Throne Of The Forbidden God

Silent Sabotage

The guard’s body slumped onto the wooden floor of the dock without a significant sound. A thin black vapor still danced over his corpse, which now looked like wood burned from the inside. Ravian released his grip, letting the man’s remaining life evaporate into the cold night air.

"One nuisance dealt with," Ravian whispered. "System, how many more are left in this northern dock area?"

[Scanning area... Complete. Master, there are sixteen energy signatures aboard the main ship, the 'Azure Wings.' Four of them are elite guards at the late stage of the Body Refinement realm. The rest are merely laborers and low-level guards.]

"Four elite guards," Ravian muttered, staring at the massive ship resting quietly at the pier. "They’re certainly taking the security of these illicit goods seriously. Can you detect the crates containing my energy fragments?"

[Two o'clock, Master. In the ship's lower hold. There are three large crates emitting a resonance frequency identical to your missing Spirit Meridians. Energy instability level: high.]

"Of course it’s unstable," Ravian replied bitterly. "That energy was forced out of my body. Placing it in artificial containers without proper adjustment is a recipe for disaster. They just want to squeeze every last drop of my power."

[Rekomendasi: Use the route via the anchor chain on the port side of the ship to avoid detection by the elite guards' spiritual senses on the main deck.]

"I know. I’m not stupid." Ravian moved quickly, his shadow seemingly merging with the darkness of the docks. He leaped over piles of empty crates, landing silently beneath the shadow of the massive hull.

"Hey, did you hear that?" a guard’s voice drifted down from the deck.

"Hear what? You’re too paranoid, Han. It’s probably just the waves hitting the wood," another voice replied, sounding more relaxed.

Ravian paused for a moment, his body pressed tight against the damp wood of the ship. He listened intently.

"No, I swear I heard something like the sound of fabric brushing against something," Han insisted. "I heard tonight is the most crucial shipment. If anything happens, the Head of the Arkana Clan’s Economic Department will skin us alive."

"Don’t be ridiculous," Feng chuckled. "Who would dare touch an Arkana Clan shipment in Azure City’s own territory? Even the Blue Cloud Sect has to make way when this ship passes. Besides, these artifacts will be used for Lin Xuelan’s grand ceremony tomorrow. You know how important that is to the Patriarch."

"That’s the problem," Han sighed. "I heard these artifacts are reinforced with a very rare 'Spirit Core.' They say it’s our clan’s biggest secret this year. If we successfully deliver it to the main tower tonight, our bonus will be enough to buy a house in the upper district."

"Then stop complaining and help me check the seal on crate number nine," Feng ordered. "We need to make sure everything is ready before dawn."

Ravian smirked behind his mask. Spirit Core? They gave their stolen loot such a noble name.

"System, activate Shadow Step," Ravian commanded internally.

[Shadow Step activated. Energy consumption: 5 units per minute. Your presence is now masked within the low-level visual and spiritual spectrum.]

Ravian crawled up the cold, slippery anchor chain. The muscles in his arms tightened, displaying a physical strength far beyond his current cultivation level. Once he reached a slightly ajar hatch, he slipped into the belly of the ship.

The musty smell of old wood and the sharp scent of metal greeted him. Inside the lower hold, the only light came from a few dim oil lamps. Dozens of wooden crates bound with iron chains were lined up neatly.

"Where are they?" Ravian asked.

[Three meters ahead of you, under the pile of silk fabric. Three crates with blue sun-shaped gold seals.]

Ravian stepped closer. He could feel a strange tugging in his chest. It was the call of his trapped energy fragments. He tore away the covering fabric, revealing the crates the system had mentioned.

"You people have truly gone too far," Ravian whispered as his hand touched the cold surface of the crate. "Using my soul to empower these cheap weapons."

Suddenly, the sound of footsteps echoed down the stairs leading to the hold.

"Hurry up, I want to finish this report and go get a drink!" the voice sounded gruff.

Ravian immediately leaped onto a wooden beam on the ceiling of the hold, hiding in the thick darkness. Two guards entered, one of them holding a scroll and a quill.

"Crate number one hundred twelve... check. Crate number one hundred thirteen... check," the man with the scroll read out boredly.

"What about those three special crates? The Head of the Economic Department specifically asked about those 'Heavenly Fragments,'" the other guard asked.

"They’re over there, under that cloth. Who do you think would dare steal them? The seal alone could shatter an early-stage cultivator’s hand if touched without permission," the man pointed toward the crates Ravian had just touched.

"Wait a minute," the guard frowned. He walked closer to the crates. "Why is the covering cloth open? Han, didn't you say you closed it tight earlier?"

"Eh? Maybe it got snagged when we moved the crate next to it," Han approached hesitantly.

"No way. Look at this... there are handprints on the surface of the crate," the guard drew his sword quickly. "Intruder! Who’s there? Show yourself!"

Ravian took a long breath. It was very difficult to stay calm when these pieces of trash kept shouting.

"System, how long would it take to ruin all the artifacts in this hold using the Hell Meridian?"

[Analysis complete. Master, if you release 'Hell’s Corrosion Rain,' it will take thirty seconds to destroy the energy cores of all the artifacts in this room. However, this will trigger spiritual alarms throughout the ship.]

"Thirty seconds is enough for me to kill them all," Ravian replied.

He dropped from the ceiling, landing right between the two guards. Before they could react, Ravian’s hands were already moving. His left hand gripped the first guard’s throat, while his right hand plunged pitch-black energy into the second guard’s chest.

"Ugh... y-you..." the first guard could only make a raspy sound before his neck snapped with a single twist.

The second guard was thrown toward a pile of crates, his chest holed and blackened. He tried to scream, but the black vapor from the Hell Meridian instantly scorched his vocal cords.

"Don’t be noisy," Ravian said coldly. "Death should be a quiet moment."

Ravian stood in the middle of the hold. He spread both his arms. A black aura began to seep from his pores, forming a thin mist that spread rapidly throughout the room.

"System, do it now!"

[Hell’s Corrosion Protocol activated. Commencing destruction of energy cores...]

A hissing sound began to emanate from within the wooden crates. The precious cultivation artifacts that had been glowing dimly now faded completely. Choice metals became brittle, and energy stones crumbled into ash without the sound of an explosion. This was destruction from within, sabotage that left nothing behind but useless junk.

"What’s going on down there? Han! Feng! Why are you taking so long?" a loud voice echoed from the stairs.

Ravian looked toward the stairs. A middle-aged man in luxurious clothing appeared. He was one of the Arkana Clan’s logistics supervisors. As soon as his eyes fell upon the corpses of the two guards and the black mist filling the hold, his face turned deathly pale.

"I-intruder! Help! There’s a demon in the hold!" the man screamed at the top of his lungs while trying to run back to the deck.

"You’re so noisy, old man," Ravian flicked his fingers.

A black tendril shot out from the mist, wrapping around the man’s leg and pulling him down onto the steps. Ravian walked slowly toward him, his footsteps sounding like a death knell in the silence of the hold, which was now filled with the scent of corrosion.

"Who are you? What do you want? If you want money, the Arkana Clan will give you more than you can imagine! Please, don’t kill me!" the man begged, tears and sweat mixing on his face.

"Money? You think I can buy back what you took from me with gold?" Ravian crouched in front of the man. He grabbed the collar of his expensive clothes. "Tell me, who gave the order to use the energy from the youth you threw into the abyss?"

"W-what do you mean? I’m just a logistics supervisor! I don’t know anything about an abyss or a youth!" the man trembled violently.

"Of course you don’t. You’re just a small screw in this rotten machine," Ravian stared into the man’s eyes with a hollow gaze. "But you are a part of them. And that is enough for me."

[Master, the elite guards on deck are moving downstairs. You have ten seconds before you are surrounded.]

"Thanks for the warning, System."

Ravian released the man, then stood tall. He kicked the golden crate containing his energy fragment until it shattered. Inside was a crystal orb glowing dimly with a pure blue light, but now the orb was covered in black cracks.

"This is mine," Ravian said, picking up the crystal orb. As soon as it touched his palm, the orb instantly crumbled into light-dust and absorbed into his body.

[Energy fragment integration commencing... Warning! This energy has been contaminated by orthodox cultivation methods. Immediate purification required.]

"Perform the purification while we move out," Ravian commanded.

"There he is! Kill him!" Four elite guards leaped down into the hold. They drew longswords infused with high-level spirit energy. The blue light from their blades illuminated the dark hold.

"Take a look at your goods," Ravian pointed around calmly.

The guards glanced briefly at the destroyed crates. Their eyes widened at the sight of high-level artifacts that now looked like nothing more than rusted scrap.

"Y-you... you destroyed everything? Do you know how much this is worth? This is a loss of millions of gold pieces for the Arkana Clan!" the lead guard screamed, his voice nearly cracking with rage.

"Value? I call it garbage disposal," Ravian replied.

"Capture him alive! We must find out who sent him!" The four guards attacked simultaneously.

Their movements were fast and coordinated. They formed a four-way formation, locking down every exit for Ravian. However, in Ravian’s eyes, their movements seemed slow. The Hell Meridian provided senses far sharper toward the enemy's energy flow.

"Shadow Step: Black Lightning," Ravian murmured.

In an instant, Ravian’s figure vanished from the center of the encirclement. He reappeared behind one of the guards, his palm striking the man’s back. Without a sound, the guard’s spine shattered into pieces.

"One," Ravian counted.

"Behind you, idiot!" the second guard slashed his sword, but Ravian only tilted his head slightly. The blade passed his ear by mere millimeters. Ravian caught the guard’s wrist, twisting it until the sound of cracking bone was heard, then used him as a shield against the attacks from the other two guards.