Hadō #63: Raikōhō

Chapter 6: Hadō #63: Raikōhō

"I'm going to eat you!"

The Spirit Word activated. Zhao Hao's eyes began to redden, and his body suddenly swelled.

Servant of the King was a Spirit Word that could strengthen its user and the allies around him. Its effects could push the human body to its limits.

Lu Mingfei looked at him with disgust. "I thought this was a normal world, but it turns out there are disgusting things like you in it. Scum like you deserve to die, no matter where you are."

Zhao Hao drove his legs into the ground, leaving a crater beneath his feet, then charged at Lu Mingfei and rammed him with his elbow, aiming to smash the man in front of him to death.

He had already imagined the man's mangled state, and a twisted smile spread across his face.

But Lu Mingfei merely raised his left hand and stopped his attack. With a shove, he sent the swollen monster flying backward, where it crashed heavily to the ground.

A roar rang out. Zhao Hao climbed to his feet, his swollen body beginning to sprout scales.

Before, he had still retained some semblance of reason, and it would have taken time for him to become a Dead Servant. Now, however, he had fallen completely and become one.

Zhao Hao's hulking, fat body was covered in iron-gray scales. His long tongue lolled from his mouth, drool dripping onto the ground as he fixed his eyes on Lu Mingfei, ready to attack at any moment.

Behind Lu Mingfei, Su Xiaoqiang watched the monster and felt her stomach churn. The sight of such a creature shook her to the core.

"Absolutely hideous."

Lu Mingfei slid his Zanpakuto back into its sheath. Now he would destroy the monster completely, leaving not a trace behind.

Lu Mingfei raised his left index finger and pointed it at Zhao Hao. "Bakudō #61: Six-Rod Light Prison."

Six beams of light appeared out of nowhere around Zhao Hao, instantly pinning his body in place. Even as a Dead Servant, he couldn't move beneath the six beams; all he could do was roar helplessly.

Lu Mingfei waved his hand, locking him in the air. His next attack would be powerful, and this would keep it from damaging the road and help erase all traces of the battle.

"It's better if the world never learns about a monster like you," Lu Mingfei said softly. Then he looked at Su Xiaoqiang. "Little Goddess, cover your ears."

"Okay."

Su Xiaoqiang immediately covered her ears as Lu Mingfei had told her. After the fantastical way he had rescued her just now, she trusted him completely.

"Scattered across the stars are the bones of beasts, spires, red crystals, and wheels of steel."

Beneath the night breeze, Lu Mingfei raised his left hand and slightly curled his fingers.

Danger!

The beast's instincts told Zhao Hao that he had to dodge the man's attack, but no matter how hard he struggled, it was useless.

"Movement is wind, stillness is emptiness. The sound of spears clashing fills the phantom city!"

As he struggled, the incantation came to an end.

A golden light appeared in Lu Mingfei's palm, while strands of lightning coiled between his fingers.

After confirming that the attack wouldn't reach the nearby buildings, Lu Mingfei spoke coldly:

"Hadō #63: Raikōhō!"

In the darkness, a golden flash appeared in the deep, narrow alley.

A tremendous crash followed.

A thunderous shockwave struck the bound, deformed monster in an instant, reducing him to ashes amid his screams.

Until he fully recovered his strength, Lu Mingfei had to recite the full incantation to increase the power of his Kidō. Only then could he be sure of blasting the monster to smithereens.

As long as he blasted the disgusting monster to smithereens, no one would discover that such a strange creature existed.

But the sound had been so loud that someone would probably come to investigate soon. They had to leave quickly.

Lu Mingfei looked at Su Xiaoqiang, who was staring blankly with her mouth slightly open. "Little Goddess, come on, let's go. Someone will be here soon."

"But my legs are kind of weak. What if I can't walk fast?" Su Xiaoqiang came to her senses and looked at Lu Mingfei, close to tears.

Lu Mingfei sighed and walked over to her.

Could he be planning to...? Su Xiaoqiang's face turned bright red.

Lu Mingfei wrapped his left arm around her legs, braced his shoulder against her waist, and supported her back with his right hand. Then he heaved her up.

Just like that, Lu Mingfei carried Su Xiaoqiang over his shoulder.

Su Xiaoqiang was completely flustered as she hung over Lu Mingfei's shoulder. Figures. He always does things so unexpectedly.

After they had run a long way,

"All right." Lu Mingfei set Su Xiaoqiang down. "We're out of danger."

Once she was standing, Su Xiaoqiang took a tissue from her pocket and wiped her tear-streaked face.

Meanwhile, Lu Mingfei changed his Zanpakuto into a silver cross necklace and put it back around his neck.

After wiping herself clean, Su Xiaoqiang looked at Lu Mingfei, unsure what to say.

Tonight's experience had been like something out of a fantasy. Not only had she run into a deranged killer monster straight out of a movie, but just when she had been at her most desperate, the one who saved her was Lu Mingfei, who had always seemed utterly ordinary at school. And he had even used such an absurd technique.

She had never experienced such extreme emotional ups and downs in her life.

Lu Mingfei looked at Su Xiaoqiang. She was covered in dust, and the tear tracks on her face were still faintly visible. The girl who was always so impeccably dressed looked grimy now.

Su Xiaoqiang was just an ordinary person, too. She had been through far too many frightening things tonight. It wasn't as if she would have handled it any better if he had encountered something like this before transmigrating.

Seeing how pitiful Su Xiaoqiang looked, Lu Mingfei felt a pang of sympathy. He had few friends in this world.

In the past, Su Xiaoqiang had often bickered with him because of Chen Wenwen, but whenever she had something good to eat, Lu Mingfei could always mooch quite a bit off her. Even back in Soul Society, he would sometimes remember those moments and smile to himself.

After thinking it over,

Lu Mingfei reached out and gently ruffled Su Xiaoqiang's hair. Smiling at her, he said:

"I'll walk you home. Once you're back, get some sleep, and everything will be all right."

Feeling the warmth on her head, Su Xiaoqiang was overcome by a mix of grievance and comfort.

"Mm!" Su Xiaoqiang held back her tears and answered softly.

On the way home, they hurried along, while all kinds of jumbled thoughts swirled through her mind.

Su Xiaoqiang kept sneaking glances at Lu Mingfei as they walked. She realized that his profile was actually quite handsome.

The old Lu Mingfei had always seemed like a loser. Even though they often bickered, she had rarely gotten a good look at his eyes. And even after he changed, she had only thought he had gotten a little more handsome. There were so many handsome guys around; one more didn't matter.

But now it felt completely different. She felt very safe by his side.

Every so often, Lu Mingfei would catch Su Xiaoqiang looking at him and give her a gentle smile. Each time, she would blush and turn her head away.

Lu Mingfei figured he needed to keep Little Goddess calm and avoid upsetting her any further. So whenever Su Xiaoqiang looked his way, he met her gaze with his gentlest smile.

There was no denying that smiling like that the whole time was exhausting. But he'd eaten so much of her food in the past; now that the situation had come to this, he ought to repay her somehow.

Lu Mingfei wasn't the type to put himself on a pedestal just because he had saved someone. When his own squad members in the Gotei 13 were in danger, he always went to save them, too. After all, they were people he knew.

They arrived at their destination: a villa district where every home was lavishly decorated. It was the sort of place where only the truly wealthy in the city could afford to live.

Thinking of how he used to share a room with his cousin, Lu Mingfei couldn't help thinking how nice it was to be rich.

"All right, Lu Mingfei, we're here. You don't have to force yourself to keep smiling that way anymore. I'm not scared now."

Su Xiaoqiang clasped her hands behind her back, turned to face Lu Mingfei, and gave him a radiant smile. Her eyes curved like crescents.