Endless Path : Infinite Cosmos

Chapter 1996: Penance

Sensing the eruption of Vahn's aura, excitement began to swell within Hon's chest for the first time since his battle with Ureko. There were few things he enjoyed more than testing his blade against a powerful opponent, so, even if Vahn turned out to be much stronger than imagined, he was looking forward to their climactic exchange in the heavens.

Unfortunately, just as that thought entered his mind, Hon's mental faculties halted, as, surrounding his would-be opponent, more than a hundred teens and children had spontaneously manifested. To further exacerbate his confusion, Vahn's appearance had changed drastically. His ivory white armor had vanished entirely. In its place, abyssal black armor covered him from head to toe. It was such an extreme change that, for a moment, Hon briefly considered that he had already been defeated and was currently having a fever dream...

Ignoring the narration from the Law of Identity, Vahn maintained a stoic and cold demeanor as he spread his arms, ordering, "Dyrnwyn, Kusa, come."

Reacting to Vahn's words, two youths, one appearing as a handsome young man from Ireland and the other resembling a petite young girl from Japan, immediately transformed. The first, wielded in Vahn's right hand, became a long greatsword with a hilt nearly a third of its total length. As for the latter, she became a relatively plain-looking shortsword, but, depending on the angle you viewed it from, peculiar blue, green, and purple light would appear to flash across the surface of the blade.

With the two starkly contrasting swords in hand, Vahn began to slowly rise into the air as the rest of his Pseudo-Zanpakuto Spirits began searching for places to idle. Some even manifested snacks out of thin air, sharing their bounty with the others before finding a place for themselves...

Seeing this peculiar scene play out, Hon's apathetic expression gradually melted into a confounded look as he realized that each of the children below were actually weapons. This was far from his first time witnessing such a phenomenon. In fact, his own sword possessed a Spirit formed from his very soul. What made this situation so confounding was that his Sword Spirit, rather than feeling excited about the prospect of acquiring new skills and techniques, was actually trembling in fear...

Noticing the look on Hon's face, the makings of a smile briefly appeared on Vahn's face before he controlled himself and said, "Sorry, but, even if you were to ask politely, I have no obligation to tell you anything. You should address the issues in your own family before concerning yourself with the secrets of another."

With that said, Vahn lifted his greatsword, Dyrnwyn, igniting its blade with pure white flames. Then, without further delay, he used his variation of Shunpo and Koku Shundo to appear right in front of Hon. This caused the latter to immediately attempt a counter, but, unlike the majority of opponents Hon had faced, Vahn was perfectly capable of keeping up with the speed of his blade.

Seeing the pure white blade form a path towards his neck, a smile developed in slow-motion across Vahn's face as Hon's attack failed to penetrate the pauldrons protecting his shoulders. Then, before the white-haired swordsman could express his considerable surprise, Dyrnwyn cleaved through his neck and shoulder without resistance. The flames along its length also had the effect of draining a person's strength to empower itself, so, not only had Hon's immortality been ignored, the majority of his Shinsu had been drained away in an instant.

To his credit, Hon, now existing as little more than a right arm, head, and a severed torso managed to stay in the air. Dyrnwyn's flames had also cauterized the wound as it passed through, so, while a normal person would have already died, Hon managed to endure long enough to smile and mutter, "Truly remarkable..." before falling from the sky.

Rolling his eyes, Vahn shouldered the still-flaming Dyrnwyn as a green aura spread throughout the entirety of his domain. This caused the falling body of Hon to reverse at high speeds, his two halves becoming a singular whole in less time than it took most people to blink. Then, in a plain tone that left no room for argument, Vahn stated, "This fight is over when you've learned your lesson. Now, I suggest you stop relying on your Immortality and get serious..."

Without waiting for the stunned man to respond, Vahn stabbed forward with Kusa, the shortsword in his left hand. Because of his recent experience, Hon was unable to react to this, so, without any suspense whatsoever, he found his heart pierced by a vibrant green blade that seemed to extend beyond the horizon before instantaneously returning to its original length.

Though a wound to the heart was survivable for most Rankers, eerie black blood began flowing from Hon's orifices the moment Kusa penetrated his body. Almost immediately thereafter, taking less than two seconds to complete, his fair skin developed a necrotic appearance before his body began dissolving from his extremities.

Shaking his head, Vahn created a bit of distance between himself and the zombie-like Hon before the same green aura triggered a second time, this time appearing as little more than a flash of light from the perspective of those able to perceive it.

Having experienced death twice, cold sweat began to break out across Hon's body as he witnessed Vahn appearing next to one of the groups below, exchanging his previous weapons with two brand new ones. At that moment, the notion that Vahn was intending to kill him with each of the weapons crossed his mind, and, as a result, a sudden and intense desire to surrender immediately manifested from the very depths of his soul. Unfortunately, before he could voice this sentiment, Vahn, wielding a pitch-black dagger and a rapier that seemed to be formed from poisonous vines appeared before him, stating, "You have yet to repent for your actions. Come. Try and steal my techniques and intent. Isn't that why you challenged me to a duel?"

Paling in response to Vahn's words, Hon was about to answer when an immediate and intense pain spread throughout his body. He could feel thorny vines spreading through his nervous system, and, as a result, his body was twisted and contorted into a form resembling a cross as Vahn withdrew the crimson-tipped rapier from his chest. Then, for the third time in as many minutes, he experienced a brief moment of reprieve before, once again, losing his life at hands of a swordsman far beyond his comprehension...

---

Staring down at the dispirited and kneeling figure of Hon, Vahn loosened his grip on the runic ax wielded in his right hand, allowing it to return to the form of an adorable girl with icy blue hair as he said, "This is merely a taste of the helplessness you forced others to endure over the course of your life. From now on, I encourage you to act according to the principle that everything you mete out to others will eventually return to you. This includes pain and suffering, so, unless you wish to experience something far worse, I suggest that you correct your behavior..."

Raising his head, a scarcely visible light returned to Hon's silvery-white eyes as he asked, "How can one person be so powerful...?"

Furrowing his brows in response to the man's inquiry, Vahn was tempted to further admonish him, but, having already lost interest in continuing what was effectively a torture session, he ultimately just shook his head, answering, "You're mistaken..."

Confused by Vahn's words, Hon was about to ask what he meant when the former gestured to the veritable horde of children surrounding him, adding, "I have never been alone...not even for a single moment. While it is possible to become powerful by dedicating yourself to a singular pursuit, you'll never reach the pinnacle by abandoning the people around you. Personal motivation and pride can only take you so far. If you wish to become truly powerful, you need something to protect...it is only when we raise our swords in the defense of others that limitations no longer apply..."

Though there were countless paths to becoming stronger, the path towards the peak wasn't paved with the blood of your enemies. That was the path of a ruthless murderer, and, unless you had fate on your side, you would never break away from the laws of the world. Truth strength could only be obtained through comprehension, understanding, and sacrifice. It wasn't the blood of your enemies that allowed you to break through the limits of the world. it was the blood, sweat, and tears of you, your family, and friends...each working in concert to allow you to overcome any trial and tribulation thrown your way...

As that thought crossed his mind, Vahn turned his back on Hon, adding, "You might find this hard to believe, especially after everything that has transpired between us...still, from the bottom of my heart, I hope you find the path that takes you to the top..."

With that said, Vahn deactivated his Bankai, and, without further words, disappeared from the 100th Floor. This left Hon staring blankly at the place where he had been standing, a conflicted look on his face as he picked up his broken sword and whispered, "So this is the power that overwrote fate and defeated White...it would appear I still have a long way to go..."

Raising his sword so that it was level with his face, Hon stared at his reflection for several seconds, a self-deprecating smile replacing his usual apathy as he muttered, "I wonder...why does the thought of apologizing to my family and children suddenly fill me with terror...?"

As that thought crossed his mind, the image of Hagipherione immediately made itself known within Hon's mind. This caused the smile on his face to cramp, but, understanding he would never be able to move forward just sitting around, he forced himself to stand before tossing his sword to the side and subsequently vanishing into thin air...

---

Located deep within the Inner Sanctum of the Imperial Palace, Jahad, surrounded by innumerable golden Lighthouses, exhaled a tired sigh that seemed to emanate from the very depth of his soul. He had borrowed the remaining Opera from the Tu Perie Family in order to observe Vahn after his 'daughters' had discarded their respective emblems. Thus, ever since Vahn had departed the 77th Floor, he had been doing his best to keep tabs on the latter's movements. As a result, he had been able to witness the fight from start to finish, and, despite his demon promising even greater power, he couldn't envision a future where he emerged victoriously against the incomprehensibly powerful Dragon God...

As this thought crossed his mind, a snaggletoothed grin spread across Jahad's face as he rose to his feet and released a hearty laugh that caused every Lighthouse in the surroundings to tremble. Then, with an expression that radiated remarkable self-confidence, he said, "I'll need to prepare a suitable stage. Even if it is ultimately my fate to die at your hands, don't think for a moment I'll just bend the knee. You had better bring your A-Game, Vahn Aldrnari Mason. If you don't, I'll make sure you learn, first hand, why people still refer to me as the God of Fishermen...!"

Believing that Vahn had also been keeping tabs on him, Jahad raised his right fist towards the sky, teeth on full display as crimson red horns sprouted from various parts of his body. This caused the surrounding Lighthouses to begin fracturing, but, thanks to their self-repair function, they managed to stay operational long enough for the image of Vahn to turn around and furrow his brows...

(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'Vahn be like, "All legendary weapons are belong to us...!"','Some lessons are harder than others o_o...','Jahad over here getting hyped up while Vahn is already thinking about his plans outside the Tower xD...')

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