The Epic Tale of Chaos vs Order

Chapter 2113: A storm of incandescent death

"Elder Oni!"

Alita’s voice rang out with a mix of relief and excitement. Her eyes shimmered as she saw the familiar figure emerging from the haze ahead.

The blue-skinned elder’s expression brightened in equal measure. When his gaze settled on the duo—especially on Cain, whose golden lotus mark shone with divine brilliance—his joy grew radiant.

From the start, the plan had always been to find one of the Masters of the Flow before heading deeper. To find Cain here was a blessing. The wounds covering Oni’s body told the story of how brutal the path had been to reach this place, but his smile remained warm, steady, and proud.

"Alita. Scarlet King." The elder’s voice was deep, resonant, full of vitality despite his injuries. "It gladdens my old heart to see you both here."

Cain and Alita smiled in return—but their eyes quickly sharpened. The gashes along Oni’s arms, the cracks in his aura, the exhaustion beneath his words—all told a different story. If he had come from battle, then danger might still be near.

"Elder," Alita asked carefully, "what happened?"

Oni did not delay. "I encountered a woman wielding a massive sword and shield. Her garments resembled those of the Neo-Angels, though I do not recall any record of her in the Third Realm. I can only assume she arrived alongside the Crimson Exarch." His tone grew grim. "She was incredibly powerful. I survived only by using my last trump card. I have been fleeing for hours since then. I believe I’ve shaken her pursuit."

Alita nodded, visibly reassured. Her instincts told her Oni was right; no immediate threat followed. Cain, too, accepted the analysis—but his thoughts drifted.

"A woman clad in Neo-Angel attire..."

His mind flickered back to the Crystal Maze, to the duel he had fought there against a being wrapped in similar light.

"If the companions of the Crimson Exarch are that powerful," he thought, "then how terrifying must the Exarch himself be?"

Cain shook the thoughts away and focused on the present. "You’ve arrived at the perfect time, Elder. We were about to advance into the second half of the Desert of Falling Suns." His tone turned thoughtful. "Allow me to share what I’ve learned of the challenge ahead—and how we can overcome it."

Alita and Oni both straightened, giving him their full attention.

Cain’s gaze lifted toward the shifting void of meteorites that awaited them. "Each fragment you see drifts according to its own cosmic frequency—the song of its creation. To survive, we must listen to that song, attune to it, and nudge each meteor’s path in harmony with the Flow. If we try to block or force them aside, the best outcome is crippling injury by the time we reach the end of the ring. The worst is annihilation."

The elder and Alita turned their eyes toward the drifting firestones. Just a glance was enough to confirm Cain’s words. The power radiating from each meteor was staggering.

Cain continued, his voice calm but resolute. "We’ll use Synchronization to adapt to the web of motion around us—to predict each meteor’s trajectory before it reaches us. When one draws near, we’ll match its frequency, then use Divergence to redirect it away from our path."

The void ahead loomed vast and perilous. Its motion was beautiful but deceptive—a living trap that would devour the unprepared. Alita and Oni understood immediately that this was far more treacherous than the desert storms they had faced before.

"I’ll take the lead," Cain said firmly. "Alita, stay to my left. Elder Oni, position yourself directly behind me. I’ll bear the brunt of the impacts and guide your adjustments as we move."

Their formation was chosen by mastery. Cain’s command of the Flow far exceeded theirs, making him the natural anchor of their triad. Both nodded without hesitation. There was no room for pride here—only survival and unity.

Cain’s golden eyes glowed faintly as he smiled. "Good. Stay close and trust the rhythm."

Then, together, they stepped into the void.

The transformation was immediate.

The meteorites around them stirred as if awakening, their serene drift turning into a storm of incandescent fury. Each rock moved faster, its trajectory sharpening, its power magnifying until space itself trembled. And, as though recognizing them as intruders, the meteors began to target them.

Cain inhaled deeply. His wings unfurled, his body surrounded by a golden aura that pulsed with perfect synchronization. When the first meteor roared toward them, he extended his hand—and rather than colliding, it bent, veering aside to crash into another.

"BOOOOOOM!"

The two meteors exploded in a flash of fire and starlight, clearing a temporary passage.

Cain moved forward like a conductor of destruction, guiding the storm into its own self-destruction. Every few thousand meters, he deliberately allowed a meteor to approach Alita or Oni, shifting aside so they could confront it. Each time, he focused on the resonance between them and the incoming stone, offering real-time guidance.

"Adjust your frequency—slower pulse, half-phase shift!"

"Now diverge to the left!"

They obeyed instantly, and though the pressure was immense, the results were tangible.

Unlike Cain, they couldn’t hurl meteors into others, but each success refined their control. Their mantles grew more stable, their synchronization sharper.

Cain, too, was evolving. The constant rhythm of impact and evasion refined his mastery of Divergence beyond anything he had imagined. His golden lotus blazed brighter with each moment, its petals shimmering like tiny suns.

He began to feel something awakening deep within—a new principle, still formless but vast, stirring at the edge of comprehension.

They pressed on.

The void became a battleground of light and shadow. Meteors collided in all directions, painting the space with storms of cosmic fire. Cain’s movements grew faster, more fluid. His hands moved in elegant arcs, each gesture rippling with golden resonance.

The more he pushed, the stronger that strange sensation became—a sense that he was standing at the precipice of revelation.

And then—

The void trembled.

A deep vibration coursed through the fabric of reality, shaking every drifting starstone. The rhythm changed.

Cain’s eyes snapped open wide. "Wait—!"

Before he could finish, all the meteorites around them shifted at once. Their harmonious dance broke into chaos.

Every fragment, every blazing shard of cosmic stone, ignited into flames, transforming into suns as they turned inward.

From every direction, a storm of incandescent death converged upon the trio.