Reborn as an Extra Chapter 729: The Chaos Begins! Part-2.

Observing the now rigid fabric of space-time, Rio could only sigh in resignation. While Rio’s ultimate skill was undeniably potent, his opponent wielded a supreme-tier world authority alongside a formidable legendary artifact designed for the regulation of cosmic order. Raika possessed the capability to establish new edicts within his domain at his discretion! It appeared as though his entire arsenal of abilities was meticulously crafted to perfectly counter Rio at every turn.

"Under normal circumstances, transporting you to my painstakingly crafted realm through my world authority would be an impossibility, but the crown has made it feasible..."

"Furthermore... you are not the sole individual I have brought here; your companions are also entirely within my power, Rio. Therefore, I urge you to maintain composure and allow me to present my case to you..."

Upon hearing Raika’s declaration, Rio promptly dismissed it with a shake of his head.

"I harbor no concerns whatsoever regarding my friends' safety; they possess sufficient strength individually to ensure their survival without me resorting to pleading for their lives..."

"You will not coerce me into submission merely by leveraging their lives as a threat..."

Raika’s eyes widened briefly in astonishment, realizing he had severely misjudged the nature of Rio’s bonds with his companions.

Despite Raika’s attempt to leverage his friends’ lives as a means of coercion, Rio remained unfazed, exhibiting an almost complete lack of concern for their well-being.

"You... you have evolved into a being far more detached from humanity than I had anticipated... This presents a considerable challenge; I had wagered on your lingering affections for them to ensure your compliance..."

"However, it seems the only viable recourse now is to forcefully instill some sense into you..."

The familiar smile vanished from Raika’s countenance, replaced by an icy demeanor, and an overwhelming aura of murderous intent began to emanate from his entire being.

"Hoh? So, you have finally decided to reveal your true intentions; I have been anticipating this very moment..."

Throughout their encounter, Raika had been engaging him with restrained effort, a fact that caused Rio considerable unease.

This pattern had been consistent, both during their previous confrontation in the spirit realm and just moments prior.

Raika was deliberately holding back, likely acknowledging the vast disparity in strength between his SS-rank power and Rio’s current capabilities.

Rio found himself deeply disliking these asymmetrical battles where the opponent intentionally curbed their power, making him feel as though his continued existence was solely a matter of Raika’s forbearance!

’I loathe this sensation of profound weakness. A sigh escapes me; I yearn to ascend to rank SS posthaste!... Only upon reaching the echelon of demigods shall I be capable of confronting such formidable threats…

The chasm between an individual possessing world authority and one lacking it was simply too immense to overlook.

Even armed with a legendary skill, prodigious talent, and favorable affinities, Rio could not disregard the sheer, overwhelming might and dominion conferred by ’World Authority’ upon an SS-rank entity.

Had his opponent been a less formidable SS-rank cultivator in their early stages, Rio might have still stood a chance of preserving his safety. However, Raika was an entirely different proposition.

Much like during their engagement in the spirit realm, Rio remained utterly incapable of discerning Raika’s presence or detecting any residual energy fluctuations emanating from him.

’Could it be… that even this SS-rank vessel is merely a ’projection’? How could such a thing be conceivable?...’

Logically, it should be an impossibility for a mere ’projection’ to manifest the sheer power characteristic of the SS-rank.

The SS-rank clearly represented the apex of martial prowess attainable within this world at present, and a projection, by its very nature, could never equate to the strength of the true embodiment.

Yet, Raika was unequivocally demonstrating SS-rank combat capabilities, despite inhabiting this so-called ’True Avatar’ projection form.

’He is not superior to the SS-rank; I am absolutely certain of this… Were his power truly that overwhelming, he would have dispatched me with effortless ease already; there would have been no need for him to resort to such intricate schemes against me…’

Rio’s intuition, sharpened to an even greater degree following his attainment of the S-rank’s pinnacle, strongly suggested that there was a profound hidden aspect to this individual known as Raika.

’He is concealing something… I must uncover it if I am to achieve victory…’

Drawing in a deep, steadying breath, Rio ceased employing his mana detection and any other sensory abilities. Instead, he focused his entire mental focus onto his intuition alone, recognizing it as his sole potential means of countering Raika.

Having previously clashed with Raika in the spirit realm, Rio was acutely aware that beyond his innate intuition, there existed no other method capable of predicting or discerning Raika’s movements.

Employing his sword intent and spatial manipulation prowess, Rio compressed the very fabric of space-time behind him, propelling himself forward with astonishing velocity, reaching speeds in close proximity to the speed of light!

As Rio surged towards him, Raika made no attempt to evade. Instead, he summoned his iconic weapon, the holy lyre, to his side and raised a single finger toward the heavens.

"Within this dominion, I am akin to a deity; your desperate struggles are utterly futile, Rio!"

Raika weaponized the very 'realm' itself against Rio, exerting his power to immobilize Rio specifically within its confines!

As the master of his own realm, Raika possessed omnipotence and omniscience, granting him dominion over virtually all within it. Rio, being trapped inside, was therefore subject to its imposed laws!

Before Raika could comprehend the colossal error of attempting to control an 'anomaly' as unpredictable as Rio, a devastating backlash from his own assault struck him!

The very fabric of the artificial realm buckled under Rio's counterattack, its laws collapsing into chaos instantaneously.The entire realm fractured, and the planet below, along with everything in the solar system, was obliterated the moment Raika lost command of his creation.