C1650 The Mask of Hypocrisy Was Torn apart

With a ripping sound, it was as if a membrane had been sliced through by a sharp blade, triggered by Youyu's final words.

Yu Yuan's Lunar Spirit and his real body instantly reestablished a spiritual connection with each other and the Dragon Slaying Stage!

His real body remained in place, standing on the Dragon Slaying Stage, now amidst the transformed world of the Starborn.

This new realm was no longer the vast expanse of the Everlands, leaving him feeling out of place.

The Abyssal Leviathan, now showing its fierce side, was still on an island, gazing down at the sea below.

Nearby, Leo, Beru, and Gheirat were as still as lifeless objects.

Once the three souls communicated, Yu Yuan realized that his real body had only spent a brief moment within the Ashen Shadowmist.

From the Dragon Slaying Stage, his real body could sense the Lunar Spirit located somewhere in the sea, within a peculiar Hex Stone.

The Soul Stone!

He quickly understood that his Lunar Spirit, along with parts of the Abyssal Leviathan's remnant soul, the spirited bodies of Leo, Beru, and Gheirat, as well as President Lyi's spiritual sense and the specter created by Grec, had all been drawn or led to her Soul Stone by the Mirage of the Mind.

The Soul Stone, much like the World-Sundering Stone, had become a world unto itself.

Yet, the world within the Soul Stone was unique, accessible only to souls and consciousness.

Within the Soul Stone lay the Mindscape, also known as the Sea of Demons that Youyu had mentioned.

The elusive Mirage of the Mind, which the Abyssal Leviathan had desperately sought without finding, was undoubtedly located at the Soul Stone.

The Mirage of the Mind, which had been displaying fear and timidity, was actually capable of facilitating uninterrupted communication between his Lunar Spirit and his real body.

Just like it was happening at that moment.

If Youyu could achieve this, the Mirage of the Mind certainly could as well, since she was the creator of the Soul Stone and the Mindscape. Yet, she had chosen not to.

The Mirage of the Mind had the ability but had instead opted to deceive him, severing the connection between his three souls.

And yet, she had the audacity to plead with him to take her away, even invoking the pretext of his first life.

She was indeed deceitful and sly.

"Your gaze has changed. It's as if you've suddenly seen through many things. How... did you manage to retrieve your soul that she had taken?" The Abyssal Leviathan on the island suddenly raised its head to look at him and said, "I was misled by a remnant soul, but it doesn't bother me. However, for them... it's a different story."

The Abyssal Leviathan chuckled, fixing his gaze on Leo and the others. "They've not just entered a fragment, but their entire souls! Look at them. Such soulless husks could easily be refined by a Star-Spawned Terror, turning them into demonforms."

Atop the Star Altar, Leo, Beru, and Gheirat had their eyes wide open, but they were devoid of any spark of life. They seemed to have become human-shaped puppets, all shell and no soul.

Yu Yuan's face grew cold. If the souls of Leo and his companions were to perish in the Mindscape, wouldn't these three Starborn warriors, now merely shells, be considered dead as well? Their bodies would likely be consumed slowly by the Mirage of the Mind, just as Youyu had shown him.

For beings like the Abyssal Leviathan, President Lyi, and a titan like Grec, losing a small part of their spiritual sense or even a fragment of their devil souls was inconsequential. This indicated that even the full might of the Mirage of the Mind couldn't transport the souls of the mightiest to the Mindscape.

"You lack sincerity," Yu Yuan remarked, his gaze shifting beyond the Duskjaw, Stormwraith, and Three-legged Golden Crow to another part of the deep sea.

Instantly, a school of silver fish darted toward the depths. The Abyssal Leviathan, interpreting Yu Yuan's gaze and comment, deduced that he had located the Mirage of the Mind's hiding spot.

"Yu Yuan, allow me to find her, to behold the soul stone. I think I'm beginning to grasp what our spirited bodies are enduring, and the reason behind it," the Leviathan said.

In a flash, Yu Yuan materialized on the Dragon Slaying Stage. Below him, the sea was devoid of islands, the water as dark as ink, unfathomably deep. Although no life could be sensed beneath the waves, he was aware that his Lunar Spirit resided at the ocean floor, tucked away in an unassuming nook.

Like the Abyssal Leviathan, which could refine a bone into a pebble, the soul stone at the sea's bottom had also become a mere stone, indistinguishable among the countless others. As long as no energy, vitality, or remnant soul escaped, the soul stone would remain hidden among the sea's pebbles. Even the Abyssal Leviathan, should it search endlessly, might never find it.

Now, thanks to Youyu's intervention, which connected him with the Lunar Spirit, he could single out the soul stone from the myriad of pebbles by leveraging his bond with the Lunar Spirit!

"She's growing impatient."

Within the Mindscape, Youyu's Demonic Vessel pointed to the Mirage of the Mind that was relentlessly battering the grey-white light curtain and said with an icy expression, "What exactly did you do in that world?"

"The Mindscape where our spirited bodies reside is a stone she birthed. This stone, known as the soul stone by the Abyssal Leviathan, lies deep in the ocean of that world, among billions of its kind. Ever since the Abyssal Leviathan entered that world, it has been searching for her and for the soul stone."

"And I, due to the presence of the Lunar Spirit and your enabling me to stay in contact with my real body, have assisted the Abyssal Leviathan in locating it."

"At this very moment, the Abyssal Leviathan is hastening towards this soul stone," Yu Yuan explained, smiling.

Realizing that the Mirage of the Mind was up to no good and being far from forthright, Yu Yuan's mindset shifted. He no longer harbored any sympathy for this sly cosmic giant beast, nor did he dwell on any past affections that might have existed.

"I'd like to see for myself."

As Youyu spoke, it seemed as though she, through the spirited body of the Abyssal Leviathan present there, witnessed the events unfolding in that other world.

"If you can control the Abyssal Leviathan and prevent it from destroying this soul stone, it would be invaluable to both of us. The Origin Deity is also after the soul stone to amplify the power of the Origin Realm. This giant beast's concerns are valid; it would indeed be troublesome if the Hex Stone were to end up in the hands of the Origin Deity."

In the tangible world.

"I offer you my sincere apologies," the soothing voice of the Mirage of the Mind resonated before Yu Yuan's true form.

Subsequently, Yu Yuan's Lunar Spirit within the Mindscape beheld the appearance of the female phantom, radiant like a spectrum of dawn light.

Since she could no longer contact Yu Yuan's Lunar Spirit in her Mindscape, she had no choice but to manifest in the realm of reality.

"I concealed your presence to prevent your three souls from communicating. I feared you might pinpoint my location and aid the Abyssal Leviathan in finding the soul stone. You two arrived together, allies, and since he harbors ill intentions towards me, I naturally must be cautious. Moreover, you are merely the successor of that individual, not the individual himself, so my trust in you is limited."

The Mirage of the Mind's shell shimmered with starlight. She was not a colossal creature, merely a sphere of soul consciousness.

"I hope you can stop him, or at least, refrain from disclosing the precise location of the soul stone to him."

Adopting the etiquette of the Starborn, the Mirage of the Mind bowed to Yu Yuan, incessantly apologizing and repeatedly explaining that her actions were solely to guard against the Abyssal Leviathan.

Yet Yu Yuan harbored doubts about her, suspecting she harbored ulterior motives.

He even doubted every word she uttered.

"I trust Youyu, not you," Yu Yuan said with a smile. "Between you and the Abyssal Leviathan, I'm inclined to trust the Abyssal Leviathan a bit more."

"You should trust me!"

The Abyssal Leviathan's menacing laughter echoed from the depths of the dark sea, amidst the shimmering schools of silver fish.

"Just point me in the right direction. Once I find the soul stone, I'll find her too! You're too green to be playing games with me, youngster."

"Yu Yuan!"

The newly arrived Abyssal Leviathan let out a startled cry.

The soul form of the Mirage of the Mind cast aside her frailty, revealing a cruel and murderous nature. "If I can't persuade you, if you won't heed my words, then... I have no choice but to kill you!"

Yu Yuan's Lunar Spirit, already ensnared within his own domain by Youyu, was beyond her reach.

Her only option was to annihilate Yu Yuan's real body and his Solar Spirit, preventing him from using the Lunar Spirit to reveal her and the soul stone's location to the Abyssal Leviathan.

She believed that Yu Yuan, who had not yet ascended to the rank of supreme primordial spirit, should be easy to dispatch.

Her choice was clear: she would directly invade Yu Yuan's Mindscape!

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