The connection disappeared.
William remained on the mountain for several minutes.
He didn't pursue it.
That was the point.
If he chased every trace the moment he detected it, whoever was watching him would simply learn another part of his abilities.
Instead, he stood there and waited.
Nothing happened.
Eventually, William turned around and returned to the valley.
Mira was waiting for him.
"You felt them again."
"Yes."
"And?"
"I let them go."
She looked surprised.
"You didn't follow?"
"No."
"Why?"
"Because they wanted me to."
Mira thought about it.
"You're saying the connection was bait."
"Maybe."
"Then what did you gain?"
William smiled.
"Information."
"What information?"
"They were close enough to hear me."
Mira's expression changed.
"So..."
"They're not observing from some distant place."
William looked toward the mountains.
"They're closer than we thought."
The next morning, William called the group together.
Leon, Elias, Adrian, and Mira gathered around the table.
William placed the strange symbol on its surface.
Nobody touched it.
"This appeared yesterday."
Adrian studied it.
"I've never seen it."
"Neither have I."
Leon asked:
"Who gave it to you?"
"A woman who claims to have information about the people watching me."
"Do you trust her?"
"No."
Elias looked at William.
"Then why keep the symbol?"
"Because I don't need to trust her to examine what she gave me."
He pointed toward it.
"Everything has connections."
Mira smiled.
"Even symbols?"
"Especially symbols."
William extended his perception.
The symbol remained completely still.
He searched for a connection.
Nothing.
He changed his approach.
He examined the material itself.
Again, nothing.
Then he noticed something.
A tiny mark beneath the main symbol.
Almost invisible.
William's eyes narrowed.
"There."
Adrian leaned closer.
"What?"
"A second inscription."
Leon frowned.
"I can't see anything."
"You don't need to."
William traced the mark with his finger.
The moment he touched it, the symbol briefly changed.
A faint line appeared.
It pointed in a specific direction.
William immediately withdrew his hand.
The line disappeared.
Mira looked at him.
"Where?"
William stared toward the western mountains.
"There."
They left the valley that afternoon.
This time, William did not hide his movements.
He wanted the observer to know where he was going.
The group traveled openly.
They passed through several territories.
People noticed them.
Some recognized William.
Rumors spread quickly.
That was exactly what William wanted.
If someone was watching him, they would report his movements.
And if they reported them—
William could use that information.
He deliberately changed direction twice.
Then stopped in a small settlement.
Nothing happened.
He changed direction again.
Still nothing.
Adrian eventually asked:
"Are we actually going somewhere?"
William smiled.
"Not yet."
"Then what are we doing?"
"Watching who reacts."
Three days later, they reached a deserted region.
There were no major cities.
No famous training grounds.
No valuable resources.
Nothing that should have attracted William's attention.
That made it perfect.
William stopped.
"We're staying here."
Mira looked around.
"Why?"
"Because there's nothing here."
Adrian laughed.
"That's your reason?"
"Yes."
"If there's nothing here, why would anyone follow us?"
William looked at him.
"Exactly."
They remained there for two days.
William trained.
Mira cultivated.
Adrian explored the surroundings.
Leon and Elias monitored the nearby area.
Nothing happened.
Then, on the third night, Elias returned.
"There is someone."
William opened his eyes.
"Where?"
"Two mountains away."
"How many?"
"One."
"Strength?"
"Strong."
"How strong?"
Elias hesitated.
"I couldn't determine it."
William stood.
"Then don't approach."
Elias nodded.
"Already understood."
William looked toward the mountain.
"He's watching us."
Mira frowned.
"Could it be the same person?"
"Maybe."
"Are you going to confront him?"
William shook his head.
"No."
Adrian looked confused.
"Then why did we come here?"
William smiled.
"Because now we can test something."
William walked away from the camp.
He deliberately made his movements visible.
He traveled toward a small cave.
Inside, he created a formation.
It wasn't powerful.
It wasn't particularly complicated.
But it looked important.
He spent several hours inside.
From a distance, anyone observing him would assume he was working on something significant.
In reality, William was doing almost nothing.
He was waiting.
Then he felt the connection.
Someone had approached.
The observer was curious.
William smiled.
He continued pretending to work.
The connection became stronger.
Closer.
Then—
William suddenly turned.
The connection disappeared.
He laughed.
"Again."
The same thing happened.
The observer was close enough to monitor him but careful enough to retreat whenever William noticed.
That told him something.
They weren't confident.
They were afraid of being discovered.
That was useful.
William returned to the camp.
Mira immediately asked:
"What did you learn?"
"They're following us."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
"Because they reacted to something."
"What did you show them?"
"Nothing important."
Mira smiled.
"Then why did they react?"
"Because they thought it was important."
Adrian laughed.
"So you baited them."
"Yes."
Leon looked at him.
"And now?"
William sat down.
"Now we give them another bait."
The next morning, William deliberately mentioned something while speaking with Adrian.
He spoke loudly enough that anyone nearby could hear.
"The next place is dangerous."
Adrian immediately understood.
He played along.
"Are you sure you want to go?"
William nodded.
"I need to finish what I started."
"What about the others?"
"They don't need to know."
Mira watched from a distance.
She understood the plan.
The conversation was completely fabricated.
There was no dangerous place.
There was no unfinished work.
But if someone was listening, they would report it.
William wanted to know where the information went.
Two days later, they changed direction.
They traveled toward an isolated region.
William could feel the observer following.
But this time, the connection didn't disappear.
It remained.
William smiled.
"They believe it."
Adrian looked at him.
"Then what?"
"Wait."
That night, William stopped.
The observer stopped too.
William sat beside a tree.
He didn't look around.
Instead, he spoke.
"You've been following us for days."
Silence.
Mira and the others remained hidden.
William continued.
"I know you can hear me."
Nothing.
"If you're gathering information, you've already gathered enough."
Still nothing.
William smiled.
"But if you want answers..."
He paused.
"...you can ask me directly."
A few seconds passed.
Then a voice came from the darkness.
"You'd answer?"
William looked toward the sound.
"That depends on the question."
A figure stepped out.
He was dressed in dark clothing.
His face was hidden.
He stopped several meters away.
William studied him.
"You've been following us."
"Yes."
"Who sent you?"
"No one."
"Then why?"
The figure hesitated.
"I'm interested in you."
William smiled.
"That's not an answer."
"It's the truth."
"Then tell me what interests you."
The figure remained silent.
William continued:
"My strength?"
"No."
"My abilities?"
"No."
"My background?"
"No."
"Then what?"
The figure finally answered.
"Your method."
William's eyes narrowed.
"Why?"
"Because it's different."
"Different from what?"
"From the methods used by everyone else."
William remained silent.
The figure continued.
"You don't simply absorb power."
"You don't rely on resources."
"You don't seek powerful inheritances."
"You are constructing something."
William's expression became serious.
"How much do you know?"
"Enough."
"That's not reassuring."
The figure smiled faintly.
"You've been trying to discover who is watching you."
"Yes."
"You've been looking in the wrong direction."
William narrowed his eyes.
"Explain."
The figure looked toward the stars.
"There isn't one person watching you."
"There are many."
William didn't react.
"How many?"
"I don't know."
"Then who are you?"
The figure hesitated.
"I'm someone who wants to understand what you're becoming."
William stared at him.
"And what do you think I'm becoming?"
The figure looked directly at him.
"Something that shouldn't be possible."
William stood.
"That's a strange thing to say."
"It's the truth."
"Then perhaps you should explain."
The figure shook his head.
"Not yet."
William's expression hardened.
"You approached me."
"Yes."
"Then you refuse to answer."
"Because I don't know whether you're ready."
William laughed.
"Everyone seems to think they should decide what I'm ready for."
The figure didn't respond.
William stepped forward.
"Let me make something clear."
The air around him changed.
"I don't care how much you know."
"I don't care how many people are watching."
"And I don't care whether you think I'm ready."
He stopped.
"If you're going to interfere with my path, then eventually you'll have to stand in front of me."
The figure smiled.
"That's what I wanted to hear."
He turned around.
William immediately sensed the connection beginning to disappear.
"Wait."
The figure stopped.
"Why are you interested in my method?"
The figure looked back.
"Because someone else is interested too."
"Who?"
"I don't know."
William's eyes narrowed.
"But whoever they are..."
The figure paused.
"...they're much closer to you than you think."
Then he vanished.
Mira and the others emerged.
Adrian frowned.
"That was useless."
"No."
William looked toward the darkness.
"We learned something."
Mira asked:
"What?"
"He's not the one behind everything."
"How do you know?"
"Because he said something that the others wouldn't have said."
"What?"
William looked at her.
"He admitted that he doesn't know who is watching me."
Adrian nodded slowly.
"So he's another observer."
"Yes."
"Then how many are there?"
William looked at the night sky.
"More than we thought."
They returned to the camp.
But William couldn't stop thinking about one sentence.
They're much closer to you than you think.
He considered the people around him.
His allies.
The powers he had encountered.
The organizations he had investigated.
The ancient cultivators.
The people who knew about his family.
The people who knew about his training.
And the people who knew about his abilities.
There were too many possibilities.
He refused to accuse anyone without evidence.
That was precisely what he wanted his enemies to do.
He would not make the same mistake.
Far away, the masked observer returned to a hidden location.
Several people were waiting.
One of them asked:
"You spoke to him."
"Yes."
"What did you learn?"
The observer removed his mask.
"He knows we're watching."
"Did he reveal anything?"
"No."
"Did you learn about his next step?"
The man smiled.
"Yes."
The others looked at him.
"What?"
"He wants us to believe he's going somewhere."
"And?"
"He isn't."
Silence.
The man continued:
"He deliberately created the information."
One of the figures frowned.
"Then he knows we're listening."
"Yes."
"Why did you tell us?"
"Because that's exactly what he wants."
The room became quiet.
The man looked toward the distant horizon.
"This isn't a simple information war anymore."
"Then what is it?"
He smiled.
"A battle of perception."
Back in the valley, William stood alone.
He had deliberately allowed information to escape.
He knew some of it would reach his enemies.
But he also knew something else.
Every time they reacted to false information, they would reveal another piece of themselves.
It was slow.
Painfully slow.
But it was progress.
William looked at the stars.
"I don't need to know who you are yet."
He closed his eyes.
"I only need you to keep making mistakes."
A faint connection appeared.
Then disappeared.
William smiled.
Somewhere, someone was still watching.
And now—
William had begun watching back.