The Prairie in a Dream

“Seal!”

Hakesi, clad in black, hovered mid-air, sand swirling around him. With a low roar, the snow-white long dragon that had been circling him halted. It was, in fact, composed of countless silver-white fine needles, each adorned with intricate secret patterns. The silvery-white flowing light emanating from these needles combined to form the dragon.

*Boom!* The multitude of fine needles dispersed, rapidly spreading across the surrounding space. Each needle glowed with a silver light, instantly transforming the world into a silver realm!

This was Hakesi’s domain—the Ice and Snow Domain!

“You can’t stop me!”

A blue-robed figure advanced towards Hakesi, step by step. Seemingly slow, his movement was as swift as lightning. As he walked, the blue-robed figure generated three illusions, making it impossible to discern which of the three moving phantoms was his true body. All three blue-robed figures stared at Hakesi, their eyes sharp as needles.

“It’s useless!” Hakesi’s eyes glinted coldly.

*Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!*

Thirty-nine fine needles swiftly formed a silver serpent, striking like lightning at the three blue-robed illusions. With two soft *thuds*, two of the illusions shattered, leaving only Gaiqi, the blue-robed man, whose body was enveloped in wisps of green flowing light. Gaiqi wielded a shield, and as he swung it, it formed an impenetrable defensive formation. The silver serpent found itself utterly unable to bypass the shield.

The blue-robed man continued to advance, his aura growing invisibly stronger.

He held a battle saber, but it remained sheathed.

…

Inside a private box in the Virtual Universe’s Martial Arena.

Luo Feng and the other two had sweat beading on their foreheads from watching. Hong exclaimed in a low voice, “This is incredible! To defend like that with just a shield… It’s as if there are no blind spots around his body; he’s completely sealed off. This, this is simply too exaggerated. His shield technique has reached an unbelievable level.”

“It’s truly astonishing,” Lei Shen said, holding his breath.

“Remarkable,” Luo Feng, who also used a shield, understood Gaiqi’s terrifying skill even more clearly. “That Hakesi is also formidable. To integrate his domain with psychic weapons, forming such a powerful Ice and Snow Domain.”

There are always greater talents beyond one’s own. The three of them had always held themselves in high regard, but the two combatants they were now witnessing in this life-and-death battle—their mental fortitude, domain mastery, shield techniques, and psychic weapon skills—far surpassed their own.

“But it looks like Gaiqi might win,” Lei Shen frowned.

“Mm,” Luo Feng nodded.

“Indeed,” Hong sighed softly. “Gaiqi’s aura completely overwhelms his opponent, and his shield technique is simply flawless. His saber technique, however, has been continuously building power; once unleashed, it will undoubtedly be overwhelmingly potent.”

…

On the desolate planet.

Gaiqi, the youth in the blue battle robe, moved seemingly slowly, yet covered several kilometers in an instant. Hakesi, suspended mid-air and desperately manipulating his psychic weapons to attack, watched his face grow increasingly grim. Gritting his teeth, he roared, “Three Dragons—Break!”

*Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!*

The fine needles rapidly converged, forming three silver serpents that furiously assailed Gaiqi.

“Hmph!”

Gaiqi snorted, stomping his foot with immense force. With a *boom*, he left a trail of afterimages, and his battle saber transformed into a verdant green continuous saber shadow, enveloping Hakesi, who was still suspended in mid-air. Hakesi simultaneously drew two curved sabers from his waist, wielding them as two arcs of light.

*Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!*

The clash of weapons between these Universe-level powerhouses generated incredibly powerful shockwaves. The ground was violently scoured, sinking dozens of meters, and the surrounding tens of kilometers were instantly reduced to ruins. The shockwaves continued to spread in all directions, forming layers of incredibly violent air currents that swept across the landscape.

“Block it!”

“Block it!”

“Block it!” Gaiqi muttered, his battle saber elegantly striking Hakesi again and again. The saber transformed into mesmerizing green saber shadows, watching them was like witnessing a blade of grass breaking through the soil, growing with tenacious vitality. That continuous, vibrant life force made one feel powerless.

Hakesi’s forehead was beaded with sweat.

He bit his lip, constantly dodging and using his twin sabers to parry, while simultaneously controlling his psychic weapons to fiercely attack Gaiqi. At times, he even employed soul attack secret techniques…

Alas…

Gaiqi remained completely unaffected! The vibrant saber shadows came one after another, growing stronger and stronger…

…

In the private box.

“Gaiqi has won; Hakesi can’t hold on much longer,” Luo Feng said, looking at the man in the central projection of the Martial Arena, whose eyes were filled with hope and whose saber technique exuded endless vitality.

“Sanzi, if Gaiqi wins, we’ll make a profit,” Lei Shen said with a slight smile.

“It’s not over yet,” Hong’s expression was serious.

Among the three, Luo Feng resonated with Gaiqi’s past, while Hong resonated with Hakesi’s life. Both hoped for their respective chosen combatant to win. Of course, if Hakesi died, Luo Feng would also feel regret. However, in this life-and-death battle, one side had to die; there was no other way.

“Huh?” Luo Feng’s expression changed.

“There’s hope!” Hong’s eyes lit up.

“Strange,” Lei Shen’s eyes widened.

“Wow!”

“Something unexpected is happening.”

“Haha, it’s going to be a comeback.”

The entire Martial Arena erupted in gasps and various discussions. While unexpected events could occur in such life-and-death battles, they were rare! These battles relied on the strength of both parties. Gaiqi indeed had the upper hand over Hakesi in terms of strength; his shield and saber techniques, one for defense and one for offense, were almost perfect.

Moreover, Gaiqi’s willpower was terrifying, and his soul defense was extremely strong; others’ soul attacks and illusion techniques couldn’t affect him.

Therefore, even the Giant Axe Martial Arena’s odds for Gaiqi were very low, clearly indicating that Gaiqi was considered significantly stronger than Hakesi.

But now—

“It’s defying all expectations.”

“This Hakesi actually comprehended a source law at the brink of death?”

“It is indeed a source law, likely the Water Source Law. Although he just comprehended it, he has stepped through that great door.”

“Haha, to witness this scene in a life-and-death battle, it’s worth it.”

…

Luo Feng and the others heard the discussions from the audience on the first floor. They knew very little about source laws, but at this moment, they clearly saw the sudden change in Gaiqi and Hakesi’s battle.

On the ground, which was trembling from shockwaves and generating incredibly powerful air currents, two figures moved like lightning.

“*Chii!*” “*Chii!*” “*Chii!*”

Hakesi’s eyes gleamed sharply. The Ice and Snow Domain enveloped the surrounding area, and the three silver serpents seemed to come alive, like slippery little snakes, furiously attacking Gaiqi. Gaiqi, using his shield for defense, had become somewhat flustered, losing his easy rhythm.

“*Clang!*” “*Clang!*” Gaiqi not only used his shield but also had to rely on his battle saber for defense.

“No.”

“No!” Sweat beaded on Gaiqi’s forehead. His shield and saber defense had already surpassed their limits.

Hakesi, the black-clad man hovering in the distance, overlooked this scene, a sharp glint flashing in his eyes. The attack speed of the three silver serpents suddenly surged even further, making it even harder for Gaiqi to resist. A silver light grazed the shield, and Gaiqi’s shield slammed into the silver serpent, causing it to explode.

However, the front part of the silver serpent, composed of fine needles, transformed into a silver needle-light, *whoosh*, sweeping past Gaiqi’s head.

Silence!

All the fine needles ceased their attack, hovering in mid-air. The silver needles quickly gathered, merging with all the other needles controlling this area, finally forming a disc that settled beside Hakesi.

Gaiqi, clad in the blue battle robe, *thumped* as his knees hit the ground, then his upper body slowly toppled over.

“Hehehe…”

“Run quickly, come to Papa.”

“Papa, Papa.”

In Gaiqi’s hazy eyes, he vaguely saw a beautiful prairie. On the prairie, a cute five or six-year-old girl laughed continuously, chasing a tall figure, shouting, “Papa, Papa…” That was the prairie in his dream, his, Gaiqi’s, most beautiful prairie.

His home!

The place he wanted to protect.

“Luxiu… Luxiu…” Gaiqi called out the name of his homeland at the moment his soul shattered.

*Thump!*

His body hit the ground. A trickle of blood seeped from Gaiqi’s forehead. Although there were no major external injuries, his internal sea of consciousness had been pierced, and his soul shattered.

The fierce wind howled!

Hakesi, the black-clad man, flew over from a distance and landed on the ground, looking at the blue-robed corpse before him.

Hakesi slowly knelt down, gently stroking Gaiqi’s eyes to close them. But… Hakesi felt liquid on his hands.

Hakesi looked at his palm; the liquid was clear: “Tears?”

“I’m sorry.”

Hakesi looked down at Gaiqi’s corpse and whispered, “I just want to go home!” Every time he fought, Hakesi never held back. Yet, after every battle, he would say he was sorry…

Hakesi closed his eyes.

In his memory, that beautiful planet, his homeland… he hadn’t returned for thousands of years.

“822, 178 more matches. Then I can go home,” Hakesi stood up.

*Boom!*

He shot into the sky! Leaving behind only ice particles and dust swirling everywhere. The swirling snow-white ice particles and dust quickly covered Gaiqi’s corpse. A Universe-level Rank Six powerhouse, one who might have had a bright and limitless future, thus fell on a desolate planet.

…

In the private box.

The Giant Axe Martial Arena’s recording equipment was incredibly advanced, capturing even the two lines of tears Gaiqi shed in his dying moments with perfect clarity.

In the end, Gaiqi died, Hakesi won.

Luo Feng and Lei Shen lost their bets, while Hong won his.

However, Luo Feng, Lei Shen, and Hong remained silent for a long time. Even Hong, who had won, silently watched the corpse on the screen, eventually swallowed by the dust.

“Gaiqi died,” Luo Feng said in a low voice. “Hakesi still needs to win 178 more matches to return home alive.”

Hong and Lei Shen remained silent.

In the universe, striving to rise is indeed incredibly difficult! Any genius, if careless in some aspect, could fall. And the strongest among Earth’s human race… were these three. After watching this battle, Luo Feng, Hong, and Lei Shen all felt the pressure.