Chapter 1069: Dark Squall Pursuit Squad
Izroth activated his Energy Vision Sense in intervals to conserve his essence; however, his timing was precise and left virtually no gap in his detection grid. This, paired with his natural sense of perception and the fact that he was wearing the Moonlit Concealing Mantle, meant that few individuals in the Mortal Realm could get this close to him undetected.
Izroth glanced over at the silver object that had penetrated into the ground where he once stood.
It was a cylinder-shaped metallic rod approximately one meter in length. It had a smooth surface and released a wave of cold energy that could be felt from several meters away. Bang! Bang! Bang!
Not long after the first metallic rod pierced the earth, three more quickly followed from different directions. But this time, none of them was remotely close to hitting Izroth and simply drilled into the ground.
'Oh? This is...'
Izroth narrowed his eyes as he swept his gaze throughout his surroundings.
The metallic rods were spaced perfectly apart at an exact distance of twenty meters and formed an invisible square. Each rod released the same cold energy as the first.
Rmmmmble!
The next moment, the four metallic rods drilled into the ground. Immediately after doing so, a large cube-shaped barrier materialized around Izroth with him at its center.
"Brat, there's nowhere to run!" A thunderous roar erupted, seemingly coming from all directions.
Zeeeut!
In the blink of an eye, a figure rapidly descended from above and crashed into the ground before standing upright.
The man who appeared before Izroth in such a domineering manner was a middle-aged man with long yellow hair, a full beard, and striking violet eyes that contained an aura of fierceness. He wore a set of extravagant, loosely fitting robes that gave away his identity as someone of high status.
"This aura feels familiar.'
Izroth used his Energy Vision Sense to observe the man who emerged before him and felt that he had come across them before. However, Izroth was not the forgetful type, especially when it came to those he once crossed paths with.
'I see. This aura-it's similar to that guy.'
When Izroth infiltrated the kingdom of Tempest with the 9th Division and was escorting its sixth princess, Ranazera, out of its borders, he encountered a small hindrance in the form of a young man named Aurelius Windstorm.
While his strength was not that impressive in Izroth's eyes, Aurelius belonged to one of the most influential families of Tempest, the Windstorm family.
The Windstorm family prided themselves on their Windstorm Sword Styles being ranked within the top 25 sword techniques in the world. But, in front of Izroth, such sword techniques were no different than child's play.
At the moment, the man just a few meters away from Izroth was giving off an aura similar to the one he felt when he encountered Aurelius.
In truth, Izroth may have overwhelmed Aurelius, but the Windstorm young master's defeat was by his own hands. After losing control of his own power, he basically defeated himself.
That being said, an influential family like the Windstorms was not the type to sit back and suffer a loss and humiliation. This was even more so when the person affected was the current head's grandson.
"So, you're the stinking brat that dared to lay a hand on a member of the Windstorm family!" The man said as he unhurriedly walked toward Izroth.
After taking a few steps, Izroth was finally able to see the man's system information.
NPC Name: Dark Squall Leader, Azio Windstorm(???)
NPC Level: ???
"They're related after all. But, how were they able to track me so precisely?'
Izroth had just returned from The Void not that long ago. Furthermore, he hid his presence extraordinarily well and carefully covered his tracks. To pinpoint his exact location and even ambush him-was it the work of a skill or magic item?
'I would rather not waste time here, but there is no point in running away. As long as I can't uncover how they tracked me, they will probably follow me into the depths of Amaharpe if necessary.' [System Alert: Warning! The surrounding space has been sealed off by a mysterious force!
[System Alert: You are unable to use spatial-related skills or items.[]
[System Alert: All stats have been reduced by 50%.
[System Alert: The effect of has been activated.
[System Alert: Restrictions on spatial-related skills or items have been lifted.
[System Alert: The effect of Might has been activated.
[System Alert: Stat reduction has been nullified.[
'Is this a magic formation? Judging by its effects, it must be at least an advanced-level magic formation. How amusing.'
Thanks to his Might stat and his The Unbounded One passive, the effects of the magic formation were completely negated.
But, looking at Azio's arrogant and unsurprised expression, Izroth could tell that he had no idea what had happened.
"Windstorm family? I do remember a barking dog that stepped onto my path a while back that had the same family name. Can it be that you're its handler?" Izroth said in a carefree
manner.
"Fearless child!" Azio roared as his killing intent flooded forth and washed over Izroth.
He then declared, "I will rip that foul tongue of yours from your mouth and show you what happens to those who insult the Windstorm family! Dark Squall Squad-prepare to avenge the young master!"
Woosh! Woosh! Woosh!
Out of nowhere, twenty cloaked individuals appeared and formed an encirclement around Izroth. Each of the cloaked individuals wore oni masks and wielded a bladed weapon. Also, every last one of them gave off an intense battle-hardened aura that revealed their experience
in combat.
NPC Name: Dark Squall Member, Storm One(Rare Elite)
NPC Level: ???
NPC Name: Dark Squall Member, Storm Two(Rare Elite)
NPC Level: ???
NPC Name: Dark Squall Member, Storm Three(Rare Elite)
NPC Level: ???
...
"I'm in somewhat of a hurry, but I have been meaning to test something. Although it is a bit
of a waste, I suppose you all will have to suffice," Izroth said calmly as the aura around him
changed.
"Hmph, mere words of a madman at the doors of death! Dark Squall Squad, eliminate the enemy of the Windstorm family before you!" Azio ordered.
The instant Azio gave the order, the twenty members of Dark Squall made their move. Four of
the members left the encirclement and dashed toward Izroth at high speed. Another four members began to chant simultaneously as the mana in the atmosphere around them grew
restless.
The remaining members of Dark Squall repositioned themselves to cover the exposed points of the encirclement left by the four members who moved to attack Izroth. "Although this brat is arrogant, he was able to defeat a genius like the young master. Not only that, but he used swordsmanship to do so, making the defeat even more humiliating for our Windstorm family. It's no wonder the family head deployed the Dark Squall Squad. Still, it's a little overkill to handle one child-even if he did defeat the young master." Azio thought to
himself.
The Dark Squall was a special unit of the Windstorm family that only answered to the family head. Its members consisted of those of the Windstorm family as well as those with potential who were recruited from some minor families of Tempest that served under them.
All those who joined Dark Squall, excluding those of direct Windstorm bloodline, had to forsake their name and were simply referred to as Storm, followed by their assigned number. They were soldiers who would not hesitate to give their lives for the Windstorm family and do whatever it took to carry out their mission. However, this was not surprising considering the amount of resources invested into a single one of its members.
As the first wave of attackers from Dark Squall closed in on his position, Izroth unsheathed his Sword of the Storm as a powerful gust of wind exploded around him. Simultaneously, a mysterious energy seemed to flow through Izroth, seemingly causing his existence to fade in and out of focus. It was to the point that if one took their attention off of him for a split second, they would lose track of his entire existence.
'It's my first time using it outside of The Void. Shall we see what it's capable of in a real battle?' [System Alert: You have activated the skill !
[System Alert: Your HP, HP Regen, Attack, Defense, Agility, and Physical Resistance have
greatly increased!
[System Alert: Damage from your attacks can now be converted into void damage!
[System Alert: The passive effect > has been activated!
Swoosh!
The first attacker of Dark Squall arrived before Izroth and thrust forward with his dagger,
aiming right for Izroth's heart with flawless precision.
As the dagger shot forth, Izroth casually swung his Sword of the Storm downward. He did not use any special sword skill or item-his attack was simply a basic slash.