"Boom!"
As magical power burned like flames above the clouds, Sun Wukong had already raised the iron staff in his hand.
It was a long staff with golden hoops at both ends and a section of black iron in the middle.
On the long staff, right next to the golden hoop, there was an engraved line of words.
"Ruyi Jingu Bang, weighs thirteen thousand five hundred catties."
The Ruyi Jingu Bang, also referred to as the "Golden-Hooped Staff" or "Ruyi Staff," also known as "Lingyang Rod," "Heavenly River Bottom-Fixing Divine Iron," "Heavenly River Bottom-Stabilizing Divine Treasure," was the treasure of the East Sea Dragon Palace, forged by the Grand Supreme Elder Lord. It was once borrowed by Yu the Great to control the floods and eventually became the divine weapon used by the Great Sage Equal to Heaven, Sun Wukong, throughout his life.
Originally, it was a piece of "Melted Iron" from the primordial chaos era, acquired by the Grand Supreme Elder Lord—one of the Three Pure Ones—who personally forged it using the Eight Trigram Furnace into a long rod that could change size at will. Later, it was borrowed by Yu the Great to measure the depth of rivers and seas during flood control, thus earning the alternate name "Heavenly River Bottom-Fixing Divine Iron." Eventually, it ended up in the East Sea Palace, where it stood as a towering iron pillar in the sea treasury. After ages passed, it was retrieved by Sun Wukong when he sought a weapon from the Dragon King of the East Sea, and from then on, it became his exclusive weapon.
In the land of China, this is one of the most famous mythological weapons.
And in this world, it is also a divine artifact known across the globe.
Besides his mystical transformations and divine powers, Sun Wukong's most proficient combat method is wielding the Ruyi Staff.
Thus, when he raised the Golden-Hooped Staff and struck toward Kaiser, an attack of boundless might was unleashed.
"Boom!"
With the atmospheric burst, the Ruyi Jingu Bang instantly grew in size.
This was no metaphor—it truly grew larger.
At the moment it was swung, it lengthened at divine speed, and expanded at divine speed. By the time Kaiser reacted, a colossal iron rod as thick as a heavenly pillar had already descended from the sky, crashing down upon him like Mount Tai falling from the heavens.
"Boom!!!"
The Ruyi Jingu Bang, transformed into a sky-piercing pillar, shattered the peak of Mount Huaguo, blasting away roaring waves and boulders in a tremendous crash, which poured down from the mountain top.
"Swish!"
Kaiser used Shunpo to reappear in midair but was immediately met with Sun Wukong's pursuit.
"Hyah! Eat my staff!"
Treading on floating clouds, Sun Wukong burst forth with terrifying speed. In just the blink of an eye, he was in front of Kaiser, swinging the Ruyi Staff straight at him.
It was undoubtedly divine speed!
Just like when Verethragna once used the "Phoenix" transformation, Sun Wukong, treading on clouds, unquestionably mastered divine speed.
In legend, Sun Wukong was taught by the Patriarch Bodhi of Mount Potalaka and obtained the technique of Somersault Cloud, capable of leaping one hundred and eight thousand li in a single bound, crossing entire continents in an instant.
This legend bestowed upon Sun Wukong mastery over the domain of divine speed—faster than sound, equivalent to lightning, able to shorten movement time and act at speeds beyond three-dimensional constraints.
"Clang!!!"
The heavy iron staff crashed down, colliding violently with the trident raised by Kaiser, unleashing astonishing power and slamming Kaiser to the ground.
Endless currents immediately surged in from all directions, lifting Kaiser's body and steadying his stance.
"Haha! Come on!"
Sun Wukong seemed to have become unusually excited upon entering combat. His figure reentered the realm of divine speed, as though he had entered a world where time was slowed. Like a phantom, he swooped down again, lifting his staff to strike.
But this time, Kaiser acted faster.
He swung his trident. Though he couldn't see Sun Wukong's form, it was as if he instinctively knew where he would come from. The trident's shaft sliced across the sky with a whistling wind and fiercely struck Sun Wukong.
"Clang!"
Caught off guard, Sun Wukong was struck by Kaiser's trident, producing a metallic clash as though it had struck steel rather than flesh.
And in fact, that wasn't far off.
Bronze head, iron arms, indestructible body—these were Sun Wukong's hallmarks.
As the Steel Sword God, the Great Sage Equal to Heaven also possessed a body like iron, impervious to blades and spears, his flesh nearly indestructible.
However, the weapon striking him now was not an ordinary blade, but the famed divine artifact of the sea god Poseidon.
When swung, not only could it easily stir up towering waves, but also summon storms and tsunamis, sink continents, shatter heaven and earth, destroy all things, and even cause earthquakes capable of leveling cities.
Thus, when this divine weapon capable of breaking all things struck Sun Wukong's supposedly indestructible body, it immediately broke through it. Sun Wukong was sent flying as though struck by lightning.
"Boom—boom—boom—boom—boom—"
With a series of thunderous crashes, Sun Wukong fell from the sky, smashing into Mount Huaguo, shattering rocks, breaking the ground, toppling trees, kicking up sand and stone, flying for who knows how many li.
"It's not over yet!"
Kaiser raised the trident high, and the waters below turned into a deluge falling from the heavens, crashing down with a momentum that seemed capable of flooding all of Mount Huaguo.
"Heaven-shaking and Earth-shocking! Heaven-Earth Transformation!"
Just as the mountain was about to be submerged by the descending flood, a roar came from within Mount Huaguo.
"Boom!"
In the next second, boulders flew, the ground quaked, and a massive figure slowly appeared.
The figure blocked out the sun and sky, immensely huge, its head reaching the clouds beneath the clear blue sky—at least two thousand meters tall, an overwhelming sight.
"You little brat, since you can break my indestructible body, then try my Heaven-Earth Transformation divine ability!"
Transformed into a two-thousand-meter-tall giant ape, Sun Wukong let out a roar that shook the atmosphere and the world. The Ruyi Jingu Bang in his hand grew proportionally, becoming a terrifying pillar of heaven under his swings, stirring layer upon layer of explosive shockwaves.
The intense friction caused the sky-piercing Ruyi Jingu Bang to turn red-hot. The shockwaves and air currents it stirred became violent like hurricanes. Before it even struck, the wind had already blown Kaiser away.
Facing such a terrifying strike, Kaiser dared not be careless and unleashed his killer move.
"With my Kotodama technique, let the justice of the world manifest. This incantation is powerful and eloquent, the sword of wisdom that summons victory!"
The Kotodama never chanted before—this time, it was finally recited by Kaiser.
Using Kotodama, he ignited his own magical power, instantly activating his immense magical energy and forcing his Authority into full release, swiftly summoning tens, hundreds, thousands, even tens of thousands of golden light spheres.
From within the golden spheres, Golden Swords emerged, forming a dazzling golden sword formation like a massive army, flying toward the sky-splitting Ruyi Jingu Bang.
"Clang clang clang clang clang clang clang clang clang—!"
An unending clashing of metal resounded fiercely. The Golden Swords, like moths to a flame, charged at the sky-piercing pillar, intercepting it again and again.
At a glance, these Golden Swords seemed to be overestimating their strength—compared to the massive pillar, they were so tiny they didn't even resemble ants.
Yet every time a Golden Sword struck the Ruyi Jingu Bang, its luster dimmed. After tens of thousands of collisions, the Ruyi Jingu Bang lost its brilliance, no longer held any divine quality.
In such a state, it shrank uncontrollably, eventually becoming no bigger than a sewing needle.
"What?"
Sun Wukong let out a startled cry, having lost the divine weapon he had used all his life.
"Is that a Golden Sword capable of severing divine power?"
At this moment, the Ruyi Jingu Bang's divine power had been cut off. It had lost its mystical properties and could no longer be used in battle.
"Didn't I say?" Kaiser's voice rang out at the perfect moment. "It's not over yet."
Having dealt with the Ruyi Jingu Bang, Kaiser once again raised his trident, shaking the ground around Mount Huaguo.
"Rumble rumble—"
With a rumble, in Nikko City, massive volumes of water surged forth.
Wherever there was water, it began rising—water even burst from the sewers, converging toward Kaiser.
The entire city, like the legendary Atlantis, saw water rising everywhere. Massive streams gathered, finally forming towering waves that surged toward Mount Huaguo.
"Boom—boom—"
The towering waves surged upward, each wave thousands of meters high. Under Kaiser's control, they pounded Sun Wukong again and again, submerging him like a reef crushed by the tide, screaming as he was engulfed.
"Trying to drown me, Old Sun? Not that easy!"
The two-thousand-meter-tall giant ape seemed to be provoked into a frenzy, letting out a sky-shaking howl, swinging his fists and stomping his legs, churning the floodwaters into violent chaos.
"Boom—boom—"
The floodwaters struck the giant ape again and again, and again and again the giant ape smashed back, stirring up the sea. Finally, he shattered the towering waves and broke free from the flood.
"Supreme is Earth's force, nurturing all things, yielding in accordance with Heaven."
Seeing another massive wave about to surge again, Sun Wukong formed hand seals and chanted a spell.
"Earth's terrain is Kun! Stone Mountain Cavern Secret Art! Transform!"
Immediately, the magical power on Sun Wukong's body turned into waves, sweeping in all directions.
Wherever his magical power passed, the floodwaters rushing at Sun Wukong began to petrify.
Before long, the towering waves all turned to stone, becoming a gigantic mountain that blotted out the sky and sun, crashing to the ground and kicking up boundless dust.
Under the crushing weight of this massive stone mountain, Mount Huaguo collapsed. One building after another in Nikko City was crushed and turned to ruins.
A gigantic cloud of dust instantly rose from where Mount Nikko once stood, like a hydrogen bomb explosion, the mushroom cloud soaring high into the sky.
That sight was nothing short of apocalyptic.
(End of Chapter)
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