Teacher by day, Farmer by passion

Snow Peak:

Ace stood atop the great gates of the sect, flanked by Grand Elder Lily, Xi Chun, and a handful of other elders.

Below, disciples lined the inner walls in awe and fear, peering over to glimpse the incoming doom.

Beyond the gate, down in the frozen basin at the foot of the mountain—

They had arrived.

The army of the Tharz Kingdom stretched like a dark tide over the snowfields.

An ocean of armor, banners, and steel. Spirit beasts roared behind the front lines, and the air itself crackled with cultivation energy.

Xi Chun clenched her fist.

"They're trying to intimidate us," she murmured.

"They're succeeding," Lily added flatly, watching the formation. "At least on the disciples."

Ace stares and simply stepped forward, calm as a man about to take a stroll.

He turned back and grinned.

"Watch this."

Without another word, he leapt from the platform.

A radiant streak of silver shot into the sky—Ace riding his sword like a comet as he soared out over the battlefield.

The cloak—his new Void-grade cloak—flared behind him like wings of twilight, dancing in the wind with divine grace.

The moment he appeared, the army below froze.

Tens of thousands of heads tilted skyward. Archers paused. Knights kept staring.

Even the spirit beast were stilled.

Ace hovered above them all, arms folded, cloak billowing.

He looked down upon the Tharz Kingdom's full might...

…and smiled.

He raised his voice just enough to carry across the army.

"Turn back."

A smirk played on his lips.

"Or you'll suffer."

A hush fell over the battlefield.

And then someone rose to meet him.

A man floated upward in a slow, elegant arc, stopping at eye level with Ace.

He was dressed immaculately in layered black and gold robes, a sharp monocle perched on one eye.

His hair was neatly combed back, and a cane hung loosely in one hand.

Amon.

A peak Legend. A monster in scholar's clothing.

He adjusted his monocle with two fingers, his gaze gleaming with amusement.

"Hoh… surely, the Son of Fate himself," Amon said in a silky tone.

"I must admit… I've long wanted to face the anomaly the heavens keep protecting."

Ace's eyes narrowed, his smile not fading.

"Amon. It's best you turn back with the army, you won't want a massacre, do you?"

Amon tsked and shook his head lightly.

"By the direct command of the Second Prince, the territory of Falmuth is no longer yours to govern. It is ours to claim."

Below, five figures stepped forward from the dense ranks, each one radiating a distinct pressure that made the sky seem thinner.

Five Legend-rank cultivators.

Ace said nothing.

Amon leaned in slightly, eyes glinting.

"Now then... can you stop us?"

A cocky grin tugged at his lips.

But Ace chuckled.

"Let's find out."

He thrust his hand toward the ground.

In the blink of an eye, the land itself responded.

Roots tore free of the snow.

Trees erupted skyward.

Vines slithered and snapped like vipers, wrapping around the legs of startled soldiers.

The army broke into cries of confusion as entire formations stumbled and crumbled in chaos.

Panic surged but only for a moment.

Amon glanced down, then turned his gaze calmly back to Ace.

"Oh… what an interesting cultivation path you've chosen," he mused, tapping his monocle back into place. "You took the Nature's path, is it? Rare for someone of your… caliber."

"But surely you don't think that will stop an army."

He leaned in just slightly, voice lowering to a whisper, meant only for Ace.

"Even the healthiest field has its pests, doesn't it? And pests… they never know when they've already been culled."

Ace flinched not at the insult, but at the casual tone.

This man… this peak Legend wasn't bluffing.

He didn't see the soldiers below as people.

He saw them as livestock.

And exterminating them was no different from just pest control.

Ace's smirk faded as something cold settled in his chest.

This war wasn't just politics anymore, it had turned into a game for monsters.

Ace's voice cut through the frost-laced wind like a blade:

"What is it that you gain… by sacrificing all these soldiers?"

His gaze flicked toward the ocean of troops below still tangled in vines and confusion.

Thousands of lives. Each one with a name. A story.

And yet Amon didn't flinch.

Instead, the scholarly cultivator raised both arms as if conducting an orchestra and slowly turned away, strolling back a few paces in the air like a man enjoying a sunrise.

"Why would I tell you everything I'm about to do?"

His tone was light, almost cheerful.

"That ruins the fun. It's no game if you know your opponent's every move."

Ace's expression hardened.

There was no remorse nor fear in Amon's face. Just a twisted amusement.

Ace had enough as he raised one arm, the sleeve of his cloak shifting like black silk cut from the void.

His fingers curled around the hilt of an invisible blade and with a sudden, precise motion—

He slashed.

The air trembled.

A crescent of gleaming light, a slash of condensed soul energy howled across the open sky like a reaper's scythe, aimed directly at Amon.

For a heartbeat, silence. It was too quick for Amon to even evade.

Then—

SPLASH!

A glistening arc of blood-colored energy split the clouds as it flew, searing straight toward Amon's back—

—but it stopped.

Just inches before impact, something shimmered.

THRUM.

A translucent, hexagonal shield flared to life around Amon, absorbing the blow in a crackle of sparks and ripples.

Ace's eyes narrowed.

Since when did he prepared a shield?

But then his mind clicked.

When Amon raised his arms… there. That was it. A whisper of motion.

Not a chant. Not a seal. Just a sleight of hand, a flourish, hiding a blade behind grace.

Ace's stomach dropped.

A pre-formed defensive construct, layered quietly into his movements.

Ace clenched his fist.

He hadn't noticed it. Not even with all his caution.

And that meant one thing—

This wasn't just arrogance.

Amon was a monster in both power and experience.

That was the difference between talent... and mastery.

Up above, Amon glanced back over his shoulder, his monocle glinting in the light.

"i told you," he said smoothly. "It's no game if you know your opponent's every move."