Nexus Awakened (An Isekai LitRPG Gender Bender Story)

820. The Definition of Qliphoth

Flashes of red and pale energy terraformed the heights of Mount Saris. Every clash between the flaming great sword wielded by Uriel and the False Price of Paradise by Michaela resulted in a pulse of energy that flattened the world around them.

Flaming arcs and slashes of light flung from the tip of their blades with each swing. The two bounced back and forth at incomprehensible speed. An observer would not be able to see the two at all and only witness the aftermath of their clashes.

Burst of energy appeared across the summit like a constant barrage of fireworks. The ground shattered beneath their feet with each unrelenting recontest. Hours had long passed since the beginning of their brawl, but neither slowed down for even a fleeting second.

They fought in earnest, neither giving the other an opportunity to surpass the other, hence the resounding clashes that formed concussive, explosive sounds that would undoubtedly debilitate onlookers.

The Sins that poured from the four star-shaped wings above were not immune to the effects of their battle. Those who emerged too close exploded into droplets of blood. Their blood splattered so violently that they carved through the rock.

Uriel brandished the flaming great sword momentarily before throwing herself back into the fray.

“Your reflexes are as I remember! You’re as old as time itself but you’re holding up wonderfully in this new age! As expected of you!” Her laughter cut through the air as she clashed with Michaela’s thin blade.

It creaked softly with each impact. When she landed on her feet dozens of meters away, she slashed the air to her side before pointing it ahead.

“Enough of your charade. They belonged to me in the first place. Stars and their denizens took the form of humanoid aberrations.” Michaela leaped forward, meeting Uriel’s flaming greatsword again in a fraction of a second.

Her next words were then spoken between numerous clashes.

“This was my combat style against those who defied the limitations of our world’s logos.”

“Has there ever been a limit to the rules!?”

“I’d wager there were laws set in place until life meddled with a power they couldn’t understand. The rational and the irrational were divided by clear lines.”

“Stars were always irrational beings, but you carried a desire that no other Star did! I always thought that desire of yours would bring us to the perfect paradise that you envisioned!”

“Indeed. I was never rational. Such was the characteristic of a Star.”

“You were worse in hindsight. Even the fabled Blue Star Kachina adhered to the totality of her nature!”

“Rationality was rationed to us through endless pondering throughout our eternal journey across the Beyond. When those who have never eaten tastes the fruit of the apple, then they will pursue its flavor with ravenous obsession.”

Michaela, for but a fleeting moment, reached into the air to draw her False Price of Paradise. She dual-wielded it with the Piece of Paradise, slamming the grand, marker-shaped blade against Uriel’s.

< [O] [The Weight of Pride] [O] >

< EFFECT: Inflict 2,000,000 damage regardless of DEF stats. This Skill generates Nex >

Surrounding Michaela’s hand which held the False Price of Paradise was a shattered, golden halo.

Cracks of white light formed between their blades. But just like Michaela, Uriel used a similar Skill that caused bloodied cracks to intertwine with hers.

“The weight of your wrath…”

< [A] [The Weight of Wrath] [A] >

< EFFECT: Inflict 7,000,000 damage regardless of DEF stats. This Skill utilizes P-Factor >

“I’m happy you recognize it. You were the one who taught us these indirectly. I was the one you pushed the hardest, remember? Ahaha!”

There was a clear difference between the Skills they used. Though Michaela utilized Arbitration, it was closer to that of the Light. Whereas Michaela immediately recognized Uriel’s as Arbitration in its purest form.

The manipulation of reality – far beyond what even magic was capable of. It was the same kind of power that fueled the Stars and allowed them to create their miracles. One could even argue that magic was but a weakened version of Arbitration.

“You can wield a fraction of the Light! You, Michaela! You can!” Uriel noticed this as well, laughing. “Just like the Black Moons and the Iron Stars. Did you think I wouldn’t notice!? I was created to be your strongest warrior, made in the splitting image of you!”

Uriel’s laughter was punctuated by countless more clashes. When her laughter died down, she spoke severely through clenched teeth.

“Ahhh… Tell me, was it irrationality to rationality that you experienced, or was the opposite? Stars preyed on the essence of humanity, but you sought to save them. In whose eyes does that appear rational to other than yours!? Oh, Michaela. Hmhm~ My sweet, sweet creator….”

Uriel flung herself high into the air. The four wings that were permanently fixed like cracks into reality shrunk ever so slightly before blobs of blood appeared behind her back. They transformed into detached wings which slashed the air like blades before they moved beneath her.

Then, they began to wind up, eventually spinning like a giant turbine.

“What of the Angels who were born not knowing how to speak their first words before they were churned into the shape of your choosing? Tell me, O’ once benevolent creator – was the foundation of our beginnings irrational or rational!?”

< [A] [Blood Art: Driven Contempt] [A] >

< EFFECT: Inflict 3,000,000 damage for every second a target is attacked. Utilizes P-Factor >

The Blessing of the Nexus did not show her this. Neither was it Lailah or Nav. She couldn’t communicate with them here to begin with. Instead, this information stemmed from ancient knowledge.

“Blood Arts.” Micheala uttered, shielding her body with her wings. “A splitting image of my established Divine Works; the Art of the Angels.”

< [O] [Divine Works: Indomitable Pride] [O] >

< EFFECT: Resist damage up to 30,000,000 before your wings disperse >

This was originally an Arbitration Skill, and she could tell that it was significantly weaker than what it once was. 30,000,000 Damage was but a granule of sand compared to the desert that once represented her immeasurable power.

“A more visceral version if you will!”

The sounds of shattering glass quaked throughout the air with each blade that scraped against Michaela’s shell. This sound came from the solidified, bloody blades as they chipped with each impact against the impossible hardened feathers.

“Ahh. Your feathers are the same, but I can feel how hollow they are! [Deflecting Feathers], [Perfect Physiology], [Angel Feathers], [Dynamic Resistance] – all but a few of the Skills recognized by the cognitive link we shared!”

Precisely 30,000,000 damage was taken before the two were back to continuous clashes.

All Angels could see the blue prompts shown to the Blessed. After all, the cognitive link was firstly a method of communication for Michaela’s Angels as well as a method to condense vital information in the heat of combat.

This link existed as an organ found near the Adam’s Apple of an Angel.

“Such an outdated thing, but it still serves it purpose to those without the Nexus’ favor. Remnants of its knowledge must exist. That, or one has been created.” Michaela pondered.

“We have our own cognitive bank of ours, graciously funded by CogitO’s failures! Aha! You never did answer me! Consider my answer an invitation for you!”

Michaela threw herself a hundred meters into the air. Her twelve wings shrunk ever so slightly as several broken rings of light formed around her. One by one, a pale wing made in the exact image as the ones on her back appeared beneath her feet, and they began to spiral like a drill.

< [O] [Divine Works: Torn Asunder] [O] >

< EFFECT: Inflict 1,000,000 damage for every second a target is attacked >

“Rational. You had a predefined role to play. But it was equally irrational, because you yourself would not have understood it.” Michaela answered, descending like a meteorite.

Uriel matched her speed and propelled herself upwards, using her wings to shield her body as her flaming blade poked through the hole in the center.

< [A] [Blood Art: Indomitable Wrath] [A] >

< EFFECT: Resist damage up to 50,000,000 before your wings disperse >