First encounter with a Saint Realm expert

"I finally finished the second quest."

Andres was thrilled when he saw the system notification. If the timing had been better, he would have shouted with joy.

The improvement to his talent meant that, as long as Andres continued cultivating steadily, he would eventually become a Wind Elemental High God.

A Highgod, even an ordinary one, was powerful enough to dominate a Material Plane. Even in the Four Supreme Planes, he would hold a certain status and would not be at everyone else's mercy.

Of course, Andres would not be satisfied with that.

There's still one last quest.

Completing one more quest would grant him Wind Elemental Grand Perfection Talent.

A Wind Elemental Grand Perfection expert was a supreme powerhouse who had completely fused all nine profound mysteries of wind—a true emperor among gods.

In an age before Sovereigns had appeared, Paragons were the true pinnacle of power.

If I can become a Paragon before the Sovereign Sparks descend, I'll have an absolute advantage in the struggle for them.

Andres had a very clear goal.

In this era, Sovereigns had yet to appear, which meant there were no Sovereign Artifacts either. A Paragon's killing power was even more terrifying than it was in the era of the original story.

In the original story, some Commanders were no match for Paragons, but with both a Material Defense Sovereign Artifact and a soul defense Sovereign Artifact, even a Paragon could not kill them.

Now, however, that situation did not exist.

Once things are settled here, I'll set out for Oga City first thing tomorrow morning and find Teresa.

Andres could hardly wait.

The final Binding Quest was to help Teresa become a Saint Realm expert.

There were two major thresholds to reaching the Saint realm: bringing one's Battle Qi to Peak Level Nine and comprehending "Momentum."

Andres did not need to teach him how to cultivate Battle Qi. What he needed to do was guide Teresa toward comprehending "Momentum" as soon as possible.

"Hm?"

Just as Andres was planning his next move, he suddenly sensed something and whipped his head around to look at Inori.

His thoughts had raced through his mind, but only an instant had actually passed. Inori, the guards, and even the short Beastman were still in shock. None of them had noticed a dark figure silently creeping up beside Inori.

It was a slender woman dressed in a tight black outfit that outlined her extremely slim figure. She had beautiful features and smooth, pitch-black skin like black silk, but her eyebrows and hair were silvery white. Her ears were long and pointed.

It's a Dark Elf! What's a Dark Elf doing here? Andres's expression changed drastically.

The Elf Race lived on the Sacred Tree Continent and was a powerful race capable of contending with the Beastmen.

The Elf Race had many branches, including Life Elves and Water Elves. Dark Elves were another of them.

Dark Elves were naturally attuned to darkness and excelled at concealment and stealth, making them skilled at assassination and gathering intelligence.

On the Sacred Tree Continent, the Dark Elves were the most powerful assassin organization, but they rarely operated on the Noah Continent.

Her target is Inori. Could the Beastmen have hired an assassin all the way from the Sacred Tree Continent? A possibility flashed through Andres's mind.

Yet something about it did not add up. With Resior's strength, they had no need to hire another assassin.

Andres could not make sense of it, but he had no time to dwell on it now.

He had his sights set on Inori's Fire Elemental Lesser God talent and did not want her to die just like that.

"Watch out!"

Andres shouted as he swiftly charged toward the Dark Elf Assassin.

Inori finally reacted as well, but it was already too late.

The Dark Elf Assassin was clearly highly experienced. She had chosen to strike at the exact moment Inori's attention wandered.

And she was even stronger than the Beastman assassin. She had reached the Ninth Rank.

Even if the Scarlet Scale Serpent had still been alive, Inori might not have been able to fend off an assassination attempt by a Ninth Rank assassin. Now the serpent was dead, and Inori had been distracted as well.

"You won't kill her that easily!"

Andres thrust his sword. Through "Momentum," he drew the surrounding space into pressing down on the Dark Elf Assassin, making her movements falter.

This is my chance! Inori's eyes lit up. She was already mounted on the Unicorn, and she quickly toppled to one side, using it as a shield.

Clang!

Metal rang against metal.

The flexible sword in Andres's hand collided with the Dark Elf Assassin's dagger.

Seeing Inori hide behind the Unicorn, the Dark Elf Assassin knew her attempt had failed. She decisively abandoned Inori and chose to block Andres's sword before fleeing.

But she had overestimated herself.

Slash!

There was a dull sound as the blade cut through flesh.

Andres knocked the Dark Elf Assassin's dagger away with a single stroke, then continued his attack without pause, sweeping his blade straight across her throat.

Blood sprayed from the wound in her neck.

The Dark Elf Assassin clutched the wound, unable to utter a word, then fell to the ground dead.

That was close. Luckily, this assassin wasn't all that strong, Andres thought.

After that exchange, Andres had already gauged the Dark Elf Assassin's strength.

She had only just entered the Ninth Rank and had not comprehended "Treating Light as Heavy." She was weaker than Resior.

Andres scanned his surroundings again. Only after confirming there were no other dangers did he fully relax.

Bzzzt!

At that very moment, the world around him suddenly changed. Almost in the blink of an eye, everything within several hundred meters became a Thunder World. Countless arcs of electricity flashed through the air, and Andres felt as though the entire world were pressing down on him.

Is this "Momentum"? No, it's a "Pseudo-Domain"! There's a Saint Realm expert here! Andres's expression changed drastically.

He recalled a move that Saint Realm experts often used in the original story. Because it had been created in imitation of the "Divine Domain" of God-level experts, it was known as a "Pseudo-Domain."

With their "Divine Domain," God-level experts could control the natural elements within a certain area and easily immobilize Saint Realm experts.

Saint Realm experts could not use a Divine Domain, so many of them took another approach. By unleashing large amounts of Battle Qi and bringing it into harmony with the surrounding elements, they could control those elements indirectly through their Battle Qi, achieving an effect similar to a "Divine Domain."

Of course, a "Pseudo-Domain" was still far inferior to a "Divine Domain."

Still, a Saint Realm expert using a "Pseudo-Domain" had little difficulty dealing with beings below the Saint realm.

In the original story, when Linley sparred with the Saint Realm expert Mackenzie, Mackenzie had used a "Pseudo-Domain."

At this moment, everything within several hundred meters was enveloped in the "Pseudo-Domain" of a Lightning Saint Realm expert. Everyone was being pressed down by the natural elements, their movements hindered.

Why does this "Pseudo-Domain" seem to be targeting me? Andres felt a surge of alarm.

He discovered that the surrounding Lightning Elements had condensed into a Lightning Spear, its tip aimed at him from afar!