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The Flesh King had never expected Akira to flee so swiftly, completely disregarding their agreement. The nine-tailed fox demon had abandoned the battlefield at the first sign of a losing battle.
But now that things had come to this, blaming him was nothing but impotent rage. It was time for the Sovereign-level demon to retreat.
After all, following his probing assault, he had already obtained the answer he sought.
Moreover...
Sizzle!
A burst of blazing white light erupted across the Velkairos coastline. The thin white mist that had shrouded the area instantly dissipated, revealing a bright, sunny sky.
Lord Lioren, the Empire of Aetherlight's premier Lore Cardian, had finally taken action.
Seeing this, Lucian turned back to glance at the distant sky and sighed silently. "Little Lioren."
The old man naturally understood why the Sovereign-level Lore Cardian had chosen this moment to act. After briefly steadying himself, he turned toward his disciple. "Azrael."
"...Never mind. It's nothing."
Lucian wanted to offer words of encouragement, but he swallowed them back. Azrael no longer needed his encouragement.
After all, defeating a Master-level demon with Diamond-level strength was a feat the old man had never heard of. In over a thousand years of recorded history, no Diamond-level Lore Cardian had ever accomplished such a thing.
Thinking of this, Lucian couldn't help but feel somewhat melancholic. He patted Azrael's shoulder and turned to leave. He didn't know when his young apprentice had grown beyond needing his protection. It felt as though he were watching a child grow up and start a family, no matter how reluctant he was, he had no choice but to let go. All he could do now was support his apprentice for one last time.
Unaware of his teacher's complex emotions, Azrael stared silently at the still-turbulent sea. After a long moment, the young man thought grimly, 'Jin, you've got a wicked heart.'
Combined with the information his teacher had revealed, he had a rough idea that Jin had orchestrated what had just transpired. Having lost the support of the Crimson Oath Society, the old man must have been attempting to win over the demon army and the nine-tailed fox to his side. The reason for his urgency stemmed from the deteriorating situation in Antarctica.
'Can't handle the pressure I'm putting on him?' Azrael scoffed inwardly, then fell silent. It seemed possible. Perhaps a small part of Jin's reasoning was that he feared Azrael would become another Lord Lioren. If Azrael remained healthy and reached Sovereign-level, he would be even more terrifying than the current premier Lore Cardian.
More importantly, after today's battle, Jin would undoubtedly grow even more vigilant.
Unlike the master and disciple whose thoughts swirled with strategic considerations, Dareth was filled only with relief and excitement.
He was thankful that the [Demon Nest] riot hadn't caused significant damage to Velkairos. Most of the low-level demons had fainted under the pressure of the young man's Straw Hat Luffy card's Conqueror's Haki.
His excitement stemmed from... "Azrael, thanks to you this time," the middle-aged man said enthusiastically, patting the young Lore Cardian on the shoulder.
As Lucian's old friend, Dareth knew that the Sovereign-level Lore Cardian's body might not hold out much longer. Fortunately, there was someone to take over. Based on Azrael's performance just now, he was basically operating at Master-level strength.
Thinking of this, Dareth felt a surge of fear. After all, if such a genius were truly controlled by Jin, it would spell disaster for the Empire of Aetherlight. Fortunately, the young man possessed his own secrets and hadn't allowed Jin to succeed.
Just as Dareth was lost in thought, Azrael suddenly said, "Uncle Dareth, I'm planning to explore that newly discovered secret realm tomorrow."
The middle-aged man was startled, then nodded. "Alright, I'll help you coordinate things."
Clearing an already-secured secret realm was standard procedure. Even if Azrael hadn't mentioned it, Dareth would have sent someone to explore it later. A Diamond-level Lore Cardian would undoubtedly lead the team, so it would ultimately fall to Alice or the young man.
Since Azrael had brought it up, Dareth naturally didn't mind accommodating him and doing him a favor.
Azrael's initiative stemmed from the fact that he had once obtained promotion materials for [Las Noches] in this Seven Seas-like secret realm, so he wanted to try his luck there again. Of course, part of his motivation was to see if any remaining Diamond-level demons lurked within the secret realm, though previous intelligence suggested a high probability of none.
Azrael sighed softly, then cast his gaze upon Barrett's corpse before him.
"[Heavenly Overlord]?"
He leaned over and picked up the material condensed from the Demon Heir's body, unable to resist a sneer. Though Barrett's title was strikingly similar to Aizen's, their performances were worlds apart. The Lord of Hueco Mundo, at his peak, had only managed to withstand Ichigo Kurosaki at full power; there was no possibility of him fleeing mid-battle.
Regardless, the material Barrett dropped was a perfect match for Aizen. Combined with the materials Azrael had previously acquired, the only things missing from advancing Aizen to Diamond rank were one more material and the card [Perfect Hōgyoku].
Thinking of this, he couldn't help but sigh. "It's a shame the Association's inventory doesn't have the final material I need. I'll go back and check through the updated collection today."
The Association's material stockpile naturally wouldn't remain static. As new Diamond-level demons appeared across the Empire of Aetherlight, their inventory would undoubtedly increase. Just because Azrael hadn't found the right material before didn't mean he'd find the same result this time.
Australia, City Within a City.
Jin sat grimly at the long table representing the Crimson Oath Society. However, the only nameplates remaining beside him were One and Three.
Without a doubt, the Crimson Oath Society, now reduced to a handful of members, was effectively dead in name only.
Besides the three remaining executives, the three Master-level Lore Cardians from City Within a City were also present. Indeed, Chris, the [Inverted Cross] who had previously aided Jin, had also arrived.
Ignoring the dark-skinned man chewing on the limbs of an unknown creature, the Skinner asked, "What's the situation in the Empire of Aetherlight?"
Her concern stemmed from the fact that she had been the one who informed Jin that Lord Lioren might be weakening. As for where the woman's information came from, it was Edley who told her. However, the Indo-American Sovereign-level Lore Cardian hadn't said anything definitive, only that Lord Lioren seemed to be barely holding on.
Hearing the Skinner's question, Jin's face darkened even further. He spoke almost word by word through gritted teeth, "Failed."
"That Akira bastard just ran away."
Hearing this, the Skinner was stunned and immediately asked, "Is Lord Lioren alright? Did he attack directly?"
In her opinion, there was only one possibility for the nation-destroying fox demon to be so easily driven off: the Empire's Sovereign-level Lore Cardian had forced him to retreat.
However, Jin's next words left the Skinner bewildered.
"It was that brat, Azrael."
"He injured Akira, and then the fox just fled."
At this, the old man's chest heaved rapidly, clearly filled with rage at the thought of the traitor who had caused the Crimson Oath Society such devastating losses. He still couldn't understand how Azrael had broken free from his contract. Jin had examined it after returning to Australia. What the old man couldn't comprehend was that even now, he still held Azrael's contract, yet he couldn't exert any influence over it.
It was as if his contract had become worthless paper.
The Skinner, having lost control of her expression, repeated with palpable doubt, "Azrael injured Akira?"
"President Jin, you're talking about that Diamond-level traitor, right?"
She was somewhat uncertain whether a new Master-level Lore Cardian named Azrael had appeared in the Empire. After all, for a Diamond-level Lore Cardian to injure a Master-level demon was nearly unbelievable. Such a feat meant he could theoretically injure Master-level Lore Cardians like themselves.
Jin didn't bother explaining at this point; if he said any more, he feared he'd lose control of his emotions. The old man simply waved his hand, and a screen of light materialized in the center of the conference area.
It displayed Ichigo Kurosaki and Luffy battling Akira.
As the battle on the screen drew to a close, the expressions of the three Master-level Lore Cardians present, excluding Jin, grew increasingly grave. Even Marcus stopped chewing.
Only after the screen dissipated did Chris gloat, "Jin, I didn't expect you'd encounter something like this."
"I told you that your tricks wouldn't last, and now you've brought trouble upon yourself, haven't you?"
The young man believed in the saying that thirty years could turn fortune on its head. After all, that was how he had killed his own mentor. Therefore, he despised Jin's behavior of treating subordinates like dogs.
Hearing Chris's taunt, Jin's eyes darkened, and he spoke harshly, "Chris, you didn't agree to ally with us last time, so why are you coming to us now?"
"Or have you been bribed by the Empire of Aetherlight? Are you planning to spy on us?"
The old man certainly wouldn't go easy on him. Marcus and the Skinner were his allies now. If Chris didn't give him a reasonable explanation, then...
Hearing this, Chris curled his lips, unfazed by Jin's threats. He simply said coldly, "Don't throw accusations at me, old dog. I'm only here because of a personal vendetta against that traitor under your command."
"Antipas died at that brat's hands, and I must avenge him."
"And you knew about this, didn't you? If I'd known he was one of your men, I wouldn't have let him return to the Empire so easily."
Jin was startled at first, but then he remembered that Azrael had reported this incident to him. Thinking about Chris's attitude toward his subordinates, the old man accepted the explanation.
Seeing the two had reached a consensus, the Skinner solemnly asked Jin, "President Jin, how much do you know about Azrael's cards?"
The woman was genuinely shocked. Judging from what had just transpired, she couldn't imagine how terrifying the orange-haired Shinigami and straw-hatted pirate would be if they could advance to Master-level. After all, they were already capable of injuring Master-level demons at Diamond-rank. Wouldn't they be able to defeat Master-level opponents if they reached that tier?
As for a Master-level Lore Cardian injuring a Sovereign-level one... that was still a bit unrealistic. Before today, no Diamond-level Lore Cardian had ever been able to injure a Master-level demon.
However, Jin simply shook his head at the Skinner's question. He had previously assumed he could control Azrael, the young tiger, and hadn't considered seeking comprehensive information about the young man's cards. Therefore, the old man's knowledge of Azrael was no greater than that of the Skinner and her companions.
Seeing this, the Skinner remained silent.
After a long pause, she pinched her brow against a nagging headache. "Let's set that aside for now."
"Lord Lioren certainly doesn't look well."
To the woman, Azrael's situation wasn't particularly critical. After all, it was Jin who had offended the other party, and she was merely an accomplice. If things truly escalated, she could at most pay some materials and retreat back to the Indo-American Federation. There was absolutely no need to confront him for Jin's sake.
Speaking of Lord Lioren, Jin and the others temporarily suppressed their shock. After all, the original purpose of this operation was to ascertain the status of the Sovereign-level Lore Cardian, but Azrael's interference had complicated matters.
After Azrael's incident, Jin had grown even more cautious. The old man was silent for a moment before speaking. "Even after the tiger dies, its might lingers. Who knows if he was just feigning weakness?"
"We'll have to be more covert in our future operations. Fortunately, contact with them has recently been restored."
Upon hearing this, Marcus and the Skinner nodded in agreement, while Chris remained silent.
After a moment, the young man stood up expressionlessly and said calmly, "I'll only help you deal with Azrael. I won't get involved in anything else."
"I find it distasteful."
With that, he left the meeting room with the other members of the Fallen Cult.
Jin scoffed at Chris's performance. In the old man's opinion, his actions over the years weren't much cleaner than his own, it was just the pot calling the kettle black. But as long as Chris didn't interfere with the plan, Jin didn't bother with him.
Elsewhere.
Azrael had never expected the materials he needed would appear in the Association's archives. Unfortunately, there was only one suitable for Aizen:
The Diamond-grade [Evolution Platinum] (Red).
"Why am I still missing materials for Aizen?" the young man muttered with exasperation.
He currently possessed the materials for Aizen: [Limit Breaker] (Red), [Heavenly Overlord] (Red), [Evolution Platinum] (Red), and [God's Debris] (Red). He was still missing two key materials to advance Aizen to Diamond rank.
But this kind of thing couldn't be rushed. After all, the more time passed, the more materials would become available.
"Forget it, there will always be a way forward."
"And it's not like I haven't gained something else this time."
Indeed, despite not being able to advance Aizen, Azrael had found two other materials needed to craft another crucial card.
Diamond-ranked [Heartless Executioner] (Red).
Diamond-ranked [Unrighteous Strongman] (Red).
Adding these to the previously acquired [Cinder Edge] (Red), he was ready to create the Shinigami who had terrorized Soul Society for millennia, killing in the name of protection.
Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni.