Ethan left before dawn.
He walked through the silent corridors of the estate, his footsteps echoing in the emptiness. His body felt strange—hollow, weak, like a shell that had been emptied of its contents. The spiritual energy that had once flowed through his meridians was gone. The connection to the system was silent.
He was just a man now.
A man with nothing left to give.
Arthur and Silas waited at the gates.
The two brothers stood side by side—the Iron Ghost and the redeemed Betrayer. They looked identical in the pale morning light, their features carved from the same stone. But their eyes were different. Arthur’s burned with ancient fire. Silas’s were calm, human, at peace for the first time in three hundred years.
"You’re not going alone," Arthur said.
"I have to."
"That’s madness."
"Perhaps." Ethan met his gaze. "But those scouts have families. They have children. If I don’t go, they die."
"And if you go, you die."
Ethan smiled faintly. "Then at least I’ll die doing something right."
Silas stepped forward.
"Let me go in your place. Victor won’t expect it. I can—"
"No." Ethan shook his head. "Victor wants me. If anyone else shows up, he’ll kill the scouts and attack the mountain."
He paused.
"This is my choice. My sacrifice. Let me make it."
Arthur was silent for a long moment.
Then he nodded.
"Come back to us."
"I’ll try."
The family gathered to see him off.
Eleanor embraced him, her eyes wet with tears she refused to shed.
"You foolish, foolish boy."
"I learned from you."
She laughed despite herself—a broken, watery sound.
"Be careful."
"I will."
Thomas approached next. His arm was still in a sling from the battle, but his grip was strong as he pressed something into Ethan’s hand—a small dagger, its blade dark and sharp.
"It’s not much. But it might save your life."
Ethan tucked it into his belt.
"Thank you."
"Don’t thank me. Just come back."
Lily was last. She stood before him, her small face set with determination. Her pigtails were gone—she had cut her hair short after the battle, a symbol of her new resolve.
"You promised."
"I know."
"You promised you’d come back."
Ethan knelt to her level.
"I’ll do everything I can."
She threw her arms around him.
"You better."
The eastern gate was a ruin.
It had been abandoned for years—the wooden doors rotted, the stone walls crumbling. Beyond it, the mountain path descended into a narrow valley, where Victor Ashford waited.
Ethan walked through the gate alone.
The valley was quiet. Too quiet. The morning mist clung to the ground, obscuring the details of the landscape. But Ethan could see them—a group of riders, their black armor gleaming in the pale light.
And at their center, Victor Ashford.
He was not what Ethan expected. Tall, yes. Handsome, in a cold, cruel way. His eyes were pale blue, like chips of ice, and his smile was the smile of a man who had already won.
"Ethan Blackwood," he said. "The exile returns."
Ethan stopped a dozen paces away.
"Where are the scouts?"
Victor gestured, and two soldiers dragged forward three bound figures. They were bruised, bloodied, but alive.
"Here they are. As promised."
"Release them."
Victor laughed.
"Not yet. First, we need to discuss terms."
"You said my surrender for their lives."
"I said I wanted you. I didn’t say I would let them go."
Ethan’s blood ran cold.
"You lied."
"I am a businessman. Lies are simply tools of the trade."
Victor dismounted and walked toward Ethan.
"But I am also a man of my word. So here is my offer—you will come with me. You will submit to my justice. And in return, I will let the scouts live."
He paused.
"Or you can refuse. And I will kill them in front of you. Then I will kill you. Then I will march on your mountain and slaughter every last Blackwood."
Ethan stared at him.
"You’re a monster."
"I am a survivor. There is a difference."
The scouts were executed.
Ethan watched in horror as Victor’s soldiers cut them down—one by one, their bodies crumpling to the ground. He tried to move, tried to stop them, but two soldiers grabbed his arms and held him in place.
"Let me go!"
Victor watched with a smile.
"You see, Ethan? This is what happens when you trust your enemies."
He stepped closer.
"Now. Your bloodline. It’s special, isn’t it? The Blackwood bloodline. I’ve heard stories. Legends. The power to create ancestors. To bring back the dead."
He grabbed Ethan’s chin.
"I want that power."
Ethan spat in his face.
Victor wiped it away, his smile never faltering.
"You’ll give it to me. One way or another."
He raised his hand.
"Take him."
The soldiers dragged Ethan toward a carriage.
He struggled, but he was too weak. Without his cultivation, he was helpless.
Then—
A blade flashed.
The soldier on Ethan’s left collapsed, blood spraying from his throat. The one on his right fell a moment later.
Ethan stumbled, catching himself.
A figure stepped out of the mist.
A woman. Tall. Silver-haired. Her eyes were cold and sharp, and in her hands were two curved blades, dripping with blood.
Victor’s soldiers drew their weapons.
"Who are you?" Victor demanded.
The woman smiled.
"Someone who’s been watching this family for a very long time."
She looked at Ethan.
"You’re the one they call the Vessel. The one who brings back the dead."
She stepped closer.
"I’ve been waiting for you."
Victor snarled.
"Kill her!"
His soldiers charged.
The woman moved like water—flowing between their blades, her curved swords singing through the air. In seconds, three more soldiers lay dead.
Victor’s face twisted with rage.
"You’ll pay for this!"
He drew his own blade—a long, dark sword that radiated demonic energy. He was faster than his soldiers. Stronger. His cultivation blazed around him like a storm.
The woman met him head-on.
Their blades clashed, sending shockwaves through the valley. The woman was skilled, but Victor was powerful—fueled by demonic energy and years of hatred.
"You’re nothing," Victor hissed. "A shadow of the past."
The woman smiled.
"I’m worse than that."
She twisted her blade, disarming Victor in a single motion. His sword clattered to the ground.
Victor stumbled back, his eyes wide.
"Who are you?"
The woman stepped closer.
"My name is Vivienne Blackwood. And I’ve been waiting three hundred years to meet you."
Victor fled.
He mounted his horse and rode away, his remaining soldiers following. The woman Vivienne did not pursue.
She turned to Ethan.
"You’re weaker than I expected."
He stared at her.
"You’re... Vivienne? The Silk Spider?"
"The same."
"But you’re... you’re already manifested. I created you."
Vivienne smiled.
"No. You didn’t create me. You remembered me."
She stepped closer.
"I existed long before you were born. I was erased from history, but I was never truly gone. When you began creating ancestors, you awakened me."
Ethan’s mind raced.
"You’re not one of my creations?"
"I am my own creation. I always was."
She looked at the retreating Ashford army.
"And now, we have work to do."
『 Vivienne Blackwood has revealed her true nature 』
『 She is not a fabrication—she is an original ancestor 』
『 Her power is far greater than anticipated 』
『 New Ally Unlocked: Vivienne Blackwood 』
『 New Quest Unlocked: Survive Victor Ashford 』
『 Warning: Ethan is still in danger 』
『 Next Milestone: Confront Victor Ashford 』