Hey, what's up guys. I had no electricity for the past 5 days, so I wasn't able to respond to so of y'all's comnts so I'll do so over a period of ti. 'IF' you are wondering how chapters a still being released, I auto-scheduled the chapters.
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Azrael understood all too well that villains often t their end through excessive talking, so Hanzu's desperate pleas for rcy didn't stir even a flicker of sympathy in his heart.
After all, no one could be certain the assassin didn't have a hidden trump card waiting to be deployed. What if this display of weakness was rely an elaborate act?
Azrael had no interest in gambling with his life. He'd already extracted everything worth knowing, and he doubted Hanzu could reveal anything more useful at this point.
Watching the erald double-headed lance pierce toward him without rcy, a sinister glint flashed through the eerie-faced man's eyes.
Snap,
The next mont, accompanied by a crisp snap of fingers, an invisible wave instantly swept over Nel, freezing the green-haired Arrancar knight mid-thrust.
Seeing this, Azrael remained utterly calm, as though he'd anticipated exactly this outco. "Sure enough, he still had so tricks up his sleeve."
After all, his opponent had defeated Unohana Retsu in one-on-one combat. Even if his combat prowess wasn't quite on par with those four Slavic mythology cards, it certainly wasn't weak either.
Although the cards had vanished, Hanzu's true form undoubtedly retained considerable fighting capability.
But watching the man flee in panic after immobilizing Nel, Azrael couldn't help but feel a flicker of doubt creeping into his mind.
So far, the assassin across from him had given off a strange impression, completely unlike what one would expect from a normal Diamond-level Lore Cardian in combat.
His cards had been ineffective from the start, and the man himself seed incredibly arrogant, lacking the caution one would expect from a professional assassin.
What kind of assassin engaged in such lengthy conversation with their target, even going so far as to willingly reveal their employer?
While Hanzu had acted this way because he believed victory was assured, dead n couldn't speak, after all, sothing about it felt off.
Honestly, Azrael felt Hanzu's performance resembled soone experiencing their first real battle.
The thought jolted him. "First battle?"
"No way."
Combined with the imperial court officials' reluctance to reveal their identities and the opponent's extrely niche card system, Azrael felt as if he'd grasped a crucial truth.
Unfortunately, dwelling on speculation was pointless right now.
Watching Hanzu flee, Azrael stayed close behind, occasionally harassing him with ranged attacks from Ulquiorra and the others.
While Azrael suspected his theory was likely correct, he still exercised extre caution. After all, even a cornered rat would bite.
Hanzu could only run frantically across the charred landscape, unable to find shelter among the incinerated trees.
Excalibur, now fully unleashed with its restraints removed, had even shattered several mountaintops in the distance.
Barely dodging a pale green spiritual spear, Hanzu stumbled and crashed to the ground.
Ignoring the burning pain from his bruises, he crawled forward on his hands and knees, muttering through ragged breaths, "I don't want to die. I don't want to die."
Just then, he noticed the light and shadow before him being obliterated by a long, looming figure.
The utterly desperate man raised his head, only to find the demonic-looking card staring blankly down at him.
Hanzu quickly raised his hand, preparing to snap his fingers again.
"Ahhh!"
A terrified scream suddenly echoed across the charred earth.
The Diamond-level Lore Cardian had been pinned to the ground by an erald spear piercing clean through his right hand.
Hanzu, always pampered and privileged, had never experienced such excruciating pain before. Until today, he'd only ever played the role of hunter.
Trembling and swallowing against the agony, he turned his head. Sunlight obscured Azrael's face, leaving only a cold, rciless gaze visible.
"Please spare ," he begged incoherently, tears and snot mingling on his contorted face. "I'll do anything."
"Please spare ."
Looking at the assassin groveling pitifully before him from a distance, Azrael sighed helplessly. "At this point, you're not seriously joking, are you?"
"Rember to keep your eyes open in your next life," he said, waving casually to Ulquiorra.
"Shhh!"
Hearing those faintly familiar words, the sa ones he'd mockingly spoken to countless targets before, Hanzu looked down at his chest, where a gaping hole had been torn open, and began vomiting blood. "Ah, hah."
Then, with a look of deep resentnt twisting his features, he turned toward Azrael one final ti.
"Guh, they won't..."
Plop,
Before he could finish his dying curse, Ulquiorra launched another Thunder Spear, this ti aid directly at his head.
Looking at the completely silent, headless corpse sprawled before him, Azrael breathed a cautious sigh of relief. "There really was no backup plan after all."
However, to be absolutely safe, he had Yoriichi thodically chop Hanzu's body into fine pieces, ensuring no resurrection techniques could possibly work.
After this grueso task was complete, Azrael stroked his chin thoughtfully and muttered, "It's been quite a while. The Association should arrive soon, right?"
"Should I stay and wait for them?"
After a mont's deliberation, he decided to leave imdiately.
While the imperial court was unlikely to launch a second assassination attempt so soon, caution was still warranted. He had no desire to be repeatedly targeted for elimination.
Furthermore, his cards weren't in optimal condition. Unohana Retsu was already on cooldown, and Artoria wouldn't be able to unleash her holy sword again anyti soon.
As for Ulquiorra's three-card combination, while they hadn't sustained significant damage, maintaining so many cards simultaneously for an extended period would place considerable burden on Azrael's spiritual reserves.
Without hesitation, he imdiately recalled all his cards and departed from the scene.
Shortly after Azrael's departure, several figures materialized before Hanzu's mutilated remains.
Among them was soone Azrael knew well.
Vladimir, president of the Qilu Cardian Master Association, and her partner, Pierre.
"Two Diamond-level Lore Cardians," Vladimir muttered grimly upon surveying the devastated scene. "And they're both unregistered, illegal practitioners."
Such a catastrophic incident was unprecedented in her long tenure as president.
However, a hint of confusion and astonishnt crossed Pierre's weathered face. Then, in a strange whisper, he said to Vladimir, "President."
"It seems one of the two combatants was Azrael."
Vladimir was visibly taken aback by this assessnt, then frowned sharply. "Are you certain?"
If her mory served correctly, Master Lucian's disciple was only an Erald-level Lore Cardian, wasn't he?
Pierre nodded hesitantly, then imdiately shook his head.
While the atmospheric signature at the scene was certainly familiar, and the surrounding destruction bore striking resemblance to previous encounters, he couldn't be absolutely certain that one combatant was Azrael.
After all, Azrael was Erald-level, while the two who'd fought here were undoubtedly Diamond-level.
Seeing his uncertainty, Vladimir took a deep breath. She could already detect sothing profoundly unusual about this situation. "Regardless of whether the other person was Azrael, at least one combatant isn't registered with any official association."
She pointed at Hanzu's pulverized remains on the ground.
"And..."
She was about to continue when a crucial realization suddenly struck her.
Assuming the other combatant was indeed Azrael, this marked his second assassination attempt.
The previous ti, it had involved only three Erald-level Lore Cardians.
With two assassination attempts in rapid succession, and this one involving Diamond-level assassins, she sensed there must be sothing far more sinister at play.
"The Onefold Doctrine?"
Vladimir's eyes flickered with cold calculation as she instructed the Lore Cardians around her, "Don't tell anyone about what happened here today."
"You understand what I an."
Hearing this, everyone present lowered their heads in unison and replied, "Yes, President!"
Vladimir didn't believe this was rely a simple Onefold Doctrine assassination. But if it wasn't the cult, then who could be behind it?
"The Crimson Oath Society?"
"Or..."
As she pondered this troubling question, several powerful auras approached at rapid speed.
However, sensing these familiar spiritual signatures, Vladimir felt no panic whatsoever. Instead, she raised her head thoughtfully.
A few breaths later, a dignified elderly man arrived at the scene, accompanied by several Erald-level Lore Cardians.
"President Vladimir," the man nodded respectfully at her, then imdiately asked, "Do you know the identities of the two combatants involved?"
Vladimir shook her head slightly. "Neither of the two Diamond-level Lore Cardians is registered with any official association."
"Speaking of which, Lord Mortarion, do you have any information that might shed light on this incident?"
Since the battle had taken place at the border between Qilu and Shuntian Prefectures, it was naturally impossible for only the Qilu Cardian Master Association to investigate such a significant event. The Shuntian Prefecture governnt would certainly send soone as well.
The elderly man was none other than Lord Mortarion, the prefect of Shuntian Prefecture.
He glanced imperceptibly at the unrecognizable flesh scattered across the ground, then offered a weary smile. "How could we possibly have any information about unregistered combatants?"
"But I suspect it's those shady individuals from the Crimson Oath Society and the Onefold Doctrine causing trouble again."
Vladimir nodded slightly, seemingly agreeing with Lord Mortarion's convenient explanation.
She sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose with visible frustration. "The situation in the Empire of Aetherlight is already dire enough without those Crimson Oath troublemakers stirring up more chaos."
"So, will you handle the aftermath, Lord Mortarion, or shall I?"
Vladimir calmly regarded the elderly man across from her.
Lord Mortarion replied without the slightest hesitation, "I'll take responsibility for it. There's no need to trouble President Vladimir."
"After all, the situation in Qilu Province isn't particularly stable right now either."
The old man's words were so perfectly reasonable that Vladimir couldn't find any grounds to refuse. She couldn't help but offer a knowing smile. "Then I'll leave it in your capable hands, Lord Mortarion."
"I have urgent matters requiring my attention. I'll take my leave now."
With that diplomatic farewell, she vanished along with the Qilu Cardian Master Association mbers.
However, by this point, Vladimir had developed a fairly accurate understanding of the two warring parties' true identities.
One was naturally Azrael. While she didn't fully comprehend how an Erald-level practitioner could defeat a Diamond-level opponent, the evidence strongly suggested it was him.
The other was undoubtedly soone dispatched by the imperial court.
If she'd harbored any lingering uncertainty, then Lord Mortarion's behavior had effectively confird her suspicions.
The man's eagerness to deflect bla onto the Crimson Oath Society and the Onefold Doctrine was transparently suspicious.
Thinking of Azrael's astonishing talent and rapid advancent, Vladimir found the current situation disturbingly understandable.
A gifted young practitioner threatening the established order would naturally attract dangerous attention from those who feared change.
Reflecting on this grim reality, she sighed silently.
'I need to discuss this with Master Lucian and the others imdiately.'
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