As time rapidly passed, they continuously gained enlightenment and refined themselves through constant battles.
As the second year drew to a close, all members of the Ice Sword Mercenary Group had entered the Great Ascension stage.
Li Qingyun was still the first to break through, given his innate talent, essentially being a small Enlightenment Tree himself.
After reaching the Great Ascension stage, Li Qingyun, as a crucial deciding factor on the battlefield, played an increasingly significant role.
The power of his [Desolate Curse] was also incomparable. He could even contend one-on-one with ordinary eighth-stage Sky-Slaying race individuals. Even if they knew he possessed the ability to forcibly weaken himself, they couldn't evade it. Li Qingyun relied on his strong recovery capabilities to engage them in close-quarters combat. In close combat, the probability of hitting them with the [Desolate Curse] increased significantly.
Wang Teng followed suit, a pure body refiner. After the Golden Body stage, his physique was considered sanctified. Therefore, his realm was not called Great Ascension, but rather Saint Realm.
Upon reaching the Saint Realm, Wang Teng's strength was naturally terrifying.
Following Wang Teng were Qin Xiaoxiao, Bai Nianchen, Shen Yingxue, Xiao Long, Meng Zibin, He Guangxin, Liang Zifan, Luo Xiaowei, and Zhang Xiaohu, in that order.
The only one who did not advance was Chen Xiaohan. Poison cultivators faced greater difficulty in advancement compared to others.
If a poison cultivator broke through to the Great Ascension stage, the destructive power would be abhorrent to reason. The heavenly tribulation Chen Xiaohan endured was also more terrifying than anyone else's.
For the members of the Ice Sword Mercenary Group, tribulations were not obstacles but rather nuclear weapons delivered by heaven.
Almost everyone's realm was solidified during battles, with the heavenly tribulation of breaking through from Nascent Soul to Great Ascension being comparable to ten immortal spells.
However, as they fought more and more, there were times when they encountered situations where they were powerless.
They experienced failure once.
In an operation to save the world upon their deployment, the situation was initially evenly matched. Their arrival was expected to quickly bring victory, but reinforcements from the Sky-Slaying race arrived.
These reinforcements were not merely a few peak eighth-stage individuals or one or two ninth-stage experts. They included three Supremes, nearly ten Kings, and countless Sky-Slaying race troops. The disparity in numbers was even comparable to the gap between the [Kingdom of Hope] and the Sky-Slaying race in that world at the time.
From hope to despair, it was only a thought away.
Even though they had all become Great Ascension stage powerhouses and their strength had greatly improved compared to before, even if Chen Xiaohan could single-handedly form an army and kill vast numbers of Sky-Slaying race members with her potent poison.
Ultimately, it was still futile. One of the Sky-Slaying race Supremes even cast a glance at them, and a single look nearly caused them to perish on the spot. They were forced to immediately activate their teleportation imprints and retreat to Blue Star in a sorry state.
In the final moments, Li Qingyun attempted to bring as many people from that world as possible into his [Green Lotus Realm].
However, he lacked the time and could only hastily take hundreds of people near him back to Blue Star.
That world, as expected, was likely to be destroyed.
This painful lesson delivered a heavy blow to everyone, who had become somewhat arrogant after numerous victories.
Chu Yang did not comfort them; they were already Great Ascension powerhouses, not three-year-old children.
He sternly stated, "Do not become complacent just because you have achieved many victories. Once you encounter a situation where your strength is crushed, you can only watch your compatriots be slaughtered helplessly. That world has already become history and might even appear in [Apocalypse Revisited]. So let this matter pass and do not dwell on it."
"The most important thing is that you need to improve your strength, ascend to immortality as soon as possible, hatch your Dao fruits, and prove yourself as Immortal Emperors. Two years have already passed, and you only have one year left. You are excellent, very excellent, but it is not enough!"
"You have no retreat. The Sky-Slaying race forces gathered next door are growing in number, and the adjacent plane is the true target of the Sky-Slaying race. Do you think we can rely on them? I am very sorry to say that I have noticed Sky-Slaying race members from other planes are rapidly assembling. By then, we might face a terrifying lineup of twenty Sky-Slaying race Supremes!"