"The map I obtained is not complete enough. According to the original book, Ji Ning and the Nine Dust Sect Master also went deep into the Yu Xinghai for some reason. However, there is a relatively safe route to return to the Yanlong Domain near the Yin-Yang Life and Death Wheel."
Cao Ya pondered for a moment, of course understanding that the so-called "safety" was in relation to other routes.
In fact, in Yu Xinghai, any place could be the site of a great crisis. The ruler must not be careless or negligent, or things could easily go wrong!
“Illusory Dust Path, Star River Basin…” Cao Ya flipped through the map and found the relevant markings.
Although his current strength is already quite formidable, and he can overcome many dangers head-on, he cannot be too arrogant. Otherwise, he could easily run into trouble and meet his end here.
"Let's take this route! If we're cautious, there shouldn't be any major problems."
Cao Ya whispered, put away the map, took one last look at the vast and magnificent Yin-Yang Wheel of Life and Death in the distance, and then soared into the sky.
Along the way, he encountered many crises that even top emperors would find troublesome.
However, it was already at a level comparable to the Lord of the Holy City, and with the laws surging, it managed to block a great crisis.
However, Cao Ya did not act recklessly; he would not foolishly venture into special areas that needed to be avoided.
"Boom..." Cao Ya narrowed his eyes and stared ahead. A torrent of void surged, accompanied by various traces of the Great Dao, intertwined and entwined, with ancient rune restrictions constantly flowing, filled with killing intent, and unparalleled power, capable of suppressing the Lord of the Holy City. Even if the Sovereign arrived, he would change color!
"This is a deadly formation set up during the ancient war. Even though it is now damaged, it is still designed to kill rulers. Any lord of a holy city who enters it is courting death!"
Cao Ya was wary and carefully took a detour, even if it meant traversing dozens of territories, he dared not venture deep into this remnant formation.
Several days later, Cao Ya continued to tear through the void, traversing countless territories, until he finally arrived at the outer edge of the Illusionary Dust Path.
Ahead, the void is chaotic, with countless fragments of the Great Dao flying and surging, posing a threat to all kinds of experts. Only those above the second level of Dao Lord or ordinary Emperor can come into contact with them!
Meanwhile, deep within the void, there was a magnificent stone road, tens of millions of miles wide and of unknown length, stretching endlessly to the horizon!
In such a harsh environment, there is a stone-paved road that has existed since ancient times, for hundreds of millions of years without being destroyed. Even the most dull-witted person would understand how much danger this stone-paved road contains!
"The Path of Illusionary Dust, an ancient battlefield—an inconspicuous ruin within the Sea of Stars!" Cao Ya sighed softly. Even though it didn't have a great reputation, unlike the ruins in the Star River Basin and other places, it didn't intimidate the various emperors.
However, this does not mean that the Path of Illusion is without danger. According to ancient historical records, some emperors have perished here.
"Buzz!" Cao Ya spread his divine sense, but it could not detect the situation inside the Illusionary Dust Path from the outside.
This is quite normal. After all, in ancient wars, even the rulers were just soldiers. Any seemingly ordinary ruin would have a ruler leading the way, or even a large group of over a hundred rulers!
Even if beings like the ruler of Mangya Kingdom, the Black Emperor, and the Dan Venerable arrived, they would not be able to fathom the secrets of the Illusionary Dust Path from the outside; they would have to go deep inside!
Therefore, Yu Xinghai is hailed as the number one forbidden land in the Yanlong Domain, and even the ruler must be extremely cautious!
Cao Ya is only at the level of an ordinary Holy City Lord, so naturally he needs to be even more cautious.
The only saving grace is that, over the course of hundreds of millions of chaotic eras, many Dao traces, runes, and restrictions have weakened to varying degrees.
Otherwise, Yu Xinghai would not be just a "first forbidden land". Under the rule, no matter what kind of holy city lord, top emperor, ordinary emperor, or the most peak Dao Lord or second-level Dao Lord, you can forget about coming here to venture, risk and try to seize great opportunities!
Throughout history, the Yu Xinghai region has indeed seen many powerful cultivators who have come here to explore!
Remnants of ancient wars, including supreme martial arts, cosmic treasures, and major weapons of war, obtaining just one or two items from any ruin would be enough to dominate a territory and reign supreme over the world!
"Whoosh!" Cao Ya looked at Huan Chendao for a while, and without hesitation, flew directly onto the stone path.
If we were to detour through the Illusionary Dust Path... not to mention the time involved, the ruins in the surrounding area are only more dangerous than those along the Illusionary Dust Path, not worse!
“Buzz…” Cao Ya stepped onto the stone path and hadn’t gone far when suddenly, space distorted, strange characters appeared, and various monsters materialized out of thin air.
These monsters all looked like they were wearing blue armor, and they also had a pair of wings and a pair of protruding golden eyes that were incredibly deep and seemed to contain a world!
“Illusory Dust Life!” Cao Ya’s expression hardened slightly. On the Path of Illusory Dust, there are Illusory Dust characters, which can also give birth to Illusory Dust Life. However, these are not beings like cultivators. They lack spirituality and can only exist by relying on the Path of Illusory Dust!
"Perhaps the powerful being who created this ruin came from a realm called 'Illusory Dust'?"
Cao Ya then thought back to the ancient wars, during which countless realms and alien universes were destroyed.
"Roar!!!" These illusory beings went mad the moment they saw Cao Ya, letting out a shrill roar. Their armor emitted a dense blue light, but it was not the carefree immortal aura; instead, it carried a deep killing intent!
"Of the many illusory beings, only one is real; the others are all avatars. However, their true form can be changed at will, making them very difficult for a normal second-level Dao Lord to deal with!"
Cao Ya muttered to himself, "The bright light is splashing everywhere, and the dazzling light is dazzling. Although it is killing the blue-armored monster, the speed is very slow and the consumption is also very large. If this continues, Cao Ya is afraid that he will not be able to get through even if he exhausts all his energy!"
Seeing this, Cao Ya shook his head helplessly. During his many years in the other universe, he had relied on his understanding of various extraordinary systems to advance the Mingguang Dao to the level of the fourth-step Dao Lord.
However, this is only the strongest path, and it does not fully express the meaning of enlightenment, so it is still lacking.
Therefore, in terms of his own combat strength, he is currently just an ordinary second-level Dao Lord.
Cao Ya was slightly inferior to those top-tier second-level Dao Lords who had cultivated special secret techniques or wielded ferocious divine weapons, let alone the most powerful Dao Lords.
"We still have to rely on other magical powers..." Cao Ya sighed softly.
But then he thought again, what about the ancient immortal methods and chaotic ancient methods of the Perfect World, the secret realm methods of the Shrouding the Heavens universe, the pollen path of the Sacred Ruins universe, the cultivation path of the Supreme Being universe, and the extraordinary systems of universes such as the Immortal Gourd, Stellar Transformation, Panlong, and Primordial Era? Although they are all different, aren't they all ultimately the cultivation practices of Cao Ya in that world?
"Since these are all abilities I developed myself, why bother? As long as there's improvement, I can use them to my heart's content!"
Cao Ya muttered something, but his movements were swift. He unleashed the profound laws of earth, fire, water, wind, lightning, light, and darkness, along with all sorts of secret techniques. Divine light burst forth, and he easily defeated the thousands of blue-armored monsters!
"Buzz..." After being killed by Cao Ya, the corpses of many monsters decomposed automatically, turning into dense particles of light, swirling with blue light, floating down, and re-integrating into the bluestone pavement.
"The trouble with the Illusionary Dust Lifeform is this: even if you kill it, it won't help. All the energy will return to the Illusionary Dust Path without any loss." Cao Ya muttered to himself, not even thinking of taking away the Illusionary Dust Lifeform.
Do you really think that the Illusionary Dust Path only has this one method?
If subjected to severe stimulation, all of them could erupt... that could threaten the ruler!
Cao Ya thought to himself that it was best not to provoke the Illusionary Dust Path, lest something unexpected happen.
Moreover, my Bright Light Dao and the Illusory Dust Life do not belong to the same category of Dao principles, so even if I risked intercepting them, it would be of little use...
Cao Ya thought to himself, and activated all kinds of laws. Thunder roared, wind and fire intertwined, light and darkness spread, and water and soil surged. He flew all the way on the Illusionary Dust Path and advanced rapidly. No matter how many golden-eyed and blue-armored strange beasts appeared, they could not stop his steps and were all blown up!
"Outsiders, kill!" But these illusory dust beings seemed fearless, continuously condensing and increasing in number, their bodies growing larger and larger. Eventually, each monster could easily create tens of thousands of clones.
"Die!!!" Finally, millions of monsters roared, shaking the void. Their golden eyes gleamed with fierce light, and their blue armor echoed each other as they pounced on Cao Ya!
"Troublesome." Cao Ya shook his head. Outside the laws of nature, he flicked his fingers repeatedly, unleashing dazzling sword energy that swept across all directions!
With a "whoosh," the millions of monsters instantly disintegrated, and countless cyan light particles seeped into the stone path, leaving Cao Ya with no spoils of war and no way to replenish his consumed energy.
"That's ruthless." Cao Ya's lips twitched. He had guessed it. This was probably an ancient cultivator who wanted to use a human wave tactic to wear down the invaders. Naturally, he wouldn't give them any opportunities to take advantage of them, and there would be no loopholes to exploit.
It should be known that the Illusionary Dust Path was set up by a master, with the help of other great cultivators. Under the manipulation of the mastermind, its power is definitely a thousand times greater than it is today!
Even a master-level cultivator from the chaotic universe of the West would find it difficult to escape if he fell in; he would be crippled even if he didn't die!
Unlike now, even ordinary emperors and top-tier emperors face danger when they set foot here, but they still have a considerable chance of escaping!
Without the oversight of a major overhaul, damaged by war, and worn down over the long years...
Given the confluence of various factors, it is not impossible for the Path of Illusion to have fallen into its current predicament.
"Let's get through the Illusionary Dust Path first, and not linger here too long, in case something unexpected happens..."
Cao Ya solemnly declared that even if the true trump card of the Illusionary Dust Path were destroyed, it would still give the Sovereign a headache!
As for the Lord of the Holy City, the danger is even greater. The top emperors and ordinary emperors below him are very likely to die suddenly!
It's quite obvious that the illusory beings that have appeared so far are not the ultimate tricks of the Illusory Dust Dao! They are merely some of the most superficial measures to deal with outsiders!
"Boom!!" Cao Ya was like a sharp sword, piercing through the life of Huan Chen, invincible.
Various colors of light swirled around him, making him impervious to any number of monsters.
Even if hundreds of monsters appeared at the same time, and each of them transformed into tens of thousands of clones, totaling nearly ten million, they were no match for Cao Ya. His sword light splashed, the laws roared, and the void was crushed, and all the monsters died instantly!
However, the further it goes, the more powerful the phantom dust becomes.
Even more surprisingly, the methods of mental cultivation have gradually emerged!
"There are quite a lot of them!" Cao Ya said solemnly. There were over a thousand monsters appearing in front of them!
Moreover, their size is generally around tens of feet tall. Don't think that this height is nothing to the Dao Lords of Life and Death or the Eternal Emperors. This is the Illusionary Dust Dao. Illusionary Dust beings are generally only a few feet tall, but they can still threaten the second-level Dao Lords and ordinary Emperors.
Even the most powerful Dao Lords and top-tier Emperors would be terrified if they saw these monsters now!
"Buzz..." The monsters swayed and created many clones, all staring at Cao Ya with deep golden pupils, like black holes, attracting Cao Ya's gaze.
"Hmm?" A faint light flashed across Cao Ya's face, blocking the illusions of the monsters.
"The techniques of a mental power practitioner..." Cao Ya narrowed his eyes, but he wasn't surprised.
Illusionary beings are born with a talent for illusion, and naturally, they have an understanding of mental power.
The path of mental cultivation is a transcendent one, distinct from the physical and spiritual cultivation methods of gods and demons.
Cultivation is difficult and unpredictable. Even if one is relatively weak, the Emperors and Dao Lords will still take them seriously!
Among the first Dao Lords of the Flame Dragon Domain throughout history, there were many cultivators of mental strength!
Even the contemporary First Dao Lord, the Wine Saint from the Dark Kingdom, also cultivates mental power.
The path to becoming a Dao Lord is arduous, and though the lifespan may be long, it will eventually come to an end. Therefore, most of them yearn to leave their mark in history. Even if no one knows them after millions of Chaos Eras, the fact that their names have been passed down for hundreds of thousands of Chaos Eras is enough to comfort them in their lives.
Naturally, those Dao Lords of Life and Death who are powerful will seek out the Eternal Emperor to challenge them and make a name for themselves!
After all, the second-level Dao Lord is comparable to an ordinary Emperor, and the most powerful Dao Lord is no less than a top Emperor. The best among the most powerful Dao Lords can even compete with ordinary Holy City Lords!
Within the Eternal Emperor realm, those at the ordinary and top levels have always constituted the majority, while rulers are rare, and even the lords of holy cities are not many.
Besides fighting against the Emperor, the Dao Lords of Life and Death are also ranked, and the entire realm is surveyed. Anyone who makes the list is a first-rate Dao Lord of the present era!
If one can become the number one Dao Lord of a certain era, it is not impossible for one's name to be known for millions of Chaos Eras!
"Outsider, your strength is formidable. To reach this level with the rank of Dao Lord of Life and Death, are you the number one Dao Lord in the current Flame Dragon Domain? Or perhaps one of the top three Dao Lords?"
The largest of the blue-armored monsters spoke, its voice ancient, revealing its understanding of the outside world.
That's normal. After all, the Illusionary Dust Path is located deep within the Yu Star Sea, which has existed for hundreds of millions of chaotic eras. In such a long period of time, there must be no shortage of cultivators from the Flame Dragon Domain who either stumbled in by accident or took the initiative to set foot there in search of opportunities.
Putting aside other matters, those skilled in illusion techniques and those who cultivate mental strength will all be quite fond of the Path of Illusion.
Naturally, even though the monsters in the Illusionary Dust Path are not very intelligent, the best among them still managed to collect information and understand the situation in the outside world.
“You’re wrong. In the Flame Dragon Domain, I’m only slightly famous. I’m not even in the top three of Dao Lords… In reality, I’m not even in the top three hundred!” Cao Ya laughed.
"Do you really think I'm stupid?" A flash of anger crossed the monster leader's face.
The many strange beasts behind him were also furious, glaring at Cao Ya with their golden eyes!
"I really didn't lie to you." Cao Ya said helplessly; his words were absolutely true!
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