Chapter 87
At this moment, Lan Ze fully unleashed the Gate of Babylon. With one arm around Mordred's delicate body and the other gripping the Holy Lance, he charged towards Artoria.
After a brief hesitation, one of the alien soldiers suddenly let out a roar of courage and raised his weapon. Then, one after another, more soldiers raised their weapons.
In mid-air, a dazzling golden magic circle covered Lan Ze almost instantly.
But Lan Ze barely glanced at it; there was no need for him to look. As he stepped forward, the Noble Phantasm from the Gate of Babylon burst forth. The magic circle cracked slightly under the barrage of the Noble Phantasm, and then, with a crisp, melodious cracking sound, the entire magic circle exploded!
Just as the alien soldiers beside him raised their weapons, the Gate of Babylon fell from mid-air once more. Someone sneaked up behind Lan Ze, but before he could raise his weapon, Lan Ze's Spear of the Vanguard had already pierced his body.
Without any hesitation, he hurtled towards the Magic Barrier where Artoria was located.
They fought their way through, and more and more soldiers fell before Lan Ze. In the end, the alien soldiers dared not approach easily. They surrounded Lan Ze in a circle, but no one dared to get close to him anymore.
If they rashly advance, they will suffer the same fate as the alien soldiers lying in pools of blood on the ground.
As Lan Ze sped towards Artoria, he looked up and saw the woman in the barrier staring at him with deep regret in her eyes.
If she had been more careful, she wouldn't have been trapped here so easily, let alone needed Lan Ze to come and rescue her.
Lan Ze dared not hesitate for a moment. He knew that if he stopped now, the enemy's encirclement would become even more cautious than before.
If you're going to do it, you should go all out!
"Don't get too cocky, kid!"
Just as Lan Ze was about to reach Artoria, an angry roar suddenly came from behind. Vortigern finally couldn't hold back anymore. He snatched the weapon from the soldier and swung it at Lan Ze. This man exuded an extremely powerful sense of oppression, but at this moment, Lan Ze had already forgotten Vortigern's pressure and held the Holy Lance in front of him.
Vortigern grinned. "I thought you were so powerful. You dare to come and rescue people with this level of strength?!"
His sword suddenly pressed down, and the white dragon's terrifying, devastating power was on full display. Although Lan Ze's magic power was immense, he was at a disadvantage in the clash of pure power.
Vortigern pressed his sword down again, Lan Ze had no choice but to take several steps back while holding Mordred, barely managing to steady himself.
But Vortigern gave him no chance to relax. His body was covered in hard black scales, and the half-dragon, half-human man charged toward Lan Ze once more. He was now certain that Lan Ze could not use the Holy Lance; otherwise, the other party would not have needed to waste so much breath in the first place. If he had used the power of the Holy Lance, even he would have found it difficult to withstand.
Seeing Lan Ze stagger back several steps, Vortigern did not pursue him, but instead revealed a hypocritical smile, "Although you are not as strong as me, your strength has exceeded my expectations."
"Give me the Holy Lance, and after I conquer the lands of Britain, I will bestow upon you a title. How about it?"
"A title and land bestowed? What a generous reward." Lan Ze took a few steps back, holding Mordred tightly with one arm and gripping the Holy Lance with the other. His eyes were lowered, lost in thought.
"I have always been generous to outstanding talents. Your ability to draw the Holy Lance means that the Anchor of Stars has recognized your existence. I am the same as you; we are both recognized by the Anchor of Stars," Vortigern said gently. At the same time, however, he was secretly scrutinizing Lan Ze, searching for his weakness to deliver a fatal blow.
There is only one person in the world who can wield the Holy Lance; neither King Arthur nor this guy from who-knows-where are superfluous.
The only one capable of wielding the Holy Lance is Vile King Vortigern.
Having obtained the Holy Lance, he would eventually figure out how to wield Holy Lance. Once he completely integrated Rhongomyniad into his body, he could even permanently fix the Age of Gods here, and Britain would become stronger than ever before.
At that time, he will not only be able to conquer Britain, but also Britain neighboring countries and other nations, and even become the king of the entire world with the Holy Lance!
"Who injured her?" Lan Ze suddenly asked.
Vortigern paused slightly, then followed Lan Ze's gaze to Mordred, whose forehead was streaked with blood.
He seemed to realize something, and a faint smile appeared on his face, "She bit me, so I simply brushed her aside, that's all."
"You don't need to get so agitated. This girl is just an artificial human created by a witch using King Arthur's blood essence. If you like this type of little girl, I can easily create ten more... no, even a hundred more of the same kind of artificial human in the future."
"But this child is quite spirited. She is the only one who dared to defy me. She was still calling for her Father King until she fainted," Vortigern suddenly smiled, glancing indifferently at Artoria, who was imprisoned in the Magic Barrier.
"Doesn't she know that her Father King is trapped there? How dare someone like her claim that her Father King is a hundred times stronger than me?"
"I see." Lan Ze wiped the blood from Mordred's forehead, turned to look at Vortigern, and smiled, "To be honest, your suggestion is really tempting, and I'd be happy to accept your terms."
"But before that, could I ask you for a favor?"
"What?"
Vortigern instinctively looked up and suddenly saw the boy who had just been looking at him gently suddenly let out a wild roar.
"Leave your life behind first!"
In that instant, the Holy Lance emitted a blinding light, causing Vortigern's pupils to contract sharply.
"Impossible... How could this be?!"
He can't use the Holy Lance, so why can this person?!
Vortigern's face was initially blank, and then for the first time, a look of astonishment and disbelief appeared on his usually indifferent face.
The soldiers across the battlefield watched this scene in terror. In the Magic Barrier array not far away, the blonde girl, who was trying her best to break the barrier, stared blankly at that figure.
The man stood between heaven and earth, his face delicate, but when he gripped the Holy Lance, the surging magic seemed to spread out in an instant, his dark eyes were gradually replaced by a golden luster, and his black hair rose gently in silence.
That was a change after being influenced by the Holy Lance; he actually used the power of the Holy Lance!
Vortigern instinctively took a step back, then glanced at Lan Ze with a look of sudden suspicion before bursting into wild laughter.
"No... this isn't the true power of the Holy Lance; it's actually trying to forcibly awaken that deity?"
"You'll only be completely devoured by the power of the Holy Lance, you fool!" Vortigern mocked arrogantly.
Lan Ze didn't speak, he just gripped the Holy Lance tighter.
Vortigern was right; he couldn't use the Holy Lance's true power and was merely trying to forcefully awaken Holy Lance.
Vortigern was shrouded in deep darkness. When Lan Ze fought him, whenever he tried to use Magecraft, his magical power would be swallowed by the darkness, except when he used the Holy Lance.
Vortigern cannot absorb the power of the Holy Lance!
However, forcibly activating the Holy Lance might not be enough to defeat Vortigern, as this is not the true power of Rhongomyniad.
"This Holy Lance has thirteen restraints, and you haven't even managed to break free of one of them. What do you have to fight me with?!"
Vortigern laughed maniacally, a pair of jet-black wings unfurled behind him. Then, his human features gradually diminished until, finally, he became a completely black dragon!
Even with the incomplete Holy Lance, he was still afraid and unwilling to take too much risk.
Using the physique of a dragon to crush Lan Ze in one fell swoop is the most correct choice.
"If you won't listen to my advice to surrender, then you shall die!"
Vortigern let out a piercing roar and charged from mid-air toward Lan Ze, facing the Holy Lance.
The Holy Lance's power was only activated to a small extent, and such power was completely insufficient to pose any threat to Vortigern.
But Lan Ze had nowhere left to retreat, and he had no intention of doing so. The Holy Grail was being absorbed at an accelerated pace, and forcibly activating the Holy Lance at the cost of completely dedicating his magical power to it.
That's not enough...
Such power could not possibly defeat Vortigern...
Just then, Lan Ze suddenly felt that the magic power around him was violently gathering in the Holy Lance. Unlike before when the Holy Lance absorbed his magic power, now the Holy Lance seemed to be autonomously absorbing the magic power around it for its own use.
Lan Ze glanced down at the Holy Lance in his hand and discovered that the Holy Lance, which had remained motionless throughout, was now radiating an unprecedented light.
"Want to make a deal?" A cold yet familiar voice reached his ear.
Lan Ze paused slightly, then asked, "Who are you?"
"Can't you tell?" the voice asked coldly.
After a brief hesitation, Lan Ze slowly opened his eyes, as if realizing something, and exclaimed in surprise, "Number Nine..."
"You're Number Nine?!"
Back near the Tower of Radiance, he was led into that hall full of beasts by the mysterious Number Nine. At that time, Lan Ze had been guessing the other party's identity, but no matter how hard he racked his brains, he could never have imagined that Number Nine was actually a god, a god residing in the Holy Lance... Rhongomyniad.
"Are you the deity residing within the Holy Lance?!"
Rhongomyniad didn't answer, but calmly said, "Sign a contract? I'll give you power; in the future, you'll help me."
Lan Ze didn't speak, but slowly raised his head. His golden eyes shone brightly in the darkness, seemingly outshining the dragon's dazzling golden pupils.
The dragon's enormous vertical pupils contracted slightly, and a sudden unease arose in its heart, causing it to slow its descent considerably.
Just then, it suddenly saw that the Holy Lance suddenly emitted a light dozens of times brighter than before.
"Round Table Conference?!" Vortigern's expression changed slightly.
Then, he immediately sneered, "How could an ordinary human being possibly be recognized by the Knights of the Round Table?!"
Moreover, there are only two Knights of the Round Table present, and even with King Arthur included, there are only three.
Even if these three pass the Round Table Conference and release the three restraints of the Holy Lance, they still won't be able to do anything to him.
"That's it. If you have someone to blame, blame yourself for not choosing the right opponent!"
The dragon spread its wings, and a jet-black beam of light was gathering in its mouth.
This victory was already predetermined. The clash between Noble Phantasm is all about power. The Holy Lance indeed terrifying, but without its restraints, it is nothing to fear!
But then, it suddenly heard a voice beside its ear.
A sound powerful enough to send chills down your spine.
Even though there were only two Knights of the Round Table present, the sounds of "Pass! Pass! Pass! Pass! Pass!" kept coming from the ground.
When the question "Is this battle a battle to pursue truth?" came from the meeting, Agravain awoke from his drowsy state, his lips slightly parted, but before he could speak, the Holy Lance announced "Pass."
As the shouts of "Pass!" continued to fall, the heat of the Holy Lance grew increasingly intense. The alien soldiers fled the palace in terror, Vortigern stared at the boy on the ground with equal suspicion.
He held a gun in one hand, and sparks seemed to fly from his crimson-gold eyes, as if from forging iron. With the heat gathering, the world-destroying aura of the Holy Lance quietly spread out.
"This is cheating, blatant cheating!" the dragon cried out in terror.
"How could you possibly pass the thirteen restraints without going through Round Table Conference?!"
"The Holy Lance— " Lan Ze ignored Vortigern and slowly raised the Holy Lance. Amidst the dragon's roar, the Holy Lance was aimed at Vortigern.
"Weigh anchor!"
As the blazing beam of light shot out from the ground, the dragon's black beam of light also swept down from the sky. The light of the Holy Lance instantly engulfed the dragon's black beam of light, and then, accompanied by a violent explosion, Vortigern let out a piercing roar.
"Useless, useless! A mere Holy Lance can't possibly defeat me. Just you wait—"
The dragon roared as it faced the Holy Lance, then abruptly turned its head to look at the ground, laughing wildly, "When I return, all of Britain will—"
His voice suddenly stiffened, because he heard another voice in his ear, the voice saying:
"The Holy Lance-- "
"Weigh anchor!"
As the second beam of light was unleashed, Vortigern's laughter vanished completely. Then, before he could react, he heard a third, similar sound.
"The Holy Lance-- "
"Weigh anchor!"
Three Holy Lance erupted, and the dragon's body shattered completely in the devastating release of this powerful Noble Phantasm. Vortigern roared amidst the baptism of the Holy Lance, "You bastard, you bastard! How dare you—"
Vortigern's pupils contracted sharply as he saw the boy leap up and appear before him as the Holy Lance's Noble Phantasm ended.
"You little brat—" Vortigern tried to say, but before he could even raise his hand, Lan Ze had already grabbed Vortigern's head and slammed it hard into the ground from high above!
A huge, human-shaped crater was blasted open in the ground, but Lan Ze did not stop there. His knee was pressed into Vortigern's chest, and as the Holy Lance was driven into the ground, he held the Holy Lance in one hand and, using that as a fulcrum, pressed down on Vortigern's head with the other.
"That android little girl you just mentioned..."
As their gazes locked, Lan Ze forcefully slammed Vortigern's head against the ground several times, creating countless cracks. With a final burst of strength, Lan Ze completely sank Vortigern's head into the earth.
"I am her Father King."
Raindrops the size of beans fell from the sky, as if a sluice gate had been opened and all the water was pouring down at once.
At the silent palace gates, countless eyes watched this scene. Soldiers of foreign tribes and Britain soldiers all looked with awe at Vortigern, who was half-buried in the ground, and the boy standing beside him.
His face was expressionless, his clothes were soaked through, and his long black hair covered his eyes, but you could still see his bright golden eyes against the gloomy sky.
As he turned and walked in the opposite direction from Vortigern, the alien soldiers all breathed a sigh of relief. They unconsciously stepped back and made way for him.
He picked up the little girl and carried her up the steps to the palace.
As if sensing a slight jolt or something, Mordred suddenly frowned slightly, and then slowly opened her eyes.