Zhao Li chuckled self-deprecatingly, casting aside the contempt in his heart.
If not for Ye Yunsheng, perhaps he would never have woken up.
He steadied himself, a hint of apprehension appearing in his eyes, and looked at the stone again.
Even Ye Yunsheng's strike had only shattered the surface of the strange stone, revealing its true form within.
Zhao Li recognized it—an Illusion Spirit Stone, a natural master of illusion formations.
Zhao Li was a little surprised, then enlightened. Over years and years, it had changed its appearance. If not for that, Zhao Li wouldn't have carelessly probed it directly.
Amidst his surprise, a hint of fervor also rose in Zhao Li's heart.
Although the Illusion Spirit Stone was a natural master of illusions, if it could only generate natural illusions, it wouldn't be considered precious.
The real reason it was sought after was its ability to imprint the Spiritual Imprints near it, using them as nourishment to evolve endless Illusions.
In short, if used properly, it could even serve a purpose similar to the Hundred Lives Reincarnation of the Bodhi Tree!
"Too bad, although Illusions are based on human mental perception, fakes are still fakes in the end."
Although Zhao Li felt some longing, he hadn't lost his mind. A hint of regret rose in his heart. At this moment, he still felt some lingering fear and apprehension towards the Illusion Spirit Stone.
Not only was the Illusion Spirit Stone dangerous, but one could easily become completely lost within it if not careful. Human thoughts and minds were inherently unpredictable, and when infinitely magnified in an Illusion, they became even harder to follow real-world logic. If one truly believed what they experienced in the Illusion was real, their mind would likely suffer problems.
Even if it could truly have effects similar to the Hundred Lives Reincarnation, Zhao Li didn't quite dare to use it. Compared to the Ancient Bodhi Tree, it was not only much more dangerous, but without the enlightenment effect of the Bodhi Tree, its function wasn't as ideal.
Unfortunately, although Zhao Li was determined to find the Ancient Bodhi Tree and advance to Dou Sheng in one go, he had no news of it.
Seeing him wake up, Ye Yunsheng asked anxiously:
"Zhao Li, are you alright?"
Zhao Li shook his head, chuckled lightly, and feigned ease:
"I'm fine, I just accidentally fell for this Illusion Spirit Stone's trick."
It was also because he was too confident, lacking reverence for nature deep down. He clearly knew it was an Illusion, but his first thought wasn't to find a way to break it, but rather curiosity, even wanting to try and use the Illusion to give himself a boost.
It truly proved the saying, "Those whom the gods wish to destroy, they first make mad." Zhao Li controlled the Illusion's changes several times, gradually losing his vigilance, and thus becoming deeply trapped.
"Since that's the case, let's destroy it."
Ye Yunsheng nodded her head slightly, and once again gathered an attack. In an instant, a large hammer condensed into shape. It was clearly condensed from Dou Qi, yet it felt substantial, and Zhao Li could even feel a chilling cold emanating from it.
Ye Yunsheng held the hammer handle virtually, then viciously smashed it down towards the Illusion Spirit Stone.
Zhao Li's pupils constricted slightly, and for a moment, he even forgot to stop her.
In his perception, Ye Yunsheng's strike was even much stronger than Half-Saint Huoyun. Even if he wanted to achieve this level, he would have to use all his techniques.
Although the Illusion Spirit Stone was hard, it couldn't withstand Ye Yunsheng's strike. Seeing it about to be shattered, although Zhao Li felt a little regretful, he didn't stop her.
Compared to what was in Ye Yunsheng's heart, the Illusion Spirit Stone was nothing.
Suddenly, Zhao Li's eyes widened.
The appearance of the Illusion Spirit Stone swallowing and spitting out Dou Qi was originally an anomaly formed by the Illusion Spirit Stone imprinting spirits, not because it was truly alive.
But at this moment, Zhao Li clearly perceived a very strong, yet somewhat childish, mental power suddenly mobilizing the surrounding energy, forming layer upon layer of Energy Barriers, protecting the Illusion Spirit Stone.
Boom—
The two energies collided, and terrifying aftershocks spread in all directions. For a moment, the mountain peak was annihilated and collapsed.
Although the Illusion Spirit Stone blocked the giant hammer, it was also smashed into the ground by the giant hammer. Even so, it was still intact, not shattering into pieces as Zhao Li had imagined.
Ye Yunsheng was clearly a little surprised. She didn't make another move, looking at Zhao Li with a questioning gaze, and asked:
"Zhao Li, could it be some strange Magical Beast?"
Zhao Li shook his head, also filled with doubt and surprise. His thoughts flickered, and he smiled:
"Perhaps the stone has become a spirit?"
Although the Illusion Spirit Stone was a bit special, it truly had no life or Spirituality. But thinking of tree spirits like the Bodhi Tree, Zhao Li couldn't help but feel suspicious.
Upon hearing this, Ye Yunsheng's eyes lit up, full of curiosity:
"Oh? A spirit?"
In the stories Zhao Li told her, all things could gain life, becoming either spirits or monsters.
But that was just a story. Now, there was actually a stone that could mobilize energy to block most of her power's strike. How could she not be curious?
As she spoke, her figure flickered, and she was already beside the Illusion Spirit Stone.
Zhao Li flashed over to follow her, while simultaneously guarding his mind and reminding her aloud:
"Be careful!"
Before he finished speaking, he sensed a soul fluctuation. His heart stirred slightly, and he was about to attack, but quickly froze.
"Don't hit me!"
Both Zhao Li and Ye Yunsheng felt a childish consciousness transmit, clearly expressing its fear.
The two looked at each other, seeing the surprise in each other's eyes.
Zhao Li asked:
"Who are you?"
"I'm Qi, Qitian, Great Sage Equal to Heaven."
The young consciousness spoke haltingly. Zhao Li could even sense a bit of apprehension, three parts longing, and five parts determination within it.
Zhao Li's gaze deepened, and various thoughts surfaced in his mind. He seemed to understand something.
"Can you turn into a monkey?"
Ye Yunsheng's already bright eyes grew even more luminous as she eagerly asked. At this moment, she resembled a little girl who had found a favorite toy.
The Illusion Spirit Stone was clearly somewhat afraid of her. Even though its body lay motionless in the pit, Zhao Li could sense its trembling from its will.
"Y-yes, I can. But I don't know how to transform yet."
"Just as I thought."
As it finished speaking, Zhao Li understood. He muttered to himself, then his gaze towards the Illusion Spirit Stone's spirit became fervent once more.
If ancient trees could give birth to spirits, there was no reason why a strange stone couldn't. After countless ages of erosion, the world was full of wonders.
If this spirit grows to the level of the Bodhi Ancient Tree, perhaps even a Dou Di could be toyed with in its hands.
Thinking this, Zhao Li decided to use his art of persuasion to trick this naive Stone Spirit into becoming one of his own.
Then, he saw Ye Yunsheng squatting in front of the Illusion Spirit Stone. The person and the spirit communicated without any hindrance, and he couldn't even get a word in.
What's Yunsheng's is mine. No big deal.
Zhao Li comforted himself.
The Stone Spirit realized that the human who had hit it so hard was no longer attacking, and it gradually lowered its guard. Its speech became noticeably smoother.
Through their back-and-forth, Zhao Li also confirmed his suspicions.
The Stone Spirit didn't even know when it was born. Since it first gained consciousness, it had always been on this mountaintop, but there were no living beings around. Although it had consciousness, it had no opportunity to learn and had remained ignorant.
But even so, after countless ages of accumulation, its spirituality had steadily increased. Now, it was only a step away from reaching the Emperor Realm.
And Zhao Li and Ye Yunsheng were the first people to arrive here. After countless ages, the first spiritual imprint it had left came from him.
-----------
Machine Translation by: https:// randomtranslator.com/
Read 666+ original & fanfic translations in English, Español, Português, Deutsch, Français, or Русский at: https:// randomtranslator.com/
Join our Discord: https:// discord.gg/NSWvfN7vua
-----------