Everyone waited in dead silence. No one spoke. At the base of Shuumei Mount, a few modified SUVS let out deafening roars from their engines. With a sharp ring of a whistle, the race cars shot away from the starting line..
All the roads of Shuumei Mount were winding curves. Yet, the race cars didn’t slow down as they approached the dangerous turns. Instead, they drifted across one after another corner without fear.
A young man with dyed blond hair was taking the lead. The other cars were a distance away from him. He watched through his rear view mirror with a gleeful smirk as he pulled away from the car trailing after him.
Swoosh! At that time, the young man felt a shadow going passed his car in a flash. Surprised by the sudden appearance of a man, the young man nearly drove his car off the cliff.
He rubbed his eyes to try and get a clearer view. Fear struck him after confirming what he saw was indeed a man. How can a man running on foot be faster than a race car?
Before he could see who it was, the man had run past his car and disappeared around the bend. Meanwhile, within Zenko Shrine, Sugimoto’s eyes snapped open.
“He’s here.” Sugimoto slowly rose to a stand and walked out of the ancient structure. The ten mages followed after him. When Sugimoto stepped through the front door, he noticed a young man in his twenties, dressed in sports attire, leisurely walking up the mountain and halted in front of him. The young man’s face was devoid of any expression.
He looked just like any other jogger. However, Sugimoto could sense that the young man was a huge threat. The young man was none other than Jared.
Facing hundreds of samurais gathered at the square, Jared traipsed toward Sugimoto as if he was going on a walk, feeling the rays of the morning sun. Hundreds of gazes from the samurai were all focused on Jared.
When Jared stepped closer, dozens of samurais unsheathed their katanas and immediately surrounded him. The samurais’ eyes were ice-cold. Their movements were agile. Murderous intent radiated from the sharp edges of their polished katanas.
The samurais’ abilities were on par with Greater Martial Arts Grandmaster. They could easily be an overlord in any part of the mundane world.
Despite the dozens of Greater Martial Arts Grandmaster equivalent samurais surrounding Jared, his face was still a mask of calm. In his eyes, the samurais were nothing more than ants. He might not even regard them as ants.
“Who are you? Why did you come to Zenko Shrine?” Sugimoto questioned Jared with at booming voice. “To kill,” Jared stated casually. With a frown, Sugimoto asked, “Were you the one who eradicated Thousand Crane Shrine?”
Jared nodded. “That’s right. Destroy your Deity’s statue and replace it with mine if you don’t want to face the same fate. Worship me as your new Deity, and I’ll spare your life. I won’t lay a hand on my worshippers.”
“Insolent!” Sugimoto roared furiously. The Deity revered at Zenko Shrine was the Zenko family’s ancestor. How could he replace it with Jared? “Death is the only way for you since you disagree.”
Ignoring the samurais surrounding him, Jared continued approaching Sugimoto. “Kill him!” Sugimoto ordered. Dozens of samurais shouted war cries before wielding their katanas at Jared.
Dozens of katanas turned into flashes and surrounded Jared. Despite that, Jared continued to ignore their attacks and continued inching forward.
Clang! Jared didn’t dodge nor did he resist the attacks from the samurais. He knew the samurais couldn’t even land a cut on his body, even if he didn’t activate Golem Body.
