"Illusion Technique!"
Loran waved his hand, and a mass of mist instantly appeared around him, enveloping even a portion of the lake beneath the floating bridge.
More than ten fish that swam into the mist began swimming chaotically, as though they had lost their sense of direction.
Even after leaving the area covered by Loran's mist, they still failed to recover, continuing to swim in circles as they drifted away.
"Uh..."
Seeing this scene, Loran awkwardly scratched his head and turned to look at his father.
As expected.
Seeing Loran's illusion technique, Locke shook his head.
"Alright, An'an."
"In the future, focus your cultivation efforts on other Profound Mysteries."
"Illusions simply don't suit you."
Locke considered the explanations he had given Loran regarding illusion techniques to already be sufficiently clear. But only after seeing Loran actually cast them did Locke realize that talent was something one could choose not to use, but could not afford to lack.
The illusion technique Loran had just displayed could hardly be called an illusion.
Rather than influencing the targets' senses and souls through his understanding of the Mist Profound Mystery, Loran had forcefully inflicted permanent damage upon the fishes' souls.
The illusion techniques Locke taught influenced a target's senses and soul, causing them to lose their perception of the outside world or feeding them false perceptions. They caused no actual damage to the soul.
But the "illusion technique" Loran displayed directly destroyed the enemy's senses.
This wasn't an illusion at all.
It was a soul attack.
"Oh..."
Hearing his father's evaluation, Loran became extremely dejected.
He had also wanted to freely create all kinds of fun games for his companions to enjoy together, just like his father.
Unfortunately, judging by his current attainments in "illusion techniques," if he cast them, his friends would probably think he was trying to kill them.
Thus, tens of thousands of years passed in the blink of an eye.
During these tens of thousands of years, Loran's six Water Laws Profound Mysteries had already fused to their limit.
Unfortunately, perhaps because he often cultivated while observing the Water Mansion, he had gradually developed greater resistance to the Water Paragon Laws.
When Locke removed the restrictions he had left on Loran's soul-protecting Sovereign artifact and allowed Loran's soul to directly face the Water Paragon Laws, Loran only managed to take half a step beyond the limit before becoming stuck once more, unable to break through the final barrier.
In other words, perhaps Loran could become a Paragon in the next second.
Or perhaps he would never take that remaining half-step for the rest of his life.
However, at present, Loran had already fulfilled the dream he had shouted out loudly on the battle platform all those years ago.
That half-step was enough to make him the number one Water Laws expert of the current era.
Well, this was before the era of Pahouse.
With Loran's current strength, only Paragons could surpass him.
As for those beneath the Paragon level, unless they possessed three Sovereign artifacts, Loran could even contend for the title of strongest beneath Paragon.
Loran had become stuck, but Teresia's progress had proceeded exceptionally smoothly.
After creating the Sound Profound Mystery and the Windstyle Profound Mystery, Teresia used the Sound Wave Profound Mystery and Windstyle Profound Mystery as a breakthrough point, successfully fusing eight Wind Laws Profound Mysteries to their limit while still a God.
Afterward, Teresia advanced to Highgod, completely fused the eight Wind Laws Profound Mysteries, and became a Prefect-level expert.
After that, Teresia traveled across the seven Divine Planes and four Higher Planes, challenging the Prefects of all eleven planes.
Aside from retreating whenever he encountered Prefects possessing Sovereign artifacts, he remained undefeated.
Finally, after rejecting an invitation from a Sovereign, he was pursued by that Sovereign's Emissary for several hundred thousand years. During this pursuit, he successfully completed the fusion of all nine Wind Laws Profound Mysteries and attained the Wind Paragon realm.
Naturally, that Sovereign Emissary became the first target upon which Teresia tested his newfound strength.
Before the Emissary even had time to beg for mercy, Teresia killed him with a single attack.
...
"Wind Paragon Laws, acquired!"
In the Netherworld, Locke's original body opened his eyes. The joy in his eyes was impossible to conceal.
Dismissing the Laws clone that had followed Teresia in the Wind Divine Plane, Locke opened his hand.
The power of Mirror Flower, Water Moon unfolded, and a complete set of Wind Paragon Laws flowed within his palm.
To Locke, this complete set of Wind Paragon Laws represented twenty-five percent of the Spatial Laws.
Even if some portions overlapped with the Spatial Laws he had already comprehended, at the very least, he would still gain another twenty percent of entirely new Spatial Laws.
According to the calculation that ten percent of the Spatial Laws corresponded to one portion of Willpower at the Sovereign level, once Locke fully comprehended the Spatial Laws touched by the Wind Laws, the strength of his original body would increase another hundredfold.
There was no time to waste.
After copying Teresia's Wind Paragon Laws, Locke's original body entered seclusion.
The comprehension of Spatial Laws still had to be carried out by Dijiang, who possessed the greatest affinity for them.
The four elemental Laws of earth, wind, water, and fire were lower-order Laws beneath the Spatial Laws.
Just as the Temporal Laws were divided into Time Acceleration, Time Stop, and Time Reversal, the Spatial Laws were also divided into Spatial Transfer, Spatial Lock, and Spatial Shatter.
The difference was that the Temporal Laws followed a progressive sequence. Only after completely comprehending the previous stage could one proceed to the next.
A supreme God King who comprehended Time Stop would inevitably be stronger than one who had only comprehended Time Acceleration and Time Deceleration.
The Spatial Laws, however, were different.
Spatial Transfer, Spatial Lock, and Spatial Shatter were all Profound Mysteries of the same level.
Previously, through the Water Paragon Laws, Locke had already comprehended portions of Spatial Transfer and Spatial Lock.
The Wind Paragon Laws also contained portions of Spatial Shatter and Spatial Transfer.
Once Locke fully comprehended the Spatial Laws contained within the Wind Paragon Laws, his attainments in Spatial Transfer would undoubtedly far surpass his understanding of Spatial Lock and Spatial Shatter.
...
"Congratulations, Teresia!"
In the Wind Divine Plane, Loran sat opposite Teresia and said with a sigh,
"I never expected that after only a few hundred thousand years apart, you've already become a Paragon, while I'm still stuck where I am without making the slightest progress."
After Locke entered seclusion, Loran's Water divine clone left Mount Nether. Upon hearing that Teresia had become a Paragon, he immediately came to the Wind Divine Plane to find him.
"Hahaha, I still have to thank Lord Locke for his guidance."
"If not for Lord Locke, I would either still be trapped at the God level or have advanced to Highgod and lost the opportunity to compete for the Paragon realm."
Meeting Loran once more, Teresia no longer behaved as cautiously as before.
Back then, he had merely been a God who had fused six Profound Mysteries. Before Loran, he hadn't even been capable of preserving his own life.
But now, Teresia was a Wind Paragon, the second strongest existence beneath the Sovereigns throughout the seven Divine Planes and four Higher Planes.
The reason everyone regarded Teresia as second was naturally because Dunnington had become a Paragon over five quadrillion years earlier and was also the Destruction Chief Sovereign's Emissary, possessing a Sovereign artifact bestowed by the Chief Sovereign.
In terms of pure strength, Dunnington was believed to be somewhat stronger than Teresia.
However, Paragons had no weaknesses.
Even though Dunnington possessed a Sovereign artifact and held a slight advantage, he still could not kill Teresia.
"Father's guidance..."
Loran sighed.
"Without question, Father's guidance is incomparably precious to anyone."
"But talent and natural ability are equally indispensable for reaching the Paragon realm."
"Look at me. I received Father's guidance at the same time as you."
"And yet now you've become an invincible Paragon, while I've only managed to take half a step forward."
"As for the remaining half-step, I don't even know whether I'll ever cross it."
Back when Loran first met Teresia, he had already sensed the gap between them.
And now, this reunion had fully confirmed that feeling.
Father had merely pointed out the path of cultivation to Teresia, and within a few hundred thousand years, Teresia became a Paragon.
As for Loran, despite receiving the baptism of Water Paragon Laws twice through the Water Mansion and the congratulatory message Sovereign artifact, he had only managed to advance half a step toward Paragon.
This disparity was not something that words or any form of measurement could compensate for.
"By the way, Teresia."
"Aside from Father and Mother, you're the first Paragon I've ever met."
"I've always heard that Paragons are invincible. Let me see it for myself later."
"I want to know just how great the gap is between me and a true Paragon."
"Very well."
Teresia readily agreed.
Having received Lord Locke's guidance, Teresia considered himself indebted to Locke by an enormous favor.
However, because of this favor, he still had no intention of becoming a Sovereign's Emissary like Dunnington and placing himself under restrictions.
In that case, he might as well repay this favor through Loran.
Perhaps this was Lord Locke's intention as well.
Otherwise, when Lord Locke guided him previously, he could have directly asked Teresia to become his Emissary.
At that time, Teresia would definitely have agreed.
Becoming the Emissary of a Paragon Sovereign was not something unacceptable to him.
"Then what are we waiting for? Let's go!"
After receiving Teresia's agreement, Loran was overjoyed. Without even finishing his meal, he threw down his chopsticks, dragged Little Black along, and instantly rushed out of the inn, flying toward the outskirts of the city.
Seeing this, Teresia shook his head but did not hesitate. He rose into the sky and followed closely behind Loran.
"Who's bold enough to fly within the city?"
When the residents of the city saw people flying through the sky, they were all startled.
(End of Chapter)
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