Campione! - Volume 17 - Chapter 3.3

Part 3 

"What's with this crazy huge firepower when he clearly said he didn't want to use excessive force?"  

While relying on his sworn sister's power to fly through the sky, Godou temporarily deactivated his divine speed.  

The scene of the giant explosion was spreading under his gaze. It was practically like a meteor crash. Meanwhile, the sworn sister was flying with Godou in her arms while looking down at the massive explosion and using Daoist arts effortlessly.  

"The 'King of the End' is truly a formidable foe with astounding power... Godou, your trump card is still being prepared, isn't it?"  

"I can't believe you already noticed that..."  

Suddenly asked, Godou felt surprised.  

"I clearly had it set to take place as secretly as possible."  

"Don't underestimate your elder sister. Do know that I have been constantly by your side ever since I arrived here, yes? I only stayed in the shadow the whole time because I wanted to assess how much power my sworn little brother has gained since we last parted."  

Looking at the side of Luo Hao's smiling face, Godou went "I see" and nodded.  

He had definitely felt baffled by what would be considered a slightly subdued way of fighting for the elder sister with unparalleled arm strength. So this was her intent after all.  

"So Godou, how is the situation?"  

"Almost ready. But actually, I've attacked the 'King of the End' before using the same method. Although it went quite well last time... It was when that guy was in an incomplete state."  

Godou recalled the battle in ancient Gaul and muttered.  

"To be honest, I've no confidence whether it's gonna work on him when he's in peak condition."  

"Be that as it may... It would be foolish to hesitate when no trump card of assured victory is available. What sort of power the enemy brings forth to block the strongest move from your arsenal—The result of that can serve as a yardstick for gauging differences in power level."  

"Differences in power level..."  

"This, too, is my first showdown against a war god who is this powerful. In fact, even I have trouble determining exactly the extent of his strength."  

"Even you're not sure!?"  

Godou found it unbelievable that even Her Eminence Luo Hao, whose capabilities and experienced judgment were at the highest pinnacle, would say something like this.  

Godou calmed himself. After all, attacks conducted via petty tricks were not going to be effective. Despite the risk of suffering a vicious counterattack in return, it was definitely the time to take a bit of a gamble.  

"Understood. First I'll do everything I can then I'll rely on you, Nee-san, when I'm overwhelmed. Does that work?"  

"Certainly. Believe in me and exert yourself to your full extent."  

Luo Cuilian replied, filled with spirit.  

"If by any chance should you perish in the end, upon our bonds as sworn siblings, I shall avenge you or die trying!"  

Godou desperately resisted the urge to laugh at the sworn sister's words. If this were a shounen battle manga, an irresponsible declaration of "I will surely protect you" would be the proper thing to say now, but of course, this kind of idea could not possibly exist in Luo Cuilian's mind.  

Understanding that from the bottom of his heart, Godou simultaneously looked down at the world below.  

The giant explosion caused by the jet-black arrow had already subsided, leaving a massive crater in the Minamibousou mountain range with a diameter of several kilometers. A truly surreal scene.  

Currently, Godou was flying with his sworn sister at roughly a height of four or five hundred meters.  

Despite the chilling wind that would freeze one to the very bones, his body of a Campione's felt scorching hot instead. This was due to battle instincts making the entire body's blood boil.  

"Nee-san, I'm counting on you!"  

Responding to this request, the sworn sister began to make a rapid descent.  

At the same time, her figure disappeared while maintaining the flight spell. Turning into a shadow once more, this time, she adhered to Godou's back.  

Flying above the giant crater, they were approaching the ground at high speed.  

The yellow light created by Luo Cuilian was transporting Godou. However, this glow, descending from the sky, suddenly swerved left, in order to evade an arrow shot from the ground.  

Godou looked downwards, only to see the "King of the End" standing upright on a mountain ridge.  

Vegetation was sparse there, offering good visibility. He nocked an arrow on the steel bow.  

He was firing at the rapidly descending duo. Firing. Firing. Firing. Instead of the jet-black arrow, he fired four times in succession using arrows with iron arrowheads and shafts made of wood and feathers.  

Despite looking ordinary, these arrows were probably hiding terrifying firepower within them.  

Controlling the light of flight magic, Luo Cuilian evaded the four arrows while continuing to approach the ground.  

Then the "King of the End" threw the steel bow away. Pulling the Divine Sword of Salvation out from the ground where it had been stabbed, he pointed the tip of the glorious blade at Godou in the air. Godou could predict an imminent melee battle.  

In turn, Godou summoned his ostentatious partner, Ama no Murakumo no Tsurugi. The partner that always made its abode in his right arm was currently far away.  

"Ama no Murakumo! And Athena! Use that move from the past!"  

In response to this command, the giant crater below went through a change.  

Several cracks appeard in the central zone of the giant hole that measured several several kilometers in diameter and penetrated the mountain range. Then the crater began to shake violently. The earthquake was confined to the bottom of the crater.  

Then a giant sphere passed through the soil and appeared from the shaking earth.  

A sphere that seemed to be a conglomeration of dark matter.  

Roughly forty or fifty meters in diamter, this sphere was the culprit causing the localized earthquake—generated from Godou's mystic technique of the [Storm Bringer], the black star of darkness known as a gravitational storm.  

Although this mystic technique could produce astounding firepower, activating it and raising it to maximum power required a great expenditure of time. This drawback was hard to overcome.  

But this time, he was assisted in combat by Pallas Athena who had retrieved her divinity as a great mother goddess of the earth.  

A great mother goddess of the earth, ruling over the subterranean underworld in addition to the ground above. The goddess, whose symbol was the snake, held dominion over the two realms, above and below ground.  

That was precisely why Ama no Murakumo no Tsurugi had suggested summoning Pallas Athena into itself.  

Using her powers as a mother earth goddess to teleport underground, they made preparations for the black blade. In order to pull it to the ground surface when its power reached its maximum critical point—  

The greatest uncertainty was whether the dying goddess still had enough remaining strength to accomplish this.  

However, Pallas Athena and Ama no Murakumo no Tsurugi had accomplished their mission perfectly. Surfacing from underground, the black star rose even higher towards the sky, finally converging with Godou in midair.  

The sphere of darkness—Godou was now hovering in its center.  

Ama no Murakumo no Tsurugi manifested in his right hand. There was also Athena's snake form entwined around the katana-like blade.  

In this manner, Godou began a rapid descent towards the ground together with the [Storm Bringer]'s black star.  

The "King of the End" was currently waiting at the targeted destination. Holding up the Divine Sword of Salvation, he was pointing the shining sword tip at Godou in the air.  

Then platinum-colored lightning formed a sphere surrounding the "King of the End."  

In order to resist the black star that enveloped Godou, he was spreading the lightning from the Divine Sword of Salvation around himself.  

Hence, the hero wrapped in a ball of lightning versus Godou descending from the heavens with a black star—A violent clash. A reenactment of the repeated showdown that had occurred previously at Kisarazu as well as the Rhine's shore in ancient Roman times.  

The black star of the Devil King versus the white star of the savior.  

With stark contrast, the two collided in a showdown of polar opposites—  

"Guh... Ohhhhhhhhhhhh!"  

Godou yelled while pouring magic power into Ama no Murakumo no Tsurugi.  

As soon as the black and white stars clashed violently, he instantly understood. The enemy's power was unlike in the past. If this contest of strength continued, the black star was going to be annhilated in less than two minutes.  

"I already took such great pains to prepare, but the difference is still so large!?"  Godou's grumbling lips were twisted in savagery. It was a smile.  

Despite the massive gap in power between him and the opponent, he was feeling unbelievably exhilarated.  

Probably because there was nothing to do except resist to the utter end. There was no choice apart from going all out.  

"Since there's not much time left, Ama no Murakumo, try your hardest to absorb that guy's lightning in the meantime—Open a path. You help out too, Athena!"  

While pouring his entire magic power into the partner, Godou commanded. He knew this was quite an unreasonable command.  

Nevertheless, the sword born for conflict replied "Affirmative!" succinctly, whereas the snake wrapped around the blade was glaring at Godou with terrifying eyes that seemed to be saying "unnecessary babbling, fool."  

During this time, the clash between the black and white stars still continued.  

Currently, the two stars had shrunk to diameters of ten-odd meters—Rather than shrink, they had compressed.  

This was to increase the density of power so as to resist in full force. Thanks to that, Godou's distance to the "King of the End" had decreased. He could see the hero's handsome face clearly.  

Stern and courageous, yet colored by battle weariness like a layer of rust.  

Godou did not feel hatred towards him. Neither did he feel anger. However, he felt a sense of competitiveness. A sense of defiance to resist the being of ultimate power no matter what.  

Godou grinned savagely again, mustering even more magic power from his energy center the depths of the abdomen under the navel.  

Fueled with this power, Ama no Murakumo no Tsurugi created a small-scale miracle. The [Storm Bringer]'s essence was absorbing all creation like a black hole. Embodying this principle, the blade was absorbing the electrical energy overflowing the space between Godou and the "King of the End." Absorbing, absorbing, absorbing nonstop.  

Finally, a path was opened at last.  

A path reaching the hero directly while dodging the scorching lightning of salvation.  

"Hmm!?"  

"Now is the moment, Nee-san!"  

While the pale-haired hero exclaimed in surprise, Godou yelled.  

Immediately, Luo Cuilian's beautiful standing figure flew out from her sworn younger brother's back. Racing lightly and rapidly along the opened path, her unparalleled mastery of qinggong, the Chinese martial arts technique of movement, it was as though she had turned weightless.  

"Nothing less expected from godslayers, larger than life characters who have reached the heavens through their own strength!"  

"Save such flattery and praise for after you have witnessed our potential as siblings—Hah!"  

While commending them, impressed, the "King of the End" raised the divine sword to an upper stance.  

However, Luo Cuilian used the [Dragon's Roar and Tiger's Howl] to deflect the glorious divine sword then proceeded to deliver a mighty blow to the hero's stalwart body.  

Devil King Luo Cuilian emitted a roar that turned into a shockwave of magical wind, clearing all obstacles in its path.  

Sealing off the enemy's counterattack, she closed in on the hero spectacularly.  

The Ruler of the Martial Realm silently attacked using her most prided weapon. With extreme speed, she used her dominant right hand, pressing her palm against the chest of the "King of the End."  

This palm was pressed precisely on the heart—the vital spot corresponding to the Danzhong pressure point in Chinese martial arts.  

Godou knew very well that the hero of the divine sword was in command of masterful swordsmanship. Despite being a master swordsman, he was still unable to react to this ordinary looking palm strike. This truly made clear the fact that the gentle strike that Luo Cuilian had just unleashed was her strongest palm technique.  

Simply by pushing out her hand in a simple movement, she inflicted a blow on the strongest expert.  

Literally the pinnacle of martial arts secret techniques. Furthermore, like her sworn brother, Luo Cuilian had poured her entire magic power into her right palm to infuse it with force from the Divine Might of Vajrapani.  

Using this mighty force to perform a karate chop, one could probably slice mountains and rivers apart with ease.  

Using this mighty force to perform a punch, one would surely shake heaven and earth, even to the point of making the sacred Mount Tai rumble.  

Struck by such a mighty force in a vital spot, the "King of the End" screamed tragically.  

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"  

Then immediately, the valorous hero's entire body erupted with brilliant platinum-colored light.