Yuan’s Ascension

Had they been separated by a thousand li, the red-robed youth might have had a chance to react when Wu Yuan unleashed his attack. As a ninth-stage Void Refiner cultivator, he could have mustered some sort of defense.

But a mere three hundred li? It was far too close.

With the assistance of his lifebound Teng Snake and mastery of the Law of Space, Wu Yuan’s burst speed was truly terrifying to behold.

But the most critical factor was: the red-robed youth never imagined that a ninth-stage Shambhala phase cultivator could threaten his life. The gap between them spanned an entire cultivation phase, after all. How many powerhouses had the red-robed youth slain?

By all logic, even the top peerless genius of the Greenridge Immortal World shouldn't have been capable of such a feat.

As for artifacts capable of instantly killing a ninth-stage Void Refiner? Those would cost at least a hundred divine crystals, more valuable than the entire fortune of some Earth Immortals.

"Retreat!" The red-robed youth's face contorted in terror, veins bulging at his temples as he desperately attempted to flee, his speed rapidly slowing.

Simultaneously, fiery rainbow light enveloped his body as spirion chains lashed out towards Wu Yuan.

"Get lost," growled the silver-armored giant, his fury palpable. His hand swelled to monstrous proportions, striking at Wu Yuan like a colossal serpent.

In this moment between life and death, their coordination was flawless, both unleashing their full power.

But alas, they were facing Wu Yuan!

Whoosh! Eight blades swung through the air, unleashing dazzling blade rays that clashed violently with the giant's palm.

Blade rays split the heavens! The palm fell like a collapsing sky.

Splat! After a lightning-fast collision of over ten blade rays, the giant palm was left a mangled, bleeding mess. The silver-armored warrior's confident expression crumbled, replaced by disbelief and terror as he stared at Wu Yuan.

It was too horrifying. The sharpness of those blade rays, and the sheer destructive force behind them, far surpassed his own abilities. He felt his vital qi churning violently within his body.

Whoosh! The silver-armored giant was sent flying backward like a meteor, struck by Wu Yuan's full-powered assault.

Impossible! He's only at the ninth-stage Shambhala phase. The silver-armored giant's mind reeled with shock. Even with a battle saber and supporting artifacts, he should have been easily suppressed by me.

The gap in their base mana was enormous. Yet Wu Yuan had overwhelmed him.

Could his Dao comprehension rival that of a High Immortal? No, that's absurd. Perhaps only one or two such monstrous prodigies would exist in the entire immortal world.

Still, his saber techniques were truly breathtaking, among the most beautiful I've ever witnessed.

The silver-armored giant had experienced countless battles. His mind raced, arriving at two conclusions. First, Wu Yuan's Dao comprehension level was incredibly high, possibly rivaling late-stage Earth Immortals, marking him as one of the most monstrous prodigies in existence. Second, Wu Yuan must have some hidden artifact enhancing his power.

His deductions weren't far off. Normally, even the top-tier geniuses of the Fourth Origin Eldritch Field could only unleash power equivalent to the seventh or eighth-stage Void Refiner phase. They certainly couldn't overwhelm him like this!

However, this was indeed Wu Yuan's full power unleashed. When the third-level True Intent stage of Celestial Body combined with the first-level True Intent stage of Longevity, along with a hint of True Domain’s profundities, it rivaled the fifth-level True Intent stage of an Intermediate Law.

This level of Dao comprehension was respectable even among High Immortals.

Combined with Wu Yuan's foundation, which bordered the Elysian Field phase, it naturally erupted as terrifying combat power surpassing the ninth-stage Elysian Field phase.

Flee! Shocked, the silver-armored man realized he had messed with the wrong person. He retreated frantically, abandoning the red-robed youth without hesitation.

Clang! Clang! Clang! The series of saber techniques launched by Wu Yuan sent the silver-armored youth flying, then his blade rays shattered through layers of flame.

Rip! Chains were sliced apart.

Wu Yuan completely dominated the fight! He completely overpowered the red-robed youth, who desperately tried to escape but found himself trapped by waves of unrelenting blade rays, leaving him struggling frantically!

However, the red-robed youth wasn’t weak. His arcane arts and artifacts posed significant challenges to Wu Yuan.

Boom! Boom! Boom! The domain of flames clashed against the merged domain of Celestial Body and Longevity.

Blade rays and chains collided, shockwaves rippling outward in all directions.

Another bizarre blade ray flashed, avoiding the final chain and striking the red-robed youth's outer armor in a shower of sparks.

Though the armor remained intact, the terrifying impact was far beyond what any qi refiner's physical body could withstand. It instantly reduced him to ashes!

Suddenly, an invisible ripple radiated from the red-robed youth's remains.

"Ha!" Wu Yuan's eyes narrowed. His Soul Will instantly condensed into needles, exploding outward in all directions.

The second step of the soul secret art 'Soul-extinguishing Needle' – Scattered Needle Form!

"Ah!" A soul screamed in agony before falling silent. The artifacts that had been trembling nearby instantly stilled.

Hmph! A ninth-stage Void Refiner cultivator thinks I wouldn’t know the 'Yuan Soul Embryo Secret Art'? Wu Yuan's gaze was as cold as ice.

Body refiners, with their powerful physiques, were extremely difficult to kill. Meanwhile, as qi refiners cultivated to higher levels, their self-preservation abilities grew stronger.

For Earth Immortals, even if their physical bodies were destroyed, they could swiftly reconstruct them as long as their Yuan Souls escaped.

High Immortals who cultivated multiple Yuan Soul lights were even more terrifying. They could survive with just a fragment of their Yuan Soul.

As for ninth-stage Void Refiner cultivators, most of their souls reached the limits of Soul Will. By cultivating certain secret arts, they could start anew if they found and possessed a suitable body quickly enough.

If it were other Shambhala geniuses facing this technique, they might have been helpless. However, while Wu Yuan's body refiner self wasn't as proficient in soul secret arts as his qi refiner self, this was only a relative comparison.

He had achieved some mastery of the 'Soul-extinguishing Needle.' With his body refiner self's soul cultivation at the peak Soul Will level, destroying the soul of a Void Refiner without a physical body was child's play.

As these thoughts flashed through his mind, Wu Yuan's gaze swept into the distance.

The silver-armored giant had long since fled without a trace. Wu Yuan hadn't planned on pursuing him anyway. With the giant's powerful ninth-stage Elysian Field cultivation, killing him would be extremely difficult.

Wu Yuan might not be able to slay him even after battling for hundreds of thousands of li. Even Earth Immortals would struggle to kill a ninth-stage Elysian Field cultivator in a single strike.

It's a pity that in terms of attack power, my body refiner self is indeed slightly weaker than my qi refiner self right now. Wu Yuan shook his head slightly. If it were my qi refiner self, forming a sword domain, I could probably have shredded both of them in two or three exchanges.

His choice of grand ether art, the 'Great Eldritch Divine Body,' gave Wu Yuan's body refiner self powerful self-preservation abilities. Yet, it inevitably sacrificed his offensive capabilities somewhat. It was difficult to have the best of both worlds.

His body refiner self's immortal root was slightly weaker, and his qi refiner self specialized in sword cultivation.

Of course, in terms of self-preservation ability, his body refiner self was stronger than his qi refiner self.

I wonder what treasures this fellow left behind. Wu Yuan waved his hand, collecting the various artifacts left by the red-robed youth, then began examining them with his Soul Force.

As he inspected the items, Wu Yuan quickly assessed their value. He estimated that the majority of the artifacts and minerals combined were worth over ten billion catties of ethercrystal. This was no small sum for a Void Refiner phase cultivator, but it meant little to Wu Yuan.

What truly delighted Wu Yuan was: There are actually 240 second-grade Thunder Beast Stones? Wu Yuan was pleasantly surprised.

With a thought, a dense cluster of Thunder Beast Stones floated before him. Each second-grade Thunder Beast Stone represented a slain thunder beast elite. This was already an astonishing number.

Indeed, plundering has always been the fastest way to acquire treasures. Various thoughts flashed through Wu Yuan's mind. Although this red-robed youth was powerful, he shouldn't have been able to kill so many thunder beast elites in less than half a month. Did he kill other powerful cultivators?

However, those who live by the sword die by the sword. Accumulating wealth through killing others will inevitably lead to one's downfall. Wu Yuan mused inwardly.

Since arriving in the Thunder Marsh World, Wu Yuan had never considered actively killing other immortal cultivators.

Wu Yuan's guess wasn't far off. In reality, the silver-armored warrior and the red-robed youth had formed a team, with the red-robed youth holding onto most of the treasures they had acquired. During their usual battles, the red-robed youth was far safer, only providing support with ranged attacks. Little did he expect to encounter Wu Yuan.

With more than two hundred Thunder Beast Stones, I should be able to complete half of that Thunder Beast Diagram. Wu Yuan mused, waving his hand to store the stones.

In a flash, Wu Yuan flew straight through the canyon, continuing forward.

Those two were from the Phoenix Immortal Sect. Wu Yuan pondered as he soared.

During the gathering of the six major sects, he had memorized the general soul auras of everyone present, especially the Earth Immortals and Void Refiner/Elysian Field powerhouses. Thus, it was easy for him to identify them.

They seem to have blocked this path intentionally. Wu Yuan's gaze swept over the scattered remains near the canyon wall.

It appears Area 3’s Dao pattern diagrams should be just ahead. Wu Yuan felt a glimmer of anticipation.

The reasoning behind this deduction was simple. Why else would the red-robed youth and the silver-armored warrior guard this specific spot if it wasn't a crucial passage?

Moreover, according to the map, this location was indeed very close to the stone walls in Area 3.

My only concern is whether that ninth-stage Elysian Field cultivator will seek assistance from the Earth Immortal of the Phoenix Immortal Sect and retaliate? The thought flashed through Wu Yuan's mind.

It was entirely possible. As for revealing his strength? Wu Yuan wasn't particularly worried about that.

In the Eldritch-Immortal Battlefield, they were restricted by invisible rules and every move they made was under the scrutiny of two major camps, forcing them to rely solely on their own strength to kill enemies, thus easily exposing their true abilities and potential.

But this expedition was different. While treasures that enabled one to kill cultivators from higher phases were rare, they were still far more common than a ninth-stage Shambhala cultivator erupting with power close to an Earth Immortal with their personal strength.

That ninth-stage Elysian Field cultivator will likely assume I'm a peerless genius who has grasped the True Intent of an Intermediate Law and used some terrifying secret treasure. Wu Yuan thought calmly.

It was difficult to transmit information during this expedition, but even if the news did spread, it was unlikely that his display of power would draw attention from the higher-ups.

In real-world battles, all sorts of bizarre occurrences were as common as hairs on a cow. How many immortal continents were there in the entire Greenridge Immortal World? Over ten million! Even if some Archimmortals or Astral Lords learned of this, they might not care.

Moreover, forget Archimmortals, even if this ninth-stage Elysian Field cultivator left the Thunder Marsh World, he might not have the means to relay the information to a High Immortal.

Besides I still have my cover identity as a disciple of the Autumn Lake Hall. No need for explanations; they'll naturally fill in the blanks. Wu Yuan thought as he transformed into a streak of light, shooting into the distance.

What truly concerned Wu Yuan was potential retaliation from the Earth Immortal of the Phoenix Immortal Sect who had joined them on their expedition to the Thunder Marsh World.

By Wu Yuan's estimation, a sect that occupied one-sixth of an immortal continent's territory would have at least tens of thousands of Void Refiner/Elysian Field powerhouses.

The loss of one was neither insignificant nor too alarming.