Front Wolf, Back Tiger

The vast ice mountain rock forest, a landscape of unique beauty, was formed by various black rock ice layers. Within this expansive terrain lived a group of illusory beasts, both incredibly foolish and terrifyingly powerful. Varying in size, they naturally formed their own territories based on their strength.

This was purely a subconscious arrangement.

The weakest among these thousands of illusory beasts could rival Universe-level beings, while the strongest were comparable to peak Sector Lords. Luo Feng estimated there were about twelve Sector Lord-level illusory beasts. As for the peak Ninth-tier Sector Lord illusory beasts… there were three, exuding the most immense auras. One was approximately two kilometers long, resembling a colossal lizard, its body covered in clearly visible scales formed from ice.

Another was humanoid, towering about 800 meters tall, like a giant mechanical puppet.

The last was a ferocious avian-like illusory beast with six pairs of icy wings.

These three peak Sector Lord illusory beasts each occupied a distinct area within the ice mountain rock forest, with large groups of other illusory beasts gathered around them.

“Wolves in front, tigers behind. What do I do?” Luo Feng abruptly decelerated, a mix of shock and anger flashing through him.

“Roar! Roar!”

Within a thousand-kilometer radius, the majority of the thousands of illusory beasts stared blankly at Luo Feng. Almost without hesitation, hundreds of the illusory beasts closest to the cave entrance immediately roared, either flying, dashing, or flashing through the air. They charged towards Luo Feng with the momentum of ten thousand stampeding horses!

Kill!

Kill all non-illusory beast entities! The consciousness of these illusory beasts was incredibly simple, yet it caused endless headaches for those who ventured into the Demonic Mountain. There was simply no way to prevent them from being hostile towards humans.

Moreover.

Illusory beasts were unique lifeforms. They had no souls. If cut into a thousand pieces, they would merely be ice shards. Yet, these special ice shards contained a unique consciousness, though what exactly carried this consciousness was unknown. Soul-based attacks were completely ineffective against them.

“Rumble~~~”

Hundreds of various illusory beasts charged simultaneously, shaking the ice mountain rock forest. Some ice layers shattered directly upon impact.

“Damn it!” Luo Feng’s eyes widened, and he gritted his teeth. “I’ll risk it!”

Whoosh!

He transformed into a streak of light, directly colliding with the charging horde of illusory beasts.

Because Luo Feng’s own aura wasn’t particularly strong, among the hundreds of illusory beasts drawn to him, the strongest was an illusory beast with the strength of a First or Second-tier Sector Lord. The rest were Domain Lord-level or Universe-level illusory beasts. As Luo Feng, now a streak of light, charged into the horde, the Demon Killer Clan clone’s advantage—speed—burst forth instantly!

“Boom!”

Luo Feng directly collided with an illusory beast that had hooves and an aura of a Universe-level Eighth or Ninth-tier.

“My apologies!”

Holding his Blood Shadow Battle Blade, Luo Feng fiercely stabbed the armored, four-hooved illusory beast before him. The immense power difference between a Ninth-tier Domain Lord and a Universe-level Eighth or Ninth-tier allowed Luo Feng to instantly pierce through the ice of the illusory beast’s body. With a rumbling, cracking sound, countless ice shards were pierced and shredded, and Luo Feng himself burrowed into the illusory beast’s interior.

The moment he entered the illusory beast’s body!

“Change!” Luo Feng’s eyes lit up.

Whoosh!

He instantly transformed into a black stream of air. The black stream then quickly condensed into a憨厚 (simple and honest) and adorable ice bear, entirely made of ice! Its appearance was a perfect replica of the first illusory beast Luo Feng had killed, though its height was significantly reduced, standing only eight meters tall.

“Replication!”

Innate Secret Technique—Replication!

His aura completely transformed into that of the bear-like illusory beast he had previously killed. In truth, all illusory beasts had similar auras; the only difference was the strength of the aura! Of course… the auras of human powerhouses and illusory beasts were distinctly different.

…

Though described slowly, in reality, Luo Feng charged towards the ice mountain rock forest, was met by hundreds of charging illusory beasts, and instantly plunged into one of them.

A collision like Mars hitting Earth!

A violent explosion!

Countless ice shards scattered, littering the ground.

“Roar~~” An eight-meter-tall, simple and honest ice bear-like illusory beast, entirely composed of ice and with an aura of approximately Universe-level Third-tier strength, emerged from the exploded ice shards, letting out a low growl.

The other hundreds of illusory beasts immediately slowed and stopped, searching for their target—the human.

But he was nowhere to be seen!

With a consciousness simpler than that of a kitten or puppy, they didn't ponder why the human had vanished. These illusory beasts only knew one thing: since they couldn't find the human warrior, they would turn around and return to their lairs to continue their lives.

…

Sector Lord Wu Qi, completely engulfed in flames, pursued his target at an astonishing speed.

“It must be him!”

“A Ninth-tier Universe-level, yet he could detect me in advance. And his escape speed was incredibly fast! He must possess some special secret technique or unique treasure. These are definitely not things that warriors in the Nine Star Sea could own.” Sector Lord Wu Qi’s eyes blazed with fire. “It must be the target the God wants to kill. Only a Ninth-tier Universe-level individual whom even a God wants to kill but dares not personally eliminate would possess such means!”

Wu Qi understood, of course.

What status did the being hold, whom even the Grand Sect Master of their Thousand Star Sect had to kneel before and address as Master?

And such a being dared not use other methods to kill a Ninth-tier Universe-level youth, only daring to act through them, using the rules permitted by the Virtual Universe Company to eliminate that youth in the Demonic Mountain. Clearly… that young man’s status must be very high, and his background extremely special.

At the very least, the terrifying nature of this background was something even that great being couldn't provoke!

He understood, yet.

Wu Qi had no choice. If he disobeyed, they would die immediately! So, he could only diligently search. Moreover, killing in the Demonic Mountain was in accordance with the Virtual Universe Company’s rules. He had never heard of… being punished for killing someone in the Demonic Mountain.

“Boom!” Sector Lord Wu Qi instantly burst out of the cave entrance, rushing into the ice mountain rock forest.

“My heavens!”

Sector Lord Wu Qi’s eyes widened.

In the vast ice mountain rock forest ahead, hundreds of illusory beasts were slowing down, the shattered ice from the explosion was falling, and the eight-meter-tall ice bear was still roaring.

“Whoosh!”

The hundreds of illusory beasts, as well as the other quiet illusory beasts in the ice mountain rock forest, seemed to sense the immense aura of a Sector Lord powerhouse. They all turned their heads simultaneously! Nearly ninety-nine percent of the thousands of illusory beasts simultaneously looked at Sector Lord Wu Qi, who had rushed into the ice mountain rock forest and immediately slowed down in fright.

“Roar~~” The peak Ninth-tier Sector Lord lizard illusory beast immediately let out an earth-shattering roar.

Boom!

It was the first to flash like lightning and charge towards Sector Lord Wu Qi!

“Roar~”

“Roar~~”

The other several Sector Lord-level illusory beasts under the lizard illusory beast’s command, along with over a thousand more illusory beasts, all roared and followed their leader, the ‘lizard illusory beast,’ frantically charging towards the human warrior! However, the tall humanoid illusory beast and the ferocious avian illusory beast, the other two peak Ninth-tier Sector Lord illusory beasts, merely watched and did not pursue.

Approximately one-third of the illusory beasts in the entire ice mountain rock forest charged towards Sector Lord Wu Qi!

“Oh, my goodness!”

Sector Lord Wu Qi’s pupils contracted, his face turning pale. “So many illusory beasts?”

Boom!

He immediately turned and transformed into a fiery streak of light, fleeing rapidly into the deep, vast cave. As a powerhouse of the Nine Star Sea, Wu Qi was well aware of the terrifying nature of illusory beasts. Although they were clumsy, they had no fatal weaknesses. Even if cut in half, an illusory beast would continue to attack.

Therefore, between humans and illusory beasts of the same tier, the illusory beasts, lacking vital points, were even more formidable.

Soul attacks were ineffective!

Slicing with blades, piercing the head, and so on, were completely useless!

“Roar~~”

The lizard illusory beast, swift as lightning, was the first to give chase.

Four other Sector Lord-level illusory beasts followed closely behind! Then came a large group of Domain Lord-level illusory beasts, roaring as they pursued.

“Roar~~” A cute ice bear-like illusory beast, along with a massive army of over a thousand Universe-level illusory beasts, rumbled along the cave, joining the pursuit.

The ice bear, its silver eyes scanning its surroundings.

“Good.”

“Just as I imagined, these illusory beasts, with their incredibly simple consciousness, completely mistake me for one of their own. Tsk tsk, my current body structure and aura are perfectly standard for an illusory beast.” Luo Feng, transformed into this ice bear of the Demon Killer Clan, muttered to himself amidst the vast illusory beast army, running along with the flow to chase Sector Lord Wu Qi.

Of course, the main force of the pursuit was the peak Sector Lord lizard illusory beast and the four Sector Lord illusory beasts.

The army behind them was purely following their leader.

…

Sector Lord Wu Qi fled desperately, hysterically. His World Energy spread out over tens of thousands of kilometers, constantly detecting his pursuers.

“This is truly unlucky.”

“I was just chasing a Universe-level junior, and I ended up in the illusory beasts’ lair. Thousands of illusory beasts, three of them peak Ninth-tier Sector Lords. Any one of them could easily kill me.” Sector Lord Wu Qi, at this point, no longer cared about the pursuit order; he only knew he had to save his own life.

Whoosh!

Whoosh!

Whoosh!

Through the winding, deep tunnels, sometimes wide, sometimes slightly narrow, Sector Lord Wu Qi deftly maneuvered, constantly turning and accelerating.

In comparison, the lizard illusory beast, with a body length of two kilometers, was clearly more hampered by the tunnels, which were typically only a few kilometers wide. Thus, it couldn't unleash its maximum speed. Earlier, due to the tunnels, Sector Lord Wu Qi hadn't been able to catch Luo Feng.

And now.

Again, due to the tunnels, Sector Lord Wu Qi shook off the lizard illusory beast.

“Shook it off!”

“It’s already more than ten thousand kilometers away from me.” When Sector Lord Wu Qi discovered that his World Energy, spanning tens of thousands of kilometers, no longer detected the lizard illusory beast, he secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Yet, he continued to fly and run, relentlessly pushing forward until he reached the end of this deep tunnel—the junction of the 817 caves!

“That Ninth-tier Universe-level guy was probably killed by the illusory beast horde.” Sector Lord Wu Qi glanced back at the octagonal cave entrance, frowning slightly. “According to the God’s command, I must confirm his identity to complete the mission. But the place where he died is in that ice mountain rock forest!”