Shadow of the Abyss

Chapter 310 Reunion

[Ding!]

[You have Acquired the Sword of the Heavenly Raijin]

[Grade: F]

[Type: God]

Description: Born from the infernal rage that had buried into Raijins heart. The Sword of the Heavenly Raijin is meant to channel all the raw emotions of the soul into the blade.

Altair was all smiles, taken aback by the way the Sword of the Heavenly Raijin sword art didn't require Mana but rather called forth the Vale Qi within his Dantain. He paled a little at the sudden drain but kept his head high, peering at the devastation brought by Indignation. The lightning had destroyed everything, turning the earth to cracked glass and trees to ash.

"How's that, Lu Chen!" Altair demanded.

Lord Lu lowered the palm he'd used to contain the power that would have otherwise decimated half his mountain. Giving Altair a long, measured stare, he nodded, saying, "Impressive. Your Sword Art has been recorded." he glanced at the destruction, waving his palm. And in a fleeting glance, time seemed to rewind to a fixed point.

Altair froze. He wondered if Lu Chen's authority over Babel's tower allowed him to Manipulate time or if it was his ability. He'd wanted to ask, but Lu Chen vanished from his perception before he had the chance to inquire. He grinned nonetheless, spinning to face the starry looks of Morrigan, Raven, and Tasha.

"Don't fall for me too hard," he said in a teasing voice.

Raven's round eyes seemed to glow. "woow, can Master teach me?!" Experience exclusive tales on empire

"You don't strike me as an angry person," Altair told her. 'Or negative even. I don't think this sword technique is for you.'

Raven's cheeks flared. "Master is trying to hide his secret Art from Raven. Fine! Then Raven won't share her corn!" she snorted, crossing her arms like a child, spinning on her heel to hide her flushed expression.

Altair wryly grinned. He didn't say anything again, patting Raven's dark hair before he turned to look of disbelief plastered across Guo Wengui's face. A swelter of pride wiggled its way into his heart as he asked that they resume the journey towards the Martial Hall.

Guo Wengui all but agreed. Hurrying to bring them to the Martial Hall, Altair found it rather small. Though he was surprised, it might be. He wasn't a disciple of the Heavenly Thunder Gods Sect. Nevertheless, he wasn't very interested in the skills held in the 'guest' martial hall.

Raven felt the same, grabbing a technique that caught her eye before leaving with Moriggan and Tasha, who didn't bother to look around much, grabbing whatever caught their hand.

Guo Wengui didn't say much but directed them to their very own gave meant for those who traversed the mountain, saying, "You should receive your Mind Insense by the day's end." he left soon after, almost as if running away.

Altair looked at him, hurrying off when the sensation of being watched touched his awareness. His lips thinned, turning towards the rows of caves held alongside the mountain's surface to the blue-eyed man glaring at him.

"Atticus," Altair said. He allowed a smile to rise, shooting the man a nod. "I'll be seeing you on the third floor."

Atticus turned pale. His teeth gritted, watching Altair walk back into his cave. He returned to his room, where a young man waited for him in the lotus position.

"What crawled up your ass?" Keiran opened his eyes towards his fellow inquisitor. Even from where he sat, he could feel frustration.

"Blackwood is here. Seven Caves down to our right." Atticus said. "How are the legs?"

Pain lanced up Keiran's spine as he winced, gritting his teeth with a vile look across his face. "Still numb. I… I don't know what that bitch did to me, but not even the Elixir of Malakh has been able to cure me. It's been nearly five months."

"But functional. Your battle prowess is—"

"I can fight!" Keiran barked, biting his lips. He clenched his fist, cursing his fate. He couldn't feel much anymore. It was all numb. Even his manhood refused to greet him each morning he woke.

Tears nearly threatened to fall, but Keiran bit them back, trying to hold his head high to retain his pride. "So what are we going to do?"

Atticus' lips trembled. He breathed, "It's obvious we aren't supposed to attack Blackwood. But…" His voice trailed off as he cupped his face, shaking his head. " But we haven't been asked to retreat. In fact, we haven't gotten any orders these past few months."

Keiran realized what that meant and cursed. "Fuck. So they are hanging us out to dry. If we don't return with Altair, we'll be punished with either death or a fate worse than death. But if we attack Altair, managing to kidnap him or kill him, it'll have to be done as awakeners not affiliated with the Upper Moons."

"So you're not as stupid as you look,' Atticus said, nodding at his assessment. "The thing is… I'm not sure we'll be able to capture Altair. He's too strong for that." He paused, releasing a deep breath. "If we are going after him. We need to aim to kill or…"

"Or?"

"The Divine Ruler did say we'll be receiving five Inquisitors from the Seven Houses of the Upper Moon. They'll probably be on the higher floors. And like us, this 'assassination' will have to be off the record."

Keiran stood up. Despite the numbing sensation in his lower half, he appeared stable. "Is that bitch Syris with him?"

"I'm not sure. I only saw Blackwood. But we'll have to assume she is," Atticus determined. "They appeared to be lovers, so it's hard to imagine he'd have her remain on the lower floors. Still…" Then he smiled. "Can't we hire someone?"

"Hire?"

"According to the data we received on Blackwood, it's safe to assume he's in possession of an artifact that allows him to hide from the gods at times. Let's ask for assistance from the various gods watching. We'll hire some to act as a proxy to hire assassin of prestige."

Keiran gave it some thought, nodding soon after. "Alright. I actually have a god in mind. Have you ever heard of the Brotherhood of Torment and their undying Legionnaires? It is said that a single peltast in the First Circle can kill a Third Circle. And a Third Circle and Kill as Sixth Circle, and so on."

Atticus straightened. "How do you know about them?"

"The House of Shadows has worked with them many times. They're expensive, but they get the job done."

"How expensive."

"The Brotherhood was created to keep unruly mortals in check after many mortals began abusing the Shadow Proclamation." Keiran started. "They are given all the right resources to hone even the weakest creature into unkillable machines. For Altair, the minimum will be a hundred thousand Sols. Five. If we inform them about his battle prowess."

"Half a million!" Atticus shouted, appalled. "None of us have that type of money. If we did, we wouldn't be Inquisitors."

Keiran agreed. That much was enough to live an entire lifetime in luxury or enough to buy a small, underdeveloped solar system. "However… we don't need to pay. We'll just send the bill to our House… as a random expense." the more he thought about it, the more he smiled.

Atticus saw red. " Do you want to die? They'll hang us by our Calcaneal(Achilles) tendon."

Keiran sneered. "It's better than what they'll do to us if we fail. The Divine Ruler told us that failure will not be tolerated. They might cast us into Hell if we fail. Plus… that'll make it look like we really fell off the deep end and went rogue."

Atticus gritted his teeth, looking down at his feet. He felt trapped—trapped by his house and trapped by Altair, who'd caused all this madness. But he didn't have a choice. Lifting his head, after a moment's pause, he looked Keiran in the eye and said, "Let's do it."

***

"What are you smiling about?" Tasha inquired, looking at him in the dark cave. The darkness did not so much affect her eyesight as it did heighten her senses.

"I met an old friend," Altair said, taking out a holocube from his ring. He chuckled when he saw a hologram of Syris emerge.

"What's up, Art," she asked. "Problems already?"

"Yes. A little problem. Can you prepare a pure cup of tea using a Soul Blossom for me?"

"I can, but we don't have much left. Are you sure?" Syris inquired as her lips thinned.

"Yes, I'm sure. There are some annoying rats on the second floor, and I'll need all the resources I have to combat them.I'll open a gate for you so that you can have one of your 'acolytes' deliver it to me." He smiled, saying a few more words before disconnecting and refocusing his attention on Tasha.

"As for you. I need you to push your mana into me. I plan on summoning the Cambion I received on the first floor."

Tasha licked her lips. "You know all these favors are adding up."

"I'm sure I can deliver," Altair assured her, sitting cross-legged. Do you think I'lll run off or something?"

Tasha shook her head. "No one can escape from the Nine Hells."