Souta was crouching behind the bushes as he examined the area around him. He raised his left hand and a black energy sphere materialized around it. The energy sphere orbited around his arm.
[Gravitational Ball]!
Souta's eyes pierced through the woods as he stared at the people standing on top of the city walls two kilometers away from him.
'I need to eliminate these guys... They are scouts that observed the battlefield and it will be bad if they saw that my strength is beyond B-rank.'
Souta's eyes were filled with killing intent as he stared at the people from Green Vine Pavilion. He made a grabbing motion.
The atmosphere suddenly changed. The people on top of the city wall suddenly stop moving.
"Argh!!"
"W-What's happening?!"
"I can't breathe!!"
"I can't see anything!!"
"I can't hear anything!!"
"No!!!"
They fell down on their knees as they clutched their chest. Their faces were distorted from pain as blood started gushing out of their seven orifices. Their bodies were crushed into tiny pieces of meat, leaving a pool of blood on the floor.
The city wall was devoid of any sounds. No one knew that all the people that were looking out had died.
"Now that the eyes are gone. I can satisfy my desire to kill." Souta grinned devilishly. His aura was filled with raging killing intent as he dashed through the woods.
Swoosh!!
The sun was high and no one had any idea that a powerful monster was lurking in the woods. Souta swiftly killed and even tortured some of the people that he met. Blood dyed the greenish grass as corpses fell down like dried leaves.
Miserable cries echoed in the woods as Souta continued his killing spree. Monsters that live here, people from Green Vine Pavilion, and even people from Hundred Face Alliance were no exception. Souta got carried away by his bloodlust.
Half an hour later.
Souta was standing looking at the sky. His body was covered in blood and various body parts were scattered around him.
"I relieved my desire... It felt so good..."
His mouth let out a groan of satisfaction. This was a way for him to control his emotion or else, he would have massacred everyone in this place. That's not good and it contradicts his plan. Which was why he had to kill to satisfy himself, to control himself.
Right now, after he satisfied his desire, he felt tranquil. A serenity that he felt back then in the special environment on Lerna Island.
"This... I can feel it... Saya, I'm enlightened..." Souta muttered while looking blankly at the sun.
'What is it?' Saya suddenly asked. She was busy thinking about a way to breakthrough fifty percent of the Archetype.
"About Archetype... I think I can manage it..."
'What?!?'
The events on the battlefield shook the two sides. More than half of the people had perished in the most gruesome ways. Their internal organs were pulled apart, and stuffed into the other people. Even the monsters that inhabited the woods had perished in the same manner.
This piece of news scared the Green Vine Pavilion and Hundred Face Alliance. The two sides temporarily stopped sending their people to the battlefield as they waited for more reinforcement. Since the Green Vine Pavilion's headquarters was inside the city, they quickly send several A-rank experts to the battlefield.
They searched through the entire woods but they didn't find the culprit. At the same time, they didn't forget to push the Hundred Face Alliance.
The culprit, Souta, was leisurely resting at the camps of Mince Hand. He didn't even bother himself for what he did. He acted as if the brutal killings weren't related to him. Fighting on the battlefield, eating a meal, resting, training, and then fighting again. He repeated this cycle until he finished his quota.
Souta walked out of the tent after a few rounds of training. He noticed that the atmosphere had changed. He could see a look of relief on the faces of these people.
He strode and found Heili. He was curious so he asked her what was happening.
"A Solidifying Realm elder had arrived," Heili said.
'S-rank?!' Souta raised his eyebrows. 'The war had reached the state where S-rank needed to move. This is getting interesting but this isn't my problem anymore.'
The S-ranks were getting involved now. It would become an all out battle sooner or later. Souta estimated that it would probably take one or two months before the final battle. The Green Vine Pavilion could just send its forces to attack the members of the Hundred Face Alliance, it would leave their base defenseless. The same could be said for the Hundred Face Alliance. They had to lure out the master of the Green Vine Pavilion. They would be at a disadvantage if they fought the master as their home base which was filled with traps.
As for why would it last one or two months, the answer was supplies. The Hundred Face Alliance surrounded the entire Ardous City, cutting down all the merchants that wanted to enter the city. They only had to wait until the supply runs out and the Green Vine Pavilion would be forced to fight to gather more supply. Even the master would probably move at that time.
The S-rank expert of the alliance was here to strengthen their power. At the same time, set up traps for powerful experts of Green Vine Pavilion.
He turned to Heili and asked, "Senior Sister have you finished your quota?"
"Yeah," Heili answered.
"Then, why don't you return with me? I already finish my quota." Souta suggested. He already satisfied his desire so he wanted to go back to continue his training. He was close to reaching Fourth Stage of [Divine Dark Circulation]. That way, he would be able to challenge a Core Disciple and become one himself.
"I can't." Heili shook her head. "I think of staying here for another week."
"I understand." Souta nodded.
He respected Heili's decision. He was different from her. He had no attachment to Mince Hand so he didn't want to fight for them. He joined because he wanted to gather some information and blend with the people of Spring Land.
As for Heili, she was a disciple of the school for several years. She grew alongside it.
"Why don't you stay here, Junior Brother?" Heili asked.
Souta was about to answer when a voice sounded.
"Let him be, Junior Sister. He just became a disciple of our school so he wouldn't risk his life for our school."
Souta and Heili turned their heads and found that it was the Core Disciple, Neiso. Neiso was one of the two Core Disciples of Mince Hand that was dispatched in this war.
"That's why we need to care..." Heili said.
"It's fine, Senior Sister." Souta stopped Heili as he shook his head.
Suddenly, Souta felt goosebumps all over his body.
"Senior Sister!!"
He quickly reacted as he stretched out his hand and grabbed Heili's head. He covered her body and swiftly created a barrier.
BOOM!!!
A deafening sound erupted instantly as the entire area shook. A shockwave blasted everything into smithereens, spreading out everywhere.
