23: Wang Yao exits the stage.

The battle had reached a fever pitch. Zhou Yan's figure was elusive, like willow catkins in the wind. Every dodge perfectly caused Wang Yao's fierce and peerless offensive to strike empty air, making him increasingly irritable and impatient.

Zhou Yan was also quite troubled. Currently, there were no small mobs for him to kill to gain health and stamina. If his stamina ran out or he made a mistake while dodging, his remaining health wouldn't be enough to take another hit from Wang Yao.

This couldn't go on. The time pocket watch couldn't break the stalemate; he had to think of what else he could use.

Silver Edge? No, even with the true damage bonus, it wouldn't work against him. Using it would definitely result in his own health bottoming out first, while Wang Yao would only suffer superficial wounds.

"Fellow Daoist, we aren't far from clearing the stage. Only the final step remains; must we insist on a life-and-death struggle?" Zhou Yan didn't know if it would work, but he decided to try some verbal persuasion first.

"Hahaha! One doesn't truly die in this Secret Realm, so what is there to fear?"

"Setting aside that this place is an illusion, even in reality, I would still seek your guidance, Fellow Daoist. Although this is offensive to you, regardless of the outcome, I will apologize outside the Secret Realm. Therefore, my mind is made up. I hope you will no longer hold back!"

"Sigh." Zhou Yan let out a soft sigh, his calm, dark-gold eyes staring at Wang Yao.

Wang Yao sensed a change in Zhou Yan's aura and knew the other party was likely getting serious. Thus, he didn't interrupt but stood in place, waiting for what was to come.

"Fellow Daoist, fighting like this is merely a waste of time." Zhou Yan suddenly stilled his figure, his robes fluttering without wind, his voice clear and resonant. "Why not settle this in a single move?"

Hearing this, Wang Yao became even more excited. He admitted Zhou Yan's movement techniques were peerless, but that wasn't as hot-blooded as a direct collision. "Just what I wanted!" He took a deep breath, Qi erupting around him as the ground cracked. He had clearly gathered his strength to its Peak, preparing to unleash his full power in one strike.

At that moment, Zhou Yan moved.

He didn't charge forward; instead, his entire body suddenly burst with a brilliant light that was hard to look at directly! Billowing Immortal Qi swirled around him, making him look like an Immortal Venerable descending from the Nine Heavens, untainted by dust.

Even more heart-palpitating were his dark-gold eyes, which had once again turned into pure gold—cold, majestic, and seeing through all falsehoods. It was the Golden Eyes of Delusion Breaking!

With the Immortal Qi drifting and the golden eyes shining, this sudden holy sight shook Wang Yao's soul, causing his accumulated, ready-to-burst power to stagnate.

"Good timing!" Wang Yao forcibly suppressed the tremor in his heart, intending to clash head-on with the ultimate move Zhou Yan was about to release.

However, he never expected that the radiance of the Golden Eyes of Delusion Breaking itself was the first wave of the offensive!

At the very moment he was fully focused on receiving the attack, the sole active skill of the Golden Eyes of Delusion Breaking—the deterrent power that struck directly at the mind—was suddenly released!

Wang Yao felt an indescribable, vast Divine Might crash down upon him. Because he was bracing his spirit in anticipation, the mental shock hit its target perfectly, and his consciousness was instantly pulled into an illusion.

Where was Zhou Yan?

There was only a supreme deity reaching from the heavens to the earth, standing amidst the primordial Universe. The sun, moon, and stars were but its ornaments, and all living beings in the myriad worlds had to bow their heads. The vast, endless pressure was like the entire firmament collapsing, crushing down layer by layer, intending to completely grind him, a tiny ant, into dust.

Wang Yao was terrified, but his courage and ferocity were also fully ignited. In the illusion, his eyes were blood-red as he roared hoarsely, his blood boiling. He actually wanted to burn everything and throw a desperate, life-risking punch at that supreme deity!

However, just as his power was about to be unleashed, the illusion suddenly vanished.

The suffocating Divine Might that filled the world receded like a tide.

Wang Yao snapped back to his senses, his consciousness returning to reality. The world-destroying confrontation just now seemed like a momentary hallucination.

But the reality was that he had lost. He had lost completely.

He hadn't been able to unleash that move at all, nor had he even seen how Zhou Yan made his move.

He found himself tightly restrained, unable to move. Looking down, he wasn't bound by any ropes or chains, but rather... he was "planted" inside a tree.

This was a strange plant he had never seen before. Its trunk was as lustrous as jade, its branches and leaves flowed with radiant light, and it was surrounded by the same ethereal Immortal Qi as Zhou Yan. It was magnificent, mysterious, and otherworldly, as if it were a Spiritual Root that should only exist in the depths of the Immortal Realm.

Its size was just like the feng shui trees or wealth trees placed in the lobbies of major Families and merchant firms. Its form was extremely graceful, and every leaf seemed to contain the charm of the Dao.

From the waist down, Wang Yao was completely merged with the trunk of this immortal tree, as if he had originally grown out of it.

No matter how he channeled the surging power within his body and struggled frantically, the seemingly delicate tree remained motionless. It was unimaginably sturdy, as if what suppressed him wasn't a small tree but a towering mountain. All his power was like a clay ox entering the sea, easily neutralized and absorbed.

He couldn't even make the leaves sway slightly.

Absolute suppression, an unshakeable gap!

Wang Yao stopped his futile struggling and looked up at Zhou Yan, whose Immortal Qi was receding and whose golden eyes were returning to normal. The initial unwillingness and shock on his face slowly faded, eventually turning into a complex mix of dejection and admiration.

He let out a long sigh, his voice dry but clear: "I... lost. I am thoroughly defeated."

Zhou Yan smiled slightly and flicked his finger. The immortal-looking strange tree dissolved into spots of light and vanished, as if it had never existed.

As the tree vanished, Wang Yao fell from the air. With his skills, he could have easily and gracefully landed, but now he allowed his body to crash onto the ground.

He lay on the ground for a while, as if a long time had passed.

"Ha... hahaha." Compared to his previous boldness, his laughter was now much more restrained.

Amidst the laughter, Wang Yao stood up and cupped his fists toward Zhou Yan.

"I was quite presumptuous just now; I truly apologize to you, Fellow Daoist."

"So the gap between you and me is actually this large. No wonder you repeatedly showed restraint. Perhaps in your eyes, I am just like a child throwing a tantrum."

"This matter has made me realize much, and I feel deeply offensive. Regardless, once we leave this Secret Realm, I will personally apologize to you."

"Wang Yao, from the First City Under Heaven, has been enlightened."

After saying the last sentence, Wang Yao's expression became solemn and respectful as he bowed to Zhou Yan.

Then, his right hand gathered power, with a momentum no less than the full-power strike he had just prepared. Zhou Yan's eyebrows twitched at the sight. It turned out he could gather full power in an instant? Was that long preparation just now just striking a pose? What kind of monster was this?

Seeing his actions, Zhou Yan started to break out in a cold sweat. This guy couldn't be so stubborn that he wanted to clash one more time, right?

Bang!

Wang Yao's right fist, which had gathered power, swung out fiercely. However, his target wasn't Zhou Yan but his own heart. That dull thud was the sound of his heart being pierced.

"I... *cough cough*... have thick skin and flesh, so I won't trouble you to exert more effort."

After finishing his last words, Wang Yao fell straight down, his body dissolving into points of light.

The massive amount of points accumulated in his token scattered and were absorbed by Zhou Yan's token.

Although Zhou Yan couldn't see the sky ranking from within the tower, he fell into silence again as he watched the points dropped by Wang Yao, which took quite a while just to absorb.

We were about to pass; why on earth did you commit suicide?

Zhou Yan felt very wronged; he really hadn't intended to kill Wang Yao to take his points.

Recalling just now, when Zhou Yan was thinking of what to use against Wang Yao, he happened to remember the Secret Realm core.

When Zhou Yan touched the core, he had already understood its usage. Its permissions were low, so it could only be used for minor functions like teleportation.

But having permissions was enough. It was just enough to release the wealth tree from Zhou Yan's inventory. Because Zhou Yan had Secret Realm permissions, this Secret Realm was identified as part of the family system, so it could naturally be placed.

As for this wealth tree, when planted in a pot, it required pest control and watering and was extremely fragile. But when planted on open ground, it was purely for decoration and could act as an invisible wall to trap NPCs.

Zhou Yan had used this characteristic, combined with the entertainment effect of the golden eyes costume—a two-second active control that made the opponent watch a small animation—to take down Wang Yao. However, given his health bar length and recovery power, and since there were no mobs here to stack Fatal Strike, it was impossible to kill him. Zhou Yan only wanted to intimidate him and recruit a fighter to deal with the upcoming trials.

But who knew this guy was so impulsive, committing suicide on the spot to drop his gold coins? However, Zhou Yan really didn't want these points.