They trembled not because they saw his cultivation soaring without sensing an end but because of the carnage that came with it,

They unleashed the single monster that no one could ever hope to ever contain.

Kiel was silent as he looked down on the dead body near his feet.

No one made a move.

Pindrop silence abounds.

Kiel looked at the sword near him and then at the four men who remained stupefied by both the death of their ally and the inexplicable pressure of the man who used to be Mortal exuded.

No longer was Kiel a lamb to be slaughtered.

Everyone was looking at Kiel like he was some kind of deranged man. His words did not make sense, but every word made his overwhelming presence all the more overbearing.

'Who the hell is he? We were not told of this. This suffocating pressure is impossible to come from a Martial Master. For him to overwhelm me, a Peak 9th Stage True Spirit Realm cultivator, that's not possible! As I thought, that man's son is not going to be simple. Just what kind of beast were they hiding!?' the leader was sure that Kiel was not overwhelming them through sheer power but through a mix of bloodlust, killing intent, and presence.

All of them trembled when they entered Kiel's field of vision. His eyes were cold yet scorching as if they would die if they remained in his line of sight.

"I am going to vent this emotion… try to keep my mind occupied."

Kiel moved his right leg and kicked the sword nearby towards one of his enemies.

Kiel's aim was the head, and as the assassin registered what he just did, he used his own sword to deflect the sneak attack. It did not kill him, but it did its job of limiting his range of motion, balance, action, and, most importantly, vision.

CLANG! The clash of steel filled his ear.

His hearing was momentarily occupied.

The man's arm finally completed its swing, and as his sword deflected the sword, only then did he hear his companion's frantic shout, "Mo-ove!"

And at the same time, his arms passed, and he recovered his visions for seeing a pair of an abyssal, unfeeling void that was Kiel's eyes.

He wanted to retaliate, but Kiel had already orchestrated his death.

Kiel had already crossed the distance when blinded by his own arm. The sound of steel clashing made it too late to hear the warnings of his companions. The man's previous motion has yet to stop, making it impossible for him to retaliate, and lastly, his balance was offset, restricting his movement and the split second, he saw Kiel's eyes, he froze from terror, and the "spear" Kiel's hand already touched his chest.

Sharp and unrestrained Spear Energy manifested around the stick.

"Please… no." the man said underneath his mask. He could feel that something about Kiel was beyond logic.

"Pierce…" Kiel whispered and an invisible spear pierced his enemy's head. Another life had been taken.

Without shouting any fancy names or even using any Martial Techniques, Kiel called upon the 5th step Mastery of the spear and carved his chest.

Unfortunately for Kiel, however, the other three had already regained themselves with this death.

Their body began to shine as they summoned their Soul-Beasts. There were three enemies left; Kiel registered their Soul Beasts in his mind.

'From the left, it's a Southern Gale Elk, a Lunar Beast, and an Abyssal Black Bat. If I am of the same level as them, I can draw this out and hunt them one by one after separating them. But I have limited Spirit Energy and stamina; I need to make this quick. Risk is the least of my concern.'

Sacrifice what must be sacrificed.

Kiel readied himself to fight.

When Kiel saw the beasts, he did what he had done before and kicked the sword near his feet to another enemy.

He targeted the man in between the two.

"Do you think we'll fall for that again?" the man in the middle deflected the sword flying towards him with his own.

CLANG!

The clash of steel echoed. Like his companion before, his vision became limited. But using that opening, he gathered energy in the middle of his palms for a follow-up attack.

He waited and waited, but no one came even as he regained his complete vision. Kiel actually wholly ignored him and remained in the same place. The other three were confused as they thought he would attack.

'Does he have something up his sleeves?' despite their clear number and strength advantage, they were acting exceptionally careful.

They couldn't risk taking him easy. They just witnessed his meticulousness and cunning in how he killed two of their companions. A single opening would result in death.

Kiel began to move, but instead of engaging them in fast combat, he started walking.

'The movement technique I used is unrefined, and my burst of movement depletes too much. I need to create one for myself later.'

Despite not using much Spirit Energy, his second kill cost him around twenty percent.

Kiel was resting while using their own reluctance.

Seconds passed, and when no one moved, the one with the Abyssal Black Bat tested the waters with a palm technique.

A brass-colored palm attack flew out towards Kiel.

Seeing this, Kiel suddenly stabbed the earth. He drew out his strength, uplifted a chunk of the ground, and used it to defend against the palm technique!

BOOM!

A thick dust storm billowed as the chunk of the earth was blown to smithereens. The three men's vision was impaired. The man with the Lunar Beast saw a figure cutting through the smokescreen, and almost immediately, he used his collected Spirit Energy and sent out a palm strike.

"DIE!"

BAM!

It was a direct hit, and to ensure Kiel's death, he used his sword and cleaved his body into two pieces.

Blood splattered, and he could clearly feel flesh being cut.

It was confirmed death!

However, as the body he cleaved got nearer, what he saw was a headless corpse with the same black robes as his — it was Kiel's last victim, used as a decoy.

A voice next to him then surfaced, "Pierce…."

"Wai—!!!!"

Another life was taken. The one with the Lunar Beast had been slain.

He managed to let out a scream before dying, which gave the smokescreen people more dread causing them to panic.

"NIGHT SCREECH!" Howled one of the two remaining assassins.

Screeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

Soul Beasts grant their conquerors abilities unique to them; these abilities were called Mystical Ability.

The Abyssal Black Bat's Mystical Ability was named [Night Screech]. It was a sound-based attack that affected every cultivator in its range.

Screeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

"SHOW YOURSELF!" the assassin with the Abyssal Black Bat taunted.

"Argo! STOP IT!" his companion that was caught in the sound attack shouted, but the one called Argo failed to respond.

The Night Screech's effect could usually be controlled, but with an impaired vision and a clouded mind, Argo decided to let the sound rampage!

Argo didn't know what was happening. He couldn't comprehend why someone as weak as Kiel could kill them. It didn't make sense.

But the more it made no sense, the more his fear grew.

He didn't want to die, not here, not like this.

He has dreams ambitions. He cannot die in a place where no one would remember him. Argo refused to be a speck of dust under someone else's journey to the top, forgotten by time.

But soon enough, a figure appeared from behind him.

It was Kiel, and his ears continued flowing with blood.

Kiel destroyed his own ears to nullify the Night Screech's effect.

Now, face to face with the fool, he whispered, "Pierce…."

Argo felt the stick, and by the time he heard him speak, his chest had already been carved.

Kiel grabbed the neck of the dying Argo while there was still light lingering in his eyes.

As Kiel looked straight into Argo's eyes, he broke his neck to ensure he would not survive.

As Kiel held onto Argo's dead body, the smokescreen he had created was blown away by a gust of wind.

Only the assassin with the Southern Gale Elk remained.

The remaining assassin looked around and saw his companions all lying on the ground, dead. And when he looked right ahead, what he saw was Kiel, holding Argo's lifeless body.

He had just received damage from Argo's indiscriminate attack, and seeing his companions who died without being able to do anything made him realize something, 'This person is a monster.'

Kiel threw Argo away and walked towards the last of the assassin. His steps were slow and steady; the strain of using the spear was too much even for him.

The assassin could run now, and he wouldn't be able to catch up, but the man did not move.

But the man whose cultivation was leagues above Kiel saw nothing but a monster approaching. The sound of his footsteps was heavier than a boulder.

Thud!

The hardened assassin's knees buckled.

Kiel stopped before him, and the assassin looked him in the eyes, with tears streaming down his face, "Please… let me live."

His spirit was shattered.

Kiel read his lips and decided to answer…

"Tell me who sent you…."

"Plea-please, don't kill me…."

"Tell.me.who.sent.you."

" Van… it was Van Kingson. Ple—please, I have a daug—"

The assassin's mouth stopped as despair settled in when a stick was held up to his head.

"Pierce…" Kiel killed him without remorse.

Kiel closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

'Van Kingson.' he repeated inside his head.

When he opened them again, a light appeared.

Kiel stood in the middle of the bloodbath and looked at the moon. His eyes were devoid of light, his body screaming for rest.

Kiel killed survived the night by taking the life of his assassins.

Yet not a single flash of joy was seen in his face.

He looked up the skies, with a deep and exasperated sigh, “Can I… really live?”

Once again, he stood at the precipice of his former life. So, he asked again, “Is my fate… my existence… only amounts to taking a life? To be a butcher?”

He asked the moon and stars, alas, no one could answer him.

He stood, there, cold, alone, and in pain, alive, with his heart shredded to nothing.

For all he had done to walk a different path Kiel once again stood at the precipice of where he once was.

“Am I… cursed to live this way forever?”