Chapter 52: Forced Hands

"Yun Yiyang, is this how you treat the guests of the Yun Clan? If anything happens to Little Chen, I'll make sure the entire clan pays for it!" Ye Changxuan thundered, unleashing an insurmountable amount of energy.

The rest of the rank nine combatants who looked on had a change in expression. He was a rank nine combatant! His powers were surely on par with Yun Yiyang!

In a split second, Yun Jingkong's silhouette charged toward Ye Chen. The Celestial Chi formed around him like a set of knives, flying outward. The large amount of energy had Ye Chen trapped in the arena with no escape route.

"Die!" Yun Jingkong's right hand was densely packed with Chi Construct. He thrust his palm onto Ye Chen's head.

A top rank eight combatant's powers were certainly no joke. They were stronger than third uncle Ye Zhangxiong's power by a sizeable amount. A light bulb went off in Ye Chen's head. The only way out of this was to give all he got! Ye Chen let the Celestial Chi within him flow outward, covering his clothes.

Ye Chen felt layers of pressure forming on him but they felt rather weak.

Ye Chen immediately channeled the Flying Dagger from his psyche. A large amount of Celestial Chi enveloped his body. In Ye Chen's meridian channel, the Nine Astra Skies had begun activating, turning into a fire elemental Celestial Chi that had dispersed from his body in the form of a heatwave.

While Ye Chen continued to channel Celestial Chi with his body, the Heavenly Astra Seal on his skin began to vibrate. As if imbued with a special power, Ye Chen sensed that his mind was awakened and the intensity of the chi from the Flying Dagger grew stronger.

Ye Chen's powers had increased by twofold.

The Ye Clan's ancient seal was working!

Yun Jingkong's Chi-construct Heavenly Strike was mere inches away. Ye Chen did not think much as he gathered his breath and roared - Crimson Cloud Searing Skies!

A wave of scorching heat swept across the area. From afar, the red light gave off the impression that the sky was ablaze. The wooden arena caught fire, giving way to a stronger and violent flame.

Yun Jingkong was about to befall Ye Chen in a single strike when suddenly, he felt a large amount of fire elemental Celestial Chi lashing outward, with a might so terrifying that even he panicked. What an impressive display of martial art techniques from the Ye Clan! As the fiery energy flew toward Yun Jingkong, he could only see a burst of red light but not Ye Chen.

What was this? A rank four or five martial art techniques or stronger?

Boom! An explosion stronger than the previous incident went off in the arena. Due to the impact, it began to give way, causing the surrounding people to jump out of the way.

The arena was not just made out of any wood. It was constructed using the sturdiest wood found in Lianyun Mountains - the Ironwood. Even a rank eight combatant would be hard-pressed to bring an entire arena down!

Shards of wood flew outward. Red light covered the entire scene. A figure was hurled five or six meters backward, their skin so tanned like they had been roasted for hours. Meanwhile, their screams of agony gave others the chills.

It was Yun Jingkong!

The top rank eight combatant had been soundly defeated. Just what in the world was that fire spell's rank?

The crowd was no longer astonished but fearful. It was their first time seeing such a devastating martial art technique!

They looked at the center where the explosion had taken place. Standing in the pile of Ironwood debris was an exhausted Ye Chen with tattered clothes and a little scorch marks on his skin, which was considered comparatively lucky given the outcome of the battle. The Crimson Cloud Searing Skies manifested in the form of a violent flare using Celestial Chi. Had Ye Chen conjured the spell using his spell, his clothes would have been burnt away to nothing.

A little blood showed on the corner of Ye Chen's lips. He staggered a little, then sat down and begun recuperating his Celestial Chi. Little Tanuki leaped on Ye Chen's shoulder, surveying the area vigilantly as if bracing for a great force.

Not a single soul dared come close to Ye Chen. Whatever they had just witnessed earlier left their minds at a total loss for words.

"A seventeen-year-old taking down a top rank eight combatant. How's that possible?"

Donglin County was barely a major county and so coming across a seventeen-year-old top rank eight combatant was already a new thing for them. Only those great tribes with thousand years of lineage or the Xiwu Royal Tribe who feed their seventeen-year-olds with a large quantity of medicinal pills, and put them through an intensive drill would ever arrive at such power.

A thought flashed across the minds of the other rank nine combatants. It looked like the person that Ye Changxuan spoke of truly exist. With such a powerful figure backing him up, it would be a matter of time before another powerhouse would be born.

Whatever they had seen was no longer a question of talents. This was beyond being a prodigy. Rather, it was a display of their wealth!

Even if one were adept at martial arts, there was no way one could reach such great heights on talents and honing martial arts techniques alone. It was only through money that one can cultivate a truly powerful top rank eight seventeen-year-old combatant!

Ye Changxuan was blown away. He rushed over to Ye Chen as he had to prevent anyone from approaching Ye Chen at all costs!

Li Xu looked at the sight of the broken arena. He had no words to describe his amazement. What a pure display of fire elemental Celestial Chi! The display of chi that Li Xu saw was stronger than his Twilight Inferno. If Ye Chen exhibited great control over his Celestial Chi, he was surely destined to be a prodigy in Alchemy! Recalling Master Xuanyi's words, Li Xu leapt toward Ye Chen and landed three meters away from him.

The rest of the rank nine combatants followed suit.

"Lord Yun, I've said it before. I'll see to Ye Changxuan and Ye Chen's safety myself. The fact that your men had attacked him earlier meant that they had crossed the line. If anyone were to attempt anything further, I'll guarantee the destruction of the Yun Clan. You're free to put my words to the test." Li Xu shot a stern look to Yun Yiyang.

Yun Yiyang was intimidated by the gaze. Since Li Xu had already made his point, he dared not cause further ruckus. Yun Yiyang had no doubts about Li Xu's power. With a little medicinal pill, Li Xu could easily lead a group of rank ten combatants or even a crowd of rank nine combatants to storm the Yun Castle. When that happened, the Yun Clan would be left with nothing.

"Whatever Yun Jingkong did earlier was a misunderstanding. I honestly didn't expect it to happen either. Yun Jingkong's actions had nothing to do with me. Yun Jingkong was acting on his accord." With a wave of his hand, Yun Yiyang summoned his man. "Servants, take Yun Jingkong away. The family will deal with him!" Yun Yiyang looked at Ye Chen. His eyes spoke of a sworn vengeance.

Li Xu grunted. It was not like he did not know Yun Yiyang well.

After an hour had passed, Ye Chen finally managed to quell his overflowing Celestial Chi. He was greeted by the sight of the crowd looking at him before getting back on his feet.

"How are you feeling, Little Chen?" Ye Chen was worried.

"I'm fine, grandpa. It's just some minor injuries." Ye Chen replied. He thought of the clan's seal. If it were not for the Heavenly Astra Seal, he would not have had what it took to survive Yun Jingkong's attack. After coming to life once, the seal had reverted to its lifeless former self.

Ye Chen's words reached the ears of the people, resulting in a tumultuous crowd. Not only did Ye Chen knocked out a top rank eight combatant but he had also sustained little injuries in doing so. In Donglin County, such a display of powers was regarded with pride. What more when it was accomplished by a seventeen-year-old?