Ryu flicked his wrist, causing an elegant arc of crimson to follow his movements. If it wasn't for the fact this crimson was the very blood of the now dead Deep Valley Team member, it just might have been beautiful enough for them to gape in amazement at.

Liluo's pupils constricted. That member might have not been very powerful, but he was still in the Sixth Immortal Ring stage. To be clicked to a flick of a finger and the of the wrist… It was simply ridiculous, especially when the culprit was merely in the Connecting Heaven Realm.

"You… You're a Body Realm Cultivator!

"

This was the only explanation Liluo could think of and it was the only thing that made sense.

Unlike in the lower planes of the Shrine World, no one foolishly believed that Qi Realm cultivation was the only path to take. Though it was still considered to be the default, it was still a simple matter for someone with as wide a base of knowledge as Liluo to understand what he was facing.

Of course, he was only partially correct. The truth was that Ryu's Qi Realm Cultivation was likely no weaker than his Body Realm Cultivation at this moment. But, Liluo didn't need to know this.

After realizing what he was facing, though, Liluo calmed down considerably. This was a bit outside of their expectations, and Ryu was in fact the exact opposite of what they had planned to deal with in Annette, but that didn't change the fact that they were prepared to deal with a powerful enemy.

Liluo immediately understand that Ryu was most definitely at the pinnacle of the Vessel Tempering Body Realm, and if not, he was infinitely close to it. He shouldn't have stepped into the Blood Tempering Body Realm quite yet, or else the pressure he gave off would be even worse. After all, the beginning Blood Tempering Realm was the equivalent of the beginning of the Path Extinction Realm.

Not only this, but Ryu must have a special Bloodline of at least the Heaven Grade, making him more powerful than a usual Vessel Tempering Realm expert.

"Fan out!

" Liluo barked as he shot backward.

The two Team members shot back along with Liluo, uncaring for the crowd that had begun to gather around him.

Seemingly realizing that things were going south, the observers rushed to get out of the way, running out of the area of effect.

Grim and Dru wanted to step forward, but Ryu rose a hand up. It seemed that these two still didn't realize that they were only here to observe. Just sit tight.

Ryu shot forward, crackling lightning severing wind in his wake.

Seeing such a scene, Liluo's eyes glowed. How lucky.

But, just as quickly as his excitement appeared, he buried it deep within his heart, hiding it away from Ryu's eyes.

Ryu entered their triangular formation without a thought, his actions as brazen as they came.

In the blink of an eye, he appeared before one of the Team members.

Reacting as one should in a formation, the second converged to pincer Ryu, ready to deal him a fatal blow the moment he sent out an attack.

Ryu didn't use any techniques as his left arm descended from the skies. His form couldn't have been more perfect, he embodied a simple Slice so immaculately that the energies of the world seemed to sing. Even without Ryu's intervention, Essence flowed toward him, the skin of his body glowing with a faint light as his Ice Jade Crystal Body pulsed as though breathing.

The moment Ryu attacked, the second Team member reacted, slicing his sword toward what should have been a blind spot.

However, they had seemingly forgotten that Ryu was a dual wielder.

Completely independent of his left, Ryu's right pierced forward with undeniable momentum, using the torque that remained from Slice to execute a Pierce so without flaw that the phantom of the God Emperor seemed to want to flicker into existence.

The two felt as though their movements were completely restricted. No matter how hard they thought of moving or dodging, they couldn't manage to accomplish a single action.

However, they still felt that this was good. This was a formation of three, not two. As long as Ryu was occupied in this way, it should be a simple matter for the most powerful of them to deal with him.

What the two didn't expect, though, was that even when Ryu's attacks were just mere moments from destroying them, that Liluo would still have no intention of acting.

The two's confidence wilted before Ryu's indifferent gaze, pain and horror coloring their features even as the mere wind pressure of Ryu's strikes made them feel as though their lives were forfeit.

Without any suspense, the two were skewered. One was split completely in half while the second had his chest run through completely. The size of the blade was so enormous that this single pierced rendered all of his inner organs useless.

Even as the two died, they had no idea why it was that Liluo hadn't stepped forward to protect them. Were they not on the same side?

Ryu pulled his twin Great Swordstaffs back.

He had never felt so comfortable using a weapon before. Was this what they experts referred to as having extensions of one's own limbs?

He couldn't help but thank Ailsa inwardly. Living up to his family's expectations was important to him, but not as important as making sure they were all alive. There was no doubt in his mind that using these Great Swordstaffs was far more conducive to this.

With an almost lazy expression, Ryu looked up to find that Liluo had completed his preparations, allowing numerous transparent and spherical objects to shoot into the air from all directions.

Liluo sneered.

"We had prepared this for Annette. But, taking out a helper on your level is just as valuable. Are you ready to die?

"

Ryu raised an eyebrow, but he soon felt that his connection to the Heavens had been severed. Not only was atmospheric qi almost impossible to control now, but Ryu even felt that calling upon his Inheritances was near impossible.

To someone like Ryu, this was already devastating enough. But, to a Faerie who so heavily relied on the Heavens…

It seemed they really had come prepared.