Chapter 1692: One Force Defeats Ten Skills

"Haha, boss, this place looks beautiful. It would be a great spot for a peaceful retreat."

Long Kun, oblivious to any tension, seemed completely unbothered. His greatest strength was his unwavering composure, never intimidated no matter the opponent's power or status. This fearless spirit was precisely what Xu Yang admired most about him.

This illusion was likely a trap within the opponent's dream realm, yet Long Kun showed no inclination to avoid the danger. He simply watched the unfolding scenes before him with a calm expression.

"Oh? So, you're thinking of retiring from the world of cultivators? Are you planning to leave the cultivation realm behind?"

Xu Yang teased him in return. He knew perfectly well that Long Kun's ambition was to follow in his footsteps, to become the second most powerful individual in history, surpassed only by Xu Yang himself. How could someone with such aspirations simply stop cultivating?

However, the reply Xu Yang received made him frown slightly.

"Of course! Boss, what's the point of cultivating? I absolutely despise it! Why not just retire to the mountains here, spend my days fishing, enjoying the sea breeze, watching the sunrise and sunset? Wouldn't that be a much better option?"

Unbeknownst to Long Kun, the moment Xu Yang heard those words, he realized that Long Kun had lost his true self. His mind had been hijacked by the dream realm, creating thoughts utterly unlike his usual demeanor.

Xu Yang offered no further explanation. He simply smiled, ceased their conversation, and calmly surveyed his surroundings. Soon, the sea breeze began to sweep deeper into the island, brushing against Xu Yang and his companions' skin.

It was then that Xu Yang subtly sensed that the very sea breeze caressing them seemed to carry an incredibly potent spiritual energy.

Xu Yang's next task was to halt this pervasive energy and expose the soul essence concealed within the sea breeze.

"Since you've arrived, you may as well stay. I detest such pointless deceptions and pretense in my presence. If you dared to show yourself before Xu Yang, then you should be prepared to face death. Otherwise, this choice will condemn you to a truly pathetic existence."

As Xu Yang finished speaking, the Hanquan Divine Artifact materialized beside him. Without any conscious mental direction, the Hanquan Sword autonomously unleashed an icy aura that silently froze the entire island, preventing the sea breeze from continuing its deceptive spiritual attacks.

Predictably, once the island beneath Xu Yang and his companions transformed into a true world of ice and snow, the surrounding wind-elemental forces became utterly ineffective.

Wind elements, upon encountering the frozen landscape, were utterly incapable of altering the solidified ice.

This potent freezing power also temporarily incapacitated Xu Yang's teammates, limiting their mobility and allowing their minds to settle. Crucially, this frost originated directly from the Hanquan Divine Sword itself.

Xu Yang aimed to use this power to minimize the negative impact of the mental interference on his teammates.

Xu Yang's strategy proved remarkably effective. Once his companions were completely encased by the biting cold, the spiritual energies concealed within the space immediately lost their targets and began to drift aimlessly above the island.

The scattered spiritual energies continued to coalesce above the island until they formed the distinct outline of a complete soul entity. Only then did Xu Yang cease the flow of frost energy from the Hanquan Divine Artifact. He then stepped into the air, positioning himself in the void above the island, directly confronting the newly formed spiritual being.

"Heh, don't you enjoy these deceptive games? Why have you stopped? Or perhaps, under my frost power, you've lost the ability to exert your full capabilities?"

Xu Yang's words were a clear taunt directed at the powerful spiritual entity before him. Yet, the entity remained serene and unaffected, offering no emotional response to Xu Yang's sarcasm. It merely continued to gaze at him with a placid expression.

"Your power is immense. Even if our cultivators of the Tongyuan Imperial Clan multiplied our numbers tenfold or a hundredfold, it would still be difficult to gain an advantage against you.

"Therefore, to avoid repeating the fate of the Yanyu Imperial Clan, we conceived of creating these illusory barriers to halt the invaders.

"Our original intent was to use these barriers to assemble enough power to decimate a portion of the demonic beast warriors you brought. However, your foresight appears to far surpass our estimations. You chose to enter this illusory realm with only these few individuals. It seems you intend to challenge the entire Tongyuan Imperial Clan by yourself?"

Xu Yang chuckled. "Is there something wrong with that? Your tricks might have some minor effect on people like Long Kun, but against me, they are as futile as a mantis trying to stop a chariot, or an ant attempting to shake a tree. They hold absolutely no meaning.

"In the face of absolute power, an illusion is nothing but a joke. Unless you possess top-tier experts whose spiritual power surpasses my own, what true purpose do such tricks serve?"

As Xu Yang finished speaking, to demonstrate the true weight of his assertion, he gently waved his palm. A powerful force shot forth, directed at the boundless ocean beyond the island.

Even more astonishingly, the power Xu Yang unleashed upon the endless ocean this time was a concentrated burst of fire-attribute energy.

Any cultivator would know that water and fire are elemental forces inherently opposed to one another. When two such powers clash, the one with the greater fundamental strength naturally gains a decisive advantage.

Yet, Xu Yang did the unexpected. From his palm, he unleashed a Nine Li Fire, sending it forth to engulf the vast, endless ocean. The sheer disparity in the concentration of elemental power caused the spiritual entity before him to gasp in astonishment.

For he clearly witnessed a cluster of flames, over three feet high, emanating from Xu Yang's palm, ignite the entire, boundless ocean.