Chapter 1294 Infiltration (Part 1)
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Shin had entrusted the defense of the Maze Forest to the rest of their group and went to look for the members of the Pandemonium Descendants and their accomplice with Diablo. They had encountered quite a few Corrupted Monsters and Demonic Creatures that were able to see through their respective stealth skills and disposed of them immediately after.
Shin could not help but become impressed at these monsters for being able to see through their stealth, particularly Diablo. The stealth skills under his secondary combat class, the Phantom Swordsman, were not that powerful but they were enhanced by his sacred relic, the [Death's Shadow Cloak] that he was wearing. His stealth skills were pretty much 'passable'.
But it was different for Diablo as his 'Shadow Dancer' Transcendent Class majored in stealth and assassination. His equipment also enhanced most of his skills, which was made specially for his class. But these monsters were still able to see through it, making Shin believe that the Pandemonium Descendants were very prepared.
But when he put more thought into it, he found that it was to be expected. After all, Diablo was one of their main enemies, who not only knew about them and understood them well, but was also a powerful assassin who possessed powerful stealth skills and strange techniques.
It should be normal for them to possess such monsters to be able to see through such skills.
While traveling with Diablo, Shin was able to understand him a little more. He had also seen his skills and abilities that made him want to pull this guy to their side more.
The Empyrean Talon might have a powerful line-up, but they were still lacking in certain areas. Their members might be strong and skilled players, where most were standing at the very top of their class, particularly the Godlike Players on their side.
But despite these powerful members, Shin felt that they still needed to cover some of their weaknesses. After all, he had seen the equally strong lineup of certain groups that were comparable to them such as the 'God's Paradise' that was led by 'Martial God Ashura', the 'Ouroboros' under the leadership of 'God of Oblivion Lazarus', the 'Seamless Gate' and their commander 'Newgate, the King of Mavericks', and the 'Purple Crows' that followed the 'Shadow God Zoldryck'.
Shin had been researching the top adventurer teams of the game since the 'United Cup' was right around the corner, and these four teams were the ones that stood at the very top of the list. All of them had a lineup that was no weaker than the 'Empyrean Talons', especially the 'God's Paradise', which was also the current defending champion of this year's tournament.
He could also include the 'Slayers', which was being led by the 'God Slayer Lawless' and the 'Death God Faker'. But due to their fewer members, they were not as strong as those five Adventurer Teams even though they were being led by two of the strongest Godlike Players in the game.
But that was just a few of their strongest opponents. There were also the others such as the top mercenary groups and the strongest lineup of the powerhouse guilds and other organizations.
From the mercenaries, the strongest contenders would be the 'Earners Mercenary Group', the 'Utopia Mercenaries', and the 'Black Stone Camp'. These were the top three mercenary groups within the game, and they were no weaker than most of the organizations, especially the 'Earners', which sent a few of their members to the Frozen Kingdom after Immortal had commissioned them.
As for the elite members of the top guilds, there were the 'Angelwing' of the Wing's Alliance, the 'Ciphers' of the Central Order, the 'Talons' of the Dragon Pavilion, the 'Strong Fists' of the Titan Guild, and the 'Thirteen Heads' of the Hydra Guild.
These were just a few of the elites that the powerhouse guilds sent to the 'United Cup' whenever the tournament was being held, and each of them was the strongest lineup of each guild. All of them were composed of famous Godlike Players with great fame and reputation, or strong Maverick Gods that did not or have yet to join any individual tournaments to earn their official titles.
Then there were the other organizations that were no weaker than these guilds along with their respective elite groups.
The Assassin Union with their 'Shadow Ravens', the Hand of Midas and their 'Chiefs', the Black Market led by their 'Managers', and the Pandemonium Descendants which had the 'Pandemonium Troupe'.
These were just a few of the organizations that were strong enough to be feared by most. They were an established organization that had a long history of an emerging force that could not be ignored, especially the Pandemonium Descendants who were wreaking havoc wherever they went.
There were a lot of powerful groups that Shin had to take note of, especially when the 'United Cup' had a unique and special format.
It was a tournament that was divided into three rounds per battle: a one-on-one battle, a group arena, and a team completion.
The first was a straightforward one. It was like sending a 'champion' in a war that would raise or drop the morale of each side before going into an all-out war depending on the result.
This round would earn a single point for the team, but it was crucial since the morale boost that the winning side would get was not small.
The second round, which was a group area, was sending three players to the stage. It was a straightforward battle in a simple colosseum similar to a gladiator's area. Both sides would battle out, where the winner would be determined when the final member of the opposing side had fallen.
This round would earn the victorious side three points after winning.
As for the third and final round. It was a team battle, where each side would send the number of members that they had agreed upon before they were sent onto a special map that would be their battleground.
This round would provide five points that would turn everything around even if the opposing side won the first two rounds.
The first two rounds were not a problem for Shin and the others since he was confident with his teammates and their individual strengths. The problem was this final round since it showed and determined the real strengths and fatal weaknesses of each side.
In a special map, each role of every member of the team would be showcased.
The battle capabilities of the Empyrean Talons were without a doubt one of the strongest among the rest, but they were lacking in certain areas.
Ithilien, Alucard, and Akailu could be their scouts due to their respective classes, but they would always be better than the experts of the field such as the players with thief- and assassin-related classes.
They would most likely be taken down when they encountered top experts in the field just like 'Death God Faker' or 'Shadow God Zoldryck'. Such godly assassins stood among the very best of the field, which would be one of the biggest threats that the Empyrean Talons would face.
Studying an unfamiliar map was crucial for this round, so having a high-level assassin who would be able to scout for them was very important.
This was why they had to find someone who was at least an expert in the field, or someone who could escape as soon as possible when they faced someone powerful when scouting.
The United Cup was just one of the reasons why Shin wanted Diablo to join them. Having an expert assassin in their group brought them a lot of advantages when exploring high-level and unfamiliar maps too.
Aside from this, Shin was also considering inviting a shaman or a shadow priest to their group since the curses and debuffs that they could put on their enemies would provide great help during any battle.
With all of these, Shin felt that their team would be able to face and survive any circumstances that they would face. That would make their Adventurer Team complete.
As he had this string of thoughts, Shin turned to Diablo before asking. "Have you thought about joining us?"
Diablo paused his steps before turning to Shin. He then started chuckling. "I have not noticed it before, but you seem to be an impatient one, which is quite unexpected. I have heard from Sir Benedict that you are patient and hardworking, but it seems like there are quite a few circumstances that it doesn't match."
Shin shrugged his shoulder. "Well, it is true at times. But can you blame me when I find the perfect candidate that would fill the gap in our team where our weakness lies?"
Diablo was taken aback by Shin's straightforwardness before shaking his head. "That's true. But As you can see, I don't want to join any group yet due to circumstances that you already know."
"I don't want to experience the same thing again after joining an organization," he added with a bitter tone.
Shin then suddenly said. "But we are not an organization. We are a small, but elite Adventurer Team."
Diablo shook his head repeatedly along with a bitter smile as he replied. "Do you know that the current Pandemonium Descendants start with the same background? The original Pandemonium Troupe is just like yours before, so I can't guarantee that yours will not end up with the same path."
Shin did not immediately respond as he understood where Diablo was coming from. This skilled expert was betrayed by his previous friends – or more likely, they had betrayed his expectations of them and walked down a deviated path away from their original goal.
Shin had become curious about what that goal was. The more he thought about it, the more curious he became. Unfortunately, he could not continue with the topic as he was not that close to Diablo sharing such secrets.
He then dropped that thought and continued with the one that he had started. "I am not sure what happened to you and your old friends, but I don't think that we will end up with the same outcome."
Diablo sneered as he felt skeptical after hearing those words. He then asked. "How can you guarantee that? No one will know what the other people are thinking and what they will do."
Shin pursed his lips for a moment before nodding. "I don't know about the others that we have recently met in this game, but I am confident with my friends, who are the core of our team."
"We have known each other for such a very long time already. We have grown up together and understand each other well, so I can at least tell you that we will not become like you and those guys in the Pandemonium Troupe. At least our core will remain the same and will continue to pursue our goals."
He then paused for a moment as a cold glint flashed in his eyes. "As for the others who are thinking of betraying us, I can guarantee that they will not have a good outcome."
"Being betrayed is the worst feeling, and betrayers or traitors are people that I hate the most," he added as his face turned stone-cold.
Due to this topic, Shin was suddenly reminded of the time when he was in the camp. He still 'remembered' how those kids had sold out the big sister who took care of and encouraged them when they were struggling and at their worst just to save themselves.
Unknowingly, his killing intent started to leak out, turning the whole place into a cold place.
Diablo shivered when he sensed the dense killing intent from Shin. He stared at the latter full of surprise. He could not help but become confused, and curious at the same time, how such a young man could release such a killing intent.
He wondered what Shin had experienced to have such an intense intent to kill.
Shin was able to snap out of it not long after. There was a surprised look on his face as he did not expect that he would lose himself that easily after being reminded of that incident.
He then turned to Diablo and apologized. "I am sorry about that. I've just remembered something unpleasant."
Diablo did not say anything and just nodded his head, calm and collected. But deep inside, he was still surprised. If it was in the real world, then he would most likely lose his life in an instant if he faced Shin in that state.
Not long after the two of them arrived at their destination. They arrived at one of the biggest Corrupted Nests within the Sacred Light Kingdom.
The pair stared at the fallen city for a few moments before Diablo opened his mouth. "This must be it. This is most likely their temporary base."
Shin stared at the distance and asked. "Are you sure that those guys are not here? Given the defenses that they had, particularly those patrolling beasts guarding the outer walls, they most likely expecting some 'visitors.'"
Diablo shook his head and smiled. "It is fine. I know Paimon very well. He may be hanging around for a while longer to have some fun, but he will leave as soon as possible once he has gotten everything that he needs."
Shin frowned and asked. "And how do you know that he has gotten it already?"
Diablo smirked and said briefly. "It is because he has already recalled Amon and Mephistopheles."
"If he hasn't gotten everything yet, then he will not summon those two back when they are causing havoc. He will use them as a form of distraction while he is working behind the scenes to arrange everything and finish what needs to be done."
"That's how that guy works. He has never been greedy, which is why he never fails in the operations that he is leading. He advances when he needs it and retreats after accomplishing the job," he added.
"Sounds a pretty troublesome opponent," commented Shin.
Diablo laughed and agreed. "That's for sure. But that is also why it is easy to figure him out."
He then paused before adding. "But it will be different when he works with Belial. Those two are very hard to deal with when working together."
He then dropped the subject and waved his hand while entering stealth. "Let's go. It is time."
Shin shrugged his shoulder as he followed.
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