118: Zanpakuto

Moonlight shone through the hole in the roof, falling upon Shen Xiaochuan's hand. He stood in the middle of the main hall, his fingers still slightly numb. It had been three days, and that speck of light had remained within the divine kingdom core, silent and motionless.

Just as dawn broke on the fourth day, he was leaning against the wall with his eyes closed when his chest suddenly jolted. It wasn't a heartbeat, but a tugging sensation from within his body. He opened his eyes, a flash of gold flickering within them.

"It's here," he said.

The next second, a System notification rang in his mind: [Shocking! The Blue Star's second perfect grade weapon, the 'zanpakuto', has manifested! Holder: Shen Xiaochuan! A reward of 300 incense value has been credited!]

A ripple vibrated through the air above Dragon City. In the East Wo Nation camp three hundred kilometers away, a Red-robed Priest snapped his eyes open as the talisman in his hand spontaneously combusted. Over at the Huaxia Alliance, a crack appeared in the cup Yue Zhengzhong was holding.

Inside the hall, Shen Xiaochuan felt the divine kingdom core shudder. The speck of light expanded, transforming into a translucent short sword floating above his palm. The blade had no sharp edges, yet the air grew cold, and even the light seemed to be sliced apart by it.

Text appeared before his eyes: [zanpakuto (Unnamed)] [Rank: perfect grade (???)] [Base Attack: +500%] [Additional Effect: All damage increased by an extra 300% against East Wo Nation deities and their Believers] [Binding Status: Activated]

Shen Xiaochuan stared at the words, his hand slowly tightening. Triple damage. He remembered the way Tang Long had been tied to the pillar, he remembered Anbei Jinshi's face, and he remembered the thirty thousand charred corpses in the Novice Zone.

His lips twitched, but he didn't smile; his gaze had changed.

Aphrodite approached cautiously, her voice very soft. "My Lord... can I still be called 'Fufu'?"

Shen Xiaochuan glanced at her. She wore glowing clothes and fear still lingered on her face, but she stood tall without kneeling, her eyes searching his as if afraid he would refuse.

He paused for a moment before saying, "You can be called whatever you wish."

She breathed a sigh of relief, her shoulders relaxing.

Shen Xiaochuan turned back to look toward the east. Dawn had just broken, and the mist had yet to disperse. He whispered, "Some people... will soon be unworthy of being mentioned."

Fufu said nothing, stepping aside and holding the child tighter.

Shen Xiaochuan didn't go out that day. He paced back and forth in the hall, stopping occasionally to close his eyes and sense the zanpakuto. This blade couldn't be held in his hand, but it was linked to the divine kingdom; it would manifest with a mere thought whenever he wished to use it. He tried swinging it once, and a piercing sound rang through the air, like cloth being torn apart.

In the evening, as he sat on a stone chair settling accounts, hurried footsteps came from outside.

"Someone has breached the barrier!" a guard shouted.

A man rushed into the hall. It was Tang Long. His clothes were torn, his face was pale, and his left leg dragged across the ground, making his gait unsteady. But his eyes were bright, fixed intently on Shen Xiaochuan.

"It's you!" he gasped. "I felt it... that blade! It's that blade!"

Shen Xiaochuan stood up. "You shouldn't be awake yet."

"I didn't wake up on my own." Tang Long leaned against the doorframe to steady himself. "That blade shook me awake. When it appeared, the War Souls inside me all vibrated, nearly exploding."

He walked in step by step, leaving bloody footprints on the floor.

"You saved me," he said. "I didn't die, and the city is still here. None of that matters. What matters is—" He pulled a broken jade scepter from his robe and held it up with both hands. "The Dragon City Scepter is still here. I was the original ruler, and now I declare: this city lives because of you, and my life was saved by you. I am willing to lead everyone to fight the Wo Nation alongside you!"

Shen Xiaochuan didn't take it immediately.

He looked at the jade scepter. It had three cracks, and the runes were no longer glowing; it had clearly been badly damaged.

"Are you sure?" he asked. "You can't even stand steadily right now."

"I can command while lying down." Tang Long's voice trembled, but he didn't lower his head. "I can even crawl onto the battlefield. But I can no longer pretend to be asleep. They dared to touch my city and kill my people. If I don't seek revenge, who will?"

Shen Xiaochuan was silent for a few seconds before reaching out to take the jade scepter.

"Fine," he said. "At tomorrow's sunrise, we will attack their Divine Domain."

Tang Long tried to smile, but his wounds pained him, causing his face to contort.

"Sunrise?" he wheezed. "You're still using that word?"

"Force of habit." Shen Xiaochuan thrust the jade scepter into the ground. At that instant, the divine kingdom core jolted, a flash of light surged, and the phantom of the zanpakuto appeared at his waist. "I used to watch a lot of American TV shows back in school."

Tang Long shook his head. "Then you'll have to change that. From now on, don't say 'sunrise', say 'Richu'."

"Fine." Shen Xiaochuan nodded. "At the hour of sunrise, our army shall be at their gates."

The two stood in the center of the hall, one covered in wounds, the other with a cold gaze. Fufu hid behind a pillar holding the child, not daring to make a sound.

In the middle of the night, Shen Xiaochuan walked to the workshop square. The statue of Radiance had already been erected, the silver-white goddess spreading her arms under the moonlight. He looked up, touching the copper gear in his sleeve.

"Tomorrow will be a tough battle," he said to the air, or perhaps to himself.

Near dawn, he returned to the hall and found Tang Long still sitting there, leaning against the wall with his eyes closed, though he wasn't asleep.

"What are you waiting for?" Shen Xiaochuan asked.

"Waiting for orders." Tang Long opened his eyes. "When do we assemble? Where do we strike? Do we leave any survivors?"

"We'll hit the peripheral resource points first." Shen Xiaochuan sat down. "Cut off their food supplies and destroy their Formations. Once the news spreads, they will naturally come out of the main city."

"What about Yamaguchi Ichiro?"

"Let him live for two more days." Shen Xiaochuan sneered. "We'll strike when he thinks he's safe."

Tang Long nodded, then suddenly asked, "That blade... can it really kill a god?"

"I don't know." Shen Xiaochuan raised his hand, and the phantom of the zanpakuto emerged. "But I know that as long as it's in my hand, they will have to be afraid."

The horizon began to brighten.

Shen Xiaochuan stood up and walked to the sand table. Dragon City, the Wo Nation camp, resource points, routes... everything was clearly marked. He picked up a red pen and drew a circle around the Wo Nation's main city.

"We start here," he said.

Tang Long struggled to his feet and walked to his side.

"I'll mobilize the remaining five thousand troops," he said. "And there are three hundred Believers hidden in North Valley who haven't been exposed yet."

"That's enough." Shen Xiaochuan put the red pen back in its box. "When the sun comes up, we set out together."

Fufu came over then, carrying a bowl of water. "My Lord... please have some water."

Shen Xiaochuan took it, drained it in one go, and handed the bowl back.

"Starting today, everyone enters wartime status." His voice wasn't loud, but every word was clear. "Logistics, prepare the food; military industry, work overtime; open the barrier. I want every person from the Wo Nation to know—"

He paused, looking at the brightening eastern sky.

"—that they messed with the wrong person."

Tang Long stood beside him, leaning on his broken scepter. The phantom of the zanpakuto swayed gently at Shen Xiaochuan's waist, like a blade ready to be unsheathed at any moment.

Sunlight slowly crept up the steps of the main hall.