The four shadows from the Hidden Moon Dynasty watched Zoran from atop the buildings in the Royal District. Somehow, even in the bright day from the sun, their dark figures could not be distinguished from mere shadows in the crevices. Any normal person would not know of their existence, and even cultivators would have trouble finding them.
Their whole bodies blended in the dark, as taught to them by their masters. Their whole kit of skills was based on stealth and assassination, paired with the supreme cultivation given to them by the Moon God herself, gave them near invisibility to the common folk. They looked down on Zoran, completely confident that he did not notice them.
After all, he was only a mere 1st stage cultivator who had not known the dangers of the world. They knew this because of his indifference and brazen provocation against Eddie, their employer. He did now know who he was going up against, especially since they were employed to do the job.
They were just informed that there were two more 3rd stage cultivators joining them in this mission. They were not here yet as this was just a preliminary investigation on Zoran, which those two did not have the adequate skills for.
The very first step in assassination and secretive missions was to gather information, which was why they did not immediately pounce on Zoran and kill him. Doing so would be very easy for them, and could even be done by just one operative. But it was ingrained to them from when they started their training to always seek out information on their target, no matter how weak or easy the missions were.
They were taught caution in their steps because there could be some surprises about dragons hiding in sheep's clothing, but Zoran was not that guy. Not only was he a novice cultivator, he was also a Physique type cultivator.
From their investigation, they realized that Zoran's body was much more developed and stronger than others of the same stage, which could only mean that his cultivation was physique-type. They laughed inwardly to themselves; the mission just became even easier.
From their eyes and many others, Physique type was the inferior cultivation out of all of them. After all, it only involved revolving their Yi energy around their bodies. How barbaric and crude. It did not have the sophistication of the Anima type or the intricacy of the mage type.
This meant that there was a little chance for Zoran to have a power beyond their understanding. A 1st stage Mage type cultivator could summon a tornado that could sweep them off their feet, a 1st stage Anima type cultivator could command a steel golem to fight his battles, but the best thing a 1st stage Physique cultivator could do was to punch. How underwhelming.
They didn't even know how Zoran obtained a Physique type cultivation. Griedsoil town was under the command of the Primordial Sun Dynasty, a dynasty who used Mage type cultivations. Usually, each town only had one Dynasty, so most of the cultivators in town used their cultivation techniques.
It was only for huge cities that there could be many dynasties living amongst each other. But in Griedsoil, there was only one. And if there was a Physique type dynasty in this town, then they would have known.
Normally, it would be a subject of concern that they did not know the cultivation technique of their target, but as stated earlier, a Physique type cultivator like Zoran was no problem.
They carefully watched Zoran, watching his every move. Then, as he walked, they saw him bump into a few rambunctious teens who looked to be the same age as him with the same red uniforms and a sun embroidered on their backs. The shadows frowned as they saw this. How could Zoran have that bad of a luck; he bumped into the prideful disciples from the Primordial Sun Dynasty.
The situation quickly turned sour as the group of five cultivators shouted at Zoran. They pushed him around and berated him as they laughed, while Zoran kept his head down. The shadows knew that Zoran couldn't fight back because these five cultivators were in the 1st stage of the Alpha God's mage cultivation technique. Zoran was at a disadvantage both in quantity and quality.
The four shadows tensed and got ready to intervene as soon as possible. If things get too physical, then these cultivators could interfere with their mission to bring Zoran to their employer, Eddie. Not only that, the Silver Bleeding Diamond could be misplaced. That would result in their mission ending with a complete failure, which Eddie would no doubt require compensation that they would have to pay with their lives.
One of the shadows, their leader, raised his hand, signaling that they should not move yet. He was carefully assessing the situation because they could not be seen in the broad daylight. They were a part of the Hidden Moon Dynasty, and it would be extremely troublesome if the Primordial Sun Dynasty found out that they were infiltrating this town.
Everybody knew the erratic and volatile behavior of the Alpha God, and nobody could predict his reaction. If he found out that there could be some spies infiltrating his territory, it could be enough reason for him to start a Dynasty-wide war, even if this town was in the backwater side of the country. He was that petty.
They wouldn't have even come to this town if it weren't for Eddie's money and his connection to the Hidden Moon Dynasty. But alas, here they were and now it led them to a dilemma. If they let the situation play out by itself, then Zoran could die by their hands and they could lose the Silver Bleeding Diamond. If they interfere, then there could be a huge possibility of their cover being blown. Especially since these five cultivators were from the Primordial Sun Dynasty and with their complaint, an investigation could be held that could end with their discovery of the shadows from the Hidden Moon Dynasty.
It was a lose-lose situation. But before the leader of the shadows could decide, something happened that forced them to spring into action.
As one of the cultivators pushed Zoran, a shiny silver gem dropped out of his pockets. This was quickly noticed by the five cultivators as the one nearest to it picked it up. They looked happy with this discovery, but nothing but dread filled the hearts of the shadows.
The Silver Bleeding Diamond was lost! And these five cultivators took possession of it.