The Dark Universe was utterly silent. Traveling back from Qiu Long Planet to Yuan Planet through the universe would take about five days aboard Lord Shen's Heritage Spaceship.
After fulfilling all of Lord Shen's requirements, Lu Yan'an said he wanted to go home. "We're already in the Virtual Universe now. It doesn't matter where we train, does it?" He had been away from Yuan Planet for five years, and after another thousand years spent in the trials, he missed his family back home terribly.
Seeing how resolute he was, Lord Shen could only agree to let Lu Yan'an return home. It was only a matter of distance, after all. Training on Yuan Planet would be just as good!
And so, they left Qiu Long Planet, where they had lived for five years, and boarded the Heritage Spaceship to make their way home.
Although this wasn't his first time in the Dark Universe, traveling through it still felt just as wondrous. There were only countless specks of light in the vastness of space—a sea of "lights." Apart from those beautiful points of light, there was nothing else. All in all, the Dark Universe seemed so vast and desolate.
Aboard the spaceship, in the Virtual Universe.
"Your foundation is completely solid now, and I don't need to worry about your progress as a warrior. So now, we'll start learning Illusionist techniques." In the Virtual Universe's Killing Space, Lord Shen began introducing Lu Yan'an to Illusionist techniques.
"As an 'Orthodox Illusionist,' you don't need to worry about getting started with Illusionist techniques. Now, you just need to find some powerful ones!" As he spoke, Lord Shen searched through his Light Brain for suitable techniques.
After a long while, Lord Shen looked up and asked Lu Yan'an:
"There are quite a few techniques, but I'd still like to hear what you think. Do you want to learn an annihilation technique focused on killing power, or a control technique that's more precise?"
Hearing Lord Shen's question, Lu Yan'an raised an eyebrow, then smiled and asked in return:
"Lord Shen, can't I learn both?"
"Of course you can, but there's no need! Learning them both at once will slow down your progress with each technique. You'll actually learn faster if you take them one at a time!" Lord Shen shook his head and patiently explained.
Hearing his answer, Lu Yan'an nodded and dropped the idea of learning both at once.
"Then please tell me about these two types of techniques."
"Annihilation-type Illusionist techniques target the souls of soul-based lifeforms with Soul Attacks, focusing on increasing their killing power. Compared to direct physical damage, they're more elusive and harder to defend against."
"Control-type Illusionist techniques focus on restricting an opponent's state, and they require more precise Soul Attacks. Their purpose isn't to eliminate the opponent, which makes them harder to break. Oh, right—you used a control-type technique in your trial!"
Lord Shen explained the differences between the two kinds of techniques to Lu Yan'an. As if something had just occurred to him, he paused, then added:
"Still, there's something you should know. The first type is easy to get started with, but its potential is limited. The second is harder to master at first, but with enough practice, it can do everything the first type can!"
"Since you've put it that way, do I even have a choice? Control-type, then." Lu Yan'an looked utterly helpless. Lord Shen had practically spelled out which one he should choose.
"Hehe, I just wanted you to feel like you had a say!" Lord Shen teased with a laugh.
Though Lord Shen always liked to pull little stunts when it came to things like this, there was no denying how reliable he was! Ever since Lu Yan'an received his inheritance, whenever he had to make a choice, Lord Shen had never decided for him. Instead, he would lay out the pros and cons, then let him choose for himself. With his Immortal Level strength and experience, Lord Shen could easily have made the decisions for him. Yet his actions had let Lu Yan'an feel something he hadn't felt in a long time: respect!
"The control-type technique I picked for you is called 'Huo Shen'! It's also the signature technique of an Illusionist who was a Marquis-level Immortal, and it's the most suitable technique for you right now. The drawback is that it's extremely difficult to get started with—though that's only true for those 'Illusion Manipulators'! Hehe."
Lord Shen began introducing the Illusionist technique.
"Huo Shen" had four layers:
The first layer, Huo Ren. The challenge was to construct the basic framework of an illusion in a short time and spread it over a single target.
The second layer, Huo Xin. The challenge was to build the illusion's content and blend it with the environment. It could affect multiple targets and was effective against groups. It also came with a degree of Soul Attack!
The third layer, Huo Meng. The challenge was to stack multiple layers of illusion.
The fourth layer, Huo Shen. The challenge was to make the illusion permanent.
However, when Lu Yan'an heard the name Huo Shen, he raised an eyebrow. He seemed to remember that the secret technique practiced by that Hao God Clan genius, Illusion Demon Galaxi, had also been called Huo Shen. And judging by how the original story described it, the technique didn't seem all that powerful. It worked best when clearing out cannon fodder. When he faced City Lord Luo back then, the technique had been broken in just a few seconds!
Lu Yan'an felt a little helpless, but seeing how enthusiastically Lord Shen was explaining the technique, he didn't want to interrupt.
Oh, well. Techniques are just external tools; what matters is the person using them! Thinking of that, he no longer felt discouraged. Lord Shen had recommended it so wholeheartedly. Even if it had performed poorly in the original story, Lu Yan'an wasn't Illusion Demon Galaxi. And besides, even if his Illusionist techniques proved useless, Lu Yan'an's strength as a warrior was absurdly powerful!
With that thought, he began preparing to practice the Huo Shen technique.
Inside the Killing Space, Lu Yan'an deliberately simulated several Illusionists who practiced Huo Shen and began training by comparing his technique against theirs...
In less than three days, Lu Yan'an truly realized how easy it was for an "Orthodox Illusionist" to practice techniques of this kind! The bottleneck in constructing illusions was a massive chasm. Traditional methods required trial and error, slowly building things up—a perfect example of painstaking work that took time. Lu Yan'an was different. After experiencing the technique's operating logic twice, he mastered the basics!
That's right, he mastered it right away! He skipped the three stages of illusion construction, illusion maintenance, and illusion coverage, and went straight to the basics! There was no need for practice to make perfect, nor for painstaking effort over time. This was simply how unreasonable it was for "Orthodox Illusionists" to practice techniques like these! In their eyes, they already understood the fundamental framework of illusions. Once they understood how a technique worked, they could use it right away.
And that wasn't even the most outrageous part. After practicing Huo Shen for just three days, Lu Yan'an had already reached the second layer, "Huo Xin"! Lord Shen watched from the side, so astonished by his progress that he was numb to it. Judging by the description in the original story, when Galaxi took part in the "Genius Tournament," he had probably only reached the second layer, "Huo Xin." In just three days, Lu Yan'an had caught up with years of Galaxi's hard work.
Once he had successfully reached the second layer of the technique, Lu Yan'an finally understood why Lord Shen had recommended it. It was just too perfect for him!
Inside the Killing Space, Lu Yan'an called out to the sky: "Send me a hundred warriors at my level. They must have the same Law Comprehension as me! Disable illusion damage."
As soon as he finished speaking, a hundred white-clad warriors surrounded Lu Yan'an. What was terrifying was that each of them radiated fluctuations of the Origin Law of Light and the Law of Time! Yet Lu Yan'an didn't panic at all. With Huo Shen activated, he drew every warrior present into the technique's encirclement.
Then the Law of Time spread around him; clearly, he had entered time-slowing mode. He lightly tapped the ground with his toes and rushed toward the nearest warrior in the inner circle... In less than three seconds, Lu Yan'an had cut his way from the inner circle to the outer one. The instant the last warrior broke free of the illusion, he beheaded him.
Three seconds was the longest Lu Yan'an could hold opponents of the same level. But when it came to the victor between strong opponents, the slightest difference could mean an insurmountable gulf. It didn't even take three seconds—even a single instant was enough to decide the outcome of a battle!
Now that he had learned Illusionist techniques, Lu Yan'an could truly fight a hundred opponents at once!
Just as Lu Yan'an was eager to strike while the iron was hot and test his limits further, Lord Shen's sudden request to log off cut his enthusiasm short. As soon as he returned to the real universe, he saw Lord Shen's faintly smiling face:
"You're home!"
Before you continue