"Tell sothing." Max's tone was calm, almost casual, though his red eyes glead with a cold amusent. He kept his sword resting lightly against his shoulder as he looked straight at the figure before him. "Do you only have the abilities I displayed just now, or all of my abilities?"
The copy smiled. It was the sa smile Max used when mocking his enemies—a quiet curve of the lips that carried both confidence and cruelty. The reflection tilted its head slightly, the mirrored light dancing across its flawless skin.
"Oh, don't worry," it said, its voice identical to his. "I have only the ones you've shown so far. Everything you've revealed within this lake, I possess. You can rest easy knowing that even though I am your copy, I don't have every single one of your abilities."
The way it said those words carried an unsettling sense of honesty. It wasn't lying. That sohow made it worse.
Max smirked faintly. "That's good to know. At least you'll be easier to deal with than I thought."
The copy chuckled softly. "You think so?" It stepped forward, each movent fluid and soundless, its reflection stretching long across the fragnts of glass beneath its feet. The tone of its voice changed slightly—deeper, darker, colder. "Maybe I don't have all your powers. But I have sothing far more interesting than your abilities."
It raised a finger and pointed directly at Max's chest. "Your soul."
A chill passed through the air. The space between them vibrated faintly, and for an instant, Max could feel the pressure of his own essence—his mories, emotions, and consciousness—echoing back at him.
The copy's eyes glowed faintly crimson. "Tell sothing, Max. How is it that I sense such restlessness within your heart? A constant motion, a faint tremor… like sothing clawing from inside you, trying to get out."
Max's brows furrowed slightly, his body tensing without his realizing it.
The copy smiled wider, sensing his reaction. "You feel it too, don't you? That unease that never goes away. You've been running from it ever since you stepped into this place. You distract yourself with battles, trials, power, and endless cultivation… but you never stop long enough to face it."
It began to walk in a slow circle around him, the mirrored surface rippling under its feet as though the entire lake responded to its movents. "You keep telling yourself that you've moved past everything—that you no longer care about your friends, your family, your sister, or the world you left behind. You tell yourself you've buried all of it. But that's a lie."
Max didn't move, but his gaze sharpened. The copy stopped walking and stared at him directly, its crimson eyes gleaming like twin mirrors reflecting his soul. "You've lost faith in everything and everyone. You've cut off every bond, buried every emotion, and convinced yourself that only strength matters now. But deep down, you're still afraid."
It tilted its head slightly, studying him as if he were an open book. "Afraid that even when you reach the top, even when you beco the strongest being in existence… you'll still feel empty."
For a mont, neither of them spoke. The air was still, and the surface of the shattered lake reflected two identical figures locked in silence—two sides of the sa being standing at the edge of truth and denial.
Then, the copy smiled again, faintly and coldly. "So tell , Max Voidwalker," it said softly. "Which one of us is the real you?"
"You think too much." Max's tone was calm, devoid of any emotion.
The mont those words left his mouth, his sword flashed with crimson lightning. The energy rippled through the air like a wave of destruction, and in the next instant, the battlefield erupted into chaos.
A single step shattered the space beneath him. Lightning coiled around his body like serpents as he vanished, appearing before his copy in a burst of light. His sword swung down in an arc so fast that the air split apart, and a faint sonic boom echoed through the mirrored lake.
The copy moved at the sa ti, mirroring Max's attack perfectly. Two identical blades clashed, releasing a deafening explosion that fractured the nearby fragnts of the lake. Ripples of distorted space spread outward, tearing apart everything caught between them.
The mirrored reflection of the world around them shattered completely.
Max pushed forward, eyes cold and unblinking, his movents sharp and precise. Each strike of his sword carried imnse weight—lightning, fla, and spatial distortion intertwined into a single devastating rhythm.
The copy, however, fought with equal mastery. It anticipated every swing, countered every move, and even matched Max's footwork flawlessly. Every ti Max accelerated with Extre Speed, the copy vanished too. Every ti he unleashed Heaven Piercing Thunderclap Sword, the sa crimson lightning erupted from his opponent's blade.
The clash of their powers lit up the sky in alternating flashes of blue and red.
"You can't hide behind silence forever," the copy said, its voice steady even as their swords collided again and again. "Every attack you make is a denial. Every strike is you trying to kill what you refuse to face."
Max didn't respond. His expression didn't change. Only his attacks grew sharper.
He twisted his wrist, channeling Spatial Distortion into his sword. The very air bent around his blade as he brought it down, collapsing several layers of space into a single point. The resulting impact exploded outward, hurling both of them across the fractured ground.
Max landed lightly, while the copy slid backward, leaving a trail of cracked reflection beneath its feet.
The clone laughed softly. "You see? Even your power rejects you. Every law bends to your will, but your heart remains chained."
Max appeared behind it instantly, silent as death. His sword swung horizontally, covered in roaring black flas from his infernal energy. The impact sent a shockwave through the lake, breaking the surface into countless fragnts that floated midair like shattered glass.
"I don't care about what you think," Max said coldly as the reflection staggered backward. "You're just a shadow."
The copy straightened itself, eyes glowing faintly. "Maybe. But shadows always follow their source."
It thrust its hand forward, unleashing a pulse of spatial collapse. The ground beneath Max twisted violently as gravity inverted, sending shards of reflection flying upward. Max countered instantly, his own Spatial Collapse nullifying the distortion.
Both figures rushed forward again, their swords colliding in a dance of absolute precision. Sparks of lightning exploded each ti their blades t.
Neither of them missed a beat.
Neither of them hesitated.
Every clash created ripples in the sky, as though two universes were colliding and reforming with each strike.
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