Chapter 213: The Secret of Blue Bird Archipelago Island 32 (3)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 213: The Secret of Blue Bird Archipelago Island 32 (3)
Lightning that blanketed the sky converged upon Julian.
Even the falling raindrops were infused with faint lightning energy, and blue sparks flickered incessantly within the gales sweeping across the island.
“...All of that is lightning he conjured? How is this possible?”
Looking up at the sky, Jin shook his head in disbelief.
Until moments ago, Julian had been merely a ‘troublesome opponent.’ Now, he seemed to have become something far beyond Jin’s capacity to handle.
“I roughed him up a bit, and he just snapped. It seems he was already unstable because of your sword. You’ve experienced Spirit Energy Overload, right? It’s similar to that, but you can think of this as a god personally descending into a contractor’s body.”
“Phew, things have really gone south. This is no joke. I take it escaping is out of the question?”
“You want me to fly through that lightning? You might as well just tell me to die.”
“Sorry. I had to ask.”
Wuuuu— Wuuuuu—!
Sigmund was once again resonating with Gram’s Tomb. But unlike before, Jin could now feel that Julian’s power was also influencing the sword.
It’s as if the sword is furious…
It wasn't just a feeling.
A strange sensation, one that only the master of Sigmund could perceive, flowed through the blade and into Jin’s mind. If he had only heard about it, Jin might not have readily understood how an object could express emotion. However, with every tremor of Sigmund’s blade, he could feel that emotion with increasing clarity.
(Paitel, my brother whom I wish to kill.)
It took less than three seconds for him to finally hear the voice.
It was the God of Thunder, Gram—or rather, the residual will he had left within Sigmund.
(How dare you… think of descending upon my grave.)
Jin could hear Gram’s voice, but Gram could not hear Jin’s. Sigmund was, after all, not Gram himself, but a sword forged by sealing his power.
Thus, the voice was nothing more than a hollow monologue. It demanded nothing of Jin; it simply poured out endless resentment toward Paitel.
Yet, even as a residual will, Gram was once a being who had overwhelmed countless other gods.
The residual will’s anger toward Paitel was snowballing. That fury gradually condensed into lightning energy within the patterns etched upon Sigmund’s blade.
Crackle, zap!
Sigmund began to burn with a blue light.
It was an energy that clearly far surpassed the lightning Jin himself possessed. With the added fury of Gram’s residual will, Sigmund’s power was undergoing a temporary, explosive surge.
“Kid!”
Murakan pointed at Sigmund in startlement. He, too, seemed to have noticed the change occurring in the sword.
“Are you overloading too? Or is that another Fighting God technique?”
“No, I’ll explain later. Cast a shield!”
The lightning suspended in the sky looked ready to strike at any moment. The energy Julian had absorbed had now transformed into a single, massive storm.
“Hey, Kuzan Marius. It looks like you didn't expect things to turn out this way either. What should we do? Shall we finish what we started, or should we look after our own for a moment?”
Jin pointed Sigmund toward Beris. She was completely unconscious, her body twitching intermittently. At this rate, she would surely die the moment the lightning began to pour down.
Kuzan gritted his teeth, still unable to shake off his confusion.
If Jin really was the one who killed Taimun, then he had to settle things here, even if it cost Beris her life. But what if Jin’s words were true? What if Joshua was the real culprit, and he and Beris had been deceived all this time…?
In the brief moment Kuzan hesitated, a bolt struck.
KRA-BOOM!
It didn't strike the side where Jin, Murakan, Kuzan, and Beris were. Before the light of the first bolt could even fade, the next followed. Randomly falling lightning began to ravage not only Island 32 but also the distant beaches and the sea.
One of those bolts lunged toward Beris.
Kuzan had reflexively moved to protect her the moment the lightning started, but Julian’s power was not something he could cut or deflect.
Clang…!
Thunder clashed against thunder, yet a sharp noise like shattering glass rang out.
Jin had unleashed Pluto Sword Basic Form Lightning to deflect the bolt aimed at Beris.
“Ah…!”
“We’ll talk details later. You’d better not forget this debt.”
Jin then used a bolt to blast the ground right next to Beris. The recoil sent her body flying upward, and Kuzan, who had rushed forward like a madman, caught her.
“And if you don't want to die a worthless death, keep your wits about you. It seems I won't have the luxury of worrying about you two anymore.”
Jin decided to put Kuzan and Beris out of his mind until the battle was over.
He had no intention of overextending himself to protect them. His attempt at conversation was purely because he disliked Joshua’s dirty tricks, not because he felt any real pity or compassion for them.
If they die because they can't dodge the lightning, then that is their fate. It would be better if they survived to spill information about Joshua, though.
Or, if they were to die, he wanted to kill them with his own hands. Even if the misunderstanding was caused by Joshua, he had no intention of forgetting how they had nearly killed him in Delki.
Turning away, Jin ran toward Murakan. Kuzan was struggling, throwing himself from side to side to avoid the lightning while holding Beris.
“Murakan!”
“Yeah, I’ve lived a long time… but this is my first time seeing an avatar go this wild. Fortunately, the descent isn't fully complete, so it’s not entirely hopeless.”
“Tell me what you need. I’ll do my best to match it.”
Amidst the exploding earth and raining lightning, the only relatively safe place was inside Murakan’s spirit energy shield.
“Spirit Energy Release. You remember the one I first showed you in the Storm Castle basement, right?”
“Of course.”
It was the very technique that had sucked in the shadows of all things.
“I’m going to manifest a variation of it to forcibly undo that guy’s avatar state. You buy me time. That means you protect me.”
“How long?”
“Ten minutes. And I’ll need some of your spirit energy, too.”
“Will that be enough?”
“Probably. But it won't be easy. The lightning that’s struck so far doesn't even count as an attack. It’s just an overload of authority caused by him becoming an avatar.”
Just as Murakan said, Julian wasn't attacking them. He was simply manifesting as the natural force of ‘lightning’ itself.
Creeeeeak—!
Suddenly, a rift appeared in the sky, tearing through the storm.
A dimensional gate had opened.
From within, a massive, glowing bow emerged. The weapon, flickering as it was enveloped in lightning, was the true form of the ‘Lightning Bow Harmila.’
Soon, Harmila gradually shrank to fit Julian’s hand.
“The real deal is that Harmila,” Murakan warned.
Like a god preparing to deliver divine punishment, an exceptionally long and sharp bolt of lightning emerged from the storm and wound itself around Harmila’s bowstring.
The descent was complete.
[I feel the power of my foolish brother.]
Julian’s gaze turned toward Sigmund, carrying with it a crushing pressure.
Even if incomplete, it was the descent of a god. Jin felt a suffocating sensation just from that gaze being directed at him.
But, compared to Father or my Fighting God brothers, it’s nothing special.
It was none other than Fighting God Ban who had taken the life of the Thunder God, Gram.
(You insect-like wretch…!)
Sigmund’s voice raged once more. Jin stepped out of Murakan’s shield and adjusted his stance.
At the same time, Julian pulled back the bowstring.
Sssssst—shriek!
The moment the lightning left the string, Jin knew it instinctively. Had Gram’s residual will not awakened Sigmund, he wouldn't have even dreamed of trying to block it.
A sharp, blue trajectory split the very center of the lightning bolt.
Slash—! Zap!
He had only blocked a single bolt, yet he felt as if his entire body were being torn apart by a foreign lightning energy completely different from Sigmund’s.
Not bad.
If this was the extent of the impact from one hit, he could easily hold out for ten minutes.
The problem is, there’s no way his power is only at this level.
However, Jin was also realizing the newfound power of the awakened Sigmund. If he handled it well, he might be able to damage Julian before Murakan finished the Spirit Energy Release.
Behind him, Murakan’s Spirit Energy Release was unfolding. Hundreds of whirlpools of spirit energy, large and small, were already surrounding Murakan’s shield as Jin’s own spirit energy was siphoned into them.
[Kuhuhu, how laughable. To think that after being so arrogant, you are now held and swung by the hand of an insect while your power is sealed.]
Jin infused lightning into Sigmund. Even with just a bit of the Heart of Light’s aura mixed in, the lightning amplified as if oil had been set ablaze.
It was a power that felt like it would escape the blade and spark wildly if he lost focus for even a moment. In a sense, Sigmund was in a state where it could overload at any time.
That was the difference between Jin and Julian.
Julian had lost control of a power that exceeded his limits, resulting in an overload that turned him into an avatar. Jin, however, was wielding Sigmund entirely by his own will.
[How is it, insect? Do you like my brother’s power?]
“For someone who can't even descend without that insect, you sure have a big mouth. Can't a god have a bit more dignity?”
I can win.
For some reason, his instinct told him so. Jin’s tension eased as he looked Julian straight in the eye.
[Kuhuhu, for an insect, you seem to think you’re one of the ancient Pluto Tribe. I don't know how you obtained that sword, but…]
Jin chuckled and took off his wet coat. As he threw open his Black Magic Helmet and armor, the brilliantly glowing white Heart of Light revealed itself.
The reason he displayed such confidence was to buy time.
The ten minutes Murakan needed. Although he had a hunch he could defeat Paitel’s clumsy avatar, it was safer to let Murakan prepare the Spirit Energy Release.
[What? That is… the Pluto Tribe’s?]
It was difficult to read the expression obscured by lightning.
However, the moment Paitel saw the Heart of Light, Jin saw a flash of fear in his eyes. Until now, Paitel had mistakenly assumed Jin’s lightning was merely the power possessed by Sigmund.
“I received this sword directly from the one who killed your brother. Fighting God Ban—have you ever heard the name of my brother?”
Fighting God Ban.
As soon as that name was uttered, Paitel recoiled in midair, just as a human or beast would when seized by absolute terror.
[Aaaagh, ugh, eeeeek!]
And then, something unexpected happened.
As an avatar, Julian was experiencing everything Paitel felt. Trapped within the god, he was being subjected to emotions and sensations far beneath Paitel's consciousness.
The sheer terror Paitel felt toward Ban was not something Julian’s mortal will could withstand.
Because of that, Julian’s mind nearly collapsed in an instant, creating a rift in his bond with Paitel.
Jin didn't fully understand the process, but it was clear the enemy was shaken. No further calculation was needed to seize the opening.
The immense lightning energy contained within Sigmund began to erupt.
Soon, that energy became a single, massive wave of sword energy, surging toward Paitel as it swallowed the void.