Fortunately, the two deities from the Foreign Realm behind him did not pursue... As the Sun was about to fall into the world, Ra, almost split in two by the giant bloody stripe, looked back.
If they had given chase, Ra was prepared to destroy the Sun if necessary to take one of them down with him. After all, this was the home field of Hemenu World. Although the creative powers from both worlds were mutually neutralized, the destruction of the Sun would be enough to cause the most fundamental turmoil in the world.
At that moment, Ra did not know whether to regret that they did not fall into his trap or to be relieved that he didnât have to go to that extreme... Seeing the deities from the Foreign Realm looking back at him from a distance, Raâs face was cold and pale.
"This is just the beginning." Read new chapters at empire
"Next time we meet, we will part in life or death," he said.
Turning to disappear into the Darkness, unlike the deities of Chaos World, the deities of Hemenu World grew old and died, and Ra was no exception. Having received a virtually unguarded fatal blow from an equal, a Primordial God might have only weakened a bit and could fight again without hinderance, but Ra nearly forfeited half his life.
Now, he needed to return to the place that made him feel most at ease, then figure out a way to heal his injuries, perhaps even attempt to go a step further.
Before, Ra had little interest in such risky matters. He was the Sovereign of the Gods of Hemenu, the pioneer and guardian of Heliopolis, the Pharaoh of Upper and Lower Egypt, the eternal Sun, but now it was different.
Under the threat of the deities from a Foreign Realm, he feared he had to make some preparations in advance.
...
"Next time we meet, we indeed will part in life or death," Laine said.
Standing in the void, Laine gazed at the Sun sinking into the darkness. As the massive body of light descended, the surroundings once again returned to bone-chilling cold and deathly silence.
A few orbs of light were still radiating, but it was now clear they were retreating. As Pallas entered Hemenu World through the gap Ra had used, the conflict from the inherent order of Chaos was already much reduced, and Raâs recent actions had intensified this.
He had forcibly taken a part of the essence of a deityâthis was something that could never happen within Chaos World, or even within the reach of its power. But this was, after all, too close to a Foreign Realm, and the opposition was still fierce, so this impossible event occurred.
Compared to the vastness of Chaos, this loss was not significant, yet it was enough to make It âfurious.â The ongoing conflict of order had been forcibly smoothened through an even greater expenditure of energy, leading the gods to return to their origins. And with this change, the invisible âpassageâ linking the two worlds also began to show signs of dissipating.
This path, carved out of ânothing,â was only ever temporary; once its purpose was fulfilled, it would naturally disperse, and both Laine and Nyx had come to realize this.
"The soul has been sent in, but Iâve almost lost all sense of him... It seems we must wait for a victor to emerge between the two worlds before this early gambit makes sense?"
Gathering the black sash that Ra had torn earlier, which was in fact a part of the sleeve from Nyxâs black dress.
It was somewhat unsightly from being scorched by the Sunâs energy, but under the wash of the Lady of the Nightâs power, it was gradually returning to its former state.
"I always feel like what youâre doing is somewhat in vainâif we have to wait until this worldâs resistance is almost gone to see any effect, then that can hardly be called a gain, right?"
"Never mind, time to go back. If we donât leave now, even the road will be gone."
Indifferently straightening her cuff, smoothing out the last of the marks on it. Nyx turned to leave, but she soon realized that Laine had no intention of leaving yet.
"You go ahead, I want to stay here a while longer," he said.
He waved his hand and continued to stare at the spot where Ra had disappeared.
"...Stay a while, do you have a way to âTravelâ between the two worlds after the power of the world vanishes?"
"No."
Shaking his head, Laine negated the possibility.
"In fact, as you can see, I never planned to go back."
"!"
Nyxâs expression changed subtly as she carefully looked at Laine, whom she had known for many years.
Not planning to go back... If he doesnât return now, then the next time would be when the two worlds are completely fused. She was unclear about what Laine intended to do by staying here, but it was definitely related to the soul from before.
As for what he was going to do, and what he was thinking... Nyx had never truly understood.
"...So, this is your real purpose for calling me here, not for any hidden soulsâafter all, how could the power of a deity from outside the domain be of any use, separated by a barrier of a world? You also didnât call me here to fight against an enemy, if itâs just that guy from earlier, it would be the same with or without me, since we canât kill it."
"You need me there in Chaos, not here. You wonât go back, but I have to. Thatâs the reason you brought me here and then promised me benefits."
Her tone gradually calming, Nyx observed Laineâs silhouette. For some reason, looking at his figure, she suddenly felt an illusion.
On him, the aspect of âDeityâ seemed to be rising.
"Then... on what basis do you think, I will do as you say?"
"I canât guarantee... Letâs say itâs a personal request for a favor. You donât need to do anything for me, you just have to prevent others from doing anything to the Spirit Realm. Of course, Iâve made some preparations for unexpected incidents before my departure."
Smiling, Laine didnât wait for Nyxâs response.
If she was willing to help, it was ideal; if not, it didnât matter. He had come to this world alone, so from beginning to end, he never counted on anyone but himself.
He just raised the sword in his hand... and then struck down at himself.
As the blade passed through his body, there was no spectacle of flesh and blood flying; instead, it seemed as if something was being stripped away. In the eyes of Nyx, the Laine before her seemed more like a âDeityâ, not a deity of Chaos, but like a divine being as indifferent as the world itself, overlooking the changes of all things.
However, in contrast, there was the thing that was stripped away. This intangible entity seemed filled with all manners of joy, anger, sorrow, and passion, loves and hates, as if containing emotions that even the original Laine had never experienced. Seeing this, Nyx seemed to understand something.
"A deity cannot kill oneself, and you canât kill yourself either. So, you canât possibly separate your humanity from your divinity; itâs meaningless. In the end, your connection cannot be severedâyou are still one and the same."
"Yes, for now it is so."
Grasping the uncertain substance, Laine casually flung it back towards where it came from,
"You should go back, Nyx."
"And I will stay here, until the day of sunset, and then initiate the end of this world."