Ch271: Power Play

Power Play

Lóngyán Village, Yunnan Province, China
October 12
9:00

The hidden village of Lóngyán was not what one would expect. Unlike its sister town, this village was nestled in a mountainous region, difficult to access, and appeared like a time travel to an ancient era, past and lost in time. Its old adobe houses, its tiled roofs, its winding dirt roads, its withered nature trying to devour what remained standing, the village clock had stopped centuries ago, and though the promoter of the nearby technological city inhabited it, she was not a follower of her own creation. If there had ever been inhabitants, it was easy to imagine what happened to them when the only minimally standing house was the only one with light, a hundred candles burning and incense praying for the sorceress who lived inside.

Her name was Xian Fang, her title of Xian meaning "celestial being," someone who had achieved immortality through alchemy and wisdom. This, combined with Fang, could be interpreted as "the guide who knew all directions," but now she was only the echo of an ancient glory she never believed in. The mage crawled slowly through the halls, a ceremonial robe red as blood, adorned for a beautiful priestess who no longer existed, skin pale as snow, inhuman marks beginning to show. The old cursed woman walked praying until she reached the central hall of the house, the heart of her temple, an ancient altar covered with candles, incense, and relics, the walls adorned with classical paintings and sacred texts, all stolen and plundered by enemies of long ago.

In her hands, she took a ceramic bowl as old as the house around her, filled it with herbs and oils, mashed them carefully, then added a strange dry mixture from a jar. Carefully, the old witch began to recite the words of power she had memorized centuries ago, the runes on the walls shimmered, the candles flickered, oscillating between life and death, several of them ignited with a purple hue inside the altar, near her a bonfire demanded, so the contents of the bowl were thrown into the fire. Xian Fang watched the wise fire in front of her with suspicion, for a moment she felt the weight of centuries being lifted from her shoulders. She could see the threads of destiny unfolding before her, intertwining in a complex pattern that filled her mind. With each vision, her eyes burned with supernatural crimson light, whispers of forgotten voices filled her ears, knowledge rushed into her mind like snakes pouncing on their prey.

Xian Fang, gazing into the fire and the magical powders, her magic and clairvoyance filling her mind, using her ability had managed to peer into the enemy warrior's inner self, as much as his exterior was lost and changed, his core remained the same.

"So we have a warrior born in the year of the Mouse Spirit among us."
"Someone with intelligence, insight and adaptability."
"Like the slippery and cowardly caster, someone difficult to kill."
"Strange, I thought I had the wrong impression of him, but to no avail."
"A rat, unlike the solemn and great dragon, a divine beast born by divine right to rule like me, a rat is nothing more than a drifter at his side."
"This creature is just a usurper of the heavenly throne that is rightfully mine."
"Interesting, we can learn even more from the way he acted."
"His way of being is energetic and passionate, strength as well as determination."
"His element is fire."
"Herald of transformation and rebirth, guardian of knowledge."
"But prone to impulsiveness and risk, impatient, a lover of danger and death."
"A flame that consumes itself, it will exhaust itself by its own power."
"The best way to deal with him is to be patient, to exhaust him in a long and tedious battle, to tire him until he suffocates."
"After all, a mouse must bow to the dragon, its king."

"Interesting conversation."
"As wrong as a blind man telling time by the sun, but still interesting to hear."

Upon hearing another voice that was not her own, the mage froze for a moment. For the first time in a long time, something had surprised her, no matter how insignificant that person might have been.

"Who goes there?
"How did you get here?"

From the shadows of the room itself, two deathly crimson eyes stared fearlessly at the mage. The voice that came from the void boasted of the power the mage supposedly possessed. The mysterious figure began to walk forward, her form revealing a strange girl, elegantly dressed in the finest garments that could be obtained. A beautiful kimono, adorned with elegant designs worthy of a goddess, contrasted sharply with the vulgar body that wore it; a body that was thick, her hair revealing that the girl was made of water, perhaps giving an idea of how she achieved her beautiful form. A girl of lascivious proportions stood before Xian Fang with the pride of an emperor in his own castle, while the shape of her body revealed a thousand uses, none of them innocent. In a mocking tone, she addressed the old sage in her speech, which only enraged her rival.

"Come on, you said it yourself, I'm just a mouse."
"The fire mouse makes his entrance, quick and cunning, and manages to outwit the majestic dragon in the end."
"You see, any idiot can know a little about the Chinese Zodiac."
"I also came through that device they invented to cross walls, what was it called?"
"Oh yes, a door."

"You've got some nerve coming to my house quietly, invading my land, and thinking you'll get away with it."
"There's no other way, you're the damn Cesar!"
"No other person would have such a vulgar body if they truly loved their mother."

"Correct, the usurper of the throne, as you dared to mention before."
"But your assumptions are riddled with errors, and I have come to correct them."
"First, the usurpation of the throne of Atlantis."
"It was bestowed upon me by my own hand."
"I earned my right to be Emperor by killing the old Emperor in a glorious, violent battle, not once, but twice, against both Orion and Overlord."
"A glorious and violent deathmatch as demanded by his past Emperors."
"Second, you claim that I am trespassing on your property? Ha!"
"Who gave you the audacity to claim this place as your kingdom?"
"Everything under the heavens and above the earth is my domain!"
"My property! My kingdom! My legacy!"
"I will leave your abode unscathed in such a manner that it will be repulsive to witness"
"And finally, I have come here to receive the homage that my majesty deserves."
"Let the subjects bow to their king!"
"Bow to your Emperor and your Master!"

"Are you mad? Why should I bow down to someone weaker than me! Uhhh!?"

The old witch felt as the breath escaped from her body, a ceremonial knife had been plunged into her belly. The very same blade she gave to her finest creations and chimeras, to her spider huntresses, was buried inside her body which was beginning to spill blood easily.

"Because you are weaker than me" replied the young one in front of the great sorceress.

The old mage felt the strength in her legs slip away, pain gripping her body, her legs failing her. She fell to her knees, fulfilling the Emperor's wish as gracefully as the ruler had asked of her.

"Did you not see it coming?"
"Did you not foresee my arrival, beggar of clairvoyance?"
"Perhaps my majesty and history are too much for you to comprehend."
"Why, oh naive one, did you think that I would grace the abode of an enemy just for the sake of conversation?"
"..."
"I will tell you what we will do, for I am tired of this game of cat and mouse, of pretending to be weak before those who are but shadows in my light, those who do not even deserve to be considered rivals."
"I am not satisfied!"
"You wanted the power of Atlantis for your own, did you not?"
"Rejoice, the Emperor of Atlantis has answered your call for a showdown."
"The victor shall be lord of the realm, the defeated shall sacrifice their existence."
"But we will not do this one on one, that would not be fair, it would be too easy to just have to kill you, that is not fun, that is not challenging, too mundane, it would be no different than a simple execution."
"Your power is manipulation, is it not?"
"You are a better speaker than a magician."
"A person like you must have countless followers! This city is filled with puppets who dance to your whims and obey your commands without question"
"But can they compare to my army, my warriors forged in the flame of battle and sacrifice?"
"So let us do this, a duel of armies, yours against mine."
"The winner will be the one who demonstrates the best strategy, the most impressive skill in battle, the absolute mastery of his resources."
"For that is how war is won, with splendor, with honor, with force."
"So decide here and now: Will you bet your life for the throne?"

"Damn bastard, acting all proud and arrogant."
"All you want is a full-blown war, but you've got nothing, you're alone."
"All I have to do is raise my voice and the entire city will send its army."
"In just a few minutes, this will become a battlefield of war and death."
"A million soldiers will come and attack, with the power to conquer any nation!"
"All against one stupid rat."

"Excellent, this is exactly what I wanted to see. The gods will witness my glorious and majestic victory!"
"I cannot wait for this spectacle of death to unfold before me!"
"....."
"You know, since you are going to all this trouble for me, I feel compelled to respond to your desire for power in the same way."
"....."
"Tell me, have you ever heard the legend of the Seven True Dragons?"

"The Seven True Dragons?"

"Of course you haven't heard it."
"You haven't lived long enough to know it."
"Six of them are dead."
"Beings of unfathomable power, fearsome creatures that even the gods feared! And why?"
"Because no one could contain their overflowing fury, they acted on their own whims, and the world just bowed down and listened in silence."
"But you know what's best? None of them were dragons to begin with."
"So why are they called True Dragons, you might ask?"
"Because they embodied the true primal spirit of the dragon until they became a complete and legitimate one."
"Will"
"Pure, overflowing, unstoppable will."
"Someone so damn tired and angry at everything that they decide to take destiny into their own hands."
"Are you having trouble understanding this? Let me sum it up for your feeble mind"
"Each of them defied fate with a fiery rage that drove them mad, claiming mastery over themselves, their lives, and even their endings."
"They all rebelled, trying to take the fate of their own lives into their own hands."
"The seventh betrayed them, poisoned by his own misfortune, they found no better way out than to kill them all in the most merciless way he could think of."
"I killed the others with my own hands, it was glorious."
"But we're not here to talk about my past feats."
"The important thing is that each of them had special powers, the typical Lord of Drought used fire, Winter mastered water and cold, and oh, dare you imagine what the one called Death could do?"
"Well, if the only one left is War, what do you think his power is?"
"It's funny, because even though I know his nature, I've never had the chance to fully experience it."
"And frankly, I'm dying of curiosity."
"......"
"Congratulations, Xian Fang, you will literally be the first to see the true power of the True Dragon of War."
"In an hour and a half, I will unleash my power."
"I'll be on this side, on this mountain on the other side of town."
"Since we want this to be more, not less, fair, I will use only my own power, no call to the rest of the dragon race for this match."
"Only my power against yours."
"Have your army ready."
"Good luck, for your death will be a worthy spectacle after so long! You deserve it! And so it shall be!"
"For the glory, for the fallen, for my power, and even for the moon that will light my victory!"

"'Damned arrogant, you are the embodiment of the sin of pride!" the old mage shouted, cursing.

"No, ma'am, my sin is to still be alive when so many others have died trying to save me." replied the Emperor immediately, as firm and determined as ever.

The emperor fulfilled his threat of leaving the house of his enemy with impunity. Xian Fang could only stand there watching as her rival walked away slowly and calmly, giving her his back, inviting her to a treacherous attack that she knew would never happen, for the mage was losing strength with every passing second due to her wound. But even with her injuries, she had nothing to lose. She had to call her troops and prepare for a massive battle she did not expect to be challenged to without warning, one whose outcome she was uncertain of, as she did not know the true strength of her new enemy, one she had provoked with her actions and dismissed due to her long history of violence she had lived through and caused.