A tearing sound sliced through the air beside Zhang Yang as Zhang Pinglu materialized instantly at his side. During the previous engagement, to prevent Huyan Feng from making a desperate, suicidal move, Zhang Pinglu had kept his distance, ensuring his attacks inflicted Soul-Devouring damage. Now, his expression mirrored Huyan Feng's moment ago, yet his demeanor was utterly different—it was alight with shock and profound disbelief.

It wasn't just him. Zhang Daofeng, who had restrained Huyan Ming, hurried over, eyes wide as if seeing Zhang Yang for the very first time.

"Impossible! Absolutely impossible!"

The first voice to erupt was Huyan Feng's from across the field. His only remaining limb—or rather, the arm that barely held a few finger segments—was pointed stiffly forward, the rest of it trailing the intestines spilling from his stomach. His voice resonated with sheer terror, and his spirit was utterly shattered.

It took something monumental to so completely destabilize the spirit of a Great Perfection expert. Despite the severity of his wounds, Huyan Feng, being a Great Perfection master, possessed resilience far exceeding that of ordinary cultivators.

"Yang Yang, what—what in the world is happening?"

After Huyan Feng’s outburst, Zhang Pinglu followed up, laced with palpable anxiety. He needed the answer even more desperately than Huyan Feng, needing to understand the nature of this impossible event.

Moments ago, the burst of internal energy Zhang Yang launched with his sword had clearly surpassed the limit of the Fourth Layer Early Stage, reaching the Mid Stage. A Fourth Layer expert maintains meticulous control over energy, especially internal energy. The moment this powerful surge manifested, they all recognized its distinction.

He broke through. Zhang Yang had actually advanced, displaying the power of the Fourth Layer Mid Stage.

Zhang Yang, who had just suffered the Soul-Devouring affliction—an injury decreed to halt all future advancement—had achieved a breakthrough. It was no wonder Huyan Feng and Zhang Pinglu wore such expressions. Especially Huyan Feng; the destructive effects of the Soul-Devouring technique were deeply ingrained in his very being. Total, unwavering conviction had been violently overturned, explaining his state.

Zhang Pinglu felt the same way. In his established understanding, Zhang Yang should never have progressed further. Yet, Zhang Yang's recent display completely annihilated that understanding. It was akin to everyone knowing that beheading leads to death, only to watch a decapitated person suddenly spring up and run around holding their severed head—a reality almost no one could accept.

"Nothing much. I just discovered that Lightning can repair damage caused by the erosion of life essence. Lightning helped me just now!"

Zhang Yang smiled faintly and lowered his gaze to the creature nestled in his arms. During the fight, Lightning hadn't approached while the enemy was still active. Only after Huyan Feng was severely wounded and near collapse did it dart over, informing Zhang Yang that it possessed a remedy for the damage inflicted upon him. That was the source of Zhang Yang's intense excitement and relief.

Subsequent to that, Lightning truly managed to mend his damaged life essence. Feeling a sense of rebirth through destruction, Zhang Yang's internal energy surged once more. Having been at the absolute peak of the Fourth Layer Early Stage, he now vaulted clear of that boundary, directly into the Mid Stage. Fourth Layer Mid Stage—even Zhang Yang hadn't anticipated achieving advancement in such a manner.

"Lightning, the Fox-Tailed Marten?"

Zhang Pinglu’s eyes remained wide, thick with utter confusion. As a Great Perfection master, he possessed vast knowledge beyond most cultivators, yet he had never heard that a Fox-Tailed Marten could repair the devastation wrought by the Soul-Devouring technique.

Huyan Feng felt the same bewilderment. In his understanding, the Soul-Devouring technique was incurable; otherwise, this demonic art would not have been so widely rejected. The Righteous and Demonic sects had set aside ancient grudges, and all Great Perfection masters had allied to destroy it, precisely to annihilate this demonic art completely. This technique was Huyan Feng's ultimate contingency plan.

"Impossible! Absolutely impossible! The Fox-Tailed Marten is just a venomous beast. How could it repair the damage to life essence? I've never heard of any spirit beast possessing such an ability, not even a Fifth Layer spirit beast!"

Huyan Feng screamed again, repeating his denial several times just as before, demonstrating the turmoil within him. After screaming, Huyan Feng suddenly collapsed onto the ground, gasping for air. His intestines spilled fully onto the floor, making his appearance even more horrifying. Any other cultivator would have perished instantly with such injuries, but being a Great Perfection expert allowed him this continued, albeit grotesque, endurance and the ability to speak.

"Just because you haven't heard of it doesn't mean it doesn't exist, Huyan Feng. You've been disappointed again!"

Zhang Yang spoke calmly, carefully handing Lightning over to Zhang Pinglu. He then slowly walked forward, stopping directly in front of Huyan Feng. Ever since Huyan Feng uttered the words 'leave no one alive,' Zhang Yang had resolved not to spare him. This scourge could not be permitted to remain.

Zhang Yang had not spent long in the company of this Great Perfection master, but he had gleaned enough about his character. Regardless of whether Huyan Feng always kept his word, he was undeniably ruthless. An irreconcilable hatred now existed between them; if this man lived, he would remain the greatest threat to Zhang Yang's entire family. Furthermore, his cultivation of a demonic art lent him the traits of a devilish practitioner, amplifying the danger he posed. For the sake of his family and loved ones, Zhang Yang would eliminate such a threat, no matter who it was. He had sworn internally that, regardless of the cost, this hidden danger would be removed today.

"Disappointed... disappointed..."

Huyan Feng sat on the ground, murmuring softly, his eyes still wide with dread, though now tinged more heavily with resentment—an unwillingness to believe. Before this moment, even in death, he could have died contentedly, laughing in the face of oblivion, precisely because he believed he had successfully extinguished the hope of the Zhang family—a future Fifth Layer powerhouse. That was his greatest pride, and now that pride had burst like a soap bubble, popped by a mere touch. He simply could not accept this outcome.

"The Huyan Family shall perish because of you!"

Zhang Yang thrust the Cold Spring Sword forward. The blade pierced through the nearly defenseless Huyan Feng, passing straight through his chest. A sword through the heart—Huyan Feng had ultimately failed to escape this fate.

Huyan Feng looked down at the sword protruding from his front, his expression still locked in disbelief.

"Crack!"

As Zhang Yang pulled the Cold Spring Sword free, a violent gout of crimson blood erupted from Huyan Feng's chest, flecked with shards of his own heart. With the heart destroyed, not even an Immortal could save him now.

"No, absolutely not. You couldn't have broken through. It must be another method you used. You did it deliberately! Soul-Devouring cannot be repaired, it cannot be repaired..."

Huyan Feng glared at Zhang Yang, speaking slowly, his voice gradually fading until it was barely audible. Before he could finish his desperate protest, his head lolled backward. A Fifth Layer Great Perfection expert, a martial artist currently standing at the apex of human cultivation, had fallen.

Huyan Feng was dead. Finally, he was dead. Only then did Zhang Yang let out a deep, rattling sigh of relief.

"Yang Yang, you killed a Great Perfection master!"

Zhang Daofeng approached, looking at Zhang Yang with unconcealed admiration, though a note of unnatural jealousy crept into his tone. A Great Perfection master—for ordinary Fourth Layer experts, even among Great Perfection peers, killing one of their own was incredibly difficult. If a Great Perfection expert chose to flee, others couldn't catch them; pursuit would only lead to mutual ruin, and even then, success wasn't guaranteed. Zhang Yang, as a Fourth Layer Early Stage cultivator who had just advanced to the Mid Stage, had created an unprecedented achievement by slaying a Great Perfection master—a feat unheard of from antiquity to the present day.

"Grandfather, Huyan Feng didn't die solely by my hand!"

Zhang Yang offered a wry smile, surprised that his grandfather was teasing him right after eliminating such a formidable foe.

"Hah! Huyan Feng didn't die by one person's hand, but ultimately, you were the one who killed him, and you can't deny that!"

Zhang Pinglu also walked over, letting out a booming laugh saturated with internal energy, brimming with elation. His feelings contrasted sharply with Huyan Feng's demise. Zhang Yang being cured of the Soul-Devouring affliction and successfully advancing—no one was more thrilled than Zhang Pinglu. It was like a person facing absolute ruin, with no hope left, suddenly witnessing an angel descend. That angel was Lightning, transforming despair into renewed hope for Zhang Pinglu, who had lost so much. What is recovered after being lost is cherished most deeply, especially when the most treasured possession is restored. At this moment, his gratitude toward the creature in his arms was inexpressible; only such boisterous laughter could vent the emotion boiling inside him.

Zhang Yang paused for a brief moment before joining the laughter. His grandfather and the elder were correct; he had indeed slain a Great Perfection master. Regardless of the specifics, Huyan Feng died beneath his sword. However, this process was utterly non-replicable. First, the Fifth Layer spirit beast, the Phantom Rat, had grievously wounded Huyan Feng, reducing his operational strength to less than fifty percent. Second, he had the aid of another Great Perfection expert; Zhang Pinglu, despite damaging his own foundation by forcefully exerting his strength, still possessed immense power. Had Huyan Feng not been afflicted by the Soul-Devouring technique, Zhang Pinglu alone could have dealt with him. Finally, and most crucially, Huyan Feng had never intended to flee from the start. One could say Huyan Feng was committed to a fight to the death. He knew well that if he fled, the Huyan Family would collapse immediately; as their guardian Great Perfection expert, protecting his clan was his paramount duty at all times. A Great Perfection master who wouldn't flee, severely wounded, aided by another powerful Great Perfection master—these were the true foundations upon which Zhang Yang killed a Great Perfection master and forged a new precedent.

Of course, Zhang Yang's own formidable strength was an essential factor. If he hadn't been able to harness the energy of heaven and earth through his sword techniques, materializing energy to possess some small capital to contend with a Great Perfection expert, he couldn't have killed Huyan Feng. Any other Fourth Layer Early Stage cultivator, or even Zhang Yuan'an, would likely have been unable to fight back, perhaps not even able to escape.

But regardless of the contributing factors, Huyan Feng was dead, slain by Zhang Yang’s hand. This was fact, and Zhang Yang’s name was destined to shock the entire cultivation world once more.

Zhang Pinglu's smile never faded. The stronger Zhang Yang became, the greater the benefits for the Zhang Family. Perhaps in the near future, the Zhang Family could truly ascend to a pinnacle, surpassing all established noble houses and sects to become the most powerful entity of the age.

Apologies again; I unknowingly fell asleep yesterday. This is the first chapter; there will be a second around eleven this morning! RQ