The Crimsonbreaking Faction Is Here!

A week and a half passed.

The Aqualian Drake Sect sent a disciple to deliver the goods to the village when its reconstruction was already in motion. Naturally, the village couldn't hide it from the Sect when the disciple was still far from reaching the settlement. But while Heian Ciemnosc was in the cottage, helping Little Anastasia with his group cultivation method, the villagers played nonchalantly and even passively hid the direction of the Crimsonbreaking Faction's small force. The disciple left, doubtful and suspicious.

At the same time, after the disciple bringing the weekly resources to the village, in the afternoon, the neighboring village’s merchants and traders who directly engaged with the village head arrived. However, when they departed, Heian Ciemnosc’s Eternal Return Team and a few stealth-specialized cultivators accompanied the sweaty, despairing neighbors.

A few hours later, the neighboring village suffered a brutal assassination of more than 100 enemies from the northern land sections. Thus, 4 villages came under Heian Ciemnosc’s occupation. Like this, things were already set in motion, and just as Heian Ciemnosc broke into the 3rd stage and Anastasia was in the middle of attacking the Soul Spirit realm 10th stage. Heian Ciemnosc received information on the enemy at their northern oceanic riverbank.

Thus, with the soldier units who ‘walked’ back to the Small City in construction rested for a week, Heian Ciemnosc led them outside again. Anastasia, Grietta, Tania, and Molto were left behind. As for the new 2 young girl maids, they would remain at his daughter’s side from now on.

Before the disciple left, the villagers excused the ginormous changes happening around the village as creating other structures to keep more animals and a few more families. This successfully cleared the Faction’s path for now. The disciple believed it because the Sect had to do all that whenever a settlement gained more population than estimated.

However, it won’t be long before the Aqualian Drake Sect stopped hesitating and decided to see what was happening in their territory. Heian Ciemnosc had to thank the whole 4 land sections’ negligence of their territory. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have it this easy to move around with so few people unobstructed.

However, especially because this was the Heraxle Clan’s territory, and not a border Kingdom between all the Universal Land and the ghost space in between, the Heraxle Clan couldn’t let a big force suddenly interfere into ‘peaceful’ Kingdoms. Especially if it was only to resolve a problem regarding those who followed them and those who seemingly didn’t.

The Heraxle Clan didn’t have much maneuver around this mess. Thus, the Crimsonbreaking Faction could only send less than 500,000 from space to inland. However, this wasn’t troublesome for Heian Ciemnosc. As long as he did his part, things can only go well for his side.

Just a few days after Heian Ciemnosc returned, the second village north of the Small City in construction became part of his small force’s rulership, so to speak. At that time, Heian Ciemnosc received the commanding assistant as he continued cultivating to the 3rd stage. He selected the people most capable for their respective subjects before continuing, nearing that breakthrough.

Nevertheless, all targets were achieved smoothly. Now, they only needed to deal with another little thing before Heian Ciemnosc’s small force actually occupies about a tenth of the Aqualian Drake Sect’s territory. There were still 6 villages, another resource gathering location, and a town in between, but it would only be a matter of time to occupy them, too.

According to the Crimsonbreaking Faction’s intelligence, the enemy only placed important numbers at particular locations between the riverbanks and in the middle of the Sect and Academy’s territories on the Faction’s side.

However, settlements such as towns and resource gathering weren’t targeted as these 4 villages. Those had actual vigilance and cultivators from the Sect or Academy, respectively. Thus, if Heian Ciemnosc targeted those in between his current occupied settlements, he’d directly clash with the Aqualian Drake Sect. That would’ve been utterly stupid.

Hence, there lay the problem. Not enough to secure and manage settlements? Gather more manpower. Not enough troops to spread throughout the territory and attack the hidden enemy cultivators? More manpower!

However, for that matter, Heian Ciemnosc and his small force still had some time before things got a little dramatic and complicated. Thus, Heian Ciemnosc wasted no time and immediately mobilized a couple of days after receiving information from the villages at the northern oceanic riverbank. Evans couldn’t show up while they walked, but the Sect’s Farsighted realm were already aware of their movement.

However, because Heian Ciemnosc’s soldier units blatantly detoured around the settlements in between and didn’t massacre the inhabitants after a few days of threatening and announcements, and they seemed to target only those cultivators they didn’t discover before. The Aqualian Drake Sect let Heian Ciemnosc’s small force be.

Furthermore, Heian Ciemnosc felt the Small City in construction ogled by Spirit Sense once every 2 hours ever since that disciple left. Although it wasn’t troublesome, it annoyed Heian Ciemnosc since it brought his attention every time it happened while he cultivated.

… Currently, Heian Ciemnosc was nearly half a million kilometers from the Small City in construction. His small force was with him, of course, and his Team strictly visualized the enemy a few tens of kilometers from their position. It was nighttime, but that hardly helped them, since the enemy had a Farsighted realm cultivator in their hideout.

The 50,000 soldier units and 80,000 auxiliary units were behind Heian Ciemnosc and his Team. 50,000 auxiliary units were left behind, with 10,000 extra for both villages each in case anything happened. The rest of Heian Ciemnosc’s troops were here, in the wild, prepared for an actual battle. Even if it was small scaled, the Crimsons didn’t shy or became overly confident.

Heian Ciemnosc watched the seemingly ordinary hut with an overly large garden on its side and front. The illusory array formations inscriptions naked before his eyes, but he didn’t even use nature reading and ordered no Spirit Sense or Soul detection against it.

“...” Heian Ciemnosc received a notification message from Etherea, who crouched behind him. They were between tall grass blades, which swished and swayed nonstop as if a strong wind prevailed in place, but it wasn’t. Her Spirit Sense pattern was read through his crimson-black medallion as he looked back at her and nodded after 2 silent seconds.

The soldier units behind them were covered with dark array inscriptions. Some squirmed ever so slightly, seemingly uncomfortable with the squirming, solid-like ‘snakes’ slipping on their clothes. When Etherea received Heian Ciemnosc’s confirmation, she slowly stepped back twice and let a breath out.

“...” Heian Ciemnosc closed his darkest eyes and focused. Earth and Water elemental particles worked beneath their shoes, and dark Vigor Energy covered the front as more tall grass blades surfaced and elongated to a maximum of 1 meter in height.

Cgrrrruuh~ pshiift~~...

When the tall grass blades reached the dark Vigor Energy above the ground level, Heian Ciemnosc’s Spirit Sense and dark Soul energy went out to meet. Just like his inner universe fed by his power sources at the same time, the congregation of his power sources, except bodily strength, and the tall grass blades formed dark array inscriptions that didn’t even need him to move. This was purely inscribed with Heian Ciemnosc’s will and capabilities.

Whoosh, rustle~~... crrii, crrii…

As the small force advanced, their footsteps’ noise was supplanted by that of vegetation growing, moving through the nonexistent wind, and with the occasional noise from small bugs and fauna.

“My ‘cage’ can’t hold the entire precinct. And even if it could, it wouldn’t last for long. My Dormant Magma Shark will create a second cage. Don’t fight in close-quarters until the enemy breaks my Artifact’s cage. He will be your ‘general’ and protect you.”

“... … …” Suddenly, Heian Ciemnosc stopped, and his troops imitated him half a second later. Their movements were silent and precise, like a thousand dancers exhibiting in public. When they heard his words inside their hearts without even knowing when their Souls were locked by his, their eyes hardened and their Energy swiftly, quietly surged within their bodies.

Heian Ciemnosc’s darkest eyes became fully focused ahead. They were now only 15 kilometers from the enemy’s hideout. It was impossible for the enemy, even with Heian Ciemnosc’s costly mobile concealment array formations, to not notice them. They had finally sent a group of 1,000 cultivators in the Third Step to check the ‘suddenly growing’ vegetation at their front.

“Aaghh, man… This had to happen now?” - “I know, right? But that’s how things are. Anyways, let’s just check. It might be another curious Preternatural.” - “Mn, we can rear another one and slowly become tamers, huh? Haha!” - “Sigh, yes. When we return, there’ll be a hundred Preternaturals under our crotches as we arrive through the sky… Just imagine the others’ faces, haha!” - “Hehe, I can ride a white-furred Fauna to my future prince charming!” - “Oh my god~!”

Step, step, step, step, step…!!

“Huh…?” The last cultivator to pass through the illusory barrier, behind everyone else who was contentedly chatting and mingling, feeling left behind and wanting to rush forth to rejoin the group, suddenly noticed something. Just as he noticed, blurry shadows dashed towards the group before him. “Hey! Gu-”

“Waah!” - “Dammit! NO!!!” - “Sneak attack- BASTARDS!” - “Shit- run! Ruun-”

The blurred shadows suddenly rushed past the group, and the cultivator who had just closed the illusory barrier suddenly felt his neck dividing little by little. The unnoticeable wind passing onto his body from the hurrying, blurred shadows slowly divided it from the lower middle. The cultivator couldn’t talk and didn’t notice until the very end that he was dead.

STEP STEP STEP STEP STEP STEP STEP!!

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WHOOOSH!! PSHIFT- CLICK! PSHIFT- CLICK! … … … …SLAAAAAAMMM~~!!!

Just as the blurred shadows were about to reach the illusory barrier’s entrance, a sound from above brought attention from their objective, and the enemy looking from within as the massacre occurred in less than a few seconds. The Farsighted realm cultivator’s Spirit Sense spread everywhere, finding the person flying above the blurred shadows attacking the illusory barrier from above.

The enemy Farsighted realm cultivator displayed schadenfreude and was about to guffaw over the fact that an illusory array formation’s most solid, stable point was at its ceiling’s center. However, when he noticed the sudden claws appeared in the figure’s hands and feet, his face fell. He rapidly remembered something. But before he could give the warning, the figure acted!

Heian Ciemnosc sent dark Vigor Energy into the illusory barrier with his left index finger. His left, individual dark claws folded into a fist as a trace of darkened lightning streak the volume of a pinky traveled down and penetrated into the illusory barrier like hot needles through butter.

The darkened lightning streak extended everywhere, and then, Heian Ciemnosc’s right claw held Vocón Link that projected from his darkened palm’s lower section. Vocón Link’s body, which appeared to be several dozen meters long and 4 inches thick, suddenly savagely twisted and silently roared with the dark night sky as its canvass.

The dark whip’s color was mightier but made both the sky and its body more difficult to differentiate yet were ostensibly separated as if existing in 2 different worlds. And then as the cultivators within the hideout watched in elation, awe, and confounded… A dark whip several thousand meters long with the same thickness dominated the skies before crashing down on them.

As the dark whip descended on the illusory barrier, the rest of its body came crashing down without waiting for momentum and Heian Ciemnosc’s bodily strength forcefully moving it downwards. Heian Ciemnosc’s Vocón Link hit the illusory array formation’s rooftop at the same time as a whole!!

“Defend this place! Follow me!! We’ll bring the information back to our-” The enemy Farsighted realm cultivator, an elder with a tall disposition, heroic facial features, and long, slightly curly white hair, roared to the skies! His words and volume affected the surrounding cultivators from the same side out of their stupor as their high-leveled illusory array formation was broken! Just like that!

GUUUUUUUUUUURRRRRRGLEEEE~~~!

However, an enormous figure suddenly darkened the ground from the already dark-enough sky. The Farsighted realm cultivator looked at the Monster in the sky with trembling eyes. It had a much lower cultivation than himself, but its energy fluctuations were too powerful. When his Spirit Sense recognized its appearance, the Farsighted realm cultivator felt shocked.

‘A Dormant Magma Shark?! Here?!! They should only be in the large body waters!!’

However, his thoughts weren’t important here. As soon as he wanted to make a move and eliminate this massive, dangerous asset, a flash echoed from the sky, and a golden-orange square-shaped cage formed around them.

“...” The Farsighted realm cultivator looked up at Heian Ciemnosc’s floating figure just 100 meters above the ground, and Heian Ciemnosc looked back down at him as the cultivators around the former became panicked and started rushing to the sides in groups of thousands. “...”

“As the Grand Elder said! Don’t give uuup! We still have a chance!! Come on!” Enemy cultivators roared within the enemy hideout. On the other hand, the Crimsons didn’t waste their breath and started killing when the illusory array formation broke apart. The enemy was at least 100,000 troops here, so they had to start with any advantage they had.

Fortunately, most of these Crimson elite soldier units were Life-Long realm cultivators, and the mixed oldish younger generation enemy cultivators here couldn’t deal with them unless they joined hands from the get go. However, like before, the enemy here wasn’t stationed to prepare an ambush or dwindle the Aqualian Drake Sect’s forces. They chose to flee and return with as much information as possible.

PSHIIIIIIIIFFTT~~! RUMBLEEEE~! PAASSHHH~!!!

Unfortunately for the enemy, the Crimsons were too excited after seeing the fruits Heian Ciemnosc’s commandeering brought to the operation, despite their small number and victories so far. Battle array formations surged within the Crimson soldier units, with auxiliary soldier units bringing Soldiers to safety and treating them.

The fight rapidly unfolded, but Heian Ciemnosc and the elder still looked at each other.

And then, Alejandro’s red Water particles collected an enough amount from the surroundings. He rapidly formed a thin barrier several hundred meters away from the golden-orange sides, and 1 km above its ceiling. The golden-orange barrier was just a few seconds from being broken in several spots.

The enemy cultivators struck from the ground and air but didn’t dwindle too high up, focusing their attacks thinly near one another. Meanwhile, the sounds of Vigor Energy flying everywhere and overwhelming the cultivators’ enhanced Neutral Energy and fewer Vigor Energy moves echoed in the center of the battlefield as a reddish cage formed beyond the golden-orange barrier.

“Hurry!! Another barrier has been placed! Aaaah!” - “Dammit! Continue! I… I will stop them as long as I can!” - “Noooo! Brother! AAGH!” - “Turn back with me! You lot! Get together and break apart the second barrier! Hurry!!”

“HUAAA!!” While the enemy roared and despaired, the Crimsonbreaking Faction’s elite soldier units only roared forth and started mutilating the enemy to death even from thousands of meters away before meeting the enemy at melee. They finally engaged in close-quarters after chasing the cultivators who broke past the golden-orange barrier.

VWAAAAA- BIT- CHUNK!!

On another side of the battle, Alejandro opened his jaws incredibly wide. Molten, jumping magma covered his terrifying, dull gray teeth as an incandescent, powerful red glow was emitted from further within his mouth. Just before the fleeing cultivators attacking the reddish barrier could see what it was about, they were eaten at once by Alejandro’s one, single chomp!

The earth crumbed, disappeared, and became magma under Alejandro’s Vigor Energy, refining it along pure energy. However, the sound of all this happening was muffled and surpassed by the mere clamping of Alejandro’s jaws. It was so powerful and mighty that it gave the enemy Farsighted realm cultivator the sensation not even he would endure such direct attack if he were to befall it.

“... You know…” The Farsighted realm cultivator focused his eyes on Heian Ciemnosc. It looked like all his troops would die here, and that there was only one way to get out of here alive and notify the headquarters. To defeat Heian Ciemnosc and flee for his life!

The other cultivators might be brave and valuable, but they were not strong enough, not yet! Their coalition could do without them. The Farsighted realm cultivator was even glad he didn’t push the leaders to send elite cultivators with him. Otherwise, even if they fought back here and now, and crippled the Crimsonbreaking Faction’s elites, they would have lost a large portion of their already lacking number of elite soldier units themselves.

“I never imagined the black monster, you, would be sent here for such a special occasion.”

Heian Ciemnosc didn’t seem interested in hearing the elder out. Thus, he remained silent as his darkest, lifeless eyes stared at the Farsighted realm Small stage cultivator below. When the elder felt frustrated and clicked his tongue, about to say more, Heian Ciemnosc coldly barked. “Grand Elder, huh? What Sect would dare go against the Heraxle Clan’s dog? And it’s another Sect… Is there another Academy in the north, too?”

“Don’t tell me,” Heian Ciemnosc momentarily stopped, making the elder’s trembling body stop from acting with a soft wave of his pale left palm. The palm continued facing the elder as Heian Ciemnosc went on, “The Sect you’re from is in the land section before the Aqualian Drake Sect, and the Forestalress Academy is facing another Academy, isn’t it so?”

“...!” The elder remained calm, although his heart was silently troubled. Of course, how could Heian Ciemnosc not notice? He grinned and added in a smug tone, “Tell me, besides the Soul Est Empire, Uster Orion Grotto, and the Axe-Filany Sect which the Heraxle Clan is an ally from, who else might be targeting the Heraxle Clan’s smooth trip so far?”

“The Toreon Clan? Nah, they’re pretty neutral albeit their warrior-born-like mind,” Heian Ciemnosc grasped his chin and rubbed it, seemingly in deep contemplation. Then, his darkest eyes opened to a full, and he extended his right-handed index finger upwards. “The Flora-Sweet White-Heavens Dynasty! Ahh! I knew it!”

“Only the Toreon Clan has had an alliance with them in the past, way before they became Existential Sixth Step organizations ruling one Universal Land,” Heian Ciemnosc placed his hands behind his back, leaned over, and taunted. “So… will you talk… or will I have to resolve to my methods? The second is more entertaining for me.”

“... Heian Ciemnosc! No matter what kind of godly cultivator you think you are, these few troops won’t last long!” The elder shouted. He no longer hid and showed an emblem that Heian Ciemnosc couldn’t find from the ‘notorious’ organizations from every Step, specially the Third Step.

“Oh, I know. But the matters of my Crimsonbreaking Faction, leave them to the Crimsons, how about it?” Heian Ciemnosc replied, contentedly, almost. The unknown Sect’s Grand Elder frowned, and just as they seemed to enter into a fight, Heian Ciemnosc rolled his eyes, straightened his back, and retracted his right elbow. Forming a darkened fist, Heian Ciemnosc immediately struck out as something transparent, different from any Energy and pure energy, covered his right elbow, arm, and shoulder’s rear, and suddenly exploded from his fist when he thrust it forwards.

PUUUNCH!

“?!” The Grand Elder’s eyes blatantly widened! He turned his right hand into a fist and prepared a palm strike to block… whatever was coming at him with Heian Ciemnosc’s raw punch force.

In the air, it looked as if a bout of strange, barely discernible energy akin to wind, but not the Wind element and that resembled… nature— flew from Heian Ciemnosc’s right punching arm towards the Grand Elder!

The Grand Elder didn’t take Heian Ciemnosc’s seemingly effortless action lightly. Although he could read Heian Ciemnosc’s cultivation base in the Life-Long realm 3rd stage, knowing the strangeness of the black monster’s prowess, the Grand Elder was apprehensive.

However, it was well known that the black monster’s battle prowess ‘deteriorated’ as his cultivation base progressed into the Second Step. Thus, the Grand Elder believed that even if Heian Ciemnosc kept some of his absurd battle prowess, he could face this black monster without a doubt…

Right?

FWUUSH- PAAAAM!!!!!! SPLAASSHHHH- CRAACCKLE CRACKLE CRACKLEEEEE~~!

“!!” The Grand Elder prepared his superior Vigor Energy to deal a thunderously powerful energy fist after blocking the black monster’s strange ‘Supreme Art’ with his left palm. However, as the Grand Elder barley threw his left palm forth, he felt as if nature was rushing towards him.

When breaking into the Mythical realm, this sensation would twirl around them as they understood the world like never before. From then on, their knowledge and learning could only become more marvelous.

However, at this time, he felt that very similar force move directly towards him! It was assaulting him, and the pressure… the might of this natural force was insanely unstoppable!

The Grand Elder’s left arm’s bones disintegrated, suffering the full-blow from Heian Ciemnosc’s 300,000 kg of bodily strength. Before his eyes could start widening, his chest sank in without the strange, natural attack having reached his body yet.

The Grand Elder punched forwards, leaving his middle finger slightly elevated. When his punch collided with the strange ‘energy’, he felt the right side of his body… leave him. From one moment to another, the right side of his body was as if it had stepped backwards, but the rest remained the same.

Then, as the Grand Elder barely recognized his situation and felt pain… his body ignored his bubble-like right arm and landed on his chest. His body sank as if a black hole suddenly appeared within his sternum. In the next instant, his body twirled. The skin disappeared, his bone broke apart and intensely flow outwards into the distance as a screen of blood fell from where his body once was.

“...” Heian Ciemnosc’s darkest eyes looked at the space where the Grand Elder previously was. His eyelids narrowed. In that second where everything happened, he felt the natural force from his bodily strength consumed 20% in total.

The 300,000 kg of bodily strength were first consumed by the Grand Elder’s left palm, before his right fist diverted more than 13% of its might. Even then, 300,000 kg of bodily strength focused like this wasn’t something even a peak Third Step cultivator could deal with without employing Vigor Energy.

…