— — — — — —
At the same time the Star Wars world was undergoing its changes...
In the world of Campione—
With a deep breath, the Campione Renzo—whose name was Lu Ren or just Renzo— slowly opened his eyes, pulling himself out of the mental space.
Feeling the surge of power constantly pouring into his body, he clenched his fists and grinned wildly.
"Heh heh heh! Master... you're done for! Hahaha!!"
"…Hmm?"
A cold voice suddenly sounded behind him.
"You were saying something about me?"
Whoosh!
Without thinking, Renzo vanished on the spot.
"…."
BOOM!!!
Where he'd been sitting just moments before, a crater over a meter deep was now smashed into the ground—courtesy of Luo Hao's foot.
Cracks spread out like spiderwebs. Renzo looked on, cold sweat beading on his forehead.
"Whoa whoa whoa!" he shouted nervously. "Isn't that a bit much?! You could've killed me! All I did was talk a little trash, why'd you go so hard?!"
"Oh?"
Luo Hao raised an eyebrow, arms crossed as she eyed her second disciple with an amused expression.
"You're acting real bold today. Not like you at all."
"You weren't like this before, y'know!"
"No, wait…" She paused for a moment, thinking, then nodded slightly. "Actually, you were like this when you first became my disciple. But after I beat the arrogance out of you a few times, you got pretty tame."
"And now you've got that spark back? Huh… must be because of that strange power bubbling up inside you. That's where your new confidence is coming from, huh?"
"Had a lucky encounter? Or maybe… you killed a god behind my back?"
Her eyes narrowed.
"No, it's not godslaying. I don't sense any divine curses or Authorities on you."
She grinned.
"So? My precious little disciple, are you gonna tell your dear master what happened? I might hit a little softer if you do."
You should never underestimate the Queen of Martial Arts—Luo Hao. The Ruler of the Martial Realm, China's terrifyingly strong maiden, and a proud champion of overwhelming brute force. She is the second-oldest Campione in history.
So she instantly saw through the surface.
Truth was, Renzo hadn't fully stabilized the new power yet. Otherwise, even Luo Hao wouldn't have noticed so quickly.
"Tch... Just think of it as me running into some sort of... celestial being or whatever. Why're you asking so many questions?"
Renzo muttered as he kept most of his attention on fusing the newly acquired power.
"Huh?"
Luo Hao tilted her head. "A celestial being? Wait, are you talking about a rogue god? Which one? Can I kill it? I've been dying to try out a new godslaying technique."
As a Campione, her first instinct upon hearing "god" was not reverence—but murder.
Renzo could only stare at her, deadpan.
Gods-dammit, woman. What's with all the murderboner?
"No, no! Not a rogue god! It's just a figure of speech, okay? Remember those webnovels I showed you? Like the ones based on 'Journey to the West' kind of stuff?"
He was clearly stalling for time—and silently swore that he'd get payback for this later.
He would get revenge.
"Hmph. You're telling me that kind of world actually exists?"
Luo Hao raised an eyebrow in skepticism. But then she remembered all the insane stuff in her own world—like divine monkeys and whatnot. Suddenly, it didn't seem that far-fetched.
Multiple worlds existing wasn't that crazy a concept anymore.
Still, she knew this brat was full of it most of the time.
"Wait a sec.... don't tell me you think you're the reincarnation of Sun Wukong or something?"
She crossed her arms and gave him a weird look.
"…Maybe it's not impossible," Renzo replied with a sheepish grin.
Even he wasn't sure.
Maybe there is a Renzo Wukong version? Who knew?
"Seriously though, what is that energy in you? It feels strong."
Luo Hao squinted at him, curiosity replacing suspicion.
"I call it 'Origin Force.' You know, like the source of everything. Sometimes I also call it Source Energy."
Renzo answered confidently.
At that point, he had already finished absorbing the power. His control over it was steadily climbing—he was nearly at full mastery.
"Oh?"
Luo Hao smiled. "So you've finished, huh? Good. Then let your master here test how strong you've gotten!"
"Take this!"
"The Twelve Divine Palm Strikes of the Phoenix!"
In a flash, Luo Hao used divine footwork to appear right in front of him, her palm slamming down with deadly precision.
"Impact Punch!"
Renzo didn't hesitate. He countered with a strike of his own.
BOOM!!
Their attacks collided, and neither gained the upper hand.
Luo Hao had clearly held back.
"Hahaha! Not bad! Again!"
Rather than getting upset, Luo Hao looked thrilled. She dashed forward, launching another attack.
Each strike from her was swift, brutal, and calculated—every move from the Twelve Phoenix Palms flowing together like water.
Renzo had no choice but to keep up.
But in doing so, he quickly grew more familiar with his new power. His combat sense sharpened, and his mastery over his abilities soared with every exchange.
"Oh? Is that all you've got?" Luo Hao teased. "I can tell you're still holding back. Fine. Let's crank it up a notch!"
"Divine Might of Vajrapani!"
Suddenly, Luo Hao activated her Authority.
"A great force is exerted! Great force vanquishes small evil!"
"The root of my power of Vajra, now is the time for great might that can tear apart heaven and earth!"
Luo Hao unleashed her full battle prowess.
The intensity of their clash skyrocketed.
Shockwaves spread for hundreds of miles around Huashan Mountain, shaking the very earth.
"What in the world…?!"
Lu Yinghua—Luo Hao's first disciple and Renzo's big brother—was already rushing toward the scene.
What he saw stunned him speechless.
His own master was going all out against his so-called "useless" little brother.
And the fight wasn't one-sided at all.
The power behind each blow was so insane, even from kilometers away he could feel the tremors in his bones.
"Wait... that's really Renzo?! My weak, bookish little brother?! Don't tell me he got possessed or something…"
Lu Yinghua stood there, slack-jawed, unable to process what he was seeing.
"Master! Don't you think we've gone far enough?" Renzo called out mid-fight. "The longer this goes on, the more attention we'll draw. It's gonna get real annoying later!"
They'd been going at it for over an hour now.
By this point, Renzo had fully adapted to his power—his combat ability had skyrocketed.
Even with Luo Hao using multiple Authorities, he handled her with ease.
Honestly? He could probably beat her if he went all-out. Boss Aizen and Boss Uchiha were leveling up like crazy. And he got all Renzos powers.
But… should he? Would his master get pissed? Go berserk?
"Stop talking! Keep fighting!" Luo Hao snapped back. "Who cares if people notice? With our strength, who's gonna stop us? We'll just crush them!"
"I know you're still holding back, brat. Don't make me get serious. Let's see what you've really got! Beat me if you can! Hahahaha!!"
With that, she launched herself at him again.
"…You said it yourself!"
Renzo's eyes gleamed with excitement.
The next moment—he went full power.
"Takamagahara: Domain Lockdown!"
In an instant, he activated his domain ability—sealing Luo Hao inside and cutting off her access to power. He blinked behind her, and without hesitation—
SMACK!
A crisp, resounding slap landed on her butt.
Luo Hao: "….."
"You little traitor! Where do you think you're hitting?! DIE!!"
In the next instant, burning with shame and rage, Luo Hao slammed him into the ground with a palm strike and began raining down furious blows.
And she went straight for the face.
"Hey hey! That's uncalled for!" Renzo cried, vanishing again to escape.
He appeared far away, grinning playfully.
"Don't look at me like that! You're the one who said to go all out! And I actually held back, you know!"
"…Hah."
Luo Hao gave a cold laugh, glaring daggers at him.
"Oh, really? So now you're acting righteous? Did I ever say you could slap there?! Get back here!"
She dashed toward him using divine footwork again, fully intent on teaching her cheeky disciple a lesson.
"Heh heh! You can't catch me, Master!"
"Inside my Takamagahara, your powers are heavily nerfed! You're not even close to my level anymore!"
"In fact, if I really wanted to, I could shut down your divine footwork and your martial arts!"
Renzo danced around her, laughing and teasing without a care.
"You little—! If you've got the guts, stop running!"
Even as she shouted, she took note of what he'd said.
"Takamagahara, huh? Like the one from Japanese mythology—the dwelling of their gods? Don't tell me your power has ties to the Japanese pantheon?"
Renzo dodged another strike and replied mid-air, "No real connection! But I'm sure you can tell—it's like a miniature world that's still growing! The level's already pretty high. Honestly, calling it a celestial technique wouldn't be an exaggeration—it's top tier!"
SMACK!
He used the opening to slap her butt again.
"You—! I'm gonna kill you!!"
Luo Hao snapped again and resumed the chase.
Renzo just laughed mischievously."Master, do you remember what I said the first time we met? That you'd be my woman someday? Well, I'm saying it again—you're mine! No takebacks!"
Luo Hao: "….."
— — —
Half an hour later—
At the peak of Huashan Mountain, where Luo Hao's old residence used to be...
The place had completely transformed.
Gone was the rundown little hut. In its place now stood an elegant estate—classical and graceful—brought into existence by Renzo's fantasy creation powers.
It radiated a calm, understated luxury—harmonious with the spirit of Taoism. Yet it wasn't without modern conveniences. Every corner was equipped with advanced tech, ensuring comfort and practicality.
"Not bad… you've got taste."
Luo Hao sipped her tea, eyes scanning the surrounding scenery, clearly satisfied.
"As long as you like it," Renzo said with a helpless look—there was a massive lump on his head.
"Oh? That bump's going down. Want me to help fix it?"
Luo Hao shot him a glance, grinning.
"Nope, nope, I'm good! "He waved his hands quickly. "I'll handle it myself!"
And he did—using blood control to puff the bump back up again, while suppressing his healing ability in that spot. All he could do was sulk.
This was what happened when you annoyed her.
Still, Renzo felt it was worth it.
After all, his "filial piety" toward his master had already gone off the rails—and she knew it.
She'd only smacked him on the head... Was that her way of allowing it?
He felt like he had a real shot now.
Luo Hao noticed what he was doing and smiled faintly.
Then, still smiling, she said, "Back to business. Earlier, you mentioned planning to slay a god? Honestly, with your current strength, you're already the strongest Campione around."
"Even I'm not your match anymore—there's no way people like Voban could stand against you. So… what's the point?"
Though Luo Hao didn't think of Authorities as just "external power," she also didn't think Renzo needed them anymore.
Especially since finding a rogue god wasn't exactly easy.
"I still want to try it," Renzo said with a grin. "I want to understand what Authorities really are."
"Plus, my Origin Force can apparently absorb and merge with other energies—creating a more powerful version of itself. So I want to see what happens when I fuse the gods energy into it."
No way he'd pass up a chance like that.
"As for rogue gods, I've got leads. Right now, I've gathered info on four of them. More than enough for testing."
He hadn't just been slacking all these years—he'd been gathering intel nonstop.
In fact, even before awakening his golden finger, his plan was to hijack the original protagonist's plotline—snag Prometheus's Grimoire and beat the Campione MC, Kusanagi Godou, to the punch by killing the war god Verethragna himself.
Just because Luo Hao had used him as a punching bag for years didn't mean he was weak.
As her disciple, his talent wasn't bad at all. With all the training he'd done, he was already at the equivalent of a Western Great Knight level—far beyond where the original protagonist started.
"Oh?"
Luo Hao's eyes sparkled with both shock and excitement.
"Four rogue gods? You actually found four? Come on, spill it!"
She was a Campione—of course she wanted more divine kills under her belt.
Plus, after getting wrecked by her disciple just now… she was in desperate need of a power boost.
If she could kill a few more rogue gods, she might actually stand a chance next time.
Renzo shot her a sideways look.
"…You're not planning to steal my kills, are you? That's low, Master."
"Ahaha…"
Luo Hao gave a sheepish laugh, then said seriously, "Come on, calling it stealing is a bit much, don't you think? Haven't I always looked out for you? Now you're stronger than I am, and you don't even need all four. Let me take one or two—what's the harm?"
Renzo clicked his tongue and replied, "Actually, you already know one of them. That monkey god the Japanese have sealed away—that's one of the four."
"And besides him, there are a lot more rogue gods hiding in Japan's Netherworld Realm."
He'd already decided—he'd cleanse the entire Netherworld Realm and absorb all those rogue gods. That would be his foundation.
After all, the other Renzos from the multiverse had handed him such incredible benefits—he couldn't stay a deadweight forever.
His world was packed with opportunities. If he didn't turn into a powerhouse, how could he ever face them again?
"Ohh! That guy!"
Luo Hao's expression lit up in realization. "That monkey's still sealed by the Japanese? That's just sad. I used to think twice about going after him alone, but now that I've got you? I say we erase him from history!"
She turned to Renzo with big, hopeful eyes.
"Disciple! Leave the monkey to me, okay? You handle the seal and keep Japan's forces—and Voban—off my back. Deal?"
She knew Voban would show up the second she stepped into Japan.
That old bastard never missed a chance to annoy her.
"Hmm…"
Renzo hesitated.
To be honest, the monkey probably had some really good Authorities.
"Please?" Luo Hao suddenly dropped the queenly act and looked pitiful. "His powers are a perfect match for me! You've still got three more, right? I won't fight you for those! I'll even help you scout them!"
"And if you're really planning to sweep Japan's Netherworld Realm—I can help you with that too!"
Luo Hao, begging? That was a first.
But only in front of him. Anyone else would've been obliterated on the spot.
"…Alright, fine. The monkey's yours."
Renzo finally gave in.
"Ehehe~ You're the best, my dear disciple!"
Luo Hao smiled like she'd just won the lottery.
.
.
.