Atop the steep cliffs beyond the city towered the main hall of the Sharkborn Sect, which reigned supreme over the ocean strait to Konan. Below the cliffs was the second biggest city after Konan, along this coast.
People here lived their lives looking up to the cliffs, where the palaces of the sect were fused into the bedrock, as if they grew out from it. Every day, they would look up to see this symbol of power and be reminded who controlled their very lives.
Everyone was living their lives when thunder struck. The thunderous force traveled through their bodies as a whole city jumped in shock. Ramshackle buildings collapsed, boulders and debris rained from the cliffs.
"Black Lightning!" " A Lightning struck the Great Hall!" "Heavens!" "Lightning on a clear blue sky!" "The Great Hall!" "It's a sign!" "The heavens are angered!" the crowd exclaimed in the ensuing chaos.
Mere moments ago, the looming sign of the Sharkborn Sect power, the great golden dome of the Great Hall, was struck by a blinding lightning. The protective barrier and dome completely collapsed for all commoners to see. It was like a sign from heaven. A divine punishment!
"Over there!" "Who is that?" "What is it?" "Is that an immortal?" People among the crowd started shouting and pointing. A figure had appeared in the sky above the city, simply standing in the air. They wore azure blue armor and held what looked like two spears in four arms. Were they an immortal, or even a deity?
"I'm Azul of Minas Mar. I have come to challenge the leader of the Sharkborn Sect," a booming voice echoed between the cliffs and through the city. "By the decree of Minas Mar, your sect will pay for your actions against the people of Urth! Come out and receive your punishment."
A murmur went through the crowd. It truly was someone who came to punish the Sharkborn sect!
"Preposterous! How dare someone from some unknown sect attack the- Argh!" a cultivator of the Sharkborn sect had taken to the sky, talking loudly for everyone to hear. Just as loud, he was struck by lightning. His charred body plummeted down to the city and broke through a roof.
"Sect Leader, I have no problem with slaughtering all your disciples, if you don't come out to bear the consequences of your sins," the figure bellowed imposingly. The sect stayed silent; nobody rushed out to face her. Suddenly, a chant could be heard by those with good hearing.
None of those who heard it could understand the words, but everyone was convinced of their effects. Above a Sharkborn Sect, in the middle of the clear sky, a dark cloud had started forming out of nowhere.
The commoners quivered at the sight of a cloud darker than any storm cloud they had ever seen. In the darkness of the cloud, they could see malicious lightning crack, eager to strike down with divine wrath.
"Stop gawking!""Get into the houses!" "Quick!" "Take cover!" After a moment, many among the crowd started to panic and hurriedly ran to take cover. "You asked for this. Don't blame me~" the immortal in the sky said with an almost happy undertone.
She waved her two spears and exclaimed, "Let the Heavens Rage! Thunder Storm!" As if the hounds of the storm had only waited for her command, dozens of black lightning bolts like the one that struck the hall before descended on the Sharkborn Sect.
Despite the calls and cries, many people stayed on the streets to witness the catastrophe. The protective barriers of the sect were stripped away, and the vast, prosperous manors and palaces were torn down by the fist of heaven. They could only watch with gaping jaws as the overlord of the ocean strait was exploding into bits and pieces.
"Enough!" someone exclaimed in anger, and a shield appeared over the main hall. It was the emergency barrier of the sect, and it finally managed to block the divine punishment raining from the clouds. "Who dares attack my Sharkborn Sect?!" an old lady appeared in the sky, shouting with a booming voice.
She wore the long blue robes of the Sharkborn Sect, covered in a pristine wave pattern, and carried the divine 5 Ring Saber of the sect. However, none of the city dwellers below recognized her. Nobody even knew there were females in the Sharkborn Sect.
"I already stated my name. Are you suffering from dementia? But who are you...? Oh, right, the old monster. Who would have thought they would push out their founder right from the start? Is your sect leader too afraid to come out? Did my lightning scare you that much?" the figure taunted.
"Insolent wench! I will teach what it means to offend the Sharkborn Sect!"
With these words, the old woman charged at the figure and both vanished from the sight of the common people on the ground, moving too fast to be seen by them.
...
Azul was surprised by how well Seth's verbal training worked. The old hag and flown into a frenzy after just a couple of words. Although it was unexpected for the boss mob of the sect to come out immediately, this actually worked in their favor.
The 5 Ring Saber of the Sharkborn Sect turned into a storm of blades as the old woman charged at her. It was met by the combination of Sokolov's Lightning Rod and the Palpatating Spear, being dual-wielded.
The onslaught of the heavy saber gave her little time to think, but it was surprisingly manageable. Although the old ancestor was reported to be at the Dao Seeking stage, so just a step below an immortal, her level was only 168.
Although she was just one step below legendary, that step was really big. It just showed that the level or cultivation realm never directly translated to strength. Facing a heavy attack, Azul caught the saber by crossing her two polearms. The hag suddenly laughed.
"You are good; I give you that. But you allowed yourself to be pushed too far back," she said with a smile. The chimera looked around. At some point, they had actually moved away from the shore and were currently hovering above the ocean.
"Sharkborn Art- Blade Typhoon!" she exclaimed, and the saber with 5 rings in the back was enveloped by a blue aura of water. A sudden increase in force surprised Azu,l and she was pushed back, down toward the sea.
Only now she realized that the waters were no longer calm. The lightning mage had been thrust straight into a massive water spout, and its walls were sharp, rotating blades of water. The old hag had actually lured her here.
...
"Look!" "There!" "They appeared above the ocean!"
Although the common people had not seen the exchange of blows, they had heard it. Listening with bated breath until the two fighting figures appeared above the ocean.
The mighty 5 Ring Saber was caught between the spears of the great warrior. Were they actually fighting on even grounds? Would they finally be freed from the Sharkborn Sect's rule? However, as their hope started to bud, the sea below the two fighter that to churn.
"Oh no!" "Be careful, warrior!" They tried to warm them. This was one of the most powerful techniques of the Shark Bone Sect, and many righteous cultivators had fallen victim to it before. Anyone caught inside was turned into a bloody cloud of shark bait.
They called out, but it was too late. It was as if the great ancestor of the Sharkborn Sect had only played with their feelings. The mighty relic enveloped by the aura of the Sharkborn Sect struck the great warrior down into the raging storm of blades.
Had the great warrior really lost? Could really nobody challenge the Shark Bone Sect? The crowd in the city watched the spectacle in dismay when-
"Experience the full Power of the Dark Side!" a voice exclaimed. Bolts of black lightning tore through the raging wall of water and struck the ancestor the moment she tried to turn back to the sect.
"Gahh!" the frightening cultivator screeched in agony, as she was caught in a cage of black sparks. The great warrior was not dead!
"Sokolov's Strike!" they heard them exclaim again, and a ray of black energy struck the evil sect ancestor in the chest, driving the screaming hag straight back toward the sect. She crashed into the emergency shield of the Sharkborn Sect, which shattered under the pressure of black light.
"Did they win?!" "The great warrior won!" "What is that!?" "Look!"
The people of the coastal town had little time to celebrate the supposed victory of the great warrior, as a completely different calamity befell the Sharkborn sect. bundles of roots carrying bound cultivators were bursting from the structures and towers built straight into the cliffs.
From the ruins of the Sharkborn Sect that had just lost its last protection rose a mighty tree. At visible speed, the massive plant grasped for the sky, and the mighty crown spread to cover the whole sect and the coast town at the foot of the cliffs.
Unsure what to do now, the crowd and fallen silent in confusion.