Ryu didn't attempt to run as many expected. He stood in silence, waiting for the three auras to converge onto his location as though he was already resigned to his fate.
The Enforcers landed heavily, each wearing a special badge on their lapels. With fierce momentum, they began to scan the situation, finding the guard heaving out blood just as quickly as they did so.
"Senior Brother Zaren! This bastard attacked is trying to kill fellow disciple Farin. If it wasn't for your timely arrival, we would have all lost a brother today!"
The guards that had been lagging far behind Ryu, scared to be his next target, suddenly gained a great deal of courage. In what felt like the blink of an eye, they had already caught up and begun to 'explain' what had happened. However, anyone who heard this explanation would pale.
The punishment for a battle amongst Sect members without both parties signing a duel request was harsh enough. The punishment for one of said members attacking a guard was even worse. But, attacking with the intent to kill would be among the worst sins a disciple could commit.
It was clear an obvious that these guards didn't just want revenge, they wanted to ruin Ryu's life. No, to say ruin would be far too lenient. They wanted him dead, nothing less would satiate them.
As expected, upon hearing such words, the Enforcers turned their blazing auras onto Ryu, their haughty expressions appearing all the more lofty.
"Are you aware of your crimes?" The Senior Brother Zaren the guard had mentioned stood at the forefront, his strength being enough for most to take several steps back.
With just a glance, Ryu was able to tell that this young man was in the Higher Immortal Ring Realm, a cultivation level that was most definitely well respected in the Moonlight Blossom Sect.
With his level of strength, Zaren didn't believe that he needed to bring forth his corpse puppets. To deal with a Connecting Heaven Realm brat, he would hardly need to lift a finger.
A curious, almost mischievous light lit Ryu's silver gaze. With a thought, a grey skinned beauty appeared before him. Her body was streamlined and brimming with power, her curves filled with a hidden explosive strength. If it wasn't for the fact she radiated a dense death and her eyes were practically vacant, one would never guess that this was a corpse puppet.
Of course, there were some less than…. savory characters among those who called themselves Necromancers. These were people who didn't segregate their sexual preferences among the living and the dead. And, it was these very same people that took a sudden keen interest in Ryu's Esme.
The process of refining a corpse puppet was long and arduous. Let alone finding a beauty to refine, even if you managed to, it was almost impossible to have her retain the same human functions.
Zaren just so happened to be one of these scourges of society. The moment he laid eyes on Esme, his first reaction wasn't to be in contempt, wondering why this fool would dare bring out a mere Peak Connecting Heaven Realm puppet to face him, rather, his senses were immediately trained on Ryu's puppet.
'She's perfect…'
Zaren's breathing hitched slightly.
He didn't believe for a moment that Ryu had refined this puppet personally. Zaren instantly jumped to the conclusion that Ryu must have found some outstanding treasure.
In the world of Necromancy, such refinement treasures were as rare as phoenix feathers. They often came in the form of coffins and usually only passed down as heirlooms of major Sects. In truth, such things were kept so secret that despite his standing within the Sect, Zaren wasn't sure if the Moonlight Blossom Sect even had one.
Others might not be able to pick out the uniqueness of Esme, but Zaren, a Class A pervert of extraordinary proportions, was able to at a single glance.
'Her skin… Is so supple…'
This was the main point Zaren picked out and the only point of emphasis he needed to focus on.
Usually, during the refinement process, a puppet's organic chemistry would be altered. Sometimes this would be done on purpose, but much of the time, it was just an inevitable consequence. It was simply too difficult to replicate the toughness needed without also giving way to some matters.
Whenever a human cultivated their body, they were able to have the best of both worlds, maintaining the suppleness and youth of their skin while also gaining sturdiness. Ryu was a prime example of exactly this.
But, this was difficult to replicate in puppets because they lacked the blessings of the heavens or, more simply, the life character that beasts and humans had. So, their end result was becoming far more like machines rather than the humans they had once been in life.
But this Esme… This Esme was different. She had such a powerful body but Zaren was absolutely certain that everything that should be soft was exactly that…
For a man with such… urges as him, this was a treasure he couldn't turn his nose up at.
He needed it before anyone else could notice.
"Esme." Ryu said off handedly.
As though she was truly alive, Esme turned toward Ryu on command, swiftly catching two streaks of blue that came her way.
Many began to give Ryu weird looks when they saw this scene. After looking toward Esme's beauty, their disgust and disdain became evident on their faces.
Who spoke to their corpse puppets in such a way? They had no way of knowing that Esme had a small consciousness of her own due to being refined via Hecate's method. So, everyone thought that Ryu was only pretending to have her react in such a way.
Knowing this, it was no wonder they slotted him in as a pervert.
But, while everyone else thought of Ryu in a lens of disgust, Zaren's eyes blazed with jealousy. He already saw Esme as his own!
Esme glanced toward the twin daggers Ryu had given to her. Their crystalline blue edges glistened in the night, giving their jagged blades a gorgeous, dreamy appearance. They seemed to suit Esme perfectly.
Ryu rarely used these daggers, but he knew that they held a strength he had yet to tap into. The fact that they could attack with Spiritual Qi directly was most definitely just the tip of the ice berg.
But, even if he was wrong… So what? This ability alone was already devastating enough. And, in the hand of a corpse puppet refined from a Mental Masters body, it was akin to giving wings to a tiger… Especially if it was used against other corpse puppets.
Esme seemed to project the image of Ryu wielding two Great Swordstaffs, her twin daggers twirling in her long, slender fingers with an elegance that seemed not suited for a puppet.
'This fluid control…'
The members of the Moonlight Blossom Sect froze, their gazes locking onto Ryu.
There was one realm that puppet masters and Necromancers alike held in the highest regard. It was a realm many spent entire lifetimes trying to grasp, only to fail in the end. But, never did they think that they would see it in this place…
The Oneness Realm.
Esme shot forward, her twin daggers gleaming beneath the moons.