The two of them casually put on some clothes, and Ethan directly used spatial transfer to bring Diana back to Themyscira.
For the current Ethan, moving within the same planet, or even the same universe, was just a matter of thought. He could bring anyone he wanted, as many people as he wanted, without needing to touch them or pick them up. It was all that simple.
Their appearance was very abrupt. This time, Ethan did not use "illusion" to affect the surrounding Amazon warriors, causing a slight disturbance. However, after recognizing the newcomers, the Amazon warriors quickly calmed down, continuing to hold their weapons and stand in position.
Hippolyta and Antiope also saw the two of them. She had not expected Diana to arrive so promptly, but then, seeing Ethan beside Diana, she was no longer surprised.
Diana had often returned to Themyscira for a few days over the years and had told Hippolyta about Ethan's situation, so Hippolyta always had a general understanding of him.
"Unfortunately, today is not a good day for reminiscing."
The Mother Box placed on the stone platform continuously emitted energy fluctuations, gently pulsing while giving off a faint light.
This state indicated that the Boom Tube was about to open. Hippolyta immediately reached for her sword hilt, and Antiope even issued the command to prepare for battle.
"Don't worry, I'll handle this enemy."
"Diana, don't be careless!"
Although she knew Diana's strength was formidable, not inferior to the Olympian gods who fought Steppenwolf back then, Steppenwolf's reputation was too great, and Hippolyta was very wary of this enemy.
"Trust Diana. The current Diana is completely unafraid of that guy."
Ethan added a few words to reassure Hippolyta.
"If anything unexpected happens, I'm here!"
Although she did not know Ethan's current strength, Hippolyta knew that even if Ethan's various methods could not defeat Steppenwolf, they were more than enough to ensure Diana's safety.
Feeling a little more relaxed, she was just about to remind Diana to take the opponent seriously when the Boom Tube finally opened.
A non-blinding white light formed a pillar of light from top to bottom, and as the light weakened slightly, a very tall figure appeared before the numerous Amazon warriors.
"Steppenwolf!"
Steppenwolf had initially focused on the Mother Box, preparing to express his nostalgia for it over the years, but then he suddenly noticed Diana.
"Oh? There's still an Old God?"
In the original story, Steppenwolf fought Diana for a while before realizing she possessed the bloodline of an Old God.
Now, thanks to Ethan's guidance and Diana's own diligent training, her divine power was very strong and obvious, and Steppenwolf immediately recognized Diana as an "Old God."
For Steppenwolf, his previous defeat was a stain, and the Old Gods were partly responsible for it. Seeing these guys again, his first reaction was to "kill them all."
As for the Mother Box? He had long considered it his for the taking. As long as he killed this Old God, he could calmly take the Mother Box away.
In his eyes, the Amazons were insignificant. The reason he did not bother to kill all of them was to convert them into his subordinates later to expand his army.
"What a shame. This time, there's no one else to help you!"
"Ahem!"
Ethan gave a light cough. Although he had agreed not to intervene, Steppenwolf, a mere nobody, should not truly act as if he did not exist.
Steppenwolf turned to glance at him, then kept his gaze fixed on Diana.
As for Ethan standing beside him? He did not care who this guy was. In his eyes, they were all just riffraff anyway.
Ignored, Ethan was quite displeased. He simply said to Diana, "Diana, beat him to death!"
Rolling her eyes helplessly, Diana turned sideways and extended a hand to Ethan.
"Let me borrow the Sagittarius Cloth."
Diana had her own armor, but this time she was not planning to wear that set, as it did not provide the extra power boost of the Gold Cloth.
To ensure she defeated the enemy, she was prepared to give it her all.
Moreover, Ethan had told her about the Gold Cloth back then, but she had not had a chance to use it since it was made. This time, she finally had the opportunity to wear it and experience it.
"If you hadn't mentioned it, I would have forgotten about this thing."
Ethan had created twelve sets of Gold Cloths back then. Besides wearing them a few times himself, only Thor had used one.
These Cloths had been sitting in his space for so long that they were almost getting moldy. Today was a good day for the Gold Cloth to shine. Most enemies could not withstand three punches and two kicks from Diana and would not require equipment like the Gold Cloth.
Only when facing powerful enemies could the effect of the Gold Cloth be better experienced.
With a gentle wave of his right hand, the Sagittarius Gold Cloth appeared out of thin air, then transformed into streams of golden light that converged upon Diana's body.
When the light dissipated, Wonder Woman, clad in the Sagittarius Gold Cloth, stood before everyone.
That was not all. With a wave of his left hand, Ethan also took out the Libra Cloth. This set did not disassemble but gently landed to the side.
Diana, who already knew the characteristics of the Libra Cloth, gave Ethan a beautiful smile. Putting away the golden bow in her hand, she raised her hands, and the golden sword and round shield of the Libra Cloth appeared in her grasp.
As Ethan continuously "conjured" two peculiar items, Steppenwolf's gaze shifted to Ethan. He sensed that Ethan was using divine power, and what surprised him most was that this guy's divine power seemed very high-level.
"How is this possible?"
Unfortunately, he did not have time to ask about Ethan's identity. Diana was not one for idle chatter with Steppenwolf. After obtaining her weapons, she immediately charged forward, her golden sword slashing toward Steppenwolf and forcing him to withdraw his attention and focus entirely on the battle.
"Remnant of the Old Gods, your power is simply not worth..."
Before he could finish his boast, Steppenwolf felt immense force on the axe blocking Diana's attack. He had been holding the axe with one hand but had to switch to gripping the handle with both hands. Even so, the tremendous power pressed down on him, forcing him slowly to one knee.
"This is impossible!"
In his astonishment, he ignored Diana's attack with her left hand. The golden round shield was not just defensive equipment. It could also be used as a weapon. A powerful shield bash struck Steppenwolf in the face, directly sending him flying backward and crashing heavily into the stone wall behind him.
If the stone wall had not been thick enough, that blow would have sent him right through it.
The surrounding Amazon warriors had been gripping their weapons, watching the battle and ready to rush in and provide support at any moment. Who would have thought the fight would be so one-sided? The Amazon warriors holding bows and arrows had even put down their weapons, their faces filled with excitement as they cheered for Diana.
The stone chamber storing the Mother Box was not large, but there was just enough space, plus the surrounding stone steps. The Amazon warriors stood on the steps, forming a circle and cheering, making it look like a small gladiatorial arena.
"Diana has become even stronger."
Being able to knock Steppenwolf flying with a shield right at the start, Hippolyta finally had a direct understanding of her daughter's strength.
Before, she only knew Diana had become stronger, but she was not sure exactly how strong.
And Steppenwolf was an enemy that the Old Gods, along with countless allies, had to unite to defeat back then. It was normal for her to worry about Diana.
Only at this moment did she realize how powerful her daughter was, to the point that even Steppenwolf was no match for Diana.
"This is all thanks to you, Ethan!"
Ethan smiled without speaking. He accepted this statement very calmly because it was the truth.
Without his influence and changes, the Diana at this time would at most be struggling against Steppenwolf, and still be at a disadvantage, absolutely not capable of thrashing Steppenwolf like this.
With golden wings spread, Diana hovered in midair, then floated in front of Steppenwolf.
She was not the type who, after knocking an opponent down, would stand still and wait for them to get up before continuing a "fair fight."
The original Wonder Woman was not, and the one taught by Ethan certainly was not either.
Seeing Steppenwolf knocked down, what she had to do was rush forward and continue pounding him. The golden round shield in her left hand could not only be used to smash people, but also as a chain.
With a gentle flick, it wrapped directly around Steppenwolf's leg, and with a hard tug, she dragged him out of the wall.
Steppenwolf, who had been motionless, suddenly lunged forward, ignoring the golden chain wrapped around him, and swung his large axe toward Diana.
He thought this would catch Diana off guard, but he did not expect Diana to have already guessed his intention. Before his axe could fall, she kicked out, sending Steppenwolf flying again.
Mid-flight, the chain wrapped around his leg pulled him back, and with Diana's gentle tug, Steppenwolf flew back toward Diana.
Diana let go of the golden sword and raised her empty right hand. White divine power wrapped around her fist, and when Steppenwolf returned before her, she punched out.
Boom!
Like the sound of thunder, the white divine power also vaguely resembled lightning, shooting out from Diana's fist and landing squarely on Steppenwolf.
The powerful divine power made Steppenwolf vomit blood. This time, without the restraint of the golden chain, Steppenwolf crashed into the stone wall again.
Although the stone wall was very thick, this time it could not stop Steppenwolf. It left a tunnel-like pit in the wall, and he was directly blasted out of the stone chamber storing the Mother Box by Diana's divine power.
"Is this all your strength? It seems I was being too cautious."
If she had known Steppenwolf was so fragile, she would not even have worn the Gold Cloth. She had not even used the power within this set of Cloths yet.
(To be continued.)