Chapter 204 - 14: Celestial Vault People
’What Mecha?’ Westheid wondered. ’Don’t tell me you’re about to perform some kind of Gundam launch in front of me.’
Westheid was stunned for a moment, but he quickly realized the truth.
Across the entire Mortal World, the only things that could be called "Mecha" were the Azure Sky Mechas of the Celestial Vault Kingdom.
Even in other nations, the fiery, fluorescent lights soaring through the sky were renowned. Like the Imperial Army of Light or Yonglan’s Conquering Knights, they were a nation’s ultimate weapon.
"The Celestial Vault People are certainly decisive. And this habit of showing up unannounced... yes, that’s their style."
Westheid remarked with a sigh.
He didn’t even have to think about it. He guessed that Luyetan’s message had been effective. The Celestial Vault People had rushed over at top speed, and then, without a word of notice, had gone off to do their own thing.
"Let’s go take a look."
Duke Qinghui immediately hurried to the front lines with Yolanda. Using the Teleportation Array set up in the Holy Land, they could travel freely throughout Qinghui Territory, saving a great deal of time.
Though it was called the front line, it was really just a ring of fortresses built around the outer edge of the original Qinghui Territory. After the main Chaos Tide had been quelled, all that remained were small, successive waves. The difficulty had dropped from a high-level dungeon to a starter village, making it a perfect place for training troops and grinding levels.
However, the Chaos Demons never would have imagined that even after being reduced to this state, they would still suffer such an unbearable blow.
RUMBLE—
High in the sky, two figures wreathed in flowing fire streaked past. One after another, points of light trailing long tails were dropped, scattering across the fields where the Chaos Demons swarmed. Each point of light exploded with brilliant, fierce radiance, roaring as it engulfed the tide of monsters.
Without a shred of hesitation or mercy, the moment a Demon’s presence was detected—regardless of its Tier within the [Chaos Hundred Forms], and whether it was an individual or a group—it was precisely targeted and eliminated.
The two speeding Mechas practically plowed through the Chaos-corrupted fields a second time, leaving nothing behind. The Qinghui Warriors in the fortress all stared, stunned.
A Military Officer from the fortress explained, "They entered the airspace of Qinghui Territory a short while ago, following the edge of the [Circle of Clear Skies] Barrier. We could only just barely detect their trajectory. The next thing we knew, we saw these two Mechas cleansing the Chaos Domain."
"So this is an Azure Sky Mecha? It’s practically a small Floating Battleship."
It wasn’t just the common folk; even the well-traveled Yolanda couldn’t help but click her tongue in amazement.
Westheid said, "That’s not a fair comparison. An ordinary Floating Battleship is no match for an Azure Sky Mecha. You’d need a Celestial Patrol Ship at the very least, and depending on the situation, it might even rival a Battleship."
"And those who can pilot an Azure Sky Mecha are no ordinary Celestial Vault People."
As if their rampage through the sky wasn’t enough, after annihilating the Demons in front of the fortress, the Azure Sky Mechas took a tour deep into the Chaos Domain before finally, and seemingly reluctantly, ending their one-sided slaughter of the Chaos forces.
Only then did the Azure Sky Mechas, still wreathed in flowing fire, slowly descend and land on the fortress.
Westheid carefully examined the Azure Sky Mecha he was now seeing with his own eyes.
The Mecha’s exterior resembled an advanced Mechanical Battle Armor... No, it would be more accurate to say that Mechanical Battle Armor was a castrated version of the Azure Sky Mecha.
An Azure Sky Mecha wasn’t a piece of equipment that just anyone could wear. Only after completing a series of Trials and rituals, and merging one’s soul with their Soul Bone, could one summon the Azure Sky Mecha that was fused with their True Soul.
The Soul Bone Metal, a mix of silver and gold, formed flowing lines that clung tightly to the human form. Embers like fire and light glowed in the seams of the Mecha. With a gentle shudder, the Light Wings on its back dissipated into particles.
The nearly three-meter-tall Mecha seemed to refract sunlight into a rainbow of colors as it slowly dissolved under the brilliant light, finally revealing the pilot within.
They wore immaculate white robes, magnificent and noble, embroidered with golden thread in the shape of the triple crown Rune that represented the Celestial Vault Kingdom. A mask that looked as if it were made of bone china covered each of their faces. When removed, it revealed a picturesque, delicate countenance.
But these were all trivial, common details. What truly caught the eye was the floating ring behind each of the two Celestial Vault People’s heads. It looked as if it were constructed from intricate machinery and emitted a faint glow.
Westheid asked, "Did you come from Yuanshi Territory?"
The male Celestial Vault Person nodded slightly and said:
"Earthling and Holy Spirit Descendant, you may call me Jing Mu. I am from the Jing Clan of the Celestial Vault Kingdom."
The other, a female Celestial Vault Person, let her grayish-blue hair fall behind her back, her expression just as inorganic.
"I am Jing Xiao."
"We should have met with Duke Qinghui immediately upon our arrival. However, we saw the filth of Chaos on the ground and could not help but eliminate it. There is no need for thanks; this is the duty of all Order Creatures."
’Who’s thanking you?’ Westheid thought. ’Weren’t you the ones who deployed your Azure Sky Mechas on someone else’s territory without permission?’
Westheid rubbed his forehead and said,
"We were saving that Demon Tide for training our troops..."
Jing Xiao’s elegant brows furrowed slightly. She shook her head and said, "Using Chaos to train troops? What an unwise course of action. To fight Chaos for long is to invite corruption. The Great Chaos Enemy should be annihilated with swift and merciless force. How have you Earthlings become so ignorant?"
"Besides, I cannot tolerate my feet touching land where Chaos Demons exist. It is simply too filthy."
Yolanda was not pleased to hear this. She was already annoyed that the Azure Sky Mechas had rampaged through their territory without permission, and now she felt her family’s honor had been slighted. She retorted directly:
"Outsiders have no right to tell us how to run things in Qinghui Territory. All this talk about ’Earthlings’—do you think being a Celestial Being is so impressive?"
As if she didn’t understand the platinum-blonde girl’s sarcasm, Jing Xiao nodded without a second thought and said,
"Yes, it is very impressive."
It was a proud declaration, stated with her head held high as if it were a commonly known fact.
’Well, it’s true enough.’ Among the many special mortal races in the Mortal World, the Celestial Vault People were widely acknowledged as the most superior.
Whether it was Humans, Elves, Beastmen, or any other mortal species, their base stats simply couldn’t compare to the Celestial Vault People. If one had to make a comparison, only the Dragon Race, who had all but vanished from the Mortal World, could reliably overpower them individually... However, the Dragon Group was at an absolute disadvantage in terms of numbers.
’Overall evaluation: they win!’
"You!"
Yolanda wanted to argue, but Westheid knew that reasoning with the Celestial Vault People was a pointless exercise; they never considered themselves to be in the wrong.
So he cut his sister off and changed the subject directly:
"This is no place to discuss business. Let’s find somewhere to sit down first. You must have some questions that need answering, correct?"
Jing Mu said coolly, "That is indeed the case. According to Yuanxi Palace, you have something that interests us. If we are not mistaken, it is the very thing we have been waiting for."
"We hope Duke Qinghui will not have us return in disappointment."
After speaking, the two Celestial Vault People strode straight ahead.
"Brother, these people are getting annoyingly arrogant."
Yolanda moved closer to Westheid, her gaze hostile as she watched the two Celestial Vault People—who, despite being guests, were walking far ahead of their host.
"Is this your first day meeting the Celestial Vault People?"
Westheid, however, seemed quite calm. He placated her, saying,
"This is just how they are. They don’t actually have any ill intentions; it’s just that their superiority complex and self-righteousness are completely hopeless."
"Besides, we’re the ones asking for a favor right now, so let’s just tolerate it for a bit. Don’t worry, I’ll make them show some respect."