The night sky of the Melded Lands began to undergo a subtle change. The darkness did not recede, yet stars appeared overhead that should never have existed.
Aside from that, there did not seem to be much difference, as if merely serving notice that the surroundings had been manipulated.
Chen Chuan did not let his guard down. Looking unchanged did not equate to being unchanged, for there was no telling whether what you saw was still the original thing.
Furthermore, he knew well that certain alterations could work imperceptibly.
Besides, environmental changes, even when known to be false, were not without effect on a person.
This was especially true for the mind and field. Once you grew accustomed and adapted to these illusory elements, if they suddenly shifted in some way, it was enough to provoke fleeting micro-adjustments in body and mind—and in combat, such an adjustment could easily become a fatal opening.
Naturally, these were not difficult for him to overcome, but their intended purpose likely went beyond what met the eye, warranting caution.
He stood quietly where he was. How the battle would unfold would depend on the circumstances; he would first see what his opponents chose to do.
Soon enough, he found out. Multiple figures of Yuan Congye and Tie Rugan appeared across from him, every one of them exuding an identical field and aura, making it impossible to distinguish the real from the false at a glance.
One also had to consider that with the aid of relics, the illusions might not lack combat capability.
From the very beginning, their objective had been clear: centered on Yuan Congye's aberrant power, so long as Chen Chuan's attack landed on him, subsequent strikes of that kind would be rendered useless.
Once the man had weathered all of his attack methods, he would be free to launch an uninhibited offensive.
With multiple identical figures arriving and attacking simultaneously, achieving that goal would undoubtedly be accelerated.
However, it would not be so easy.
Chen Chuan fixed his gaze on the figures ahead and projected his mental power toward Jiang Linghuai and Mu Xiaoren.
"Both of you, fall back for now."
Jiang Linghuai and Mu Xiaoren retreated without hesitation, though they did not pull too far away.
Without knowing the truth behind the enemy's illusions, there was no need to force a confrontation. Both understood that even as pawns, they should be used where appropriate rather than throwing their lives away for nothing.
Watching those indistinguishable phantoms draw nearer, Chen Chuan shifted his intent. The Pure Spiritual Light upon him abruptly radiated outward, centered on him, enveloping a vast expanse. For a moment, it seemed as if half the sky were illuminated.
No matter what changes the enemy made, once they entered the radiance, even if illusions could not be instantly cleared away, the truest power among them would inevitably be perceived under the scouring brilliance.
Thus, he could ensure he intercepted the opponent before their attack struck.
Seeing this, Yuan Congye could not help but sigh inwardly.
Whether from the fragments he had witnessed earlier or the firsthand impression gained from clashing with Chen Chuan, he could sense that Chen Chuan's capabilities were extraordinarily comprehensive. Whether in close or ranged combat, detecting enemies or breaking them, he possessed every tool—and crucially, every single method was remarkably formidable.
Due to his status, he had never previously traded blows with Great Shun's Xuanji martial artists. Yet during his past travels across the Western Continent, he had encountered formidable experts of the Visage of Man. Even so, he had never met someone of the Visage of Man who was so powerful as to inspire a feeling of near-invincibility.
Worse still, this man was backed by a nation far mightier than the former imperial house. There was no telling what hidden trump cards he still held in reserve; up to now, they had failed to draw them out, leaving them unable to fully press their advantage.
Amid his thoughts, their figures entered the Pure Spiritual Light one by one. Though they did not vanish because of it, the moment he saw Chen Chuan's gaze sweep over, he knew he had been recognized.
The instant their eyes met, a tremor ran through his heart, yet excitement surged along with it. Such a mighty opponent inspired dread, yet simultaneously stoked his fighting spirit to a boil.
In truth, whether those phantoms could affect Chen Chuan did not matter, so long as they restrained the other two. That would ensure that each time, the one clashing with him was Chen Chuan.
And each clash between them, each attack he endured, meant stripping away one of his opponent's offensive capabilities.
Closing into point-blank range in a breath, he braced his arms and thrust an unadorned spear straight at Chen Chuan.
Yet at the very instant it was about to strike, Chen Chuan vanished from his sight. Immediately after, a crushing impact slammed into the side of his head and face, and everything in his vision receded at breakneck speed.
This meant he had been blasted far away once more. Yet he did not care in the slightest; instead, amid his composure, a thrill of success surged through him, for it meant his "Fixing Mountain Form" aberrant power had been triggered again.
Chen Chuan had knocked him flying with an elbow. No sooner had he finished the motion than Tie Rugan surged in from the flank.
Although Tie Rugan likewise had multiple phantom avatars, his real body had nowhere to hide beneath the Pure Spiritual Light. He was fully prepared to be sent flying again; the vacancy left after his expulsion would be filled by the others.
Yet the moment his axe hacked down and clashed with the long saber, the force surging into his body did not propel him away—it pinned him firmly in place.
His expression changed abruptly; he knew he was facing a situation similar to Yuan Rong's.
Just as that thought arose, several consecutive strikes cleaved into his body.
And this also caused the field of the Yuepinlong, with which he was linked by ritual, to radiate outward.
Chen Chuan's eyes flashed; this was precisely what he needed.
He had already realized that their ability to withstand his attacks depended on the creature hiding behind them. Unless he dealt with it, he would be unable to inflict genuine harm upon Yuan Congye and Tie Rugan.
Almost the moment he sensed that location, he swung his saber. A spiritual impact erupted from the blade, driving against Tie Rugan and hurtling him outward.
Because Tie Rugan was currently sustaining continuous damage, the field connection between them remained active, which conveniently gave Chen Chuan a line to exploit.
Opening his other palm toward that position, another beam of spiritual impact surged straight for it.
Yet halfway there, a figure flashed into view—Yuan Congye had stepped in to block it.
After being blasted away earlier, Yuan Congye had already anticipated Chen Chuan's likely tactics. Instead of returning to the fight, he had moved as close as possible toward the exposed field's location, arriving just in time.
Because he had already been struck by Chen Chuan's spiritual impact before, receiving the same attack now would have no effect on him; as long as he stood in the beam's path, he could stop it.
Yet at that very moment, the spiritual impact arriving before him abruptly divided, skirting around his body like flowing water.
Though he had witnessed this trick before, such an attack fell into the category where one was helpless even when fully aware. The speed of a spiritual impact was simply too great—so fast that without anticipating it in advance, one could not react in time.
Behind him, however, another person seemed already prepared, waiting in position beforehand. Thrusting both hands forward, an equally intense light erupted from his palms and collided with the spiritual impact.
The two forces locked together in dead earnest. Although this person was pushed backward step by step as the spiritual impact pressed relentlessly toward him, he managed to barely hold it off.
Chen Chuan glanced at him, recognizing the newcomer as another member of the imperial clan, Yuan Zhao.
He was not surprised that the enemy had deduced his target, nor that someone had stepped forward to intervene. What slightly surprised him was that this man could accurately intercept his spiritual impact and block it head-on.
An aberrant power or the effect of a relic? It was impossible to tell at the moment. However, if the spiritual impact acting upon Tie Rugan dissipated, the field connection with the aberrant creature in the rear would break, and resolving it would have to wait for the next exchange.
He had no desire to wait until then. Thus, at this very moment, he decided to employ the second relic bestowed upon him by Great Shun.
The function of this relic was to imbue an object he released with the full power he possessed in his current state.
It did not care what he projected, so long as it did not exceed his own size; whether tangible or intangible, anything was viable, even a single breath.
Once activated successfully, this power would remain attached to the object for several breaths. In ordinary hands, it had little utility, but for him, it was an extraordinarily potent auxiliary item. One could say its effectiveness depended entirely on the user's own strength.
The only catch was that it could be used only three times in short succession, requiring an interval of one hour after the third use.
Frankly, he did not believe this battle would last an hour, so three times was effectively the maximum he could muster here.
The key now was what to project. If it were his avatar, it would undoubtedly maximize combat potential. Yet the enemy relic's restrictions were aimed primarily at him, leaving him uncertain whether an avatar would also be constrained, since theoretically, it was still him.
For safety's sake, he chose the prismatic object he had carried with him all along. With a shift of thought, it shot forth instantly, trailing a slender, straight beam of light across the night sky.
Imbued with his power, its speed was so blistering that no one could track it clearly. In virtually a flash, it reached the position of that field and plunged straight inside.
Ripples spread across the atmosphere as the mental power attached to the object forcefully tore open the field, instantly breaching within.
And at the same time, through the attached mental presence, Chen Chuan finally saw clearly what lay inside.
Chapter 1405