Dream World and Illusion
In a dark world, surrounded by a thick fog, Lu Bu stood with his horse engulfed in black flames, gazing at a monster with four arms. It was Leonidas.
"Amazing… By the way, how did you create this world?" Lu Bu asked.
"Huh!?"
"I mean, wasn't your Stark just that gauntlet and shield? How can you make your own world?"
"No, you fool! This world isn't mine. He's just lending it."
"He? Who?"
Leonidas smiled slightly, "The one who will conquer and change this world…"
"What does that mean…?"
"It's too early for you guys to fight him; you won't be able to win if you face him directly—"
"So in short, you're being controlled by one of those people?"
"What? Don't take it that way! I'm not controlled by anyone. I can only be controlled by myself…"
"Then why are you following him?"
"It's a long story…"
"Just make it short, it's too complicated!"
"Hehe, if you're curious, you have to defeat me first!"
Lu Bu twirled his staff and slammed it into the ground, "Hehh… interesting, in that case, I'll force you to talk."
– –
The sky of Thermopylae burned red as dawn broke. A thin mist shrouded the narrow gap between the cliffs and the sea. There he stood tall, his back motivating the other warriors. The strongest Spartan warrior in human history.
He was a man who never left the front lines of battle, no matter how many enemies he faced, no matter how strong they were. He would always stand tall, leading his troops and winning the fight.
His sharp eyes stared north. A large golden shield and a sword whose tip he had sharpened keenly were ready for battle. Behind him, more than 300 warriors stood waiting for his command.
"Haven't they arrived yet?" one of the soldiers asked.
"Maybe soon…" another soldier replied.
The ground began to tremble. The surrounding breeze suddenly turned colder. Beyond the billowing smoke that covered the battlefield, there—right in front of him, they saw hordes of Persian soldiers marching towards them.
"Ah! There they are!!!" one of the soldiers shouted.
"Damn! There are so many of them!!! It's impossible for us to win!"
While the other soldiers panicked and were afraid, Leonidas only stared sharply straight at the approaching Persian soldiers and smiled.
"Now is the time…"
Leonidas picked up a helmet from beside his foot and put it on.
"You all!!!!" he shouted. "This is the battle we've been waiting for! We must protect our homeland! The place where the Spartans live! Don't let them take over this place!!!!"
With such brief words, the soldiers who were initially afraid became motivated. Now their spirits were overflowing, and they were ready to exterminate the Persian soldiers who outnumbered them tenfold.
In that battle, all his soldiers were wiped out by the Persians, leaving only Leonidas alone. He stood tall, tightened his shield, and took a shield from one of the fallen soldiers beside him.
He attacked and finished off all the remaining Persian soldiers single-handedly, using only two shields held firmly in both hands.
Around more than 1000 Persian troops remained, and Leonidas finished them all off in an instant. He was not human. He was the true god of war! Even though his comrades had fallen, he still stood tall and upheld the honor of Sparta.
– –
Lu Bu mounted Red Hare and raised his spear as high as he could. Red Hare sped off at full speed, and Lu Bu struck Leonidas with his staff.
"Hehh… not bad…" Leonidas said with a smile.
Leonidas blocked Lu Bu's attack with both his hands. Then his other two hands transformed into blades and attacked Lu Bu from below.
Red Hare jumped and ran around Leonidas again. While twirling his staff, Lu Bu stood up, then jumped off Red Hare and struck Leonidas again. Leonidas took the shield from his back. He managed to block Lu Bu's attack with it.
Not stopping there! Lu Bu jumped back and held the rear end of his spear. He pointed the spear straight at Leonidas. With agility, he lunged forward. His spear headed towards Leonidas with incredible speed.
Leonidas pushed his shield forward and deflected Lu Bu's spear thrust. Taking this opportunity, Leonidas's two hands, which had previously become blades, slashed Lu Bu's right abdomen, causing Lu Bu to collapse weakly.
"Hahaha!!! Even though the enemy's attack is very strong, you're not good at using your brain, are you…"
Blood began to gush from Lu Bu's mouth.
"Hahaha!!! Even so, I won't give up to you!"
Lu Bu stood up again, then slammed his spear into the ground, and Red Hare jumped beside him. "Let's prove it, who will be the strongest leader!" he said with a smile.
Leonidas suddenly smiled and burst out laughing. He really liked Lu Bu's nature. They were on the same wavelength—a perfect match.
"I understand, brother… let's use all our strength and prove who is the strongest leader!"
"Hehe… Yes! I'm really looking forward to it!"
Lu Bu sped off first—like lightning. He jumped and attacked with his spear spinning in the air, creating a black flame originating from Red Hare's body.
Clank!!!
Leonidas managed to parry with his shield. He took a step back, but remained steadfast! Leonidas swung away Lu Bu's attack, then his two hands, which had previously become blades, now transformed into spiky iron balls. With a full thrust, Leonidas's two hands slammed into Lu Bu's abdomen again. But now Lu Bu was not afraid. He smiled and planted his spear in the ground. A flash of lightning struck the surrounding area. Lu Bu grabbed the middle part of his spear and lifted it with all his might.
That flash suddenly became a massive expanse of lightning and struck Leonidas. Unable to dodge, Leonidas took a direct hit from Lu Bu. As the expanse of lightning began to subside, Red Hare ran from behind and attacked Leonidas with its head. Leonidas was thrown upwards. Lu Bu jumped with all his might, spinning his spear. He swung his spear and successfully hit Leonidas's abdomen. Leonidas was thrown downwards and sank deep into the ground.
Lu Bu descended again, followed by Red Hare standing beside him. He stood tall, staring at the hole—the place where Leonidas had fallen.
From inside, someone jumped and suddenly landed, causing the surrounding area to be covered in a cloud of smoke. It was Leonidas!
"Good…." Leonidas murmured.
"Nice attack!!!!" He began to laugh heartily.
Lu Bu was confused, but he also liked that reaction. Leonidas's shield, which had been thrown far from him, now returned to his arm.
Red Hare slightly raised its body and suddenly roared. It circled Lu Bu at full speed, creating a tornado that filled Lu Bu's area. A storm began to form, lightning struck in every direction, and debris also fell due to the wind created by Red Hare.
Leonidas's two hands, which had previously been spiky balls, now transformed into cannons. Once he was close enough to Lu Bu, he immediately fired a hot laser that turned the wind spin into a fiery vortex. Scorching heat filled the air around Lu Bu and Leonidas.
"How long are you going to stay in there!!!"
Leonidas fired lasers in rapid succession. The wind spin slowly began to subside, but when Leonidas started to observe more carefully, Lu Bu was not there.
As he turned his gaze, suddenly Lu Bu was behind him. His eyes were red and glowing. He delivered a powerful blow with his spear, sending Leonidas flying upwards. Thunder began to roar loudly, as if welcoming Leonidas up there. Red Hare—whose entire body was now covered in flashes of lightning—darted swiftly and pierced through Leonidas's body.
Not stopping there! Lu Bu jumped into Red Hare and struck Leonidas with his spear. Leonidas was thrown far by the impact.
In the moment after they both became slightly careless, suddenly a boulder headed towards Lu Bu and Red Hare. They both swiftly avoided the boulder and jumped away from there.
'With an attack like that, he can still move? The Spartan is indeed great!' he thought.
Leonidas ran at full speed, carrying a very sharp boulder. He threw it at Lu Bu with all his might. Lu Bu jumped and spun his spear. He slashed the boulder with all his strength, causing it to split into two pieces.
As Lu Bu's view was obscured by a cloud of scattered rocks, suddenly Leonidas was right in front of him, launching a barrage of punches that left Lu Bu unable to move.
"You're too naive, General!!!!" Leonidas shouted.
Using all four of his hands, Leonidas unleashed a flurry of punches at Lu Bu. He ended the barrage with a powerful blow that landed squarely on his face.
Lu Bu was thrown far away, and Red Hare quickly followed from behind and caught him. But he couldn't! Red Hare and Lu Bu both fell and crashed far from where they had stood.
Leonidas staggered. He walked closer to Lu Bu, who was lying weakly on a pile of earth.
"It's not over yet, War General? Hehe…" Leonidas said.
Lu Bu laughed loudly. He tried to lift his head and stand up, "Yes! Just as I expected from you. You really know how to entertain me!"
Leonidas raised his shield again with a wide smile. Lu Bu used his spear for support to stand up. His face was covered in blood. Likewise, parts of Leonidas's body had turned slightly black from the lightning attack by Red Hare. They had both taken direct hits.
– –
Jeanne d'Arc stood in the middle of a heavy snowfall. There she fought against statues deployed by Mona Lisa.
'Damn! It's been endless! She keeps changing my position. Outer space, in the middle of the desert, and now in a snowstorm. I don't understand her Stark!'
Five statues in front of Jeanne d'Arc lined up and fired lasers at each other. Jeanne d'Arc could only dodge. Jeanne d'Arc avoided the crossfire of lasers aimed at her. The lasers created a massive explosion that caused the surrounding ice to crack. Jeanne d'Arc's footing began to falter; the ice covered in snow beneath her began to break, causing Jeanne d'Arc to fall.
"ARGHHH!!!"
The number of statues increased. No matter how many times she tried to destroy them, their number remained the same. The statues circled Jeanne d'Arc, who lay fallen below. She quickly rose, her breath freezing in the air, the cold she had never felt before seemed to pierce her bones. Jeanne d'Arc raised her holy sword and began to chant a spell.
"Maybe… this will work," she murmured.
She began to chant a spell. The statues ignored what Jeanne d'Arc was doing. Some of them had glowing eyes, and some of them raised their sharp swords, ready to charge at Jeanne d'Arc.
"O great maiden…" She began her chant. "Know that justice is all I hold in my soul. God speaks through my ears, the devil tempts me through my heart, but my own soul guides me into the sacred devotion of the Almighty."
Slowly, the statues began to approach, and their glowing eyes began to emit a hot light.
"Now is the time to receive a scourge delivered directly to the priestess, then burn yourself into ashes!"
"ARFANAMA!!!!"
BAMMMM!!!!
Jeanne d'Arc's special technique successfully cleared all the statues around her. Not only that, but the ceiling above also cracked from the attack. As her attack began to subside, she began to realize. Jeanne d'Arc stared up at the horizon of the sky, collapsing weakly on the ground.
The sky suddenly shifted—a giant canvas appeared from behind the cracked sky, followed by several strange hands behind it. On top of it stood Mona Lisa, untouched, smiling ambiguously as usual, holding a sparkling ball in her hand.
"Amazing… you… destroyed… my world of illusion…"
"Ha! What do you mean?"
"Jeanne d'Arc… Everything… is fake!!!"
Jeanne d'Arc slowly stood up and pointed her sword towards Mona Lisa, "Who cares about that. I'm here just to fight you! No matter if you're just a figment of imagination."
Mona Lisa was slightly touched.
"So… let's finish this quickly so I can go back to my friends!"
Mona Lisa's smile slowly widened. The pupils of her eyes were pale white. Her hair slowly fluttered in all directions.
With a single movement of the ball in her hand, the sky suddenly collapsed into paint. The snow around Jeanne d'Arc slowly began to melt. The room swapped and rotated in all directions. The sky became night and filled with a moving eye that stared sharply at Jeanne d'Arc.
The ball in Mona Lisa's hand began to glow brightly. A flock of bright red birds suddenly attacked Jeanne d'Arc. Using her holy sword, Jeanne d'Arc successfully cleared the flock of birds with a single slash.
"Truly… amazing… JEANNE D'ARC!!!!"
A shrill voice suddenly came from Mona Lisa's mouth. The voice caused Jeanne d'Arc's whole body to loosen, her head to spin, and her vision to blur.
At that moment, portals appeared from various directions. Inside the portals came a blue whale covered in lightning. Not only that! There was a red bird enveloped in raging fire, and also a white bear whose body was covered in ice.
The size of the creatures emerging from the portals was about 1000 times larger than Jeanne d'Arc's body.
"This is bad…" she murmured. "I've used most of my strength for ARFANAMA, and now the situation is much more serious!"
"You… are just a symbol… of will! I am… the true… creator…"
Jeanne d'Arc unleashed her holy power, "Luminasence!" The armor covering her body glowed very brightly. The eyes filling the ceiling immediately closed. The strange animals that came out of the portals slowly disappeared.
Mona Lisa slowly opened her eyes after the light began to subside. Below, she saw Jeanne d'Arc standing tall with her holy sword. But something was different; the armor covering her body had now vanished.
"You… changed…"
"Ehh… so you noticed? That's my second trump card. When I'm cornered and my strength is running out, I'll sacrifice all my armor to restore all my wounds and recover my strength. The dazzling light earlier was a holy light that can seal the enemy's power for 10 minutes. And this is more than enough."
Mona Lisa began to realize; the entire ceiling around her began to crack again. And slowly, the light in her ball began to dim.
She looked back at Jeanne d'Arc, "Side… effects…?"
"Ah! You noticed. The side effect is that my defense becomes more open. That's all, but I have to wait a few days to recover all my vanished armor."
"Complicated… risk…"
"Relax! I'll end this while your power is still sealed!" Jeanne d'Arc took her holy sword and pointed it at Mona Lisa. "Now, let's end this illusion game!"