The Max Level Hero Has Returned!

Perserque separated from Davey and used Flight Magic to ascend to the highest point of the pavilion.

Numerous martial artists quickly used their lightness arts in pursuit. However, these lightness arts were no match for her rapid ascent through the air.

"Black Magic... It's Black Magic! The witch is casting a spell!" the martial artists shouted in alarm.

Realizing she had successfully drawn the attention of the martial artists, Perserque deployed the Transcendence's Demise with utmost care. Then, she lightly tapped the air with Transcendence's Demise, producing a reverberating sound.

"You don’t need to bear this burden alone. From now on, you and I are one," Perserque spoke quietly. Her eyes had been closed as she summoned mana, but now, she opened them wide.

A faint white light began to frost over the redness in Perserque's eyes.

"If you think you can attack my husband and remain unscathed, think again," Perserque stated.

The softness vanished from her face, leaving only coldness behind. Davey seemed unaware, but his marriage to Perserque had changed something deep and meaningful within her.

Crack!!!

The martial artists who had been rapidly approaching her abruptly halted. They had been repelled by an invisible energy wall that was pushed outward with Perserque in the center. They stared at her with wide eyes, taken aback by the sudden display of power.

No matter how formidable her martial skills might be, even if she was using possessed Black Magic, what unfolded next seemed beyond the realm of possibility.

"What... what is that...?" the martial artists murmured, their voices tinged with disbelief.

What met their eyes was a colossal magic circle, spanning dozens of meters, with Perserque at its center.

The magic circle filled with geometric shapes, equations, and characters rotated slowly around her. And as Perserque gently raised Transcendence's Demise in her hand, the circle split into two sections along its edge; one section floated down below her feet, while the other rose above her head.

"I won't kill you, so don't worry," Perserque declared.

The two magic circles, which had been rotating in opposite directions, suddenly halted as if caught in something. And then, an immense amount of sparks appeared between them.

Davey could be considered an aberration; he was able to manifest high-level magic without any preparation or incantation, which was a feat usually deemed impossible by any standard of magical knowledge.

The magic Perserque was using right now, under normal circumstances, would have also required a large-scale resonating magic circle, and it would have taken a long time and an absolutely massive amount of mana.

But of course, Perserque was no ordinary 8th-circle mage, either. She was a genius magician, endowed with an exceptional sense for magic, and also a Demon Lord and the adopted daughter of the Sword God.

[8th Circle: Frigid Domain]

[Icicle Blizzard]

Whoosh!!!

A whirlwind of sub-zero temperatures ensued. As the moisture in the atmosphere crystalized and began to fall, everything in the area froze.

Even for those who had honed their bodies with qi and harmonized with nature through martial arts, such high-level magic was an unfamiliar and wondrous phenomenon. When giant hailstones started pelting them, the martial artists had no choice but to stare up at Perserque with dumbfounded expressions.

It was a literal natural disaster.

No matter how skilled a martial artist might be, it was an undeniable truth and reality that they could not resist the fury of nature.

Yet, such a natural disaster was being unleashed by a single human. Moreover, by a girl so beautiful she could make even the celestial maidens, reputed to be the most beautiful in the martial world, pale in comparison.

Faced with this mysterious phenomenon, most of the martial artists were so taken aback that they couldn't even entertain the thought of stopping her. Instead, they froze in place.

"There's something Davey always says," Perserque said. "I've always wanted to try this."

With her eyes gleaming with a white light as she projected out her mana, Perserque lightly struck down with Transcendence's Demise.

“The forecast for this warm day of spring is a little blizzard ♪”

A bitter cold of unimaginable power froze everything in the area.

"Enough!" Davey exclaimed a few moments later.

Following the Mind Sword bombardment and then being completely stripped of their combat abilities by the energy of Super Ribbon, these masters naturally sustained internal injuries, and they found themselves in a dire situation. By this point, they could barely move.

The ones who suffered the most were the two elders who bore the brunt of the battle as they fought in the front using powers of both extreme heat and cold. Davey loosened his grip on their energy a little and frowned as he witnessed the aftermath of the blizzard.

While he was certain Perserque hadn't killed anyone, the extent of her actions seemed excessively harsh.

He guessed that she had likely deployed the Blizzard magic in response to the massive infernos erupting throughout the area; they were likely set up by the entity from the Abyss to intensify the chaos before making its escape.

"Why... Why did you not take our lives?" the two fallen elders asked Davey.

"What use do I have for the lives of old men?" Davey replied.

"If you leave us alive, we will surely be a thorn in your side for years to come," one of the elders warned him.

Davey responded with a sardonic smile, "With those skills?"

Although he was mocking them, they could not retort. They were Absolute-realm masters, but this fight had shown them how big the difference between their skills and Davey’s was.

Numbers were inconsequential, and so was their understanding of martial arts.

Davey's mind had become a weapon, dominating the battlefield, while they had only managed to harmonize with nature and control their qi to a certain extent. If Davey had resolved to kill them, they would have been none the wiser until it was too late.

"Wise people like you should understand by now that I have no reason to commit such actions," Davey stated.

"Indeed," the elders acknowledged.

"So, consider yourselves indebted and be careful now," Davey advised.

Swoosh!!

Just as he was about to turn away, someone familiar appeared and held a sword at his throat.

It was a young woman in her early twenties, known to everyone here as the Water Dragon Swordswoman and to Davey alone as Isildi—Yun Hee-Ryeong.

Davey was rightfully wary of her. The way she was right now, she would not be able to fight against any one of the Absolute masters that Davey had just dispatched. In spite of that, however, her dormant nature ranked her among the most dangerous beings on the continent.

"Are you also going to stop me?" Davey inquired, relieved that she hadn't awakened as the Princess of the Abyss.

The Black Tortoise Unit surrounded Davey as she, the leader of the unit, silently glared at him.

When she finally spoke, it was to her unit.

"There are fires everywhere. Go and search for survivors!"

"But Captain! This person is—"

"Enough. Just go now!"

The members of the Black Tortoise Unit seemed hesitant to follow her order, but then moved away one after the other, until it was just her remaining with her sword still against Davey’s throat.

With a complex expression on her face, she looked at him and asked, "Explain. Did you kill them?"

"No," Davey replied.

“...”

After a moment of silence, she continued, "It's chaos everywhere. Follow me. I'll help you escape their pursuit."

Davey’s eyes narrowed.

"You will? Why?"

The fact remained unchanged that no matter how hard they tried, an entity from the Abyss was no better than a flea and that creature was most likely aware of this fact as well.

"... Because you saved someone very important to me, someone who is like family," she said.

It was difficult to imagine that this eccentric woman was the Princess of the Abyss.

With a stern face, Yun Hee-Ryeong quickly sheathed her sword and turned away.

"What are you waiting for? Follow me!" Yun Hee-Ryeong commanded as she quickly moved using her lightness art.

After watching her for a moment, Davey caught up to her in an instant and grabbed her by the nape of her neck.

"Hey?! What are you doing?" she exclaimed.

"Me? What are you doing?" Davey retorted.

Yun Hee-Ryeong looked back at Davey with a face full of dissatisfaction.

"Don't you understand your situation?! Wol Gye-Woo is dead, and that little girl who was under you killed Princess Jadeflower!! And to make things just perfect, the junior sect leader of the Ak Rim Sect has also been murdered by someone!"

Davey frowned at her words.

"Who did what now?" he inquired, perplexed.

"That little girl you call a subordinate, Rinne, was it? She just invaded Princess Jadeflower's quarters and brutally murdered her! This news is already spreading across the kingdoms, and you..."

Yun Hee-Ryeong trailed off, her expression darkening.

"Now you've become a public enemy! Don't you understand the gravity of the situation? It's impressive that you defeated those old masters, but if the state intervenes, it's a different story! No matter how powerful of a master you are, you can't win against an entire nation!" Yun Hee-Ryeong exclaimed.

Indeed, it was a timeless truth: individual power would almost invariably lose out to the power of the masses.

"What if I say it wasn't me?" Davey questioned.

"How many do you think will believe you unless Princess Jadeflower and Prince Wol Gye-Woo come back to life? Come on, follow me. We need to hide until the situation calms down," she urged him.

Davey closed his eyes.

The balance of Heavenly Central Plains had to be maintained for transactions to be successful. Yet, this damned Abyssal scheme now forced him to make a choice.

Admittedly, he had underestimated his opponents.

While they seemed weak in comparison to the Princess of the Abyss, they weren’t actually weak. Once, Davey even had to resort to Transcendent Black Magic to kill an abominable mass of flesh that had crawled out of the Abyssal rift.

Such powerful beings typically had no need to resort to schemes. Thus, their plans were often quite clumsy and poorly constructed. However, this time was different.

The scheme was deadly, and it was clearly designed to ensure that Davey couldn't kill two birds with one stone. They couldn’t stop him, but they aimed to snatch at least one of the targets he was after. He had to choose between preserving the balance of the Heavenly Central Plains and getting his hands on the precious Abyssal Gem.

Of course, Davey wanted the gem, but the fact that his own strategy had been used as part of the enemy's scheme made him furious and unable to just let the matter go.

Yun Hee-Ryeong's expression shifted to a frown as she observed Davey's silent contemplation. Suddenly, the silence was broken by a crackling noise, heralding the arrival of a voice that had been unreachable until that moment.

[Davey, do you appreciate Rinne’s achievements?]

It was Rinne herself.

At her cheerful inquiry, Davey couldn't help but burst into laughter. Considering the mess she had caused, her question about being appreciated for her “achievements” was ironic. Rinee, like Davey, was now implicated in the assassination of royalty—Davey for Wol Gye-Woo and Rinne for Jadeflower.

"Where are you?" Davey asked.

[Rinne sending her location to Davey.]

Rinne provided her precise location using her own code and coordinates. The Rinne that Davey knew wasn't one to take a life for trivial reasons. Moreover, Rinne was currently linked with Kain and likely receiving his counsel.

Receiving Rinne’s location, Davey dragged Yun Hee-Ryeon right to her.. And upon arrival, they found two figures: Rinne, with a blood-stained dark mace in hand, and Kwak Mi-Young, the Peach Blossom Fairy, breathing deeply beside her.

"Lord Davey!" Kwak Mi-Young rushed over as she exclaimed with joy upon seeing him.

In this turmoil, there was a high chance of getting injured even without engaging in battle with Davey.

"What a relief… It's chaos out there... But where is Lady Perserque...?"

"She's having a blast outside. She'll come looking for me once she calms down. Aren't you worried about your brother?" Davey asked.

"He's near the Martial Alliance leader. Since the only real attacker is you, there shouldn't be any major issues," Kwak Mi-young reassured.

Davey nodded at her response and then turned to look at Isildi—Yun Hee-Ryeong. She was showing a guarded expression.

"Why are you here, Miss Water Dragon?" Mi-Young inquired.

"I should be the one asking that question, Peach Blossom Fairy," responded Yun Hee-Ryeong.

While Kwak Mi-Young and Yun Hee-Ryeong were engaged in a tense standoff, Rinne approached Davey, tugging at his clothes and looking up at him.

"Rinne, contribution highly praised?"

"If you don't tell me what it is, I won't know, Rinne. What exactly have you done?" Davey asked.

Rinne nodded slightly, then turned and tilted her head.

Soon after, a wall that had been concealed by Rinne's power began to shimmer, and a figure slowly emerged from behind it, dressed in tattered clothes.

Davey instinctively sensed the unique aura emanating from the figure.

"Rinne, your contribution is highly praised," Davey stated.

Rinne, expressionless, gave Davey a thumbs up in response.

The person Rinne had brought with her was none other than Princess Jadeflower of Yu—precisely the person Rinne was rumored to have killed. She was the key to dismantling this damn trap in one go.

"Oh... Princess Jadeflower?!" Yun Hee-Ryeong reeled in shock and kneeled immediately, then turned to Davey.

"What... What are you doing! Show some respect..."

"Should I say it's fortunate you're alive?" Davey remarked, leading to an acknowledgment from Princess Jadeflower of Rinne's crucial role in her survival.

"You are an impolite man. But, it's alright. It's true that I owe my life to this child," Princess Jadeflower said calmly, giving Rinne a glance.

"I heard you were dead."

"I highly evaluate Kain's useless predictions and Rinne's abilities in disguise and concealment!"

Rinne's crisp report made Davey nod in agreement.

Having heard Kain's information right before the Abyss attempted to disrupt everything by murdering their targets, Rinne faked the princess's death and secreted her away. With her survival confirmed and her testimony at hand, this ridiculous situation could be swiftly resolved.

The only thing left was for Davey and Perserque to capture and deal with the bastard who had absconded with the Gem.

Although a trap was set to inevitably prevent Davey from killing two birds with one stone, thanks to Rinne's exceptional efforts, the problem was resolved in an instant. In fact, it turned out to be a blessing in disguise.

Davey and Perserque did not kill those from the Central Martial Alliance who attacked them, yet the Martial Alliance, in an attempt to conceal the truth, had conspired with the Evil Path to kill Davey. When the truth was fully revealed, they would not be able to escape the sword of judgment.

It seemed that even the proud entity from the Abyss was unaware that the Princess Jadeflower it believed it had killed was actually a decoy.

"Rinne's ability to conceal. Highly praised?" Rinne asked.

"Hmm... Your way of speaking is a bit peculiar. However, you have saved me, which is indeed a significant contribution. The emperor will surely praise you highly for this. I am grateful to you," Princess Jadeflower said.

However, even as Davey listened to their conversation, his expression was stern.

This prompted Princess Jadeflower to ask him with a puzzled look, "What’s with that look?"

"There's something important I feel we need to address," Davey responded, causing Jadeflower to tilt her head in confusion.

"Huh?"

"Does the troublemaker beside you look like a mere child to you? Really?" Davey questioned.

Rinne's expression suddenly hardened at Davey’s words. She had acted independently, without reporting to Davey, and she knew there were consequences for that.

Those who did not understand looked puzzled. However, before they could comprehend, Rinne quickly spoke up.

"Rinne’s age high, Rinne’s mental age not high! Rinne values Davey's pettiness very low!" Rinne announced.

Then, like an arrow, she flew toward Davey and landed a dropkick on him without hesitation. Reflexively, Davey raised his hand to block her kick. Rinne’s brow was furrowed in an unusual display of anger as she kicked him with all her weight and unique strength.

"Rinne, learned missile dropkick! Praised highly!!"

It was a rare display of petulance from Rinne, something Davey hadn't seen in a long time.