Chapter 169 - Retaliation Of The Clans [2]

White... What he could only see was white, and later on, it started changing. It became dark and a few lines appeared, but at the center of his vision was a huge azure sphere of energy.

The azure color was hazy and there was a mist on it.

"Recognition... This is a recognition..."

Gabriel was familiar with it. He had already experienced this one, and it wasn't new to him. He then took the chance to absorb his understanding, hoping to get back his life.

***

Black saw Gabriel's body squirming, which indicated that he was losing his life. Gabriel's eyes closed, and there, the squirming movements stopped.

After a few seconds, sighs filled the surrounding area.

One squad member mumbled as he lamented the death of another squad member.

"How come he was already in the Master Spirit Realm? What is this kid's background?" Black asked himself and turned his back to Gabriel's corpse. But, he suddenly had the urge to pause as he heard a slight movement in Gabriel's body.

Brushes of dried leaves could be heard, and Black slowly turned his head back to Gabriel's body.

"What the hell..."

Some of the squad members lost their balance as they saw Gabriel slowly standing while covering the slit on his neck. Black's eyes widened in disbelief as well, and he gripped his sword tightly.

"What the hell are you?"

Black was stunned, as were other elite squad members. They couldn't move from shock and were just looking at Gabriel. Their knees started trembling. They were sure that he had died, yet he stood up as if nothing had happened.

Gabriel was still covering the wound in his neck, but the wound was beginning to close. The slit in his back closed as well as the wound in his neck. 

He let go of his neck afterward and stretched his neck.

'I finally achieved recognition.'

Enlightenment can also happen in a near-death experience. However, Gabriel didn't expect that recognition would also happen at the same time as enlightenment. 

Recognition for Gabriel is the ability to recognize the true essence of the technique. It was his body's own version of enlightenment, as his physique was different from others.

"You should have died," Black stated.

One squad member shouted as soon as he remembered his comrade dying. And just as this squad member attacked him, Gabriel only raised his sword light and swayed it downward to this squad member's location.

The squad member stopped and a line was drawn vertically. Later on, he was slit in half and blood gushed out from his halved body.

[Stallion of Formless Art]

Gabriel faced the other elite squad members and swung his sword numerous times. A few pressure winds were created, and Black couldn't see where those energies were going as they were invisible.

This is the essence of the [Stallion of Formless Art]. It was only the force of a formless art with the strength of a hundred stallions' kicks. And just at this point, Gabriel was sure that he had already achieved the understanding he needed to perform this sword technique.

Gabriel stopped his barrage of attacks and looked at Black, who was just helplessly watching his squad die. His lips numbed from the emotional damage he'd gotten from watching this scene. He was too stunned.

Gabriel then looked at Black and slowly paced towards him. He let out an exhale and pointed his sword at Black, who was helpless at this point. 

Black played as if he had no energy to fight back. He had already faced the reality that he couldn't handle Gabriel. He was too infuriated by it.

Did they make any mistakes? They did, but they ignored it. They didn't listen to Gabriel's side and just decided to execute him. 

They felt responsible, so they gave him the verdict, but they didn't think that Gabriel would not abide by their words.

Gabriel killed everyone and finally had peace of mind. It was only for a short time, but at least he knew that his clan wouldn't feel the same pressure again. 

He went back to his clan's side and witnessed how afraid they were. They covered their ears, cried, and trembled from the emotional attacks that the elite squad unintentionally gave them.

Gabriel was their hope, and thinking that he would die was too much for them. 

And as Gabriel walked at a slow pace, a few clansmen saw him and announced it to everyone.

"The clan leader is alive! He survived."

Gabriel could only give them a bitter smile, as at this point, he didn't know what to say to them. Would he continue acting as a clan leader, or should he pave the path for them to live individually?

He released a sigh and told himself, 'This isn't the time to doubt myself.'

The clansmen approached with their worried faces. They then expressed how much they worried for him, and because of this, Gabriel already knew what he should do.

***

The Iliman and Nisan Clan's officials were expecting the return of the elite squad they sent to execute Gabriel Fang. It is time for them to bring good news. However, they were not expecting other people to come.

Gabriel stood before the cliff that led to the Iliman Clan. He then looked in every direction and noticed that there was only one escape route from this point. Thus, he decided to destroy it.

He jumped high with the support of small rocks below the cliff and then sent a strong arch of pressure. Rocks crumbled and the cliff was destroyed after he landed on the land.

He looked at the bottom of the destroyed cliff and saw how straight it went to the ground. It is now 50 feet below, which indicates that their escape won't be easy.

But, Gabriel wasn't thinking of killing them. He knew that they would try to kill him again if they saw him alive. What he did was only an assurance that they wouldn't be able to come back to him if he retaliates.

Gabriel marched to the Iliman Clan's gate, and he was ordered to stop by the guards who were appointed at the gate's front.

"Stop right there. State your name."

Gabriel's eyes flashed, and there, he took out his sword, which made them draw their swords as well.

"We order you to stop, or we will execute you."

Gabriel glared at them and smirked. "Try me."

Gabriel dashed in their direction, and there, he had already grabbed his sword at his side. He then released a swing and an invisible force was produced, with his spiritual energy decreasing to power it up.

Boom!

It was like an explosion that took the lives of these guards. The debris from Gabriel's sword technique also destroyed the gate.

Everyone on the other side was alarmed, making them check it first. When they saw the corpses of their fellow clansmen, they sent a distress signal to everyone.

They immediately formed their defense formation, ranging from a total of 100 clansmen to 150.

And as Gabriel slowly arrived, they already had their swords prepared to draw.

Gabriel then stopped when he saw everyone working up. And from a distance, the officials of the Iliman and Nisan Clan went out of a building. 

Their faces were baffled. They knew it was Gabriel as his combat gear indicated his clan's insignia.

"I am here as the clan leader of the Ju Yue Clan to speak with the people who ordered my death."

Everyone was silent until the officials arrived at the defense formation's frontlines. They then gave their greetings to them, even though their faces were solemn from just looking at Gabriel.

"I want to ask you to let my clan go. We will leave the mountain."

"You were supposed to be dead by now." The clan leader of the Iliman Clan mumbled to himself with a surprised expression.

"Y-You... What did you do to the elite squad? Why are you standing here?"

Their baffled expressions were obvious, and it delighted Gabriel. The drawing of their faces was priceless. However, revenge is not his purpose; he is trying to create a deal with these people.

"I am here as a clan leader of the Ju Yue Clan. Cut the questions. I don't have any time for that." Gabriel bluntly stated it without any expression.

The clansmen behind the officials gritted their teeth as Gabriel replied bluntly to their leaders. They were enraged by it, which made them exclaim their anger.

"How dare you disrespect our leaders!"

"Do you have a death wish?"

"You are courting death, young man."

Gabriel just scoffed after hearing their empty taunts. 

"If I was courting death, then I should say that death rejected me too hard."

Their eyes turned dilated, then again, they squinted their eyes while glaring at Gabriel.

The clan leader of the Nisan Clan hushed them with his hands raised. He then looked at Gabriel with discernible eyes.

"You are such a mysterious kid. How come you were able to kill our elite squad."

Gabriel just closed his eyes and uttered again.. "I am here as a clan leader of the Ju Yue Clan. Why are you asking and speaking to me with such words?"