118: The two emperors journey west, first arriving in the Illusionary Realm

Leaving the vibrant Hundred Flowers Valley, Li Ao and Medusa traveled west at lightning speed.

Medusa's Physical Body was reshaped, and her strength surged to a Seven-Star Dou Zong, allowing her to control her Dou Qi with perfect ease, making her several times faster than when she was in her Soul Body state.

Clad in a purple brocade robe, her graceful figure soared through the air like a purple streak of light, exuding unparalleled splendor.

The inherent Bloodline imperial prestige she inadvertently revealed caused any flying Demonic Beasts they encountered along the way to flee in terror.

Li Ao walked beside her, his green robes fluttering, his aura calm and collected.

Although he was still at the Peak of a Six-Star Dou Zong, the Bronze Battle Body of the third stage of the Black Iron Hegemon Body and the increasingly profound Annihilation Rule made his true combat power comparable to an Eight-Star or even Nine-Star Dou Zong!

The two traveled west together at an extremely fast pace, and in just over ten days, they had crossed most of the continent, and the surrounding environment began to undergo significant changes.

The energy between heaven and earth gradually became sparse and mixed, and a faint, illusory mist began to permeate the air.

The landscape below also transitioned from green mountains and clear waters to barren Gobi, finally becoming an endless, peculiar region permanently shrouded in gray-white dense fog.

The mist rolled like living creatures, with various distorted and strange sounds faintly emanating from within, sometimes mournful, sometimes like the roar of myriad beasts, unsettling the mind.

Visibility was limited to less than ten feet, and Soul perception was also greatly suppressed and interfered with in this place.

This was the Forbidden Ground in the far west of the continent—the Illusory Mist Swamp!

"The mist here is strange; it can erode Dou Qi and confuse the Soul," Medusa said in a clear, cold voice, her purple eyes swirling with seven-colored light as she surveyed the boundless dense fog ahead.

Even her powerful Soul Power could only detect a hundred feet in this place; beyond that was Chaos.

Li Ao nodded, his Soul perception carefully analyzing the composition of the mist: "It contains a variety of mixed toxins and hallucinogenic energy, and there's also a trace of... the power of a broken Formation permeating it, lingering for years.

No wonder it's called a Forbidden Ground."

He took out the "Clear Spirit Expelling Miasma Medicinal Pill" given to him by Fairy Qinghua, took one himself, and handed another to Medusa.

Upon ingesting the Medicinal Pill, a cool current spread, forming a faint barrier around their bodies, isolating the corrosive power and clearing their minds.

"According to White Plain, the seven-colored illusion heart lotus grows in the 'Illusion Heart Lake' at the deepest part of the swamp.

When it matures, the lotus will bloom in nine grades, with multicolored light soaring into the sky and a strange fragrance pervading for a hundred miles, which will inevitably attract powerful cultivators from all sides," Li Ao recalled the information, saying in a deep voice, "Our opponents will probably not only be the dangers within the swamp but also treasure seekers from various parts of the continent."

Medusa's lips curved into a cold arc: "Treasures belong to the capable.

This King would like to see who dares to reach for it."

After reshaping her Physical Body, her confidence and domineering aura surpassed her past self.

Without further hesitation, their figures moved, and they plunged into the swirling gray-white dense fog.

Entering the Illusory Mist was like stepping into another world.

The light became extremely dim, with swirling mist all around, severely obstructing vision.

Beneath their feet was soft, slippery, and unfathomable mud, with occasional cold bubbles rising from the depths of the swamp, bursting with a 'pop' and emitting a putrid stench.

Various eerie sounds came from all directions, as if countless eyes were peering from within the mist.

Li Ao and Medusa both heightened their perception to the extreme, cautiously moving forward through the swamp.

After only a few miles, a sudden change occurred!

"Hiss, hiss—"

From the dense fog on the left, dozens of strange snakes, entirely gray-white and almost indistinguishable from the mist, suddenly darted out!

These strange snakes had crimson eyes, their poisonous fangs gleamed with a faint light, and they moved with lightning speed, biting at the two!

Their auras had all reached the level of a Fifth-Tier Demonic Beast (equivalent to a Dou Wang)!

"Hmph, ants."

Medusa didn't even make a move; she merely narrowed her eyes, and the imperial pressure belonging to the Seven-Colored Sky Swallowing Python spread out like a tangible force!

Upon sensing this Supreme Bloodline pressure, the strange snakes that had been darting forward froze instantly, as if they had encountered the emperor of snakes.

Their crimson eyes were immediately filled with boundless fear, and then they let out mournful cries, falling from the air like dumplings, prostrating themselves in the mud, trembling, not daring to make the slightest move.

The Bloodline suppression was terrifying!

Li Ao nodded inwardly.

Medusa's strength as a Seven-Star Dou Zong, combined with her Supreme Bloodline, was an excellent Sharp Weapon in this Demonic Beast-infested Illusory Mist Swamp.

The two continued to delve deeper.

The deeper they went into the swamp, the thicker the mist became, and the more powerful the hallucinogenic force within it.

Even with the Medicinal Pills protecting them, various illusory sounds constantly echoed in their ears, and some bizarre, distorted scenes occasionally flashed before their eyes, attempting to shake their minds.

"Guard your Sea of Consciousness; these are all illusions," Li Ao reminded, his Sea of Consciousness slightly circulating with the Annihilation Concept, silently annihilating all invading illusory power.

His Annihilation Rule was the bane of all false illusions.

Medusa's imperial mark on her brow flickered, likewise isolating the alluring forces.

Suddenly, the mist ahead violently surged, and a giant black shadow, accompanied by a foul wind, rushed towards them!

It was a massive, lizard-like, bizarre creature with three ferocious heads!

Its aura had reached the Sixth-Tier Peak, equivalent to a human Peak Dou Huang!

The Three-Headed Swamp Poison Lizard! It seemed unaffected by Medusa's Bloodline suppression, and its three heads simultaneously opened, spewing venom, ice shards, and corrosive dark breath, covering all their escape routes!

"Seeking death!"

This time, Medusa finally made her move.

She lightly raised her jade hand, pointing her fingers like a sword, and an intensely condensed seven-colored beam of light burst forth from her fingertips, like a rainbow tearing through the night, instantly spanning dozens of feet!

"Puff! Puff! Puff!"

With three soft sounds, the attacks spewed by the three-headed Poison Lizard were easily shattered in mid-air by the seven-colored beam!

The beam's momentum did not diminish, and like skewering candied haws, it precisely pierced through its three heads!

The massive body of the Sixth-Tier Peak Poison Lizard stiffened abruptly, then crashed to the ground, splashing a large amount of mud, already dead!

Clean and decisive, instantly killing a Peak Dou Huang-level Demonic Beast with one blow!

A hint of admiration also flashed in Li Ao's eyes.

Medusa's attack was not only powerful but also carried an essence of both purification and destruction, clearly indicating that her control over her own power had reached the Transcendent stage.

Just as the two had dealt with the obstructing Poison Lizard and were preparing to continue forward—

"Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!"

Several sounds of rushing air came from the mist in different directions!

Immediately after, five figures appeared like ghosts, surrounding Li Ao and Medusa.

These five people were dressed differently and were not in the black robes of the Hall of Souls, but each had a strong aura, the lowest being a Five-Star Dou Zong, and the one-eyed old man leading them had an aura that reached the Eight-Star Dou Zong level!

Their eyes were sharp, filled with undisguised greed and killing intent, staring intently at Medusa... and the corpse of the Poison Lizard behind her.

No, more precisely, they were staring at a strange crystal, slowly separating from the Poison Lizard's corpse, emitting a seven-colored glow!

"A Seven-Colored Poison Lizard's Demonic Core! And a Sixth-Tier Peak one at that! Haha, I didn't expect such a harvest right after entering!" a Six-Star Dou Zong with a sharp mouth and monkey-like cheeks licked his lips, exclaiming excitedly.

The one-eyed old man's gaze swept over Li Ao and Medusa, especially when he sensed Medusa's unfathomable aura, a hint of apprehension flashed in his eyes, but it was immediately overwhelmed by greed.

He spoke in a hoarse voice: "You two, we, the Blood Wolf Gang, discovered this Poison Lizard first.

If you're smart, leave the Demonic Core, and then... get out of the Illusory Mist Swamp!"

It turned out to be a gang of bandits specialized in robbing and killing in dangerous places!

Li Ao and Medusa exchanged glances, both seeing the coldness in each other's eyes.

They had just entered the swamp, and trouble was already coming one after another.

It seemed that this journey through the Illusory Mist Swamp was destined not to be peaceful.