Chapter 416: Sainthood: "Raiden Shogun"
Understanding reason is to allow oneself to speak well with others.
Strengthening the body is to ensure others speak well with oneself.
Li Mo adhered to this principle.
"What do you intend to do?" the Raiden Shogun asked.
"Your Excellency, both you and I are warriors. When words fail to convey reason, isn't it the weapons in our hands that prove the point?" Li Mo replied.
His words echoed through the vast, empty interior of Tenshukaku, reaching not only the Raiden Shogun but also La Signora, who stood nearby.
A duel before the throne?
This phrase instantly surfaced in her mind.
It was the best opportunity to face the Raiden Shogun directly. Under the current system of the three commissions, aside from the Tenryou Commission, this was the most direct way for others to approach the Shogun. According to Fatui intelligence, the Yashiro Commission, seeking to change Inazuma's current situation, had once helped a samurai challenge Kujou Sara in a duel before the throne. Ridiculously, that samurai was no match for Kujou Sara and met a swift defeat.
But what was this shrine priest thinking? Challenging the Raiden Shogun herself to a duel before the throne?
Such arrogance...
Wait.
La Signora suddenly noticed that the shrine priest standing before the Raiden Shogun was undergoing a transformation. Something hidden, something concealed, was gradually revealing itself.
What... was that?
The interior of Tenshukaku was vast, more like a grand training hall than a residence. It was large enough to accommodate a duel between two skilled swordsmen.
Yet, despite its size, the space felt eerily silent. Even the sound of rain outside could be heard clearly.
Outside Tenshukaku, there was no wind. Inside, however, it felt as if a storm was brewing.
Li Mo stood there, his calm demeanor growing increasingly similar to that of the supreme Shogun.
La Signora stood to the side, glancing between the Shogun and the shrine priest.
The two were strikingly similar.
Not in appearance, but in essence. From an outsider's perspective, it was as if they were mirror images.
"Am I to understand that you wish to initiate a duel before the throne?"
"Yes, my opponent in this duel is you, Your Excellency."
With the Gnosis at his waist, Li Mo used it as a foundation, drawing on the principles of sympathetic and infectious magic to successfully harness the power of the Raiden Shogun.
Li Mo had never been so calm.
"Then, as you wish."
The naginata rested in the Raiden Shogun's hand. Even in the face of battle, her expression remained serene. "I hope you will demonstrate your eternity in this battle."
Lightning crackled along the blade of the naginata.
The thunder of the Raiden Shogun filled the air.
Li Mo stored the appointment letter left by Lady Saiguu in his left hand, while his right gripped the Amenoma Kageuchi Blade, now also wreathed in lightning.
At this moment, he, as a celestial fox, borrowed the power of the Raiden Shogun.
The battle began in an instant.
Two bolts of lightning erupted simultaneously, colliding with each other.
The clash of steel, the surge of thunder.
The roar of lightning intensified, sweeping through the surroundings. The air was torn apart by Electro energy, and the interior of Tenshukaku was bathed in the purple glow of Electro.
La Signora took a step back.
Her gaze fixed on Li Mo's waist.
On the Gnosis.
The Gnosis wasn't with the Raiden Shogun but with this unknown shrine priest?
Had she been focusing on the wrong target all along?
Snezhnaya's goal wasn't Inazuma itself but the Gnosis of Inazuma. All her dealings with the Tenryou Commission, all the Fatui's actions, were for the sake of obtaining that Gnosis.
Yet, the Gnosis was in the hands of a shrine priest who seemed hostile to the Fatui?
La Signora didn't immediately think of how to take the Gnosis from the shrine priest. Her attention was entirely captured by the battle before her.
Two streaks of purple light.
...
At first glance, Li Mo and the Raiden Shogun seemed evenly matched. From the moment the battle began, they displayed an astonishing similarity, both wielding lightning as their weapon.
In reality, this was a battle where every second counted.
When the lightning first flashed, Li Mo's entire body had already sprung into action. Using the Gnosis as a foundation, he activated the "Saint Form: Raiden Shogun" technique, a spell developed based on the concept of Saints.
In the world of magic, Saints were individuals born with traces similar to those of the Son of God during his crucifixion, granting them a portion of his power. Similarly, Li Mo, possessing the Gnosis, shared something fundamental with the Raiden Shogun, allowing him to borrow a portion of her power.
The more similarities he shared with her, the more power he could draw.
Originally, he had only envisioned mastering the "Musou no Hitotachi," but now it had evolved into directly emulating the Raiden Shogun.
However, even with a portion of the Raiden Shogun's power, Li Mo had to admit one thing.
The Raiden Shogun's martial prowess far surpassed his own.
The chaotic power of lightning was merely a decoration. The true terror lay in the Raiden Shogun's martial skills. Honed over thousands of years, her skills were terrifyingly precise, as if she had opened a third eye. She always seemed to know the weak points in his techniques.
Before long, the defensive net formed by the Thirteen Forms of the Sun Breathing was shattered by the naginata. Li Mo was sent flying, a large wound opening on his chest.
"Hmm?"
The Raiden Shogun let out a soft exclamation.
She saw the wound on his chest heal almost instantly. Apart from the torn priestly robes, all that remained was unblemished skin.
Could a celestial fox heal so quickly?
Li Mo seized the brief moment of respite. As he landed, the shadows beneath him twisted, forming into crossbows and arrows.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—!
"Dragon's Shadow" was not a rigid ability; it could take any form. It could serve as a weapon or a warrior. The "Authority of Beasts" quietly activated.
Such tactics were of no threat to the Raiden Shogun. With a single swing of her naginata, she deflected the shadow arrows, stepping forward effortlessly.
Upon contact, there was no unusual sensation.
Was the "Authority of Beasts" ineffective? No bonus damage? Wait, the Raiden Shogun, though a puppet, was still fundamentally a god.
The Raiden Shogun's body was originally Ei's own. In essence, she was a god. How gods were born, Li Mo did not know, but he understood that the "Authority of Beasts" had little effect.
Part of his mind reached out to the Statue of the Omnipresent God outside Tenshukaku.
The mystical connection was instantly activated.
The Statue of the Omnipresent God was a symbol of the Raiden Shogun. Through this connection, Li Mo's "imitation" deepened, and the power granted by "Saint Form: Raiden Shogun" increased significantly.
Moreover, within the Statue of the Omnipresent God, there were countless Visions. Each Vision represented someone who had once trained in the martial arts.
Li Mo emptied his mind.
He defined himself as a concept, absorbing the martial skills of those represented by the Visions.
And so, the battle resumed.