Endless Path : Infinite Cosmos

With the defeat of four Family Leaders spreading like wildfire, a wave of chaos swept through the Tower with seemingly unstoppable momentum. Some of this was incited by organizations such as FUG, but, more influential than even that were the negative sentiments that had been building over the last ten-thousand-years. There were a significant number of people who resented one or more of the Great Families, so, now that someone with the power to oppose them had appeared, groups waving banners representative of the Adrnari Empire began to appear all throughout the Tower.Though he could understand their desire for freedom and liberty, Vahn had never been fond of the types of opportunists who attempted to enact justice using someone else's name. If they had truly believed in the cause he supposedly represented, they would have taken action long before he had demonstrated his power. Instead, they waited until someone would act as their representative and shield in order to perpetuate all kinds of heinous and vicious crimes, willfully excusing their actions with phrases like 'justice' and 'retribution'.Exemplifying this sentiment to the most extreme, there were even groups who had been borderline antagonistic towards the Aldrnari Empire who immediately took up its flag in the wake of events on the 100th Floor. Their intention was to commit all manner of atrocities in an effort to simultaneously tarnish the reputation of the Aldrnari Empire and secure power for themselves in the wake of events to come. Periods in which there were drastic changes in the status quo were perfect for securing power for smaller organizations, as, more often than not, the newer administration simply didn't have time to worry about what third-party groups were doing.In an effort to combat this kind of behavior, Vahn made good on his promise to Han by attending a joint-press briefing organized by the Jahad Empire, representatives of the Workshop, and numerous officials from the Ranker's Association. There, he expressed his condolences towards those who had been made to suffer, but, regardless of their circumstances, he made it transparently clear he wasn't going to support a violent insurrection. To this effect, he cautioned against using his or the Aldrnari Empire's names to promote violence, as, not only would he not take their side, he would proactively eliminate anyone daring to commit atrocities in his name.This announcement took the wind out of various organization's sails, but, as was often the case, it was far from enough to deter everyone. There were a number of groups that attempted to convince people that the Aldrnari Empire supported their cause, but, for the sake of some grand scheme, the truth simply couldn't be divulged at this time. This caused various rumors and countless conspiracy theories to propagate throughout the Tower, but, considering the other statements Vahn had made during the press conference, this much was to be expected.To the surprise of virtually everyone, Vahn used the press briefing as an opportunity to acquaint the Tower's residents with its purpose. He gave them a brief overview of the worlds that existed beyond the Tower, explained the importance of Karma, and, most importantly, he announced that he would be opening the way forward for those with the resolve to reach the top. To that end, he intended to coordinate with the Workshop and the Ranker's Association to overhaul the existing system so that it was more than just a filter for recruitment.Though the average resident found it hard to rationalize the existence of 200 Floors, much less the reality of an infinite multiverse, the notion that he would be opening the way forward was enough to lend credibility to countless rumors. The underlying implication was that Vahn and Jahad would be settling things in the near future, and, based on the acquiescence of numerous Family Leaders, many believed that the former would emerge the victor. After all, while Hana had ultimately refused to attend, Han, Hon, Eduan, Tperie, Blossom, and Yurin had all made appearances during the press briefing.The participation of the latter duo had dealt critical damage to Vahn's mental state, as, not only did they express their intentions to support his reforms, they took advantage of the platform to inform the residents of the Tower of their imminent departure. This drastically increased the believability of Vahn's argument, but, at the same time, it also bound him to the two troublesome families.Fortunately, unlike the Families created by their male counterparts, the Eurasia and Ha Families were relatively small. The Eurasia Family, in particular, had a main family consisting of a mere nine people, chiefly Blossom and her direct descendants. Every other descendant had either received Blossom's 'Power of Blood', effectively making them artificial members of the Eurasia Family, or they had been adopted into the family via marriage. As for the Ha Family, they were decidedly more 'prolific' when it came to the production of offspring, but, due to their fearless, violent, and competitive natures, a surprising few actually managed to reach adulthood. Among this group of survivors, many lost their lives within the first hundred years of becoming a Ranker, so, while it was an inherent truth that the Ha Family had the greatest number of High Rankers, effectively making them the strongest among the Ten Great Families, their mortality rate was only exceeded by the Khun and Hendo Lok Families.Vahn wasn't particularly fond of the Ha Family's structure, but, having dealt with similar cultures, the only thing he forced them to change was the way they educated and reared their young. There was nothing inherently wrong with starting their training early, especially in a world with vast disparities in strength, but, regardless of their personal belief, violence against the 'weak' was never justified. If a child was more interested in reading and studying than punching metal pylons for tens of hours a day, that was their right. To this end, he used Yuri's tantalizing power as an example, expressing that only those of pure heart and righteous character could become Saiyans...---Though he had been straying away from relying on the Little Garden, Vahn currently found himself seated in the middle of an indestructible cube as he watched two near-identical women exchanging blows in the skies of the Tenth Layer. The only obvious differences between the two beauties were their apparent ages, their bust size, and, at least for the moment, the color of their hair. Everything else was virtually identical, so much so that Vahn found it laughable that people thought they were distantly related rather than actual mother and daughter...Unaware of the thoughts playing across Vahn's mind, the younger of the duo, possessing a shapely figure and scarlet red hair, brought both of her hands to her side, shouting, "Kaaaameeeeeehaaaa-" as a compressed ball of energy formed between her palms. This caused a massive grin to appear on the face of her raven-haired opponent, who, despite having become a Saiyan less than a week prior, managed to exude a golden aura as she surged forward with seemingly unstoppable momentum.With the hairs across her body standing on end, the redheaded beauty, Yuri, backed into the Shinsu Bubble she had manifested behind her back. This allowed her to instantaneously teleport away, but, demonstrating a remarkable battle sense, her opponent, none other than Ha Yurin, spun around at the last moment, allowing her own back to impact the rapidly shrinking Bubble. As a result, she was able to follow Yuri through to her destination, surprising the latter with a vicious blow to the center of her diaphragm before immediately transitioning into a barrage of punches and kicks.To her credit, Yuri was able to defend against many of Yurin's attacks, but, due to their comparable power and an insurmountable difference in experience, defending was the only thing she could do. Every time she even thought to counter, one of Yurin's blows would slip through her guard, and, no matter how much she steeled herself, the opening created by the initial blow would result in several more slipping through before she was able to create enough distance to correct her posture.In spite of this, Yuri was actually enjoying herself quite a bit, as, even as recent as two years ago, she couldn't even imagine being able to trade blows with any Family Leader, much less the matriarch of her own. She knew this was largely the result of her association with Vahn, but, even more than that, it was her desire to become strong that allowed her to consistently break through her limits, even in the midst of battle.Unfortunately, even this wasn't enough to overcome her current opponent, as, every time she grew stronger, so too did Yurin. Vahn had explained that this was the result of an Innate that allowed her to consolidate power based on the strengths and beliefs of her descendants, so, with Yurin working tirelessly to become stronger, it was almost impossible to surpass her.While this would be more than enough to deter others, the prospect of a foe that grew stronger as she did only served to increased Yuri's excitement. It allowed her to continuously improve, and, due to the vast disparity in their combat experience, her proficiency was increasing rapidly. Thus, rather than feeling even remotely discouraged by the difference in strength, the light in Yuri's eyes shone vibrantly up until the moment she was knocked unconscious with an ax kick to the head...With the fur across her body dissipating along with the red coloration of her hair, Yuri's body was seen careening towards the ground with a force comparable to a small moon about to collide with a planet. Despite this, her momentum completely dissipated a few centimeters above the ground, as, prior to the battle, Vahn had modified the Laws of the Little Garden to erase the concept of fall damage. This was an ability he had acquired during his stay in the Toaruverse, and, so long as they were in a Realm governed by his will, even a newborn infant would be able to fall tens of thousands of meters without sustaining a single injury.Wiping the sweat from her brow, Yurin maintained a massive grin as she shifted her attention away from the unconscious body of her daughter and looked towards Vahn. Immediately thereafter, she appeared right in front of him, fist smashing harmlessly against the paper-thin barrier surrounding him and the other spectators as she said, "That makes ten in a row. When are you going to man up and fight me?"Though the punch hadn't done any damage, the sound of Yurin's voice caused the pink-haired girl using Vahn's lap as a pillow to open her eyes, an annoyed expression developing across her face as she swept her hand in a dismissive gesture. This caused a veritable ocean of vibrant pink Shinsu to manifest out of thin air, smashing into Yurin before proceeding to flood several hundred kilometers of the Tenth Floor with the remarkable fragrant liquid.Resisting the urge to laugh, Vahn gestured with his left hand, instantaneously dispersing the vibrant pink Shinsu before patting the pink-haired girl's head and saying, "I'll be departing the Little Garden soon. Are you going to stay here with your daughters?"Rather than immediately replying to his question, the pink-haired girl stared up at him for nearly a full minute before asking, "Do you need my help...?" in a remarkably high-pitched tone reminiscent of an excessively cute girl in anime.While continuing to caress the girl's addictively smooth hair, Vahn adopted his characteristic smile as he said, "That won't be necessary. Unless you choose to do so of your own volition, neither you nor the members of your family will ever have to fight. Even if you choose to spend the rest of your life sleeping within the Ninth Layer, I wouldn't blame you."With a delicate smile developing across her face, the pink-haired girl, none other than the Leader of the Eurasia Family, Blossom, responded by placing her head in his lap and promptly returning to the land of dreams. This left Vahn with a wry smile on his face, but, having acclimated to the clinginess of Eurasia Family members, his response was to caress the inordinately petite woman's head as time around them began to flow in reverse...(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'Opportunistic individuals are cancer~','Vahn over here baiting beauties into becoming furries...','(O w O)...')https://bit.ly/2XBzAYu &lt;-(p.atreon link)paypal.me/EinlionDiscord Invite: https://discord.gg/Jwa8PKh

As much as he enjoyed having a bit of leisure time, it wasn't long before Vahn had to kick Yurin out of the Little Garden. She still had a lot of personal matters to resolve within the Tower, and, despite transplanting a large portion of their population, there were quite a number of Ha Family members remaining within the Tower. This included various branch families, so, after persistently refusing her challenge for the better part of two weeks, Vahn returned her to the Ha Family Estate in an effort to continue his own journey.Unfortunately, while it had been surprisingly easy to deal with Yurin, convincing Blossom to remain in the Little Garden was inordinately difficult. Rather, much like the various Fae he had encountered throughout the Records, she didn't like to be apart from him. Thus, at least for the time being, Vahn had gained himself a flotilla of pink and burgundy-haired beauties, seven of which could classify as lolis while the other two, including Enne, appeared as normal, albeit monstrously attractive, young women.While the phrase 'flotilla' might seem a little peculiar when describing a group of people, seeing the girls orbit around him wearing animal pajamas and hugging oversized pillows was quite the sight to behold. To some, it seemed like they were trying to protect him, but, were he to idle for any amount of time, they would slowly gravitate towards him until he eventually became the entire group's hug pillow. Even Enne was no exception to this, and, thanks to some 'careful guidance' from her mother, combined with the fact he had kept his promise, there had already been instances where she acted remarkably, yet awkwardly, bold.Simply put, Vahn found himself in a covetous yet troublesome position, as, for a variety of reasons, the Eurasia Family was extremely attached to him. Not only had he 'cured' their condition, but, more importantly, he had made the 'mistake' of bedding Soo Yun. This not only demonstrated he had no aversion to their 'physical peculiarities', but, unlike the majority of people who actively sought them out, he didn't view them with predatory or exploitative intent. Instead, he genuinely wanted them to be happy, so much so that he would disregard his own comfort just so they could rest peacefully...---Detecting a faint yet intoxicating aroma, Vahn existed from his dreamscape to find an inordinately small butt covered in frilly white panties just a few centimeters away from his face. There were no traces of moisture present anywhere on the pristine white fabric, yet, in spite of this, his body was heating up at a rapid rate as the owner of the aforementioned bottom issued a mischievous giggle before saying, "You woke up too fast. I won't be able to educate them properly if you're always on such high alert..."Either as an attempt to distract or silence him, the inordinately petite woman, Blossom, punctuated her words by promptly sitting up. As a result, her bottom came to rest squarely on his face, a cutesy gasp emanating from her throat in the process. This allowed her exceptionally fragrant pheromones to directly invade his senses, but, having none of this, Vahn elicited a startled squeal from the pink-haired girl by sitting up and saying, "So this was why Eunjoo and Nari were doing their best to keep me distracted..."With Blossom awkwardly positioned between them, legs floundering around, Vahn was able to stare directly at the guilty-looking Enne before passing his gaze over each of her accomplices. Every time his eyes met theirs, they would immediately look away with guilt-ridden expressions, but, thanks to the Law of Identity, he knew the only person genuinely bothered by the current situation was Enne. Everyone else was either troubled by the fact their plan had failed or that they might not be able to 'capture' him even with their most extreme methods...Understanding the concerns of the girls, a tired sigh escaped Vahn's throat as he ignored the fact that Blossom was still between them, hugging Enne's waist as he said, "Listen. I understand your desire to increase your population, but there are other ways of going about it. Besides, you don't even have to remain Mares if you don't want to. If necessary, I can even create-"Interrupting before he could finish, Enne asked, "Do you hate me...?" in an inordinately meek tone. This caused the tired expression on Vahn's face to turn in a wry smile, and, for a brief moment, he nearly released another sigh until Blossom chimed in to say, "If we're not going to continue, please stop breathing on me. Also, I'd prefer it if you released me sooner, rather than later. As much as I'm enjoying your 'thick' and 'manly' aroma, I'll turn stupid if any more blood rushes to my head."Releasing the inordinately petite Family Leader from her fleshy prison, Vahn was about to continue where he left off when Enne, still straddling his waist, performed a 'guts pose' as she monotonously asserted, "Leave it to me...I might be inexperienced...but I will do my best to convince you..."Offering a smile in response to the woman's bravado, Vahn softly uttered, "That isn't really the issue here..." before shifting his gaze to the expectant-looking Blossom and adding, "I've already told you about my intentions after I depart the Tower. Even if-"Smiling even more radiantly, Blossom decided to interject before he could finish, stating, "We know. Still, at least for the time being, we wish to be with you. You presented a solution to a problem that has plagued us since time immemorial. Even if we one day go on to expand our numbers in another world, that is a matter for the future. For now, our place is here. Even if it's just for a single night, we wish to create happy memories with the man who liberated us from eternal darkness...the kind and gentle God who sees us as more than just 'convenient tools'..."Despite her sickly pink aura, Vahn was able to discern the sincerity contained within Blossom's tone. Unfortunately, just as he was looking around to gauge the reactions of everyone else, she had to go and ruin things by appending, "Besides, Yuri already spilled the beans regarding her rather drastic increase in strength. There aren't many energies as easy to manipulate as Shinsu, so, once we leave the Tower, we'll be weak and defenseless. What if some big scary men try to sink their teeth into us the moment you avert your eyes~? I have a fair amount of experience dealing with such individuals, but I'd rather spare my daughters from having to endure such abuse~."Mistakenly believing he had grown accustomed to Blossom's shamelessness, Vahn found himself at a complete loss for words. To make matters even worse, he was well aware of some of the traumas she had experienced prior to entering the Tower. It was her past that compelled him to protect both her and her children, so, hearing her casually mention the possibility of something happening once they leave the Tower, he suddenly felt a considerable amount of pressure. Sure, he might be able to 'fix things' retroactively, but, were he to leave them susceptible to experiencing such a tragedy, guilt would be the least of his concerns...Furrowing his brows, Vahn stared directly into Blossom's heart-shaped pupils, his tone somewhat grim as he said, "I don't like being manipulated like this..."Though his words were enough to cause everyone else to feel tense, Blossom simply returned a smile as she smoothly answered, "I know. Don't worry, I'm used to people viewing me as a monster. If it's for the sake of my daughters' happiness, I don't mind being hated. Just make sure you direct all your hatred to me, okay~?"Seeing Blossom's aura transition from a vibrant pink to a far more muted version of the same color, Vahn, as per usual, couldn't help feeling guilty. He felt as though he had ruined the mood, and, as a result of her mother's words, Enne took it upon herself to grasp his hand, considerable worry visible in her eyes as she pleaded, "Please...don't hate mother...she isn't a bad person...she's just...dumb...?"Seemingly confused by what she should say to try and convince him, Enne tilted her head adorably to the side as Blossom, unperturbed by her daughter's remark, simply giggled. This left Vahn feeling even more exasperated, but, understanding they couldn't have pulled this off without assistance, he briefly linked his senses with Mikoto to find her, Yuri, and Fenrir observing the event from the space between Axes of Reality...Were it not for the fact Enne was holding his hands between hers, Vahn wouldn't have been able to resist the urge to comb through his own hair. Instead, a flat laugh emanated from his throat as he extricated his hands from her grasp and promptly sprawled out on the bed. Then, in response to a sudden sensation against her bottom, Enne's face became bright red as she instinctually attempted to close her thighs only to end up straddling him even more closely.Noticing her daughter's reaction, the smile on Blossom's face became massive, so much so that she could barely contain herself when Vahn dully mused, "I'm not going to hate anyone..." before trying to add a remark about his fate with inordinately petite women. Unfortunately, before he could utter so much as a single additional syllable, his mouth was promptly sealed by something indescribably soft, warm, and fragrant.Though his first instinct was to dislodge her a second time, Vahn surprised Blossom quite a bit by pinning her legs with his hands. Then, before she could begin her 'lesson', he decided to teach her one of his own by promptly placing her panties into his Inventory. This caused her eyes to widen a considerable amount, but, before she could even think to protest, a loud yelp emanated from her throat, followed by her placing trembling hands on his chest for support.Feeling sudden and intense waves of pleasure spread through her body with horrifying momentum, Blossom's expression transitioned from a smile to a pained and desperate look as she ultimately fell forward, eyes closed as she exclaiming moaned, "What...what is this...!? This isn't...Nnnnn!? This isn't normal at all...!"Ignoring the outcry, Vahn casually changed the size and shape of his tongue as he pried open the confounded beauty's incredibly pliant yet extremely adhesive inner walls. Then, just as she inhaled a deep breath to try and speak further, he molded the tip of his tongue to a point, expertly probing a place that shouldn't be reachable under normal circumstances.Feeling her body seize against her will, a large volume of drool flowed from Blossom's mouth as an even greater volume of love juices erupted from her lower body. She felt as though his tongue had penetrated all the way to her belly button, and, for a brief moment, she was worried that he might have found a way to go 'even further beyond'.As that thought crossed her mind, accompanied by speckles of light entering her vision, Blossom felt as though her world had suddenly turned upside down. In reality, Vahn had decided to return to a seated position, her legs dangling over his shoulders as he embraced her body. Then, just as her body began to tremble violently from yet another powerful climax, he separated his lips from her steamy mound so that the other girls present could see the veritable geyser of peculiar pink love juices that erupted from her lower mouth.Resisting the heat spreading through his own body, Vahn adopted a genial smile that compelled a few of the girls to swallow as he opened his hour-long lecture by saying, "Pay close attention. This is what people refer to as foreplay..."(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'Enne is doing her best...','Exploiting weaknesses...','Vahn takes education very seriously (O w O)...')https://bit.ly/2XBzAYu &lt;-(p.atreon link)paypal.me/EinlionDiscord Invite: https://discord.gg/Jwa8PKh

Sensing the eruption of Vahn's aura, excitement began to swell within Hon's chest for the first time since his battle with Ureko. There were few things he enjoyed more than testing his blade against a powerful opponent, so, even if Vahn turned out to be much stronger than imagined, he was looking forward to their climactic exchange in the heavens.Unfortunately, just as that thought entered his mind, Hon's mental faculties halted, as, surrounding his would-be opponent, more than a hundred teens and children had spontaneously manifested. To further exacerbate his confusion, Vahn's appearance had changed drastically. His ivory white armor had vanished entirely. In its place, abyssal black armor covered him from head to toe. It was such an extreme change that, for a moment, Hon briefly considered that he had already been defeated and was currently having a fever dream...Ignoring the narration from the Law of Identity, Vahn maintained a stoic and cold demeanor as he spread his arms, ordering, "Dyrnwyn, Kusa, come."Reacting to Vahn's words, two youths, one appearing as a handsome young man from Ireland and the other resembling a petite young girl from Japan, immediately transformed. The first, wielded in Vahn's right hand, became a long greatsword with a hilt nearly a third of its total length. As for the latter, she became a relatively plain-looking shortsword, but, depending on the angle you viewed it from, peculiar blue, green, and purple light would appear to flash across the surface of the blade.With the two starkly contrasting swords in hand, Vahn began to slowly rise into the air as the rest of his Pseudo-Zanpakuto Spirits began searching for places to idle. Some even manifested snacks out of thin air, sharing their bounty with the others before finding a place for themselves...Seeing this peculiar scene play out, Hon's apathetic expression gradually melted into a confounded look as he realized that each of the children below were actually weapons. This was far from his first time witnessing such a phenomenon. In fact, his own sword possessed a Spirit formed from his very soul. What made this situation so confounding was that his Sword Spirit, rather than feeling excited about the prospect of acquiring new skills and techniques, was actually trembling in fear...Noticing the look on Hon's face, the makings of a smile briefly appeared on Vahn's face before he controlled himself and said, "Sorry, but, even if you were to ask politely, I have no obligation to tell you anything. You should address the issues in your own family before concerning yourself with the secrets of another."With that said, Vahn lifted his greatsword, Dyrnwyn, igniting its blade with pure white flames. Then, without further delay, he used his variation of Shunpo and Koku Shundo to appear right in front of Hon. This caused the latter to immediately attempt a counter, but, unlike the majority of opponents Hon had faced, Vahn was perfectly capable of keeping up with the speed of his blade.Seeing the pure white blade form a path towards his neck, a smile developed in slow-motion across Vahn's face as Hon's attack failed to penetrate the pauldrons protecting his shoulders. Then, before the white-haired swordsman could express his considerable surprise, Dyrnwyn cleaved through his neck and shoulder without resistance. The flames along its length also had the effect of draining a person's strength to empower itself, so, not only had Hon's immortality been ignored, the majority of his Shinsu had been drained away in an instant.To his credit, Hon, now existing as little more than a right arm, head, and a severed torso managed to stay in the air. Dyrnwyn's flames had also cauterized the wound as it passed through, so, while a normal person would have already died, Hon managed to endure long enough to smile and mutter, "Truly remarkable..." before falling from the sky.Rolling his eyes, Vahn shouldered the still-flaming Dyrnwyn as a green aura spread throughout the entirety of his domain. This caused the falling body of Hon to reverse at high speeds, his two halves becoming a singular whole in less time than it took most people to blink. Then, in a plain tone that left no room for argument, Vahn stated, "This fight is over when you've learned your lesson. Now, I suggest you stop relying on your Immortality and get serious..."Without waiting for the stunned man to respond, Vahn stabbed forward with Kusa, the shortsword in his left hand. Because of his recent experience, Hon was unable to react to this, so, without any suspense whatsoever, he found his heart pierced by a vibrant green blade that seemed to extend beyond the horizon before instantaneously returning to its original length.Though a wound to the heart was survivable for most Rankers, eerie black blood began flowing from Hon's orifices the moment Kusa penetrated his body. Almost immediately thereafter, taking less than two seconds to complete, his fair skin developed a necrotic appearance before his body began dissolving from his extremities.Shaking his head, Vahn created a bit of distance between himself and the zombie-like Hon before the same green aura triggered a second time, this time appearing as little more than a flash of light from the perspective of those able to perceive it.Having experienced death twice, cold sweat began to break out across Hon's body as he witnessed Vahn appearing next to one of the groups below, exchanging his previous weapons with two brand new ones. At that moment, the notion that Vahn was intending to kill him with each of the weapons crossed his mind, and, as a result, a sudden and intense desire to surrender immediately manifested from the very depths of his soul. Unfortunately, before he could voice this sentiment, Vahn, wielding a pitch-black dagger and a rapier that seemed to be formed from poisonous vines appeared before him, stating, "You have yet to repent for your actions. Come. Try and steal my techniques and intent. Isn't that why you challenged me to a duel?"Paling in response to Vahn's words, Hon was about to answer when an immediate and intense pain spread throughout his body. He could feel thorny vines spreading through his nervous system, and, as a result, his body was twisted and contorted into a form resembling a cross as Vahn withdrew the crimson-tipped rapier from his chest. Then, for the third time in as many minutes, he experienced a brief moment of reprieve before, once again, losing his life at hands of a swordsman far beyond his comprehension...---Staring down at the dispirited and kneeling figure of Hon, Vahn loosened his grip on the runic ax wielded in his right hand, allowing it to return to the form of an adorable girl with icy blue hair as he said, "This is merely a taste of the helplessness you forced others to endure over the course of your life. From now on, I encourage you to act according to the principle that everything you mete out to others will eventually return to you. This includes pain and suffering, so, unless you wish to experience something far worse, I suggest that you correct your behavior..."Raising his head, a scarcely visible light returned to Hon's silvery-white eyes as he asked, "How can one person be so powerful...?"Furrowing his brows in response to the man's inquiry, Vahn was tempted to further admonish him, but, having already lost interest in continuing what was effectively a torture session, he ultimately just shook his head, answering, "You're mistaken..."Confused by Vahn's words, Hon was about to ask what he meant when the former gestured to the veritable horde of children surrounding him, adding, "I have never been alone...not even for a single moment. While it is possible to become powerful by dedicating yourself to a singular pursuit, you'll never reach the pinnacle by abandoning the people around you. Personal motivation and pride can only take you so far. If you wish to become truly powerful, you need something to protect...it is only when we raise our swords in the defense of others that limitations no longer apply..."Though there were countless paths to becoming stronger, the path towards the peak wasn't paved with the blood of your enemies. That was the path of a ruthless murderer, and, unless you had fate on your side, you would never break away from the laws of the world. Truth strength could only be obtained through comprehension, understanding, and sacrifice. It wasn't the blood of your enemies that allowed you to break through the limits of the world. it was the blood, sweat, and tears of you, your family, and friends...each working in concert to allow you to overcome any trial and tribulation thrown your way...As that thought crossed his mind, Vahn turned his back on Hon, adding, "You might find this hard to believe, especially after everything that has transpired between us...still, from the bottom of my heart, I hope you find the path that takes you to the top..."With that said, Vahn deactivated his Bankai, and, without further words, disappeared from the 100th Floor. This left Hon staring blankly at the place where he had been standing, a conflicted look on his face as he picked up his broken sword and whispered, "So this is the power that overwrote fate and defeated White...it would appear I still have a long way to go..."Raising his sword so that it was level with his face, Hon stared at his reflection for several seconds, a self-deprecating smile replacing his usual apathy as he muttered, "I wonder...why does the thought of apologizing to my family and children suddenly fill me with terror...?"As that thought crossed his mind, the image of Hagipherione immediately made itself known within Hon's mind. This caused the smile on his face to cramp, but, understanding he would never be able to move forward just sitting around, he forced himself to stand before tossing his sword to the side and subsequently vanishing into thin air...---Located deep within the Inner Sanctum of the Imperial Palace, Jahad, surrounded by innumerable golden Lighthouses, exhaled a tired sigh that seemed to emanate from the very depth of his soul. He had borrowed the remaining Opera from the Tu Perie Family in order to observe Vahn after his 'daughters' had discarded their respective emblems. Thus, ever since Vahn had departed the 77th Floor, he had been doing his best to keep tabs on the latter's movements. As a result, he had been able to witness the fight from start to finish, and, despite his demon promising even greater power, he couldn't envision a future where he emerged victoriously against the incomprehensibly powerful Dragon God...As this thought crossed his mind, a snaggletoothed grin spread across Jahad's face as he rose to his feet and released a hearty laugh that caused every Lighthouse in the surroundings to tremble. Then, with an expression that radiated remarkable self-confidence, he said, "I'll need to prepare a suitable stage. Even if it is ultimately my fate to die at your hands, don't think for a moment I'll just bend the knee. You had better bring your A-Game, Vahn Aldrnari Mason. If you don't, I'll make sure you learn, first hand, why people still refer to me as the God of Fishermen...!"Believing that Vahn had also been keeping tabs on him, Jahad raised his right fist towards the sky, teeth on full display as crimson red horns sprouted from various parts of his body. This caused the surrounding Lighthouses to begin fracturing, but, thanks to their self-repair function, they managed to stay operational long enough for the image of Vahn to turn around and furrow his brows...(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'Vahn be like, "All legendary weapons are belong to us...!"','Some lessons are harder than others o_o...','Jahad over here getting hyped up while Vahn is already thinking about his plans outside the Tower xD...')https://bit.ly/2XBzAYu &lt;-(p.atreon link)paypal.me/EinlionDiscord Invite: https://discord.gg/Jwa8PKh

Chapter 1997: Repercussions