Chapter 241 — The Operation Begins

Chapter 241: Chapter 241 — The Operation Begins

Chapter 241 — The Operation Begins

Victor raced through Region E at full speed.

The landscape blurred around him as he approached the boundary of Region F, but this time, he wasn’t alone.

Six white-masked figures followed close behind.

Every one of them stood at the peak of the Spirit Gathering Realm.

But there was something different about them.

Victor had encountered plenty of powerful Spirit Gathering cultivators by now. He’d stood near the guards outside the Graveborn estate, fought Daniel while he suppressed his cultivation, and sensed numerous high-ranking cultivators throughout the Tower.

These six felt different.

Their Spiritual Energy was incredibly pure.

Dense.

Refined.

Even the peak Spirit Gathering guards at the Graveborn estate hadn’t given Victor the same feeling.

Why does their energy feel so different?

Victor didn’t understand.

Maybe it had something to do with the Order’s cultivation methods. Maybe they possessed resources ordinary Tower cultivators didn’t have access to.

Whatever the reason, Victor was glad they were on his side.

Another figure traveled slightly behind him.

Two long swords rested at his sides, and a white mask covered his face.

Cyrus.

Apparently, Victor and Cyrus would be spending quite a lot of time together from now on.

Victor hadn’t learned much about him yet.

The man barely spoke.

If anything, Cyrus seemed almost unbelievably lazy. Whenever nothing was happening, he looked like he was seconds away from falling asleep. He didn’t waste energy talking, didn’t ask Victor unnecessary questions, and didn’t seem interested in doing anything that wasn’t part of his job.

But Victor had quickly noticed something else.

Cyrus was always alert.

No matter how lazy he appeared, his attention never truly wandered.

He simply followed Victor and did his job as a personal guard.

Anything beyond that apparently wasn’t worth the effort.

Victor couldn’t help finding the contrast amusing.

The Space Witch remained close as well, while Elder Benton followed farther behind the group.

They crossed into Region F.

Victor gradually slowed.

The familiar cavern passages returned around him, broad stretches of dark stone broken by uneven pillars and jagged walls. Faint mineral deposits caught what little light there was, giving the rock an occasional dull shimmer.

The deeper they went, the quieter it became.

Victor raised a hand.

"This is it."

Everyone behind him immediately became more alert.

Victor led them through the same dark passage he’d traveled before. His footsteps softened as they approached the bend.

Then he saw them.

The two guards were still there.

Both wore boar masks.

Victor narrowed his eyes.

He hadn’t seen two Evil God cultivators wearing the same type of mask before.

Does that mean something?

A rank?

A particular role?

He didn’t have time to think about it.

Two of the six white-masked cultivators moved.

Victor barely saw them.

Both carried a sword and shield.

They flashed across the cavern almost simultaneously.

The boar-masked guards turned.

Too late.

A shield smashed into the first man’s chest, completely destroying his balance.

A sword followed.

His head left his shoulders.

The second Order cultivator did nearly the exact same thing.

Shield.

Sword.

Blood.

Both Rank Seven Spirit Gathering cultivators collapsed before either had a chance to raise an alarm.

Victor stared.

Fast.

The difference wasn’t even close.

The two white-masked cultivators calmly collected the dead men’s storage rings before dragging the bodies away from the entrance.

Victor found himself appreciating the Order a little more.

If the rest of the operation went this smoothly, they might actually get Lyra out without too much trouble.

Unfortunately, that hope disappeared the moment they entered the base.

Victor stopped.

Everyone behind him did the same.

"What the hell..."

The narrow passage opened into an enormous underground chamber.

It looked partly natural and partly constructed. The rough cavern ceiling rose several stories overhead, supported in places by thick stone columns reinforced with dark metal bands. Pale formation lamps had been embedded along the walls, casting a cold white light across the chamber.

Several tunnels branched away from the main space, disappearing deeper into the base.

Crates and supply containers had been stacked near some of the walls. A few crude wooden partitions divided sections of the cavern.

But none of that held Victor’s attention.

The chamber was filled with people.

Hundreds.

No.

Far more.

Victor’s eyes moved across the room as he tried to estimate the number.

There had to be over fifteen hundred.

Some were lying on thin blankets spread across the stone.

Others sat against the walls or huddled together in groups.

Almost all of them were painfully thin. Their clothes hung loosely from their bodies, and their faces looked hollow and exhausted.

The strangest thing was how quiet they were.

Fifteen hundred people should have filled the cavern with noise.

Instead, Victor heard little more than scattered coughing, the occasional murmur, and the distant scrape of someone shifting against the stone.

They looked broken.

Defeated.

Victor felt anger rise inside him.

He didn’t need anyone to explain what he was seeing.

Sacrifices.

These were the people the Evil God Organization intended to use.

Victor’s fists tightened.

Every instinct told him to rush inside.

But he stopped himself.

They still had the element of surprise.

The moment they lost that advantage, everything would become more difficult.

Victor forced his attention away from the prisoners.

Focus.

Masked cultivators were scattered throughout the chamber.

Some stood near the branching tunnels. Others walked between the groups of captives or watched from positions along the walls.

And almost immediately, Victor realized something.

The two Rank Seven Spirit Gathering guards outside had probably been among the weakest people stationed here.

There were at least nine or ten peak Spirit Gathering cultivators throughout the chamber.

Then Victor noticed someone else.

Near one of the passages at the far end stood a broad figure wearing what appeared to be a sloth mask.

Victor focused on him.

He couldn’t read the man’s cultivation at all.

Spirit Core.

Definitely.

But Victor couldn’t tell what rank.

Cyrus stopped beside him.

For once, the lazy quality in his posture disappeared.

"This may be a little harder than we thought."

Victor glanced at him.

Cyrus stared toward the sloth-masked cultivator.

"He’s Rank Three Spirit Core."

Victor’s expression tightened.

"And?"

"I’m probably going to need everything I have just to keep him occupied."

Victor looked at Cyrus.

The Tower Master hadn’t exaggerated.

Cyrus had only recently entered the Spirit Core Realm, yet he was talking about fighting a Rank Three.

Cyrus continued.

"The others will have their hands full with those peak Spirit Gathering cultivators."

His eyes shifted toward Victor.

"So once we move, you’re going to be mostly on your own."

Victor nodded.

"You and Space Witch should be the only two free enough to enter deeper into the base and search for your friend."

Victor glanced toward the Space Witch.

She stood only a few steps away, one hand resting near her sword.

Still silent.

Still unreadable.

"Sounds good."

Victor turned toward the others.

Everyone was waiting.

"All right. Everyone knows their job."

He pointed toward the sloth-masked man.

"Cyrus takes him."

Then toward the other masked cultivators.

"The rest of you handle the peak Spirit Gathering cultivators. There are around nine or ten that I can see."

Victor’s voice became more serious.

"This needs to be fast. Don’t hold back."

The six warriors remained silent.

"We hit them with everything before they understand what’s happening."

Victor paused.

"And most importantly, stay safe."

Several masks turned toward him.

"Every one of you is important to humanity’s future. Don’t do anything stupid or reckless just because we’re in a hurry."

For a moment, none of them responded.

Then all six nodded.

"Sir!"

Victor blinked.

That was going to take some getting used to.

There was something almost military about them. Their movements, their responses, even the way they stood while waiting for orders.

The Order had trained them well.

These weren’t ordinary cultivators.

They were hardened warriors.

Victor looked toward Cyrus.

"Let’s move."

Cyrus drew his swords.

The operation began.

Everyone exploded forward at once.

The two strongest Spirit Gathering cultivators charged directly into the center of the enemy formation.

Each targeted two opponents.

Four peak Spirit Gathering cultivators were forced into battle before they had fully realized what was happening.

The remaining four members moved together, spreading across the chamber to engage the others.

For the first few seconds, the Evil God cultivators barely had time to react.

"What—"

Steel flashed.

One of the Order members disappeared.

Victor’s eyes tracked him for barely a second.

Assassin?

The white-masked cultivator appeared directly behind one of the enemy fighters.

A blade passed across the man’s throat.

His eyes widened.

Blood sprayed across the stone.

The man collapsed before he even understood someone had gotten behind him.

Victor felt the last burst of his cultivation as he fell.

Rank Nine Spirit Gathering.

Only a single step away from Rank Ten.

And he’d died instantly.

Then the advantage of surprise shattered.

"ENEMY ATTACK!"

The shout thundered across the cavern.

The captives recoiled.

Those who still had the strength scrambled toward the walls, while others curled against the ground and covered their heads.

Spiritual Energy erupted throughout the chamber.

The cold formation lights flickered as weapons collided.

Cyrus was already gone.

BOOM!

The cavern shook.

Dust drifted from the ceiling.

Victor turned just in time to see the sloth-masked Spirit Core cultivator drive forward with overwhelming brute strength.

Cyrus crossed both swords in front of himself.

The impact forced him backward across the stone.

His boots carved two lines into the floor before he finally stopped.

Cyrus lowered his blades.

The lazy man Victor had traveled with was nowhere to be seen.

His entire presence had changed.

Sloth Mask charged again.

Cyrus met him head-on.

Another explosion rolled through the chamber.

Victor looked away.

He didn’t have time to watch.

The Order had created the opening.

Now he needed to use it.

Somewhere beyond one of those tunnels was Lyra.

Victor closed everything else out and focused on the Soul Bond.

There.

His eyes locked onto one of the passages leading deeper into the base.

Spiritual Energy surged through his legs.

Flash Step.

Victor shot past the fighting cultivators and disappeared into the tunnel.

A moment later, the Space Witch followed.

Behind them, steel crashed against steel.

Spiritual Energy tore through the cavern.

The cries of the frightened captives mixed with the sounds of battle.

Victor never looked back.

The operation had begun.