"Oh? This is the first time I've heard someone evaluate the Holy Spear of Twilight as a broken spear. Let me verify if you have the capital to say such a thing!"
Cao Cao's mood was excellent, better than it had been in ages.
If someone was afraid of challenges because of their disadvantages, could they still be called a hero? Takeyo possessed that quality of never backing down from a challenge even when severely injured. This character trait... pleased him greatly.
This was the quality a true hero should have!
Of course, Takeyo didn't want Cao Cao's favor at all. If it were a girl's affection, that might be barely acceptable, but Cao Cao's admiration? Hard pass.
In any case, with both parties willing, the match was decided.
In a forest clearing, the blonde girl watched the teenager across from her nervously.
"Say it's only a spar," she reminded him firmly.
Jeanne glared at Cao Cao with visible discomfort.
The reason was simple, this bastard had forced Takeyo to fight in such a severely injured state.
"Hey, hey, hey. I get it," Cao Cao said, painfully shifting the holy spear onto his shoulder.
Really, he thought. Do you know who your actual ally is here, Jeanne? I think you've forgotten your position after getting attached to a man!
"Actually, you should be more worried about me," Takeyo said with a slight smile.
There was a fundamental difference between Cao Cao and Vali.
Cao Cao was a typical technical player, while Vali was a power-based fighter with some technique mixed in.
If Cao Cao took a single serious hit, he'd be done for. Vali, on the other hand, still had a chance even after taking damage.
This was perhaps the weakness of humanity. Through the same degree of training, humans gained far less raw power than other races.
"Cao Cao, you'd better take this seriously. If you're not careful, you might get seriously hurt," Takeyo warned.
A layer of white light emerged from his body, then... another layer formed over it.
"This is Senjutsu? What's the other one?" Cao Cao frowned. He could identify parts of the Senjutsu foundation, but something else was mixed in.
"This is Battle Spirit, the product of pushing vitality and mental power to their ultimate limits... cough cough..." Takeyo explained between coughs.
"Takeyo, are you really okay?" Jeanne asked worriedly.
He'd just coughed up blood!
"There should be no problem. I checked his body when he was unconscious. His vitality surpasses Heracles, the strongest vitality user here, by many times over," Zhuge Liang said, her small fan waving gently.
"The fact that he can use this power proves that point. Don't worry."
Indeed, if one ignored the occasional golden blood he coughed up, no one would believe Takeyo had just gotten out of bed after being critically injured.
"Well, golden blood... If Zhuge Liang hadn't confirmed your identity, I would have thought you were a god's heir," Cao Cao remarked with a smile.
"Heir of the gods? Please, don't lower my status like that."
"And... be careful!"
Behind Takeyo, divine implements from various mythologies emerged from golden spatial ripples!
[Three-Phase Blessing!]
"Just what I wanted!" Cao Cao grinned.
Seven orbs of light in different colors emerged from the holy spear, floating quietly behind him.
[Seven Treasures!]
With the flickering of one orb, he broke the laws of physics, moving through the air at incredible speed. Through the Seven Treasures, he'd gained unimaginable mobility!
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The dodge space in the air was obviously much larger than on the ground.
"Subspecies Balance Breaker: Polar Night Longinus Chakravartin. I completed it recently. Although it's not as good as the true Balance Breaker, it's better in versatility and flexibility," Cao Cao explained after avoiding Takeyo's first wave of attacks.
"Really? Quite an impressive ability," Takeyo said with a slight smile.
In truth, Takeyo's combat style was a combination of Cao Cao's and Vali's, without either's weaknesses.
No, saying it was merely a combination didn't do it justice. He shared the common strengths of both Cao Cao and Vali while surpassing them.
"What you rely on is the weapon in your hand! I've already seen that the reason you can release those divine implements is because of the blade in your hand!" Cao Cao declared while effortlessly avoiding the barrage of weapons.
He didn't know that the reason he could relax was because Takeyo was holding back.
Now, Cao Cao was starting his analysis, pretentiously confident.
Due to humanity's inherent weakness, they had to find and analyze the weaknesses of other life forms. By combining all available information, he could defeat existences whose hard power far exceeded his own. This was one of the ways to realize the human limit he pursued.
But what he'd analyzed was indeed correct.
"Heir to Mahatma Rama! Try this!" he called out.
One orb of light flew toward Takeyo at incredible speed!
[Wheel Treasure!]
It had priority to destroy the strongest weapon on the field and deal piercing damage to the opponent!
According to his speculation, the blade in Takeyo's hand was undoubtedly his most powerful weapon!
To seal Takeyo's barrage ability and prevent him from using this powerful sword, he deployed the Wheel Treasure!
Takeyo watched quietly as the Wheel Treasure collided with the Blade of Salvation... and made no unnecessary movements.
Cao Cao's abilities were indeed very powerful. In the later period, he'd even suppressed all of Gremory's servants with his own power alone. But... to the current Takeyo, he was no longer a strong opponent.
On the other side, Cao Cao frowned.
Is he just not acting? Isn't this underestimating me?
Clang!
Without any hindrance, the Wheel Treasure struck the Blade of Salvation!
...Nothing happened.
"Huh? A bug?" Cao Cao's face fell after seeing no response for so long.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Seems your technique is still in an unfinished state," Takeyo said with a smile.
Using the Blade of Salvation, which theoretically crushed the personality of the Holy Spear of Twilight, how could it be destroyed by the Forbidden Hand of the Holy Spear of Twilight?
"What is that thing!" Cao Cao took a deep breath.
Was there really a weapon in this world equal to or even higher than the Holy Spear of Twilight? Was this the guarantee that allowed Takeyo to kill gods?
"Having a bug? Just try this one!"
Another orb of light flew out from behind Cao Cao. This time, he used his most effective ability!
[General Treasure!]
Unlike the Seven Treasures' other abilities, General Treasure possessed pure, absolute destructive power!
Even when Issei had used the power of the evolved Tyrannosaurus, True Queen Form, and upgraded to the ultimate defensive tank, stacking his defensive power to the extreme, he still couldn't stop the attack of General Treasure!
This was pure, extreme destructive power!
"If you want a clash, come on!" Takeyo smiled and drew a golden bow.
[Return to Heaven, Brahmashira!]
The same move that had nearly killed a Dragon King in one shot!
However, Takeyo wasn't as powerful now as when he'd used the Ultra-Limited Avatar. Of course, the gap was minimal.
Boom!
The golden arrow collided with the General Treasure's heavy, oppressive energy!
"Seems a little insufficient... but..." Takeyo shook his head and drew another divine bow filled with sacred yet destructive aura.
Just now, he hadn't accumulated much energy, so it was slightly insufficient...
But he'd foreseen this!
Without any charge time, another divine arrow was released!
[Narayana Divine Weapon, Strike of Redemption (Vishnu)!]
Legend told that Vishnu once competed with Shiva in archery. The bow Vishnu used to defeat Shiva was also the bow that Rama with an axe used to challenge Rama.
Rama had relied on his own bravery to pull this bow, making the other Rama fearful, then shot an arrow that pierced the sky to disperse the darkness. It was said this arrow would only return at the end of days.
When Rama used this divine implement, he condensed extraordinary magical power onto the arrow. When shooting, the overflowing magical power would tear apart the space through which the arrow flew, causing collapse. After hitting the target, it would spread outward from the impact point.
Since it conflicted with the world's corrective power, it would tear enemies in range into sub-states and cause a domino-like spatial collapse!
At full power, Takeyo's current strike could evaporate an entire Tokyo Bay!
Boom!
The arrow penetrated and annihilated the General Treasure, then flew toward Cao Cao!
"Well, although I thought of this possibility long ago, I'm still surprised when it happens before my eyes," Cao Cao said, looking at the powerful arrow approaching him without any panic.
Although according to his speculation this possibility was extremely low, he'd still taken measures to deal with it.
[Horse Treasure!]
It could move the enemy to any position, and could also be used on himself.
What he had to do now was switch positions with Takeyo!
In that case, it would be Takeyo himself getting hit by his own attack!
The power of Horse Treasure activated instantly!
"Danger!" Jeanne cried out as she saw the two switch positions.
Takeyo was about to be hit by his own arrow!
"She's really biased. When Cao Cao's moves were being cracked just now, she didn't seem worried at all," Zhuge Liang murmured to herself.
"The outcome is decided," she sighed.
Hmm... In her opinion, Cao Cao's layers of strategy still weren't enough.
Takeyo had indeed been transferred to Cao Cao's position.
However, countless defensive magic circles appeared in his hands instantly!
Black magic, white magic, Senjutsu, Norse magic, demonic magic, layer upon layer of defensive circles were already prepared!
His magical power now carried the absolute defensive attributes of Demon Lord Falbium!
Easily, after losing several layers of defensive circles, Takeyo blocked the move.
But... Cao Cao's situation on the other side wasn't good at all.
Because Takeyo's actions had been completely within his expectations!
Takeyo had already set up trigger magic circles around himself long ago! As long as spatial fluctuations were detected, they would all activate!
"What?!" Cao Cao, who'd just moved to Takeyo's location, immediately noticed the anomaly!
Heaven and Earth spiritual energy filled all the magic circles in an instant and rushed toward Cao Cao!
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
Ice, flames, lightning, energy waves, various types of attacks instantly drowned Cao Cao's figure!
A few seconds later, a figure with a scorched body fell freely from Takeyo's original position.
[Ding!]
[Congratulations to the host for completing the plot check-in! Check-in level: Gold!]
[Check-in plot: The Hero's Grandchildren!]
[Plot: I heard that the host defeated the god-slayer Cao Cao. He is very interested in the host's strength and wants to know who the most powerful hero is. He wants to fight the hero who defeated gods! Defeat Cao Cao!]
[Congratulations to the host for receiving the reward: Top-Level Battle Spirit!]
[Top-Level Battle Spirit: Reached the pinnacle of Battle Spirit! As long as one's vitality and magical power are strong and tenacious, one can gain power beyond gods and demon kings!]
[Note: The condensed level of Celaor's Battle Spirit in True Devil High School.]