Su Yan was now determined to finish this fight, no matter the cost. She raised her hands after pushing away the opponent with her attacks.

Just as the opponent was preparing another attack move, one she thought would badly injure Su Yan.

Su Yan's snow white petite hands landed on the floor. Her face was determined and ice cold. She shouted before releasing her spirit qi in torrents, which resulted in a massive circle of ice spreading from where she was.

At a fast speed too, the ice domain interrupted the opponent's attack, as she lost her footing, which was crucial for the technique.

Su Yan, seizing this opportunity, madly burned her spirit qi reserves before releasing a puff of snow petals.

Huh! The female saw the beautiful snow petals.

Just as she caught one of the beautiful petals on her hand, her battle instincts kicked in, and she hurriedly tried to toss it away, but not before it and the other petals that covered the space exploded in a blinding and dangerous radiance.

Su Yan executed the final part of her plan, with her opponent in disarray and her armor torn.

She controlled the ice in her surrounding, formed by her spirit qi, to form a giant splinter which impaled the opponent.

The opponent's body was impaled in the middle, her face facing the frost floor, her mind slowly falling into darkness.

She tried to muster the last bit of power she could to send Su Yan to oblivion. But she couldn't, as she only muttered in pain. She gritted her teeth, before throwing her daggers with the greatest strength she could. But they only clanged as they landed just before Su Yan's feet.

She consoled herself thinking, at least I died in a battle and not in a sick bed.

Slash! Another mark appeared on Nelly's arm, but she refused to let her resolve drop because of the injuries her opponent gave her. Instead, she attacked more brazenly with her energy attacks.

Although they did carry a load of power, it was all for naught, as her opponent weaved through them.

Because of this, she poured more of her spirit qi into her attacks, making them extremely dangerous, but with it, her attack pattern and fighting spirit had disappeared.

The opponent, cunning and agile, made use of her speed amplified by her transformed state, slightly inflicting injuries on Nelly to get her to rage more and lose herself, just before she would launch the final blow to kill her.

With another slash, Nelly let go in rage, as she wildly released her spirit qi in a circle around her, successfully throwing her opponent away.

Unfortunately, the opponent was not to be trifled with. With a tap of her foot on the ship, she dispelled all the force.

She paused briefly, and while Nelly was out of breath, she lunged at her to deliver a decisive strike.

Nelly, seeing the opponent's figure closing in at an inhuman speed, her claws outstretched, tried to conjure an energy attack. But it was too late, the enemy was going to kill her.

She mentally prepared herself, as she thought, "I will self-destruct, taking my opponent down with me."

Just then, she only felt a cool breeze against her skin, and a crashing sound, along with the sound of someone wheezing.

Confused, Nelly opened her eyes, and the sight she saw stunned her.

Icaros had the tough opponent lodged into a wall of the ship, with his hand holding what seemed to be a beating heart.

"You, you saved me", managed to escape Nelly's lips as she struggled to suppress the tears welling in her eyes.

Icaros smiled, his tattered appearance and bloodied hands not hiding his radiance, before saying, "It's not good to abandon a companion, let alone one of the same sect."

Icaros noticed how bad he looked; both hands looked like they had been dipped in blood. He also didn't fancy holding a beating heart. It was just one of the efficient ways to get rid of an opponent, using his strong points unapologetically.

Thinking of this, Icaros tore off his already tattered upper wear. He threw away the heart, which he had unknowingly crushed, and wiped his hands with the cloth before discarding it. Now his upper body was bare, revealing his chiseled physique, almost no fat detectable, as his not-too-bulky muscles showed clearly. His abs were all clearly shown. He wasn't fat or slim, nor too muscular to be all muscle.

Just a perfect sculpture and enough to look masculine.

While this was going on, Nelly was still thinking, "I despised him earlier, but he sees me as a companion. Am I really that horrible?"

Realizing this, Nelly softly muttered to Icaros, who was walking over to her.

Her lips beautiful and seductive, "Thank you."

Icaros revealed a rare carefree smile, before replying, "Eh it's nothing, I was just..." When Nelly interrupted him by hugging him, her hands on his broad and masculine back.

Just then, Li Han coughed aloud, interrupting the beautiful moment. It turned out Li Han and Su Yan had dealt with their respective opponents and found their way to the others.

Li Han revealed a grin that said something else, before saying, "Sorry to interrupt the beautiful moment, but it's time to go, the ship is about to crash."

"About to crash?" Icaros and Nelly, who hadn't fully separated, said, only to be met by Li Han who said, "You better go find something to cover up, you're not the only one with a shredded physique, I used to look much better in my youth."

With this, the girls took note of Icaros's physique. While Su Yan appeared calm, Nelly blushed as she realized how intimate she looked with Icaros.

She hurriedly scurried to Su Yan's side, something that resembled guilt deep in her eyes, while Su Yan's eyes remained ice cold, not faltered in the least by Icaros's almost superhuman physique.

"With our clash, some of the opponent's ship core components were destroyed, and crashing is inevitable," Li Han explained, while he ran to the edge of the ship, theirs just opposite away, while the others followed.

Li Han was about to say something, possibly about how they were supposed to fly to their ship, considering they didn't know Icaros could fly, and Spirit Realm cultivators are not capable of true flight.

When Su Yan interrupted, not by words but by action, she grabbed Nelly's waist intimately, before gently stepping on her flying handkerchief, which she had unleashed before. She threw a final glance at the boys before flying to their ship.

Icaros couldn't help but think in his mind, with his face staring forward, "Is that jealousy I saw in her eyes, and what for?"

While this thought was going through Icaros' mind, Li Han revealed a silly, and resigned smile, before returning to his original face. Urging Icaros, he said to him, while casually running to the edge of the ship, as if he wants to jump off.

Icaros chased after him while asking, "Don't tell me you're going to grab my waist?"

Laughing heartily, Li Han said, "You wish, listen up punk, you better accelerate and grab my leg as I am about to jump"

"What the..." inevitably slipped out of Icaros' mouth, before he rapidly accelerated, and just as Li Han leaped out of the ship, Icaros jumped and grabbed one of his feet.

Just before they could pummel down to their deaths, Li Han's tattered upper body robe split along his shoulder blades. And just like magic, a pair of large wings made of purple energy, a trademark of Li Han's secret technique sprouted. Its aura magical with a hint of violent energy contained.

Icaros noticed they stopped pummeling and while trying to look up, he heard Li Han's voice saying, "Hold on tight, it's about to get rough."

With this, Icaros had already seen the wings, and held on more tightly.

Thankfully, their ship opposite the enemies own, was lower.

Thus instead of attempting to fly, Li Han glided down to their ship, where the remaining participants and the two female deserters were.

Icaros could see the ship zooming in, at an incredible speed, but he wasn't the least bit scared, as of his experience of flying throughout his previous life.

With this, just when they entered the ship space, before his feet could hit the ground with the impact and all that, Icaros let go and perfectly rolled on the ship's floor to get up.

While Li Han landed with his eyebrows raised at Icaros, the wings behind him gently dispersing.

Seeing this, Icaros poked at him back, "Rough ride indeed" with a smirk on his mouth.

Icaros sighed as he looked at his figure in the mirror, I guess I automatically have this physique, although I can change it, with the body building techniques in my previous life. He thought, before deciding with a smile, "I just won't waste my time on that, as far as I look good, besides, my strength is not in relativity with my body, unlike mortals and humans in my previous life, whose body tells a lot. But I guess cultivators are more like me in this aspect.

Their body type don't decide their strength, but their life choices and habits shape their body, just like mortals, that means, a muscular body refinement realm cultivators, still can't match a skinny spirit realm cultivator.

Well, thinking of body refinement realm cultivators, Icaros eyes turned to the new grey robe meant for them. That was delivered to him, since the old one was damaged in battle, he had just had his bath. Not that he previously had any desire for high ranking clothes and identity, but the conversation on the ship deck, after the previous event did trigger some of that.

He remembered, that he was about to head into the ship, as the other participants, when Li Han called him back.

Saying that, after the previous event, there was no need, he could now receive the same level of treatment as them, spirit realm cultivators, as he had proved more than that.

Of course, Icaros was happy to get some recognition, but his smile vanished, when Li Han said with a crooked smile, But the treatment is only on this ship and this mission, your promotion will be decided specially after returning to the sect.

Okay, Icaros responded, not phased the least. Li Han determined to add salt to the wound said, Of course, you'll still retain your grey robes, even on the mission.

Even the cold Su Yan couldn't help but giggle, while Nelly tried to stifle her laughter.

Icaros couldn't help but find himself, with a desire for something, that he didn't usually have and an extra layer of frost on his face.

While Li Han grinned at a mission successful.

Reviewing this happy memories, Icaros smiled before putting on his new grey robes, with a trace of warmth in his heart.

"It has been a long time since we had concrete information about the condition of Jade Island, except for the recent news regarding the map," Su Yan explained.

Her demeanor was cold, yet she possessed the necessary leadership skills to explain things clearly to her team members.

"How long is 'a long time'?" Icaros questioned.

This time, Li Han answered. "Unlike other danger zones where one can find some form of fortune, Jade Island is different."

"How so?" Icaros asked, his expression suggesting he already had a guess, though he needed confirmation.

Even Nelly, who was sitting beside Su Yan, hadn't seemed interested in the conversation until now. After all, she was the one supposed to lead the remaining participants on their own mission. However, she now wore a look of genuine curiosity.

Icaros inferred that Su Yan had left the explanation to Li Han, not necessarily because he had more experience, but perhaps to let him take the lead this time.

"As you all may have guessed, unlike other danger zones that offer benefits for cultivators-beast cores, treasures, naturally formed heavenly materials, or magical items-Jade Island has none of that," Li Han continued. "It offers nothing but danger and vast deposits of ordinary jade, a material already abundant in the world and essentially worthless."

"As such, cultivators lost interest in the place. None, or extremely few, venture there anymore. Only mortals occupy that danger zone."

"Mortals?" Icaros frowned, clearly confused.

The other two girls seemed to know the mystery already. Nelly even revealed a proud expression, as if saying, 'Are you finally aware of your ignorance?' Even Su Yan allowed a faint smirk to appear on her face.

Li Han did not let Icaros dwell in his confusion for long. "Some mortals who found their way there chose to stay. Even though the environment is incredibly dangerous, it serves as a protective barrier against the horrors of the outside world. To them, it is a sanctuary-free from demonic beasts, wars, and the threats of powerful cultivators."

"As for how they survive... the main threats there are the hordes of Jade Monsters."

"Jade Monsters?" Icaros questioned.

"Yes," Li Han replied. "Using the island's huge deposits of jade, during certain times, the stone itself turns into living creatures of immense power that hunt humans. It is almost like a mechanism. The mortals memorize their patterns and strive to survive by outwitting them. Although the danger is ever-present, they manage to endure. Also, the island is quite difficult to enter, but we can find our way through."

Icaros breathed in deeply, taking in everything Li Han had just said. A thought brought a smile to his face regarding those mortals.

'Humans are quite resilient.'

'I guess I am stuck with this mission,' he thought. 'I just hope the abilities I have revealed so far are enough. Although I read that Jade Island is considered a weaker danger zone compared to others, a danger zone is still a danger zone.'

Icaros nodded to show his understanding. Li Han smiled back and said, "Since he has no more questions," he pointed at Icaros, "Su Yan will take command."

"We will arrive just outside Jade Island. Nelly will drop us off and proceed with her own mission. The three of us," he said, pointing to himself, Icaros, and Su Yan, "will complete our task and return to the Li Sect."

Everyone nodded, thinking it was a solid plan, though complex.

But just then, Icaros interrupted, making Li Han's face darken. "I still have a question."

Li Han tried to suppress his rising anger, his face turning slightly green. Nelly giggled silently at his misfortune, and even the cold beauty Su Yan allowed herself a faint smile.

"What is it, son?" Li Han asked, calming himself down and putting on the air of an elder.

However, Icaros was not one to be trifled with. "You old fart! Who's your son?"

"Old fart? I am not even that old!" Li Han hastily retorted, and the room exploded with stifled laughter.

Icaros couldn't help but smile as well.

Later, just before he drifted off, Icaros thought about the answer Li Han had given him after the banter.

He had explained that Spirit Realm cultivators were essentially Body Refinement cultivators who had gained access to manipulating Spirit Qi. That single difference made them entirely superior.

In the Body Refinement Realm, cultivators used the Spirit Qi in the environment to temper their bodies through the stages: Blood Refinement, Bone Refinement, and Flesh Refinement. This enhanced their physical prowess to superhuman levels, but nothing truly magical.

However, upon entering the Spirit Qi Realm, they unlocked their Dantian-the core where they could store Spirit Qi absorbed from nature or Spirit Stones.

They could use this stored Qi to enhance their physical stats-strength, durability, stamina, and speed-to truly god-like levels. Although this consumed their reserves, it was vital in battle. They could move at insane speeds, punch with devastating force, or reinforce their skin to resist damage. They could even release bursts of Qi to deflect weaker attacks, though maintaining these abilities came at the cost of their energy.

These features alone placed them in a league far above Body Refinement cultivators.

However, Li Han revealed that since the Li Sect focused on the Orthodox path of Qi mastery, they possessed secret techniques. These techniques allowed them to manifest special abilities at the cost of their Spirit Qi-like the energy wings Li Han had used earlier, or energy swords. This was why his energy attacks were purple; Spirit Qi, when condensed, was naturally blue, but the secret technique altered its appearance. The same applied to Su Yan and Nelly.

Another thing that interested Icaros was the use of magical treasures. Spirit Realm cultivators could infuse items with their Qi to unlock special abilities, such as Su Yan's flying handkerchief, which could grow or shrink in size and carry them through the air.

But what truly amazed Icaros-and left him feeling a little envious-was the last ability.

Divine Sense.

Spirit Realm cultivators awakened this ability. It was a manifestation of their mental and soul energy. They could use it to send messages directly into someone else's mind, allowing for secret conversations that others could not hear (though those with stronger Divine Sense could still eavesdrop). They could also inscribe messages onto Jade Slips for others to read later.

Even the magic treasures, like Su Yan's handkerchief, would return to her automatically because she had imprinted her Divine Sense into them. Some cultivators who specialized in this could even use it to attack invisibly, damaging the soul or mind directly-though such experts were rare, and those with strong wills could resist.

Compared to all this, Icaros felt lacking. It left him with a heavy doubt in his heart.

'Can I actually cultivate?'