Endless Path : Infinite Cosmos

Though the teleportation nexus of each planet was linked to every other planet and satellite, reaching your destination was easier said than done. Without the ability to obtain information across vast distances, the only way to know which Community owned a specific planet was to encounter the forces stationed planetside. To make matters worse, the only way to teleport to a different planet was to capture one of several relay stations located on the surface, so, the moment they found themselves facing a horde of monkey-like creatures, a cold sweat developed across the bodies of the members of the Araki Community as they began fighting their way towards one of the relays.

Unfortunately, Wu wasn't a particularly forgiving individual, so, shortly after Johnathan and his comrades began mowing down her forces, a version of the petite monkey girl burst through the foundation of her own planet in order to bar their passage. This caused the spectators to go wild, as, ever since the publishing of Journey to the West, very few people had been given the chance to witness the legendary 'Monkey King' in action. ——

Sweeping her trusty Ruyi Jingu Bang in a manner that forced the invading members of the Araki Community backward, a mischievous grin developed across the face of Wu as she proclaimed, "You invade this Great Me's territory, bully my subordinates, and then attempt to flee? Courting death…!"

Without waiting for the group's response, Wu extended the length of her Ruyi Jingu Bang as she swept it towards Johnathan's head at a speed that left behind a tangible afterimage. This caused the inordinately muscular man's body to tense, but, instead of trying to evade, he raised his left arm as if to intercept the unfathomably fast staff.

To the surprise of absolutely no one, Wu's Ruyi Jingu Bang broke through Johnathan's guard and sent him flying towards the upper atmosphere like a rocket propelling into space. In the very next moment, however, the very same man appeared in Wu's location, a stern expression on his face as he looked towards his companions and said, "We need to hurry. I don't-"

Before Johnathan could finish speaking, a bared foot rose between his legs, clearing aiming for his family jewels. The complexion of Johnathan's face immediately paled, as, despite an illusory purple aura intercepting Wu's attack, a powerful shockwave passed through his body with enough force to spike up his previously, neatly combed hair.

Retracting her foot, Wu leaped backward several tens of meters in an instant, Ruyi Jing Bang resting on her shoulder as she teased, "That's a pretty nifty ability. Swapping positions with someone else? Not bad at all."

Feeling weak in the knees, Johnathan used the intensifying purple aura to support his body as he glared towards Wu and said, "We didn't participate in this Gift Game to oppose you, Venerable Wu Kong. Our target is located within the Akuma Community. They have taken someone very important to me. Please allow us to pass…"

Understanding the improbability of defeating Wu in a contest of martial prowess, Johnathan made the decision to try and talk his way out of the situation. He wasn't lying when he said the members of Akuma had taken someone important to him, so, banking on Wu's ability to ascertain truth from lies, he decided to be honest.

Hearing Johnathan's words, a slight frown marred Wu's face. A few months ago, she wouldn't even humor such a request. Her time with Vahn had affected her way of thinking, so, after a moment of silence, she asked, "Is the person in question a woman…?"

Nodding his head in affirmation, Johnathan explained, "The members of Akuma really are devils. They go around collecting women who suit their preferences, regardless of whether or not they are married or in a relationship. The man I'm after is named Yamamoto Kazuya. He specifically targets pregnant and married women to add to his collection. Please do not stand in my way of bringing him to justice."

Seeing the rage and conviction contained within Johnathan's eyes, Wu couldn't help scrunching up her nose in disgust. Not towards Johnathan but the man named Yamamoto Kazuya. She, honestly, didn't really care about what people got up to on their own time, but, now that she knew about his crimes, she couldn't simply ignore them. She might be a tyrant but she wasn't without a conscience.

Unfortunately for Johnathan, Wu wasn't known for letting her enemies simply walk away. Johnathan may have had a good reason for doing so but the members of his Community had injured and even eliminated many of her subordinates from the Gift Game. As the King of Mount Huaguo, she owed it to them to seek revenge, so, after a moment of deliberation, she said, "Sorry, kid, but I can't allow you to pass unobstructed. Besides, can you even defeat this Kazuya fellow? If so, you wouldn't have waited until this Gift Game to take action."

Hoping that Wu would see reason, Johnathan's expression became even more determined as he explained, "You're right. Under normal circumstances, it would be impossible for me to defeat a monster like Yamamoto Kazuya. However, with tens of billions of people actively observing the Gift Game, I'm confident I can garner enough support to come out ahead. The behavior of Akuma has gone unchecked for too long. Though I'm standing here for personal reasons, I'm also acting in the interest of the countless people they have harmed. Now, please, step aside…!"

Exhaling a sigh, Wu swung the Ruyi Jingu Bang from her shoulder before shaking her head in mild exasperation and saying, "Poor choice of words, brat…"

Had Johnathan and his allies immediately dropped to their hands and knees, Wu may have allowed them to pass. The correct way to deal with her was to completely set aside your desire to fight. She may be a bit of a tyrant, but, unless they had seriously offended her, she wouldn't go out of her way to beat and bloody people who had never wronged her. By standing his ground and expecting her to stand aside just because he believed his cause was just, Johnathan had effectively compelled Wu to stay her ground.

As she was under no obligation to explain such things, Wu responded to Johnathan's confusion by sweeping the Ruyi Jingu Bang towards him. At the same time, several hairs from her head, ears, and tail dislodged from her body as her position was, once again, swapped with Johnathan's. This time, however, he didn't even have time to open his mouth before several clones of Wu punched, kicked, and slapped him.

Seeing his friend in dire straits, a remarkably buff and stone-faced teen wearing what appeared to be a modified Japanese gakuran charged forward, muttering, "Good grief…" while lowering the brim of his cap. A platinum-hued figure manifested behind his body, but, instead of remaining illusory, it soon took the shape of a buff, purple-skinned figure with a man of violet, dark-purple hair.

"Uoooooooooooh…!"

Turning her head, the original Wu was about to bat the man aside when purple vines suddenly erupted from the void, entangling her body. This caused her expression to immediately darken as vines and tentacles were practically taboo when fighting against scantily clad women in the Divine Realm. Sure, the spectators may enjoy it quite a bit, but, unless they had some strange inclinations, employing tentacles was one of the easiest ways to offend female Players.

Acting before the thorny tendrils could encroach upon the more sensitive parts of her body, Wu's body flashed with a golden light as she tore free from the purple-hued appendages and slammed her palm into the burly young man's face. The purple figure had tried to intercept her, but, now that she was thoroughly pissed off, Wu's movements bordered on causal manipulation. If she wanted to hit someone, there was very little they could do to stop it…

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Observing the confrontation between Wu and the members of the Araki Community, Vahn couldn't help wincing when he saw the capped youth's face practically cave in. Wu had held back quite a bit, but, due to her anger, a literal palm imprint had been left in her opponent's face and skull as he was sent crashing into the face of a mountain more than six hundred kilometers away.

"I kind of feel bad for him…he wasn't even the one that employed the vines…"

Though he couldn't actually see her, Vahn got the impression that Sis had just shrugged as she said, (*It's sort of their own fault for trying to use someone else's promotional Gift Game as a platform to carry out justice. I can understand their reasoning but it's simply foolish to think that others will just move out of their way in the middle of a competition…*)

Nodding his head in agreement, Vahn briefly shifted his attention away from the conflict between Wu and the Araki Community. He was interested to see what kind of person Yamamoto Kazuya was, so, while Wu taught the inordinately burly Community a lesson, Vahn's intent shifted to a somewhat arrogant-looking young man with dark-blue hair, violet eyes, tanned skin, and cat-like features that included pointed ears, a sly smile, and a tail.

Under normal circumstances, Vahn would have felt an almost instinctual urge to reach through the void and pat the man's head. This time, however, a frown marred his face as the man lounged atop a 'throne' formed from the linked bodies of multiple females. To make matters exponentially worse, two of the girls on their hands and knees were clearly in the latter stages of pregnancy.

"Yeah…no…"

Though he had been content with sitting around and waiting for his opponents to show up, there was no way in hell Vahn was just going to ignore such brazen and disgusting behavior once he had become aware of it. Thus, before the blue-haired man even knew what was happening, Vahn took a deep breath before opening his eyes to reveal eerie a pair of eerie, bluish-white irises that seemed to flow towards the abyssal-black pupils in their centers…

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Feeling a frigid, exceptionally sickening sensation spreading through his chest, Yamamoto Kazuya attempted to place his hand over his heart only to find something inordinately soft obstructing the action. When he looked down, confusion married his characteristically lazy and sadistic expression as his previously lean yet well-defined pectoral muscles had seemingly inflated, their shape taking on a 'very' familiar form…

As the unbearably cold sensation spread through the rest of his body, the pupils of Kazuya's eyes contracted into fine slits as he practically pounced from his personalized 'throne'. This was the last willful action he was capable of performing, as, the moment his feet touched the ground, his knees immediately gave out due to an overwhelmingly oppressive feeling of weakness.

Collapsing to the ground, Kazuya attempted to lift his head only to find the action impossible. It was like every single cell in his body had been replaced with a frigid form of lead. Other than stare blankly at the changes happening to his body, he was wholly incapable of moving. When he finally realized what was happening, a panic unlike anything he had ever experienced pervaded from the very core of his being as the world around him spontaneously took a very familiar form…

Just as Kazuya's panic reached a level where it felt like his heart was literally going to burst out of his chest, an eerily familiar tone reached his ears as a hand tightened around his now long, blonde hair.

"You expect me to save your world when the only compensation you offer is the opportunity to return home? Do you think other people are your convenient tools just because you were born a Princess…?"

Feeling pain spread through his scalp and neck, surprise, fear, and disbelief colored Kazuya's face as he found himself staring up at a past version of himself…

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(A/N: My fever subsided yesterday afternoon but I decided to continue resting. On the plus side, I got to catch up on a few other novels I had been putting off. That Harry Potter one, HP: A Magical Journey, is actually pretty legit. There are a number of needless tangents but it's one of the better Harry Potter fics I've read. Either way, I'm back now xD.)