---o---
Light Curtain Barrage
Surpassing Heaven. What exactly is it?
So-called fate was pushing DIO to a new realm, but the audience outside the light curtain didn't even know what this "Heaven" was. The only thing they could be certain of was that "Surpassing Heaven" was to DIO what becoming the Ultimate Lifeform was to Kars.
Before becoming the Ultimate Lifeform, Kars was so weak that he was no match for Jotaro Kujo and Joseph Joestar; even humans could defeat him with technology. But after becoming the Ultimate Lifeform, he leaped above all creation, possessing a truly immortal body, capable of conquering the Earth and even the sun.
From this perspective, the power boost from DIO's "Surpassing Heaven" would surely be nothing to scoff at.
DIO: "Yes, that's it! Show me the true Heaven! Let me see how the 'me' in that video conquers fate and transcends everything!"
DIO, still in Egypt, had joined the DIO on screen in his revelry. Surpassing Heaven... that was something he had staked everything to achieve. Even DIO himself didn't know what would happen after ascending. Therefore, no one was more eager than DIO to see what came next.
Gabriel White Tenma: "A mortal going to heaven... isn't that just dying? I totally don't get why DIO is so obsessed with Heaven."
Otto Apocalypse: "Joseph is dead, leaving only Jotaro Kujo with any fighting strength. The Demon Slayer Corps is useless here. This makes me more and more curious... just how will Jotaro Kujo manage to win?"
---o---
Light Curtain
With DIO's "Muda," Jotaro was sent flying. Even if The World's A-rank power and speed couldn't quite match Star Platinum's, its strength was far beyond what any ordinary person could withstand.
Fortunately, Star Platinum materialized behind Jotaro to brace him, absorbing a great deal of the force. Otherwise, no matter how invincible he was, Jotaro could never have blocked that blow.
Even so, the force of DIO's attack sent Jotaro skidding across the ground, carving a long trench in the pavement.
"This is bad. In my current state, if DIO uses time stop again..."
Lying on the road, Jotaro was alarmed. He hadn't expected DIO's time stop to be able to grow stronger. Was it because he drank the old man's blood? The blood of the Joestars pushing DIO to ascend to Heaven? How could such a thing be possible?
As he pondered, the expected second time stop never came. DIO simply flew up toward the sky. That was his path to Heaven.
"Finally... is it finally time? This DIO has wandered for over a hundred years for this moment!"
"Is the fated conflict between this DIO and the Joestar family finally coming to an end here?"
"Heaven is opening its gates for me!!! It is the bloodline of the Joestars that ushers me into Heaven!!!"
DIO shouted as he spread his arms, as if to embrace the entire world. The look of ecstasy had not left his face since he finished drinking Joseph's blood.
And fate did not disappoint him. As DIO opened his arms, the midnight bell chimed. One of the necessary conditions—the location—had reached its optimal state.
"VMMMMM!!!" An immense light erupted from DIO's body, the golden radiance illuminating the entire night sky.
Like a divine gift, countless golden lights surged from the sky and the earth, converging on DIO's body.
"Nani!?" Not just Jotaro in the video, but every single viewer outside the light curtain was stunned by this sudden turn of events.
The Red Stone and the Blue Spider Lily melted within the golden light, flowing into The World. Red and blue intertwined, churning within the Stand's body before finally transforming into pure gold.
Then, midnight arrived. Not just the moon, but all the stars of the solar system aligned into their correct positions. A power born from the planets, a power named Fate, began to pour ceaselessly toward the Earth.
High in the sky, DIO's expression had never been more euphoric. He watched the gradually opening gates of Heaven as his Stand, The World, materialized and dragged Kibutsuji Muzan's body forth.
He tossed it directly into the dense, golden light. Without a sound of resistance, Kibutsuji Muzan's soul was swiftly devoured. Although he didn't have the souls of thirty-six true sinners, the evil soul of Muzan, and the millennia of this world's fate that he carried, were more than enough to substitute for that condition.
"I can feel it! The gears of fate are interlocking! Understand fate! The gates of Heaven... are ready!"
"Spiral staircase, Rhinoceros beetle, Desolation Row, Fig tart, Rhinoceros beetle, Via Dolorosa, Rhinoceros beetle, Singularity point, Giotto, Angel, Hydrangea, Rhinoceros beetle, Singularity point, Secret emperor."
A string of unfamiliar words poured from DIO's lips. Although each term was recognizable, when strung together, they left the audience utterly bewildered. Could it be that Joseph's blood was poisoned and DIO was just high?
Chanting the secret words, DIO strutted forward, completely unconcerned with the human below or his fated rival. Once the gates of Heaven opened, they could not be stopped. Once the path to Surpassing Heaven began, it would only end when he, DIO, had fully evolved.
"What's happening to DIO's body?"
On the ground, Jotaro stared motionlessly at the golden sky and at DIO, who was walking toward the 'gate'. Alarms blared in his mind.
He didn't understand what was happening, but the sense of pressure and fear was real. He had to stop him. He had to find a way to stop DIO.
Otherwise, he would die. He definitely would. Once DIO fully reached Heaven, he would have no chance of victory.
With this thought, Jotaro Kujo began his own rebellion against fate. Star Platinum kicked off the ground and leaped high into the air once more.
Looking up at DIO, who was ascending step by step into Heaven, Jotaro drove Star Platinum's fist into a tall building, breaking the entire structure in half. He then hurled the ten-meter-tall section of the building.
The sound of it tearing through the air echoed. The building section struck DIO's body squarely, but DIO was completely unharmed.
Not only was he unharmed, he didn't even react to the impact. Like a lofty god, he didn't even glance at the flying debris, simply continuing his walk forward.
Instead, it was the building section that seemed to encounter something extraordinary. The massive, conspicuous structure, ten meters tall and several meters wide, simply vanished into the night.
Even with the perception of Star Platinum, he couldn't see how it disappeared. It wasn't destroyed or blocked; it simply vanished. Its very existence was erased, as if it had never been there in the first place.
What happened? What was happening to DIO? This was wrong... this was far too wrong!
Before Jotaro could think further, DIO had successfully 'stepped through' the 'gate'. The golden gate and its light enveloped DIO completely. Then, his eyes, his body, his face, even his clothes, began to change.
He... no, It now. DIO had successfully arrived at the end of Heaven. Everything had conspired to usher DIO into Heaven.
The golden light faded, and the sky gradually returned to normal. In the quiet night sky, only one being remained, arms spread wide, madly reveling in the feeling of his own evolution.
He had flowing, enchanting golden hair. His pale white skin and muscular physique gave him a sense of majesty, even as they marked him as something other than human. He wore white open-legged pants and a cape, with golden "D" symbols on his belt and knees. His boots were also golden.
Tattooed on his face was the star-shaped mark of the Joestar family, with lines extending from his forehead to his cheeks, spelling out the word "DIO."
He had succeeded. He had successfully surpassed it. He had surpassed Heaven. With almost no resistance, as easily as crushing a frog, he had arrived! Heaven!
"Hahaha... Hahahahaha... HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!"
His laughter grew louder. DIO's sensual lips could not close. He spread his arms, looking down upon the earth like a true god.
"The fate of the Joestar family was, indeed, to bring about my ascension at this moment."
"Jotaro, I must thank you. Without you, how could I have reached this new realm so quickly?"
"Star Platinum no longer matters. Hamon, swordsmen—none of it matters anymore. This battle has reached its conclusion."
DIO's calm tone carried a mysterious pressure. He pointed at Jotaro on the rooftop below and gave a wicked smile. "Jotaro Kujo... you have already been dealt with!"
"THE WORLD: OVER HEAVEN!!!"
DIO spread his arms and shouted. In the next instant, a golden figure reappeared before Jotaro and the audience.
It was the Stand named "The World: Over Heaven." It was humanoid and powerfully built. Compared to DIO's original Stand, "The World," its primary color had changed from gold to white. However, its signature helmet and the tracks on its body remained unchanged.
At the same time, perhaps because The World had been reborn, the light curtain displayed its stats as well.
The World: Over Heaven's six basic stats—Destructive Power, Speed, Range, Durability, Precision, and Developmental Potential—had all changed from their original ABCD rankings to "Unknown."
There were no more limits. After surpassing Heaven, The World had become a truly invincible Stand. No other Stand could ever defeat it.
"Yare..." He didn't know what had happened, but the killing intent radiating from DIO made Jotaro feel an emotion called fear.
The World: Over Heaven was hurtling toward him at an incredible speed. Its golden fist would soon crash into his body.
Although he had already summoned Star Platinum to meet the blow, his intuition screamed at Jotaro to run, to get as far away as possible, or else... he would die!
The fist of The World: Over Heaven was reflected in Jotaro's eyes. Gradually... Jotaro gave up his resistance.
"Star Platinum: The World! Time, stop!"
"VMMMM!!!"
As Jotaro's voice fell, a tremendous power erupted from Star Platinum, sweeping across the entire world, and stopping the universe itself in its tracks.
"Nani!!" DIO... or rather, Heaven Ascension DIO, was utterly shocked by this sight.
He and The World: Over Heaven were frozen in a state of bewilderment. And this... was exactly what Jotaro wanted.
"ORA—!!!"
"ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA!!!"
One punch landed squarely on the face of The World: Over Heaven, followed by the familiar, relentless barrage.
Although DIO could also move in stopped time, Jotaro had never intended to freeze DIO himself. From the very beginning, his only goal was to startle him.
But now, the secret that Star Platinum could stop time was known to DIO.
Jotaro thought to himself with a sense of frustration. After surpassing Heaven, The World must have awakened a new ability. Otherwise, that nagging presence in the back of his mind wouldn't have kept warning him not to meet DIO's punch head-on.
"Im... Impossible! How is this possible? Star Platinum... how could it!!"
Even as he was being pummeled by Star Platinum, DIO's shock would not subside.
Jotaro Kujo's words, "Star Platinum and The World are the same type of Stand," were now seared into DIO's mind.
He had thought that Jotaro being able to move for two seconds in stopped time was his limit. But he never imagined that in such a short period, Star Platinum would learn the time stop that only his The World should be able to command, and even unleash it right in front of him.
This feeling of having his account hacked right before his eyes was truly hard for DIO to stomach. How much effort had he put in to be able to stop time? And Jotaro... had grasped the secret of time stop simply by fighting him.
"Hmph." DIO took a deep breath. "Jotaro, you have truly shocked me."
The five-second ORA barrage ended, and time began to flow again. It seemed that five seconds was Jotaro's current limit.
Even after surpassing Heaven, in terms of raw power and speed, The World struggled to contend with Star Platinum. Compounded by DIO's shock, he was now covered in wounds from the beating.
"However," DIO said, a smile breaking through his shock, "Jotaro, while it is certainly surprising that Star Platinum can stop time, for my The World: Over Heaven, time stop has long been an unnecessary tool."
"I no longer have any need for it, Jotaro!"
---o---