The 3rd stage guards didn't think that they would be backed up against a corner fearing for their lives, but Zoran made it a reality. His demonstration of killing a 2nd stage shadow assassin with one strike to the chest was enough for them to realize that his words of threat were not a joke.
But they were still proud cultivators; they didn't panic. Zoran still had to reach them for his attack to be effective. He showed his hands, and now the guards knew what to expect.
But then Zoran's whole body disappeared into the darkness as if he went into another dimension. They thought it was a mere illusion, but they couldn't sense his Yi energy anywhere at all.
Was Zoran's movements that fast, thought the guards but they quickly dispersed the thought. If he had lightning-fast speed, he would have left Yi residue behind him. The fact that there was an absolute absence of Zoran's body and energy told them that Zoran truly disappeared from their reality.
One of the guards looked towards his comrade to see if he also saw what happened.
But then he saw Zoran already next to his comrade, with his bright white fist up in the air ready to strike. He couldn't even warn him because he was too shocked by Zoran's sudden emergence.
Was it high-skilled teleportation? But how was that possible? The guard couldn't comprehend how Zoran, a 1st stage PHYSIQUE cultivator was able to traverse a few meters instantly without any remnants of Yi energy in his wake? How were people supposed to predict where he would come?
The guard finally noticed that Zoran was right next to him. How could he not, with a bright white light from Zoran's fist blaring right beside him.
His instincts moved and guarded his chest. A Yi circle that burned with intense red flames similar to that of the Young Master's defense manifested in front of his torso. This was the artskill called the Fiery Defense that blocks physical attacks and inflicts burns on the attacker.
With his 3rd stage cultivation, he thought this artskill was enough to defend against Zoran's punch. The guard was even planning on a counter attack once Zoran's attack failed.
The other guard saw all this unfold but couldn't muster out the words of warning to his comrade.
He was guarding the wrong thing.
By the time the guard realized that Zoran was not aiming for his chest, it was already too late. His eyes got blinded by a radiant light that encompassed his whole senses, and then, nothingness. He was lucky that in his death, he did not feel any pain and passed away instantly the moment Zoran's tyrannical punch landed on his head.
BLUGHH
Chunks of brain matter and fragmented skull pieces exploded all around the room. The guard experienced a red shower that bathed him in the blood of his comrade. Then something mushy landed on his forehead; it was warm. With shaking hands, he picked it off and saw that it was eerily similar to his own skin. It was only seconds later that he realized it was the flesh of his own comrade.
His eyes got hazy and his knees got weak. This was the first time he experienced such a gruesome sight just a wingspan away from him. This was the first time he felt the warmth of blood, the soppy membrane of the brain, and the smell of burnt flesh.
Reality set in when he saw his comrade's headless body flop to the ground with blood still spurting out of his neck.
This was no mere guard, this was a 3rd stage cultivator trained from the Primordial Sun Dynasty. He was supposed to have transcended humanity and become closer to the Beings. His head shouldn't explode like that. It wasn't supposed to be as easy as bashing a whole watermelon with a bat. But Zoran made it look effortless.
He was just a 1st stage Physique cultivator. His attacks shouldn't have been more than a slap against someone TWO stages above him. It was already absurd for him to defeat a 3rd stage cultivator, but for him to do it with one strike was something that would haunt all the geniuses for life.
The guard couldn't move as he saw Zoran standing straight and looking at him, with his tyrannical fist smoking as it disintegrated the leftover blood from the guard.
The guard's heart stopped. If his comrade died within a snap of a finger, then what will happen to him?
He no longer cared about pride and his mission. All he wanted was a quick escape and get the hell out of dodge. There was no way he was going to tangle with a monster like him. No money in the world could make him throw away his life and suffer a death like his comrade.
He sprinted away to the door as fast as he could. Even with his speed as a 3rd stage cultivator, he still felt a tingling sensation on the back of his neck as if Zoran was breathing right behind him. The fear only served to push himself even faster than normal.
But no matter how quick he was, no matter if the door was only a few steps away, he could not help but feel a sense of dread and hopelessness as if he could not save himself from the doom that awaited him.
It turned out to be true as he saw Zoran's legs coming straight towards him from his side. With his strange teleporting movement, Zoran appeared right beside the 3rd stage guard and used the Tyrannical Miasma Strike on his feet to kick the guard in the chest.
The guard's bones disintegrated into powder and smashed his internal organs. This was already a fatal injury, but Zoran's strength seemed to be immensely strong and unending. He died painfully, feeling the full brunt of Zoran's tyrannical force right until his heart was crushed into a pulp.
Two 3rd stage and one 2nd stage shadow assassin were dead within seconds. All were finished with one move.
But it was not the end. There were still three shadow assassins that were willing to kill Zoran with whatever it took. He killed their leader. This was a crime that they would never let pass.
Even with Zoran's impressive show of force, the shadows still felt superior. They were not like the guards who had let down their guard. They even believed that Zoran only killed their leader because they had underestimated Zoran and let him have one hit.
But now, they knew Zoran's true strength. And with their coordination and assassination techniques, Zoran would be subject to his death.
They disappeared into the darkness. With their shadow techniques, even 4th stage cultivators would not sense their movements.
While Zoran was preoccupied, they threw Crescent Moons towards him laced with their ultimate poison that could even kill experts with one drop. They did not skimp and poured the whole bottle on their attacks to make sure Zoran died with his internal organs rotting from within.
SHUK SHUK SHUK
Their attacks landed on Zoran, but he didn't seem shaken. He simply took out the Crescent Moons from his back and said,
"I wanted to see if your attacks did anything to me,"
Zoran then faced the empty and dark room.
"It. Does. Not." He pointed at the three invisible shadow assassins as he enunciated his words clearly.