Chapter 181

Chapter 181: Illusory Realm

On the desolate site with crumbled walls and collapsing ruins, the leaders of the two sides had already clashed fiercely.

Ma Zhi gripped a giant warhammer, blasting out a blinding golden light, stirring immense power. Wu Gang’s broadsword was crawling with crimson spiritual energy, and as he swung it, blazing flames roared forth.

Simultaneously, a series of magical attacks erupted across the battlefield.

Some unleashed lightning strikes against their enemies, accompanied by sizzling electric crackles. Others were enveloped in golden radiance, their battle spirit rising.

Various offensive capabilities followed without end—water sphere arts, fireball arts, and other attacking methods.

Zhou Luo had been observing all along, silently memorizing the fighting styles of Wu Gang and the others.

For instance, like Wu Gang and his four companions, they were better at close-quarters combat, employing forceful and explosive kinds of techniques.

The brother and sister who joined later were more adept at long-range attacks; they stood toward the rear, periodically unleashing potent surges of spiritual energy.

Moreover, the woman appeared to also be a spiritual symbol master, hence many of her methods relied on the release of spiritual symbols.

What caught Zhou Luo’s attention was Shangguan Qianxue.

Aside from her exceptionally refined sword technique, she also seemed to control some kind of movement technique, allowing her to navigate the chaotic melee with effortless grace.

Time passed, and the battle raged with extraordinary intensity.

Ma Zhi had clearly underestimated the combat prowess of this group.

Initially brimming with confidence, only when the real fighting began did he realize how powerful the opposition was.

However, because of the earlier assault by the formation, all eight had sustained heavy spiritual energy depletion. Facing this chaotic free-for-all, some had already been wounded, one even receiving a sword thrust through the throat.

The victims were the companion who had previously spoken with Liu Tie, and another young man.

Seeing this situation, Wu Gang finally held back no longer.

He painfully summoned a top-quality talisman.

The talisman blossomed mid-air with a dazzling spiritual radiance, unleashing countless blades of light, imbued with immense power, that shot out assaulting all directions in every direction.

The power unleashed by a single top-quality talisman was unimaginable.

Even Ma Zhi was forced to temporarily retreat from its ferocious edge.

Seeing that continuing the fight would not guarantee victory,

Ma Zhi and his men could only retreat in the end, seething with resentment.

Only after consuming one top-quality talisman was the crisis finally averted.

Zhou Luo also took the opportunity to jump down from the large tree and walked towards the group.

Upon seeing his appearance, the others paid him little attention. Only Shangguan Qianxue frowned slightly; a flicker of perplexity passed through her beautiful eyes.

When had this guy left?

As the enemy withdrew, Wu Gang looked at his two fallen companions lying on the ground and gave a deep sigh. Then he retrieved the storage bags from their persons.

No one objected to this.

These two men were his brothers to begin with, and besides, he was the leader.

"I will look after your wives and children,” Wu Gang declared before them, his expression serious.

He then tossed down a Fireball Talisman, completely incinerating the two corpses.

No deep grief followed.

In such a place, death was a commonplace occurrence.

After this ambush, everyone grew more cautious.

Fortunately, aside from occasional attacks from magical beasts, they encountered no further assaults.

As night deepened, Wu Gang suggested they halt to rest.

After all, the Illusionary Forest at night was far more terrifying; the magical beasts lurking within the darkness were far crueler and more dreadful than those active during the day. The slightest misstep could spell their end here.

Wu Gang marked out an area, placed lighting talismans around, and kindled a fire.

In this place, fire could sometimes be more threatening than light.

Zhou Luo and Shangguan Qianxue sat before the flames in silence.

Wu Gang and these two kept watch during the first half of the night, while the others sat cross-legged on the ground, resting with their eyes closed.

Wu Gang sat down heavily beside Zhou Luo and asked with a smile, "Brother Xu, how did you sense the danger earlier today?"

Everyone already knew he had left the formation earlier today.

Wu Gang didn’t seem bothered by this seemingly self-serving action, merely curious how someone at the fifth layer of Qi Refinement could react so swiftly.

"Mainly because I was closer to the edge of the formation. Plus, I know a bit about formations, so I reacted quickly."

"To be honest, I didn’t expect to find a formation here, else I would have warned everyone earlier."

Zhou Luo explained with apparent sincerity.

He genuinely hadn’t anticipated someone would set up a formation there; he had only detected a faint wisp of formation energy, assuming it was a remnant from the Hehuan Sect ruins.

"You’re a formation master?" Wu Gang exclaimed in surprise, his expression turning respectful.

A formation master held significant status within the Longfeng Mountain range.

Take that old man earlier; if not for him, Wu Gang and the others wouldn’t have suffered such heavy losses.

"Just stepped into this field, just entered," Zhou Luo waved dismissively.

Wu Gang, however, beamed with delight. "If Brother Xu is a formation master, things just got much easier."

"What do you mean?" Zhou Luo looked puzzled.

"The place we’re heading has an illusion barrier. I was originally considering forcing our way through with manpower, but with you here, we might just pass through unscathed," Wu Gang lowered his voice.

"I might not be able to manage it," Zhou Luo replied.

"Well, it certainly makes things more convenient," Wu Gang said happily.

Across the fire, Shangguan Qianxue listened to their exchange, deep in thought.

…

The next morning, Zhou Luo awoke.

After packing up, the group continued on their way.

By midday, they finally arrived at the location Wu Gang had called the "illusion barrier."

The entire barrier was enveloped by thick mist, resembling a sea of clouds that isolated it from the outside world.

Lightly scented spiritual energy permeated the mist; one could just barely make out the shapes of exceptionally tall trees inside.

Moving closer, they could see these massive tree trunks covered in moss and ancient runes, seeming to whisper tales of untold history.

The trees boasted luxuriant branches and leaves that shimmered with dazzling, multicolored hues. Against the backdrop of mist and dappled light, the colors constantly shifted, creating a scene like a scroll of brilliant colors.

Far from feeling relaxed by this beauty, everyone wore expressions of serious tension.

Here, they sensed an extremely potent Illusionary Power.

Setting foot inside would inevitably subject them to the barrier’s illusions.

"Everyone," Wu Gang announced, spirits high, "once we traverse this illusion, the treasure will be ours."

His companions, however, shared little of his enthusiasm.

They discerned immense danger hidden within this extraordinary forest.

Seemingly prepared for this reaction, Wu Gang produced several talismans. "These are Ethereal Symbols. Attaching them will shield you from the Illusionary Power’s influence."

Ethereal Symbols were upper-level talismans designed for mental defense, protecting the user from psychic attacks and illusions.

Zhou Luo’s eyes narrowed.

That Wu Gang would bring out such valuable treasures indicated he aimed for something substantial.

Shangguan Qianxue, along with another pair who were siblings, also grew wary.

Wu Gang said little else. "Stay here if you don’t trust me."

"Without the Ethereal Symbols, crossing through would be exponentially harder."

"All I’ll say is that beyond the illusions… there might lie a Hehuan path inheritance."