Chapter 337: The Heavenly Bull vs. Quetzalcoatl
At this moment, the Gugalanna, having transformed into a colossal beast, was wantonly destroying the forest. No, to be precise, it was crushing it; all it needed to do was walk forward, as the sheer weight of its massive body would crush the great trees or send them flying. The Great Forest was in dire peril, but Quetzalcoatl, its guardian, was sprawled on the ground, looking as if she might spit up rainbow-colored liquid at any moment.
"Don't puke! Not only is this girl a lightweight, but she's also super weak once she's actually drunk!" the Druid Cu Chulainn shouted in complaint.
"If I'd known she was such a person, we should have just let her drink from the start. Honestly, what was all my previous nervousness for?" Ereshkigal said with a conflicted expression.
Shirou also covered his face helplessly and said, "The Yinglong over in China can at least learn some Drunken Fist. Why is it that even though you're a Creator Goddess who learned Mexican Lucha Libre, you collapse after just a little bit of alcohol!"
"Don't say that! Big Sis is actually very strong... urgh!!!" Quetzalcoatl raised her head to retort, but was overcome by nausea again, her face turning pale as she covered her mouth.
The small animals and the boys and girls all covered their noses in disgust and backed away from the woman.
"What do we do now?" Although Ereshkigal had abandoned her sister Ishtar to return here, she didn't have any good ideas. Having lost her divine power, she was completely helpless against a giant beast like the Heavenly Bull, so she turned to look at Shirou and asked.
Shirou thought for a moment and said to the girl with a serious face, "I have an idea we can try. But Eresh, it's not safe here! There's no need for you to stay by my side. If you don't want to hurt the children here, then leave. I'll find a way to stop Ishtar."
"Shirou! I will absolutely not leave a friend in danger, and with me by your side, at least she won't let the Heavenly Bull strike too hard," Ereshkigal said firmly.
At that moment, the Heavenly Bull raised a golden foot that resembled a pillar holding up the heavens and strode forward. Each time it landed, it caused the earth to shake violently. The boys, girls, and small animals were like rubber crumbs pinched off an eraser and placed on a tabletop; if they didn't grab onto something during the vibrations, they would involuntarily be bounced up and down.
Shirou and Ereshkigal were like people on a child's trampoline, constantly bouncing up and down. Creatures like Lion Saber and Panda Jeanne were even constantly changing their poses in mid-air, from sitting to spinning 360 degrees, never repeating the same move twice.
"This might actually be a little bit fun..."
"Gaaaa~!"
Ereshkigal and the magical creatures said with innocent smiles.
However, on the other side, the hungover Quetzalcoatl was experiencing something else entirely.
"Don't... stop the shaking, my head hurts so much, stomach acid is welling up..." The woman with the messy blonde curls turned pale and puffed out her cheeks. "Waaah!!! I can't hold it back!"
"Mooo~!" The Heavenly Bull seemed to hear the Feathered Serpent's words and let out a response, but it raised its leg even higher and stomped the ground rapidly, stomping with even more vigor.
Quetzalcoatl buried her head and vomited a torrent of rainbow-colored liquid...
The Heavenly Bull let out a sound like a scoff, and then—
From behind, Ishtar shouted a reminder: "Wait, now is not the time to play with them! Destroy the leylines here for me!"
"Mooo..." The Heavenly Bull turned its head away in annoyance.
Ishtar was stunned for a moment, then waved her hands and shouted toward the sky, "What? That's not interesting at all? This is work! Get to it! Settle this, and I'll let you go back!"
"We can't let that bull run wild anymore! If the Great Forest is destroyed, we'll disappear too. Let's go!" The Druid Cu Chulainn said as he rushed forward, spinning his wooden staff. Utilizing the giant trees of the Great Forest, he summoned wooden giants dozens of meters tall, but compared to the Heavenly Bull, they were still insignificant.
"Roar!!!" The blue dog Cu Chulainn and the black dragon Cu Chulainn together threw Gáe Bolg: Spear of Striking Flight. The two red demonic spears flew out and transformed into hundreds of spears, flying toward the massive bull.
The demonic spears pierced into the Heavenly Bull's body, but its volume was simply too vast. Even if these spears hit its heart directly, the damage might not be enough to cause significant harm.
"Mooo!" Feeling the stinging pain, the Heavenly Bull stomped the ground heavily, crushing the center of the inner forest. Centered on the hole Quetzalcoatl had stomped out the previous night, cracks began to appear in the earth. Under the heavy pressure, fragmented rocks bounced up from the ground.
"Wait! That's the Holy Grail!!" Ereshkigal shouted, pointing at a golden speck of light in the distance that had been shaken high into the air.
"Leave it to me!" Shirou ran over quickly.
"Stop him!" Ishtar shouted.
The Heavenly Bull raised its foot to step on Shirou.
"I already told you! STOP SHAKING!!! ROAAR!!!" At that moment, Quetzalcoatl turned her head and glared at the giant Heavenly Bull with a roar. In the next instant, she revealed her true form—the original body known as the Feathered Serpent God, a divine beast with a dragon's head and a snake's body with massive wings. Spreading those wings that blotted out the sun, flames burst from between her feathers as she soared into the sky.
She slammed into the Heavenly Bull's chin, knocking it off balance. Its giant feet shifted on the ground as it let out an ear-splitting howl of pain.
"MOOO!!!" The Heavenly Bull regained its footing and glared at the giant bird that had suddenly appeared in the sky. Its giant horns released lightning that struck the Feathered Serpent in the air.
Although the Feathered Serpent's wings were powerful, her body was still far less sturdy than the Heavenly Bull, and they fought to a standstill.
At that moment, the Heavenly Bull opened its mouth wide, and while resisting the Feathered Serpent's strikes, it let out a roar that shook the earth. Its four feet trampled recklessly on the ground of the Great Forest, attempting to shatter the entire earth and let Shirou fall into the subterranean abyss.
"Hmph! Be bound!"
In the next instant, countless golden chains flew out from the void, wrapping around the four legs of the giant Heavenly Bull loop after loop, finally binding it into a bundle.
The Feathered Serpent in the sky seized the opening, transforming into an arrow of flame and crashing into the Heavenly Bull.
"MOOO!!!" The giant bull let out a groan of pain and fell to the ground, crushing nearly half the trees in the Great Forest.
"Hmph, hahahahahaha!!! Since I have already inherited the throne to lead the people, there is no need for any gods living on the ceiling of Uruk!"
"That laughter is..." Shirou's gaze turned toward the top of a large tree.
Sure enough, he saw a blonde, red-eyed shota standing with his arms crossed, looking down and laughing.
Standing beside him was a miniature person with long green hair, wrapped in a white cloak. Their gender was indistinguishable, but the golden chains released from behind them indicated their formidable strength.
"See that! Kid! I found the strongest companion on the other side of the river! Only he is worthy of being my companion!" Gil said haughtily, showing off.
"Gaa?" "Awoo?"
Beside Shirou, Panda Jeanne and the little tiger looked at the little lion and asked, "Who is that stuck-up human brat?"
"Awoo..." Lion Saber spread her paws and shook her head, indicating there was no need to care.
Standing on the tree, Gil's eyes widened and he cried out in surprise when he saw the magical creatures: "Eh! The number has increased! And there are two more all of a sudden!!!"
"Thank you for coming to support us! Gil!" Shirou said, giving his thanks.
"Hmph, hahaha, as expected of my rival! Although your methods aren't exactly orthodox, I didn't expect you to be able to curry favor with three magical creatures; I must give you a word of praise. Since this battle concerns the magical creatures, we shall lend you our strength this time!" Gil shouted with a laugh.
The little person with long green hair beside him also raised a hand in agreement.
"Dammit! What a useless bull! I'll just have to rely on myself!" At that moment, Ishtar gritted her teeth and ran toward the Holy Grail.
"Let's go too!" Cu Chulainn led the remaining magical creatures forward to stop Ishtar.
The sound of eagle cries echoed in the sky as several giant eagles descended from above. Members of the Divine Clan dressed in long robes jumped down; they had rushed over after hearing the massive commotion caused by the Heavenly Bull.
Ishtar shouted, "Father, Uncle, help me quickly! As long as we destroy the leylines of this Great Forest, we can break the balance! We can find a way to bring out that white light and restore our divine powers!"
"Gaaaa!" The magical creatures rushing up to pursue Ishtar were blocked by light waves emitted from the palms of the Divine Clan.
"Ooh! Go! My beloved daughter! We'll hold them off here!" The man led his brothers and nephews as they jumped in front of the magical creatures and spoke.
After all, they were originally peerless gods; even in human bodies, they possessed physical fitness several times that of an adult man. Previously, they were unwilling to be hostile toward the magical animals because they didn't want to take risks, but now that they were really fighting, it wasn't certain who would be stronger.
"Don't even think about it!!! Put down the Holy Grail!!!"
At this moment, Quetzalcoatl's eyes had turned blood-red, and she had completely cast aside her reservations. In her fight with the Heavenly Bull, she had seen red; her killing intent having been aroused, she was no longer the usually cheerful big sister who occasionally made funny faces, but a terrifying monster.
Now that the Heavenly Bull was bound by golden chains, there was no longer any existence in this world that could stop her.
The winged dragon spread its wings, which were even longer than the Heavenly Bull's body, covering everything below and turning it pitch black. However, light soon glowed on the ground again—a red light.
That was the blazing fire erupting from Quetzalcoatl's body, flames identical to the sun. For a time, the Great Forest turned a solid crimson. The lush green leaves began to turn yellow and dry before falling, and the high branches were even scorched black by the heat.
The man of the Divine Clan felt as though his skin was giving off a strange smell, as if it were about to be scorched. The small animals on the ground also collapsed one by one, weakly sticking out their tongues; this intense heat was truly unbearable. Shirou and Ereshkigal were also dripping with sweat.
Ishtar, who was being targeted, felt at this moment as if a knife point were pressed against her back, and she was walking on thin ice.
"This looks super bad! I'd better run!" Ishtar grabbed the cup hanging on a branch and ran quickly into the thicket, attempting to evade Quetzalcoatl's staring gaze. At this moment, she only wanted to leave this place as quickly as possible, even if only by a second. Whether it was the flying vehicle left behind in the heavens that could be detached from a ship's prow, or an Aima moped, anything would do!
"Don't think of escaping!" A sharp light flashed in the eyes of the two-horned dragon head, and the fire released from its entire body became even more dazzling, eventually transforming directly into a giant circular fireball that dove straight toward Ishtar on the ground.
"You've got to be kidding! Waaaa! I'm gonna die! I'm gonna die!" Ishtar panicked with tears in her eyes as she rushed forward, but it was still too late.
"Grit your teeth!" Shirou ran to a tree, grabbed a long vine, and swung toward the girl. He grabbed Ishtar by the waist and, using the power of the high-swinging vine, flew with her into the distance.
In the next instant, the descending giant fireball smashed behind Shirou, causing the clothes on his back to shrivel and wrinkle from the heat with a foul smell, but fortunately, they narrowly escaped.
"Thanks, also... let go of me! How long do you plan on holding me!" Ishtar looked at Shirou with a red face, but realizing they had held the pose for too long, she shouted angrily.
"Ah, oh, sorry." Shirou quickly let go, letting the girl slide from his arms and land on her feet.
"Can't you find a more gentlemanly way to put me down!" Ishtar's feet hit the ground, and she huffed, bumping Shirou with her body as she clutched the Holy Grail tightly in her arms.
Enlil, the Father of Gods, saw that the Holy Grail was in hand and laughed excitedly, shouting loudly, "Well done, Ishtar! Because the Great Forest was destroyed and the leylines were shaken, the balance has been broken! Now, destroy the Holy Grail!"
"Hahaha! The moment for our return to the heavens has finally arrived!"
"Shut up! I haven't decided what to do yet!" Ishtar caught the Holy Grail, but she did not directly destroy it as her family had instructed.
Ishtar did not regret it. Her father was the Father of Gods, the supreme ruler of the heavens, and among her many brothers and sisters, she was the most beloved; naturally, she had to become the goddess that the Divine Clan was most proud of.
Thus, she also possessed the dignity of a goddess of the Mesopotamian civilization. She was different from her sister Ereshkigal, who had been confined to the Underworld since childhood and seemed very noble and majestic as the ruler of a realm, but was actually very lonely and unwilling to say so, restraining herself at every turn.
As long as it was something she wanted, whether a person or an object, she had to have it. If one defied her, that was a sin and punishment had to be meted out. The world existed for her, and the Earth rotated for her, because all of it belonged to her in the first place!
Her current actions were intended to prove all of this. She didn't want there to be any mountain in this world that could challenge the heavenly gods, so she went to challenge the great mountain. She couldn't stand the behavior of the ruler of the Underworld, her sister Eresh, who acted like a good girl by sacrificing herself for everyone, so she broke into the Underworld. Even if she had to use forceful means, she wanted to bring Eresh outside. However, something went slightly wrong, and she was stripped naked and hung up.
As for her current life, her respected father had lost his divine power and become an old man who spent all day in meetings. Her other kinsmen had become unsightly, useless adults who did nothing but complain, and she herself had returned to a child's form; naturally, she felt dissatisfied.
But... that did not include letting her sister Eresh return to that boring and lonely Underworld.
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