Chapter 1286: Trouble Ensues
The operation was a complete success.
Ion was dead and the void storm had been completely blown out by Rhode, which meant that he eliminated one of Chaos’s abilities to strike. As the void storm couldn’t differentiate between time and s.p.a.ce, even if one were to use teleportation, it wouldn’t work. As long as one were planning to enter the Dragon Soul Continent through the void storm, one would surely head down a road to ruin. This way, there was one less offensive channel for Chaos, and Rhode could deploy his forces to defend elsewhere. Despite all these circ.u.mstances, the battle that Rhode planned was perfect from start to finish and could be said to be almost flawless. However, Ion’s last words sickened him.
Of course, Rhode knew what the Dragon Cemetery was. It was the final resting place for all dragons that served the Dark Dragon. In other words, buried in that place were the corpses of all dragon races since the founding of the Country of Darkness, and there was an absolutely huge number. Even though Rhode wasn’t sure of the exact number, after inquiring from Erin, he was utterly speechless.
1530 of them.
Although they were night wyverns and not Dark Dragons, it was enough to give Rhode a huge headache. Night wyverns were the dependents of the Dark Dragon. Besides, as most of the dragon races possessed longevity, apart from those who died from illness and old age, most died in battles. This went to show how ferocious and powerful the night wyverns were while they were alive. After Rhode knew that Ion sold their corpses to Chaos, he couldn’t imagine what they had turned into. Strictly speaking, the power of Chaos was formidable. That was why Rhode didn’t fight Ion head-on, but ambushed him instead. If he were to fight head-on, Ion would be supported by the power of Chaos. His spiritual powers would be unlimited, and he could cast infinite skills without ever worrying about overconsumption. On the other hand, Rhode didn’t have a source of power or someone like that on his side. If a frontal battle were prolonged, he would consume a lot of power even if he won.
That was why Rhode chose the ‘backstabbing’ strategy; everything turned out as smoothly as he expected. Ion was swept into the void storm, losing almost half his life. Due to dealing with the energized Erin and Rhode’s shameless ma.s.s-combat tactic, Ion had the h.e.l.l beaten out of him. During the process, Erin had also almost lost her life. If it weren’t for Mini Bubble Gum’s quick reflexes, perhaps it would have been hard to determine the final winner.
Although the manifestation of the power of Chaos was really strong in Ion’s body (since he was once a dragon soul heir), in the game, Rhode led a party of 100 players and successfully took Ion’s head. And now, Rhode sent a total of four parties and Erin, who served as the main tanker, to eliminate Ion, who was left with half health. This went to show just how strong Ion was after he was influenced by Chaos.
And inferring from this, the corpses of more than a thousand night wyverns would perhaps be as equally terrifying after being influenced by Chaos. Even if they weren’t at the level of Erin as the moon princess previously, they were most likely not too far off. The thought of facing thousands of them made Rhode’s stomach hurt. The number of dragons had been dwindling constantly, and now, there were only a few dozen night wyverns left. According to Erin, they were in hibernation. If she hadn’t gone to wake them up, they would never step out of their nest even if the end of the world was approaching. It was also fortunate for them that their hibernation place wasn’t too far away, but was still out of Chaos’ range. Otherwise, the situation would turn out even more dangerous.
Rhode had no idea where the wyverns of the Country of Light went to. It was also possible that they found an unknown hibernation cave like the night wyverns and decided to hibernate until the end of the world. But the problem was that the Dragon Soul Continent was so huge and according to the characteristics of the dragon race, it was also normal for them to find an unknown wilderness. Even if they were alive, how many of them were left?
Rhode also wasn’t sure about the rule wyverns as they were the absolute secret of the Country of Law. But fortunately, the twin dragons weren’t as innocent and naive as Lilian, to the extent that they didn’t know where they were…
Ugh, come to think of it, I’m also the Void Dragon. So… Where are my dependents?
“The Void Dragon has no dependents, Big Brother.”
After hearing from Rhode who hurried back to inquire, his sister responded with a somewhat helpless grin.
“My dependents were all sacrificed in the resistance against Chaos when the Dragon Soul Continent was first constructed. For that reason, I created the seven deity wardens as my dependents instead.”
“I see…”
Upon hearing the younger sister’s answer, Rhode was entirely speechless. It seemed like his younger sister had a rough time when she created the Dragon Soul Continent. He also learned more about the situation back then from her and found out that when the five Creator Dragons were born, they were accompanied and served by dragon dependents. Thereafter, when they defended against the power of Chaos when building the Dragon Soul Continent, many of them had fallen. And now, it seemed like the one who sacrificed the most was his younger sister. He also didn’t expect all of her dependents to die, so much so that she had no choice but to create the seven deity wardens as her dependents instead.
As for the Light Dragon’s dependents…
“Apologies, Big Brother. I’m not the Light Dragon; only she knows where her dependents are.”
Leaning against Rhode’s side and gazing at the beautiful, starry sky above her, the young lady shook her head with a helpless smile and said. As Rhode used his power to support 30,000 elite players, it resulted in only his younger sister having the power of the Void Dragon now. While he was out fighting, she was only able to stay behind in Grandia in case anything went wrong. But fortunately, there had been no trouble as Rhode returned from eliminating Ion.
Hmm… It looks like a total loss then.
“This is getting really troublesome…”
Upon hearing his younger sister’s response, Rhode felt really helpless. The Chaos Eye appeared, and this meant that Chaos might possibly launch an attack on the Dragon Soul Continent sooner than he expected. Even though most of his plans were successful, he still needed more time to prepare for the continent’s transmigration. During this period, if more than a thousand wyverns influenced by Chaos were to show up with the Chaos creatures, it would surely cause an immense headache. As a matter of fact, Rhode knew that there wasn’t any purpose in gathering the dependents of all five Creator Dragons now. Because as time pa.s.sed, the number of dragon dependents declined. As of now, there were only a few dozens of night wyverns alive, so what was the point of having a surprising number of hundreds of rule wyverns? He only had 30,000 players on his side, which was far from enough to deal with just one night wyvern on the enemy’s side.
… But…
At that moment, Rhode suddenly recalled something more important. And that was the Chaos Eye’s final statement before it disappeared.
“… I shall personally witness how you, who lost the Order Star, come up with ways to resist our arrival…”
“What is the Order Star all about?”
A while back, Rhode heard about the Order Star from his younger sister and the other Creator Dragons. But all along, he didn’t have a clear idea of what it was. All he knew was that the Order Star was crucial in resisting and extracting the power of Chaos, in turn converting the power to Order. It could also be considered to be the perfect version of Ca.s.sidy. But according to the younger sister, they lost the Order Star when fleeing from Chaos and couldn’t retrieve it…
“…”
Upon hearing Rhode’s question, his younger sister fell into silence all of a sudden. She leaned on his shoulder and looked at the starry sky quietly. Upon realizing her reaction, Rhode knitted his brows and instinctively reckoned that something was wrong. He understood his younger sister so well that he could read her thoughts based on her actions. The fact that she didn’t reply instantly most likely proved that she was deceived by the Order Star, and that experience left a deep impression on her.
After a few moments, the younger sister replied.
“Big Brother, do you know? When the Dragon Soul Continent was first constructed, we didn’t intend to build it in Chaos’s s.p.a.ce.”
“Oh?”
Rhode couldn’t help but twitch his brow. He knew that the Dragon Soul Continent survived in the interstice of Chaos’s s.p.a.ce and if it weren’t for the dragon soul protections, it would only take minutes for Chaos to infiltrate the continent. And after he learned from his younger sister that they didn’t intend to do so initially, he felt rather amused. However, he wasn’t too surprised by their decision because he knew that his younger sister was a stickler for perfection. Although she wasn’t exactly a perfectionist, she was all about getting something done once and for all. As for building shelters for Order creatures to take refuge in… one wouldn’t be willing to risk putting an important place in Chaos because it was too dangerous.
But eventually, the Creator Dragons still did it, which meant that his younger sister definitely faced some difficulties.
“I’m sure you’ve realized it, Big Brother. Building a shelter in Chaos’s s.p.a.ce will eventually turn out this way. We have to be on guard against the invasion of Chaos at all times. Order is limited, while Chaos is infinite. We can’t go on fighting forever, be it in the game or reality. That was why from the start, we didn’t intend to build the shelter here.”
“Was that why you guys chose to transmigrate to other worlds to try your luck instead?”
Upon hearing his younger sister’s response, Rhode felt a little dubious. Wasn’t that the reason why the Creator Dragons risked their lives to transmigrate to Earth?
“No…”
But to his surprise, the younger sister shook her head.
“It isn’t entirely safe, after all. Besides, back then we were just born, so we didn’t understand our world too well. In that case, how would we dare to head to other places? What if that place is more dangerous than here? What if we can’t adapt to the environment?”
“That’s true…”
Upon hearing the younger sister’s response, Rhode nodded. Back then, the five Creator Dragons weren’t exactly the G.o.ds of creation. They were merely essences born within Order. They were still inhabitants of this world, after all. It was like when mankind faced extinction, they wouldn’t leave Earth unless it was essential. And it was apparent that back then, the Creator Dragons didn’t reach the stage of ‘essential’.
“At that time, we had the Order Star. You’re aware of its capabilities now, Big Brother. It can convert Chaos into Order and provide us with the power we need. That was also why in our earlier plan, the others hoped that you could find and retrieve the Order Star. It can endlessly convert the power of Chaos into Order and resist the infiltration of Chaos. As long as we have it in our hands, it will be as though we have an invincible barrier over us.”
“Yes.”
Rhode nodded in agreement. Back then when he returned to Earth, the other Creator Dragons did tell him that. In order for Rhode’s plan to succeed, the Order Star was vital. That was why they repeatedly urged him to find the Order Star. Without it, no one was sure whether his plan would work.
“But the truth is otherwise.”
The younger sister continued and at that moment, Rhode felt her body tightening. Upon detecting his gaze, she gnashed her teeth. After a while, as though she made up her mind, she bit her teeth and confessed.
“We didn’t lose the Order Star. I was the one who destroyed it.”
“What?”
Upon hearing her words, Rhode was stupefied. He widened his eyes and stared at his younger sister in disbelief. He didn’t expect this to happen at all. That was the Order Star. According to the other Creator Dragons, wasn’t it the source of Order? In that case, why did his younger sister destroy it? What problem did it have?
“Our initial thought was that since we own the Order Star, we might as well convert this world entirely; we wanted to make Chaos disappear and turn this world into a world dominated by Order. Perhaps that was a little challenging for us, but it wasn’t entirely impossible. As I possess the power of s.p.a.ce, as long as I control the Order Star and convert Chaos into Order endlessly, one day, we will be able to change this world entirely.”
“That…”
Rhode was flabbergasted. He could imagine how ma.s.sive of a project that was. Chaos was infinite and his younger sister actually decided to rely upon the Order Star and change the unlimited Chaos. One couldn’t imagine how much determination and patience one needed to achieve that. But Rhode had to admit that this was indeed a great solution. Since she couldn’t change herself, she could still change the world. Since she had the Order Star, a heavenly artifact that existed since the start of the world, it wasn’t surprising that she had this ambition.
But… It seemed like the result wasn’t as wonderful as she expected.
Indeed. Shortly after, his younger sister continued.
“Back then, the other four Creator Dragons were in charge of defense, while I was responsible for driving the conversion ritual of the Order Star. At the start, the conversion ritual went really well. We once thought we could change the world completely. But…” The young lady lowered her head all of a sudden. Her long eyelashes trembled unceasingly, while her dark pupils glinted with sadness and helplessness. “… We failed. Because I found out the true secret of the Order Star!”
“Secret?”
This piqued Rhode’s curiosity. His younger sister nodded firmly, clenched her fists, and her voice shook.
“We weren’t controlling the Order Star at all because it wasn’t an Order Star, in the first place! We mistook it for an artifact that could convert Chaos to Order. But as a matter of fact, it was the reason why we got into this situation! Big Brother, you should know that cars on Earth burn gasoline and diesel for power before emitting exhaust fumes, right? If you compare the ‘Order Star’ to a car, Chaos would be its power source, while we, inhabitants of Order, are its emissions!”
“… Really?”
Rhode couldn’t stay calm any longer.
“Yes, Chaos is a shattered form of Order, but it isn’t nothingness. Big Brother, it is a really smart choice to defy Chaos using the void storm; it’s even better than our decision back then. But for that reason, Order isn’t needed for Chaos. But shattered, incomplete Order is what drives Chaos. If you compare Order to a slate, Chaos will need to smash the slate in order to gain existence. But every slate fragment will form a new presence of Order, which is why the process is repet.i.tive until the slate is crushed into fine powder. And we, the individual embodiment of Order, are the manifestation of those fine powder.”
The younger sister paused, lifted her head, and her eyes glinted in bright flashes.
“All that we’re doing is nothing more than a cycle. The more I try to drive the Order Star, the more I’m getting food ready for Chaos. We thought the s.p.a.ce of Order was slowly expanding, but didn’t expect that Chaos was waiting for us to use the Order Star and reintegrate the Order fragments that they no longer had any ‘nutritional value’, so as to re-shatter, twist, and destroy it to gain its power!”
‘So that’s why…”
Rhode’s heart sank. He imagined how cruel it was. It was like a group of children trying their best to build sandcastles by the beach. Meanwhile, an adult standing beside them was admiring their work. However, the adult wasn’t only admiring, but was also waiting for the children to finish building the sandcastle to destroy it in a single stomp.
“That’s right. When I realized that, the entire s.p.a.ce of Order was almost completed. The instant we were about to fully reintegrate the shattered Order fragments, the Order Star in my possession suddenly turned into a presence of Chaos, letting all our efforts go to waste. That was why I destroyed the Order Star at the final moment and sent out my dependents to defy Chaos. Later, I used my ‘s.p.a.ce’ attribute and fused the remaining s.p.a.ce of Order that was almost complete, making the Dragon Soul Continent.”
The younger sister forced a bitter laugh before looking at Rhode again.
“So, Big Brother… We don’t have the Order Star to complete our plan… Because it was destroyed by me.”
“But you still have other ways, right?”
Facing the younger sister’s confession, Rhode didn’t seem all that agitated. He was aware that since his younger sister admitted to all of this during this critical moment, she surely wouldn’t let his efforts go to waste.
And indeed, upon hearing his question, the younger sister revealed a gentle smile.
“That’s right, Big Brother. I have a solution… As long as you gather all the holy sword cards, we will have a way to replace the Order Star and protect this continent.”