, yet storing world-shattering rigidity within, erupts with sudden ferocity. Those struck feel no external injury to their surface, but their bones shatter as if there were none, hence the name Bone Dissolving Soft Palm.

Song Wendong, as a contemporary Divine Beast Martial Artist, recognized virtually every martial technique in the world. The very first ripple in the air caused by the Master's wrist flick immediately alerted him to the technique about to be launched. This Bone Dissolving Soft Palm was not only relentless in its movement but even more terrifying in its speed. It seemed as gentle and slow as water, but that was merely an illusion created by its afterimages; the true Bone Dissolving Soft Palm struck with lightning-fast velocity.

A low, angry roar rumbled from Song Wendong's throat, startling Butler Hou so much his jaw nearly dislocated. The true qi spewing from the Qilin subtly formed into two distinct shapes, which instantly converged in the center of his palm.

"Four Spirits Palm!" Butler Hou could never have imagined that Song Wendong would deploy the Four Spirits Palm—drawing upon the swiftness of the Teng Snake, the steadfastness of the Profound Tortoise, and the essence of other spirits—at the absolute peak of the Fifteen-Star level.

The meaning of the Four Spirits, Butler Hou knew well after serving Song Wendong for years, was the Master's intent to signify the Qilin's supremacy over the four Divine Beast Martial Artists.

Divine Beast Martial Artists were all untamable, top-tier fighters who would never readily concede superiority to one another. Whether Song Wendong truly reigned above the others, Butler Hou could not judge; such matters were only clear after direct confrontation. Yet, that breadth of spirit was already vividly signaled when the Four Spirits Palm was conceived.

When Song Wendong first created this technique, his initial vision was a trump card for combat between Divine Beast level experts. He never envisioned it being utilized at the Fifteen-Star level, let alone against the Bone Dissolving Soft Palm. Once again, Song Wendong defied the impossible, unleashing the Spirit Palm at a level beyond his usual standard.

The observing Martial Arts Masters watched Song Wendong's attack, stunned. His first move stirred up sand and flew pebbles, seemingly light and floating, yet his arms, like coiled serpents, subtly radiated an overwhelming aura, concealing the weight of ten thousand jun.

Song Wendong treaded the Qilin Steps, his body unmoving, stable as a tortoise on its promenade. Every step was clear to observe, the profound force and overwhelming presence directly informing everyone that nothing could halt his advance.

This advance met the Master head-on. The Qilin seized the moment to unleash the might of a peak Martial Arts Grandmaster, driving a single fist straight toward the Zhong Gong (center of the chest), its target locked firmly on the Master's throat.

The head could dodge by swaying left or right with the neck, but the neck itself could not truly move!

Song Wendong had calculated everything, aiming the punch at the throat, his clenched fist ready to transform instantly into a snapping finger strike! With the Qilin’s palm or finger strength, even a series of heavy mobile armor plates would be perforated with transparent holes.

Facing a strike powerful enough to shatter the Qilin Peak single-handedly, how could the Master, now exhilarated by the fight, possibly evade? The Bone Dissolving Soft Palm transformed its five fingers into a fist. The fist and arm, like ice jade, snapped several times, growing more translucent, seemingly transitioning from Ice Grade to Glass Grade. A dazzling radiance surged outward from within him, like a fully charged fluorescent tube.

"Radiant Fist!" Song Wendong’s heart hammered wildly. In the blink of an eye, this young man had revealed another ultimate technique just by turning his palm! Even spending every day at the Saint Martial Hall, he couldn't have mastered this many supreme techniques in the short time he was there, and each one perfected to the pinnacle of its respective star level!

Delayed arrival, yet achieving speed first—this was one of the core characteristics of the Radiant Fist. Song Wendong saw the incoming fist, bent his arm, and met the Master’s punch with a Four Spirits Elbow strike against the arm shielded by the Qilin’s protective qi, which subtly displayed the (texture/pattern) of tortoise shell.

As fist met elbow, the surroundings of Qilin Peak began to collapse violently. Trees clinging to the cliff faces tumbled down into the gorge along with rolling stones and dust.

The engagement and disengagement between the two masters concluded in an instant. Observing masters of the same rank hadn't clearly perceived what had just happened, only noting a few figures moving within the glare of light. Only Song Zhenting and Butler Hou saw clearly, nodding in appreciation.

As they separated, the Master’s eyes showed a hint of admiration. "As expected of a Divine Beast Martial Artist. Not only was the variation in that elbow strike astonishing, but the internal flow of true gang force within the arm was beyond expectation."

The Master’s Electric Steps continued, leaving trails of blue smoke where he passed, yet no trace on the ground. He reappeared before the Qilin, shaking his shoulders and flinging his arm, charging his punch straight toward Song Wendong's heart.

As he charged, the arm tore through the air, causing explosive outward compression that generated immense pressure in the air spanning dozens of zhu around his fist, creating a massive, vast void.

The power of the internal true gang force was truly unleashed by the Master's hand at this moment. The sheer volume of airflow could alter the surrounding atmospheric environment. Without needing to project true qi externally, the pressure from the punch alone was comparable to a common Martial Arts Master projecting their true qi.

If this qi could be transformed into a true gang projection, how powerful would it be? Qin Fen felt a thrill just contemplating it. Only upon stepping into the Master realm did one truly enter the world of martial arts! Such immense power could sway the martial strength of the Federation; only after reaching this level could one witness the existence of such force.

Song Wendong settled his stance, rooted in place, not moving an inch.

Facing the Master’s Radiant Fist, Song Wendong’s face remained tranquil, his eyes deep as water. His five fingers, completely open, slowly closed into a fist, as if five mountain peaks had coalesced. Internal true gang force mixed with surging blood pounded in his vessels, overpowering even the sound of the collapsing peaks.

When those five fingers clenched, it was as if five mountains were stacked atop one another! In the next instant, the Master’s martial sense perceived that Song Wendong wasn't clenching five fingers, but rather holding Mount Qilin itself within his grasp—a true mountain.

Butler Hou smiled at this sight. His master, initially at a slight disadvantage since the battle began, had been slowly pushed to a near-total state of inferiority by Qin Fen. Such a fight was practically unprecedented for the Divine Beast Qilin.

At this moment, Song Wendong gathered the Mountain Soul of Qilin Peak into his fist, augmented by the Spirit essence of the Four Spirits Palm. The steadfast Mount Qilin, witness to countless natural seasons, channeled its surging power toward the Radiant Fist. It carried the gentleness of spring, the fierce heat of summer, the chilling austerity of autumn, and the biting cold of winter—a punch capable of holding up the sky if it fell.

"...Good!" The Master gazed at the surging momentum of the mountains brought forth. He suddenly inhaled deeply, the air crackling around him, his fist trajectory unwavering as it descended. The frenzy in his eyes suddenly extinguished...

In that instant, everyone watching nearby, including Butler Hou and Song Zhenting, felt an endless mist of desolation wash over them—the desolation of invincibility, the utter loneliness of being unmatched.

Qin Fen, standing within it, felt the intense emotion carried by the Master's punch. A hint of moisture welled in his eyes. At this moment, he could sense that profound loneliness following absolute invincibility, an emotion clearly not belonging to the Master, yet one that struck Qin Fen with deep, resonant feeling.

Song Jia’s eyes were red, mist already gathering in her beautiful eyes, her chest surging with an indescribable, lonely sorrow.

The Master’s eyes had long lost their previous fighting fervor; every pore on his body radiated the mist of isolation. The Master himself was not truly desolate; the truly lonely one was another: the Heaven-Shattering expert, Zong Jue Lv!

Invincibility, while glorious in the eyes of outsiders, reveals its profound loneliness only to those who achieve it. No matter how unparalleled a powerhouse, they cannot resist the solitude. Thus, the peak of martial arts finally merged into this mist of isolation. The essence of a lifetime of martial pursuit left only this solitude—living unrivaled, dying in invincibility.

The Master, having deeply studied all martial ways, while lacking the absolute desolation of Zong Jue Lv, managed to mimic eighty percent of that overwhelming intent of loneliness. The Qilin, caught in the fray, grew solemn and deep. He felt authority pressing down from all directions; his ambition seemed ready to wane under the weight of this solitude.

Loneliness. In the next instant, Qin Fen and the Qilin felt this unique desolation within the martial path most clearly. A resonance sparked in their hearts. The next moment, the wind, sand, mountains, and trees of the world seemed infected by this loneliness, echoing it back.

Loneliness. The Qilin’s eyes shone with shared feeling. The power of the Qilin Fist he raised did not diminish but rather increased. It was as if the entire Mount Qilin had lifted from its foundation, challenging the lonely Radiant Fist with the might of the mountains.

The swift, fierce, and domineering dual fists appeared as slow-motion replays in the eyes of the onlookers as they violently collided.

Rumble... The peak beneath everyone’s feet rapidly subsided. During this clash, Mount Qilin began collapsing not slowly as before, but with terrifying speed.

Boulders tumbled, trees were violently uprooted by the shockwave, and onlookers felt as if they were passengers on a high-speed bus that had just crashed—gang energy collided everywhere.

The Master's punch descended, transforming from a fist to a palm that swept across the Qilin's arm, aiming to sever the neck. The instant loneliness turned to the biting cold of winter. Song Wendong’s ankles rotated, his body spinning like a whirlwind to evade the neck-severing strike. He twitched his shoulder, turned his arm vertical into a spear, and pierced the air with a counter-attack aimed directly at the Master's throat—a 'Revolving Horse Spear' move.

The Master’s eyes were vacant. The palm guarding his chest clenched into a hammer and raised toward his throat, the Heart-Guarding Hammer transforming into a Neck-Guarding Hammer to block the Qilin's counter-strike. A hint of lecherous intent flashed in the Master's empty eyes; he drove a groin-striking kick toward the Qilin’s exposed lower abdomen due to the cross-stance defensive exchange.

What? Song Wendong was startled, retracting his spear to guard. The Master’s lecherous gaze suddenly flared with intense killing intent. The muscles of the Neck-Guarding Hammer hand writhed like a dagger, lunging suddenly toward the Qilin's heart.

"Slaughter Martial Way, Heart-Plucking Hand!" In a flash, the Master’s martial path shifted three times. Song Wendong met the spear-guarding arm with his elbow, yielding not an inch in this battle fought for every fraction of ground. The two exchanged blows continuously on the collapsing Qilin Peak, enveloped by massive clouds of dust and debris covering the entire fractured mountain.

Clash, pressing attack! The entirety of Qilin Peak was torn apart by their engagement. Arriving Martial Arts Masters and Grandmasters watched, dumbfounded, at this battle that, while rated Fifteen-Star in power level, was truly a contest of martial foundation—a world-shaking duel. They felt fortunate to witness it, believing their own martial understanding would surely advance afterward.

"Witnessing a high-intensity battle between Fifteen-Star powers can actually accelerate the progress of one's martial path..."

The crowd found this realization both hilarious and bittersweet, especially the two Star Constellation Generals, whose faces were full of bitterness, thinking: What kind of world is this?

The smile on Butler Hou’s brow had long been twisted into a knot, like an intersection choked by millions of cars. Although both fighters were launching relentless attacks, and the Qilin seemed much improved from his earlier disadvantage, the reality was that his situation had worsened compared to their initial exchange.

Now, even in his offensive maneuvers, the Qilin was being pushed to the brink of comprehensive suppression. The moment he could no longer even press the attack would be the moment of his true defeat.

Would the Qilin be defeated? Butler Hou and Song Zhenting had never considered this possibility, even as the mysterious Qing Long rose rapidly with near-heaven-defying momentum; they never believed Earth's Martial God, Qilin Song Wendong, could lose.

Three minutes, five minutes, ten minutes... thirteen minutes... fourteen minutes fifty seconds... fifty-one seconds... fifty-three...

Hashimoto stared, wide-eyed, at the ruined battlefield. The fat on his body quivered uncontrollably with excitement. He inwardly declared that even if he were executed on the spot later for defying the Qilin’s orders, having witnessed this battle made it worthwhile! The final blow!

Suddenly! The Qilin perceived precise information from the Master's eyes. The desolate fist intent sublimated once more. The majestic Cai Shen Bang (Auspicious God List) erupted from the Master’s hand for the first time. Song Wendong took a deep breath; scales rapidly proliferated across his skin. His suppressed, slightly bowed spine straightened again, and thunderous cracks erupted from his joints, giving the impression that his body was packed with explosives.

As the sound of the vibrating internal true gang force resonating through his bones reached its peak, his black skin began to change. His muscles swelled slightly, and the black skin instantly transformed into golden-yellow, shimmering like fine jade with layers of precious light.

Another breakthrough! This was the difference between a Divine Beast Martial Artist and an ordinary one. He possessed a profound foundation unimaginable to common men, allowing for the possibility of an on-the-spot breakthrough under specific circumstances—though this required precise timing, location, battlefield atmosphere, and the opponent’s state.

A stream of visible sword energy shot forth from the Qilin’s lips as he roared, the sound piercing metal and shattering mountains. The Qilin’s kingly might radiated overwhelmingly, a long cry scattering a bit of the loneliness, adding a fourth spirit to the Four Spirits Palm!

The Master seemed not to notice the Qilin’s rising punch; his Electric Steps abruptly shifted to Thunder Steps! While Electric Steps were fast, they lacked the imposing power of Thunder Steps!

Before contact, Song Wendong already felt the oppressive power of the Master’s Feng Shen Bang (God Sealing List). The might of the Four Spirits Palm showed signs of collapse even before contact, and the air around the golden fist seemed to be sucked dry by the Feng Shen Bang, as if trying to squeeze the air from one's lungs.

"Impressive!" Song Wendong was deeply wary. Could Qin Fen achieve yet another breakthrough based purely on instinct? This punch was considerably stronger than his previous strikes.

The Master lunged across the distance, arriving before the Qilin. The target of the Feng Shen Bang was crystal clear: Song Wendong’s face.

The initiation of this punch was not sudden; the Master's gaze afforded Song Wendong ample time to prepare. If, under such circumstances, he chose to evade rather than block, he would not be the Qilin Song Wendong.

"Hah! Hah! Hah!"

Song Wendong’s hidden arm, tucked at his waist, rose together with his other arm, the two crossed like the horns of the Qilin Divine Beast, meeting the Master’s Cai Shen Bang with full force.

The moment fist met arm, Song Wendong felt the vast, peerless momentum of Qin Fen’s punch—a surging torrent of gang energy like the flooding Yellow River. The desolate aura was entirely gone, but the invincible essence contained within the loneliness remained. He felt as if he were standing in the vastness of space, facing the cascading Milky Way pouring down from the heavens.

The summit of Qilin Peak collapsed violently like a bombed building, stones the size of human heads spraying amidst the dust and dirt. After striking the Qilin's nearly shattered horns, the Feng Shen Bang continued its trajectory toward Song Wendong's head.

Song Jia instinctively closed her eyes, unwilling to witness what came next. After waiting a second, she realized the roaring din of the intense battle had suddenly quieted. Curiously, she opened her eyes toward the center of the conflict.

Qin Fen's fist, pressed against the Qilin's horns, stopped its advance just two inches from Song Wendong's chest. Though he remained standing, the light of battle had vanished from his eyes. All trace of his Fifteen-Star true qi had completely disappeared.

Fifteen minutes! Exactly fifteen minutes! In the final moment, the Master released his control over Qin Fen’s body, which immediately slumped into a faint. Song Wendong stood stunned in place.

Everyone around stared blankly at the sudden halt of the battle. The vast fist energy, the explosive combat—how could it stop so instantly? Had Qin Fen’s true qi been exhausted? Impossible! He had been vigorous and lively just a moment ago; how could it suddenly run dry?

Song Wendong recalled the words Qin Fen had spoken initially: fifteen minutes.

Reviewing the timeline, Song Wendong realized that exactly fifteen minutes had passed since Qin Fen had revived, not even half a second more or less.

Recalling more carefully, Song Wendong suddenly remembered a sentence Qin Fen seemed to have uttered just before his power ceased, though he had overlooked it while fully defending against the mighty Cai Shen Bang.

"Now that I think about it..." Song Wendong fell into contemplation. In those final instants, he thought he had heard Qin Fen say, "Fifteen minutes is too little... too little..., but, I am very happy..."

Happy? Fifteen minutes? Song Wendong looked at the unconscious Qin Fen slowly falling to the ground, his eyes filled with confusion. He turned back to Butler Hou, standing not far away, and said softly, "Take him. Come with me."

Moments later, Song Wendong vanished from the main peak of the collapsing Mount Qilin. Butler Hou, bending low, picked up the unconscious Qin Fen and also disappeared from the ruined summit.

"Dad..."

"Girl, if you want to see your sweetheart, you must have some patience," Song Zhenting stroked his daughter Song Jia's long hair. "We need to wait just a little while."

The intensely fierce battle had ended abruptly, leaving everyone with an indescribable sense of emptiness. They turned and began leaving the crumbling subsidiary peaks of Mount Qilin.

Although today's intense battle concluded suddenly, it had offered countless insights. Hashimoto, shaking his corpulent body, flew down Mount Qilin with a face full of joy.

Having rashly ascended Mount Qilin and witnessed this rare, fierce duel, Hashimoto found that since meeting Qin Fen, his long-stagnant martial path had restarted.

The battle at Mount Halla had already provided much inspiration. Today’s fierce fight with the Divine Beast Martial Artist Song Wendong on Qilin Peak gave Hashimoto confidence that both his star level power and his martial arts were about to undergo a significant elevation.