A while later, Amon stood up, his body even more perfect than it had been.
As he stared at the gate swirling in front of him, his gaze was calm, and his long white hair gently swayed with the wind, shining with a starry radiance.
His pupils mysteriously swirled, and with a step, he soared through the emptiness toward the portal, his arm streaking forward to shatter it.
PAH!
The entire cave seemed to fracture and shatter as the earth split open and the skies were torn asunder.
An explosion of aether occurred, swept away by terrifyingly violent winds as from the crack in the land, an entirely new world was revealed.
****
Amon softly landed from the skies.
He found himself, as usual, in the middle of a hall, but this one seemed special.
The floor was entirely made of white marble, the high ceilings supported by magnificent pillars of black and gold. At the end of the room, a grand throne could be seen.
In front of this throne, a familiar figure appeared.
"How strange, how truly strange is fate? Unpredictable and moody."
The man of stone, sitting cross-legged in the air, shook his head upon seeing Amon appear.
Just as he was about to continue, Amon interrupted him.
"Hand me some damn clothes first. I will not be talking to you with my manhood swinging to the wind's whims."
The man of stone chuckled and waved his hand.
Black aether gathered and infused into the world's neutral aether, and immediately, black and white robes draped over Amon's figure.
'Aether transmutation…'
Amon wasn't surprised by the man of stone's skill. After all, he'd been his teacher ever since he'd been betrayed by the third prince.
Everything the man of stone knew, he knew. He just didn't have the cultivation to do any of it. He couldn't even cast spells.
"Now, I need to know." Amon's gaze steadied. "Whose side are you on?"
Tao, the man of stone, caressed his chin, seemingly thinking hard about what to answer.
"I am on no one's side. I was given a task, and so I must complete it." Before Amon could lash out, he continued. "After the First Warlock's soul was shattered by his enemies, I was tasked with ensuring his legacy didn't die and a worthy successor was born."
He chuckled.
"Truly, your arrogance still hasn't died, boy. I've told you already, the First Warlock was a figure feared throughout all of existence and known by everyone in the universe. If he wanted your body, do you truly think you'd be able to resist? Let alone know it was his intention?"
Though Amon was taken aback, he remained quiet and didn't show it, his expression blank.
"This plan you've been embroiled in stinks of an amateur. A stupidly ambitious one at that."
He continued to ramble on but eventually sighed and looked at Amon.
"Regardless, you've managed to survive and make it here. Be proud. If you wish to leave and find the last fragment of his highness' legacy…"
His legs unfolded, and he floated down.
BANG!
A terrifying aether pressure descended, cracking the floor and causing sparks of aether lightning to suffuse the hall.
A sword appeared in his hand.
"…you will need to claim my head."
Amon remained calm and extended an arm, his palm grasping at empty air.
A spear of white formed but was soon dyed by his purple and green aether.
PAH!
His cells wildly thrummed and pumped aether through him as he felt his power soar. His runed bones went into full capacity, and his blood boiled, fueling him with power.
His spirit sense was unleashed, and after a few seconds of silence, the two vanished.
CLANK!
Spear and sword met and clashed, sending sparks of aether flying.
Amon retreated for a moment but immediately burst back with much more force, his blade swimming through the air to land a falling cleave.
With a smile, the man of stone parried it, completely opening Amon's defenses. With a simple swing, he tore a nasty gash across Amon's chest, but this didn't matter as immediately, life aether pulsed off Amon's body and the wound closed.
"How unfortunate. Your style of battle was already reckless at its core, but now that your already monstrous healing can pull upon life aether, you'll be even more stupid." He sighed, ducking to dodge a kick.
He grabbed Amon's leg and pulled, throwing him into the air. His chest torqued, and his blade viciously swept across the air, black aether following its quake.
"Argh!"
Blood flowed down Amon's back as he landed and rolled, regaining his balance. He looked at the man of stone and his gaze narrowed.
'He infused his innate aether into his attack to stop me from healing.'
WHOOSH!
A wave of chaotic aether beams launched his way, but effortlessly, he zipped through them and closed the distance.
He sent a slice forward, waiting for Tao's arm to move before switching his stance.
'A feint?!'
An upward slice tore across Tao's chest of stone, drawing blood of gold as he took a few steps back, overwhelmed by Amon's innate aether.
Amon didn't let this opportunity go to waste. In the next instant, he launched dozens of slices, each drawing more blood from Tao's body.
Tao tried to fight back, but Amon's spirit sense was too supreme.
It was as if Amon could see into the future and choose the most optimal path to victory each time.
A slice was followed by a cleave, only to be followed by a retreating step, then falling back into a rhythm of attacks. He moved to dodge before the attacks were launched and attacked empty air, predicting Tao's future positions.
In the blink of an eye, Tao only had one arm left, his body of stone entirely covered in flowing blood of gold.
"I see."