"That is because of the Demonic Sword Sect's mandate, master.
Since this technique was created by a rogue cultivator and not one amongst their ranks, it is a must for it to be named as such.
Anyone who does otherwise will be publicly tortured for days.
This will force rogue cultivators to join the Demonic Sword Sect's fold and at the same time repress those who are stubborn enough to deny their rule in this part of the world."
Tan Zan replied without any emotion.
'I see. So that is why those skills sounded so cheap in comparison to the one in the system shop.'
'Hmmm... That evil sect is really doing anything they could in order to ensure that their grip would remain tight and ever secure always.'
Clark rubbed his long beard and searched Lu Chen's memory for some vital information he could use.
Alongside the city of Nexus, there were still two other cities nearby that housed the lives of several hundred million mortals. These were the thriving metropolis of Livine and Arcsea.
Clark was sure that there must be more of them but could only drop this point for now because of Lu Chen's educational inadequacy.�
The old man has not even escaped the confines of the city in his lifetime and has only visited a few select locations nearby.
'You were caged inside your little bubble, Lu Chen. I don't know if this is a curse or a blessing instead.'
Clark mused briefly before thinking about the countless more survivors outside the cities.
"Now those people are the real warriors in the flesh!"
Clark could not help but get to this conclusion because living outside the comforts and safety of these three cities were the innumerable towns, farms and villages that scattered to make their own little communities in the wild.
And those bunch were truly the real heroes in this kind of setting.
After all, it was definitely not easy to face the present threat and possible onslaught of these magical beasts anytime and without notice.
These small towns and villages served as a buffer against any beast tide to form towards them big cities in the first place.
"I doubt that the situation inside the cities of Livine and Arcsea fared any better than here in Nexus.
All three would still have no sufficient cultivation resources unlike the continent where Haran is located."
Clark ended with this educated guess and he has a good hunch that he was probably not wrong in his assumption this time around. But it would still not hurt to check.
"Who's the strongest man in the continent right now, Nancy?"
"The strongest man on this Withered Continent is named Yao Li, host. This is a cultivator already at the peak of The Aspirant Realm." Nancy replied.
"Thank you, Nancy." Clark nodded once.
'So I was right. This place could really not birth a person above that of an Aspirant.'
'The name of this continent really justifies what it could offer also. Tsk. Tsk.' Clark shook his head and looked forward to entering the Demonic Sword Sect soon.
"It would be exciting to visit that sect someday but for now... I will have to settle that wish for another time.
I will go there at least when I can already match or exceed the cultivation of the evil boy."
Clark decided and detailed the plan in his mind for now since it was really no use in going there before he could defeat that evil boy single-handedly.
Our bored gamer of course did not want to take any risk whatsoever.
'I will have my revenge soon. You just have to wait there for me, evil boy!'
Clark promised as he could not forget even now how he was scarred for life from the ordeal he'd undergone in the hands of the Demonic Sword Sect Master.
He was forced to watch something he did not want to! That was a crime an inch short of rape if Clark would be brutally frank about it.
"Let's go, Tan Zan. Take me to your headquarters. It's about right that I visit this famous guild of yours for some needed payback." Clark ordered his summon.
Although technically it was Yan Kun's fault that he was targeted by the League of Shadow Assassins in the first place but it would be worth his while also to visit some scourge on this dark guild as abundant interest before he went to complete the main quest.
Yan Kun's head on a pike!
Saving the best for last was always a good philosophy to have.
"It would be my pleasure to guide you, master." Tan Zan nodded and then his form quietly vanished from these hot desert lands.
After a breath, Clark also disappeared to join his good servant on a fresh quest on the road.
* * *
Zhao Qiu was happily cultivating in peace. He was the founder of the League of Shadow Assassins and at his station, it was normal to enjoy the fruits of his labors in full.
Even as he cultivated inside his private chambers, it could be seen that there were not a few young girls who joined him in some of his lustful escapades.
There were more or less 20 beautiful women around him and everyone of these nubile women were naked from head to foot.
It could be seen with just one glance that the mighty Zhao Qiu has indeed reached quite a peak for someone who started from a lowly rogue nameless cultivator.
Money, fame, and women! This old man already had it all! It was just sad that fate would sometimes make fun of a person who was already on the top of the hill.
Alas, Zhao Qiu was still innocent of this truth as he cultivated cheerfully amongst his trophies.
The epic high was so strong in his head while time seemed inconsequential in the moment.
It would pass with every breath unnoticed and ignored yet Zhao Qiu could not care less for any of it because all he was concerned about was to continue on savoring this fake short lived euphoria every time he inhaled the vast spiritual essences that abounded within the four corners of his room.
"Ahhh..." The Founder of the League of Shadow Assassins could not help but moan as he felt the rush of power inside his lungs and unto the rest of his body.
His veins throbbed and hurt subtly with how forceful he was at times with taking in this magical drug of the world.
But still, this old goat has persevered throughout the pain in the hope of reaching yet another milestone in his cultivation realm.
"BANG!" from out of the blue, the world shook and the impregnable fortress he was in was even affected by the shockwaves that broke the stillness of the night.
"WHO DARES TO ATTACK MY DOMAINS?!" Zhao Qiu roared and with his sharp senses, it did not even take three breaths to pinpoint where the attack had come from.
"The audacity of these fools!" Zhao Qiu cursed and called for his able assistant to handle these pests for him.
"Fan Ru!"
* * *
"Hmmm... This will be a tricky night assault." Clark whispered. It was still early. About 1:30 am and the moonless night just made the terrain even harder to navigate.
At least this was true for his partner in crime tonight, Tan Zan, who was only at 3rd Stage of Mortal Shedding Realm.
At first, Clark expected that the abode of the League of Shadow Assassins was situated in some secret hill or a steep canyon perhaps, even in an underground city beyond the eyes of any mortal eyes.
But alas, it was surprising to see them occupying a small metropolis that housed more than 3 million people within its walled domains.
These scoundrels became the rulers of these unfortunate people and were not even a bit shy to claim it as such out in the open.
"It's good to know that this magical tool indeed works perfectly as it was intended." Clark smiled while he observed the aftermath of his initial strike.
He hit the front gates of the small city, a town really in comparison to Nexus, using the enchanted sword he got from the recently departed Young Master Zhang Mu.
The fireball this time was not anymore like the lazy pups from hours before but it was akin to a human sized comet that paved ashes and destruction on its wake.
The pristine gates turned into smoking ruins in an instant. A gaping maw of wanton wreckage has now occupied a large portion of its closed entrance.
"BOOM!" the last hinges of a thoroughly burned gate toppled towards a burning streak of devastation.
The dark eve blazed eerily hot as it fashioned a big unnatural source of light from out of nowhere. In any other case, this would have been a perfect intro for our bored gamer.
Still, it was surprising to find a sticky problem appear before him right now.
"Shit! Three million effing people! Picking whom to kill or not would give me a bad headache after i combed through all of these NPCs!" Clark exclaimed loudly into the night.
Since he did not want to kill like a crazy savage, his hands were tied and it was extremely hard to tell which was foe or not.
And for this reason of not wanting to stain his soul with the blood of the innocents, Clark could only request the system to apply some needed tweak in the end.
"I want you to tag the good people as green and the bad with blood red colors on top of their heads, Nancy." Clark ordered.
Usually he would have to look at the system interface to check if the person appeared red or not, meaning if they were evil or saints, before he would have to steal the lives of his soon to be victims.
He did that with the first three people he killed from the Yan Family and also at Prince Zhang Mu and his faithful bodyguards before he executed the lot to deliver justice in heaven's stead.
Of course, Yan Kang and his men were also added to the list but to do this every single time became even so tiring for our good gamer.
This was why doing it a different way would be a significant improvement as it would totally ease Clark's worries if and when he would unleash massacre unto the people at large.
"Affirmative, host.
System changes initialing...
Update successful..." Nancy announced after 10 beats.
"Thank you, Nancy! It's much more easier now than before."
Clark approved and he could see the soldiers in the walls of the city shining in different hues of green and red, signifying their eventual fate in the hands of our merciless gamer.
