The Epic Tale of Chaos vs Order

Chapter 2306: Soul aura decoded

After the victory, Cain once again stood within the Heart of Sin, letting the fortress feed restorative energies into his fractured body. Many other powerhouses occupied the surrounding chambers and cultivation platforms, each recovering in their own way.

Brutal combat against the Eternal Kingdom–empowered warriors of the Freedom Path had left ArchDeities scarred. Yet Cain recovered faster than most. The Scarlet Throne’s vitality, layered with the unceasing pulse of Depravity Aura, allowed him to recover at a rate others simply could not match.

But Cain’s attention was not focused on healing. His thoughts revolved around something far more delicate. With the aid of the Supercomputer Assistant, he analyzed the lingering radiation of the Freedom Path prophet’s soul.

During the previous battlefield, the prophet had projected divination-force across the distant landscape, observing the clash from afar. Cain had tasked the Innate Ability to capture every fragment of spiritual interference and now sifted through the results, searching for patterns.

The goal was simple. If he could understand the structural nature of the prophet’s power, he could block it—rendering himself invisible to future divination—and with a little luck trace the emanation back to its source. Should that succeed, he would know the prophet’s location. And if he knew the location, he could strike.

It was a single chance. One attempt. If Cain successfully pierced that veil, reached the prophet, but failed to kill them, the entire stratagem would collapse. After that moment, the prophet would undoubtedly conceal themselves in a place beyond his reach. Cain would not get a second opportunity.

Why go to such lengths? Why focus his limited time in the Fourth Realm on this task? Cain knew the answer clearly. Capturing the prophet would unlock prey—a stream of prey. Without the prophet observing him, Cain could hunt through the Fourth Realm freely, reaping enemies, harvesting power, strengthening body and soul.

However, there was an even more important reason. Imprisoning the prophet inside the Scarlet Throne would grant him access to enemy knowledge—insights he could later employ against the Three Moons.

Cain had promised not to confront the Three Moons directly until the war concluded. He intended to honor that agreement—for now. But promises were temporary things, and sooner or later, that confrontation would come. Cain would not allow anyone, no matter how ancient or exalted, to assume authority over his fate. He would not be maneuvered like a pawn or steered into a predetermined "best path."

So the first step remained concealment—cutting off their ability to observe him. The second would be mastery of their own power so that, when the inevitable confrontation came, Cain could suppress them cleanly. Whether he killed them afterward was a different matter entirely.

The Three Moons had not yet crossed a boundary he considered unforgivable. But they were walking a thin line. If they continued to push, Cain would not hesitate to exile them into an eternal, scarlet prison where no concept of death existed.

Days passed in this analytical labor, but the data remained insufficient. Cain exhaled softly, a rare, muted expression of frustration crossing his face.

"

"I have too little information.

He shut his eyes briefly. His instincts told him that more battlefields would supply what he lacked. From there, he could extract refinements, isolate the signature of the prophet’s soul, and eliminate the blind spots.

"There is no point focusing on something beyond my control. I should spend my time improving where I can."

Without further hesitation, Cain summoned the Wings of Chaos and reached into the World Matrix.

Golden threads descended, and Cain continued his training, tempering muscle fibers with the rules of the universe. He pushed his cultivation forward, knowing pressure forged momentum.

It did not take long before another battle erupted. Skull Lord summoned the troops again. The True Depravita clearly intended to exploit every moment Cain remained in the Fourth Realm, attempting to seize as much territory as possible before Cain eventually departed.

Cain welcomed the aggression. Each incursion accelerated his investigation. Each confrontation allowed him to cross blades with powerhouses capable of sharpening instinct, technique, and will.

Combat placed immense strain on body and soul—but surviving strain produced growth.

As before, Cain’s primary opponent remained the Prototype. With every clash, the entity demonstrated startling adaptability and battlefield precision. Yet Cain sensed subtle deterioration: the Prototype’s vitality faltered, its soul force flickered.

The construct possessed a finite lifespan. It could perform ambushes, single assaults, and surgical strikes, but it was not engineered to endure prolonged war. Crowley had no alternative combatant capable of stalling the Scarlet King; therefore, the Prototype was forced into repeated confrontation it was never designed to sustain.

Two and a half months passed in this manner—battle after battle, advance after advance. Some conflicts produced draws, neither side managing to claim decisive ground. Other skirmishes were clear victories for the Life Path.

In none of these engagements did the Freedom Path manage a true victory, though they also avoided catastrophic losses. Fewer than four ArchDeities died despite the ferocity of each assault. Their restraint showcased Crowley’s tactical brilliance: sacrifice nothing essential, trade time for exhaustion, bleed the enemy slowly.

Cain was mildly disappointed in one regard. After so many engagements, he had yet to destroy the Prototype outright. The diminishing lifespan was a small consolation: the entity would not survive a year at this rate. For any other warrior, eliminating an Alpha-Omega Overgod within a year would be a major achievement. But Cain had no year to spare. He would leave the Fourth Realm in a handful of months, and unfinished prey would remain unfinished.

Yet not everything amounted to disappointment. The true breakthrough surfaced from persistence. After countless battles and constant scanning, refinement, and decoding, the Supercomputer Assistant finally delivered what he needed.

[Soul aura decoded. Able to track through residual particles after use. With Chaos-force application, the host’s aura and soul-presence can be concealed.]

A cold, brutal smile stretched across Cain’s face.

"The next time they use divination to spy on the battlefield, I will follow the signal back to their hiding place. They are unlikely to reside inside the Freedom Path’s headquarters—defenses of that grade would interfere with divination. More likely, they are positioned somewhere on the landmass itself."

Cain drew in a deep breath and let his mind settle. The moment of pursuit would come soon. He would only have one opportunity. When the prophet revealed themselves again—when divination flooded the battlefield—Cain would silence that gaze forever.