Chapter 946: Overlord's Grave (2)

When battling other Sovereigns, he had never dared to fully utilize this Xiantian artifact, fearing its secret would be revealed.

In this moment, as if mimicking legends of the creation of worlds, Wu Yuan felt all his insights merging into the saber. Under the pressure of life or death, this was undoubtedly the strongest attack he had ever unleashed. Wu Yuan had even begun to glimpse higher levels of Creation Dao Field.

Whoosh!

The blade ray cut through endless darkness, as if cleaving two worlds apart, striking the incoming Aquaflame astral beast whose eyes flashed with instinctive fear.

Boom!

The domineering Aquaflame astral beast felt a terrifyingly powerful force transmitted from the unassuming black saber as it landed.

This strike was too strong. Even if it grew to maturity, the beast felt it couldn't withstand the blow.

Boom!

This Aquaflame astral beast was sent flying like a meteor, hurtling into the distance.

One strike!

Wu Yuan, who had been at a disadvantage, sent an Aquaflame beast flying with a single blow. This was the might of a Xiantian artifact, imbued with the essence of a Great Dao. Once unleashed, its power was earth-shattering and heaven-shaking.

The other Aquaflame astral beast roared in disbelief, violently swinging its tail to swat away the ether body before lunging at Wu Yuan with lightning speed.

"Get lost!" Wu Yuan's true self swept the saber horizontally. It was a different stance—the previous strike was vertical, from top to bottom. Now it was a horizontal sweep, but the overwhelming momentum remained unchanged.

Fast! Only when this Aquaflame astral beast truly faced this strike did it understand its terrifying might and speed. It couldn't even dodge.

"Roar!" The Aquaflame astral beast howled, desperately swinging its claws, but saw the saber suddenly twisted slightly, avoiding its claws and striking its abdomen. Wu Yuan had anticipated its movements long ago.

Slash!

As the blade ray passed by, the Aquaflame astral beast was sent flying backward, crashing into the river. A horrifying wound was torn across its waist and abdomen, blood gushing uncontrollably. Wounds inflicted by Xiantian artifacts were injuries created by Great Daos. How could they be easily staunched?

At this moment, Wu Yuan's momentum was overwhelming. If his true self barely had the combat power of a third-stage Sovereign originally, he now possessed the might of a fifth-stage Sovereign, perhaps even approaching that of a sixth-stage Sovereign.

Of course, this was because the Aquaflame astral beasts' moves were too straightforward, allowing Wu Yuan to exploit their weaknesses. A true fourth-stage Sovereign powerhouse wouldn't be gravely injured in just two or three exchanges. At equal strength, techniques became crucial.

Wu Yuan's true self pursued the injured Aquaflame astral beast without pause.

Rumble!

Suddenly, the calm river surface churned as the other Aquaflame astral beast that had been sent flying earlier burst out of the water.

Whoosh!

As if anticipating this, Wu Yuan swung his saber backward, once again sending it flying. Blood seeped from its claws.

Splash!

Water sprayed everywhere as both Aquaflame astral beasts' eyes flashed with terror.

The durability of their claws was comparable to artifacts, second only to their skulls in hardness, yet they had been injured. Such an attack was simply too frightening.

"Roar!"

"Retreat, call for our brothers."

"We're no match for him." The two Aquaflame astral beasts roared at each other, then plunged into the river, quickly vanishing from Wu Yuan's perception.

Everything fell silent.

Let’s go.

Wu Yuan's true self and ether body didn't dare linger for even a moment. The two forms merged instantly, transforming into a streak of light, fleeing at full speed in another direction.

According to the Eldritch Court's intelligence, once attacked by Aquaflame astral beasts, if you merely repel them without killing them, they'll soon summon more astral beasts to attack you together.

Wu Yuan was well aware of this fact.

The oldest and most powerful entities in the Aquaflame astral beast race were at the late-stage Sovereign phase.

Wu Yuan surmised that the two he had just encountered were certainly among the stronger of the Aquaflame astral beasts, but likely not the top leader.

Even with a Xiantian artifact in hand, I'm no match for a late-stage Sovereign. If surrounded, I'd surely perish. Moreover, while the Xiantian artifact's power is immense, it drains ether rapidly. While they're gone, I must leave quickly.

Wu Yuan advanced at full speed, approaching one thousand times the speed of light, and even disregarding some of the minor dangers of the Aquaflame Chasm.

This was a common crisis one faced on expeditions. If Wu Yuan's ether body had ventured here alone, it would surely have perished. Wu Yuan's true self, carrying powerful artifacts, was stronger overall, but even now he hadn't completely escaped the danger. Only after leaving the Aquaflame Chasm could he truly have reached safety.

Whoosh!

Wu Yuan sped across the water, fleeing at full tilt for several hours straight before finally slowing down slightly.

After that intense battle and hours of frantic zigzagging to escape, where have I ended up?

Wu Yuan felt a headache coming on.

When running for one's life, hesitation is not an option. Only upon stopping did he realize he had deviated somewhat from the safest route indicated by his intelligence.

The general direction is correct.

Wu Yuan could only confirm this much.

I can only keep going.

As long as he got the general direction right, he would certainly exit the Aquaflame Chasm eventually. And so, he pressed on for another quarter of an hour.

Suddenly, Wu Yuan halted, a flash of fear crossing his eyes as he warily scanned his surroundings.

Danger! Extreme danger.

Since reaching the Sovereign level of Dao comprehension and breaking through to become an Astral Monarch, Wu Yuan's sensitivity to the subtle currents of destiny had reached new heights.

Even though body refiners were relatively less attuned to destiny, Wu Yuan sensed something amiss in his surroundings at this moment.

A chilling dread wrapped around him. It was as if the river water surrounding him on all sides held great danger, instinctively suffocating him. It was as though he were now trapped in a desperate situation, surrounded by enemies who wouldn’t rest until he was dead.

What’s the danger? Earlier, I only sensed the two Aquaflame astral beasts when they were close.

Wu Yuan struggled to calm himself. He hadn’t felt such a stifling sensation in a long time.

The experience of his true self venturing forth was entirely different from dispatching his ether body.

What should I do?

Wu Yuan dared not act rashly.

Hm?

Wu Yuan's pupils constricted slightly. At the very edge of his perception, a massive, hazy island gradually came into view before him. It was lush and verdant.

To call it an island wasn't quite accurate; from what Wu Yuan could sense, it spanned over ten billion li. More chilling still was the fact that this island was moving.

An island? A moving island?

Wu Yuan's heart skipped a beat. This was something that had never been mentioned in the Eldritch Court's intelligence.

When exploring dangerous realms, facing powerful enemies wasn't the most frightening prospect. Even the greatest dangers could be mitigated if one knew of them in advance.

The most terrifying thing was the unknown. The unknown represented the unpredictable.

But Wu Yuan also understood that it wasn't necessarily true that no powerhouses in the Eldritch Court's history had ever encountered this moving island. It was possible that some Eldritch Court powerhouses had encountered it before, but never reported the information. The comprehensiveness of the intelligence archives relied on powerhouses being willing to submit the information they had acquired.

Three directions hold great peril, making even my Yuan Soul tremble. Mysteriously, my only chance at survival seems to lie on that island?

Wu Yuan pondered silently.

There was no other choice. Wu Yuan didn't dare to gamble. After a brief moment of hesitation, he chose to trust the guidance of destiny.

Let's go.

Wu Yuan's form blurred as he swiftly flew towards the moving island.

Hm?

The closer Wu Yuan got, the more he realized that the seemingly modest island was actually expanding, as if transforming into a vast world unto itself.

Whoom~

An invisible wave of energy abruptly enveloped Wu Yuan, causing him to vanish instantly.

In the area where Wu Yuan had just been, deep beneath the calm waters, massive Aquaflame astral beasts lurked.

"This outsider is so lucky? He actually encountered the Void Island?"

"A mere Astral Monarch, yet bold enough to send his true self here."

"We rushed here at full speed through the river passages to utterly annihilate him and avenge our fallen brothers. Yet just as we were about to destroy him, the Void Island appeared?" Nearly a hundred Aquaflame astral beasts communicated amongst themselves.

The two Aquaflame astral beasts that had previously fought Wu Yuan were among them, and were among the larger ones present. However, there were still over a dozen that were noticeably more massive than them.

"Enough. The Void Island is elusive and unpredictable, appearing only occasionally in the river. If we Aquaflame astral beasts enter, it's certain death." The largest Aquaflame astral beast spoke, its voice boundlessly majestic: "But cultivators who enter still face a ninety percent chance of death.

“Disperse, all of you. Don't get caught up in Void Island's power." The Aquaflame astral beast leader intoned gravely.

"Yes." Nearly a hundred Sovereign-level Aquaflame astral beasts all responded in unison, their eyes involuntarily drawn to the distant island, a glimmer of fear visible in their gazes.

From the moment of their birth, generation after generation had passed down legends of the Void Island.

Those who entered were doomed to perish!

...

As the invisible energy dissipated, Wu Yuan felt his surroundings blur before finding himself in another realm entirely.

A canyon? Such powerful suppression.

Wu Yuan observed his surroundings, growing increasingly alarmed.

The suppression he faced in the Creation Dao Realm was terrifying, with its core region preventing even Sovereign powerhouses from entering higher spatial dimensions.

But this appeared to be just an ordinary canyon as far as he could see, lush and peaceful all around. A small stream flowed nearby, while a stone path led into its depths.

However, Wu Yuan found that his Yuan Soul's power, Dao fluctuations, and other abilities could not be manifested at all. The suppression he faced was thousands upon thousands of times stronger than before.

Here, I fear I'm no different from when I was mortal.

Wu Yuan mused with trepidation.

The one reassuring factor was that his perception of the Great Dao and destiny remained unchanged. The connection between his two true selves was still intact.

However, my body refiner self can no longer connect to the Eldritch Court Voidrealm

. Wu Yuan stood motionless, silently pondering:

Could it be that I've fallen into a core area created by the Dao Master?

The Eldritch Court Voidrealm was a voidrealm of the highest grade. Its connection could only be forcibly severed in areas central to the workings of heaven and earth, or realms created by eternal existences. These were all just Wu Yuan's speculations.

Danger seems to lurk in all four directions.

Wu Yuan perceived the surrounding areas. Only the stone path seemed to hold a glimmer of hope for survival.

Let's go!

Wu Yuan could only follow the stone path along the stream, heading towards the tree-shaded depths of the canyon.

Each step he took was slow and cautious, wary of encountering dangers.