The fierce avian swooped down, its wings stirring up a tempest that formed countless wind blades, slicing through the air and howling as they cut across the land where Dongbo Xueying stood. Some of the wind blades slashed toward him, but a black flower materialized around Dongbo Xueying, its petals closing protectively. The wind blades struck the black flower, causing it to tremble as if on the verge of collapse.
Instead of being alarmed, Dongbo Xueying felt a surge of excitement. “What a formidable creature! My ‘Illusory Realm Manifestation’ technique from the Path of the Illusory Realm isn’t primarily focused on direct combat, yet these moves still possess the strength of an ordinary Cosmic God. The mere wind blades generated by this bird’s wings are so powerful—its direct combat prowess must be at least at the second level of Cosmic God!”
This killing technique, born from the fusion of illusion and reality, was something he had studied during his Chaos Realm days. After advancing to the Cosmic God level in the Void Path, Dongbo Xueying had largely abandoned such techniques. After all, even with further refinement, they would likely only reach the second level of Cosmic God, as the Path of the Illusory Realm was never particularly suited for direct combat. Investing more time in it would have been wasteful.
“Finally, a living creature in this world,” Dongbo Xueying thought with delight.
*Hum!*
With a single thought, the Illusory Realm enveloped the fierce avian. The creature, initially wild and frenzied, suddenly grew listless, its eyes dimming. Its body crashed into the ground with tremendous force, sending up a shower of heavy gravel—no small feat given the density of the material.
“Strange,” Dongbo Xueying frowned slightly. The avian’s consciousness had been dragged into the Illusory Realm, but its mind was only slightly more advanced than that of a beast. In its memories, it had encountered humanoid figures—some it had devoured outright, while others it had fled from, sensing their overwhelming threat.
The avian’s long lifespan yielded little useful information, though it did contain fragments of human warriors being grievously wounded or shouting in defiance before being consumed. From these scattered phrases—numbering in the thousands—Dongbo Xueying quickly deduced the language of this world.
Yet, the insights gleaned from these fragments were pitifully few.
“It knows so little,” he mused. “No matter. I’ll let it go.” With another thought, Dongbo Xueying released the avian’s consciousness—manipulating such a simple mind was trivial for a master of the Illusory Realm like himself.
The avian, sprawled on the ground, stirred groggily. Upon spotting Dongbo Xueying, it recoiled as if facing a nightmare, flapped its wings frantically, and vanished into the distant horizon as a streak of light.
Dongbo Xueying watched it disappear, deep in thought. “In its memories, none of the human warriors it encountered could teleport. Is instantaneous movement difficult in this world?”
As a supreme expert of the Void Path, teleportation was second nature to him. Yet here, many principles of the Void Path clashed with this world’s laws—even his formidable body, forged through Hunyuan refinement, was crumbling.
“No point dwelling on it,” he decided. “First, stabilize my body.”
His avatars in the Heart Realm Continent and the Chaos Void had long since identified a solution. While many principles of the supreme Void Path were incompatible with this world, some still functioned. The plan was to use these compatible principles as a foundation, extrapolating further rules that aligned with this world.
Moreover, he needed to simplify the “Hunyuan Body Refinement” technique. The simpler the method, the less it would conflict with the world’s laws.
A body reconstructed entirely from compatible principles would face no resistance—but it would also be far weaker. Thus, he sought a balance between strength and stability.
This, however, would take time.
—
A grand ship soared through the clouds, its luxurious deck manned by vigilant soldiers. Two young women stood at the railing, gazing at the vast wilderness below. In the distance, a shimmering lake hosted massive “Desolate Beasts” drinking from its waters.
“The Great Wilderness is breathtaking,” remarked the woman in light blue robes, admiring the sunlit landscape. “I wish I could roam it freely like my elder brother once did.”
“Milady, the Great Wilderness is perilous,” her green-clad maid cautioned. “The tribes that survive here are few and struggle daily against the Desolate Beasts. Venturing alone would require at least Divine Monarch strength—something even the Young Master has only recently achieved at the peak.”
“Xier, are you implying I’m not strong enough?” the blue-robed woman retorted playfully.
“With your noble bloodline and the City Lord’s guidance, becoming a Divine Monarch will be effortless. But for now… yes, you’re still lacking,” the maid teased.
“You’re getting bolder, mocking your own mistress,” the woman huffed, though her smile betrayed her affection. They had grown up together, their bond as close as sisters.
As she savored the wilderness scenery, the ship’s formidable presence deterred any Desolate Beasts from approaching.
“Look!” the blue-robed woman suddenly exclaimed, pointing. “There’s someone down there!”
Her maid followed her gaze. “Indeed! How unusual.”
—
Dongbo Xueying sat cross-legged on the barren ground, noting the approaching ship. Unlike the earlier avian, no Desolate Beasts dared harass it.
“After half a day of deductions, I’ve barely stabilized my body at the supreme combat level,” he sighed. Using the few compatible Void Path principles, he had simplified the “Hunyuan Body Refinement” technique. Yet, even this pared-down version still contained conflicting elements.
Without them, he couldn’t have devised a sufficiently potent method in such short time. Anything weaker would have been unacceptable.
“At least my body is temporarily stable,” he mused. “There’s minor internal collapse, but my natural regeneration outpaces the damage.”
His physique now hovered at the threshold of supreme combat prowess—a far cry from his previous invincible, near-Imperial level. Worse, he had to constantly suppress his injuries.
“Further refinement will take time,” he acknowledged.
*Whoosh—*
The ship descended, hovering above him. The blue-robed woman peered down curiously, while a stern elder materialized beside her. “Third Young Lady, exercise caution,” the elder warned. “Those who wander the Great Wilderness are often lawless. Maintain your distance.”
“Steward Yun, something feels off about him,” the woman pressed.
The elder’s third eye—a vertical slit in his forehead—glowed emerald as he scrutinized Dongbo Xueying. “Hmph. His strength barely reaches Divine Monarch level, and his injuries are severe. A fledgling Divine Monarch daring to roam the Great Wilderness? Foolhardy.”
“He’s hurt—we should help him,” the woman insisted. “Out here, Desolate Beasts could attack at any moment.”
“You’re too kind, Third Young Lady,” Steward Yun sighed. “We know nothing of his—wait.” His third eye flared brighter. “He hasn’t condensed a Divine Heart? Reaching Divine Monarch through pure body refinement? And… I sense no bloodline aura. He’s not native to the Divine Realm—he’s an Ascender!”
“An Ascender?”
“Rare indeed for someone from the lower realms to reach our Divine Realm!”
Murmurs spread across the deck. Ascenders were a rarity in the Divine Realm.
“An Ascender, without a Divine Heart, yet attaining Divine Monarch through body refinement alone,” Steward Yun mused, a smile creeping onto his face. “Third Young Lady, perhaps your compassion is warranted. Such a talent is worth aiding.”
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