The sky above and the land below suddenly lit up in a brilliant blue hue as an incredible lightning beam exploded out of John's fingers. The lightning beam surged with incredible power, and was many times stronger than a normal Lightning Ruin.
The Bloodfiend Elder's face turned incredibly grave as the attack reached him in an instant. The power of this attack was not something he could casually parry, and would need to focus a good amount of his strength to properly block it.
However, such an opening was all Elder Rein needed. The Bloodfiend Elder panicked, unsure of what to do, but the lightning beam reached him in an instant, forcing him to face it head one.
The Bloodfiend Elder grit his teeth as he slashed towards the lightning beam, sending an incredibly strong sword image towards it.
Boom!
Sword image and lightning beam collided, causing a terrifying explosion of Qi to radiate outwards. The Bloodfiend Elder didn't waste any time at all, and instantly turned to unleash a sword image to Elder Rein.
However.
"Too late!"
The words sounded in the Bloodfiend Elder's ears as an absolutely shocking attack pierced towards him. It had already reached the Elder, as Elder Rein had timed the attack perfectly with Johns.
"Nooo!"
The Bloodfiend Elder cried out as he did his best to mount a defense, but it was too late. The spear image from Elder Rein's weapon had already reached the Elder, and sliced into his head like it was butter.
The Bloodfiend Elder's head exploded, as a shower of blood rained down on the ground below. The two Bloodfiend Elders were now dead.
Both John and Elder Rein breathed out a heavy sigh of relief, as their battles had been incredibly intense.
"Don't relax just yet. Let us clean up the other battle's first," Elder Rein instructed.
The other disciples were still fighting with their lives on the line. John nodded his head, and sped off towards the distant battles at his top speed. Their arrival spelled doom for the Bloodfiend disciples, who were dealt with shortly.
A short while later, silence descended over the previously chaotic lands. The Heavenly Lightning Sect disciples collected the corpses of the Bloodfiend cultivators, and piled them together as they gathered around them.
John's arrival was greeted by the gazes of all the disciples, who now saw him in a different light. Before, they had considered him a fellow sect member, but not a fellow War Hall brother. Now, after watching him put his life on the line fighting an Elder three minor realms above his own cultivation, they were proud to call him one of their brothers.
However, within this respect was also a trace of sadness.
"Where is Steven?" Elder Rein asked as he approached the group.
The heads of all the disciples dropped slightly, giving Elder Rein his answer. Elder Rein sighed a deep sigh, while John also had a trace of sadness wash over him. Although his interactions with Steven had been brief, he had a very good impression of him.
However, death was common for the War Hall, who put their lives on the line in every battle.
"He will be honored with the greatest respect once we return to the sect," Elder Rein said to the group.
As a frontline member of the Sect, he would be buried amongst his fallen War Hall brethren, and given a grand burial ceremony.
However, this battle had been overwhelmingly won by the Heavenly Lightning Sect. They had killed over a dozen promising disciples, and even two Elders. Such an overwhelming victory would not only bring great honor to the Heavenly Lightning Sect, but also be rewarded handsomely.
John thought of asking for the corpses, or at least the blood essence, but decided against it. The corpses would be displayed to the War Hall as proof of the kills, and so John could not take them for himself.
As for asking for blood essence, that too was impossible. Only taboo cultivators used human blood essence, and so John could not expose such a thing.
After finishing everything, several of the disciples went to where the captives were and instructed them to flee deeper into the Heavenly Lightning Sect territory. The Bloodfiend Sect was becoming more and more overbearing, and so lands that were once safe were no loner.
After this, the group regrouped once more, and Elder Rein waved his hand. The flying ship appeared before them, ready to take them to the next target.
"Everyone, hop on," Elder Rein instructed.
"Elder Rein," John called out.
Elder Rein turned to John, and smiled at him slightly .He now saw John in a new light, and his respect for him had grown. Not only was such a prodigious talent a member of his own sect, but that talent was willing to put his life on the line for the sect. Such an attitude was something Elder Rein agreed with very much.
"What is it, John?" Elder Rein asked.
"I'm afraid this is where we part for now," John replied back.
"Ah, I forgot about that," Elder Rein replied.
He had been briefed by the Vice-Sect Leader that at one point in their mission, John would have to leave to undertake another secret mission. The details were kept secret, but Elder Rein was instructed to let John leave at that moment.
Elder Rein looked at John with serious eyes, and patted him on the shoulder in an approving manner.
"You did extremely well today. I don't know what mission you have now, but I wish you the best of luck," Elder Rein said to him in a sincere tone.
John nodded his head and smiled back, before he turned to leave the area.
"Where is he going?" one of the disciples asked as they watched John leave.
Elder Rein remained silent for a moment before he turned around and entered the ship as well.
"We set off to the next target," Elder Rein instructed, not revealing where John was going.
John watched the ship climb into the sky and fly off into the distance, before his gaze turned in a different direction. He had other goals to achieve, and the first step to achieving those goals was to have a conversation with a certain someone waiting for him.
John sped off into the distance, and arrived in a thickly forested area. A familiar figure still laid on the ground, their despair filled eyes staring at the sky above.
The boy heard the noise of John's arrival, and turned his head to look at him. John's smile towards him was as if he was staring at a demon.
"Now then, you and I are going to have a little talk."
