Max moved like a shadow, trailing Abby through the treetops.
His movents were fluid, silent. The leaves didn't rustle. The branches didn't creak. He was a ghost above her, waiting. Watching.
Through his Three-Dinsional Body, he constantly checked everyone else's position.
He wasn't just hunting—he was making sure he wasn't the one being hunted.
For minutes, he followed her.
Every step. Every turn.
He noticed sothing.
A pattern.
She kept a consistent distance from the others—never too far, but never too close.
Enough to be "alone," but not enough to lose sight of them.
Then—
She reached a secluded spot.
Completely out of sight from the rest.
Max prepared to strike.
His muscles tensed, lightning flickered at his fingertips.
Then—he stopped.
A flicker of doubt crept into his mind.
'Is she baiting ?'
His eyes narrowed.
It was too perfect.
Recalling her movents, she had maintained just enough distance—not enough to seem unnatural, but enough that she could lure soone in.
And now?
Now she was suddenly in a spot where nobody could see her.
Or heard her.
It was suspicious.
Max didn't move.
Instead, he waited.
He would test her.
Because if she was bait—
He'd make sure the trap backfired.
"What are you waiting for?! Attack !"
Abby's shout rang through the forest, her voice raw with fury.
Max's frown deepened.
'Can she sense ?'
He remained still. Watching. Waiting.
But then—
"You killed my twin brother… You might as well kill ."
Tears stread down her face as she looked around, her body trembling.
She cried openly, her voice breaking, grief pouring from her.
Max's eyes narrowed.
But then—she made a mistake.
A fatal mistake.
"If you don't kill here… I swear I will kill each and every mber of the Phoenix Order Guild."
Her voice turned venomous, her breath shaking with rage.
Max's heartbeat slowed.
His pupils shrank slightly.
Then she added—
"After that, I'll find that bitch. What was her na again? Alice."
Max's expression darkened instantly.
"You saved her, right?" Her voice dripped with cruelty. "And I heard you're very close to her."
A wicked grin spread across her tear-streaked face.
"Then I'll make sure she begs for her death."
Max's fist clenched.
"I'll make her fate worse than death."
Abby laughed wickedly, her voice filled with mockery.
She waited.
Waited for Max to break.
Waited for him to lose himself in rage.
But—
Nothing happened.
Seconds passed.
Then minutes.
And still, Max did not show himself.
Her smile twitched.
"What? Can't kill soone without a sneak attack?" Her voice carried a hint of frustration. "Is the so-called strongest genius only capable of sneak attacks?"
The forest remained silent.
Then—
"I'm right here."
A voice. Calm. Cold. Lethal.
Behind her.
Abby's body stiffened.
Her eyes widened.
She whirled around—
And there he was.
Max.
Standing right behind her, his presence unshaken.
For the briefest mont, her expression froze in pure shock.
Then—
Rage.
Uncontrollable, bloodthirsty rage.
Her teeth clenched. Her breath turned ragged. Her fingers trembled.
"It really is you."
Her lips curled back.
"You killed my brother! DIE!"
The ground erupted.
Green vines exploded from the earth, bursting forth like awakened serpents.
They lashed out, twisting violently around Max's legs, then his torso, constricting like iron chains.
Their texture was rough, unnatural. The leafy tendrils tightened with each passing second, as if they had a will of their own.
The vines crushed down.
Max didn't move.
Didn't flinch.
Didn't even blink.
His expression remained cold. Empty.
"Die, die, die!"
Abby's maniacal laughter echoed through the forest as her hand clenched into a fist.
The vines obeyed.
They tightened.
They constricted.
The tendrils wrapped around Max's body like iron coils, pressing down with overwhelming force. Bones creaked. Flesh compressed.
But—
Max did not scream.
He did not struggle.
He did not even blink.
Instead, his voice was calm. Cold. Unshaken.
"You are foolish."
Abby's grin widened.
"Hmph! Say that after I kill you!"
Her fingers twitched, and the vines squeezed even harder.
The pressure was enough to snap steel. Enough to crush boulders.
Yet—
Max's expression remained the sa.
And then—
Another voice.
"You are indeed very foolish."
It ca from behind her.
Abby's breath hitched.
Her eyes widened.
Before she could even turn—
Agonizing pain.
Like fire ripping through her insides.
She gasped—blood pooling in her mouth.
And then—she saw it.
A hand.
Erging from her stomach.
Dripping with molten lava.
Her body trembled. Her vision blurred.
Max's voice whispered next to her ear.
"I never intended to spare any of you."
His tone was flat. Emotionless. Absolute.
"I was going to give you all a quick death." Your next read awaits at My Virtual Library Empire
He leaned in slightly.
"But for you—I'll make an exception. Devour."
Black flas erupted.
They devoured her instantly.
Her screams barely lasted a few seconds.
Then—
Nothing remained.
Only ashes.
Then, a familiar sensation flooded into Max's body.
Power.
Pure, raw power.
Then—
[Physique increased by 9.]
[Soul increased by 4.]
[Energy increased by 22.]
Max exhaled slowly.
He felt it.
A surge of energy, like he had consud sothing divine.
The power of devouring.
He didn't like to use this ability on humans but he wasn't against it entirely.
As Abby's body was reduced to ashes, the other Max—the one bound by the vines—landed lightly on the ground.
The mont Abby died, the vines around him lost all strength, going completely limp.
Max turned his gaze toward the clone, watching as it stood there—still, untouched, unhard.
Then, a small smirk played on his lips.
'This Lightning Shadow Clone is too realistic.'
The second move of the Ten Hands of Lightning God—Lightning Shadow Clone.
Unlike traditional clones, this wasn't an illusion.
It was real.
A body made entirely of lightning.
The clone had weight, presence, and physical form. It could fool enemies into believing it was truly him.
And if he wished—
He could dissolve it.
If he did, the clone would detonate into a lightning explosion, powerful enough to blast a small crater into the earth.
But—it wasn't without flaws.
The clone couldn't act independently. It wasn't intelligent.
He had to be within ten ters of it—if he moved beyond that range, the clone would disperse instantly.
It constantly drained his mana to maintain its form—if he stopped supplying energy, it would revert into pure lightning.
No skills. No techniques. The clone was just that—a puppet of his own body.
It was a tool—but a powerful one.
And it had just played its role perfectly.
But its most important play had yet to begin.
Max's grip tightened on his clone.
Then—he vanished.
A mont later, he reappeared above a tree, high above Jessica with his clone.
His gaze flickered.
Every detail had to be perfect.
With swift, practiced movents, he began his preparations.
He changed the clone's tattered t-shirt to the exact one he had worn when Aurelia's sword had pierced him.
He cut his own skin, drawing fresh blood, and soaked the shirt with it.
He dripped blood onto the ground below the tree, scattering small droplets to look as if soone had collapsed here.
He sared a little on the bark, enough to make it look like he had leaned against the tree while injured.
He positioned the clone, making it appear weakened, slumped against the trunk.
Then, he disappeared again, relocating to another tree—one where he had a perfect vantage point.
Max's grin widened.
'Let the play begin.'
Now, it was only a matter of ti.
Jessica would find "him."
And when she did…
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