Chapter 1136: He's Here

During the first wave of attacks, Wu Yuan only unleashed the simplest soul assault from his Dream World, attempting to overwhelm the opponent with sheer power.

The mana and ether bodies of the eight Overlords were only at the second-stage or third-stage Overlord level, and none possessed Xiantian artifacts for soul defense. Thus, Wu Yuan annihilated them with a single thought.

As for the two Perennial powerhouses, though their mana bodies were only at the fourth-stage Overlord level, their spirit and will were much stronger due to the influence of the Great Dao’s essence. Most importantly, they both carried Xiantian artifacts for soul defense. Naturally, they could withstand Wu Yuan's simple attack.

But can you withstand the Myriad Rebirths Tribulation?

Wu Yuan unleashed his strongest killing move.

The reason Wu Yuan didn't use an eternal ultimate technique at first was that he wanted to test his current strength.

An attack launched from the Dream World was like an eternal powerhouse crushing a sempiternal lifeform with overwhelming mana.

Secondly, soul attacks couldn't be used infinitely. The more powerful the soul secret art, the greater the burden on the spirit and soul. It would consume one’s psyche energy. And just like ether and mana, psyche energy could only be slowly restored once depleted in battle.

Whoosh~

The soul attack moved faster than spacetime fluctuations, instantly enveloping the two Perennial powerhouses.

"Defend."

"Resist." The two Perennial powerhouses fled frantically, yet could not escape. The attack hit, and terrifying soul waves impacted their spirits and souls.

A flash of fear appeared in the eyes of the two Perennial powerhouses, followed immediately by a dazed look.

"This?"

The two Perennial powerhouses felt themselves plummeting into an endless hell. Vivid nightmares tormented them one after another, causing them to lose themselves almost instantly. Just as they regained some clarity and tried to struggle, they would be submerged by newer and stronger illusions in the next moment. There was simply no escape.

With their spirits affected, their flight speed involuntarily decreased sharply.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

Wu Yuan and Overlord Lan Yan tore through layers of mist, rapidly approaching their opponents. In just one breath, they had almost closed the distance.

These two Perennial mana bodies can’t break free from Young Master's soul secret art even after a full breath?

Overlord Lan Yan was completely astounded.

In her understanding, when powerhouses fought, soul secret arts were mostly supporting methods. It was already impressive if they could affect the opponent slightly during battle.

When powerhouses clashed, life or death was decided in an instant. A breath? With one side immobilized for such a long time, one could kill their opponent even if there was a tenfold difference in direct combat strength.

It didn’t kill them directly?

Wu Yuan frowned slightly, shaking his head inwardly.

It makes sense. Myriad Rebirths Tribulation ultimately leans more towards confusing the opponent through illusions, unlike the sharp and ruthless nature of the Psyche Arsenal class.

The Psyche Dream class tended towards layers of dreamscape deception, supplemented by physical attacks to completely annihilate the opponent. It was a more balanced way of attacking.

The Psyche Arsenal class, however, involved forging a weapon in the mind. Those in this class wielded extremely powerful offensive capabilities and their methods were more extreme - succeed or perish.

These were two different schools of thought.

Secondly, these two Perennial powerhouses have Xiantian artifacts equipped for soul defense, so their souls are well protected.

If I master some of the powerful killing moves in the Eternal Dream Codex and combine them, perhaps I could kill them from afar with a single thought.

Wu Yuan was not very satisfied with his performance.

Perennial? In Wu Yuan's mind, Perennial powerhouses were no longer much of a concern. Currently, his true opponents were the Saints who had pioneered their own Daos, and even True Saints.

"Lan Yan, go kill them all," Wu Yuan said casually.

"Me? Kill them?" Overlord Lan Yan was stunned.

"This is the glory of slaying Eternals." Wu Yuan smiled slightly. "Go on."

"Alright!" Overlord Lan Yan nodded, not declining. She thought Wu Yuan's powerful secret art was placing too great a burden on his spirit.

As she flew over, her mana body appeared by her side. Then, her true self and mana body attacked simultaneously, unleashing their full power.

Boom! Boom!

Spacetime shook and heaven and earth changed hues. Two immensely powerful arcane arts, unleashed from two Xiantian artifacts, condensed into two icy streams of light that shot toward the two Perennial powerhouses.

Wake up. Wake up!!

Among the two Perennial powerhouses, one had a higher level of spiritual cultivation and finally regained clarity in this moment of life or death.

He stared at the approaching Wu Yuan in anger and shock before noticing a powerful stream of light hurtling toward him.

The Que Luo Perennial flipped his palm, preparing to activate his artifact to defend. "A mere Overlord dares to..."

"Not good, he's awake?" Overlord Lan Yan revealed a trace of shock.

Hum~

Another wave of soul fluctuations swept over, once again pulling this Perennial who had just regained consciousness into layers of illusions.

If you had an Eternal Psyche, perhaps you could have withstood it.

Wu Yuan stood in the distant void, musing to himself.

If you are able to endure billions of rounds of the Myriad Rebirths Tribulations, you might become completely immune to this soul-extinguishing move of mine.

The more times the same soul-extinguishing move was used, the weaker its effect on the enemy. But this was only Wu Yuan's second time using it against them.

"Die!" Overlord Lan Yan roared.

Boom~

The two streams of light scattered the dense fog like two icy beams spanning heaven and earth, striking the bodies of the two Perennial powerhouses.

They did not put up any defense at all, the attack landing squarely on their battle armor and bodies.

In one exchange, the bodies of the two Perennial powerhouses were completely annihilated.

Though they were Perennials, these were only mana bodies. They were fundamentally qi refiner Overlords, and their bodies were extremely fragile.

The true selves of eternal powerhouses are all well-rounded, with almost no distinction between close combat and ranged attacks. Their bodies are exceptionally tough, and I might not be able to kill them in one move.

Overlord Lan Yan marveled inwardly.

With this, this group of Que Luo powerhouses was completely eliminated by Wu Yuan and Overlord Lan Yan.

Overlord Lan Yan quickly collected the many treasures dropped by these powerhouses and flew back to Wu Yuan's side excitedly.

"Lan Yan, how does it feel to kill Perennials?" Wu Yuan smiled.

"Like a dream," said Overlord Lan Yan. Her clothes fluttered, a rush of exhilaration still coloring her cheeks.

Perennials! Among the tiers of Eternals, they stood at rock bottom and weren't even considered true Eternals in the eyes of many Saints and True Saints. Furthermore, these were just mana bodies. But ultimately, they were Perennials. Tens of thousands of years ago, Overlord Lan Yan could only be called a Sovereign, not even an Overlord.

"It's all thanks to you, Young Master," Overlord Lan Yan said, handing over the pile of artifacts. "Young master, these treasures..."

"Keep them," Wu Yuan smiled.

"Me?" Overlord Lan Yan was stunned at first, then hesitated: "Young Master, I just checked, there are eight Xiantian artifacts here. You're giving them all to me?"

Some mana and ether bodies of the Que Luo Overlords didn't carry Xiantian artifacts. So, all the spoils added up to only eight Xiantian artifacts.

"You killed them, so the spoils are naturally yours," Wu Yuan smiled.

Since returning from the Dream River of Universes, Wu Yuan's strength had transformed, and his perspective and experience had grown. Ordinary treasures simply didn't catch his eye anymore.

Overlord Lan Yan wasn’t stupid. Naturally, she now understood that Wu Yuan asked her to kill the two Perennial powerhouses earlier not because he lacked the ability, but purely to find an excuse to give her treasures.

After a moment of silence.

"Young Master," Overlord Lan Yan shook her head. "To say I'm not tempted by these treasures at all would be a lie. I'm grateful for your generosity, but it's too much to accept without having contributed anything... I'll take two that suit me, and the rest should be yours. Otherwise, I won't feel at ease."

Then, Overlord Lan Yan selected two Xiantian artifacts and insisted on giving the remaining treasures to Wu Yuan.

Seeing this, Wu Yuan didn't reject and waved his hand to accept them.

This was the difference in Dao Hearts among powerhouses. Some cultivators felt that such bestowals were part of their destiny and need not be declined. Some powerhouses, however, felt the karma was too great to bear and couldn't accept it with peace of mind. Overlord Lan Yan was one such person.

They put away the treasures.

"Young Master, you're still a sempiternal lifeform, right?" Overlord Lan Yan asked curiously.

Wu Yuan nodded, "Yes."

"How can your soul technique make Perennial powerhouses sink into delusion?" Overlord Lan Yan stared at Wu Yuan, somewhat incredulous. "Could it be that you've already pioneered your own Dao? And it's a self-created Dao that excels at soul attacks?"

Wu Yuan smiled, his answer somewhat vague: "Perhaps."

Dao pioneering? His qi refiner self had not yet pioneered his own Dao, but once Psyche Dream class powerhouses created a Dream World, all soul-type ultimate techniques they employed could almost be considered Saint-level in a sense.

For Psyche Dream class powerhouses, the Dream World was the foundation, while eternal ultimate techniques were applications of it. The same soul-type eternal ultimate technique, when supplemented by Dream World attacks versus without the support of the Dream World, were two different concepts.

"Perhaps?" Overlord Lan Yan's eyes sparkled. She immediately assumed this meant that her young master had already pioneered his Dao, but was simply unwilling to reveal it.

"Don't worry, Young Master. I definitely won't spread this information," Overlord Lan Yan vowed.

Wu Yuan chuckled inwardly, knowing that Overlord Lan Yan had misunderstood, but he couldn't be bothered to correct her.

"Young Master, what about your current power level?" Overlord Lan Yan asked curiously, with a hint of excitement: "Surely it's no less than that of Devil Emperor Xia from the Abyss, right? He became a legend of the River first, but you can make Perennial mana bodies fall with a single thought. Perhaps you could even slay Devil Emperor Xia with a mere thought."

In Overlord Lan Yan's view, Devil Emperor Xia may have become a Legend of the River, but he was still just an Overlord. His spirit and will might not be particularly strong.

Comparing me to Devil Emperor Xia?

Wu Yuan was taken aback for a moment, then smiled and said: "Below the level of Saint, whether it's a true self, mana body, or ether body, I can fight them all.

"But Devil Emperor Xia? I probably still can't defeat him," Wu Yuan said with a smile.

"Is Devil Emperor Xia really that powerful?" Sovereign Lan Yan grew more astonished. She didn't doubt Wu Yuan's words at all.

Wu Yuan remained silent.

Though his two true selves followed different paths, their consciousness was one. His body refiner self possessed an Eternal Psyche, and while not adept at soul attacks, the experiences of his qi refiner self had greatly bolstered his defenses against such assaults. He also had the projection of the Ancestral Pagoda guarding his Yuan Soul.

In truth, if his two true selves were to battle, his qi refiner self would undoubtedly suffer a crushing defeat, only able to rely on Spacetime techniques to survive. This wasn't to say his qi refiner self was weak, but rather that his body refiner self was a perfect counter to it.

"The Dao Master would be overjoyed to learn of Young Master's current power," Overlord Lan Yan said with a sigh. "Young Master need not worry. That Devil Emperor Xia from the Abyss surely cultivated for countless eons to reach his current level. Even if you can't match him now, you'll certainly surpass him given enough time."

"Perhaps," Wu Yuan said casually.

"Young Master, where shall we go now?" Overlord Lan Yan asked. "Shall we return?"

"No," Wu Yuan shook his head, his eyes gleaming with a spark of light as he said: "Lan Yan, didn't you just mention Devil Emperor Xia?

"Devil Emperor Xia achieved the feat of becoming a Legend of the River in the Abyss. Today, it's my turn," Wu Yuan said with a smile. "Let's go."

Overlord Lan Yan was stunned for a moment, instinctively asking: "Legend of the River? Young Master, what are you planning to do?"

"Kill a few Saints."

...

Less than ten billion li from Wu Yuan and Sovereign Lan Yan was a majestic mountain over a hundred million li tall.

"Two Perennials. Eight Overlords, all dead? Their souls were annihilated?" Saint Ye Xing and Saint Dong Luan of the Que Luo race were utterly shocked, their faces etched with a hint of fear.

"He's already here," Saint Dong Luan spoke abruptly, his voice heavy with gravity as he turned to look at the roiling mist.