Chapter 385: Killing a protagonist Ethan stood up slowly inside his inner dimension. The two cocoons beside him pulsed softly, like sleeping beasts breathing in rhythm. Nini was still sealed inside shifting chaos, and the World Tree was wrapped in its crystal shell, silent and powerful. Ethan did not rush them. Power like that could not be forced. He exhaled, then laughed quietly. "Hahaha... fine. Grow properly. I’ll hunt meanwhile." His main goal had never changed. Power. Bloodlines. Authority. And in the end, the Throne of Destiny of this eternal domain. Everything else was noise. Ethan stepped out of his inner world, his form returning to the real battlefield. The gray dust had already settled. Nothing remained except cracked land and broken laws. He looked toward the edge of reality. "That fit earlier would have caused a nexus event for sure," he muttered. "If I didn’t use the Ultimate Domain, half the higher realms would already be staring at me." He scratched his chin and laughed. "Hahaha... yeah, hiding is annoying, but being hunted by old monsters is worse." After weighing everything again, Ethan made the choice. "I’ll keep using it. For now." His Ultimate Domain unfolded silently around him, swallowing space, fate, and presence. The world stopped noticing him. Then he moved. Ethan flew forward. Faster and faster, until distance lost meaning. Stars blurred into lines. Space folded like thin paper. Soon, the edge of reality appeared ahead. The barrier. It looked the same as always. Vast. Translucent. Filled with countless layers of law and authority. Ethan stopped in front of it. Right on cue, the familiar voice echoed. [Do you wish to use your authority to pass the barrier?] Ethan did not even hear it. He was already bored. He reached behind his back and pulled out the Sword of Infinity. The blade hummed eagerly. Ethan raised it casually. "Slash." He swung. There was no technique. No buildup. No fancy light. The sword cut forward. The barrier split instantly. A clean rift opened, like reality itself had been wounded. Laws tore apart. Authority seals shattered like glass. Ethan stared for half a second, then laughed. "Hahaha. The ghost of the Anomalies, Ethan Hunt is going to start his hunt. Are you ready?" But no one replied him. He was just muttering himself. He stepped forward and entered the new reality. The moment he crossed over, pressure slammed into him. This world rejected him. Its laws screamed in protest. Then the Will spoke. [You have entered the reality of another candidate.] [You must challenge the native candidate within 5 days.] [Failure will result in your location being revealed to him.] Ethan finally paid attention. "So the intruder always gets exposed," he said calmly. He did not care. He needed to visit one hundred million realities. Even if he took one day per world, it would take one hundred million days. Too slow. Too stupid. "I don’t have time for this shit," he muttered. "I’ll have to kill as many anomalies as I can in a single day." Ethan closed his eyes. His mental domain started spreading. His spirit was now in genesis realm, so he could surround a single reality easily. His mental domain expanded like an invisible sea, spreading across the entire reality. Continents, oceans, cities, beasts, cultivators, stars. Everything entered his perception. He was looking for the anomaly and he didn’t have to wait for long. He saw something anomalous. A single man. On a blood soaked planet. That man was killing others like chickens. Every step he took ended lives. Every movement erased people. His face was cold, empty, almost bored. But what caught Ethan’s attention was not the killing. It was the growth. With every death, power surged. With every scream, his aura climbed. His realm was Emperor Realm. Same as Ethan. But his combat power had already crushed past Progenitor Realm and was knocking on the door of Primordial Realm. Ethan’s eyes narrowed slightly. "Oh?" he muttered. "Interesting." He watched closely. A gray red mist flowed into the man’s body. Chaos. Pure chaos. A bloodline that fed on destruction itself. "How is he doing this?" Ethan wondered. "Does he have a system too?" He smiled slowly. "No... this feels dirtier than a system." Ethan vanished. Space folded, and he appeared above the ruined planet. The smell of blood filled the air. Screams echoed below. Ethan looked down and sighed. 𝗳𝚛𝚎𝚎𝘄𝕖𝕓𝕟𝕠𝚟𝚎𝕝.𝗰𝕠𝐦 "Messy world." His body shimmered. His aura faded. In the next moment, he became a poor old man. Bent back. Wrinkled skin. Weak breath. Tattered clothes. He slowly descended and landed among the terrified survivors. No one noticed him. Everyone was too busy dying. Ethan’s eyes were calm. His goal was simple. Confirm if this man was the candidate. He did not need to wait long. The Will spoke. [Two Emperor of Destiny candidates are within 1 km apart.] [A battle is required.] The sound echoed across the battlefield. Both candidates heard it. The young man froze. He turned his head sharply. "Another candidate?" he muttered. "Here?" His eyes scanned the surroundings. "Did he use authority to enter my reality?" Then his lips curled upward. A nasty smile appeared. "It doesn’t matter." His aura flared violently. Gray ash rolled off his body like smoke from a burning corpse. "My Primordial Ash Bloodline feeds on chaos and destruction," he said coldly. "The more I kill, the stronger I become." He looked at the humans in front of him. They were kneeling. Begging. Crying. Ethan stood quietly among them, leaning on his stick. The young man snapped his fingers. Everyone turned into powder instantly. No blood. No screams. Just death. A small wave of chaos entered his body. His aura climbed again. He inhaled slowly, enjoying the feeling. "Come out," he said calmly. "Let me see if you’re worth killing." He waited. He had no idea. Not even a single warning. That right now, a predator far worse than him was watching him. Ethan’s old man disguise trembled. A laugh escaped his mouth. "Hahaha..." "So you grow from chaos," Ethan thought. "Good." This bloodline was worth taking and merging with him. He straightened his back. Bones cracked. Wrinkles faded. The disguise peeled away like dead skin. His true form emerged. The air grew heavy. The young man suddenly felt it. A chill crawled up his spine. His instincts screamed. Danger. He turned around to see who it was. And their eyes met. For the first time, uncertainty appeared on his face. Ethan smiled. A predator’s smile. "So," Ethan said calmly, "you must be the little protagonist of this reality." The young man narrowed his eyes. "Who are you?" Ethan looked at him calmly. "Don’t worry." The Sword of Infinity appeared in his hand. "You’ll find out soon." The ground cracked under his foot as he stepped forward. "I was planning to collect bloodlines anyway," Ethan continued casually. "And you just happen to carry a very tasty one." The young man’s ash aura surged violently. "You think you can take me?" he sneered. "I grow stronger every second. Chaos itself feeds me." Ethan nodded. "I know." Then he grinned wider. "That’s why I’m excited." "Show me how loud you can scream." Slash! He didn’t need to use his sword but he used it anyway.