Chapter 32
Lisa stood before a building, where a man sat on top, gazing down with disinterest.
He had sensed Lisa's rank as only C+ and deemed her unworthy of his attention.
His focus was on Alex, who was still floating—a feat only S rank and above could achieve.
This was the only reason the man had not yet attacked Alex directly.
He wondered whether Alex was using an artifact or if he had truly reached S rank, a status as unattainable to most as a mountain towering over a normal human.
Andrew's thoughts were clouded with curiosity and doubt.
Despite his musings, he felt a faint presence from Alex, akin to that of an E rank.
The reason Andrew could sense Alex's power was that Alex's mask only suppressed energy levels at D+ rank and below.
Since Alex's power was at C rank, the mask could only conceal Alex's strength to that of an E rank.
Andrew sighed, unsure of his next move, when Lisa suddenly appeared behind him. "Today is your last day," she declared.
"I doubt that," Andrew replied calmly.
Before more words could be exchanged, Lisa shifted into a battle stance.
She thought to herself, First Form: Wind Thrust.
Thrusting her sword forward, she aimed for Andrew's head.
Her strike landed, but Andrew's body turned to stone, shattering into pieces upon impact.
Lisa leapt back, narrowly avoiding retaliatory strikes that emerged from the ground where she had stood moments before.
The unexpected attack moved like serpents rushing toward her.
Using her wind element, Lisa propelled herself away, dodging the strikes.
However, as she landed, Andrew emerged from the ground with a sword in hand, ready to strike.
Before his attack could connect, he suddenly clutched his chest in agony, retreating as blood spewed from his mouth.
Andrew's stats reflected his sudden weakness:
[Lv89] → [Lv79]
[Lv79] = B-
Breathing heavily, Andrew realized unleashing his full strength would likely lead to his death.
Alex had attacked him with 20 soul spears, which had consumed only 10% of Alex's soul essence.
Alex could generate up to 200 soul spears, enough to obliterate Andrew completely.
Previously, Alex had been unable to wield this power because his foundation had not yet matured.
Andrew's eyes darted nervously to Alex, who was holding Amber in his arms as she slept.
Alex addressed Lisa, "Remember, this man is a B rank. Don't hold back when assessing his strength, or you'll end up gravely injured."
Eve's voice echoed in Lisa's mind, That's exactly why that demon was able to weaken us before. Can't you learn?
Lisa sighed. "Yeah, it seems I haven't learned from my mistakes." Eve materialized behind her before fusing into Lisa's chest.
A mark appeared on Lisa's face as her level increased:
[Lv70] → [Lv80]
Lisa's rank reached [Lv75] = B-, but her mana quality prevented her from fully achieving Lv80.
Even so, she now had a fighting chance.
After all, a battle's outcome is determined not by levels alone but also by skill, martial art proficiency, and elemental control.
Andrew felt Lisa's rising power but kept his gaze fixed on Alex, who had incapacitated him in mere seconds. Escape became Andrew's priority.
"Then show me all that boasting about your spirit mode," Alex taunted.
Alex's thoughts wandered as he observed Lisa's transformation.
'Spiritual energy is closely linked with soul essence. That explains her knowledge of it. If I cultivate my spiritual energy, can I create a spirit mode too? Or even an Arcane Mana mode? I already have the Soul Emperor state, which functions like a soul mode.'
He stepped back from the fight, pondering, 'Maybe I should think of some profound things to say to make people believe I'm a wise leader.'
Lisa, now in her Wind Spirit Mode, turned her attention to Andrew, who stopped eyeing Alex. Andrew thought desperately, 'How can I escape?' Fighting Alex was clearly futile.
Before Andrew could finish his thought, Lisa appeared before him at a blinding speed, using Wind Thrust once more.
Her attack was too powerful and fast for Andrew to dodge. He raised his rock-covered arms to block the strike.
This time, Lisa's attack hit with such force that Andrew was sent flying, crashing through multiple buildings before coming to a halt.
'Damn, elemental spirits are a pain,' Andrew thought as he struggled to his feet.
Spotting an approaching figure with a sword, he impaled the individual with an earth spike, killing them instantly.
"Earth Waterfall," Andrew chanted.
The ground began to shift as if snakes of earth were slithering toward Lisa.
Smiling confidently, she entered a stance. "Alex, watch closely. You're about to witness someone entering the Dominant Realm in swordsmanship."
She shouted inwardly, Fourth Form: Go Tusti!
Her slash produced a colossal bird-shaped attack, spanning over 10 meters in width and 20 meters in wingspan.
The bird charged toward the tidal wave of earth.
When the two forces collided:
BOOOOOOM!
The impact obliterated everything within a 150-meter radius.
Slaves and nobles alike perished in the destruction.
Alex did nothing to save them.
Why should he?
The slaves, bloodthirsty for revenge, had forced the nobles to release their collars and were already fleeing the town.
Those who stayed were merely courting death.
Underground, Stella's battle caused the ground to collapse, but she remained unharmed as she fought against adventurers of mediocre strength.
Meanwhile, Kevin and Luna's battles grew more intense. Anyone with common sense had already fled, knowing that staying close to such fights was a death sentence.
The chaos raged on.