Born in Blood



Liam tilted his head as he watched the light drain from the Border Guard's eyes. 

Blood foamed in the man's mouth, sliding down Liam's wet blade and slumping limp on the tower.

Liam pulled back his blade, flicked it, and shifted his attention to the other towers.

All of the Border Guards had been killed, slumped limp on the earth-made towers or grimly decapitated.

Meanwhile, the three disciples gave Liam a sneaky side glance.

They noticed a dark glimmer in Liam's multi-colored eyes when he killed the Border Guard.

Was it intrigue?

Or enjoyment?

They couldn't tell, and they didn't dwell on the morbid idea any further.

Liam stored the man's body in his ring, taking out the man's space ring and storing it.

'If I give them the ring, they probably won't care about the bodies,' Liam thought, feeling a bit hopeful to eat more than 28 Rank 3 cultivators. 

Krel looked at Liam from the distance, sending him a knowing nod.

Liam responded with a similar gesture, then looked towards the Outer Ring of the Sect. 

Like the name suggested, a circular, ring-shaped building surrounded the inner layers of the Sect. 

It was illuminated by a series of small white lights. 

That would naturally weaken the Acolytes' Shadows, but not enough to incapacitate or ruin the plan.

Further ahead the Grand Pavilion was clearly visible from a distance. 

Although the name made it seem like it was a majestic castle fit for a king, in reality, it was a dull, dome-shaped building made from a sturdy metallic material.

The only thing 'grand' about it was the size, which span across 65 meters of the central land.

Since the Border Guards were now dead, the Acolytes no longer needed to hide.

They climbed over and cloaked themselves with Shadow, before hiding behind their respective group leaders.

Their plan had entered a new stage.

Now, they needed to kill the Outer Ring disciples.

It was much easier said than done.

But never impossible.

With how the Outer Ring was shaped, clearing it was much faster, since the acolytes could simply split towards the left and right sides, butchering the disciples in between.

If the Border Guards were alive, that would be utterly impossible.

But they were not alive.

Liam's right eye constricted towards the easiest section of the Outer Ring to attack.

Those living in the Outer Ring were merely Rank 2 cultivators, with the highest ranking member close to Rank 3.

Even if they didn't come prepared or well-planned, assassinating those disciples wouldn't require much effort.

A few minutes passed as the Acolytes caught up with their groups.

Krel made another forward gesture as his body semi-merged into the Shadows, and the Disciples silently ran forward with their weapons unsheathed.

Liam gripped his shortsword close to his chest.

He only held one blade, and not his katana. Assassination was much smoother when he used just one weapon for the kill.

'There's no way a direct battle doesn't start soon.'

'The Inner Ring disciples will probably notice us soon.'

'Once they do, the Patriarch will be alerted, and Verium and Jane will have to deal with him.'

As he was caught in his thoughts, Liam arrived at the Outer Ring's buildings.

He climbed over the roof of a Sector building, and all around him, similar Disciples and Acolytes were perched atop the countless structures in the shape of a ring.

Further ahead and below were the training grounds, and the shouts they released with each punch and kick were starting to get annoying.

Spreading his senses, Liam noticed that 24 people lived right under the large tower he was in.

They all had their specific rooms and areas that they could train, cultivate and practice their specializations in.

It was a building with six floors, and 4 disciples lived on each floor.

Liam shrouded himself with his Shadow, then gripped his blades tighter.

His eyes grew colder as he entered through a large window of the top floor.

A Warrior met his gaze.

The man was dumbfounded for just a second as to where Liam came from.

But that one second was fatal.

Liam's shortsword entered the Warrior's throat. 

Strengthened with his Shadow, Dark Wraith body, and Phantom's Way martial arts, Liam was too fast for a mere Rank 1 Magus.

Liam swiped upwards, and the man's face opened apart like a gory, tender fruit.

Blood painted the room.

Liam moved under the dark interior of the tower, puffing out any light source on his path.

He took his time, his steps silent, his blade lightly gripped with no particular expression on his face.

He felt like a reaper ticking names off a list.

…

It was exhilarating. 

Liam came across another Warrior.

He was practicing a series of tai-chi looking movements that were gentle and unlike the constant screaming Liam was used to.

If Liam had to guess, the man was probably a spy.

His body matched a Verdant Warrior. 

Strong, tanned, broad-shouldered. 

But his martial arts were nothing like that. 

It was gentle, calm and flowed like water.

Nevertheless, Liam stuck his blade in the man's mouth, stored his ring and body, then moved onto the next.

And the next, and the next, until the entire tower was devoid of martial artists. 

Only dripping stains of red sprayed the various rooms.

Half an hour had passed since then, and most of the Outer Ring had been exterminated.

They were still unnoticed by the Inner Ring members, and an eerie silence hung above the atmosphere.

After all, the Border Guards were the main line of defense against a foreign attack.

Who would want to invade a small-sized Sect living on a mountain in the middle of nowhere? 

It just didn't make sense, and it wasn't worth the trouble.

Another half an hour passed, and the entire Outer Ring had been wiped out, even those within the Training Grounds.

By the end of it, Liam noticed how most of the Acolytes and even some of the Disciples were out of breath. 

Apparently, the further the groups went, the stronger effect the Array had on them.

'There's a reason they're split up into an Outer Ring and an Inner. Even my body won't be able to breathe properly.'