"Hear my call..."
Jeanne coughed up more blood, crimson droplets staining her lips. Through the haze of pain, she finally understood. After that light punch from the boy had sent her reeling, she'd indeed thought of Takeyo. More than thought, she'd prayed to him.
"So he came here because he heard my prayers?" she whispered, disbelief coloring her words.
"I said I'm just a little upset and want to beat you up."
Takeyo frowned, a weight of responsibility settling on his shoulders. When it came down to it, this might still be his own fault.
He'd finally remembered, this Vishnu was the boy who'd asked him questions before. The two had actually communicated long ago. Now he understood the god's true purpose. The Vishnu of this world had been searching for him all along.
The reason Vishnu found Jeanne could be traced back to Takeyo himself. Because he'd deceived Jeanne twice, she'd created that urban legend. And it was precisely that urban legend that had led Vishnu to her.
In a sense, Takeyo bore responsibility for this disaster.
"If I could, I really wouldn't want to fight you," Takeyo said, shaking his head.
This wasn't an opponent he could handle with just an over-limit incarnation. Of course, he'd still have to use it anyway, he had no other choice.
As Vishnu watched with keen interest and Jeanne stared in disbelief, azure armor shining with platinum radiance materialized around Takeyo's body.
[My liberation!]
[The origin that bears the world... the dragon among dragons...]
[World Dragon on which I ride, ascend to the pinnacle of dimensions, ]
[We who transcend the end shall cross beyond finality, ]
[Come to me with your brilliant radiance and galactic power!]
[Advent!]
[Kurma Incarnation, Overload!]
[World Dragon Kurma Over-Limit Form!]
The Kurma incarnation, the avatar with the longest sustainable duration in his arsenal. After fusing the Red Dragon Emperor and White Dragon Emperor templates, the over-limit incarnation of World Dragon Kurma had risen from its original Maou-class peak to barely touch the threshold of Transcendent-level power.
Of course, this strength still fell short against Vishnu.
"Oh?" Vishnu's eyes narrowed, his divine power no longer concealed. "So it really is you."
"Haaaaaa!"
The breath of transcendence exploded outward, making even this pocket dimension tremble. Fortunately, the space could sustain a Transcendent-level battle, after all, Vishnu himself had created it.
"Come here. I don't have time to worry about you for a while."
Takeyo sighed and transferred Jeanne into the Jade of Armor in his inner world. This level of battle, even the aftershocks would be more than she could survive.
"Oh?" Vishnu smiled. "Do you think you still have the capacity to protect others?"
He'd already assessed the situation. Though Takeyo possessed tremendous power within his body, he couldn't wield it effectively. What stood before him now was probably the strongest manifestation the boy could manage.
"I think I do."
Takeyo casually tossed a water sphere at Vishnu, the basic kind used by novice mages for practice.
"Are you declaring war?" Vishnu asked, staring at the elementary water ball with an indecipherable expression.
"Pretty much."
Takeyo smiled slightly.
[Material Burst!]
Activate!
The entire water sphere transformed from basic matter into pure energy.
"What?!"
Vishnu's expression changed. An attack of this magnitude, evolved from the most basic water spell?
BOOM!
A sound capable of shaking heaven and earth erupted as a mushroom cloud rose from ground zero.
"Hah..." Takeyo exhaled lightly. He knew such an attack couldn't possibly eliminate a Transcendent being.
As the smoke cleared, Vishnu's figure appeared, slightly disheveled but intact.
"It seems I must take action before you grow any stronger."
With this level of strength now, it was only a matter of time before the boy surpassed him.
"Hah! Come on then!"
Before Takeyo finished speaking, a massive dragon's breath engulfed Vishnu's position.
"Hmm!"
The blazing dragon's breath distorted space itself, not leaving behind a single stray particle of energy. This was dragon's breath that surpassed even the Dragon King level, reaching the tier of Heavenly Dragons!
And the one breathing this devastating flame was Chaos Karma Dragon Tiamat.
"I must say, little master, you certainly know how to cause trouble," Tiamat remarked while releasing her dragon's breath.
She'd surpassed the Dragon King level and reached the Heavenly Dragon tier, the same level as Ddraig and Albion before their deaths. Her strength had reached transcendence.
When Takeyo had left before, she'd disappeared from the Familiar Forest because of this evolution. After Takeyo bestowed upon her the God's Chess Pieces of "War" and "Chariot," she'd evolved from Dragon King to Heavenly Dragon level.
But this evolution required time to stabilize. She needed sleep to properly absorb the transformation. Since she hadn't advanced through her own cultivation, her strength remained somewhat unstable.
But now wasn't the time to worry about that. Takeyo had forcibly awakened Tiamat from her slumber and summoned her using the God's Chess Pieces.
Her strength hadn't fully stabilized yet, but she'd at least reached Transcendent-level combat effectiveness. Though she'd barely achieved the Heavenly Dragon realm and needed time to settle into it, she could absolutely hold off Vishnu.
"Tiamat, hold on for a bit. I'll be ready soon."
After saying this, Takeyo closed his eyes. Time was running out, he couldn't afford to worry about his body anymore. Two more incarnations blessed him directly.
[Black Sky Krishna Incarnation!]
[White Horse Kalki Incarnation!]
There was no retreating now.
Since Vishnu knew he was in Kuoh and had confirmed his identity, there was only one option: kill him.
If Vishnu truly wanted to escape, he could use the over-limit incarnation of Vamana the Dwarf, and no one in this world could stop him.
But simply running away wouldn't solve anything.
Vishnu had pulled him into this pocket dimension, which actually aligned perfectly with Takeyo's wishes. Only here could he ensure that news of a Transcendent-level battle breaking out in Kuoh wouldn't leak to the outside world.
"What a willful request from a willful master! Fine then!"
Tiamat's eyes filled with the combative nature inherent to dragonkind. Though she wasn't known for fierce belligerence among dragons, when battle was necessary, her combat power would never be weaker than any evil dragon's.
"Do you understand? What do you understand?"
In the dragon's breath that had just dissipated, Vishnu's intact figure reappeared.
"What the hell?! You're completely fine?! Are you kidding me?"
Tiamat's language turned crude. This was a joke, right? She'd just used her strongest attack!
"I remember you, the little dragon named Tiamat. Your strength has risen since acknowledging a master."
With Vishnu's original power, calling Tiamat a little dragon was perfectly reasonable.
"Then... let me use this technique after such a long time."
Vishnu's body transformed into spheres of light, ten small orbs scattering in different directions.
"This is...?!"
Tiamat swallowed hard at the scene before her.
A massive fish capable of supporting heaven and earth. A colossal tortoise whose every step made the ground tremble. A white horse whose mere presence burned and distorted space.
Vishnu had split himself into ten incarnations. Every single avatar possessed Transcendent-level strength.
Though they'd just barely reached transcendence like Tiamat, the sheer shock of it was completely different.
"Hey! Hurry up!"
After shouting this to Takeyo, Tiamat steeled her resolve and rushed toward these incarnations. No choice, she'd do everything in her power to buy time.
"Your dragons are exactly the same as in ancient times. You always have the courage to challenge gods, and you're always like this."
"But you all know the result, don't you?"
Ten thunderous voices echoed between heaven and earth, making Tiamat feel uneasy.
"Go to hell! Gods have always been worthless! If you're so capable, go talk to the Infinite Dragon God and Great Red!"
Tiamat spoke disdainfully. Wasn't it ultimately just a question of strength? If she had Ophis's power, she'd swallow him whole in one bite.
"..."
Vishnu didn't respond. All ten incarnations swarmed forward at once.
Don't think that just because you've become a Heavenly Dragon, you have the qualifications to provoke the Supreme God. Dragons are as annoying as always.
BOOM!
Tiamat clashed with the wild boar incarnation, and the continent beneath their feet trembled violently. This was the mighty power capable of dragging gods from their thrones.
If it were one-on-one, Tiamat was confident she could defeat this boar.
Unfortunately, this was never meant to be a fair fight.
White Horse Kalki burned her body with scorching flames. Lion Narasimha's claws easily tore through her sturdy dragon scales. Rama wielding the battle axe, symbolizing the power of war, slashed at Tiamat's wing, severing a large piece. In another Rama's hands, a golden bow accumulated devastating power.
In just seconds, the battle had fallen into absolute disadvantage for Tiamat.
Yet Tiamat showed no intention of backing down. Beyond the combat instinct naturally stimulated in dragonkind, the most important reason was this little master she wanted to protect.
Though he was forceful, Tiamat held no complaints. Most dragon matings happened this way anyway.
More importantly, she saw in this little master the possibility of leading toward the future.
She already knew Takeyo contained tremendous power. The incarnation that had caused a worldwide sensation not long ago had awakened her from deep sleep.
Since this power was so formidable, could it lead the world in a new direction?
Being number one in the world alongside Ophis's chaotic existence was boring. Being first without doing anything would only plunge the world into chaos.
In Takeyo, she saw hope for world unification.
Not to mention, Takeyo had told her about the E×E invasion that would kill the Red Dragon God Emperor thirty years from now, urging her to stabilize and improve her strength in the shortest time possible.
In her view, only Takeyo could lead the entire world to victory in that war.
For Takeyo's safety, even facing Vishnu, a formidable opponent with no chance of winning, she didn't hesitate.
However, having just entered the Transcendent level with unstable strength, her so-called confrontation was simply getting beaten.
During the fight, Tiamat suddenly felt the suffocation of impending death.
Looking toward where her premonition directed, she saw a golden divine bow and the golden arrow that had just burst from it.
"Dead... I'll definitely die."
This thought filled Tiamat's mind.
SWISH!
An arrow crossed endless time and space, galloping toward Tiamat's body.
And at that moment,
A young man's figure appeared before Tiamat. No, to be precise, he blocked the golden arrow's trajectory.
"Be careful!"
Tiamat was so confused she was directly pushed into a dragon's body by the wild boar's tusks.
Simultaneously, the arrow flew before Takeyo.
[Possessing brilliance that transcends the sun!]
[With this body...]
[The sun of salvation descends upon the world!]
[Kalki Incarnation, Origin!]
SHRIIIEK!
The golden arrow melted instantly, dissolved by the sun flames on Takeyo's body. The terrifying temperature vaporized it in a split second.
"Ugh..."
Takeyo coughed, blood mixed with golden light particles spewing from his mouth. Using the Origin Incarnation placed an enormous burden on his body.
"Cough... thanks."
Takeyo waved his hand gently, and the critically injured Tiamat disappeared before him in a flash of white light, Kurma's power ensuring she wouldn't die from these injuries.
The white light was necessary because what he did next required getting Tiamat out of here.
"What?!"
Feeling the terrifying power emanating from Takeyo, Vishnu couldn't help but exclaim.
This power had surpassed transcendence, far surpassing even the Infinite Dragon God!
"No way... this requires long-term planning!"
Sensing the horror of this power, Vishnu's thoughts turned to escape.
The power Takeyo now displayed had completely exceeded his expectations. He'd originally thought Takeyo simply couldn't use his power, but now it seemed there were severe restrictions instead?
"Huh? Can't leave?"
Vishnu frowned. He tried to depart but found he couldn't exit this space.
"It's useless. I've sealed and reinforced this space. There's no possibility of you leaving."
Takeyo coughed again, more blood with golden light droplets falling to the ground.
He'd used the Black Sky Krishna incarnation earlier for good reason. Before Vishnu noticed, he'd already seized control of this space.
Unless he permitted it, no one could leave this pocket dimension.
"It's pointless. Your body will collapse here like this..."
Before Vishnu could finish, the sun of salvation ignited on Takeyo's form.
Though much had happened, very little time had actually passed since Takeyo activated his incarnation. Yet in this brief period, his body had reached its absolute limit.
"What kind of existence are you? Why do you possess power similar to mine?!"
Ten incarnations of Vishnu swarmed forward.
Though he possessed more than ten avatars, separating them required his own strength. Maintaining all avatars at Transcendent level meant ten was already the limit.
Of course, this transcendence was diluted, Sirzechs alone could probably handle three or four of them.
"..."
Takeyo didn't speak. He had no more strength to waste on words. He worried that speaking would cause the energy gathered throughout his entire body to dissipate.
When Vishnu's avatars were about to touch him, a layer of platinum sun flames ignited on his body.
Flames capable of burning out evil and purifying the world burst forth!
[Pure World Flame!]
[Infinite Kalki Savior Flame!]
Condensed to the extreme, the Yang flames began spreading from Takeyo's body, expanding across the entire dimension in an instant.
He now had only one strike. Therefore, to ensure Vishnu had no possibility of escape, he'd first chosen to seal off this space, eliminating any chance of the god fleeing.
Then, using his full strength, he would directly destroy both this pocket dimension and Vishnu within it!
"Ugh..."
The moment Vishnu made a pained sound, his voice stopped abruptly. His divine existence had been completely erased.
Whether body, spirit, or abilities, everything disappeared without a trace under Takeyo's absolute power.
At the same time, the entire space collapsed. The concepts of time and space were burned away. This top-tier pocket dimension vanished instantly, its existence completely incinerated.
[Ding!]
[Congratulations to the host for completing the plot check-in! Sign-in level: King!]
[Sign-in plot: The True Vishnu]
[Plot: There can only be one true Vishnu!]
[Congratulations to the host for the reward: Origin of Human Bloodline!]
Takeyo didn't have enough energy to care about rewards. On the outskirts of Kuoh where they'd disappeared, a humanoid figure emitting faint white-golden light fell from the sky.
CRASH!
After slamming into the ground and creating a deep crater, the World Dragon armor on Takeyo's body transformed into points of light and disappeared into the air.
Simultaneously, a blonde girl was thrown out from the Jade of Armor.
The girl's name was Jeanne d'Arc.