359: Chapter 359 After losing to the top four in a row, Xu Ruyu started bragging.

In a mere three breaths, the sky-filling ice crystal storm vanished without a trace!

Leng Ningshuang was stunned.

The strike she had just unleashed, which utilized the Fusion of water vapor in the air, was several times more powerful than before!

Even a Cultivator at the Mid-Nascent Soul Stage might not be able to escape unscathed!

Yet Xu Ruyu had neutralized it with just a single breath?

"How did you do that?" she couldn't help but ask.

Xu Ruyu opened his eyes and said indifferently, "Your ice crystals are essentially condensed water vapor. I only needed to make the surrounding air move violently to generate high heat, which instantly evaporated the ice crystals. In other words—"

He smiled, a hint of mischief flashing in his eyes: "Your ice doesn't melt as fast as mine."

Leng Ningshuang fell silent.

She looked at Xu Ruyu, her eyes filled with complex emotions.

This man, who clearly only possessed the cultivation base of the Qi Refinement Stage, seemed capable of anything.

No matter what methods they used, he could always find a way to break them.

It was as if every step of their progress was within his expectations.

"Anything else?" Xu Ruyu asked.

Leng Ningshuang shook her head and sighed softly: "I have lost."

She knew she had given it her all.

But Xu Ruyu clearly hadn't even exerted himself yet.

Just then—

A faint pink glow quietly began to spread.

It was Qingyan!

She had been hiding behind the three of them, silently preparing her own method.

At this moment, the pink light had covered the entire battlefield, enveloping Xu Ruyu within it.

Within the light, illusory images faintly emerged—these were fragments of memories from before Xu Ruyu's Transmigration: the fatigue of working overtime at the company, the loneliness of eating alone, the desolation of being sick with no one to care for him, and the melancholy of watching others as happy couples...

Qingyan's Dao of Compassionate Love could stir the softest emotions in a person's heart, causing them to fall into memories and lose their Battle Intent!

Xu Ruyu's gaze, as expected, began to grow unfocused.

"It's working!"

Qingyan felt a surge of joy, her hands forming seals even faster, and the pink light intensified.

Those images became clearer and more realistic, as if they were about to pull Xu Ruyu into an endless abyss of memories.

The watching Disciples looked at each other, not knowing what was happening.

They only saw Xu Ruyu suddenly stop moving, his eyes vacant, as if he had lost his soul.

However, the next instant—

Xu Ruyu's eyes became clear once again.

He looked at Qingyan and smiled slightly: "Qingyan, this move of yours is useless against me."

Qingyan was stunned, her small face filled with disbelief: "Wh...why? I can feel that those memories are real! You clearly..."

Xu Ruyu said softly: "Because I know they are fake. I have experienced illusions a hundred times more realistic than this; your Dao of Compassionate Love cannot affect me."

He was referring to the Trial of Willpower at the Illusory Moon Well.

Those phantom beauties that took turns appearing were more than a hundred times stronger than this move of Qingyan's.

If he could endure those, Qingyan's move was merely child's play in comparison.

Qingyan bit her lip, a flash of unwillingness in her eyes.

But she knew she had indeed lost.

Four against one.

All four moves were neutralized.

All four were defeated.

In the center of the battlefield, Xu Ruyu stood with his hands behind his back, his robes fluttering, as if nothing had happened.

Leng Ningshuang and the other three stood opposite him, covered in sweat, their breathing chaotic, their faces filled with complex expressions.

The watching Hehuan Sect Disciples were speechless for a long time.

After a while, someone finally asked in a trembling voice: "Sect... Sect Master, are you even human?"

Once these words were spoken, the crowd seemed to wake from a dream and began to discuss among themselves.

"Too strong! The Sect Master is too strong!"

"Senior Sister Leng and the other four Nascent Soul Cultivators can't beat the Sect Master, who is only at the Qi Refinement Stage?"

"How is this possible? How on earth did the Sect Master do it?"

"What kind of Cultivation Technique is that? How can it be so powerful?"

Xu Ruyu smiled; that smile was full of mischief and deep meaning. He looked at Leng Ningshuang and the other three, then at the watching Disciples, and spoke slowly:

"Have you noticed how much stronger the four of them have become compared to half a month ago?"

The crowd was stunned, then immediately realized it.

That's right!

Half a month ago, Leng Ningshuang was still at the Golden Core Peak, Zhao Yan and Ning Caihe were at the Foundation Establishment, and Qingyan was also at the Foundation Establishment Peak.

But today, they are already three at the Nascent Soul Stage and one at the Golden Core Peak!

Furthermore, the strength they displayed just now was far greater than ordinary Nascent Soul Cultivators!

Why is that?

Xu Ruyu looked around, his gaze sweeping over every Disciple, and said word by word: "Because they Cultivated the Qi Induction and Micro-Movement Art that I created."

At these words, the entire place fell silent.

The bonfire crackled, and sparks flew.

The night wind blew through the valley, bringing with it the rustling of leaves. But no one spoke; everyone held their breath, their eyes burning as they looked at Xu Ruyu.

"Half a month ago, I could have suppressed the four of them with a wave of my hand if they had teamed up," Xu Ruyu continued, his voice not loud, but clearly reaching everyone's ears. "But today, although I still won, as you all saw, it wasn't as easy as before.

I had to use an air vortex to catch Zhao Yan's punch.

I had to predict the sword path to catch Ning Caihe's sword.

I had to use high heat to evaporate Leng Ningshuang's ice crystal storm.

Qingyan's Dao of Compassionate Love, while unable to affect me, is absolutely a lethal weapon against others."