Chapter 149: Phantom of Illusion
The Night Pool rested deep beneath the forbidden region of Nine Lotus Academy like a hidden world separated from reality itself.
Cold silver mist floated endlessly across the massive underground cave while streams of dense Yin energy moved through the air like invisible rivers.
The atmosphere itself felt ancient.
Silent.
Heavy.
Mysterious.
The entire underground region was illuminated only by pale moon crystals embedded naturally within the cave walls. Their dim silver light reflected across the giant black waters of the Night Pool, making the place look unreal.
At the center of the underground cave rested the Night Pool itself.
Nearly the size of a football field.
The water looked dark like ink, yet faint silver ripples shimmered continuously across its surface as if moonlight itself had dissolved inside the pool. Ancient formation symbols glowed beneath the waters slowly, constantly drawing Yin energy from the surrounding mountains into the pool.
This was one of the greatest cultivation treasures of Nine Lotus Academy.
Even Peak Masters rarely received permission to use it freely.
But the most shocking thing within the cave wasn’t the pool.
Near the edge of the black waters stood an ancient silver tree nearly twenty feet tall.
Its bark looked like crystallized moonlight.
Silver leaves swayed softly despite the absence of wind.
Tiny glowing fruits hung from the branches like miniature moons.
Tony stared at the tree for several moments before narrowing his eyes slightly.
The life aura coming from it was terrifying.
Even standing far away, he could feel his body instinctively absorbing the faint life essence leaking from the fruits.
Tony slowly muttered, "So this is the Ancient Life Saving Tree..."
He remembered Da Vinci mentioning it briefly before leaving earlier.
One fruit could extend the lifespan of old monsters by five years.
No wonder this place was treated like forbidden territory.
Tony slowly exhaled afterward and shifted his attention toward the Night Pool again.
Right now, lifespan treasures were meaningless for him.
Strength mattered more.
Without hesitation, he removed his outer robes and stepped toward the black waters slowly.
The moment his feet touched the Night Pool—
SHOOOOOK!!!
A freezing sensation instantly shot through his body.
Tony’s brows twitched slightly.
The Yin energy inside the pool was absurdly dense.
It felt like thousands of tiny icy needles piercing his skin continuously.
Yet strangely...
His mind became clearer afterward.
Even the surrounding sounds became sharper.
Tony slowly walked deeper into the pool until the dark waters reached his waist.
Only then did he take out the Heaven Rank jade manual once more.
The golden words floating above the manual glowed faintly beneath the silver cave light.
[Heaven-Rank Movement Technique: Heavenly Mirage Steps]
[A mysterious movement art that focuses on speed, illusion, and survival.]
Tony silently reread the opening theory once more.
Unlike fist techniques, movement techniques depended heavily on understanding rather than brute force.
Especially Heaven Rank movement arts.
One wrong step could destroy the body’s coordination permanently.
Tony slowly closed his eyes afterward.
The Enlightenment Card continued sharpening his thoughts continuously.
Inside his mind, the theory behind the Heavenly Mirage Steps slowly became clearer.
The body deceives the eye.
The shadow deceives the senses.
The real body hides between illusion and movement.
The true essence of this technique was not speed alone.
It was confusion.
Distortion.
False perception.
Tony suddenly opened his eyes sharply afterward.
Then—
He moved.
SHOOOOOK!!!
His body flashed across the Night Pool instantly.
One blurry afterimage appeared briefly before disappearing.
Tony immediately stopped afterward while frowning slightly.
Too unstable.
The life energy circulation path was wrong.
He quickly adjusted his breathing according to the jade manual again.
Then moved once more.
SHOOOOOK!!!
This time, two blurry afterimages appeared briefly across the black waters.
The silver mist exploded outward slightly afterward.
Tony’s eyes brightened instantly.
"It works..."
Without hesitation, he continued practicing repeatedly.
Again.
Again.
And again.
Hours slowly passed inside the underground cave.
The Night Pool gradually became increasingly chaotic.
Tony’s figure continuously flashed across the black waters while blurry shadows followed behind him repeatedly.
Sometimes he lost balance completely and crashed into the cave walls.
Sometimes the illusionary shadows collapsed instantly.
Sometimes the movement path failed midway, causing his meridians to ache painfully.
Still...
Tony continued.
The dense Yin energy inside the Night Pool continuously entered his body while the Heaven Rank manual’s theory slowly became instinctive.
Gradually...
Tony began understanding the real meaning behind the technique.
The Heavenly Mirage Steps did not require maximum speed.
It required rhythm.
False motion.
Breaking enemy perception.
At some point, Tony suddenly stepped lightly across the water again.
SHOOOOOOOOK!!!
This time...
Five blurry afterimages instantly appeared behind him simultaneously.
The shadows moved independently for several moments before fading slowly into the silver mist.
Tony stopped near the opposite side of the pool afterward.
Not a single ripple appeared beneath his feet.
He was standing directly above the water surface itself.
Tony slowly lowered his head while observing the black waters beneath his feet.
Then...
A grin slowly appeared on his face.
"It finally worked."
At that moment, the Heaven Rank jade manual suddenly glowed brightly.
Golden words floated before Tony’s eyes.
[Level 1: Phantom of Illusion]
[The user leaves blurry afterimages while moving.]
[Enemies struggle to locate the real body.]
[Effects:]
[Greatly increases movement speed.]
[Creates illusionary afterimages.]
[Harder to lock onto.]
[Can move lightly over walls and water.]
[Fast enough to confuse the eyes.]
Tony slowly exhaled deeply afterward.
Level One mastery.
Finally completed.
But immediately afterward, Tony noticed something shocking.
The Night Pool around him had changed drastically.
The dense Yin energy previously flooding the cave had become extremely thin now.
Even the silver mist faded significantly.
The ancient formation symbols beneath the water rotated far slower than before.
Tony’s expression changed slightly afterward.
He had unknowingly absorbed nearly all usable energy inside the Night Pool while mastering the first stage of the Heavenly Mirage Steps.
"No wonder Heaven Rank techniques are terrifying..." he muttered softly.
"Just mastering Level One nearly emptied an entire legendary cultivation pool."
Tony slowly clenched his fist afterward.
Then—
SHOOOOOK!!!
His figure instantly blurred across the water surface again.
Five afterimages followed behind him like ghosts.
This time, even Tony himself felt shocked by the speed.
More importantly... Silent. Even his movements across water created almost no sound now.
Tony finally stopped near the edge of the Night Pool afterward while silver mist drifted slowly around him.
A dangerous grin slowly appeared on his face.
"With this... killing monsters inside the World Tree Blessing will become much easier."
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Tq :-)
