The next second, he leaped.

Thousand Faces' body exploded into motion, turning into a streak of black light that tore through the air as he dived straight toward Ethan on the lakeshore.

Ethan, who had been calmly fishing, suddenly opened his eyes.

"Thousand Faces… you're finally here."

The corners of his mouth lifted slightly, a faint smile flashing across his face before vanishing just as quickly.

"And as expected, you didn't come alone."

His perception spread silently. Within a radius of five miles, not even a grain of sand could escape his awareness. The surrounding mountains, the flowing water, the trembling air—everything was reflected clearly in his mind.

The woman hiding her aura in the shadows did not escape him either.

An Ultimate Supreme.

Even suppressing her presence to the extreme, she was still seen through.

"Aether, accept your fate!"

Thousand Faces roared as he closed the distance in an instant. His palm slammed downward, black spiritual energy surging violently and condensing into a massive hand that seemed capable of crushing heaven and earth.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The air exploded. Shockwaves rippled across the lake's surface, and space itself trembled as faint cracks appeared and vanished.

Ethan remained seated, unmoving.

To him, this seemingly swift and ferocious attack appeared like a slow-motion replay, dragged out dozens of times slower.

"So weak," he thought coldly.

When Thousand Faces saw Ethan sitting there without the slightest reaction, a disdainful smile crept onto his face.

"Sure enough, you're too slow. You can't even react."

The unease he had felt earlier vanished completely.

Why had he been nervous?

This Aether was not Ethan.

Both were physical cultivators, but how could they possibly be compared?

In Thousand Faces' eyes, Aether's talent and strength were probably not even one-tenth of Ethan's.

"This mask is ridiculously easy to take."

Excitement surged through him as his attack drew closer. This was shaping up to be the easiest treasure hunt he had ever carried out.

The opponent didn't defend.

Didn't dodge.

Didn't even move.

However—

Just as the massive black palm was about to smash into Ethan's head, something unexpected happened.

Ethan moved.

He did not counterattack.

He did not defend.

He merely turned his head slightly and looked calmly at the huge black palm descending from above.

The palm trembled.

The spiritual energy condensed within it was terrifying, powerful enough to shatter space itself, causing cracks to bloom and fade like fragile glass.

Huh—

A dull wind sound echoed.

The scene Thousand Faces had imagined—Aether's head exploding—did not appear.

Instead, his attack stopped.

The enormous black palm froze in midair.

It hung there, suspended less than an inch from Ethan's face.

That inch, however, felt like an uncrossable chasm.

No matter how much power Thousand Faces poured into it, the palm refused to advance even the slightest bit.

"What… what is going on?!"

Shock flooded Thousand Faces' eyes.

He stared hard at the black mask on Aether's face. Beneath it, a pair of eyes stared back—sharp, calm, and piercing.

It felt as if icy needles were pressed against his spine.

Instinctively, Thousand Faces retreated.

"Disperse."

Ethan stood up and spoke softly.

The palm, an attack capable of killing an Intermediate Supreme in an instant, collapsed and dissipated like mist.

"How is this possible?!"

Thousand Faces was completely stunned. His breathing grew uneven, his words coming out broken and hoarse.

"You know me," Ethan said calmly. "Then who are you?"

He deliberately feigned ignorance, his tone indifferent.

Thousand Faces forced himself to regain composure and let out a cold laugh.

"Haha. You don't need to know who I am."

"You just need to know that I'm here to take your life."

Ethan tilted his head slightly.

"So the wanted order from Pavilion of Heavenly Secrets is still active?"

"It's been so many years. Do they really hate me that much?"

His tone carried faint mockery.

"Since you know that much," Thousand Faces snorted coldly, "then surrender. I might spare your life."

"Otherwise, I'll take your head back and collect the reward."

He stared at Ethan with undisguised killing intent.

That earlier exchange had told him one thing clearly—this Aether was at least an Upper Supreme.

Whether he had reached the Ultimate Supreme realm or not, Thousand Faces could not tell.

But he knew this man was not weaker than him.

That realization filled him with frustration.

Why was he always so unlucky?

In the past, there was Ethan.

Now, there was Aether.

Every young cultivator he encountered was a monstrous genius that made him feel insignificant.

"You must first be capable of carrying my head," Ethan replied lightly, his disdain undisguised.

That calm contempt gnawed at Thousand Faces' nerves.

"Whether I have that ability or not isn't for you to decide!"

He formed seals rapidly. Black lines crawled up his neck as the Cowardly Mask surfaced, radiating a sinister aura.

His momentum surged violently.

Upper Supreme.

Peak Upper Supreme.

This was the absolute limit he could reach at present.

"Transfiguration—Shadow Supreme!"

His aura twisted sharply, as if his very existence had changed.

Ethan recognized it instantly.

This was the same method Thousand Faces had used in their previous battle.

"Clone!"

Black shadow power spread from Thousand Faces like fluttering ribbons, condensing beside him into another identical figure.

Same appearance.

Same aura.

Same killing intent.

Without specialized methods, even experts of the same realm would struggle to distinguish the real one.

"Vortex of Shadows!"

Thousand Faces and his clone moved in perfect unison, both extending their palms.

Shadow spiritual energy surged and condensed into two massive black spheres that shot toward Ethan from opposite directions.

Phew—!

Twin gusts of wind tore through the air.

Ethan prepared to break through, but the two black spheres stopped abruptly more than a meter away.

Then they collapsed inward.

Twisting.

Rotating.

Forming gigantic vortices.

The suction erupted violently, distorting space itself.

"Hmph," Thousand Faces sneered.

"Did you think I was attacking you?"

"You're wrong. I'm sealing you!"

Without pause, he unleashed another technique.

"Nightfall Vortex Chain!"

Ink-like shadow energy surged into the sky, forming rolling black clouds. From within them, thick iron chains condensed and lashed downward toward Ethan.

Ethan dodged.

The chains swept past his face, slicing through the air.

At the same time, the black vortex followed him closely.

Space warped and twisted.

Because the black vortex distorted space, his speed and movement were affected as well.

A/N:

Extra chapters

100 power stones - 1 Extra chapters

200 power stones - 2 Extra chapters

Massage Chair - 1 Extra chapters

Luxury Car - 2 Extra Chapters

Dragon - 5 Extra Chapters

Magic Castle - 15 Extra Chapters

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