"A mere clone dares to make a move on me?"
Leilin sneered as the phantom of the Komoyin Giant Serpent behind him suddenly shrank, though his entire body became even more solid, with a dazzling luster reflecting off his scales.
"Hsss..." The Komoyin Giant Serpent roared, its massive tail lashing out like a steel whip toward the female giant!
Bang! The female giant's body was directly obliterated, sending a massive flurry of snowflakes dancing through the sky.
The residual shockwaves spread to the Ice Castle below, even causing massive cracks to appear along its walls.
Crash!
After the wind and snow settled, the entire land suddenly fell into an eerie calm.
The ground was covered with white powder left behind by Ice Clan members whose Life Energy and frost energy had been completely depleted, along with remnants of armor and weapons, making the scene look desolate and terrifying.
"Sigh..." Leilin suddenly let out a long sigh and retrieved a purple test tube from his spatial pouch.
The seal on the test tube's opening automatically dissolved, and drops of purple liquid fell onto the ground, quickly spreading outward.
The liquid dissolved large quantities of white powder, forming enormous pools that continued to radiate outward. Bubbles constantly formed on the surface, instantly transforming the area around the Ice Castle into something resembling a purple swamp.
The purple swamp not only spread outward but also showed a tendency to burrow downward.
"Based on the Chip's earlier calculations, plus the potion crafted from Alvin's memories and flesh, I hope this works!"
Leilin already had a certain theory about the origin of the Ice Queen, which weighed on his mind. He almost wished his hypothesis was wrong.
Unfortunately, what he had just witnessed only further confirmed his suspicions.
Massive purple bubbles kept emerging, even corroding the Ice Castle itself. The entire structure began slowly sinking.
Hummm! A pure and powerful wave of spiritual force spread outward, merging with the surrounding environment.
In virtually an instant, Leilin found himself in a completely different, extraordinary environment.
The sky was no longer filled with ice and earth, but with a crystalline moon and stars. As far as the eye could see, a white continent stretched endlessly toward the ocean.
Iceberg dragons, Frost Giants, and other creatures roared constantly, many of them surpassing the Morning Star threshold.
"This is... the true Ice World!"
Leilin murmured. With the ancient Scorpion Man's memories, this place felt somewhat familiar to him.
"Yes! The true Ice World — my homeland! Outsider Wizard, would you grant me my wish of returning to my homeland?"
A soft voice spoke as a woman wearing a crown and draped in a platinum-white imperial robe appeared beside Leilin, her features bearing a faint resemblance to the female giant from before.
"The Ice Queen?" Leilin's pupils contracted as he surveyed his surroundings. "A fine illusion!"
"No matter how beautiful an illusion may be, it is not real. Even the imitation Ice World out there pales in comparison to even a fraction of the true Ice World..."
The Ice Queen sighed, a note of sorrow in her voice that made Leilin feel a pang of sympathy, tempted to offer his help with her current predicament.
"If you are willing to help me, you shall become the sole ruler of the entire Ice World!"
Seeing Leilin waver, the Ice Queen added to her offer.
"Quite the tempting offer! Unfortunately, I see not a shred of sincerity. Someone who resorts to illusion magic against an ally — how could they ever keep their word?"
Leilin shook his head, and his words caused the Ice Queen's expression to change.
Bang! A layer of blood-red flame ignited on Leilin's hand, slashing forward without the slightest courtesy, spreading upward from the Ice Queen's legs.
"You will regret this!" The Ice Queen, wreathed in flames, flickered unstably like a paper doll, her expression blank as she spoke.
"Had I agreed to your terms, I'm afraid I'd regret it even more!"
Leilin still felt a lingering sense of dread. He had always considered his resistance to illusions and the like to be formidable, yet he had been so easily dragged into an illusory realm, nearly losing himself entirely.
If not for the Chip's timely warning, and the numerous Psion techniques he had obtained from Paul beforehand, he might very well have met his end here today.
After all, who could have imagined that the ruler of the Ice World would also be skilled in illusion-based mental manipulation?
"You will regret this!" "You will regret this!"
The cold woman's voice echoed throughout the illusory realm, sending chills down one's spine.
Paper-like replicas of the Ice Queen materialized one after another as the Ice World collapsed. The stars in the sky, the continent, and all the creatures upon it — everything transformed into copies of the Ice Queen, all staring at Leilin with unsettling gazes.
"Ding! The host's mind has been affected by an unknown influence! Identified as illusion magic!" The Chip's voice rang out.
"Of course I know this is all an illusion! But my real connection to the outside world hasn't been severed — damn it! If I die here, my physical body out there will probably fall as well..."
The power of the Morning Star rippled outward as wisps of soul force coiled around Leilin's body, layering him in protective barriers.