Three top-tier martial pillars joined forces to surround and kill the Demon Emperor, yet they had actually fought until they were exhausted without being able to kill him. It was truly the greatest embarrassment in the world.
But this was actually only natural. Smiling's Myriad Transformations Divine Ability, Thought Arises, Thought Dies, would only reveal an opening if he tried to attack. When he no longer needed to divide his attention to attack and could focus entirely on defense, who could easily break through his defenses?
Smiling's nine layers of protective astral energy were not a battle technique he had improvised on a whim. They were the result of decades of practice, day in and day out. At first, there had not been nine layers, but one, then two, then three... He had added them layer by layer until he could now raise all nine layers almost subconsciously.
If Smiling were given another few decades, he might upgrade his nine layers of protective astral energy into the Eighteen Levels of Hell. By then, Cha Huan and the others might not even be able to break through his defenses.
The so-called protective astral energy was actually Smiling turning the air into 'refined steel walls.' Nine layers meant nine layers of refined steel walls. Whether it was a barrage storm or a concentrated energy cannon, everything would be worn away. They were extremely difficult to penetrate through normal physical means. The only solution was to break through them with a mental lightburst, using Mental Power to disrupt the divine power Smiling had imbued into the air.
Therefore, Cha Huan and the others could only blast through the protective astral energy with lightbursts. If the lightburst was not powerful enough, they could not break through his defenses at all. Even if they could