On Anna Goldi's Battlefield
"Agh! This is so frustrating!" Anna screamed in a fit of rage, hovering in the sky as she lashed her flaming whip at the forest below. Her eyes scanned the greenery with predatory intensity. "It's all because of that Turn-based obsessed maniac! I finally found that roasted suckling pig, and now I've lost him again!"
Below her, hidden deep within the thickets, the Rogue Deity Zhu Bajie was panting heavily, sweat pouring down his face as he played a desperate game of hide-and-seek with the witch.
"Good grief... she's clearly a beauty, so why is she so violent?" Bajie muttered to himself, his mind drifting back to his beloved Gao Village. "I miss my sweet Suilan... I wonder if there's a Gao Village in this era? I really want to go home..."
While the pig-god was busy wallowing in nostalgia, Anna, unable to find her "roast," turned her burning gaze toward Sha Wujing.
"Baphomet, haven't you roasted that monk yet?" Anna asked, frowning at the massive, goat-headed demon. The demon only responded with a weary, guttural roar: "ROOOOOAAAAARRRRR!"
"I see..." Thanks to her [Contract with the Devil (False): A] skill, Anna could perfectly understand the language of demons. She nodded in understanding. "Because the enemy is a Water-attribute deity, he's a direct counter to a Fire-attribute like Baphomet... WAIT! Why am I using that stupid Turn-based logic?! That lightning idiot has officially corrupted my brain!"
Driven to the edge of a breakdown, Anna decided to let the pig-god go for now. She retracted her flaming whip and flew toward the colossal, unmistakable form of Baphomet, intending to help the demon finish off the "lazy monk" first.
Watching Anna's silhouette fly away, the hidden Zhu Bajie let out a massive sigh of relief. "Thank you, Junior Sha! You truly are my best brother!"
Meanwhile, Sha Wujing was not having a good time. Although he was a Rogue Deity who commanded water, Baphomet's hellfire was exceptionally potent. Despite the elemental advantage, the demon's flames were clashing equally with Wujing's summoned floods.
Furthermore, despite its massive size, Baphomet was surprisingly agile a fact that the relatively slow Sha Wujing found agonizing. Every time those obsidian claws struck, Wujing was left with fresh, searing wounds. After all, he wasn't a combat-heavy deity to begin with, and being summoned as a subordinate to the Great Sage had significantly reduced his base stats.
Just as Wujing was struggling to hold back the demon, he saw a very, very angry Anna flying toward him. He felt his soul leaving his body. Junior White Dragon, I think I'm about to join you in the afterlife...
In a one-on-one, Baphomet was already a match for him. Adding a furious Anna who had just lost her "roast" was the final nail in his coffin. Sha Wujing felt it was time to start writing his final will.
"Aha! Found you, you lazy monk!" Anna landed on Baphomet's left horn, looking down at the sweat-drenched Sha Wujing with a "gentle" smile. "I couldn't find the pig, so I guess a roasted monk will have to do."
"I AM NOT A FISH! I AM NOT!" Despite his terror, Wujing clung to his principles, screaming his denial. "Damn it, Senior Pig! You set me up!"
Anna only smiled, her eyes narrowing as she manifested her flaming whip once more. The crackling of the fire reflected her inner irritation.
"Now, don't worry" Anna grinned wickedly. "It'll be over soon. It won't hurt at all~"
"I DON'T BELIEVE YOU!" Wujing screamed. "SENIOR PIG, SAVE ME!!!"
"Don't bother," Anna sneered with disdain. "That lazy, fat pig is definitely hiding. He would never risk his skin for you—"
"UUUUOOOOOOOOHHHHHH!!!"
The air suddenly vibrated with a thunderous roar. Anna spun around in shock. Emerging from behind Baphomet was a colossal, black-armored deity with three heads and six arms—a pig-headed giant radiating a terrifying martial aura.
This was the true form of Zhu Wuneng, the Marshal of the Heavenly Canopy, a war god who served the Great Emperor of the North Star.
"Junior Sha! I'm here to save you!" Every step the giant took caused a localized tremor. "You wretched witch! Taste my rake!"
The [Nine-Tooth Rake], scaled up to match its master's size, swung toward Baphomet and Anna. The shadow of the weapon covered a vast area of the earth, a "Human-made Disaster" that rivaled the wrath of Nature itself. Or perhaps, a "Pig-made Disaster"?
However, it was useless. Baphomet effortlessly dodged the strike, grabbed the handle of the rake, and delivered a powerful kick to the giant's chest. The massive Zhu Bajie let out a scream as he was sent tumbling backward.
BOOM!
The impact shook the mountain. Anna commanded Baphomet to press the attack while she lashed out with her whip. But the pig-god was surprisingly fast for his size, rolling back onto his feet and summoning his six weapons: twin swords, a halberd, an axe, a club, and a bow and arrow.
Just as the two titans were about to clash in a brutal melee, a world-shaking thunderclap echoed across the entire sacred mountain. Anna, Bajie, and Wujing all stopped, their heads whipping toward the direction of Tesla's battlefield.
"Damn it! Is that Turn-based maniac actually serious?!" Anna stared in horror at the roiling thunderclouds. "The space-time fabric is becoming unstable! If he destroys this entire region, my commission fee will be zero! I might even end up owing Master money! NOOOOO!"
Anna commanded Baphomet to fly at maximum speed toward the lightning, with Bajie and Wujing following close behind, realizing the gravity of the situation.
Yan Qing vs. Sect Leader Luo Hao
The duel between the Martial Arts King and the Wanderer of Liangshan continued. Their movements were so fast that the naked eye could only see blurred afterimages and hear the constant, rhythmic crack of breaking air.
After an unknown number of exchanges, a brilliant golden light erupted from Luo Hao's shoulders, manifesting into a colossal, golden Vajra Deity.
Authority Activated: [The Power — Vajra Gods]
This was an Authority seized after defeating two Vajra guardians. It granted her peerless physical strength and the ability to summon two massive guardians to fight by her side.
Luo Hao stood atop the golden deity, looking down at the "tiny" Yan Qing like an ant. The contrast was absurd a man less than two meters tall facing a ten-meter-tall titan of pure divine muscle.
Luo Hao manifested a long spear the "King of Weapons" and pointed it at Yan Qing. The battle resumed with even greater intensity. Yan Qing used his legendary agility to weave through the golden giant's strikes, eventually climbing the titan's body. But just as he reached the top, he was met by Luo Hao's lethal spear-tip.
"Whoa~!" Yan Qing narrowly dodged the strike, standing on the same level as the Sect Leader. "Dangerous, dangerous! This kind of 'Giant Boss Battle' is a classic death flag, you know?"
"I have no idea what you're talking about," Luo Hao replied coldly. As someone who loathed modern technology, she had no concept of "memes" or "gaming tropes." "As the one who challenged my martial arts, please maintain your dignity!"
"I told you, I don't want that title!" Yan Qing dodged another thrust. "In my home, I wouldn't even dare call myself the best. I'd be lucky to stay in the top three!"
"I see... Chaldea, was it?" Luo Hao's eyes sparkled with newfound interest. "If even someone of your skill doesn't dare claim the top spot, then I must visit this place personally!"
Yan Qing: Did I just accidentally sell out the entire organization?
Before they could continue, the same thunderclap interrupted them. Yan Qing sensed the danger and immediately leaped off the golden deity, rushing toward the lightning. Luo Hao dispelled her guardian and vanished using her [Divine Footsteps] technique to follow.
The Gathering at the Lightning Storm
At Tesla's battlefield, John Pluto Smith was drenched in cold sweat as he watched Tesla prepare his Noble Phantasm.
"Hey, hey... this isn't good," Smith muttered. "That pressure... if that thing drops, this entire region will be vaporized instantly!"
In the sky, Tesla raised his right hand. Purple lightning formed a halo around him, while a massive orb of destructive energy pulsed in his palm. It looked like anything but "peaceful."
As everyone gathered Godou, Shiki, Anna, the Rogue Deities, and the Campiones their eyes were all fixed on that orb of annihilation.
"What... what is that thing?!" Godou shouted, voicing the terror of everyone present.
"That is Tesla's Noble Phantasm," El-Melloi II arrived, looking grimly at the sky. "[System Keraunos — Legend of Mankind: The Descent of Thunder]."
"Legend of Mankind... what?" Godou was baffled.
"It is the crystallization of Tesla's life's work and the supernatural legends surrounding him," Ryōgi Shiki stepped forward to explain. "It brings the lightning of the ancient gods down to the modern earth. If released at full power, it creates space-time fractures. And unfortunately, Mr. Tesla is being very serious right now."
"THEN STOP HIM!" Godou screamed. "If that thing hits, all of Tokyo is finished!"
"Good grief, it's not easy to stop a genius mid-rant, but I'll try," Shiki sighed, stepping forward. She looked up and shouted: "Hey! Mr. Tesla! If you drop that, Master will be furious! You'll be in big trouble!"
Tesla flinched at the mention of "Master." He looked down at Shiki, his expression conflicted. "You're right... but if I stop now, the accumulated energy will still discharge and fall!"
"YOU IDIOT! IF YOU DESTROY THIS PLACE, YOU'RE PAYING FOR IT OUT OF YOUR OWN POCKET!" The shrunken Baphomet was currently holding back a berserk Anna to keep her from attacking Tesla. "DON'T EXPECT ME TO HELP YOU WITH A SINGLE PENNY!!!"
Shiki thought for a moment. "In that case, Mr. Tesla, stop the mana supply to the orb. I have a way to handle the discharge."
Tesla nodded and pulled his hand away from the orb, flying down to stand beside Shiki. "What do you plan to do?"
Shiki let out a soft chuckle. "If you were still supplying mana, my strike wouldn't be enough to fully [Kill] it. But if it's just a stagnant mass of energy... I can solve it in one go."
Shiki closed her eyes, and the world seemed to fall silent.
["Everything is but a dream..."]
Godou and the others felt like they heard a faint melody as the world around them turned into a field of drifting cherry the crimson and blue [Mystic Eyes of Death Perception] glowing with absolute authority. She lunged toward the colossal lightning orb, delivered a single, silent slash, and turned away.
["Mukushiki — Kara no Kyōkai (Formless: The Boundary of Emptiness)"]
In the blink of an eye, the massive orb of destruction the threat that could have erased Tokyo simply vanished. It didn't explode. It didn't dissipate. It was just... gone, as if it had never existed in the first place.