There were still some days left before the three-month confinement period ended, and Yang Kai had nothing else pressing to deal with at the moment, so his thoughts began to wander.
He made his way to the entrance of the cave dwelling and gazed downward. The view remained an expanse of pitch-black darkness.
A month and a half ago, he had only been able to descend less than five hundred zhang below the ice cliff before being forced to turn back — a testament to just how hostile this environment was.
Now that his strength had grown considerably, he felt inclined to test where his true limits lay.
Furthermore, if he could remain enveloped by the Emperor Might and the icy law for an extended period, the benefits to his willpower and state of mind would be immense. At the very least, when he encountered Dao Source Realm powerhouses in the future, he would not be suppressed by their imposing auras.
He could withstand the force of Emperor Might — how could he possibly fear the pressure of the Dao Source Realm?
With this thought, Yang Kai hesitated no longer and leaped off the edge, plummeting downward.
Just as before, the deeper he went, the denser the Emperor Might became, and the more brutal the residual aura of ice and cold grew around him. That ever-present chill seeped into both his physical body and his spiritual sea, becoming an enormous obstacle impeding his descent.
Yang Kai's speed was not fast. He probed his limits inch by inch.
Three hundred zhang — unharmed. Five hundred zhang — still tolerable. Eight hundred zhang — somewhat strained…
By the time he reached roughly one thousand zhang, he was finding it exceedingly difficult to continue.
He had advanced a minor realm, converted a significant portion of his Source Power, and even condensed his own Void Thought Crystal — and yet he could only descend five hundred zhang deeper than before? Yang Kai shook his head, gaining an ever-deeper appreciation for the terrifying nature of the Emperor Realm.
By his current standards, one thousand zhang was already his absolute limit.
Just as he was about to remain at this depth — even planning to carve out a new cave dwelling here to temper himself — a flash of inspiration struck his mind, giving rise to a thrilling notion.
"I wonder if Void can counteract this icy law…"
No sooner did the thought arise than he acted on it. Yang Kai activated his mind and immediately unleashed the new secret art he had only just comprehended.
In an instant, his entire figure vanished from where he stood, leaving behind only a transparent, nearly imperceptible phantom that lingered in place like ripples on the surface of water.
After executing the Void secret art, Yang Kai immediately sensed that the terrifying Emperor Might and the frost-laden law that had been crushing his body had, in that very moment, completely vanished.
Where he stood, there was no longer the slightest pressure.
It really worked!
But before Yang Kai could celebrate, he discovered a new problem.
During the brief window after activating the Void secret art, he could indeed disregard the Emperor Might and the icy law in this place — but the reprieve lasted only two breaths. The ever-present Emperor Might and the law of ice tore through his secret art in short order, forcing his figure back into visibility.
The ocean-like surge of pressure returned as expected.
Standing in place, Yang Kai furrowed his brow, contemplating the reason behind this.
Soon, he gained some insight.
His secret art relied on the power of Space to execute, merging his body with the void and thereby creating a blind spot in both visual and spiritual sense detection.
Because his body had fused with the void, it deceived the surrounding Emperor Might and the icy law, allowing him to negate their suppression.
But the Void secret art was not omnipotent. After all, his cultivation was far too low. He had no ability to influence the Emperor Might or the icy law — instead, he was the one being influenced by them. When the two forces clashed, his mastery of the power of Space naturally could not measure up against the Emperor Might and the icy law, which was why his presence was exposed.
In other words, any attack that surpassed his own power could break through his Void secret art.
Yang Kai gained a measure of understanding.
This was inevitable. He felt no discouragement whatsoever; rather, he considered this flaw to be a perfectly natural and expected limitation.
In this world, there had never existed a technique or secret art that was truly unbreakable. At the end of the day, it all came down to one's own strength.
But if that was the case…
Yang Kai broke into a grin. He executed the Void secret art once more, and then his figure flickered as he simultaneously employed Teleportation.
In the next instant, he plunged another fifty zhang deeper. Almost immediately, the surrounding Emperor Might and icy law shattered his Void state.
However, the moment his figure reappeared — before the terrifying forces could crash down upon him — he deployed the Void secret art yet again, merging his body with the void and evading that violent killing intent.
Repeating this cycle, Yang Kai descended at a breathtaking speed, completely forgetting the perilous environment he was in.
All he had originally intended was to test the efficacy of the Void secret art. But in the heat of the moment, he had kept going deeper and deeper. By the time he came to his senses, he had no idea how many zhang deep he had gone.
Snapping back to awareness, Yang Kai broke into a cold sweat. He craned his neck upward and could see only a thin sliver of light above, like a crack in the sky.
He dared not dawdle. Instinctively, he wanted to get out of this godforsaken place as quickly as possible — if a single misstep cost him his life here, it would become the ultimate joke.