'How could they do that to themselves?!'

Clark wondered and he really could not think of any good reason that would justify whatever cruelty these crazy people were doing upon their own bodies.

​​

He would have pondered upon it more but alas, his silent musings were cut off before he could ever branch out further conjectures with what little imagination he had left in the moment.

It was at this time that He Shun finally wished for a quick conclusion in this afternoon affair.

"Now it's time for me to claim my prize! Catch them all for me, boys! And be sure to take good care of the ladies.

I don't want to see my goods get damaged before I can truly enjoy them in my arms." He Shun, the leader of the Bloodmight Faction, directed the men and women under him into action.

"Yes, boss!"

"You can count on us, boss!"

"Don't you worry about anything, boss!"

"We will deliver the women unto you, unscathed and in one piece!" Some of the subordinates replied with great promises unto their leader.

With almost a hundred of them that comprised the Bloodmight Faction, it was already a given that capturing this party of six was as easy as the act of breathing itself.

Unfortunately, this group of delinquents has met our good protagonist today. Only pain and suffering awaited them and all those that wished to block the path of our bored gamer.

'Hmmm... I wonder how I should take care of these ugly NPCs?' Clark contemplated as no more than 5 people closed in on his stale position.

The party has not moved an inch at all since the tight encirclement of more than a thousand cultivators had completely barricaded any hope for escape.

'Should I let myself be captured instead and take root in this Bloodmight Faction?'

Clark considered this option because it was only too easy to eliminate this man named He Shun and create a puppet in his replacement instead.

'Nah... That would be too dull and boring. And it would also take so much time to accomplish my goal.'

Our good gamer shook his head and quickly realized that he did not want to stay in this wretched place any second more than necessary.

In an instant, Clark decided to take a shortcut for himself and his crew instead.

"Full speed ahead it is." Clark muttered under his breath.

"What did you say, boy?" One of the goons that threatened to enter the party's personal space asked in curiosity. His name was Zi Kang and he was a trusted man of He Shun.

The distance that separated the two groups was only about 10 meters.

The five henchmen from the Bloodmight Faction mimicked the closed barrier of the thousand people around them but on a much smaller scale.

It was really not a problem though because each of these five cultivators were already at the 7th Stage of Mortal Shedding Realm.

This was also the reason why at this near proximity, they could hear every minute sound and changes that occurred in their surroundings with the use of their spiritual sense alone.

Being a cultivator really has some amazing perks only available for them and no other.

"Nothing, please continue." Clark smiled and a clear vision of amusement was plastered on his face right now.

Since he was only playing against little toy soldiers that he could just as easily eliminate by simply one flick of his fingers, there was really no need for that much talking at all.

"It seems that you have already accepted your fate, boy." Another unattractive goon laughed on the side.

"He's indeed a smart boy. Don't you worry, child. We will take care of your women in your stead. And I assure you that they will always moan in pleasure from now henceforth!"

And a second chimed in before laughing outrageously loud to join his partner.

"Stop this nonsense! Let's get them fast. We don't want to make the boss wait for us! GO!"

Zi Kang interrupted and without further rubbish spoken, led the charge towards the stagnant posture of the newly arrived fresh fishes.

These five cultivators from the Bloodmight Faction did not use any weapon at all but settled to employ only their bare hands in attempting to seize control of Clark's party.

Although their targets appeared 6 all in all but the fact of the matter was that they were only realistically interested in the 3 cultivators in the mix.

The mortals were already in the bag without even them making an effort to do so but the same was different for Clark, Wan Fei and Ning Xi.

Them 3 were indeed the only important hurdles in this quest. Most especially Wan Fei. The five cultivators from the Bloodmight Faction zoomed in like agile arrows of the night. Quick and deadly!

Their forms took a misty black shape as it threatened to pierce unto the otherwise immovable conduct of their prey.

'You have made the right decision in not resisting, boy. The next part will be so easy.'

Zi Kang had these thoughts in mind and it was just sad that this was probably the last conscious thing he considered before his unexpected farewell.

"BANG!" A deafening explosion scattered on the field and the shock waves rippled from the point of impact towards the hundreds of people in attendance.

One could not know who noticed it first but when the ensuing breaths elapsed, a startling realization descended on each and everyone on the scene.

Blood! There was an unmistakable presence of blood. They could smell the very familiar odor of blood. It was in the air. It was everywhere!

"Zi Kang!"

"Qian Tao!"

"Gong Qing!"

"Meng Yang!"

"Gao Hu!"

"Where are you?!"

"Show yourselves!" He Shun roared as he tried to determine where his loyal subordinates had run off to.

It was quite peculiar because not even a single shred of evidence was left behind of their sudden disappearance. Aside from the sprinkle of blood over the masses of course.

Still, He Shun tried to deny the reality of the situation and continued to call for his men's whereabouts but to no avail. Only silence answered him back.

"They're gone." A voice broke the stillness after almost sixty breaths of inaction.

Every single soul in the vicinity watched in awe at the speaker of these words and could not help but take a tentative backward step to avoid the interest of the one who broke all their cognitive understanding of what cultivators can and cannot do.

It was of course acceptable if they knew how and why it happened but no, five cultivators of the 7th Stage of Mortal Shedding Realm just vanished in liquefied goodbye.

Something like this was purely unimaginable!

"Were you the one who did it? Were you the one who killed my men?" He Shun asked in a soft whisper.

"Yes, I did." Clark nodded. He could see the sense of loss that He Shun felt for his dead friends and he could not help but be gentle with his words.

He Shun's shout alone spoke volumes of the pain and despair he felt towards those named cultivators.

'FUCK ME! Why does this game play produce even complex characters and antagonists for me? Is what they say true? That villains are heroes without a back story? Well, shit!'

Clark gritted his teeth in annoyance.

"..." He Shun only nodded in response. The rowdy and lewd character that he displayed from before was no more.

All he could feel from deep inside him, was his heart and soul screaming with grief and loss. More than that, there was a kind of relief also.

He knew what he wanted to do next and he was pretty much convinced of how it will all turn out. But he has no regrets whatsoever.

He Shun and those men were close friends. More like blood brothers in fact.

After they failed to reach the 6th Stage of Mortal Shedding Realm after one year of their stay inside the Demonic Sword Sect, they had nothing left for them.

They could not return to their clans in shame and defeat so they chose to stay instead even if they lived a life worse than animals in consequence.

They created the first faction in the outskirts of the Demonic Sword Sect and 50 years since then, they grow in strength and numbers.

They six of them reached the 7th Stage almost simultaneously but after today, everything they did has all turned for naught.

He could see the laughter in the other faction leader's eyes as they celebrated his unforeseen demise in the hands of this unknown boy.

'I'm dead no matter where i go.'

'SIGH!' He Shun knew that even if this hateful boy would not kill him out of spite and because of the words that he said earlier, these maggots from the Ivory Wolves Faction, Madfist Faction, Quick Rats Faction and the rest, would surely not allow to let escape from this tribulation alive.

Since he had lived an immoral and evil life, it was fitting that he should face this kind of reckoning also.

"Best to go out in a blaze of glory then." He Shun grinned and took out his weapon from his storage ring. It was no other else but a sword of course and its body was filled with a dark miasma.

"PUCHI!" Blood flowed once more as the black tendrils from this wicked sword reached out to He Shun's body and almost peeled every inch of his skin to shreds.

This was a sadistic cultivation method from the Demonic Sword Sect. It was cruel and painful yet it also brought about the fastest yet crudest method in acquiring strength for them.

Although there were obviously better cultivation manuals inside the sect but those were unfortunately not available from them failures.

In the end, this pushed He Shun and the rest of the one thousand cultivators on the scene to avail this wicked technique upon themselves.

"AHHHHHHHHHHH!" He Shun roared in defiance for his fate as he charged bravely into the single most handsome boy in an ocean of grotesque figures and faces.

His form flew at unbelievable speed. The ravenous sword leading his charge.

"BOOM!" He Shun followed the footsteps of his good friends. He died in one hit. Not even one clue was left of his existence whatsoever. He just evaporated into nothingness.

Alas, Clark was not happy at all at this moment. The kill was as tasteless as all the others before. But this one was different on its own.

"I miss home already." Clark whispered under his breath.