Chapter 81: The Authority of Luo Hao
"Indeed, you are right. If it were only that, I naturally wouldn't be an opponent for Marquis Voban. However, in this fight with you, I don't believe I need to exhaust all my methods yet."
Shirou replied with a smile, his words laced with provocation.
"Oh? Facing me, the pinnacle of martial arts, you still think you can hide your true skill?"
Luo Hao's emerald eyes narrowed slightly. Her figure suddenly vanished, and in the next instant, she was before Shirou, ruthlessly throwing a palm strike!
BOOM—!
The peerless "wind" and golden particles intermingled, surging directly toward Shirou's body.
At that moment, Shirou's superhuman neural reflexes allowed him to react instantly. His body twisted mid-air; because he had fused the authorities of the two deities Zeus and Melqart into 『The Wrath of the Heavens』—which governs the sky, storms, and lightning—Shirou was able to withstand the tyrannical "wind." He reached out and grabbed the arm of Luo Hao, whose expression had turned to one of shock.
"Wha—!?"
Luo Hao's cry of confusion had barely left her lips when a bolt of lightning suddenly crashed down from the cloud-shrouded sky, engulfing both Shirou and Luo Hao.
A crater appeared in the ground as the lightning reduced a villa to dust. It wasn't the one where Erica and the others were staying; Shirou had specifically paid attention to that when activating his authority.
Shirou's body remained suspended in the air, but at the moment the thunder struck, he released her arm. Consequently, Leader Luo Hao was inevitably blasted toward the ground.
Looking down into the center of the crater, Leader Luo Hao had not fallen. Instead, she stood there, looking somewhat bothered as she inspected a portion of her clothes that had been damaged by the lightning just now.
If it were ordinary lightning, it would be impossible to harm her. However, the lightning strike Shirou just released was a superposition of 『Ocean Storm』 and 『Heavenly Sovereignty』.
If she hadn't timely released the golden particles to wrap around her palm for a concentrated point of defense, she would be facing more than just minor damage to her clothes. Her body likely would have suffered burns from the instantaneous high temperature, and her ability to stand would have been severely weakened.
"In all this time, the only ones who managed to get dust on Luo Hao's clothes were the 'King of Swords' Salvatore Doni and that old fossil Voban. But to actually damage my garments... Orihara Shirou, you are the first. Are you prepared to endure my wrath?"
"If you were capable of defeating me, you would have done so already, wouldn't you?" Shirou said, raising an eyebrow.
"Hmph!"
A cold snort was the only reply.
Luo Hao's body vanished instantly, returning once more to the sky. As she swung her outstretched right arm, the wind and clouds in the sky changed color. The surging demonic wind rushed into the heavens with magnificent momentum, sweeping away the black clouds and allowing the clear blue sky to reappear.
The sky transformed in an instant from a dark, brooding firmament to a cerulean vista of ten thousand miles of clear sky.
"Are you getting serious now?" Shirou asked, looking at the woman of peerless beauty.
"Correct. From this moment on, a Luo Hao at full power shall show you the might of the pinnacle of martial arts!"
As she spoke, Luo Hao gave off an impression of both cuteness and prudence. However, compared to her contemptuous tone, the immense magic power radiating from her was undoubtedly proof of her strength.
"Battle south of the city, die north of the ramparts. Dead in the wild, unburied, the crows may eat us. Speak for me to the crows: for the guests, a feast!"
Accompanied by the chanting of the Words of Power, the Hanfu-clad body of the beautiful girl was suddenly enveloped in a golden radiance.
"Dead in the wild, surely unburied, how can rotting flesh escape you? The sound of water gushes, the reeds are dark and dim; the brave riders die in battle, the weary horses linger and neigh."
Behind Luo Hao, a golden Great Buddha nearly a thousand meters tall appeared. Before Shirou could think further, the golden Buddha extended its massive palm toward him.
It was the Divine Palm of the Great Powerful Vajra, but when unleashed by Luo Hao with her full magic power, it was nothing less than the 'Buddha's Palm'! As palm after palm struck down, the resulting pressure and destructive force were terrifying.
Seeing those giant golden palms descending from the heavens, Shirou also knit his brows. If he couldn't intercept these moves, the city below would certainly be annihilated. One could easily imagine the aftermath.
These manifestations of the Vajra warriors possessed the strength to easily crush the 「Boar」 with a single arm and could even block the flames of the 「White Horse」.
Furthermore, Shirou clearly saw that in this state, Luo Hao merely took a deep breath, and her entire supply of magic power was suddenly fully restored.
Seeing this, Shirou couldn't help but marvel in his heart; this authority was practically a god-tier skill for instantaneous "MP" recovery. To have researched such a sorcery to utilize the body's state under the activation of an authority—it was truly worthy of the pinnacle of martial arts.
"Another enemy of this size. If I had waited a bit to use the 'Boar,' I wouldn't have to use other authorities."
If the enemy were a twenty-meter Vajra warrior, he might have been able to break through it in an instant.
"A pity. You already used that authority just now. And even if you could use the same authority again, do you think it would still work on me?"
Luo Hao showed a confident smile—a smile so radiant it would make the most beautiful flowers seem dull in comparison.
"No, that authority can only be used once a day. Besides, there's no need for me to waste magic on an authority that isn't very useful against you."
Shirou chuckled and shook his head, then began to chant the Words of Power.
"I recognize you! The pair of Buddhist Nio guardians, the one known by the name of the Yaksha King, 『Misshaku Kongo』, and the one known as an avatar of Vishnu, 『Naraen Kengo』!"
"The Nio are originally a pair, two individuals acting as one divinity. The Vajra warriors at the Great South Gate of Todai-ji are also Naraen Kengo and Misshaku Kongo—also known as the General of the Open Mouth and the General of the Closed Mouth. In Buddhism, there are two Vajra warriors: one is Misshaku (the Hum-shape), one of the Twenty Devas; the other is Naraen (the A-shape)."
"The 『Nio Guarding the Country Sutra』 records that these two guardians were granted the title of Nio for their merit. Thus, the two Vajra warriors stand guard to the left and right within the mountain gates of Buddhist temples—Misshaku on the left and Naraen on the right. These gates are also known as Nio Gates or Nio Halls. A pair, guarding the left and right of the entrance. The authority that exerts this transcendent strength is 『The Divine Art of the Great Powerful Vajra』!"
Hearing Shirou's voice, Luo Hao couldn't help but frown.
"What are you trying to do!?"
The authorities she possessed were known to the whole world, but it was precisely because of this that her supreme status was established; no one could shake her title as the pinnacle of martial arts. Why was the opponent reciting the origin of her authority, 『The Divine Art of the Great Powerful Vajra』, at this moment?
There was definitely something wrong!
Once again, a bad premonition rose in Luo Hao's heart. This made her feel irritated; in the past two hundred years, she had never experienced this feeling, yet today, for the first time, it was already the second time she felt this way.
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