Supreme Alchemist-Chapter 2401 - 2391: Suppression

"Hmph, you’re indeed getting a bit cocky."

Looking at Long Yan, the old lady’s face showed a trace of anger. This kid had successfully provoked her. It seemed that giving him a lesson was inevitable. She resolved to show him what the real world was like.

With a gentle wave of her hand, the surrounding scenery seemed to be painted with vibrant colors, as if touched by an unseen brush. Xiong Lie, who had been standing still, suddenly rushed forward.

"Is this the Azure Dragon’s Mysteries?"

Azure Dragon’s Mysteries had always been one of the signature techniques that followed Long Yan. His understanding of it was unparalleled. Just now, the old lady had tampered with it, extracting one fleeting moment while unraveling the technique.

One might wonder, what could one fleeting moment achieve?

The answer was that this fleeting moment was enough to determine the outcome of the battle. That was why Long Yan had no reaction to Xiong Lie’s sudden assault. By the time he realized, Xiong Lie’s punch had already landed on his face.

This heavy punch nearly shattered Long Yan’s bones. His body was sent spinning through the air. Luckily, there were no others around, or they might have assumed that Long Yan had been killed by this punch.

Long Yan’s body wasn’t that fragile. He could distinctly feel that, had it been an ordinary person’s body, it wouldn’t have been able to withstand Xiong Lie’s punch. It seemed his fantasy world body had undergone some training, but the results were so poor he’d abandoned it.

Bodies differ from person to person. Some develop late, others early. While the rigorous training in the past seemed useless at the time, it had nonetheless made his physique tougher than that of an ordinary individual.

"Dead already?"

Evidently, Xiong Lie was rather satisfied with his punch. He believed that an ordinary man like Long Yan must have had his skull crushed by it and saw no need to check. Surely, he thought, the kid must be dead.

"Let’s go."

As Xiong Lie turned to lift Lingxi off the nearby stone bench and return to the Emperor Clan, a voice emerged from the ruins.

"Leaving so soon?"

Then, a wobbly figure emerged from within the ruins. Although his clothes were torn, Long Yan’s body showed no obvious injuries, and he walked out as if nothing had happened.

"You’re quite sturdy, aren’t you?"

Xiong Lie clicked his tongue disdainfully, standing once again before Long Yan. He felt disappointed that one punch hadn’t killed him outright, but it didn’t matter. One punch, or a few more—Xiong Lie was confident he could end Long Yan. If issues arose, he could leave them for the Emperor Clan to handle.

"You really shouldn’t have stood back up."

Although Long Yan seemed fine on the surface, his whole body was aching fiercely. That punch was simply too powerful for his current physique.

"Perhaps."

Ignoring Xiong Lie’s provocations, Long Yan repositioned himself for battle, crouching like a leopard ready to strike. This stance originated from a technique he’d discovered in the Seven-Star Hall’s manuals—a form of immortal martial arts that didn’t require True Qi. Despite his body’s lack of strength, his speed was nothing to scoff at, likely honed from countless escapes in the past.

"Interesting."

Xiong Lie waved his hand dismissively, signaling for Long Yan to attack first. He intended to kill the boy with his next strike and rid himself of this persistent nuisance that was silently increasing his workload.

Long Yan’s figure abruptly vanished from where he stood, rocketing toward Xiong Lie like a shell. Without True Qi to enhance the immortal martial technique, its attacking power was limited. Hence, Long Yan banked on speed for victory.

As Long Yan charged forward, Xiong Lie smirked under his mask. To him, this move by Long Yan was riddled with flaws. Just as he extended a hand, preparing to punch Long Yan away like before, the boy suddenly disappeared right before his eyes.

"What?"

Xiong Lie’s face filled with disbelief. The kid had vanished in front of him. A moment later, he felt a sharp pain in his abdomen and saw Long Yan appear before him, delivering a palm strike to his stomach.

Although Xiong Lie was a seasoned fighter, repeated blows to the abdomen were immensely uncomfortable. Even he was forced to retreat several steps. These steps, however, gave Long Yan an opening.

After all.

Hesitation leads to defeat.

No one noticed that Long Yan’s pupils had turned golden. Xiong Lie’s vulnerabilities appeared strikingly clear to him. The sealed White Tiger’s Secret had activated on its own, seemingly accompanied by enhancements.

Now wasn’t the time for Long Yan to dwell on the White Tiger’s Secret. With a flurry of attacks, Xiong Lie finally regained himself, launching a punch imbued with force and wind toward Long Yan. Even the gust stirred by the punch stung Long Yan’s face.

However, in the golden gaze of White Tiger’s Secret, Xiong Lie’s hasty counterattack was riddled with openings. Long Yan countered by striking Xiong Lie’s shoulder. His move exploited the flaw in Xiong Lie’s technique. Under the astonished eyes of Xiong Lie’s companion, Long Yan’s punch sent him staggering back three steps.

This time, Xiong Lie’s gaze toward Long Yan carried a trace of fear. How had this youngster perfectly struck the weak point of his technique? Could this be sheer luck?

Long Yan, who seemingly looked like a delicate youth, had somehow seen through his practiced "Giant Bear Fist."

No, there was more to it.

Xiong Lie reviewed the entire battle in his mind. As one of the Emperor Clan’s Twelve Guards, he realized that he had been suppressed by Long Yan throughout. Whenever he tried to counterattack, Long Yan’s precise strikes forced him to retreat, making him abandon his intended offensive.

"It seems this kid isn’t ordinary."

Though the fight was simple on the surface, it embodied rare finesse that few could discern. Even Xiong Lie’s companions barely understood a fraction of it.

"Consider yourself lucky today."

Xiong Lie glared at Long Yan bitterly. This delicate-looking youth wasn’t as ridiculous as the rumors suggested. Supposedly, Long Yan wasn’t skilled in either literature or martial arts, but here he had defended against countless blows in merely a third of an incense stick’s time. Could such a person truly be a useless weakling?

At this point, Xiong Lie wanted to head to Chang’an City and slap the rumor spreader across the face.

With one last threat, Xiong Lie prepared to retreat to the Emperor Clan. He stepped back and vanished into the night. This youngster was no ordinary foe—he needed to report the encounter to the clan leader immediately.

Updated from fr𝒆ewebnov𝒆l.(c)om