"Du Ying practices a technique that is the divine skill passed down through generations of the Demon Sect leaders—Breathless Skill." Cao Qin, watching the battle from afar in Broken Soul Gorge, explained to the four players beside him with a calm expression, "The name of this martial art sounds quite ordinary, but in reality, it is an extremely profound and superior martial art. If one cultivates this skill to a state of great accomplishment, their inner energy will be like a surging river, endless and inexhaustible. The practitioner can rely solely on the qi in their dantian to remain active for three days and three nights."

"Hmm… sounds… a bit like the Xuanwu Meditation (i.e., Turtle Breath Technique) of Wudang…" Feng Bujue interjected from the side.

"No, it's far from it," Cao Qin refuted. "Xuanwu Meditation emphasizes 'stillness,' concealing breath like a turtle, calming the mind and spirit, and focusing awareness… It's clearly a Taoist inner energy technique." As he spoke, he raised his hand and pointed at Du Ying in the distance. "The Breathless Skill that Du Ying practices is an authentic Demon Sect technique. This type of martial art requires the practitioner to reverse the meridians and release their divine consciousness… to seize the creation of heaven and earth and use external qi for their own purposes."

Hearing this, Hua Jian, who was quite knowledgeable about the world of martial arts, asked with doubt, "Reversing the meridians… wouldn't that be dangerous?"

"Heh… of course, it is," Cao Qin said with a smile. "According to common sense, those who reverse their meridians… at best, will suffer internal and external damage; in the middle, they will become possessed by demons; and at worst, they will explode and die."

"Ex… explode…" Xiao Tan widened his eyes as he spoke.

Cao Qin didn't respond to him, but continued, "Demon Sect martial arts, for the most part, deviate from the orthodox lineage, and many even go against the traditional principles of martial arts… Therefore, they are regarded by people of the righteous path as 'evil arts' and 'demonic arts,' and are slandered and scorned." He revealed a hint of disdainful smile, "Hmph… but in reality, those who can create this type of 'heretical' technique are the true unparalleled geniuses."

"Well, I completely agree with that," Feng Bujue added.

Upon hearing this, Cao Qin turned his head and glanced at him, his eyes seeming to say—"Is Feng Zhuangzhu praising himself?"

Two seconds later, Eunuch Cao continued, "If a martial art can only lead the practitioner to become possessed by demons or explode and die, then who would practice it? The truth is… it's still a matter of the person. Because the people who created those martial arts were too talented, so the extraordinary skills they created could only be mastered by people with great talent; however, in this world, there are ultimately more people with mediocre qualifications. Especially those so-called righteous people, most of them are pedantic and dull, and they are particularly fond of being narrow-minded and complacent… If a skill like Breathless Skill fell into their hands, then it would naturally be something that would only lead to becoming possessed by demons."

"Then…" Ruo Yu asked at this moment, "What realm has Du Ying's Breathless Skill reached now?"

Cao Qin picked up the wine pot hanging from his waist, took a sip, and replied, "About thirty years ago, Du Ying had already cultivated this skill to the eighth realm. In terms of internal energy alone… there was only one person in the martial world at that time who could compare."

"Ha!" Xiao Tan immediately interjected, "That person… must be Eunuch Cao, right?"

"Of course not," Cao Qin replied, "I said, only one person in the 'martial world' could compare. I didn't include people in officialdom and experts in the palace."

"Then…" Hua Jian pressed, "Who is that person? Is it Yuan Qi?"

"Ha…" Cao Qin smiled, "At that time, Yuan Qi was just a lackey, how could he be compared with the Demon Sect leader." Without waiting for the other party to ask again, he paused for a second and said directly, "Thirty years ago, in the martial world, the only person who could surpass Du Ying in terms of internal energy was 'King Yama.'"

"Speaking of which… who exactly is this 'King Yama'?" Feng Bujue took the opportunity to ask.

"Well… I'll tell you when I see her," Cao Qin did not respond, it seemed the timing for the question was not right, "Don't interrupt, I was only halfway through…" He shook his head and continued, "Legend has it… the Breathless Skill has a total of ten realms, but that tenth realm, 'Heaven and Earth Breathless,' has no written record, and only the first Demon Sect leader who created this set of martial arts mastered it. After his death, the Breathless Skill's mental cultivation method was only passed down for nine realms. In later years… the Demon Sect also produced some talents, but they all stopped at the eighth realm, 'Mountains and Rivers Breathless'; so, over time, they believed that reaching the eighth realm could be considered 'complete accomplishment.'"

"Listening to Eunuch Cao's tone…" Feng Bujue's expression changed slightly, "Du Ying is probably beyond that realm, right?"

"That's right," Cao Qin responded, "In today's world, there are three people who have cultivated the Breathless Skill to the ninth realm, 'Ghosts and Gods Breathless,' and Du Ying… is one of them."

"Seriously… You said that no one had been able to reach it for many years… but it turns out that three people in the present world have achieved it?" Xiao Tan exclaimed in surprise.

"Hehe…" Feng Bujue laughed at this moment, "Since Eunuch Cao said 'in today's world' instead of 'in today's martial world,' I presume that one of these three people… is Eunuch Cao himself?"

"Feng Zhuangzhu… is truly exceptionally clever," Cao Qin praised Jue Ge, which was considered an admission. Two seconds later, he said unhurriedly, "Fifteen years ago, the Demon Sect and the Central Plains martial world fought a great battle. The last leader, Liu Xiangru, was killed by Yuan Qi, and the Demon Sect people were almost exterminated. Fortunately… some people survived. Since there was no place for them in the martial world, they decided to defect to the imperial court. And the mental cultivation method of the *Breathless Skill* was the gift they offered to the Embroidered Uniform Guard."

"Eh?" Xiao Tan couldn't help but interrupt when he heard this, "How did something offered to the Embroidered Uniform Guard end up in Eunuch Cao's hands?"

"Heh…" Cao Qin replied, "At first, the thing did fall into the hands of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, and Shangguan Si (the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard) even secretly practiced it for a few months. Until one day when I saw him outside the palace… I faintly felt that the true qi in his body seemed to be in disarray. Upon further investigation, I discovered that he was on the verge of becoming possessed by demons, so I gave him a few pointers. Three days later, he voluntarily presented the *Breathless Skill* and frankly admitted that his aptitude was limited, asking me to 'graciously accept' this divine skill."

"Oh… this Lord Shangguan is quite the player," Feng Bujue complained, "He realized that he couldn't continue practicing, so he used a borrowed flower to offer to Buddha."

"He is a smart man…" Cao Qin said, "He knows very well… some things can be kept even if they are useless; but there are also some things that must be disposed of as soon as possible if they cannot bring benefits, otherwise, they will attract disaster."

At this point, Cao Qin turned his gaze to Yuan Qi: "By the way… speaking of smart people, there is one here too."

"Are you saying… Alliance Master Yuan?" Hua Jian reacted immediately.

"Yes," Cao Qin replied, "Yuan Qi is someone worthy of everyone's respect."

"Ho~" Feng Bujue's tone changed, "To actually receive such an evaluation from Eunuch Cao? It seems that Yuan Qi must be exceptionally gifted."

"Exceptionally gifted?" Cao Qin smiled, "Heh… no, his talents in all aspects are mediocre. But that is precisely why… he is worthy of respect."

…………

While Hell's Frontline was extracting various information from the NPCs, the battle in Broken Soul Gorge… also had new changes.

After a brief confrontation, Du Ying floated down from the high place.

And those people in the valley who had fallen into decline also took advantage of this opportunity to escape the encirclement and retreat to the direction where Du Ying was.

After a few breaths, Du Ying suddenly landed, and not even a trace of dust was raised where he stood.

Such heavenly cultivation made many sect leaders couldn't help but gasp.

"Alliance Master Yuan," Du Ying landed, completely ignoring the people around him, only looking at Yuan Qi, and said, "I've admired you for a long time."

Even though Du Ying's current attire was no different from that of an ordinary farmer, his aura of high popularity was even greater than in his younger years. The aura revealed in his gestures was like a deep pool and a mountain peak; a simple sentence, six words, spoken from his mouth… seemed to weigh a thousand pounds.

"Mister Du," Yuan Qi did not call Du Ying "leader," nor did he directly call him by his name, but instead used a compromise and more polite address, "Logically speaking, I should call you 'senior'…" Although he said so, Yuan Qi did not adopt the posture that a junior should have. He still spoke with one hand holding his sword and the other behind his back.

"Alliance Master Yuan is too polite," Du Ying's voice sounded indifferent and weak, "I am just an old mountain peasant, you are already praising me by calling me 'mister.'"

"Then alright…" Yuan Qi really didn't bother being polite with the other party, "Du Ying, let's cut the small talk…" He asked, "Are you here to stop us?"

"No," Du Ying replied, "I am here to kill you."

"Hmph…" Yuan Qi snorted coldly.

"Burial Heart Valley has its own rules," Du Ying continued, "King Yama allows you to enter, then you can enter; King Yama does not allow you to enter, then you must leave; and if King Yama wants you to die at the third watch…"

"Nonsense!" Yuan Qi interrupted the other party, "We have already entered and don't plan to leave, nor do we plan to die."

"I know," Du Ying said, "So I am here to send you on your way."

"If you think you can… then try it," Yuan Qi was not afraid of the other party, he put his soft sword back into his waist, and continued, "I have said… it is a fortunate thing for me that you are still alive. I have not encountered an opponent like you for many years."

He said this without fear of offending anyone, because those martial arts figures behind him had long recognized him as the number one in the world.

"Good!" At this moment, Du Ying's expression changed, and his restrained aura also erupted in an instant, accompanied by a torrent-like air current sweeping forward.

Yuan Qi stood proudly with his hands behind his back, seemingly unmoved.

But those people behind him suffered, the sect leader level could still manage, it was just a matter of staggering back a few steps, basically, they could still stand firm. But many of those disciple level and second-rate figures in the martial world were shocked to the point of kneeling on one knee with pale faces.

"Could this be… the legendary Conqueror's Haki."

"Well… it might also be spiritual pressure."

Seeing this scene, Feng Bujue and Wang Tanzhi, who were watching from the distant mountain, both vomited a *chuunibyou* style remark.

And their behavior… only earned them contemptuous gazes from Li Ruoyu and An Yueqin.

"Not bad," Cao Qin, after seeing this scene, still evaluated calmly, "Applying force from a distance, like a tide, that is the biggest difference between the ninth and eighth realms. If it is the eighth realm, it can only be applied to the front line." As he said that, he took another sip of wine, "But… he still can't win against Yuan Qi."

Hearing this sentence, everyone in Hell's Frontline except for Feng Bujue, as well as the audience watching the live broadcast, all felt confused.

Judging from the scene, Du Ying seemed to be more powerful than Yuan Qi. After all, his internal energy could affect the fog. And Yuan Qi only showed speed and strength in actual combat, and it didn't feel as impressive as this former Demon Sect leader.

Unexpectedly, at the beginning of the battle, Eunuch Cao made such a statement that seemed to be a final verdict…

Just as he finished speaking, Yuan Qi… made his move.

In front of Du Ying's massive internal energy, speed and skill were useless.

So Yuan Qi's movements were not fast, nor did he use the soft sword to its extreme.

He just used the simplest method, straight to the point, rushing to Du Ying's front, and pointing his finger at Du Ying's dantian.

Before the fingertip arrived, its power seemed to have accumulated infinitely.

At that moment, a look of shock suddenly appeared on Du Ying's face.

He thought that no one would confront the ninth realm of Breathless Skill head-on, because this kind of behavior was like hitting the sea with a fist… No matter how strong the fist was, it could only break the waves for a moment, but the power of the sea was continuous, and the fist would soon be submerged.

However, Yuan Qi unhesitatingly chose this seemingly most stupid approach…

Because he saw through at a glance—the only weakness of the other party's seemingly flawless technique… was precisely its strongest point.

"Unreasonable!" After the shock, what arose in Du Ying's heart was anger.

A person who originally did not like fighting, and was over sixty years old, should not have such emotions. Ordinary people were like this, let alone someone like Du Ying.

But at this moment, Du Ying… was angry. When a martial artist discovered that the realm he had reached with all his efforts had been instantly deciphered by a junior he was meeting for the first time, he would naturally be angry…

Breathless Skill was indeed a very strong martial art, and so was Life Star Mystic Skill.

In the long run, as long as the years of cultivation were long enough, the internal energy of the Life Star Mystic Skill practitioner would definitely surpass the Breathless Skill. But in reality… at least within thirty years, the ninth realm of Breathless Skill was definitely stronger than the Life Star Mystic Skill.

But… strong technique did not mean one would win.

The person was the key to victory or defeat.

Du Ying's talent was very high, and his Breathless Skill was also stronger than Yuan Qi's Mystic Skill, but he had not had actual combat for many years.

Even in those years when he had not yet retired from the martial world, he had not experienced too many fights, because enemies were often directly crushed by his internal energy before they could even make a move.

And Yuan Qi… his combat experience was unmatched by anyone present. In the first few years when he entered the martial world, three or five bandits could have killed him; before the age of thirty, Yuan Qi had already experienced hundreds of life-and-death battles (because even not very strong opponents could have killed him); later, his martial arts gradually improved, and the opponents he encountered became stronger and stronger…

To use an analogy, Yuan Qi was simply someone who had fought his way from street brawls all the way to the world boxing champion. To put it bluntly… in terms of "fighting" ability, Du Ying was far behind him.