Chapter 33: Peak Master vs Saint (1)
Two weeks after enslaving the seven Semi Saints, Rasoul and his companions began crafting plans to discreetly and swiftly take down the Dark Minions. He knew they would come after him and his friends sooner or later. After Marcus' performance, he was aware that they would gather information on them, and soon they'd assemble a formidable force to come after them.
What he didn't know was that the Assassin leader would be coming after them this time. The benefits they stood to receive from the Prince after successfully killing the Princess were too significant to them. This was evident as their Saint leader would be taking on the task of killing two Master realm and a Grandmaster Realm cultivators.
Rasoul planned to eliminate the Dark Minion assassin group first before going after the Great Families. They had crossed him when he wasn't even aware, so he vowed to take everything from them in return. With Jude and the seven semi-Saints now working for him, Rasoul had assembled a formidable team with reputable backgrounds to work discretely as he made moves to take over the infamous Dark Minions Assassin group.
Two weeks earlier, after subduing the assassins sent after him, Rasoul instructed them to go and report their "job well done" to their employers. He also assured the Princess and Vera that no more assassins would be troubling them, allowing them to relax finally. Additionally, he commissioned the system to create a seal around his space ring and covertly conceal it in one of the rooms in the mansion where they were residing.
Rasoul and his companions entered the Ringworld and plotted their next moves. The scenery inside the ring was captivating, with mana density surpassing the outside world's. Rasoul explored numerous locations in the ring, discovering various valuable items, including rare herbs, minerals, ores, spirit stones, and more.
Over those two weeks, he aimed to advance to the Grandmaster rank, but the system persistently reminded him to maximize his stats before progressing to the next realm. He shifted his focus to Runesmithing to use his time productively, striving to enhance his knowledge in that field.
One week later, he entered the Beginner stage, and just two days ago, he stepped into the advanced stage. Rasoul acquired proficiency in a few advanced defense and offense arrays. However, he discovered that the inscribing process was challenging and time-consuming, making it difficult to use in battle. In an attempt to enhance the speed of inscribing, Rasoul found that his soul strength was insufficient, requiring a more muscular soul strength to manage the process effectively.
Currently, Rasoul's soul strength is at the Master stage, and he recognizes the necessity of reaching the Grandmaster stage to achieve the faster inscribing speed he desires. While he has not delved into alchemy yet, finding it particularly easy, he sees the added advantage of the Mind Cauldron method. With this technique, he merely needs to know the formula of the pill, and without any fire control, he can concoct pills with 100% purity.
*****
Far away in an underground establishment, leaders of the Dark Minions gathered again to discuss their next plans as the eagerly awaited expedition to the Deity's tomb was just two weeks away. Their only ticket to that tomb lay in the killing of Princess Vina. In their meeting, they strategized on how to proceed from now on, with their leader, a Saint Realm cultivator, personally taking charge of the mission to ensure there were no surprises.
"Have you found anything about those pests calling themselves Supreme Nexus?" asked the leader of the Dark Minions.
"Yes, I did find something. It appears there are only 3 members in the Supreme Nexus group. If there are others, then they certainly are not in the Sundance Kingdom. Their leader is a Master Stage cultivator with a lightning-based affinity. The lady among them is a Grandmaster Stage Cultivator, also with a lightning base affinity, and the last member is also Master Stage cultivator with a fire-based affinity. They are currently staying with the Princess at Orange Field City."
"Their leader appeared to be a necromancer but has no significant strong undead summons.
"Good, that makes things easy. Prepare a notice to the Prince and tell him to come to our base tonight. Inform him that we want to deal with the exchange in person, so he should come by himself. Ensure he understands that the Princess and Supreme Nexus will die by evening."
"Okay, Leader. Sandro Replied
*****
In a room in Orange Field City, three individuals could be seen seated together, enjoying some fruit salad they had brought back from the ring. As they waited for their visitor, Rasoul upgraded the Radar ability to tier 3, utilizing 50 million Fire points. Now, he could see 5 kilometers around him, and if focused in a direction, it could cover 10 kilometres.
Despite the impending arrival of a saint, they showed no signs of fear. Plans were meticulously laid out, and complex mechanisms were set in motion to surprise the Dark Minion administration. Today, Maroon 13 planned to take down the Dark Minion leader and become the new management.
"It's show time, guys. You all know what to do. Under no circumstance should any of you deviate from your task to help me. I will take care of the Saint; play your parts well. By evening, we'll have thousands of assassins as our small army to command," Rasoul spoke with a determined look.
"What about the Princess and Vira? Should we inform them about what is about to happen?" Lara asked.
"No. We can tell them later when we are done enslaving the other leaders," replied Rasoul. He knew it wouldn't be an easy fight.
"Time to go. Follow the plan, and I will meet you when I finish the Saint off. Don't worry; I will go into the fight fully prepared this time," Rasoul assured his companions.
*****
About 10 kilometres away from the city, a slimy yet imposing man could be seen heading toward Orange Field City. His attitude suggested he wasn't taking this mission seriously. From his point of view, he'd be facing three individuals with realms much lower than his own. Going solo insulted his pride as a Saint Stage cultivator.
Little did he know, 5 kilometres ahead, a burial ground had been deliberately set up for him, sooner than he could ever anticipate. And only one Master Stage individual would make it happen.
Rasoul wasn't naive; he understood that confronting those three higher realms wouldn't be a walk in the park. Having faced the Great Beast before, he learned from his mistakes. Two weeks ago, when he clashed with the 7 Assassins, Rasoul strategically prepared the battlefield, recognizing the importance of setting the stage for a perfect showdown.
About a week ago, he began creating the ideal battlefield for his upcoming confrontation with the Saint. He wanted to tread carefully.
This wouldn't be a fair fight. Rasoul had invested 200 million fire points earned from the monster tide to ready this battleground. The Saint was walking into a place where even Sages would tread carefully, all thanks to the Rasoul system.
Sometime later, the individual entered the vicinity of the battle. But just as he was about to take another step, a voice reverberated in the surroundings.
"You're late," a young man dressed in black, sporting a unique hair colour, remarked.
Shock and curiosity registered on the Saint's face. He was caught off guard, not even noticing the boy's presence.
"I can sense what's going on in your mind. 'How did I miss his presence? Has he been waiting for me, and is this all a setup?'" Rasoul said, a touch of mockery in his voice.
"Truth be told, not even a great sage can sense me if I choose to remain unnoticed.
"Yes, I've been waiting for you for almost an hour. This is undoubtedly a setup; even a dummy would see through it.
"Geez, I now understand how Sabrat felt when he dealt with those you call assassins. You know nothing about assassins. Look at you standing there clueless, not even realizing you've stepped on a landmine. It's a disgrace. Maybe after I finish you off, I should wipe out everyone in your organization and be done with it," Rasoul said, disdain evident. He started experiencing what Sabrat felt when facing the 35 Assassins sent after the Princess.
"I anticipated a challenge, yet all I encountered was a Saint pretending to be an assassin"
The Saint didn't know what to say; he had stepped into something dangerous, and a slight mistake would surely send him to the afterlife. He wanted to rush to the guy and separate his head from his body, but circumstances in the form of a landmine were preventing him from doing so. He first had to deal with that before anything else.
"Don't think too much into it. The bomb is an ice bomb; there is nothing you can do to stop it, so let it go Boom, and be done with it. We still have a death battle to duel, so stop wasting time..." Rasoul added.
At that same time, about 3 kilometres away from the battlefield, Lara and Sabrat observed the happenings on the battlefield.
"He has everything under control. Let's not waste any more time. Let's start Operation Hobbit..." Lara spoke
"Should we give it a bit more time to see if he could handle Him?" Sabrat inquired.
"No, Sabrat. He explicitly instructed us to stick to the plan until the end. Our job now is to follow that plan and entrust this saint to him," Lara declared as she began moving toward Sundance Capital. Despite her reservations about leaving, she had to put her faith in Rasoul to deal with the Saint.
Reluctantly, Sabrat eventually started moving. Shortly after, they departed from the scene and made their way toward the capital.
Back to the battlefield, the Saint tried acting calm, but suddenly, a loud boom threw him 600 meters away. A moment later, he stood up, half his body covered in frost. The awaited battle had begun, and sides had been chosen. The one to come out alive at the end would win everything.
"Infernal Shadowfire: First Move - Darkfire Projectiles!" Rasoul shouted, and hundreds of projectiles made from Fire and Shadow were immediately unleashed toward the recovering Saint.
Rasoul initiated the battle by unleashing one of the moves he had created a few days ago using the empty scrolls. The battlefield was now ablaze with the deadly combination of Infernal Shadowfire.
Gifts
-- Gift
received Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone