When Ethan spotted the Void Realm creatures, he stoppedâand immediately waved Chris and the others back.
Yeah, theyâd all gotten stronger. A lot stronger.
But the gap between them and this group was still enormous.
And it wasnât just Ethanâs side that had been leveling.
These Void Realm monsters had clearly improved too. The weakest of them were already at
Tier 25 peak
, and the strongestâthat leaderâhad reached
Tier 30 peak
.
That was so far beyond Chrisâs group that it wasnât even funny. They wouldnât be able to hold.
Even Ethan only dared to stay because he had
Teleportation
and
Absolute Stasis
. Without those, he wouldnât risk it either. He still remembered what the last fight felt likeâhow close heâd come to getting crushed.
But this time wouldnât be the same.
His strength had jumped hard, and with his mental energy increased so much, it wouldnât be easy for them to drain him dry again.
And more than thatâ
At
Tier 22
, with his current mental energy, if he went all-out with
Annihilation Strike
, then at the very least he could trade blows with a
Tier 25 peak
enemy.
Ethan teleported straight to a spot not far from the Stoneborn groupâand released
Dopey
.
The instant Dopey appeared, the bodies of the Stoneborn powerhouses stiffened.
Dopey looked plain. Almost dull. Nothing about him screamed "threat."
But they would never forget it.
That same blank-looking figure had used the most brutal, simplest method imaginableâone punch eachâto send more than a dozen of their comrades to their graves.
Seeing him again and
not
feeling fear?
Yeah. Not happening.
Even though theyâd grown stronger, even though their leader had just been talking big about fighting Dopey head-on...
Now that Dopey was actually standing there, the confidence started leaking out of them.
Is this thing really only Stage S?
the leader thought, unease creeping in.
Why am I Tier 30 peak, and it still feels like itâs pressing down on my chest?
Ethan smiled. "So the mice finally crawled out."
"All youâve got is that thrall," the Stoneborn leader said coldly. "Without that soulless thrall, I could twist your head off with one hand."
Ethan snorted. "Youâre way too old to be saying something that stupid. The thrall is mine, which means itâs part of my strength. If youâve got the ability, go get yourself one."
The leaderâs eyes flashed. "You really think having a soulless thrall makes you untouchable?"
"Iâve learned enough about your world." His voice turned contemptuous. "This is a weak world. Once the beings of our realm descend, youâll all be wiped into dust."
He lifted his chin, like he was offering mercy. "Iâll give you one last chance. Kneel to the Stoneborn, and we may spare your life."
Ethan rolled his eyes. "You canât even beat my soulless thrall, and youâre talking about sparing me. Where do you get the nerve?"
"Hmph. A soulless thrall is still just an external tool," the leader said. "We came out with too few people this time, thatâs all. If the Stoneborn army enters this world, what can one thrall do?"
Ethanâs smile sharpened. "Then Iâve got some bad news for you. The passage between worlds is already closed. You canât go back, and your people canât come in."
"So do yourselves a favor and die quietly on foreign soil."
"Impossible!" The Stoneborn leaderâs expression twisted. "A spatial passage doesnât close just because you say so. Even in our world, no one has that powerâlet alone you!"
"Iâd love to let you go check," Ethan said lightly. "But Iâve always enjoyed letting people die with questions."
He lifted a hand.
"Dopey. Kill them."
The moment his words fell, Dopey blurred forwardâstraight at the Stoneborn.
And Ethan vanished with a teleport, disappearing from where he stood.
A split second later, a massive hand erupted from the ground and grabbed at the spot Ethan had just been.
If Ethan had been even half a second slower, he wouldâve been caught.
But Ethan had already seen the guy burrowing underground. That was why heâd moved the instant he did.
The Stoneborn leaderâs face sank. He hadnât expected Ethan to be that alert.
Still, he hadnât been counting on that sneak attack to decide the fight.
"Move," he snapped.
The remaining seven Stoneborn reacted instantly. The first thing they did was raise
Stone Barriers
around themselvesâlayering on defenseâthen they unleashed a storm of earth-type abilities at Dopey.
Dopey didnât dodge.
He did what he always didâsimple, violent, direct.
He tanked the skills head-on and charged a single Stoneborn powerhouse.
"Help me!" that Stoneborn roared, eyes widening.
Thick earth power surged over his body, forming a heavy, oppressive shield.
"
Earth Ward!
"
The Stonebornâs strongest defensive skill.
The other Stoneborn immediately poured energy into him, reinforcing the ward again and again, stacking its durability until it looked like a fortress made of compressed bedrock.
This time was different from last time.
Slateâthe one whoâd tried to ambush Ethanâwas still only
Tier 25 peak
, but the rest had grown terrifying:
the leader:
Tier 30 peak
three others:
Tier 28
the remaining Stoneborn: all
Tier 26+
Compared to their last fight with this soulless thrall, their strength had jumped by a ridiculous margin.
And Dopey?
Dopey looked exactly the same as before.
So yeahâthis time, they had confidence.
Not comfort.
Not certainty.
But enough to believe they could finally make Dopey bleed.
"âBoom!"
Dopeyâs fist slammed down on him.
The impact cracked through the air with a sound like a wrecking ball hitting concrete. The ground shuddered under their feet.
Layers of defense collapsed on contact. The
Earth Ward
, reinforced by multiple Stoneborn pouring power into it, spiderwebbed with fracturesâ
And under everyoneâs tight, terrified stares... it
held
.
It didnât shatter.
It actually blocked the punch.
"HahahaâIt held!" The Stonebornâs face lit up with wild joy, like heâd just cheated death. He couldnât stop himself from gloating. "Iâm alive! This soulless thrall isnât all that!"
Dopeyâs expression didnât change even a little.
He just drew back his other hand and clenched it into a fist.
One punch didnât kill?
Then heâd use two.
"âBOOM!"
The second hit landed even heavier.
The already-cracked Earth Ward exploded apart like shattered glass. Dopeyâs fist drove straight through and smashed into the Stonebornâs armor.
There was no suspense. No miracle.
The armor burst.
And the fist didnât slow down.
"Pffâ!"
The Stonebornâs smile hadnât even finished fading.
He spat out a mouthful of blood mixed with crushed organs, his body launching backward before slamming into the ground. He didnât move again.
"...!"
The remaining Stonebornâs faces drained.
"Howâhow could it still not hold?!"
"This thing... itâs not just Stage S!"
Dopey didnât care about their panic.
He killed one, then immediately turned, charging the next target like he was harvesting them.
"Control skills!" the leader roared. "Lock it down!"
Only now did it really hit him: even with their strength skyrocketing, they still werenât enough in front of this soulless thrall.
Trying to trade blows head-on was suicide.
They had one optionâstall.
Hold Dopey in place and buy time, praying Slate could finish off the human.
At least with their power boosted, their control abilities finally had some effect.
Stacked gravity pressed down, and a swamp-like terrain skill spread under Dopeyâs feet, slowing himâif only a little. A
sandstorm
whipped up to mess with his sight, while meteors kept hammering down in a steady barrage.
It was barely enough to keep Dopey from instantly tearing them apart.
Barely.
And it wasnât stable.
The leaderâs jaw tightened as he watched Dopey force his way forward anyway, step by step, like the world itself couldnât stop him.
Slate,
he thought, anger and fear twisting together.
Move. Hurry the hell up.