Under the glare of the strong light, Bai Xinyan and Beiye Hayato both narrowed their eyes. The clouds and void before them had become a massive steamer; every visible sight blurred and warped in the vapor, including the "fortress" ahead.
Only, that "fortress" area was somewhat misaligned with its surroundings in the details and possessed a certain resistance. Thus, when the Falling Sun Wheel struck it head-on, it actually made a slight deviation.
Distortion against distortion. Time and space both seemed to congeal for a moment, slowing the force of the impact, while the scene before them grew ever blurrier.
"An illusion? Or reality?"
Beiye Hayato had the typical mindset of a Body Cultivator. He remained skeptical of any supernatural phenomenon unless it truly acted upon him.
He still received no answer from Bai Xinyan. As for the Pope...
The instant Beiye Hayato's thoughts linked up with His Holiness, his vision suddenly swam. It felt as though the support beneath his feet had vanished, and a powerful sensation of falling seized him.
As a Body Cultivator Ability User, maintaining balance was instinctive. Beiye Hayato unconsciously tensed his waist and abdomen, yet the feedback from his physical Xing Hai told him that he was still standing there, perfectly upright and steady.
What had truly lost balance and fallen was his soul.
Dazzling light shone in. This time, he truly could not tell whether it came from reality or from stimulation on the Mental Layer. It intertwined and fused with the shadow structure of the Tree Nest, forming a sacrificial furnace that ignited all Soul Power caught within it at once.
At that moment, the Tree Nest structure drew upon the Soul Power of Beiye Hayato and the others, using it for "another purpose"—most likely to echo the attack of the Flying