Chapter 444

The vice division leader of the White Lotus division, Fran, used footwork to go next to Ayad, who was advancing ahead of the group.

"Division leader."

Ayad looked aside. His expressionless face looked like he'd already regained his composure.

He managed to quench his anger in such a short period of time despite what Raon had done to him. He was a man with an extraordinary quality.

"Is this going to be okay?"

Fran chewed his lip while observing the White Lotus swordsmen's complexions, which were clearly showing their depression.

"It doesn't matter."

Ayad shook his head without even glancing at the White Lotus swordsmen following him from behind.

"They are going to die during the next mission anyway, even if they manage to survive this time. They only need to serve as stepping stones."

Even though the White Lotus division was numerous, he could only support a small number of them. Since he'd already decided which ones he would bring with him until the end, he didn't care if the rest ended up dying or not.

"But what Raon said…"

"Is going to have some influence. But they won't be able to leave the White Lotus division despite knowing that fact, as only losers volunteer to leave a division. Just cheer them up a little so they won't break."

"Understood."

Fran exhaled faintly and nodded. He was aware it was a cruel thing to do, but it was a necessary task in order to protect the White Lotus division.

"Besides, it looked like Raon Zieghart was about to say something important a moment ago. Is it really okay to not listen to him?"

Raon had hurriedly talked to him despite the dangerous atmosphere where they were about to draw their swords and fight. Fran was concerned because he had a feeling that Raon had noticed something important.

"Don't bother with him, since I'm sure he was trying to pick a fight with a different method. I wanted to support him since he looked useful to compete against the direct lines, but he's far more arrogant and disdainful than I thought."

Ayad furrowed his brow while thinking about Raon's red eyes, which hadn't wavered in the slightest.

'Damn bastard…'

Blond hair and red eyes. The moment he saw that bright and overwhelming light, he was reminded of Glenn Zieghart, who was above heaven.

Raon had already grown strong enough to remind him of Glenn.

"Hmm, it looks like he is still increasing his pressure…"

"It must be another plot from him. Stop paying attention to him."

Ayad clenched his fist without looking back.

"I'm going to crush Raon Zieghart as soon as I return."

* * *

"You bastard…"

The Sickle of the Bloody Cloud ground his teeth violently in frustration.

"How dare you run your mouth about our great leader? Do you have a death wish?"

His eyes turned bloodshot. He seemed to be angry from the bottom of his heart.

"We won't overlook this matter! We are going to officially complain to Zieghart…"

"Your cockiness knows no bounds."

Raon snorted and took a step towards the Sickle of the Bloody Cloud.

"We are the ones who aren't about to overlook this matter. Not you."

"What do you mean…?"

"The small route between the two lakes is the boundary, and the northern area is Zieghart's domain. It means that you've been secretly hiding inside Zieghart's domain where an incident occurred."

Raon strengthened the grip of his right hand and drew Heavenly Drive. The sound of the blade brushing past the scabbard rang throughout the air.

Shring.

The Sickle of the Bloody Cloud and White Whale's warriors turned pale.

"I don't know about White Whale or the Five Divine Orders, but I should be executing these random intruders right now. However, I'm going to give you a chance."

Raon took another step towards them and pointed the Sickle of the Bloody Cloud's neck with Heavenly Drive.

"Tell me why you've been hiding here, and what you know."

Raon had heard that the White Whale founded by the Thespian Emperor had all the information in the world, just like the white whales flying in the sky.

Since they had quick eyes for profits and information, there was no way they would've been hiding there for no reason.

"D-division leader!"

"How dastardly! Who do you think he is?!"

The White Whale's warriors briskly stood up upon seeing that Raon's blade was targeting the Sickle of the Bloody Cloud. However, they froze on the spot before they could attack Raon.

"Don't move."

"Your head will roll the moment you move a single finger."

"Stay still."

Burren, Martha, and Runaan had moved behind them before they knew it and were pointing their swords at them.

"Same goes for you, you'd better stay still."

Mark Goetten spoke in a frightening voice while holding the last warrior's shoulder.

"You scoundrels…"

The Sickle of the Bloody Cloud mustered his aura and wrinkled his eyebrows.

"You even took us by surprise after insulting our king. Can I take it as Zieghart's provocation towards the White Whale?"

"Provocation?"

Raon sneered while brushing his hair back.

"You need to be in the same league to be worthy of provocation. Why would a whale try to provoke a shrimp that's just trying to survive?"

"Stop insulting us!"

"I'm not going to argue with you."

"Ugh…"

"Say it."

Raon pressured the Sickle of the Bloody Cloud with his sharp pressure.

"Why were you hiding here, of all places?"

There were many places other than the frozen lake where they could've hidden by using the artifact they'd used to conceal their presence.

Raon was curious about why they chose the frozen lake, which was more prone to be found than the other lake.

"Let me tell you again. The tree you were hiding in is inside Zieghart's domain. Your great king and the Five Divine Orders won't be able to help you."

The Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation violently dashing through his mana circuits burst out as a crimson flame above Heavenly Drive's blade.

"Let's just kill him."

Martha licked her lips while bringing her blade to the warrior she was holding by his neck.

"These kinds of people don't have any useful information. It's a waste of time."

"I agree."

Burren nodded while bending the warrior's arm.

"I heard that the Thespian Emperor from the Five Divine Orders can use various tricks. There was an occurrence where two Grandmasters were completely stupefied while they were watching."

He frowned while saying that the Thespian Emperor was a dangerous person. He must've already obtained information about the Five Divine Orders.

"There's no way the White Whale would've dispatched such skilled personnel for no reason. It's better to get rid of them before they try anything else."

"I'm ready."

Runaan blinked, showing that she was ready to stab them at any moment.

Raon smiled faintly while looking at the murderous gazes of the Light Wind division.

'They are great actors.'

He'd already ordered them to never kill an opponent—to simply neutralize them, regardless of who they were. However, the team leaders were making those deadly threats even though they were fully aware that they shouldn't kill them.

They seemed to have become proper warriors who could do their jobs in any situation.

'Moreover… Their threat is super effective.'

The warriors from the White Whale other than the Sickle of the Bloody Cloud seemed to believe that Martha, Runaan, and Burren were serious. Their trembling lips had turned blue from the fear of their murderous intent.

"This is your last chance."

Raon looked down on the Sickle of the Bloody Cloud. His gaze was as frightening as his blade.

"Tell me why you were here."

The murderous intention rising from Heavenly Drive was on a whole different level from before. It proved that he was serious about killing them if they refused.

Whir!

Let alone the Sickle of the Bloody Cloud, even the Light Wind members felt their fingertips shaking from the bloodlust.

"Hmm…"

The Sickle of the Bloody Cloud swallowed nervously, unable to recklessly decide to attack him or charge at him.

'Is this the rumored Raon Zieghart…?'

His blond hair was as dazzling as the sunlight, and his transparent red eyes looked like a red moon floating in a glass of wine. He'd immediately noticed that he was facing the White Sword Dragon, Raon Zieghart, thanks to his colorful appearance.

However, his might was on a whole different level from the White Whale's information. He'd thought that he would be an advanced Master just like himself, but he could feel an unapproachable pressure from the man in front of him.

Raon almost looked comfortable as he casually held his sword, but no opening could be found.

The Sickle of the Bloody Cloud had the feeling that his head was going to fall to the ground the moment he tried to attack.

'Even if I assume that he managed to reach the highest level of Master, it would still be strange…'

Assuming the impossible scenario that Raon Zieghart got even stronger and managed to reach the highest level of Master, such overwhelming pressure was still impossible.

'He's almost in the Grandmaster's realm…'

He could feel an overwhelming difference in power, to the point where he felt like he was facing a Grandmaster instead of a Master.

'Even so…'

The Sickle of the Bloody Cloud bit the tip of his tongue and lowered his right hand.

'I can't back off now.'

The mission was directly bestowed on him by the emperor. He couldn't change the fact that they were found out because of his subordinate's mistake, but he at least had to avoid leaking the information.

"You are curious about why we are here, right?"

He asked the question and clenched the sickle that was hanging behind his leather belt at the same time. He got ready to strike Raon's neck at any moment and opened his mouth once again.

"I'll tell you whatever I know if you guarantee our safety. However, you shouldn't even think about asking any further."

He stuttered to pretend he was terrified in order to make Raon careless and slowly gathered the aura from his energy center.

"You shouldn't try anyth—"

The moment Raon's lips parted, he pulled the sickle out from the belt and slashed upwards. It was the fastest and the most complicated technique of the Bloody Sickle Thrust, the Swift Crimson Twisted Slash.

Swoosh!

The Sickle of the Bloody Cloud rolled his lips into a smile while looking at the moist circle covered in red.

'I did it!'

The sickle with the Swift Crimson Twisted Slash's energy was rushing toward Raon's chest alongside the red astral energy, but Raon's sword was still not reacting. The surprise attack was perfect.

'Next up is…'

He was about to use the Bloody Sickle Thrust's special technique to make sure to finish Raon off.

Spark!

Red lightning struck in his vision, and an intense pain could be felt from his right shoulder.

"Aaa…aaa…Aaaack!"

The Sickle of the Bloody Cloud rolled his eyes while screaming. His right arm, which was slashing upwards to use the Swift Crimson Twisted Slash, was on the ground. Blood was gushing out of his shoulder like a fountain.

"H-how…?"

He stepped back while covering his right shoulder with his left hand.

The fact that Raon had noticed his surprise attack wasn't even the issue. He had never expected that he could counterattack so quickly and powerfully in such a short timeframe.

He wouldn't have been able to defend against that frightening slash even if he knew about it in advance. His head went blank because of the physical and mental shock.

"I told you to not try anything."

Raon slammed the spotless Heavenly Drive into the Sickle of the Bloody Cloud's left shoulder.

"Kuh…"

The Sickle of the Bloody Cloud collapsed on the ground and writhed like a fish out of water. It looked like he didn't have any strength left.

Raon narrowed his eyes while looking at the trembling Sickle of the Bloody Cloud.

'I feel so light.'

The Sickle of the Bloody Cloud's surprise attack was certainly swift and complicated, but it was as easy as breathing for him to shatter the flow.

It was difficult to realize, but his swordsmanship had definitely improved thanks to Glenn and Rector.

"D-do you believe you can get away with this…?"

"Why were you hiding here?"

Raon ignored his threat and twisted Heavenly Drive in his shoulder towards the right.

"Aaaaargh!"

The Sickle of the Bloody Cloud screamed, unable to withstand the intense pain. He was a stubborn one, as he was still not confessing despite the pain.

However, the Sickle of the Bloody Cloud wasn't his only target.

Raon twisted Heavenly Drive once again while looking at the dangerous amount of blood gushing from his shoulders. He looked like he didn't care whether the Sickle of the Bloody Cloud died or not.

"Ugh, I don't know…"

"Then die."

"Wait!"

Just as Raon was about to cut the Sickle of the Bloody Cloud's neck with Heavenly Drive, he could hear someone shouting their head off from behind him. It was the young man who seemed to be the youngest among his subordinates.

"W-we were ordered to wait until something else happens here!"

That was Raon's goal, as they seemed to have a relatively strong bond for an underground faction, and it must've worked.

"What's your name?"

"Torin…"

"Tell me, what do you mean by waiting here?"

Raon stopped the Sickle of the Bloody Cloud's bleeding so that he wouldn't die before he stood up.

"Torin, you idiot…"

The Sickle of the Bloody Cloud murmured. His face was pale and his lips were dry.

"Don't say it. That's…"

"Shut up."

Raon kicked his chin to shut his mouth.

"It's not important information anyway!"

Torin started to speak once again despite the Sickle of the Bloody Cloud's opposition.

"W-we don't have that much information either. We were simply asked to wait here until something happens in the lake and to simply watch everything before we return."

He shook his head, saying that was the only order they were given.

"You were asked to watch from here?"

Raon examined the frozen lake while shaking the blood from Heavenly Drive.

'But why? I can't feel anything special.'

He examined the area around the lake and under the frozen surface through the Ring of Fire and the Perception of the Snow Flower, but he didn't notice anything special.

"Torin."

Raon withdrew his aura perception and looked at Torin.

"Were you ordered by the higher-ups?"

"Y-yes…"

"And you were asked to not move from this spot."

"We weren't ordered to move away."

He shook his head, saying that the concealing artifact they were using dissipated the moment they moved.

"Hmm…"

Raon licked his lips while touching Heavenly Drive's hilt.

'Thespian Emperor…'

The power they possessed was one thing, but there were many rumors stating that it was impossible to understand what they were thinking.

'He must know something about this.'

The Thespian Emperor must've had some kind of information about the Warring Steel division's disappearance.

'However… I can't visit him now.'

It would be difficult to get an audience with the Thespian Emperor, to begin with, and he would most likely not give any information even if he did. He had to find the Warring Steel division with the information he had.

'But it still implies that there's something special in this location.'

Raon sat down and placed his hand on the frozen lake. He couldn't feel anything, just like the previous attempt, but he still had the most important method to analyze the demonic energy.

'I wanted to save it since I only have a small amount, but…'

He gathered the darkest and the most alien power from his energy center.

Whir.

The Divinity Blooming from the Underworld, which had been hiding between the Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation and Glacier, rose through his mana circuits to be unleashed from his palm.

Whap.

Raon examined the frozen lake once again while adding divinity to his hand on top of the Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation's aura perception.

Divinity was the most effective method to find demonic energy. Since his divinity was born from negative energies such as the energy of death, demonic energy, and ghastly energy, it was even better at finding those filthy energies.

Whir.

Raon spread the Divinity Blooming from the Underworld like thin threads throughout the frozen lake in order to analyze the entire area.

He was trying to find the demonic energy with the divinity spreading like a web, but he could only feel intense coldness no matter how long he tried.

'Is it because a long time has already passed?'

He started to think that the demonic energy must've already gone no matter what had happened in the past because a significant amount of time had passed since the Warring Steel division's disappearance.

'What am I supposed to do now… Hmm?'

He sighed in disappointment and was about to withdraw the divinity when he noticed a faint presence of demonic energy from around the center of the frozen lake.

'Wait, is this…?'

Raon hurriedly stood up. He ran towards the center of the lake and unleashed the divinity once again.

'It's here!'

It wasn't under the lake, but the opposite side of the ice that he was standing on. He could feel an extremely faint, or rather, a simple remnant of demonic energy.

'What could've happened here?'

It would've been understandable if it were from above, but he couldn't understand why he felt demonic energy from the center of the frozen lake.

Tsk tsk.

Wrath shook his head while poking his head out to look at the frozen lake below.

It took you so long to find it.

'Did you know about it?'

The King of Essence felt the distortion.

'Distortion?'

Raon narrowed his eyes while looking at Wrath.

The energy you felt didn't occur in this space.

'What does that mean?'

An extremely small amount of demonic energy leaked from the windpipe connected to a different dimension.

'A different dimension? Does that mean that they created a boundary? The Frozen Scent might be able to do it.'

The Frozen Scent was proficient with coldness and demonic energy. Since she'd been active for dozens of years and had been getting stronger all along, it was fully possible that she would've gained the ability to create a boundary with the ice.

Raon examined the demonic energy from the frozen lake once again.

Considering what Wrath had said, the frozen surface must've been connected to the boundary that was locking the Warring Steel division up, and there had to be a way to enter or destroy it.

Whir!

Raon even used the Ring of Fire to increase his focus, and he started to hear a small sound from the faint flow of demonic energy.