Now, seeing a man in black armor, black robes, and with a black face from the opposing side whose mere appearance boosted the morale of the Imperial Dynasty's army, and who had the audacity to attack their general, several of the State of Meng's deputy generals shouted in unison, "General, be careful! You shameless Imperial Dynasty thieves, how can you be so brazen as to gang up on our general..."
As they shouted, two men from the State of Meng's forces unleashed several sword strikes at their opponents, forcing them back, before throwing themselves toward Li Yan's battle.
But just as the generals from the State of Meng rushed to the rescue, the four Imperial Dynasty deputy generals who had been besieging the silver-armored general suddenly scattered with loud laughter at the very moment Li Yan arrived.
Two of them intercepted the first two deputy generals from the State of Meng who had rushed over. The rest, including Li Yan's personal guards, had already dispersed to find their own battles, leaving only their Marshal Li to fight the State of Meng's silver-armored general alone.
As they scattered, an Imperial Dynasty soldier was already laughing and cursing, "You southern barbarians, when our Marshal Li makes a move, he fights alone. Even with several hundred of you, you'll end up as nothing but headless rolling gourds."
"How could they possibly know the divine might of our Marshal? As if he would deign to besiege anyone..."
Li Yan's powerful smash and the dispersal of the deputy generals all happened in the same instant. Both sides moved extremely fast. Li Yan hadn't gotten a clear look at the opposing general's face, but he seemed very young.
Under the siege of several men, he had not only held his ground but had fought with increasing valor, his movements swift and darting. The four Imperial Dynasty deputy generals had been unable to form an effective offense against him.
Meanwhile, the silver-armored general of the State of Meng had spotted Li Yan when he was standing and observing with Cui Feng from dozens of zhang away. It was just that Li Yan had always dressed simply.
The armor he wore was one he had forged when he was a Captain-Commander, and he had never replaced it, at most having it repaired. Thus, it was difficult to tell from his appearance that he was a high-ranking general.
However, Li Yan's years as a superior had endowed him with an overwhelming aura. So, even if he just stood there casually, he would draw attention. Coupled with Cui Feng's cautious demeanor by his side, the silver-armored general had a rough idea of his identity. He had long heard of Li Yan's great name and had some knowledge of his appearance.
This was mainly because, in addition to his reputation for being the bravest in the three armies, Li Yan was even more famous for his status in the martial world. He was revered by all martial artists as the current "Martial Saint." In just over thirty years of cultivation, his martial prowess was unparalleled in the world.
Although Li Yan mostly made his name killing enemies on the battlefield, as far as the martial world knew, he had only fought in public three times. But in just those three instances, he had successively defeated the three most elite, peerless masters of the Transformation Realm, making his fame unmatched for a time.
The silver-armored general was a martial arts prodigy in his own country. Though only in his twenties, his genius-level aptitude had allowed him to enter the ranks of the world's most elite martial artists—the Transformation Realm—at a young age.
He had long heard of Li Yan's great name, but unfortunately, after those three appearances, Li Yan no longer participated in any martial arts hero assemblies. He had searched for several years but could not find him. Of course, he did not dare to recklessly barge into a military camp to challenge Li Yan.
This time, when the State of Meng used a surprise force from the west, he volunteered to lead the troops. Firstly, the western route was difficult to traverse; it was a place where even birds couldn't fly, and many areas had never seen human footprints. It required him to use his exceptional martial arts to clear a path in advance, setting up ropes and wooden planks.
Secondly, of course, was his desire to see if he could encounter Li Yan this time. Upon seeing him today, he had already confirmed his identity. He had been planning to shout a challenge, but his opponent had come to him on his own accord.
At first, he was extremely disappointed. His opponent didn't even give a greeting and joined the other four in a combined attack.
He thought he had mistaken the person. How could a Martial Saint do such a shameful thing? But then, the shouts of "Marshal" from the enemy soldiers reached his ears.
He raised an eyebrow, about to voice his scorn, but unexpectedly, the enemy seemed to be in perfect coordination. The moment Li Yan attacked, the others scattered.
The silver-armored general felt a heavy gust of wind above his head and knew this person possessed extraordinary divine strength, but he didn't take it to heart. He pressed the tip of his tongue against his upper palate, and all the internal power in his Dantian surged into his arms. He raised his great spear horizontally, intending to test just how formidable this "Martial Saint" of the world truly was.
Seeing his opponent neither dodge nor evade his smash, Li Yan smiled faintly.
By now, he had seen the silver-armored general's face and was momentarily stunned. But it was only for a moment. The great halberd in his hand did not slow in the slightest. With his combat experience, he had long reached a state where he could remain composed even if a mountain collapsed before him.
Li Yan had caught sight of a fair face beneath the silver helmet. A downward-pointing silver spike from the center of the helmet obscured the bridge of the nose and part of the cheeks, revealing only a pair of clear black-and-white eyes and a jade-like complexion.
He couldn't help but praise inwardly, 'Whose son is this? Truly handsome beyond compare.'
With a muffled thud, the sound, though not echoing throughout the surroundings, seemed to strike the heart of everyone within a dozen zhang, causing their hearts to contract violently.
Many soldiers, in the heat of battle, stole a glance over. The Imperial Dynasty soldiers wore expressions of excitement, while the State of Meng soldiers showed shock and worry.
Li Yan's fearsome reputation had long been drilled into the heart of every soldier from the State of Meng. This man was like an insurmountable ancient mountain, forever blocking their path of advance.
If the Imperial Dynasty weren't already besieged on all four sides, this man would have likely led his army straight to the capital of the State of Meng.
But the soldiers of the State of Meng also had great confidence in their own general. They had heard that their general's martial arts were also unparalleled in the world. Especially on this expedition, under his leadership, those perilous cliffs that even monkeys couldn't tread were often scaled by their general alone, who would then lower ropes for them to cross.
His exceptional martial arts had long won their wholehearted admiration.
However, they had still lost over five hundred men on the journey. But these soldiers from the State of Meng did not harbor the slightest complaint against their general.
If not for him, their thousand-man team would have all been lost in the mountains before even getting halfway.
The silver-armored general felt an almost irresistible force travel up his arms. They went numb, and an indescribable discomfort filled his chest.
His body, originally straight as a halberd, sank. He quickly arched his back and took several steps back in retreat.
As he retreated, he left several deep footprints on the hard ground.
After retreating a few steps, the silver-armored general finally stabilized himself. When he looked at his opponent again, his heart was filled with utter horror.
He admitted that he had been a bit careless just now, using only seventy percent of his internal power. But seeing the other party's relaxed expression, holding the halberd with one hand, its tip pointing diagonally upward, how could he remain calm?
Li Yan was clearly taking it easy. His attack just now was like a casual, single-handed swing, yet he couldn't even block it.
'Is he naturally strong, or has his internal power reached the pinnacle of this world?'
A trace of doubt flashed across the silver-armored general's handsome face. After all, he was also a Transformation Realm master. He didn't believe that two masters of the same realm could have such a vast disparity in power.
So, he still believed that Li Yan was just naturally strong, and his superior internal power was due to having entered the Transformation Realm many years earlier.
He secretly regulated his internal breath to resolve the tightness in his chest. Since his opponent possessed astonishing strength, he would just use hit-and-run tactics.
Thus, he once again moved gracefully, his single figure multiplying into ten, then a hundred. His long spear was like a dragon emerging from the water, every strike aimed at Li Yan's vital points. In an instant, the soldiers within a radius of several dozen zhang scrambled to get away, creating a larger dueling space for the two.
But Li Yan just stood there, either holding the halberd diagonally with one hand or blocking with it held horizontally in both. No matter how the spear shadows around him piled up like mountains, he always struck later but arrived first. Just when the spear was about to take his life in the next moment, he would always block it, as if they were old acquaintances.
Just like that, under a storm of attacks, Li Yan, apart from occasionally shifting his feet, didn't move much. He only counterattacked once in a while.
But when he did counterattack, the mountain of spear shadows around him would vanish in an instant. The silver-armored general, not daring to meet him head-on, would have to leap away. His face would grow increasingly grim, and he would then gracefully close in again.
He faintly felt that Li Yan was toying with him. His sculpted face grew colder, and his attacks became fiercer. For a moment, true power surged, and the ground was carved with a crisscrossing network of deep gashes from the sharp spear energy. The soldiers on both sides had already retreated even farther away.
The silver-armored general's attacks were not ineffective. Li Yan's blocks were perilous. With a single misstep, no matter the armor protecting him, a Transformation Realm master's furious strike, with true power channeled into the spear tip, could instantly shatter the armor and run him through.
It wasn't until the silver-armored general had pushed his power to its absolute limit that Li Yan began to move continuously, the great halberd in his hand turning into a black blur.
'This person is no more than twenty, and at my age back then, I hadn't even touched the threshold of the Transformation Realm. From the looks of it, he has been in this realm for several years. What a pity!'
Li Yan had now increased his power to seventy percent, but a sense of regret for this person had already risen in his heart. Such a talent, in another ten years, even he would not find it easy to win.
Although the path of martial arts became more difficult the higher one went, and sometimes years of arduous cultivation might not even yield an inch of progress in internal power, this person could now force Li Yan to use seventy percent of his strength. In this world, apart from a select few, there was no one else who could do that. But those few had been immersed in the Transformation Realm for many years.
Although Li Yan cherished talent, it depended on the circumstances. This was a battlefield between two enemy nations; this was a national feud. How could he let such a huge potential threat remain in the world?
The fight just now was merely his deliberate attempt to see what level of martial arts this person had reached. After all, there were too few masters of the Transformation Realm in this world, and there was no one who could contend with him. Today, he had a rare opportunity to meet a new Transformation Realm master, so naturally, he wanted to see clearly.
After nearly a hundred exchanges, Li Yan knew his opponent's foundation. He immediately shouted, "A fine display, General! But do you really think Li is merely strong? Then let me show you my true methods."
As he spoke, Li Yan violently thrust his halberd upright. With a loud clang, the halberd of refined steel was plunged into the ground.
Although the surface of the ground was only relatively hard gravel, a few inches down was solid granite.
Li Yan's thrust buried the halberd's shaft more than a foot deep into the ground. The display was terrifying.
And what came next was even more astonishing. Li Yan quickly extended his hands to his sides, then hunched his chest and arched his back, before bringing his arms in toward his chest in a sweeping motion.
An unprecedentedly vast and mighty force was generated between heaven and earth, as if he had gathered it into his embrace with a single hug.
Then, with another great shout, Li Yan exhaled and shook his arms. The formless energy in his embrace seemed to condense into a ball and was swiftly pushed forward by him.
At that moment, the silver-armored general happened to be right in front of him, thrusting his spear toward Li Yan's throat.