Kieran fell to his knees, his transformation canceling out as he returned to his human form, gasping for breath, blood streaming from the wounds across his body. His vision blurred slightly as the sharp pain overwhelmed his senses. He clenched his teeth, trying to stand, but his muscles refused to respond.
The illusion before him twisted its identical face into a deranged smile.
"You're dead," it whispered, lunging forward.
The dagger in its hand gleamed with a cold light, aimed directly at Kieran's throat.
Seeing the dagger approaching Kieran, Elseria felt her heart pounding violently in her chest. Her eyes, still clouded by the memories that had invaded her moments earlier, quickly regained clarity as she tried to circulate her crystal essence through her body and activate her abilities.
Her trembling fingers attempted to tighten their grip around her sword as she forced her body forward to block the illusion's attack.
Despite her best efforts, she saw the dagger closing in on Kieran faster than her sword could reach. Her crystal essence and the abilities that had always responded to her call now felt useless, refusing to move quickly enough.
"Kieran!!" she screamed.
The illusion's dagger was only inches from Kieran's throat when the sound of a blade slicing through the wind rang out.
*clang*
A violent impact echoed across the plain as what looked like a circular blade, surrounded by a rapidly spinning cyan wind, struck the illusion's dagger, deflecting it instantly. The force of the blow knocked the illusion's arm back, its face flashing with astonishment.
The circular blade, still spinning at incredible speed, didn't stop its path. It continued to cut through the air in a wide arc, moving as if guided by an invisible force, twisting and curving before flying toward a waiting hand.
Wen Zhao stood there calmly, yawning. His posture was slouched, and his half-lidded eyes barely glanced at the approaching weapon.
A layer of wind swirled around his hand as the circular blade neared him. The weapon gradually slowed, and he casually closed his fingers around its circular metal handle. Now motionless, the weapon's full shape was revealed. A giant boomerang-like weapon, nearly as tall as Wen Zhao himself.
TIt was composed of two massive, curved blades connected by the circular central handle. Each blade looked razor-sharp, reflecting a metallic gleam. As they still faintly hummed, the wind surrounding them dissipated.
With a lazy motion, Wen Zhao lifted the enormous weapon and casually rested it on his shoulder. The size difference between him and the weapon made it look even more absurd. It looked like it belonged to a cultivator twice his size, yet he carried it as if it weighed nothing.
His blue eyes shifted to the illusion, then back to Kieran, his usual relaxed demeanor unchanged.
"This is a bit excessive for a training exercise..." he muttered, rubbing his temples like the situation was giving him a headache.
"I don't mind letting you continue, but I'd like to get out of here, otherwise I'll never hear the last of Liu Xing nagging me about getting lost again," he said with a nonchalant shrug. "So if any of you could point me in the right direction... that'd be great."
*cough*
As time seemed to freeze with Wen Zhao's arrival, Kieran coughed up a mouthful of blood. Elseria rushed to check on him. At the same time, the illusion lunged at them again.
The illusion only had time to take a step forward before a gust of wind pushed it back. The next instant, Wen Zhao stood before it, slightly hunched, as if he'd rather take a nap than fight.
"Sigh, if you don't answer me, I'll just continue interrupting your exercise," he said.
"You..." The illusion growled, grimacing at his sudden appearance.
Kieran raised his head to see Wen Zhao's back, then forced out a few words.
"This isn't a training exercise… we're trapped in an illusion..."
He stopped, coughing up another mouthful of blood.
Wen Zhao blinked slowly. "Ah... so that's what this is," he replied in a flat voice, as though the revelation didn't concern him in the slightest.
He lazily glanced around, taking his time, as if waiting for someone else to deal with the problem. Then, with an exaggerated sigh, he reached into his aurora collar and pulled out a small bell, spinning it between his fingers as if unsure whether he wanted to bother.
"I guess I'll do something," he mumbled to himself, channeling a bit of crystal essence into the bell's inscription. A faint glow emerged. Wen Zhao shook it half-heartedly.
*ding*
A clear chime rang out, and in the next moment, everything around them distorted and disappeared, leaving behind a vast, empty white space.
Lascia stood a hundred meters away, kneeling on the ground, her complexion pale, blood dripping from the corners of her lips. The crystal atop her staff disintegrated into fine dust.
"Ho… How did you do that?!" Lascia shouted, glaring at Wen Zhao, her face contorted in rage.
"It's just an inscription," Wen Zhao replied, lifting the bell, which promptly shattered into pieces.
"How..." Lascia's voice grew weak as she tried to comprehend the situation unfolding before her.
Kieran's gaze turned cold as he saw her appear. He tried to raise his body, but the pain made him stumble.
"Careful," Elseria murmured, supporting him. A glow shone from her bracelet as a green pill appeared in her palm. She placed it in his hand. "Take this and stay still. I'll handle her."
"Wait..."
Kieran tried to reach out to stop her when she turned her head to look him in the eyes.
"Don't worry," she said, looking back in Lascia's direction and placing a hand on the hilt of her sword. "I'm fine now."
Her eyes changed color, taking on an azure hue as she unsheathed her sword.
Lascia finally tore her gaze away from Wen Zhao, staring into Elseria's eyes. Her body suddenly began to tremble as she felt as if a blade were being held against her neck.
A sweat trickled down her cheek as a hysterical scream escaped her, "Aldric get me out of here right now!!!"
Her vision was suddenly filled with a compressed water blade, flying toward her at terrifying speed.
"Now!!!"
The sound of shattering glass echoed through the space, and the next moment, Lascia vanished. The water blade struck a second later, leaving no trace in the empty white space.
"She ran away..." Elseria muttered, biting her lip.
"Any idea how we get out of here?" Kieran asked, trying to stand.
Elseria moved quickly to support him.
Wen Zhao yawned, rubbing his eye with the back of his hand before stretching. "I've got a way… but ugh, it's such a pain..."
The two of them watched as he pulled another object from his aurora collar.