The invisible palm blade struck Long Xuan'en with an explosive boom! It had not cut directly into his skin, but had been blocked by his Body-Protecting Astral Force. Long Xuan'en stepped forward, shattering the gold bricks beneath his foot.
Ji Feihua did not lunge straight at him. Instead, he coiled like a spirit serpent around one of the hall's dragon-carved pillars. Two deafening cracks rang out as the Coiling Dragon Pillar broke at both ends. It was thick enough for a grown man to wrap his arms around and a hundred feet long. There were nine such pillars in the Spirit Firmament Palace, symbolizing supreme authority and the sovereign's exalted rank. Now these emblems of imperial dignity were being turned against the Retired Emperor, Long Xuan'en.
Ji Feihua hurled the Coiling Dragon Pillar, weighing several thousand pounds, like a javelin. The force of that throw shook heaven and earth, enough to breach the strongest city gates in the world.
The Retired Emperor's skin continued to darken. Watching the Coiling Dragon Pillar hurtle toward him, he snorted coldly, bent his muscle-knotted right arm, and smashed his fist into it. His fist struck the pillar's center, which caved in at a speed visible to the naked eye. Cracks spread rapidly from the point of impact, and the pillar disintegrated as though it had exploded, filling the Spirit Firmament Palace with dust. Night rain drifted through the great hole torn in the roof. Wang Qian floated down into the palace like a dead leaf on the wind, striking out nineteen times in succession with both hands. His withered palms fluttered like butterflies, tracing chaotic paths that ultimately overlapped into one. The phantom images filling the air transformed once more into a giant palm that descended upon Ji Feihua.
Ji Feihua laughed long and