Longevity starts with choosing Hextech enhancement

Chapter 382 Ice Crystal Illusion Bead: Ancient Legacy
The complexity of the sea race's grand formation completely exceeded the expectations of the human race.

One of the most notable characteristics of formations is that they can generate power far exceeding that of other formations under specific circumstances.

Faced with such a super-linked formation, whose power surpasses even the mountain-protecting formations of the various sects present.

Everyone couldn't help but feel a bit of a headache.

Some things you might need to try out to find out how powerful they really are.

However, just by looking at this massive formation stretching for thousands of miles, one could tell from a distance, without even needing to test it, that it was definitely not something to be trifled with.

"In many places, it appears that third-tier spiritual materials are being used."

Han Chuan Zhenjun activated his spiritual eye technique to discern the situation inside: "Only the middle part and some connecting points used fourth-order array flags."

"From this perspective, we don't need to worry at least that this will be a fifth-order or pseudo-fifth-order grand formation."

"The maximum power it can draw upon should still be within the fourth tier."

This can probably be considered half good news.

At least after hearing this, the people weren't completely devastated.

As long as it remains within the fourth order range, our side still has a chance to play the game, at least theoretically.

For example, Iron Fan True Lord asked curiously, "Fellow Daoist Gang Yuan, this time you're not joking."

“Let’s be serious. Now that we’ve collected several core array bases, is there a chance to reverse-engineer the sea race’s array deployment principles and then prepare corresponding methods to break the array?”

The two teams that were previously separated have collected nearly two hundred core array bases in total.

This sample size is indeed quite large.

However, when Gangyuan Zhenjun heard this question, he looked somewhat troubled: "This... there should be an opportunity, but the timing is hard to say."

This is indeed a major challenge.

The main problem is that people had absolutely no understanding of the sea creatures' formations in the past; they were practically starting from scratch.

"If we reverse the formation, how long would it take?"

Yunwo Zhenjun asked curiously, "It won't take several years, will it?"

He knows absolutely nothing about this.

However, True Lord Gangyuan gave him an easy-to-understand example: "The difficulty is about the same as reverse-engineering a pill formula or comprehending the swordsmanship of predecessors based on sword intent."

Then he added, "I meant reverse-engineering the array, not dismantling the linked arrays."

"After all, in the sea race's array formation system, this should be considered one of the most complex fourth-order arrays, or even the most complex one."

Upon hearing this answer, True Monarch Yunwo's eyes widened in surprise.

Are you kidding me?
How difficult is it to comprehend the swordsmanship of predecessors based on their sword intent?
Even for those born with exceptional sword skills, it takes at least ten years to develop, and for ordinary people, it often takes several decades or even a hundred years.

This is based on the premise that Nascent Soul cultivators are generally quite talented. If it were Golden Core cultivators, it would be normal for them to never comprehend anything in their entire lives.

It's worth mentioning that, objectively speaking, this amount of time isn't much.

In peacetime, to master a completely new array technique in ten or twenty years is definitely a genius-level achievement.

It is also well worth the time to study it, because the benefits it can bring in the future are undoubtedly huge.

Therefore, during the previous recovery of the core array base.

Iron Fan Zhenjun was both joking with an old friend and congratulating the Tiangang Sect on the possibility of acquiring a new array technique in the future.

But the problem is, it's wartime now.

The bright future is a little far away; right now, we all have to face this super fourth-tier formation.

"That does sound a bit difficult."

Xiao Chen asked, "Does anyone have any quick and effective methods?"

Everyone remained silent for three breaths.

Clearly, no one could come up with a brilliant plan at this moment.

But it's okay. Although there are no shortcuts, we can still use a simple, albeit clumsy, method to cope.

Don't be fooled by the fact that it's a "clumsy" method. It's not that it's stupid, it's just that the process is a bit complicated and sounds clumsy.

Specifically, they first sent disciples to harass the enemy.

Try to get some useful information back.

Then everyone, armed with their standard array-breaking artifacts, attacked the array together, searching for its weak points.

There is no perfect formation in the world; as long as you are willing to search, you can always find a loophole.

The day ended amidst harassment from disciples of various sects.

As the sun set, the human forces sounded the retreat and returned to their formation.

"Fellow Daoist Xiao, is this the ice crystal jellyfish you captured?"

True Monarch Liekong, who had stayed behind, walked over quite consciously: "It's really beautiful, with a bright color, just like a big block of jelly."

"Well, that afternoon I happened to catch two ribbonfish, and I was just about to fry them."

"Shall we get something to eat together?"

We spent some time together on the western front, and then soon after, we lived together for two months at Tingtaohai.

True Monarch Rift Sky discovered two characteristics of Xiao Chen.

The first thing is that I eat almost anything, and I try everything I can get my hands on.

It encompasses everything from birds and beasts to flowers, plants, and trees.

Secondly, he is very generous and most of the time he will not mind sharing a bite with him, even if it is the meat of a fourth-level demon beast.

So when he heard about it from the rear.

After Xiao Chen captured a mutated jellyfish today, he's been thinking about coming over for a taste.

"Okay, let me dismantle these ice crystals first, and then we can work together to figure out how to make jellyfish."

Xiao Chen readily agreed: "To be honest, I'm also thinking about how to deal with these jellyfish meat."

Do you have any experience?

Although this ice crystal jellyfish has undergone a bloodline mutation, its wrists still have fist-sized blue crystals solidified on them.

It is a natural fourth-order ice-type spiritual material, and also the most valuable part of its body.

While there are some rules to follow when handling spiritual materials, it is not particularly complicated.

Having learned from his previous studies, Xiao Chen is now able to independently decompose spiritual materials.

Although his speed is still a bit slow and cannot compare with those experienced masters, it is not a big deal.

It's okay to go slowly, as long as the harvested spiritual materials are intact.

"Fellow Daoist Xiao, I have a lot of experience dealing with jellyfish, why don't you add me to the list?"

The Hundred Apertures True Lord also came over at some point: "I happen to have a bottle of Gujian Snow that I've been storing for over fifty years."

"Although the storage time was not long."

"But its advantage lies in the fact that the brewing water is made from snow water collected over the years, which gives it a unique flavor."

Xiao Chen naturally wouldn't refuse: "Great, looks like I'm in for a treat today."

Anyway, he can't eat such a big jellyfish by himself, so it would be better if he could exchange it for some special dishes and drinks.

After patiently removing all the ice crystals.

Xiao Chen gestured for the other party to take the lead: "Since you have more experience, why don't you teach us how to handle this?"

Upon hearing this, the Hundred-Aperture True Lord smiled and nodded in agreement: "It's not a matter of teaching or not teaching, it's just some strange and ingenious skills."

"Speaking of these ice crystal jellyfish, I've handled at least thirty or forty of them before."

"Of course, those are all third-tier, far inferior to Fellow Daoist Xiao's."

"However, since they are all the same species, some experiences can still be shared."

After exchanging a few polite words, he finally picked up one of the tentacles and said, "The first thing we need to do is detoxify it."

"As is well known, most jellyfish carry toxins, and the only difference between different species is the degree of toxicity."

"If it is not cleaned properly, it will not only cause numbness and spiciness when eaten, but may also affect the circulation of vital energy."

As he spoke, he summoned a wisp of spiritual fire, which rapidly burned from the tip of the tentacle to its root.

The outer side that was immediately exposed to the fire began to curl and char, while dark green spiritual liquid seeped out from the inside of the umbrella.

Strangely enough, the elixir even had a unique fragrance.

It has a floral scent, mixed with a touch of coolness.

It smells surprisingly pleasant and has a slightly refreshing effect.

"These spiritual liquids are the unique toxins of the Ice Crystal Jellyfish."

The Hundred Aperture True Monarch had prepared a jade bottle in advance and steadily received the spiritual liquid inside: "It can greatly slow down the speed of the user's true essence circulation."

"If we make good use of this, we can use it to make rare poisons or to concoct special elixirs."

"This fourth-tier venom can be considered a semi-rare spiritual material. Although its uses are not extensive, it may come in handy in the future."

As he explained, he deftly processed each of the tentacles in turn.

Then he handed the collected venom to Xiao Chen: "Fellow Daoist Xiao, please keep it safe. There is one more thing to pay attention to next."

"The flesh inside the umbrella is the most tender, but it may also contain toxins."

As he spoke, he gathered his true energy in his palm and rhythmically tapped the umbrella three times.

With a 'pop' sound, the remaining demonic power inside was shattered.

Then a colorful bead the size of a walnut appeared.

"Ok?"

The Hundred-Aperture True Lord was taken aback upon seeing this.

Normally, it should be expelling poisonous mist at this time, so how come it's a spirit pearl?
The next moment, he realized that the situation was not good.

According to the information I heard before coming here, this ice crystal jellyfish has a mutated bloodline and is extremely proficient in illusion magic.

In other words, this spirit orb is very likely related to illusion.

"Everyone be careful, there might be something wrong with this bead."

The Hundred Apertures True Lord quickly tried to remind him, but it was too late.

Suddenly, Rift Sky True Monarch was caught off guard and drew his flying sword to stab at him.

This is bad. I just said I was very experienced in handling jellyfish, and now this has happened.

The Hundred Apertures True Lord immediately tried to summon his spiritual shield to defend himself.

However, he discovered that the Spirit Shield, for some reason, was no longer obeying his commands.

In his haste, he had no choice but to try his best to dodge.

Suddenly, a large hand grabbed his collar from behind and lifted him into the air.

"Crack~!"

Before he could even see what was happening, he was slapped hard across the face, and his entire left cheek swelled up.

Immediately, a muffled voice rang out: "Fellow Daoist Baiqiao, wake up!"

Faintly, one could hear the sound of an explosion.

"Crack~!"

Another resounding slap.

The Hundred Aperture True Monarch finally regained his senses and realized that Xiao Chen was grabbing him and shaking him from side to side, dodging the spells of the Sky-Splitting True Monarch below. He then realized that he had also been caught in the trap.

"Fellow Daoist Baiqiao, lend a hand quickly."

Xiao Chen, who was standing to the side, hurriedly said to him, "Fellow Daoist Liekong has been bewitched by the illusion and has completely gone mad."

"Things have come to this, quickly follow me and kill him!"

Upon hearing the word 'kill,' the Hundred Aperture True Monarch vaguely sensed something was amiss, but the situation was urgent and he had no time to think further.

So he hurriedly recited the mantra and cast a spell to attack.

However, something strange happened next.

No matter how hard he and 'Fellow Daoist Xiao' attacked, 'True Monarch Rift Sky' below was able to withstand it with his exceptionally strong spiritual energy barrier.

After fighting for a long time, all his attacks were blocked and had no effect whatsoever.

"Ring~!"

A clear, ringing bell rang out from somewhere, and the whole world seemed to tremble.

Then the ringing grew louder and louder, and the frequency of the ringing also increased.

The Hundred Aperture True Lord felt a splitting headache, and the sky and earth around him began to collapse, as if he had encountered a major calamity.

In a daze, he seemed to have already landed on the ground.

A thick barrier of spiritual energy surrounded him, completely enveloping him.

At the same time, right next to him, less than a foot away, True Monarch Rift Void was also imprisoned by the same spiritual energy barrier.

He had just opened his eyes and was looking around in confusion.

Outside the barrier, a large group of human True Lords were watching them with concern.

Qian Shu Zhenjun was holding a bell in his hand and shaking it vigorously.

Could it be that he was actually still in an illusion just now, and only now has he finally broken free?

The Hundred Apertures True Lord felt that he was getting confused.

He could no longer tell whether he had escaped the illusion or fallen into a new one.

Fortunately, this time, he doesn't need to worry about this problem.

On the contrary, after Thousand Pivot True Lord woke him up, he took out a sachet for him to smell and fed him a calming pill.

It took quite a while for him to recover from his dazed state.

The Gangyuan True Lord next to him also used the same method to completely awaken the Liekong True Lord.

"What happened to you? You suddenly fell under an illusion spell, which gave us quite a fright."

After rescuing everyone, Iron Fan Zhenjun finally asked the reason.

Logically speaking, this place is already within the human race's grand formation. Although it was set up temporarily, it is still a fourth-order defensive formation.

Surely the sea creatures can't just sneak in silently, can they?

After carefully investigating the situation, they learned that it was all related to the ice crystal jellyfish's ice crystal magic bead.

Yes, the bead they first saw was real.

As a mutated bloodline, this ice crystal jellyfish's bell does not contain toxins; instead, it contains a special spiritual pearl capable of creating illusions.

It is through this special structure that it possesses illusionary abilities that other ice crystal jellyfish do not have.

In other words, its powerful illusion magic is entirely due to the power exerted by this ice crystal illusion bead within its body.

Therefore, when the Hundred Apertures True Lord detoxified the umbrella canopy according to his past experience.

The demonic power that had been shaken out of the flesh by the true essence just happened to activate the Ice Crystal Illusion Pearl.

This revealed itself, instantly pulling the nearby Hundred Aperture True Monarch and Sky Rift True Monarch into the illusion.

Although the Ice Crystal Jellyfish is no longer the dominant force, the effect of the Ice Crystal Illusionary Beads is inevitably weakened.

However, since they were both newly promoted to the Nascent Soul stage, they naturally couldn't withstand such a powerful illusion.

Thus, under their influence, they began to use magic to kill each other.

Fortunately, Xiao Chen was with them. He was not only safe and sound, but also noticed their unusual behavior immediately.

For their safety, they were both trapped under the Four Symbols Mountain-Suppressing Cover.

Although it is essentially a defensive spell, its actual use is not so rigid.

Although Xiao Chen's proficiency wasn't particularly high, he had the Hextech boost.

There's no need for any sophisticated operations; you just need to trap both of them inside.

Despite their best efforts to attack under the influence of the illusion, the Four Symbols Mountain-Suppressing Shield remained completely unmoved, showing no signs of pressure whatsoever.

This made Xiao Chen very satisfied.

It was worth it for him to spend so much time and spiritual objects to condense the Four Symbols Spiritual Patterns before coming to Shallow Sky Sea.

Sure enough, the defensive capabilities improved immediately, becoming significantly stronger than before.

After all, with a hundredfold increase, even a small improvement can bring huge benefits, not to mention this already considerable improvement.

"We are truly grateful to Fellow Daoist Xiao for stopping them this time, otherwise, I fear a great disaster might have occurred."

Qian Shu Zhenjun checked his junior brother repeatedly, and only after confirming that he was safe did he remember to express his gratitude.

"No, no, no, it was my oversight."

Xiao Chen shook his head: "Fellow Daoist Baiqiao came to help out of pure good intentions. It was my oversight that I forgot to remind him."

"I should have suspected that this beast might have residual illusion magic."

"The follow-up was merely a case of locking the barn door after the horse had bolted, but fortunately it wasn't too late."

The main reason was that Xiao Chen had the Divine Protection Veil, so he didn't feel any intimidation from the Ice Crystal Jellyfish.

Therefore, when True Monarch Rift Sky and True Monarch Hundred Apertures arrived, he did not realize immediately that even with their strength, there were risks involved in contacting such fresh remains.

In addition, special abilities like illusions are different from ordinary attack spells.

Once you can't stop it, you'll fall instantly.

There is absolutely no way to resist half of the weakening effect, nor will it trigger the protection of the owner by conventional protective artifacts such as spirit robes.

"Fellow Daoist Xiao, there's no need to speak up for him."

Gangyuan Zhenjun, however, said: "This is purely because he is not skilled enough, not well prepared, and has a gluttonous mouth. How can you blame Fellow Daoist Xiao for not reminding him?"

"This time, you were able to warn him because you were nearby and hadn't been affected yet."

"Then when you go out alone in the future, who will be there to warn you if you encounter monsters or evil cultivators?"

Then he turned to look at True Monarch Rift Sky: "Or are you planning to stay hidden in your own mountain gate for the rest of your life and never go out to take risks?"

His logic is that he himself is the primary person responsible for his own safety.

You should be careful in everything you do; relying solely on others to remind you is irresponsible.

True Monarch Liekong blushed, but readily lowered his head to admit his mistake: "Senior Brother is right, I was too careless this time."

"I clearly heard that this jellyfish is skilled in illusion magic, so I should have been prepared."

"Thank you for saving me, Fellow Daoist Xiao!"

Upon hearing this, True Monarch Baiqiao also bowed and thanked him, saying, "I also bear some responsibility. I know that fourth-tier demonic beasts are completely different from third-tier demonic beasts, especially since this one has a mutated bloodline."

"In the end, they still followed past experience and didn't take it seriously."

"This guy is hundreds of years old, yet he made such a basic mistake and almost caused trouble for everyone."

"Thanks to Fellow Daoist Xiao's profound magic, he managed to stop us all by himself. Otherwise, we would probably be dead here today."

A clear look of shame appeared on the face of the Hundred Apertures True Lord.

His tone was exceptionally sincere: "Fellow Daoist Xiao has saved my life today, and I am truly grateful."

"If you ever need my help in the future, please just let me know or write me a letter, and I will do my best to help you."

His later statement was actually a bit of an exaggeration.

This is, after all, within the human race's grand formation. If any major disturbance were to occur here, it would immediately alert the other True Monarchs.

Therefore, even if Xiao Chen did not stop them, the other True Monarchs would have stopped them.

To say it was a life-saving grace is really an exaggeration.

However, this was done intentionally by the Hundred Apertures True Lord.

In fact, his initial purpose in coming here was to get closer to Xiao Chen.

After all, even looking at the previous battle reports, everyone could tell that Xiao Chen was not only powerful now, but his future prospects were also immeasurable.

If you can get along well with him, there will only be benefits and no harm.

Otherwise, Lord Heming wouldn't have been willing to give away two rare spiritual items at once.

In that case, the Hundred Apertures True Lord's rich experience told him that it was not only by giving gifts that one could build a closer relationship.

Sometimes, voluntarily owing someone a big favor is a way to build closer relationships.

You should know that favors are something that must be repaid.

He's making a promise now that if Xiao Chen contacts him for help in the future, it'll be a great opportunity to build a closer relationship.

After a while, they met more and more and naturally became familiar with each other.

Therefore, even though it wasn't that serious, he still said it was a "life-saving grace" and that he was willing to "do his best" to repay it in the future.

As a result, they were unable to get closer by eating and drinking together as initially had planned.

But it was still some progress, so the trip wasn't a complete waste.

"Fellow Daoist Baiqiao's words have reminded me. Fellow Daoist Xiao's spiritual shield is truly formidable."

Crane Cry True Monarch revealed a curious expression: "In my opinion, this should be some kind of extremely profound secret technique."

"It must be a top-tier method passed down from ancient times."

“This method is indeed quite difficult to cultivate, and Fellow Daoist Xiao’s ability to demonstrate such skill is truly a testament to his exceptional talent.”

He didn't actually see anything particularly impressive about it.

However, based on normal circumstances, there are very few top-tier defensive techniques that can seal two cultivators of the same level for a full quarter of an hour without causing any damage.

If we exclude the more similar approaches of the contemporary era, then it can only be the ancient methods.

The others thought about the same thing.

Iron Fan True Lord also praised, "Indeed, this spell looks ordinary, but it is actually incredibly sturdy. It can be described as a great skill without artifice."

"I also noticed that its surface has the phantom images of the four symbols, which are very lifelike and look quite like the style of ancient times."

"Fellow Daoist Xiao's foundation in cultivation is indeed solid, far surpassing ours."

Gangyuan Zhenjun was taken aback for a moment.

For a brief moment at first, he felt that this spell looked somewhat familiar.

However, it was only a Yellow-level spell; how could it possibly have such power?

So he didn't think much of it and just considered it a coincidence.

After all, there are quite a few spells in the cultivation world that seem to have similar effects.

Only Xiao Chen, listening to everyone's awkward praise, quickly waved his hand and said, "Ahem, there's nothing special about it, you're all too kind."

What the hell is this "ancient style"? I don't know how you guys figured it out.

(End of this chapter)