"But if we can clean up all the b.a.s.t.a.r.ds here and save the world, then you can go home and watch whatever anime you want. Deal?"

"Yeah, whatever." Shun Yin shook his head, and continued forward. He glanced at Michael. "Where exactly are they holding the ritual? We're already in the main hall, and I don't see anything…"

"Underground," Michael grunted. "And don't lower your guard. Those aren't the only a.s.sa.s.sins they have…"

He had barely finished speaking when figures darted out of the shadows, effortlessly evading the fireb.a.l.l.s and lightning before slas.h.i.+ng at Michael and Glen.

The enemies' strategy was clear. They knew the one weakness of summoning magic once it had been cast. Take out the summoner and the Soul Beast would disappear along with its master's death. As such, the most effective way of dealing with the overwhelmingly powerful Vermillion Phoenix and deadly White Tiger was to a.s.sa.s.sinate the mages who had summoned them in the first place.

And a.s.sa.s.sination was precisely the sort of task they specialized in.

"!!!"

Clang!

That was where Shun Yin came in. Even though both Michael and Glen were perfectly capable of protecting themselves, they left their backs to Shun Yin. Drawing his sword, the dark-haired fire mage parried a few dark blades from the charging Umbra a.s.sa.s.sins and repelled them with a flaming swing. An explosion engulfed them temporarily, forcing them back.

"Kuh!"

Even though they had borne the full brunt of Shun Yin's fire spell, the Umbra a.s.sa.s.sins were little more than singed. Twirling their short swords and lethal blades, they came in for another attack, but Shun Yin stubbornly stood in their way.

However, he was just one person. Against a dozen a.s.sa.s.sins, he could only hold off a handful at a time. A couple of them got past him and lunged at Michael, determined to finish him off before the Vermillion Phoenix eradicated every last one of them.

Unfortunately, they found themselves repulsed effortlessly. Michael had drawn his sword and deflected their attacks before kicking one of them. Spinning around, he blocked a blade before unleas.h.i.+ng a flaming spell at pointblank range. The third Umbra a.s.sa.s.sin managed to fire off a series of shadowy spikes, which grazed Michael and left a cut on his face and arm. Fortunately, Michael had moved to avoid getting struck in his vitals.

Spinning around, he swung his sword forcefully to knock the last a.s.sa.s.sin back, but his opponent gracefully flipped backward and out of his range. The two of them then traded a shadow ball and fireball, the two magical projectiles colliding and exploding in crimson and black flames.

"Tch!"

Clicking his tongue, Michael had his Vermillion Phoenix bombard the area. He sent a glance at Shun Yin and Glen, the both of them still engaged in a furious melee with the other a.s.sa.s.sins. They caught his look and immediately retreated, with White Tiger pouncing in to swipe at them with its lightning claws. One of them went down in a spray of blood, his body unable to withstand the lethal strike, but the rest managed to withdraw to safety.

Exactly where Michael planned for them to retreat to.

His Vermillion Phoenix screeched as it launched another fiery hail of meteors upon the Umbra a.s.sa.s.sins. They glanced up, and then scattered, melting into the shadows. Even so, there was at least two or three of them unable to escape in time. Not that it mattered in the grand scheme of things, but every a.s.sa.s.sin lost was another blow to their chances of victory.

Fortunately for them, they didn't have to dodge.

"!!!!"

Tremendous tendrils of shadows swept out and flicked the flaming meteors away, sending them cras.h.i.+ng into the walls and ceilings and demolis.h.i.+ng the already ravaged temple.

"You…!"

Shun Yin recognized the solitary figure who was stepping out of the shadows, accompanied with something…so horrifying and eldritch that he was almost driven mad from the sheer sight of it. Waving tentacles and a gelatinous, s.h.i.+fting organic body with countless blinking demonic red eyes. A gigantic s.h.a.ggrowth, or at least something that resembled a s.h.a.ggrowth, but had many more eyes and tentacles. With a gargled roar, it struck out, its many tentacles whipping out to ensnare the hovering Vermillion Phoenix above.

The fiery Soul Beast responded by incinerating the tentacles with its fire spells, bathing the entire area in flames. Stirring within the inferno, the immense s.h.a.ggrowth continued to launch shadow spells, hurling dark projectiles at the soaring phoenix. Vermillion Phoenix then swooped and dove, weaving through the storm of shadowy spikes before launching a colossal fireball into the misshapen ma.s.s of the writhing creature.

"What the f.u.c.k is that?!" Glen cried out, his eyes bulging from witnessing the sheer horror of the thing.

"Hey, language." Ying Bu Si made a tutting sound and wagged his finger at him. "And that baby is my Soul Beast. You didn't think you were the only summoners around here, did you? We are pretty rare among a.s.sa.s.sins because the summoning spells take too much time to cast, but there are among us a few who went and learned it anyway."

"Your Soul Beast." Shun Yin was gaping at him in disbelief. "That monster?"

"I would appreciate it if you don't call my little pal a monster. You'll hurt his feelings, you know." Ying Bu Si feigned a pained look. Then he raised a hand and blocked a sword strike from Michael, a ma.s.s of shadows wrapping around his arm to protect it from the latter's flaming blade. "Hey, don't you know it's rude to interrupt a person when he's talking?"

"Are you really an a.s.sa.s.sin?" Shun Yin felt as if he was getting a headache. "You talk too much and are too showy. Most of your brethren just do the job quickly and quietly, with us almost not realizing we're under attack until it's too late."

Just like the Umbra a.s.sa.s.sin capable of using Shadow Ball. While Michael was distracted by Ying Bu Si, the other Umbra a.s.sa.s.sin launched a sneak attack from behind, his shadowy dagger stealthily snaking toward his back.

"!!!"

Michael spun around on instinct and deflected the dagger before ducking under the short sword that the Umbra a.s.sa.s.sin swung at his unprotected neck. He clenched his free hand into a fist and ignited a fire blast that combusted against his opponent, only for the Umbra a.s.sa.s.sin to counter the spell with another Shadow Ball.

The two of them split apart from the explosion. While Michael's attention was occupied by the other Umbra a.s.sa.s.sin, Ying Bu Si sprang his trap. His hands in his pockets, the a.s.sa.s.sin in a business suit calmly unleashed several shadowy appendages from behind him, the limbs reaching out to grab Michael.

"Mike! Watch out!"

Glen shouted a warning, but neither he nor Shun Yin were in any position to a.s.sist. The two high school students were currently besieged by the remaining a.s.sa.s.sins. White Tiger roared and swiped at a couple of Umbra a.s.sa.s.sins, who stayed out of reach of its claws, but when it turned to lunge at the Umbra a.s.sa.s.sin trying to stab Shun Yin in the back, its two intended victims retaliated with a double shadow ball that struck its flanks and sent it spinning.

The a.s.sa.s.sin who was a.s.saulting Shun Yin also threw out a hand and summoned his own Soul Beast. A ghostly demon with two pointed ears, entirely dark purple in color, and had red eyes and a wide mouth that was perpetually twisted into a sinister grin. Spikes lined the back of the humanoid Soul Beast, and a stubby tail complemented short hands and legs.

"What the…?!"

Glen gaped at the newly summoned Soul Beast, but the Ghost-type demon sprang at his White Tiger and punched it with a Shadow Punch, flooring it. Snarling, White Tiger leaped back to its feet and sent lightning arcing crazily across the ground, only for the Ghost-type demon to lazily evade the web of lethal electricity.

Having finished his summoned spell, the Umbra a.s.sa.s.sin spun around and kicked Shun Yin, who was busily weaving through the grappling shadowy appendages that Ying Bu Si had conjured. Having used his fiery sword to slash at one of the limbs that were so close to entrapping him, Shun Yin was unable to block the kick to his midriff and was sent tumbling into the nefarious embrace of the shadowy appendages, who closed around him with a crus.h.i.+ng grip.

Flames exploded around him, but the shadowy appendages merely extinguished them before turning into somewhat of a writhing sphere that enclosed him. However, before they could pulverize the nearly helpless Michael, someone jumped forward and smashed the shadowy appendages apart with a single punch.

"?!"

Ying Bu Si twisted around to face the new threat, his mouth already opening to yell a command to his s.h.a.ggrowth thing. However, even as its numerous tentacles lashed out at the newcomer, a blizzard of vividly colored petals flitted out and sliced them into bits, causing the creature to wail and recoil from the pain.

"You are…!"

"My, what a monster you have there." Lionel Stuart stepped forward, swinging his sword down to send another storm of flowers spiraling into the fleeing giant s.h.a.ggrowth. Behind and above him, the ghostly aura of an enormous Green Dragon s.h.i.+mmered, as if lending him power.

Glen and Michael immediately recognized the Green Dragon as the symbol and mascot of the famed Stuart clan.

"You…!"

Ying Bu Si's calm façade broke for a moment, his anger leaking through his mask, as he sent another flurry of shadowy appendages at Lionel Stuart. However, the first newcomer broke in between them and punched them away.

With just a single fist, he obliterated the entire collective of shadowy limbs, disintegrating them and reducing them into nothing.

"Thank you very much, Yue Guang."

"It is my duty to serve, sir."

Yuan Dao Yue Guang bowed his head humbly for a moment, and then he proceeded to charge at Ying Bu Si.

"That technique…destroying my shadows with a single physical punch…you're an expert on Ba Qi, aren't you!?"

Ying Bu Si immediately retreated wearily, recognizing the potent Armament Ba Qi that wrapped around Yuan Dao Yue Guang's heavily muscled body. That figure spoke of decades of harsh training, honing his body into the peak of human capabilities with nothing but mystical martial arts and grueling combat.

Ba Qi…the pinnacle of the mystical martial arts practiced by those mages whose magic was not aligned with any element.

"Sorry for being late, Michael." Lionel stepped forward, unleas.h.i.+ng another wood spell that blasted the giant s.h.a.ggrowth back with sheer numbers of razor-sharp petals. "We rushed over when we heard about the near annihilation of the Porter Clan. I'm very sorry for your loss."

He then straightened his gleaming sword and infused it with even more mana. Behind him, the s.h.i.+mmering Green Dragon aura roared silently as more petals danced around it.

"But rest a.s.sured…the Stuart clan is here to help you avenge the deaths of your family."