At this moment, Lin Qi, who witnessed this scene with Ding Fan, was evidently quite shocked. Initially, he thought of stepping forward to assist Ding Fan, but Ding Fan's response to the elder showed no sign of nervousness, and he even intended to slay the elder. Thus, Lin Qi decided to hold back and see how Ding Fan's situation would unfold. Yet, Lin Qi was utterly astonished that Ding Fan could force the elder to retreat using only fist techniques, which was no simple feat!

The black-robed elder was also clearly taken aback, evidently not expecting such a young cultivator at the Nascent Soul Mid Stage to drive him back. This was truly inconceivable!

Immediately, the elder shifted positions with several swift flickers, widening the distance between him and his opponent. Suddenly, two extremely sharp axes appeared in his hands. His arms, akin to fiery wheels, fiercely attacked Ding Fan, and even the edges of those giant axes formed a powerful vortex, unstoppable—the inertia alone was unbearable for any ordinary cultivator.

The elder's arms swung down continuously towards Ding Fan, and wherever the elder's axes touched, deep ravines formed. The axes didn't even make contact with the ground, yet the momentum left deep gullies in the area. Stones on the ground met the might of the axes as if they were blocks of tofu, sliced apart. The power of the axes was clearly extraordinary.

Upon seeing this scene, everyone was understandably shocked.

"These giant axes are evidently more powerful than usual!"

"The elder has practiced handling the axes to a certain level, clearly beyond ordinary; no matter how impressive Ding Fan may be, he surely stands no chance against the elder at this moment!"

"Indeed! The elder's axes have been cultivated to an unparalleled level; even a Spirit Severing Stage cultivator would not easily handle facing the elder's axes..."

"..."

As everyone witnessed the elder's display, they couldn't help but be deeply shocked; the elder's axes clearly held immense power. Seeing Ding Fan in this scenario, everyone felt a surge of anxiety for him. It was known that Ding Fan wasn't an ordinary figure; despite his youth, he was a Grade Nine Alchemist—an existence far from ordinary in the Cultivation World.

He was even more precious than a Spirit Severing Stage cultivator, incomparable even to a Transcendance Tribulation Stage cultivator. Losing such a formidable Grade Nine Alchemist to the elder would be truly tragic...

Facing the opponent's giant axes, Ding Fan was naturally startled, not anticipating such tremendous power. Clearly realizing that relying solely on his fist techniques wouldn't suffice, Ding Fan swiftly drew his flying sword and aggressively attacked the elder. Instantly, sword blossoms bloomed everywhere like fireworks, spreading in all directions!

Witnessing Ding Fan's display, the black-robed elder was deeply shocked, realizing that the opponent's strategy specifically targeted him. His axes pursued power and tempo—one strike from them would exact a heavy price. However, the opponent's attack was evidently expansive, allowing easy evasion of his strikes while still striking him, which was truly unfathomable!

Observing Ding Fan's performance, the crowd was left stunned. Clearly, Ding Fan at the Nascent Soul Mid Stage was no simple matter; despite facing such fierce attacks from the opposite side, he stayed composed and countered with techniques specifically aimed at the opponent. Moreover, his attack power was by no means weak—truly breathtaking!

The black-robed elder, shocked by Ding Fan's prowess, then felt sheer disdain; the opponent was merely a Nascent Soul Mid Stage cultivator, yet dared to challenge him! Simply overestimating his capabilities!

Subsequently, the black-robed elder raised the two giant axes defensively above his head, invoking an illusory divine turtle that enveloped him securely within. It appeared exceedingly sturdy, as Ding Fan's sword blossoms strikingly exploded upon the divine turtle, causing earth-shattering blasts!

Observing this spectacle, the surrounding cultivators were compelled to retreat, evidently alarmed by the explosive battle between the elder and Ding Fan, proving yet again that Spirit Severing Stage battles are indeed exceptional. No one anticipated the seemingly delicate sword blossoms of Ding Fan releasing such terrifying explosions upon encountering the divine turtle!

Even the elder was astonished, not having expected Ding Fan's seemingly light formation to wield such formidable power—truly unexpected!

Lin Qi, watching this scene, was intensely shocked, not imagining Ding Fan's swordsmanship to be so mysterious. Lin Qi had already discerned that the secret might lie within the opponent's footwork, evidently finding the sword technique peculiar and defying normal patterns. Lin Qi felt a strong sense of admiration and curiosity toward Ding Fan's swordsmanship.

Sun Long, upon witnessing this scene, felt astonishment towards Ding Fan's swordsmanship and simultaneously seething anger toward the black-robed elder. Sun Long hadn't expected such interruption by the elder at this critical moment. It was known that the time left before he would assume the city lord position was sparse, yet the elder's sudden appearance wholly disrupted his plans. Had the black-robed elder not appeared, Sun Long might have already become Dancheng's city lord!

However, now the situation was filled with uncertainties. Although Sun Long harbored intense resentment against Ding Fan, this was evidently not the time to settle scores. Now with the elder's appearance, the only option left was hoping the elder would completely vanquish Ding Fan.

Sun Long felt both angry and shocked towards Ding Fan, not understanding how Ding Fan knew about his plan with the Wild Wolf Gang, but at this moment Sun Long couldn't care about such things. The only solution now was to pray that the Elder could successfully kill Ding Fan, allowing Sun Long to fabricate some lies to explain the matter regarding the Elder from the Wild Wolf Gang.

Initially, Sun Long didn't have the slightest worry about Ding Fan. Although Ding Fan revealed his secret, the Black-Robed Elder was evidently not a simple person. He was also a cultivator at the Spirit Severing Initial Stage, and his strength was even above Sun Long's. Therefore, killing Ding Fan was as easy as eating or drinking.

However, what Sun Long hadn't anticipated was that Ding Fan was merely a cultivator at the Nascent Soul Mid Stage, yet the Black-Robed Elder hadn't managed to deal with him after such a long time, and even seemed to be at a disadvantage just now! This was simply unbelievable!

At this moment, the Black-Robed Elder's defense was incredibly arduous. Although the Divine Turtle beside him was only condensed by the Elder's True Qi, it was indeed extremely difficult to break through, not something ordinary cultivators could destroy. Ding Fan kept swinging his longsword, his expression indifferent.

Ding Fan knew the Elder's Divine Turtle Defense was formidable, nearly invincible, but Ding Fan also knew this defense consumed a large amount of True Qi. It was evident the Elder had to resort to such a unique skill to fend off Ding Fan's multitude of sword blossoms.

Ding Fan believed it was impossible for the Elder to continuously perform this martial arts skill. Even if the Elder was a Spirit Severing Stage cultivator, he wouldn't have such an abundance of True Qi to squander.

As Ding Fan anticipated, in the next moment, the Elder indeed retracted the Divine Turtle Defense, his face showing signs of exhaustion.

At this moment, the Black-Robed Elder looked at Ding Fan with great shock. Ding Fan was unchanged, his breathing steady, and his aura becoming increasingly profound. The Elder was greatly surprised. As a Spirit Severing Stage cultivator, the Elder clearly knew that the martial skills Ding Fan and himself had just performed consumed a lot of True Qi.

Even the Elder himself felt exhausted, with a noticeable lack of True Qi in his dantian. However, Ding Fan had performed an offensive martial arts skill, meaning his consumption should be even greater, especially since Ding Fan was only a Nascent Soul Mid Stage cultivator. Using True Qi to power the previous attack was already a miracle.

Yet, what the Elder couldn't expect was that Ding Fan, as a Nascent Soul Mid Stage cultivator, could not only execute that previous attack but now seemed unaffected by it all. This was simply incredible!

The Elder was greatly shocked!

He truly couldn't comprehend how Ding Fan accomplished this! It was simply incredible!

At this moment, the Elder's gaze towards Ding Fan had completely changed from before; there was no trace of disdain, only a grave expression as he looked at Ding Fan. In the Elder's eyes, Ding Fan was not a simple Nascent Soul Mid Stage cultivator but his greatest adversary in life!

The Elder knew that being able to execute martial arts attacks and remain as Ding Fan did was a rare occurrence. Even Spirit Severing Stage cultivators probably couldn't achieve this. The Elder could only surmise that Ding Fan's True Qi was so dense it was unbelievable!

Immediately, the Elder wielded two giant axes, charging at Ding Fan with a roaring momentum, exuding an unstoppable force!

The Elder had cultivated with these two giant axes for a long time. Although he felt shocked by Ding Fan, there was no fear in his heart. No matter how talented Ding Fan was, he was merely a cultivation prodigy. To the Elder, killing the remnants of the Dayang Sect's geniuses was the most satisfying endeavor!

Each of the Elder's axes weighed nearly three hundred pounds, yet in his hands they seemed as light as feathers, moving at an incredibly fast speed, clearly unmatched by ordinary cultivators. At this moment, Ding Fan watched as the Elder charged with his two giant axes, but he did not dodge; instead, he wielded his flying sword and attacked the Elder.

"A reckless brat!"

Seeing Ding Fan also charging towards him, the Elder disdainfully shouted. Then, his two axes swung down towards Ding Fan with a fierce and powerful momentum.

Although Ding Fan was rushing towards the Elder, his steps weren't as one would commonly understand. They were filled with unpredictability, as if treading on stars, making his pattern impossible to grasp and his next stepping point indeterminable. The Elder's two giant axes immediately swung into empty space.

At this moment, Ding Fan had somehow circled to the Elder's side, and his sword thrust towards a vital spot near the Elder. Seeing this, the Elder was greatly shocked, clearly not expecting Ding Fan to have moved to his side. Watching Ding Fan's flying sword approach menacingly, the Elder furrowed his brow and quickly dodged to the right!