Chapter 244: Escaped??

"You should never ask such a question." Aurora stated coldly, as her aura spread all over the place.

?The temperature in the barren wilderness plummeted instantly. A suffocating, heavy pressure cascaded outward from her slender frame, carrying the undeniable, terrifying weight of a true Ex-Rank cultivator. The air itself seemed to freeze, aggressively pressing down on their shoulders as a warning against probing the secrets of the Ancient Families.

?Asher simply raised an eyebrow. Just asking a basic logistical question had triggered such a violent, defensive reaction that she felt compelled to weaponize her energy against them. He turned his head slowly to face the Bladecrest heir.

?But...

?She had made one singular, catastrophic miscalculation. Asher was no longer the same powerless human who could be threatened by a mere S-Rank Awakened. He stood at the absolute pinnacle. Furthermore, while she was a prodigious daughter of an ancient bloodline, only a reigning Family Head possessed the sheer strength required to make him feel even a fraction of pressure.

?The very next moment, a blinding, oceanic wave of golden energy burst out from Asher’s core. Because his spirit pathways surged with a system-forged energy boasting a mathematically impossible 999% pure Aether density, his aura didn’t just push back against Aurora’s pressure—it instantly obliterated it. The golden domain crashed down heavily upon her shoulders like a collapsing mountain, violently forcing the Bladecrest prodigy down to her knees onto the earth.

?’This? What is this pressure?!!’ Aurora thought frantically, her dark eyes staring wide at the dirt between her knees. She couldn’t even summon the physical strength to raise her head.

?’Impossible! My energy purity and density is already 25%, that’s half to the peak stage!! Don’t tell me this guy already has 50% pure Aether energy... That’s impossible.’ She gritted her teeth, aggressively circulating her own energy to force past her body’s natural paralysis, managing only to strain her neck enough to stare up into Asher’s flawlessly indifferent face.

?’Something isn’t right here!! Only the family heads have 50% pure Aether energy, but their pressure isn’t as heavy as this... I also suspect he isn’t going all out! How can an Ex-Rank be this powerful?! I might be crazy, but I think he alone can rival the ancient families without the help of the gods.’ She gritted her teeth even harder, as cold sweat rolled down her pale face, her mind violently restructuring everything she knew about the world’s power ceiling.

?"Spirit energy, and Aether energy have one difference, which is their density, and strength; the two energies have the color of an Awakened’s blessing!! Yours is gold, which means you have a gold tier blessing! However, I also have Gold tier blessings!! Why can’t I resist your pressure?!!" She yelled at him, her voice cracking under the strain—only to freeze entirely when she noticed the two identical, arrogant smirks resting on the faces of the women standing safely behind him.

?"Resist? Aren’t you overestimating yourself?" Juliana asked, her arms folded as she stared down at the kneeling Ex-Rank noble with supreme disdain.

?"You are from the ancient families, but always remember that you’re just a youngster... So always know your place." Kelly said, staring at her coldly. Without missing a beat, both Juliana and Kelly added in perfect, cutting unison:

?"We are both Matriarchs of the Aetheldawn family, how dare a kid release her pressure in our presence?!"

?".....?!"

?Aurora was utterly stunned. The sheer audacity left her speechless. Biologically and chronologically, she was in her thirties—significantly older than these three standing before her. By the standard of human society, shouldn’t she be the senior demanding respect from those still in their early twenties?

?When did the hierarchy of age suddenly invert to mean this?

?"I understand, I apologize for releasing my pressure; I reprimanded Draven for disobeying the second rule, but I just did it." Aurora relented, lowering her head as she formally acknowledged the true law of her people: power dictated authority, regardless of age.

?’What is so important about your second rule? It only applies when someone is stronger than you, while to those outside the ancient families’ lineage, it’s completely useless.’ Juliana thought with crossed arms, internally scoffing at the hypocritical politics of the noble houses.

?Asher remained completely silent, his golden eyes staring down at Aurora as she caught her breath and continued:

?"I am also deeply sorry, but I can’t answer the question. Only my father or other heads can give you the answer." She added, her tone carrying genuine resignation.

?Asher exhaled a quiet breath inwardly. It didn’t matter. He could easily extract the answer directly from the system after he fully cured Juliana or Sara; but Aurora’s frantic outburst had inadvertently revealed a crucial piece of lore.

?’So when you reach Ex-Rank, the color of your spirit, or Aether energy determines your god’s blessing, but something is strange; I have black, red, gold, white, and even green energies... When I use any ability, the energy is different colors, but my aura is gold... Does that mean I have multicolor energy? What is that even supposed to mean?’ He asked himself, analyzing the strange, prismatic nature of his own Aether.

?{....}

?’Keeping quiet.’ Asher noted dryly as the system interface remained stubbornly silent.

?{Can’t get information, please fully cure one of your wives to upgrade the system again.}

?"As long as you understand your mistake." Asher said, seamlessly withdrawing his crushing golden pressure, allowing the air to rush back into the clearing as Aurora slowly and unsteadily got to her feet.

?"Thank you for showing mercy." Aurora said with a small, formal bow, rubbing her aching shoulders—then abruptly froze.

?She and Asher snapped their heads sharply toward the west at the exact same microsecond. A microscopic ripple in the spatial fabric had triggered their perception. Without a fraction of hesitation, a glowing rectangular card materialized between Aurora’s fingertips. She whipped her arm forward, hurling the card into the seemingly empty air, and yelled:

?"Athena sealing cage!! Activate!!"

?Upon her command, the card ignited. It increased its velocity by a staggering 500%, tearing through the sound barrier before violently exploding exactly three hundred meters away in a blinding flash of divine energy.

?"Caught you!!"

?Aurora lunged toward the epicenter of the blast, moving at blinding speeds. Asher, Juliana, and Kelly followed immediately behind her, their bodies blurring as they crossed the distance in the blink of an eye.

?’That card? Do her abilities have to do with cards?’ Asher thought, analyzing her unique combat style as he came to a graceful stop on the edge of a massive, smoldering crater.

?"....?!"

?Juliana and Kelly blinked rapidly, their eyes wide open in sheer shock as they stared down into the massive, smoking hole carved out of the earth by the localized card explosion.

?’Wait!! Is this Aurora so powerful?!’ Kelly thought, her heart skipping a beat as she registered the raw, devastating strength required to instantly vaporize so much dense terrain.

?’We just yelled at such a person, luckily our husband is here.’ Juliana thought, swallowing slightly as she stared at the black-haired woman hovering in the center of the deep crater below them.

?In front of Aurora, a shattered, glowing golden cage—woven entirely from energy—was slowly disintegrating into light particles.

?"This... Escaped?" Aurora muttered, her dark eyes wide, her pale face suddenly flooded with pure, unadulterated disbelief and shock at the impossibility of her ultimate trap being breached.