Adrian formed a gigantic portal, wide enough to swallow both himself and the ultimate being in one motion. In an instant, the two vanished from the collapsing facility.
They reappeared on another planet—the same desolate world where Ren had once been teleported.
They landed only a few hundred meters apart, but what truly caught their attention was the battlefield around them. Thousands of corpses lay scattered within a thousand-meter radius, and at the center of it all sat Ren, resting casually atop the largest corpse as if it were a throne.
"Long time no see, Adrian," Ren said with a smile that barely concealed the anger in his eyes.
The ultimate being glanced at Adrian briefly, then shifted its focus forward.
Without warning, both Ren and the being rushed at Adrian simultaneously. Ren hurled a compressed gravity ball that distorted the air around it, while the ultimate being closed the distance in a blink, aiming a crushing punch at Adrian's skull. Adrian twisted between the two attacks at the last possible second, the gravity sphere tearing apart the ground behind him as the punch split the air inches from his face.
"Hm? Who's that guy?" Ren wondered aloud. "Looks strong."
The ultimate being answered with action. It delivered a devastating kick to Adrian's ribs, launching him across the wasteland and carving a trench through the rocky surface.
Then it turned toward Ren.
Using Chrono's stolen ability, the being formed a glowing weapon. "Spear of Time."
Ren calmly extended his hand and shaped gravity itself into a weapon. "Spear of Gravitational Pressure."
The two spears collided midair, time distortion clashing against crushing gravity. A massive shockwave erupted outward, flattening what little remained standing in the area and sending debris spiraling into the sky. When the dust settled, Ren's gravity spear had pierced straight through the ultimate being's stomach, blood pouring heavily from the wound.
Yet the being did not fall. It did not scream. It did not hesitate.
Instead, it surged forward and delivered a brutal punch aimed at Ren's head. Ren blocked the strike, but the impact still forced him back several meters. The being followed with a vicious kick and a relentless flurry of punches, each one landing cleanly as Ren failed to fully dodge or counter in time.
Ren's smile widened. He was enjoying this.
The being summoned Cosmic's sword and unleashed a rapid series of slashes, carving through Ren's body repeatedly. Flesh split and blood sprayed, yet Ren regenerated almost instantly, gravity pulsing through his veins. With a calm expression, he formed a gravity sphere inside the being's torso and detonated it, causing the being to explode.
"Not bad," Ren admitted, clearly impressed.
Hidden behind shattered terrain, Adrian observed silently, letting the two monsters clash.
"Adrian," Ren called out casually, not even turning around. "Stop hiding and fight me with everything you've got."
Adrian forced a nervous smile. "No thanks."
He opened a portal to escape, but before he could step through, Ren appeared in front of him and seized him by the throat. "Where do you think you're going?"
Adrian responded instantly, driving a kick into Ren's side and launching him backward before attempting another teleport. Ren reappeared again, blocking his path. "You really think you can escape me?" His tone sharpened slightly.
"Let me go," Adrian said seriously. "I have something to take care of."
"No," Ren replied without hesitation.
The two rushed each other at the same time, fists colliding in a thunderous impact that cracked the ground beneath them. They exchanged rapid punches at point-blank range, each strike landing simultaneously as shockwaves rippled outward from their clashing blows.
Ren stepped back and summoned a gravity ball, firing it directly at Adrian's chest. Adrian sidestepped cleanly, the sphere exploding against a distant ridge and reducing it to dust.
Ren's expression hardened as he amplified the gravitational pressure across the battlefield, forcing Adrian violently to the ground. The force crushed down mercilessly, but Adrian gritted his teeth and slowly pushed himself up, muscles trembling as he fought against the weight. The brutal training sessions inside the spaceship with Anthony had prepared him for this very moment.
Adrian counterattacked with a furious barrage of punches, but Ren calmly deflected each one with the palm of his hand, redirecting the force effortlessly. With a simple gesture, Ren unleashed a gravitational burst that hurled Adrian across the wasteland.
But before Ren could capitalize, Adrian teleported directly in front of him and drove him into a massive boulder with a full-force strike. The rock shattered on impact.
And before Ren could rise from the rubble, Adrian had already vanished once more through a portal.