章 1480: Entering the Forbidden City
Though it was infinitely faster to teleport using Alaya's assistance, Vahn opted to fly whenever he set out for battle. He enjoyed the sensation of the cold air against his skin, the feel of the wind through his hair, and, most importantly, the rising anticipation he could feel welling within. Even if there was a vast disparity between him and his opponents, he couldn't help but get excited every time he set out.
Seeing a massive storm on the horizon, a smile spread across Vahn's face as he mused, "I wonder if they prepared any surprises for me..."
Following his musings, Vahn accelerated to several times the speed of sound. The golden aura that generally lingered around his body became suffused with a vermillion glow, and, despite the dark black clouds ahead appearing incontestable, he cut through them with tremendous force, waves of energy rippling out to annihilate the building storm in an instant.
With clear skies marking his passing, Vahn couldn't help but release an uninhibited laugh, his voice carrying for several thousand meters with ease. Even the people who had been seeking shelter from the storm were able to hear him. Some even went as far as to kowtow, lowering their heads and bodies to the ground as they prayed to various Gods, none of which were him...
Though it didn't really bother him, as he hadn't done anything to be worshipped, Vahn felt slightly annoyed whenever he heard people praying to other Gods. This wasn't due to any enmity, however, but, due to the prayers being directed at his actions, he was able to hear their murmurs like hushed whispers in the back of his mind.
As there were several thousand people who proactively worshipped him, Vahn had already gotten used to hearing the voices of his believers. Still, it slightly grated on his nerves whenever other Gods were mentioned, as, for one reason or another, their names were a lot louder in his mind than the contents of the prayers themselves. It was as if the World was snitching on the people that attributed his feats to other Gods, allowing him to bestow curses upon them if he was so inclined...
Vahn would obviously never go around arbitrarily cursing people, so, while it was mildly annoying to hear the prayers of random people, it did little to spoil his mood. He actually found their ignorance somewhat amusing, giving him a strong urge to descend upon the world just to see the reactions on their faces when they realized who they were praying to...
Fortunately, while he was prone to teasing others, this was largely directed towards people he was close to, not random people. He had more important things to do than mess around with a bunch of people minding their own business, so, rather than pay much attention to them, Vahn cut through the atmosphere like a golden meteor, tracking the location of Shirou and the others using the String of Fate.
---
Averaging around 4,300km/h, Vahn reached his destination in just under two hours. He was a little surprised to see where the strings were directing him, but, guessing there was a reason behind the choice in location, a smile spread across Vahn's face. This would be his fifth battle with the Heroes Faction since their establishment. The previous four battles had all taken place in expansive Bounded Fields, so, while he was certain they had something prepared, it was a welcome change of pace.
After considering whether or not he should just 'drop-in', Vahn decided to go with a more subtle approach. He never liked destroying landmarks, something the Heroes Faction was, no doubt, aware of. There was a chance they had prepared the venue for that specific purpose, but, as it didn't really matter, Vahn slowly descended until he encountered an invisible membrane.
Feeling the Space attempt to repel him, an amused smile spread across Vahn's lips as his right hand became clad in golden scales. This allowed him to grab the Space itself, ripping a large hole in it, and the invisible barrier.
With a degree of ease that would leave most Formation Masters shaken, Vahn forcibly entered the Spiritual Formation that surrounded the Forbidden City. He found the interior even more impressive, as, compared to the rather thin concentration of Mana outside, the inside was several hundred times denser. In fact, it seemed like the Forbidden City had been built atop a leyline, colloquially known as a 'Dragon Vein' to Taiji Practitioners. This allowed them to draw from a functionally infinite supply of Mana, but, as if not content with this amount, the formation maintaining the barrier seemed to draw in everything for several hundred kilometers...
Shaking his head, Vahn muttered, "How greedy...instead of trying to nourish the land, they treat it as nourishment for themselves...makes me want to break their little toy..."
Though he had been slacking over the last few years, Vahn actually had a considerable amount of experience with arrays and formations. He had recorded the knowledge for tens-of-thousands of books on the subject, so, even at a glance, he could see through the nature of the array being used. It was a type known as a 'Grand Spiritual Gathering Array', a means to concentrate energy from the environment to power more powerful formations. Though powerful, it had far more detriments than merits, and, if not for the leyline providing a functionally infinite supply of energy, the surrounding land would have likely died long ago.
Had they been more patient, establishing a 'Five Elements Array' would have been able to achieve a similar result, but, instead of siphoning the vitality of the land, it would have increased it. Though this was a process that would take decades to achieve, the effects would be permanent, allowing various plants and animals to be cultivated within. In fact, while the start-up may take a while, the final result would be far greater, as, with a leyline feeding it, Beijing would have become a Spiritual Land in less than a single generation.
Vahn could tell that the people who created the Grand Spiritual Gathering Array were infinitely more concerned about their own progress than the well being of their people. They siphoned the energies that would allow others to grow stronger, refining them into various treasures and pills for their own consumption. To make matters worse, this type of formation was able to siphon Mana, not just from the surroundings, but the plants, animals, and, most problematically, the people.
Unless they had the ability to control and regulate their Mana, people would experience a variety of health issues if they were exposed to such an array for a long period of time. Vahn even speculated that the Grand Spiritual Gathering Array was responsible for most of the health issues that had been rather common in Beijing. Most people attributed this to environmental conditions, as China had the highest carbon emissions of any other country, but that didn't seem to be the case now that he was seeing it first hand...
Though they weren't in direct violation of the Common Law by taking advantage of the leyline and siphoning Mana from the environment, it was a grievous violation to be stealing it from others. The array had obviously been set up to create some kind of equilibrium with the environment, but, even if that were the case, the effect it had on people was unforgivable...
Deciding he would address the matter of the array later, Vahn began to descend towards what he knew to be the 'Palace of Heavenly Purity'. It was the largest of the three halls that represented the Inner Court, the region in which the Emperor and his Officials would have governed the nation. The other two halls were known as the Hall of Union and the Palace of Earthly Tranquility, but, with the Strings of Fate pointing towards the double-eaved building in the center, Vahn decided he could always explore the others at a later date.
Almost immediately after touching down within the central courtyard, Vahn sensed the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end. All sound around him seemed to fade away, and, as if emerging from the void itself, a lithe female figure with sleek-black hair and golden eyes appeared out of nowhere. She was attired in what appeared to be a form-fitting bodysuit that was concealed by a velvety-red, thigh-length kimono. This matched the red scarf that followed her movements like a pair of wings, but, as he was more focused on the tanto aiming towards his neck, Vahn didn't have time to wonder about the peculiarities of its movements...
Just as the pitch-black blade attempted to pierce his neck, Vahn's figure vanished from view, his form seeming to disperse into the surroundings. This caused the woman's eyes to sharpen, her spinning in an unnatural motion to reverse her blade as she swept it towards seemingly empty space. In the next moment, Vahn's figure manifested in the new location, but, rather than dodge a second time, he had a slight smile on his face as he caught the blade with his bare hand, saying, "It is good to see you as well, Danzō. I imagine you were sent to escort me...?"
Despite nodding her head in affirmation, the woman, none other than the legendary Katō Danzō, twisted her body at an impossible angle, a blade protruding from the tip of her toe as she attempted to strike his temple. Vahn was able to deflect this with his free hand, but, as if it had been her intent to occupy both hands, a compartment in Danzō's abdomen opened, an 'upgrade' from the last time she had attempted to assassinate him.
From within the mechanical compartment, several shadow shuriken tore through the air without making a sound, covering the short distance in an instant. Unfortunately, despite the success of the attack, Vahn was left entirely unharmed as, even with the Shadow Element's ability to penetrate both physical and magical defenses, he was immune to most attacks under A-Rank. Unless it was a Light Elemental attack, or another form of purified energy, there was little hope in breaching his defenses through normal means.
Seeing her attack fail, Danzō muttered in a cold monotone, "You are tough..." before giving up any resistance. She could still continue fighting, but, as her primary mission was to act as Vahn's escort, going all out was impossible. The only attack she had that could reasonably harm him required she detonate her core, but, as this would result in her death, she could not activate it for fear of failing her mission.
After chuckling in response to Danzō's taciturn statement, Vahn returned her tanto while eying her body with an appraising gaze. Though she was a Kunoichi from the Warring States period, her true nature was that of an Artificial Human that, with the exception of her core and brain, was completely mechanical. This allowed her to freely modify and upgrade her components, each concealing deadly weapons that made her a feared, ever-evolving, Assassin.
As a craftsman himself, Vahn was very interested in Danzō's masterful design. Not only was she an extremely powerful combatant, classified as a B-Rank Heroic Spirit using Da Vinci's system, but her aesthetic was very pleasing to the eye. At times, he had even been tempted to summon her creators, but, as Kashin Koji and Fuuma Koutarou both had Chaotic*Evil alignments, they didn't seem suited to the task of working alongside the Heroes Faction...
Noticing Vahn's gaze, even with her back turned to him, Danzō emotionlessly stated, "Staring...is not polite..."
Though Vahn hadn't actually been 'staring' at her, he still offered an apologetic smile in response to her accusation, answering, "Sorry about that. I can't help but be interested in your design. One day, when things have calmed down, I'll introduce you to a masterful Doll Maker. She has developed her craft to the point of being able to emulate humans with 100% accuracy, without sacrificing the perks that come along with being a mechanical life form."
Still with her back turned to him, Danzō issued a light hum before surprising him slightly when she said, "Touko Aozaki...we have searched for her...she must be in Avalon...?"
Adding a bit of inflection to turn her statement into a question, Danzō turned around to look directly into Vahn's face, seemingly trying to ascertain the truth without requiring a response. Since it wasn't exactly a secret, however, he just smiled and said, "Yes. She has been staying there for close to eight months at this point. You'll need more than A-Rank [Presence Concealment] to break into Avalon, however, so I'd advise against it. Even if you did manage to track her down, she is more than capable of holding her own against a B-Rank Heroic Spirit."
Sensing no falsehood in Vahn's words, Danzō showed the briefest hint of a frown on her face before turning around and muttering, "Troublesome..."
Hearing her remark, Vahn couldn't help but lightly chuckle, even as a thin, virtually invisible, needle tried to puncture his eye. Danzō didn't enjoy having others laugh at her expense, so, with his habit of teasing 'women' with cold personalities, Vahn had grown accustomed to her sudden assassination attempts, many triggering imperceptibly, even to him.
After stowing the sheenless black needle in his Inventory, Vahn decided it was time to stop playing around. He could sense a powerful force resonating through the surrounding Space, and, though it didn't exactly concern him, he still had a face to uphold. There seemed to be a few hundred sings of life in the surrounding area, including more than twenty relatively powerful figures. Thus, while it was certainly fun to tease Danzō, he decided to restrain himself until her next assassination attempt...
(A/N: Alternate Titles: '*Casually destroying storm systems*','OnLy ThE cHoSeN cAn OpPoSe ThE hEaVeNs...','A mechanical waifu? Sounds like an Otaku's wet dream...')
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