My eyes flung open and my ears were instantly bombarded with the sound of combat that sounded too close for comfort. I could move my eyes, but there was nothing I could see within my sight, aside from the dark sky above. I tried lifting my arms, but I couldn't even move a single finger, not even so much as a twitch. What the hell is going on? I thought Kirin had brought me back to the land of the living?
"Hmm, it would seems like your body has yet to assimilate with the new currents. Let me hit you with another juice," he spoke before I felt another jolt of electricity flowing through my body, which caused my body to spasm. Seeing that I still couldn't move, he hit me with another, and my upper body flung upwards in response. Bloody hell, I have no control over my body! Why do I feel like I'm Pinocchio?
"No, you have control now. Give it a try— but take it easy," spoke Kirin telepathically.
I hadn't even noticed that I was rubbing my forehead with my hand. Colours began to flow back to my arms and hands as though I was really brought back from the dead. Thank goodness, thought I'm going to have charred skin for life. What a joke it would be if my Celestial Beast ended up killing me instead of keeping me alive.
I pulled myself up and felt rather— weird. Did gravity leave this world somehow? My body felt so much lighter, as though if I were to jump right now, I could reach for the moon. Is this really due to the effects of the new electrical pulses that Kirin had embedded in my body? It doesn't feel— real that this is my body, the same one that I had been living in for 35 years. It feels so foreign and alien to me.
"Careful now. What you were hit is not just a simple power-up. You'll get what I mean soon," spoke Kirin.
"Did you get more powerful, Dad? I want to see it!" spoke Daisy.
Aw, c'mon. I already have Kirin AND Byakko speaking telepathically. You want to join in too? My head might explode with all the chattering.
"Less talking and more action. C'mon, that person seems to be having trouble fighting with that— weird female… whatever she is," spoke Daisy.
Yes, my "princess". Anything else you need me to do for you? Do you want me to dance for your pleasure or perhaps you want me to sing you a song too?
Sigh, seems like the Elementalist is having trouble dealing with the loli jellyfish, although it would appear that he had powered up with that new form of his. Is it just me, or does his form look rather similar to Lily's? The two of them must have unlocked it with the help of their legendary weapon. I have two with me yet neither of these has even helped me. Talk about selfish Celestial Beasts. He even has a purple flaming cape, armour and blade, how am I not jealous with such acool-looking form? Alright, alright! Stop complaining, the two of you. I need to concentrate right now.
I closed my eyes and readied myself for battle. The thought of using Focused Meditation crossed my mind but Kirin warned me to probably start with Concentration first. "Just in case", as he puts it. Not sure what he's so concerned about since I don't feel any more powerful than usual, honestly speaking. But I indulged in his request and used Concentration instead.
Upon opening my eyes, I casually performed a flick with Inazuma before readying my stance. I had to perform a double take as I thought my eyes were deceiving me. My flick earlier— it somehow… made a slice on the ground. Strange, I'm very certain my blade isn't long enough to reach the ground, nor did I even place much strength behind the flick. Is this what Kirin is trying to warn me about?
Either way, I made my stance and got myself ready to join the Elementalist in battle. I dashed in, hoping to inflict a sneak attack on the loli jellyfish. Boy, was I dead wrong!
As though I had completely underestimated my speed and strength, I ended up missing the jellyfish completely and barely avoided crashing onto the trees behind her despite being some distance away. What in blazes?! I just dashed like usual and I almost got myself killed. I should get back to helping the Elementalist instead of fooling around. How far had I gotten myself from where they are?
Placing even less effort dashing back, I was met with a strange scene where the jellyfish seemed to be adjusting her stomach in a strange way.
"Seems like you've powered up, Zen Hawthorn. And not in a good way, with my powers too! How dare you— slice me in half, you bastard!" shouted the loli jellyfish.
H— huh? Sliced her in half? I thought I'd missed completely? How did I get mistaken when I barely felt any resistance when I swung Inazuma?
I took an effortless leap and landed at the side of the Elementalist. I'm so not getting used to this. It's as though gravity had been reduced significantly. Are you telling me my father had to get used to this while fighting with the Demon King? No way anyone can handle such drastic change in the heat of battle.
"Once again, what you got blasted was a combination of my power— and hers. And "technically", you had integrated more of her powers than mine. My bad for forgetting that Inazuma had absorbed her powers earlier. But hey, at least you had powered up quite nicely, I would say," chuckled Kirin.
Almost gotten me killed more like it. I don't even know what else had changed within my body, aside from feeling lighter and stronger. What if you made me impotent and I couldn't make love to my beloved wife anymore? She would leave me for being unable to satisfy her!
"Dad, I'm right here!" shouted Daisy telepathically.
That you are. Oh well, what's done is done. Not the first time I'm using my enemy's power against themselves. At the very least, this one might end up being permanent compared to those temporary ones. I might have to thank this loli jellyfish if I ended up being more powerful than what Kirin had envisioned for me.
"Mind telling me what happened when I was touching grass earlier?" I asked the Elementalist.
"Well, I took over your spot and fought with this strange-looking female since I thought you were dead. I could not even check your pulse since you were emitting some sort of electrical charge from your body. Then you suddenly woke up, blinked out of existence, but not before slicing her in half. That pretty much sums up what happened so far," he explained.
Blinked out of existence? Was I that fast? If it is indeed so, this upgrade is better than I expected. Now I'm tempted to see what I can do with my newfound powers. Hopefully, it won't end up destroying the world.
I signalled the Elementalist to step back since I don't know the extent of my powers and I would hate to see anything happen to him due to my inability to control it. He nodded and stood behind me, probably knowing full well what my intention was.
I got myself ready to face this loli jellyfish once again. This time, things are going to be different. I noticed that I have clear vision of her electrical field now compared to before. Is this due to the fact that I have her powers running inside my nervous system? Am I more resistant to her attacks now?
"I don't recommend you testing that out nor is it a good idea to deliberately get shocked or disintegrated by her," spoke Kirin.
Of course I won't. It was more of a wishful thinking rather than something I want to test for real. Let's put my upgraded body to the test instead. Are you ready?
I took a deep breath while making sure that Concentration was still active. The jellyfish took her stance too. Seems like she's taking me more seriously now after I sliced her in half. I took a couple of deep breaths as I realised that my hands were shaking as I held onto Inazuma tightly. Am I— scared? Doesn't feel right. No, I don't think that's is at all the case since my heartbeat is relatively stable. Am I… excited in testing out my newfound powers? Heh, guess I'll find out. Let's go, Kirin.
***
I'm willing to take a backseat and let Zen take point since I was starting to feel— weird. My body feels as though it had been running for days despite only fighting for a couple of minutes. Is this due to the fact that Priflalid shared his powers with me? I did not expect the side effects to be this extensive.
"It's probably due to the fact that you're using my powers this early. Honestly speaking, I should be applauding you when you didn't drop to the ground upon using my powers. Seems like your high constitution is carrying you thus far. Although I would suggest that you stop using my powers now until you need them," spoke Priflalid.
What are you talking about? Zen is about to start fighting. I can't afford to—
Within a span of a second, my powers extinguished instantly. What in the bloody? Priflalid, I was just about to say I can't afford to have my powers taken away in the heat of battle. Why did you do that?
"I did no such thing. Your body couldn't handle my powers any longer, let's be clear on that. It gave in to fatigue, which is why it extinguished so instantly. Get some rest while you can. Zen can handle himself," explained Priflalid.
I can't do that. Zen has to fight this enemy alone? This— thing is a Vessel of a God. He'll need help and I need to be ready.
"Until then, get… some… rest. There is nothing you nor I can do now. It is your body that is failing you, not my powers. Zen will be fine. He's no longer what you would call a normal human being. His Celestial Beast had overhauled his body, making him so much stronger with faster reaction speed. He is probably the strongest human in the realm now. Damn his Celestial Beast, is he trying to make his host as powerful as them?" fussed Priflalid.
What's wrong with that? We are literally fighting against Gods Champions and such. Making Zen stronger is a plus on our side. Hell, even the possibility of the Demon King returning is bad news for us. I'll say, make Zen stronger than a Celestial Beast for all I care. Better to have a protector on our side than nothing.
"You don't get it. If Zen gets as strong or stronger than a Celestial, the Cosmic Gods will not stand for it. There's a reason why power balance exists in this world," explained Priflalid.
That's ridiculous. Zen will not gain the attention of the Gods just by being strong. We have our very own powerhouse, Ivy Moonshine, and I am certain she is much stronger than a Celestial Beast. Just because a human gets stronger, doesn't mean that Gods will go after him.
"Oh, I've seen and met Ivy Moonshine. No doubt she's strong. Borderline at the strength of a Celestial Beast. However, she's the Champion for the Goddess of Divinity. Zen is not a Champion, or at least, not yet. Or does he? Either way, Gods will either be aiming for his life— or his servitude," grunted Priflalid.
I have faith in him. He has shown us strength that is worthy of a champion. A little messed in the head due to his curse, but overall, an honourable man. I won't have any other humans leading them to greatness as we have our very own. I'm sure Ivy will be intrigued with him.
"Perhaps so, in the meantime, the show is about to begin," chuckled Priflalid. He seems to be enjoying himself with what's going on.
Zen took a quick glance my way before turning his attention back to the female jellyfish, possibly checking to see whether I was still capable of using my powers. What caught me off guard was— his eyes. I was certain he was using Ekāgratā, but why are his eyes— green? He always had black eyes and using this state only made his eyes glow brighter, not changing completely.
"Keep your eyes open. Even a blink can be the death of you if you were to fight him. Your friend is going to be your indicator for future power gauges. We need to match his powers in the future, should we wish to remain relevant in this world," spoke Priflalid.
Zen began to inspect the hilt of his weapon nonchalantly as though it were a toy. I made sure to keep my eyes open and focused on Zen. In less than a heartbeat, something occurred, but how do I even begin to describe what had just taken place when it happened so quickly?
I had not even notice that Zen vanished. All I saw was something like a green flash and Zen was at the opposite end of the female jellyfish. The jellyfish certainly managed to block his attack but to no avail as Zen had sliced off her tentacle with ease. The jellyfish's expression grew more serious after her initial surprise now that Zen had become strong enough to slice through her tentacles this easily. That cocky smirk of his certainly didn't make things any better. Now I don't even know how I'm going to help if things get more serious from here.