Rachel sold all the data she was receiving directly to the universal database. Unfortunately, the data was of very low value, so even though her points were constantly increasing, it would still take a while until she could withdraw data regarding the infinity universal law.
After all, the infinity universal law is one of the most critical pieces; it isn't cheap to buy, even with the discount she receives as an incarnation of Rachel.
…
In a corner of the universe, an abandoned world with dim light red was floating in the endless space.
The world was small, lonely, and very strange; its shell was broken, and chaos was freely moving in and out.
This corner of the universe used to be filled with many worlds, but now, it's completely filled with chaotic energy, devoid of anything else except for this one world.
This world is called Chaos Crossroad and is very special. It has many chaotic codes in it and can resist chaos, even if the chaotic energy leaks inside.
It can be said that it has reached harmony and peace with the chaotic energy.
There are many legends about how it came to be; some say it was specifically built by a powerful rank 13 civilization; while others say it used to be one of the worlds here, but after the chaotic surge, it somehow transformed and became a chaos world.
Chaotic energy is everywhere; nearly all space in the universe and virtually all space outside the universe is dominated by chaos. Chaos is the world's default state; only occasionally can anything exist that is not chaotic.
Chaos energy itself is very strange. It is a mix of all kinds of energy from different charges of reality. Usually, chaotic energy is much more aggressive, but universes, using universal laws, can calm it down; that's why chaotic energy outside universes is much worse than that in the universes.
Chaotic energy outside universes is extremely unstable; it moves in different charges of reality and can suddenly surge for no reason. The chaotic energy in the universe, however, is more stable and doesn't travel back and forth in different charges of reality.
But sometimes, even universal laws can't completely suppress the chaotic energy, and thus, sometimes, a chaos surge happens.
A chaos surge occurs when the universal laws fail to suppress the chaotic forces. Fortunately, it happens every few trillion years, and even when it does, it can only affect a local area and is not threatening the whole universe.
Moreover, only rank 11 worlds are in danger; rank 12 worlds are protected, even if they are hit directly by the chaotic surge.
Rank 12 worlds are among the most stable things in the universe. Because universal laws are part of the universe, the worlds ranked 12 and 13, which are made with universal laws, are, by extension, part of the universe and protected. As long as one keeps an energy input to keep the world's code running, then the rank 12 or 13 world can last forever, or at least until the universe itself reaches its end.
A universe has a theoretically unlimited lifespan, so in theory, a world with a universal law would never be destroyed. That is unless someone attacks it to destroy it, but that's another matter.
Rank 10 and 11 worlds have a set lifespan and will eventually be destroyed. If coded well, rank 10 and 11 worlds can last for trillions of years, but they will eventually be eroded by the chaotic energy outside.
Fortunately, the chaotic energy outside the world is not aggressive, so the erosion is slow. But it would all change when a chaos surge happens. In the event of a chaos surge, the aggressive chaotic energy outside universes leaks in; any rank 11 and 10 world in the way would quickly be eroded.
Technically speaking, there is a way to protect a rank 10 or even rank 9 world from erosion. No matter what universe or what charge of reality; everything is negotiable as long as sufficient energy is put in. For example, universal laws are mighty, and nothing can resist them, except that with sufficient energy, one can suppress even universal laws.
No matter how specific a universal law is, as long as the other party has enough energy, they can suppress it with sheer power. Of course, suppressing a universal law is very difficult, and the other side won't just sit and watch; they would also spend energy defending their universal law and preventing it from being suppressed.
Generally, a rank 9 world is unable to survive even in the unaggressive energy of a universe. But if one spends enough energy, they can even keep a rank 9 world safe and sound in the chaos; it's just that it would cost massive amounts of energy, and no sane person would do it.
The same is true about relations between aggressive chaotic energy and rank 10 and 11 worlds; if they have enough energy reserves, they have a shot at survival.
The same happened to this chaotic crossroad world. It used to be a rank 11 world; the biggest in the vicinity. When the chaos surge appeared, the immortals in it protected it with massive amounts of energy and managed to survive for years. But eventually, even though they had more energy reserves, their code broke down.
Even if one has energy, if one's codes aren't perfect, under such pressure, the code couldn't hold on. Higher ranks wouldn't have this problem, as they can use their universal laws to detect any error in lower-rank worlds, but rank 11 worlds have this issue. They lack the ability to code their worlds perfectly.
When the code broke down, chaotic energy entered, but because of the protection of the energy, it still lacked the ability to tear down the world.
Instead, over the years, it transformed the whole world, turning it into a chaotic world. Some may mistake chaos for evil; in fact, this is false. Evil is an entirely different thing; chaos is not necessarily evil. Chaos is just that—chaos, without any order or rhythm.
Chaotic energy moves back and forth into different charges of reality, different points of time, etc. It is not evil, but it shares many characteristics with evil, such as not caring about lives.
Cultivating using chaotic energy is borderline impossible, but still, there is a tiny possibility of success.
Chaotic beasts.
Chaotic beasts are made of chaotic laws, which form naturally and randomly. The chaotic beasts outside universes are very overpowered creatures; they could travel through different charges of reality; even far away charges.
When it comes to traveling back and forth between different charges, chaotic beasts are even better than the office.
Their weakness, however, is that they are basically brainless, thoughtless, and willless. Even calling them beasts is being generous; they are more like energy tides moving randomly in certain shapes.
There is no negotiation with chaotic beasts; one can only kill them; one can never tame a chaotic beast.
Chaotic beasts in a universe are not as overpowered, as they lack the ability to travel different charges of reality.
However, there is another type of chaos creature. This type is rare beyond measure and only happens if a creature adapts to the chaos without losing its mind.
This is exactly what happened to one being in the chaotic crossroad. Without losing her mind, she, who calls herself Endless Skies, adapted to the chaos, and today, she is the only one cultivating chaos without losing her mind. She is famous and impossible to kill.
Chaos creatures are very powerful even without having a mind; each spell they cast is extremely hard to defend against because it attacks even from different charges of reality.
One has to block the attack from the past, future, and even alternative realities. Nearly no rank 11 immortal can withstand a single attack from a rank 10 chaotic being.
Except for freaks, such as Zagronan, who had an infinite complete law.
Still, the big gulf between rank 11 and 12 cannot even be crossed with chaotic laws. The rank 12 can easily destroy all chaotic beings below rank 12; no matter how they attack, in front of a universal law, all attacks from rank 10 and 11 are ineffective, and all defenses against a universal law will be broken.
Fortunately for Endless Skies, she is not just a rank 11 chaotic being; she has access to a universal law. Her universal law is not from this universe; it is from a parallel universe.
Chaotic universal laws are strange; they are bugs, to be honest.
Usually, universal laws can only exist inside universes, but chaotic universal laws are not constrained by this; even outside universes, one can find chaotic universal laws. Because chaos moves back and forth in different charges of reality, and even universal laws move back and forth.
So, a chaotic universal law here may be from a chaotic universe far away in a totally different charge of reality.
Fortunately for those intending to continue living, such occurrences are extremely rare. Endless Skies is, at the moment, the only chaotic rank 12 in this universe. She is stronger than nearly any rank 12 and even some rank 13s, but she is not invincible; like always, her universal law can be suppressed with energy if one is motivated enough to kill her.
Fortunately for her, no strong rank 13 who is strong enough is willing to spend that much energy virtually for nothing.
It may have been possible to steal the universal law of a rank 12 chaotic beast, as it lacks any wisdom to self-destruct, but for someone like Endless Skies, wanting to steal anything from her is a fool's errand. She would never allow someone who attacks her to steal anything from her.
It must be said that it is an unimaginably lucky event that someone like Endless Skies, a rarity herself, manages to get the chaotic universal law. As a result of having the chaotic universal law, unless a powerful rank 13 is very pissed at her, nobody would even bother to attack her.
Her living world is this rank 11 world; the chaotic crossroad. It is the center of research on chaos; nowhere else in the universe has more information regarding chaos than here.
...
Luther looked at the chaotic crossroad carefully. This mission is about buying data from the chaotic crossroad.
As for stealing it, he didn't consider it.
Even Rachel's knowledge about chaos is a drop in the bucket compared to Endless Skies; sure, Rachel can kill her easily, but she cannot stop her from destroying all the data before her death.
Thinking of a plan, Luther started walking in. He has seen Endless Skies before and has an idea of how to go about it.