Chapter 625 A Secre
"Stop."
The uproar had seen as if it would erupt into a 1v100 free-for-all, but all the shouts of anger immediately cut off as a voice was heard from behind them.
This made Daneel frown, as things had been going the way he wanted them to. He had wanted to beat these guys up because of all the things they had dared to say before, but he didn't want to be the one to start the fight. If he was pulled into one, though…he simply wouldn't be responsible for the consequences.
And if someone made the argument that he had incited them using his words, then he could simply say that it was their prerogative to get insulted instead of walking away which would be the smart thing to do if they knew what he was capable of even though he had no access to his Mageroot.
There was actually a different reason behind Daneel being so cautious besides the one where he knew that he should be wary of the Chief. There was just…something about this place which constantly told him that he should be on his toes and not be complacent like how he had spent his time in the Sect of Hedon.
There, he hadn't even been equipped with all the treasures that he had obtained since that time, but he had felt no danger, although it could be said that that was because there had been no Heroes actively living inside the sect at that time.
Here, though, it was different, and this Hero was also one who had supposedly lived for longer than anyone else on this continent. In most cases, old age didn't directly translate to strength, but in this guy's matter, Daneel knew that with time, he must have picked up more and more tricks until his capability was something that couldn't be judged by any normal means.
In fact, even when talking about the Head, Daneel had always detected a little bit of fear, or reverence from all the other Heroes he had met, including Rayen and those other two whom he still had to take revenge on for attacking him like that after the incident in the Kingdom of the Elves.
Yet, this man had simply referred to the Head as just some normal individual whom he didn't have to worry much about.
Seeing the person he had first attacked approaching him, Daneel got his head back in the game and began to think about his current predicament.
As for his thoughts regarding the answer that Drakos had given him…Daneel decided that he would tackle that later, when he wasn't completely surrounded by vicious Fighters.
True, he had been the one who attacked in this case, but he had had no option. Of course, he could now apologize and try to resolve this issue peacefully, but he could tell that in a place like this, that would only be a sign of weakness that would definitely bring him more problems.
While the hundred people parted to make way one by one, the lean guy whose robe had been filled with weapons and even a live snake walked forward while constantly coughing out blood.
As Daneel had been in a hurry, he hadn't controlled the amount of force he had used while deploying the Hidden Kill Fist. He had felt a few ribs break, but beyond that, he hadn't cared and had just left the guy after confirming that he would live.
Now, as he looked closer, he saw that there was a large red bruise right in the middle of his chest, which meant that all the tissues below that spot were definitely pretty damaged. The property of the Hidden Kill Fist where it transferred the impact to inside the body was clearly visible, as the skin on top looked almost fine, while it was clear that everything under it was anything but.
"Your fist technique stands up to everything we've heard about it. You are truly lucky to have found it and succeeded in training in it in order to fulfill the qualifications to enter our Sect and peruse all of our valuable records, but that does not mean that you can think you're invincible."
It looked like the Head and the Chief had gone forward and given this as the reason behind him visiting, as it was much better to hear than the one where he was being sent by the Head as the man believed in his potential and wanted him to find out everything he could so that he could find the perfect Champion Path for himself.
The latter reason would definitely cause even more displeasure, as it was practically a favor being done to someone from the Central Continent, while the former would be perfect as everyone knew about the rules that had been set down by the previous masters.
Those found to be capable of wielding the Hidden Kill Fist were those that they owed a debt to, and this needed to be repaid by giving them complete access to their sect and facilities. There were other clauses which dealt with the finer details, but this was the gist that everyone knew about.
Daneel hadn't expected this guy to be capable of speaking so calmly after that incident and his statement where he had implied that this was just a worthless group of stray dogs.
However, as he recalled all of the weapons that he had seen on the guy's body and the way he had attacked without any hesitation on finding someone coming close to him without giving an explanation, Daneel understood that this was definitely a meticulous person whose experiences had, for some reason, given birth to a large amount of paranoia.
Walking to the front of the group and looking Daneel straight in the eye, he said, "Let me demonstrate. Koror, Impregnable Body."
As soon as he said this, another round person walked forth from the group, and he was even larger than the one who had accompanied Tall during that meeting.
This one had a vicious expression on his face, and while he walked forward to stand beside the one that given the order, everyone gave him a wide berth as if they were afraid to even touch him.
As he came closer, Daneel soon saw a multitude of scars all over his body as if he had been through the most agonizing of tortures, but he soon understood that they had all been caused by various training activities in the sect.
Stopping right in front of Daneel, he closed his eyes, and a sheen appeared on his body which made Daneel raise both his eyebrows.
There was no other way to call it. The skin that was visible was faintly glowing, and a layer of some sort of light could be seen all over him, which made him almost looked like the sun that had come down and was, for some reason, standing in front of him.
"Use the Fist you're so proud of now, and tell me if you still think that you can do as you wish with it in the sect."
Daneel had simply used that Fist as it was the one he was most proficient in. However, it looked like that had caused this guy to misunderstand that it was his most 'prized' technique.
Well, there was no reason to clear the misunderstanding.
Shrugging, Daneel punched forward with full force once again, reveling in the feeling that came from using his fists instead of just watching what he was doing which was the case when he used magic. There was just…something about personally feeling his power go forth and destroy his enemies, which was simply not attainable when he used magic.
Fully expecting the same scene as before to repeat, Daneel aimed at the same spot where he had hit the other guy who had somehow turned out to be the leader of such a large group.
Yet… The skin of the round man simply jiggled, as all the force was simply siphoned away by the jellylike folds all over his body. Not just that, even that glow, which actually turned out to be pure Energy that had been many pulled forth in order to form something akin to a barrier that Mages deployed, helped quite a bit in defending the man from his Fist.
This was the final stage of the Hidden Kill Fist, which, according to the what he now knew, was actually a technique from the Empire that had been hidden away in the last layer by the Empire Spirit so that only those who were worthy would find it and be graced by its help. It had also been a tactic to shield it from the eyes of the Big Four, which had worked - in all the years that the training hall had existed in Lanthanor, Daneel had been the only one to be able to get to the final level and use the real Hidden Kill Fist which scaled perfectly along with the level of a person. When he was a Human, he had only been able to affect one's skin to cause grievous wounds. And now that he was a Warrior, he was able to use the pullback force of the fist to affect the muscles and tissues that were present below the skin.
Apparently, the motive was to identify talented Fighters who could use this and further the Path of Fighters, as that was what the Empire Spirit was always interested in.
The whole essence of the fist was that using a sudden movement, the aftermath of the attack would cause a bubble of force that would explode outwards, causing internal injuries. However, in this case, that bubble had been swallowed away and hadn't been able to reach any important organs. Even though it had exploded outwards, nothing was visible, as even the force of the explosion had been hidden away by all the fat that was present all over this man's body.
So this was the path chosen by those who had this kind of body composition in the Sect.
Daneel had been wondering about it, as he had already figured out that those who were buff were the ones who focused on strength, while those who were lean probably believed that speed was paramount. As for the round folk, he had been slightly puzzled as to what they wanted to accomplish. Now, it was clear that they wished to attain the ultimate defense that could block any attack.
But how were they supposed to attack?
Daneel received the answer the next second, as he witnessed a terrifying sight would have traumatized any normal person.
The huge figure in front of him actually… Jumped and stretched forth his arms while he flew through the air, intending to crush him into pulp under the weight of his body.
This was the dumbest and most direct attack that anyone of that size could use, but its peculiarity lay in the fact that his speed did not seem to be affected by his weight. As Daneel activated the Basilisk's Breath and observe the scene carefully, he realized that this was actually being achieved by cheating - there were trinkets placed behind the guy's body which were propelling him forward at a breakneck speed.
It was definitely an intriguing way to battle, but Daneel had reached the end of his patience. He had had enough of this sidetrack, as the Chief was waiting for him, and he also wanted to see whether he could find a way to go to Cassandra with his original body so that he could be there when she woke up.
And of course, Drakos's 'Anomaly Theory' needed to be addressed.
So, with the Basilisk's Breath, Daneel sidestepped the sumo crush easily and even raised his leg to stomp the fatso to the ground, while feeling thankful that he could at least use this inheritance as it didn't need to affect the outside world.
This caused a loud boom to echo in the room that attracted the attention of everyone who was present, and even the stone tiles that they were standing on cracked.
"Alright, fine, you can nullify my attack. But you're a fool if you think that that is the only trick I have up my sleeve. Now, are you going to make more trouble, or can I leave? I don't have all day to deal with people like you, you know."
The leader of this group had an expression of shock as he saw this person who was supposed to be weak easily sidestep the money-fuelled attack by this guy who was known for his shamelessness that allowed him to use trinkets even though others look down on it. Nobody had ever been capable of evading this crushing attack without at least being injured a bit, so he had no option but to understand that this man was even more powerful than he had thought.
Silence fell over the room, and Daneel understood that beating this guy so easily must have scared all of them. So, he simply began walking to the door, which was when something regarding the trip he had just made to Lanthanor occurred to him.
He hadn't delved into the Emperor's memories regarding the Bloodline of the Blazing Phoenix.
Thinking that there might not be anything special, but that he should be thorough, Daneel asked the system to check that module and tell him if there was anything he needed to know regarding what the Emperor had done.
However, when he got the answer, he had no option but to pause mid-step and ask the system to repeat whatever it had just said.
[Perusing the memories of Emperor Fenoras. Scanning for memories related to the Blazing Phoenix.
Memories Found.
Summary: The incident where the original possessor went insane was a plot meant to deal with the growing egos of the Emperor's secret corps, and also to deceive everyone that this Bloodline was unattainable. In truth, the Emperor hid away the Bloodline so that he could save it for when things were truly dire. His plan regarding this Bloodline stretched through the ages, and his objective was to make it available for any future threats that Angaria might face. This was one of his most secret plans, and it wasn't just this Bloodline which he hid away in this manner.]