"What? They're that important?" The officer was shocked. "Who are they?"William took a deep breath. "The Shadow Division."The officer started shivering. The Shadow Division was a secret department in Faeast rumored to have been established by Lord Nox. In some aspects, it was stronger than national security.Aside from the military, they had to protect Faeast's information and watch for assassins and spies. They could hunt anyone and only report to their superiors after that. If they could confirm that an enemy was hiding in the nation, they had the right to take them down, no matter how vital the enemy was.Every department in the nation had to work with the Shadow Division should they demand it, and anyone who disobeyed their orders would be severely punished.The fact that the Shadow Division was in Riverton made everyone nervous. About half an hour later, four black SUVs appeared on the highway.William noticed them, and he straightened his clothes out. "They're here." He s
The Shadow Division's leader reviewed some files on his tablet."Commander, HQ just gave us the files for Redmoon Auction House." Derek handed the file to the leader."They claim the auction house is the facade for Voxlia's most prominent spy organization, Black Flag. They've been collecting coin for Voxlian military and are the masterminds behind many scams."The leader took a look. "The bastards," he said. "They have the gall to infiltrate Faeast after the Battle of the Ten Nations? Damn them. Derek, I have an order."The leader announced, "Gather all of our members in Riverton. We'll be arresting all of Redmoon Auction House's staff. All of them. Kill anyone who resists capture!" There was a roar in the last part of the sentence.Derek said, "Yes, commander.""We fought off ten nations' army and rained blood on Voxlia. Their country was littered with bodies, and now they dare trouble my nation? If Lord Nox is here, they'd never be so daring."The man was one of Shadow Divisio
Derek nodded and turned his phone off.At the same time, Yvette only got beeps from the call. She was so ready to call her long-lost nephew, too.Curious about Yvette's silence, George asked, "So, did you get through to him?"Yvette shook her head. "I think he hung up on me.""What? But you're his aunt. Quick, call him again," urged George.Yvette called Derek again, but his phone was turned off this time. Flabbergasted, Yvette said, "He turned his phone off.""Unbelievable! He wouldn't take a call from his aunt? Is he trying to distance himself because he's a somebody now?"Yvette shook her head. "Derek's been a good boy. He would never do this.""Then why didn't he take your call?" asked George.Yvette mused over it. "He's probably on a mission."George cursed, but in the end, he said, "Forget it. Try calling him later at night."Yvette sighed. Queenie had been starved and dehydrated for 48 hours now, and she was emaciated.Nox had no idea about this at all, however.…
Jebediah felt a great weight getting lifted off his body. "Yes, milord!" He hurried over to Nox, and what he saw made his eyes go wide.The greenery around Nox had faded, and boulders were crushed. The place seemed like a warzone that extended for a few hundred yards in radius. Jebediah bowed. "I apologize, milord. I shouldn't have interrupted your cultivation."Nox waved him down and turned around. "You've reached your bottleneck, haven't you?"Jebediah was stunned. He did not expect that question but answered, "Yes, milord. I have no talent at all. It has been more than three decades since I began on the path of sorcery, but I could never break through to the next stage, so…"Sorcerers had four stages: Beginner, Attuned, Zen, and Origin. Unlike martial arts, sorcerers needed talent and a deep understanding of the arts. All sorcerers would die just to gain more knowledge.Some sorcerers could spend their whole lives stuck in one stage, just like Jebediah.Nox blurted, "Would you
The member was a newbie."I bet you want to know," Derek said, looking at the ocean. "Do you know what this place is?""The ocean?""Obviously, but do you know where it leads to?" Derek asked again."No.""It leads to the Ocean of Death.""What? The Ocean of Death?" The newbie was shocked. He knew what that place meant."Yes." Derek stared into the distance. "At the ends of these waters is where Faeast's army defeated the ten nations once and for all. That battle dyed the sea crimson and littered it with a mountain of corpses."Derek continued, "In the same battle, the ten nations retreated a thousand miles and suffered the deaths of six top Legend Realms. In the same battle, Lord Nox…"Derek's voice cracked. He didn't finish his sentence, but everyone knew what had happened. Lord Nox had died, and a legend had fallen back then.Everyone stared at the sea in silence. Just then, Keith roared at the waters."Glory be to us all! Yet time waits for none! In the distance lies the
The vehicles made their way into the city center, and they came to a building. It was the headquarters of Shadow Division's Riverton branch. Keith was in the office, going through his files."Commander, column thirty-six's captain is calling. This is urgent." Derek came into the office."Let him in," said Keith, not even raising his head."Yes, commander."And then, a man in a suit appeared. "Greetings, commander. I am Yves Singer, captain of column thirty-six." Yves stood up straight."What is it?" Keith asked, still staring at the tablet."Commander, we have found everything there is to the downfall of Redmoon. It belongs to Black Flag. Our men have attacked all of their bases and caught every single one of them."Keith grunted."And the old man who died at the auction was B Rank spy of Black Flag.""A B Rank?" Keith finally raised his head. Black Flag, being Voxlia's spy organization, had a strict hierarchy where everyone's jobs were clearly stated. The members were split i
Faye smiled. "We must. Mr. Inkheart, you know how powerful Grandmasters are. If someone like him can be a member of our society, it will be a great help."Mr. Inkheart said, "But he's mighty and young. He might not agree to this.""Not to worry. Even if we can't make him part of the society, we can still be friends."Mr. Inkheart said nothing more. The limousine kept going on and would arrive at Dragoncourt a while later.Before the society's members could arrive, however, three black off-road vehicles made it. The doors opened, and lean figures in fighting attire came out.Mr. Inkheart frowned. "That's a lot of warriors."And then a burly silhouette came out of the off-road vehicle. Alarm bells rang in Mr. Inkheart's head. At the same time, he felt tremendous pressure coming off that man. "The pressure. Hallmaster, that man is a terrifying one." Mr. Inkheart stared at the burly figure.Faye was also staring at the figure, but her eyes were wide, and she looked like she'd seen a
Keith then led his men to Dragoncourt, but the moment they stepped onto the path, fog rolled in and blocked everyone's path."Commander, something's off with the fog," one member said.Keith scanned the fog icily. "This city is more than meets the eye. Didn't think I'd see this kind of formation here. Everyone, step back!"The Shadow Division members quickly retreated. Keith looked at the fog once more and put his hands together. A gust of spiraling air burst forth from his body, and the air started howling.Keith then held his hand up. "Begone!" he roared, and the spiraling air turned into a hurricane, charging into the fog.The hurricane thundered, and the fog was cut open, revealing the path again. Keith charged ahead like a tiger.While Keith was charging ahead, two silhouettes were seated silently in the mountains. They were Nox and Jebediah. Ever since Jebediah took the pill Nox gave him, his cultivation had been progressing at an incredible speed.Earlier in the morning,
Fiery Ignis would not leave anything to chance. If he made the wrong choice, the effects would be disastrous.Jonah had no choice but to wait outside the temple. If the path of the martial assaulted them, the Ice Temple people would be cannon fodder.Days went by. Nox had been in isolation for more than a week. The altar, after a long silence, finally reacted. Fiery Ignis' divine sense had been keeping an eye on it."Finally!" He was excited. After more than a month, Nox was finally coming out.Everyone was waiting with bated breath, and then Nineve came out. Fiery Ignis sensed her power level immediately. She was Pinnacle Legend Realm and nearly a faux Saint. "Not much difference. She was about the same level before going in. Her talent is limited. Though she has a Sovereign bloodline, her own talent is lacking."Fiery Ignis guessed that she'd finished training a while ago and had been waiting for everyone else. As he guessed, Nineve had finished training a while ago. Though the
'He's improving fast.'"Temple Lord, you told me that Mr. Nox has taken the Ice Temple for himself. Do you think they've turned their backs on him?" a cultivator from the Temple of Fire asked."Not sure, but a Three-ring can't impact anything," said Fiery Ignis.Though the Ice Temple had a lot of people, if they thought they could stop Nox, they would be underestimating the Temple of Fire's power.Jonah noticed the fighting spirit rising in Fiery Ignis, and he quickly said telepathically, "We're here to help you. Nox is my lord. I have sworn my loyalty to him. I would never turn my back on him."Fiery Ignis was one of the oldest people in Mystia. He didn't believe Jonah at all. "Give me a reason. Why should I trust you? Who sent you here?" Fiery Ignis asked back telepathically. He refused to let these Ice Temple people go further.The scout could sense something was wrong, and he turned on the Ice Temple guys. Jonah finally told Fiery Ignis who sent him. "Saints of the Five Eleme
Katherine was being docile here because Nox possessed the Nine-State Crucible. Only people from her faction knew how powerful that item was. They only managed to rise to power because the crucible went missing.Nox said nothing more. He infused his Saint power into the altar, and it woke up. The moment it did, a small space opened up, isolated from the world. Through the altar's entrance, everyone saw the ancient energy within. It was huge. Enough for Nox's use.Then, the energy started to leak. Not even Nox could stop that. "This thing is connected to the island. The whole place is radiating energy. Pick up the pace, people," Nox said.Everyone went into the altar's chamber and quickly took in the energy.Fiery Ignis was on the island, taking the Altar back. He sensed the spilling energy, and he knew Nox had begun. "Get ready, people. If Nox breaks through smoothly, we'll fight with the path of the sword. If he fails… be prepared to fight to the death," he said to the survivors te
If the altar was not unsealed, Nox wouldn't have enough power to handle the path of the martial and the path of the ancient divine. Even if he was only facing the leader of the path of the martial, he only had a sixty-forty chance of winning, and that wasn't enough to turn things around."We need to do this. At this point, we have no choice. We'll do everything we can and leave everything to fate. We must unseal the altar. Even if someone tries to disturb us, any powerup is good news for us," said Aphrodite."Fine, then we'll unseal the altar. You stay here as well. I think there's going to be a lot of this energy. I'll reach my limit very fast. You can use the energy to train as well. Queenie, you're a phoenix. If someone tries to disturb us, devour all the energy," said Nox."But I'm at my bottleneck. Devouring it won't do me any good. It's a waste." Queenie frowned."Better than letting the enemy take it. At worst, you can use them as energy bombs." Nineve curled her lips.Quee
"Will you shut up already? There's plenty of energy here. The Sea of the Fire God has a whole reserve for you." Nox sent Kirin flying away with a kick. The guy just wanted to take advantage of the situation.Replenishing spiritual energy and devouring it were different things. No matter the quality, replenishment would eventually fill up the user's tanks. Power level, however, was different. Lower-level spiritual energy couldn't be absorbed and refined, but higher-level energy was limited. There was no place to house a large amount of it.The fact that Fiery Ignis knew a place like that was a great help for Nox."Come with me." Fiery Ignis led everyone through the Altar and down to the underground. At the deepest depths was a cavern, where water and fire fused like they were perfect for each other. Weaker ones would die here if they stayed long enough, let alone pass through it.Nox used his Saint power to protect everyone as he went down as per Fiery Ignis' orders. After going thr
"The path of the martial would never destroy the Temple of Fire, but Nox forced their hand. Even though you think this is bad enough, something worse is coming," said Aphrodite.Nox first thought of Faeast, after which he remembered the path of the sword. His guesses were correct. Aphrodite explained, "They will attack Faeast, but we can't get distracted now. People will die, but they can't kill everyone. A few deaths for a long-lasting peace is worth it. What we need to do now is raze Mystia to the ground."For that, we need the path of the sword," said Aphrodite. What came next was simple. Their destination was the path of the sword's grounds."Path of the sword? We can do that, but give me some time. I need to take the Altar off the formation and bring it with me," said Fiery Ignis."Of course, but make it quick. They won't hesitate to attack the path of the sword," said Nox solemnly.Fiery Ignis laughed. "They're not as simple as they look, Nox. The path of the martial might o
"Carrying out orders? No beef with the Temple of Fire, you say?" Nox laughed. "But I have a beef with you! Naturally, I will kill you!"Nox swung his hand, and the Minor Saints exploded. Their souls flew out, and they cursed Nox as much as they could. "You're cursing me? Fine, guess you want a slow and painful death, then."They could've died a quick death, but once Nox used his Blazing Holy Eyes, they had to suffer a slow burn. The Minor Saints' screams filled the air. The survivors gleaned grim satisfaction from the enemies' suffering.Nox descended on the altar. The Temple of Fire was only standing thanks to this ancient artifact. It'd have fallen a long time ago otherwise."Mr. Nox!" The Temple of Fire survivors saw Nox as chief of them all, second only to the temple lord."Sorry, I was late." Nox nodded. He came in the nick of time. If he'd been a moment later, these people would be dead.Fiery Ignis wasn't in good shape either, but the Altar was more important. He extracted
William could finally relax a little with Nox in the mix. He told Nox that the remnants of the enemies' temples attacked him because he was friends with the guy. His pavilion was destroyed, and his mentor died in battle. A lot of his fellow students died as well.Fortunately, the Temple of Fire saved him. Before he could even take revenge, the enemies attacked the Temple of Fire. Fortunately, Nox appeared in his darkest hour.Nox cursed, "The bastard! William and I aren't even that close! Why'd you attack him? You're not leaving here alive!"Furious, Nox put the island on lockdown. No one was going to leave this place alive. Thanks to the team's efforts, a group of survivors were saved. The remnants were all cleaned up, and Aphrodite was scouring the leaders' minds with her soul technique for intel.At the same time, Kirin had arrived at the island's center and fought the leader of the invaders. The path of the martial sent out a dozen Saints to destroy the Temple of Fire. Most of
The mocked god was furious, and he wanted to see who the bastard was. However, when he realized who it was, he froze. The woman was the mistress of the Byrds. Then, his eyes shone. This woman was a prodigy among prodigies."Save me, Celestial Goddess! I'll give you everything I have," pleaded the god. He would be her slave if it came to it. The other cultivators asked for Katherine's help as well."The decision lies not with me." Katherine shook her head and looked at Nox.The cultivators were stunned, and they turned their attention to Nox. They thought the young man was unimpressive, and they wondered why Katherine would listen to him.The god of thievery threatened, "I don't care who you are, boy. Tell Celestial Goddess to help us, or I will kill you!"Bloodlust filled Nox's eyes. "You don't care who I am? How dare you! Open your eyes and take a good look. I know you know me."The god of thievery cursed and pushed through the pain of the flames. He focused on Nox's face, and w