416 Sounga's transformation and the shocking rise in Power
An endless purple hue spread over the veil of night, drowning all 9 stars in the sky under an evil, purplish light.
Even the pale yellow star felt like giving out a darker and more sinister starlight.
"HAHAHA!" a laugh boomed over the blood ocean, shaking the entire Reality Marble. This laugh also felt like a dragon's roar, its might irresistible, its command unobjectionable. "THIS WORLD SHALL KNOW EVIL!!!"
Kai looked at the giant foggy purple pillar with an extremely grave expression. This power was just too overwhelming. If he hadn't come to know the Sword Spirit's true might in this Reality Marble, especially when backed by the powers of his Spiritual Awakening, he didn't know what he would have done.
Yet, he also knew it must be him to subdue this sword, not the yellow-haired being. Otherwise, even if the Sword Spirit could forcefully trample over this purple presence, there would always remain a gap between Kai and Sounga. An uncrossable ravine.
It must be him.
'I will make you bend your knees,' Kai thought, his eyes narrowing. 'Evil? Heh!'
Standing by his side, Moraine's expression was nowhere near as elegant as the time she had first seen Blood Demon. Things… had taken a much more drastic turn just too fast, surpassing her capabilities.
However, there was a resolve in her eyes as well. The moment she had learned of Blood Demon being the Five-Crowned Prince, even though it had felt more like the Supreme-Protector's guess, she had used a forbidden method to loosen the seal over Sounga.
Moraine was elegant, but not foolish.
There were many Contestants on that ship. Some were from Chaos, some from Order. It hadn't changed the fact that the 9th-floor Contestant and Blade Singer, the strongest, were from Order.
All of them, other than the Supreme-Protector, were Candidates for 20% of the Inheritance. Their death meant only Kai and she would remain alive to share it.
Not to mention, if everyone got to know about the Five-Crowned Prince's Code Name, then how would she use this info for her benefit?
The Primordial Tower was a cruel world.
This cruel world had forced her to become a pawn of one of the three Temples. So, when Moraine saw a light of hope, she dared not let it go by.
But even she hadn't imagined in her wildest dreams that the Five-Crowned Prince… was not someone she could take advantage of. Nor that a time would come when Sounga would be released again, for she could only guarantee her safety that one time.
Sounga knew no mercy. Not for anyone.
"The Sword of Calamity, Sounga, is a Yokai Sword; a Demon Blade, from the World of Inuyasha," Moraine whispered, trembling. "It possesses enormous Demonic Powers. Tessaiga, Inuyasha's sword, was the Sword of Destruction, with an ability said to kill a hundred demons in a single stroke. Tenseiga, Sesshōmaru's sword, was the Sword of Heaven with an ability said to save 100 lives in a single strike.
"Sounga, however, hadn't originated from Inuyasha's father like the other two. It's the Sword of Hell, able to summon 100 souls with one swing. And… it's said to be stronger than both Tessaiga and Tenseiga. In the main storyline, only the combined power of these two swords could overpower Sounga."
Moraine's words seemed to sting in the ears. Yet, she didn't need to introduce swords. Not to Kai.
With Kai's likeness for swords, he had already collected vast info on the famous and infamous swords.
Sounga's lethality didn't lie in being stronger than the two swords wielded by Inuyasha, the main character, and his brother, Sesshomaru.
It lay in Sounga itself, as it contained the spirit of an evil dragon from the depths of Hell.
It was a sentient sword.
But Kai had never thought he would come face to face with this sword so soon.
It was also because of this sword that the World of Inuyasha was one of his favorite ones. Even Item-M had mentioned this during the Pokemon World's Mission when they were figuring out the identity of Yura of the Demon Hair.
"Like the Devil Fruits…" Moraine continued, her face pale, her breath forced. "… this sword is an Artifact. There are only two ways to subdue it. Either seal it in someone's heart using the sealing method from the Naruto World, allowing one to let it rampage by itself when needed. The other is… the other is to find someone eviler than the sword, subduing it with a Will viler than its own. But that's just impossible.
"The Temple couldn't find any Contestant meeting the criteria below the 4th Set. Many tried, but all failed, their fate worse than death. Moreover, only with the second way Sounga can become a Named Item. Otherwise, if forcefully subdued by upper floor Contestants, its grade will fall absurdly low. The High…"
Boom!
Suddenly, a shocking boom rang out, with the foggy pillar at the center.
Kai could see the image of a long, thin sword, with a large, spherical pommel extending from the grip. It was from this pommel a world-engulfing purple glow was emanating, covering earth and heaven. [Image 1]
Then, the sword blurred, disappearing from Kai's sight.
The next time it appeared, it was already near Shadow Lord.
With one swing, Sounga cut the Shadow Lord's left hand over the elbow, blood splattering from the stump, falling into the blood ocean.
"HAHA!" Sounga's roaring laugh boomed. "A WORTHY BODY!"
The bleeding left hand lifted itself and grabbed the sword's hilt. With a bang, hundreds of purple tentacles burst out of the sword's hilt and wrapped themselves around the giant arm. [Image 2]
It didn't end there.
Some kind of deformed body began to generate from the bloody stump on the tentacles-covered arm. In no time, Sounga created a body for itself, with the Shadow Lord's arm serving as the base.
In the main storyline, the Sword of Calamity had done the same using Sesshomaru's left arm.
"ROARRR!!!" Sounga's newly created headless body roared, purple ripples coming out of it, quaking the entire world. "LET ME OUT!" [Image 3]
-Keke!- the Sword Spirit cackled. -It's time.-
Boom!
With the yellow-haired being's one step, the entire Reality Marble trembled. It let go of Moraine's shoulder and vanished, bringing Kai along with it.
They appeared high in the sky, under the night, 9 stars glowing hideously purple over their heads.
Murasame appeared in Kai's hand, its cursed Will seeping into his heart.
The Sword Spirit appeared behind Kai and put its long, clawed hands over his back. -Here we go,- it hissed, its yellow hair swaying without wind. -It might sting a bit.-
Suddenly, the entire blood world shook, and all the pressure which was keeping the Shadow Lord and Red Sun rooted to their spots rushed into Kai through the Sword Spirit.
Booms and bangs rang within Kai, his bones crackling, his muscles screeching, and his entire body trembling under the might of the shocking power.
Kai felt a scalding heat coursing within his veins. His grip over Murasame tightened, and his teeth rubbed against each other. The tattered black cloak of Dementor-Kai billowed furiously as if a storm was raging within him.
It was then his MP and SP began to rise, surpassing a realm he could have ever imagined.
It was then the Reality Marble trembled, losing the power that was keeping it together under the wrath of Reality.
And it was also then the power pressuring Shadow Lord and Red Sun completely vanished.
"Ahhhhh!" the Shadow Lord shouted like a maniac the moment he gained mobility. "I will kill you all!"
Red Sun coughed out a mouthful of blood. He looked at Shadow Lord, at Kai, and then at the world, his thoughts unknown.
Kai's mind was blank.
Power. Raw Power was bubbling inside him, making him drunk.
Low-level 7th-floor… Top-level 7th-floor… Mid-level 8th-floor…
Low-level 9th-floor…
And it was still rising.
BOOM!
A massive explosion of Mana and Breath rippled out of Kai as his strength surpassed that of even those who could call themselves half-step away from the 10th floor.
A touch more, and Kai would become an existence at the same level as Shadow Lord.
But the power of Spiritual Awakening ran out at this moment.
Nonetheless, Murasame thrummed with excitement in Kai's right hand. He kept drawing deep breaths, a chill seeping out of his body, colder than ever.
The presence rippling out of Kai forced all to look up at him.
Shadow Lord's furious expression became grave once again. Red Sun's eyes trembled, his mind coming to a decision. Moraine's mouth was wide open, blood dripping down her chin.
Only one being was still laughing, roaring, and mocking all.
"Haha!" Sounga's laugh pierced through all hearts, its voice finally gaining a more realistic touch. "So it's you who unsealed me, huh? Let me properly thank you, then."
Space shattered as Sounga's new body flew toward Kai, its evil presence clawing at the very souls of people.
-I..- Kai mumbled out of nowhere, closing his eyes. -… I feel great.-
