Yuan's Ascension
Chapter 1135: I Havent Even Struck Yet, And Youve Already Fallen

Chapter 1135: I Haven't Even Struck Yet, And You've Already Fallen

It was pure instinct. After enduring countless assaults from Mist Dreams, Sovereign Lan Yan immediately assumed Wu Yuan's sudden appearance was yet another deceptive dreamscape trying to torment her.

"Lan Yan, I've come to rescue you. Wake up," Wu Yuan said, unable to suppress a light chuckle at the irony of her disbelief.

Time flowed on.

After exhausting various methods of proof, Wu Yuan finally convinced Sovereign Lan Yan that this was reality. She had truly escaped her predicament, and he had indeed come to save her.

"Young Master, this is Ancient Dream Mountain." Guilt etched itself across Lan Yan's delicate features. "How... how could you possibly come here?" Her expression, combined with her refined beauty, naturally evoked sympathy.

As the saying goes: first, one sees the mountain as merely a mountain; later, one sees beyond the mountain to find no mountain at all. [1]

When Wu Yuan first encountered Sovereign Lan Yan, she was a lofty late-stage Sovereign powerhouse while he was nothing but a small fry at the Amethyst Cradle phase.

Now, as the years passed, Sovereign Lan Yan had become Overlord Lan Yan, yet Wu Yuan's strength had grown to rival that of eternal powerhouses.

The current Overlord Lan Yan still radiated an imposing aura—even stronger than before—but to Wu Yuan, it seemed ordinary. He could even detect the slightest shifts in her emotional state.

"You've addressed me as Young Master for so long, and your current danger partly stems from me," Wu Yuan smiled reassuringly. "Of course I had to come for you. Besides, I only sent my mana body and ether body. Even if I were to perish here, the loss would be acceptable."

"Mana body and ether body?" Overlord Lan Yan shook her head vigorously. "Young Master, Ancient Dream Mountain can potentially affect one's true self."

How could she have failed to research such fundamental information before venturing into such a perilous place?

"Don't worry," Wu Yuan's smile remained steady. "Ancient Dream Mountain hardly poses a threat to me, even if I venture into its core region."

"You would survive even the core?" Astonishment bloomed across Lan Yan's face.

She studied Wu Yuan carefully. The longer she looked, the more extraordinary he seemed. Something fundamental about him had changed.

"Young Master, your spirit?" she asked hesitantly, uncertain of her assessment.

"I have attained an Eternal Psyche and created an eternal ultimate technique," Wu Yuan replied with quiet confidence.

Overlord Lan Yan belonged among his closest confidants. His qi refiner self would eventually need to reveal these abilities, making complete secrecy unnecessary.

"An eternal ultimate technique?" She drew in a sharp breath, eyes wide. "Young Master, you've only cultivated for three hundred thousand years! Creating such a technique in that timespan?" Her voice trembled, feeling as if she were still trapped in a dream.

This was beyond legend. This was mythology.

Wu Yuan smiled. Three hundred thousand years? In truth, his qi refiner self had cultivated for over a hundred million years before crafting the eternal ultimate technique.

"Lan Yan, your aura tells me you've become an Overlord," Wu Yuan observed.

"Yes." She nodded. "Some fortunate encounters in Ancient Dream Mountain allowed me to upgrade my root. I can now be considered a true Overlord."

Her Dao comprehension had already reached the ninth-level Dao Field stage of Spacetime. Now, with her breakthrough in root degree, she stood as a genuine Overlord.

"However, I can't compare at all to Young Master," she sighed.

"Once you become an Overlord, eternity becomes possible," Wu Yuan reminded her. "On the path of cultivation, it's wisest to focus on your own progress. How did you fare on this Path of Dreams?"

As they talked, Wu Yuan gained a clear picture of Overlord Lan Yan's ordeal.

Wu Yuan himself had spent hundreds of millions of years on the Path of Dreams and the Path of Light combined before finally escaping the Dream River of Universes.

Overlord Lan Yan's experience differed. She too had carried a fragment of the white stone and been transported into a Path of Dreams.

The Path of Dreams existed as a real environment. Thus, Overlord Lan Yan had been trapped for just over thirty thousand years.

However, her talent and accumulated knowledge fell far short of Wu Yuan's. Throughout those thirty-plus thousand years, she had advanced constantly along the Path of Dreams, repeatedly encountering the Mist Dreams but never breaking free completely. The experience had nearly broken her spirit, explaining why she had initially mistaken Wu Yuan for another dreamscape.

"This rare experience has tempered your will," Wu Yuan said with approval. He flipped his palm suddenly. "Take these."

Whoosh! Five white stone fragments flew toward Overlord Lan Yan.

"These?" Shock registered on her face. "Young Master, weren't these fragments obtained by the Que Luo race?"

When competing against the Que Luo race for treasures, Overlord Lan Yan had exerted all her strength to obtain just one fragment, and she still didn't know it was part of the white Nüwa stone.

"Some Que Luo powerhouses blocked my path while I was coming to rescue you," Wu Yuan explained casually. "I killed them and claimed these. They're fragments of the white Nüwa stone, an object left by Goddess Nüwa herself.

"In the future, if you're interested, you can explore some of Goddess Nüwa's relic sites with these fragments," he suggested.

Having obtained the White Stone Essence, these few fragments held negligible value for Wu Yuan. Though the white stone, red stone, and other fragments possessed special properties, their greatest worth lay in serving as tokens, providing protection when exploring the many sites left behind by Goddess Nüwa.

"Young Master, shouldn't I give you my fragment instead?" Overlord Lan Yan shook her head.

"No need. Though valuable, this item serves little purpose for me now. The fact that you obtained it suggests you share fate with it," Wu Yuan insisted. "Keep it."

Eventually, Overlord Lan Yan accepted.

Wu Yuan's reasoning was straightforward. Among the many Ling Jiang Universe powerhouses he maintained good relationships with, few Overlord-level individuals were truly close to him. Overlords like Xin Ya and Jiang Meng were considered good friends, but their bonds lacked depth. Overlord Lan Yan was different; their connection ran deep. Naturally, Wu Yuan wanted to help her however possible.

"Young Master, you treat me better than the Dao Master himself," Overlord Lan Yan said with a wry smile.

Though she served as chief Sovereign Custodian of the Spacetime Dao Realm, the Dao Master rarely gave her much attention.

"Isn't that a good thing?" Wu Yuan teased with a grin.

"Of course it's a good thing," she took a deep breath and sighed. "It's just that this debt of gratitude grows increasingly difficult to repay."

He had already gifted her a Xiantian artifact. Now he had saved her life and given her the even more valuable white Nüwa stone fragments.

"When I help you, I never expect repayment," Wu Yuan stated simply. "Come, let's leave this place first."

Overlord Lan Yan nodded, following close behind.

Whoosh! The pair transformed into twin streaks of light, racing through the dark passage until they reached a spacetime rift.

"Passing through this rift will take us back to the outer region," Wu Yuan remarked casually.

Overlord Lan Yan didn't question him, unable to sense anything herself.

As they plunged into the spacetime rift, ripples of distorted reality undulated around them. Crossing through a realm of pure darkness, the world shifted, and they emerged into the vast expanse of the outer region.

Dense, endless mist surrounded them. Not far away loomed a towering black mountain over a hundred million li high, still emanating an imposing, majestic aura.

"We're finally out," Wu Yuan smiled slightly.

"We're out," Overlord Lan Yan echoed, her eyes shining with genuine joy. When she had fled frantically from her pursuers, she had prepared herself for death.

"Let's go. I'll take you to the Saint Realm passage you arrived through," Wu Yuan said, knowing she must have entered via one of the Saint Realm passages.

Overlord Lan Yan nodded gratefully, not refusing his offer.

Having just become an Overlord, and without creating an Overlord-level ultimate technique, her strength barely reached the second-stage Overlord level despite her Xiantian artifacts. Venturing alone through the depths of the outer region would court disaster.

Just as Wu Yuan chose a direction to lead them away, his eyes narrowed.

"Not good." Alarm flickered across Lan Yan's face. "Young Master, Que Luo powerhouses approach. They've discovered us."

"Yes, I know," Wu Yuan nodded calmly. "Moreover, two Perennial mana bodies travel among them."

"Perennial mana bodies?" Her voice tightened with concern.

To her knowledge, Perennial mana and ether bodies possessed at least fourth-stage Overlord strength.

"Young Master, should we flee?" she asked nervously. Even if Wu Yuan had created an eternal ultimate technique, she reasoned he would only be at fourth-stage Overlord level. They might escape, but victory in direct confrontation seemed unlikely.

"Flee? Why?" Wu Yuan smiled. "Come, let's meet these Que Luo powerhouses."

"What?" Shock rippled through her.

Whoosh! Ignoring Overlord Lan Yan's inner panic, Wu Yuan enveloped her in a powerful surge of mana. They flew straight through the layers of mist, directly toward the group of Que Luo powerhouses rushing their way.

...

In the distant void.

"Is that—?"

"Two Overlords!"

"We've been patrolling this expanse of spacetime, setting up monitoring arrays and detection systems, yet no alerts were triggered. How could powerhouses suddenly appear here?"

"Did they emerge from the mountain?"

"Could they be the ones the Saints are searching for? Quick, intercept them!" Two Perennials and eight Overlords from the Que Luo race transformed into streaks of light, converging on Wu Yuan's position.

Though uncertain if the distant figures were their targets, better to err on the side of caution than let them escape.

The Saints of the Que Luo race had promised compensation even if their mana bodies or ether bodies were destroyed. Thus, filled with zealous purpose, the group charged toward Wu Yuan and Overlord Lan Yan.

As they drew near, recognition dawned.

"It's Devil Emperor Xia's companion."

"The one with him appears to be a target we were previously tasked to hunt." The Que Luo powerhouses hesitated, showing signs of retreat.

They had long known that Devil Emperor Xia and that mysterious Overlord of Spacetime were allies. Devil Emperor Xia possessed fifth-stage Overlord strength—how many ordinary Overlords would dare challenge such power? Without sufficient strength, it would be suicide.

"Send word immediately. Inform the Saints to hurry."

"This battle could be the key to obtaining the treasure." The two Perennial powerhouses dispatched urgent messages to the three Saints guarding this region of spacetime.

Swiftly, all three Saints responded: "We’ll come at full speed. Try to hold them off.”

Though the Que Luo forces halted their advance, Wu Yuan took the initiative, closing the distance between them.

"So many Overlords, and even two Perennials?" Overlord Lan Yan's heart raced with alarm.

The enemy's overwhelming power terrified her, yet she found their hesitation puzzling. With such strength, why did they hesitate to attack?

"Young Master, if we can't hold out, let me stay behind to cover your retreat," she transmitted mentally. "I—"

Her words died as her eyes widened at the unfolding scene.

Before the opposing forces even drew close, an invisible wave emanated from Wu Yuan, sweeping across the vast void toward the Que Luo powerhouses.

"No!"

"Damn it!"

"This is—" Before the Que Luo Overlords could react, the wave engulfed them. The eyes of all eight Overlords immediately dimmed, and they fell silently, without sound or struggle.

In a single thought, eight Overlords perished.

Even the two Perennial mana bodies, with their superior power and more resilient will, showed momentary confusion, teetering on the brink of collapse.

The sight of eight Overlords dying instantly paralyzed Overlord Lan Yan with shock. Those powerful Overlords she was so fearful of just moments before had been slain by Wu Yuan in an instant/

Such a powerful soul secret art. Is it an eternal ultimate technique? Overlord Lan Yan held her breath as she watched. What level has the Young Master's strength truly reached?

Boom! The two Perennials finally shook off the dreamscape's effects.

As their consciousness cleared, they beheld their comrades' perfectly preserved corpses scattered around them. Fear flashed through their hearts instinctively.

"A soul secret art that can slay Overlords? Even Saints would struggle to achieve this." They turned in panic, preparing to flee.

"I haven't even made my move, yet so many have fallen," Wu Yuan's voice echoed leisurely through the void. "You two are thinking of escaping now? It seems a bit late for that."

Boom! Light gleamed in Wu Yuan's eyes as another terrifying spirit dreamscape surged forth to engulf them.

1. In the first stage, a novice sees a mountain simply as a mountain (ordinary perception)

In the second stage, with some understanding, one realizes the mountain is not merely a mountain but a complex of perceptions and concepts (the illusion of conventional reality)

In the final stage of enlightenment, one returns to seeing the mountain as just a mountain, but with a profound understanding of its true nature ☜