"Vimana!"
Gilgamesh extended a hand to the side, and the golden screen of the Gate of Babylon materialized.
Within the golden screen, a treasure resembling a warship slowly emerged, crafted from gold and emeralds. It could fly at high speeds through the air and served as Gilgamesh's royal chariot.
Gilgamesh and Bai Ye boarded the Vimana. Immediately, the Vimana transformed into a streak of golden light and shot forward. It shattered the hotel's floor-to-ceiling windows and ascended into the heavens.
Swiftly weaving through the air, the Sky Garden soon came into view.
However, entering the Sky Garden did not seem to be an easy feat.
A large number of flying Dragon Tooth soldiers patrolled the perimeter of the Sky Garden, their bone wings flapping constantly.
In addition to the Dragon Tooth soldiers, there were naturally the twelve massive stone pillars carved with magical runes, clearly posing a threat to anyone approaching the Sky Garden.
Bai Ye asked, "Directly in?"
Gilgamesh glanced at Bai Ye and replied, "Scared?"
"Are you kidding me?" Bai Ye retorted, "Are you planning to provide my entire year's worth of laughs?"
Gilgamesh grinned.
In Gilgamesh's world, there were two types of people.
The first were boring people.
The second were interesting people.
Bai Ye, Gilgamesh decided, would be grudgingly counted among the second type.
In the next instant, Gilgamesh accelerated, his chariot swiftly soaring across the sky and charging towards the Sky Garden.
However...
Bai Ye and Gilgamesh were not the first to arrive!
As they drew closer, a deafening roar suddenly erupted from ahead.
Immediately after, a figure streaked through the air, causing the surrounding Dragon Tooth soldiers to explode into piles of shattered bone, raining down below.
Bai Ye observed, "The opponent is riding a Hippogriff, aren't they?"
A Hippogriff, a legendary creature, possessed the forequarters of a griffin and the hindquarters of a horse.
On the Hippogriff's back sat a man and a woman. The woman had short pink hair, silver-white armor, and held a white lance in her hand, which appeared to be quite powerful. When it struck the Dragon Tooth soldiers, they instantly disintegrated.
As for the man, Bai Ye found him somewhat familiar and then a look of realization dawned on his face.
During the city-wide chaos, Bai Ye had clashed with three mechanical warriors. One of them, named Zach, was now before him.
At the time, due to being in a hurry, Bai Ye had not finished Zach off but had instead thrown him into the river.
Bai Ye had ultimately succeeded in claiming the one hundred million reward for the city-wide chaos.
Therefore, they could be considered old adversaries?
As Bai Ye looked at the other party, Zach also looked at Bai Ye, his gaze darkening slightly.
However, the scene Bai Ye had anticipated, where the other party would charge at him, did not materialize. Zach whispered a few words into the woman's ear. The woman then pulled on the reins, and the Hippogriff veered away from Bai Ye and Gilgamesh, heading in another direction.
Bai Ye turned to Gilgamesh and asked, "Aren't we going to pursue?"
Gilgamesh scoffed, "A minor figure, not worth my pursuit."
Bai Ye remarked, "He's not exactly a minor figure, is he? Well, in terms of the name of the King of Heroes, the fame of the Twelve Paladins of Charlemagne indeed doesn't measure up."
"Oh?" Gilgamesh inquired, "You know who she is?"
Bai Ye replied, "There aren't many knightly heroes who ride Hippogriffs in heroic epics. The most famous is likely Astolfo, one of the Twelve Paladins of Charlemagne."
Actually, Astolfo could be considered a renowned Heroic Spirit, but compared to the King of Heroes...
One was a King, the other merely a knight!
Bai Ye questioned, "However, wasn't Astolfo famously a rare beauty in legends? Why is it a woman?"
Gilgamesh explained, "Heroic Spirits are heroes whose legends remain after their death. They are individuals who reappear in the human world through the convergence of faith. They are not truly existing beings, so gender holds no significance. What matters is the meaning contained within their name."
As Gilgamesh spoke, he accelerated once more, charging into the throng of Dragon Tooth soldiers.
In an instant, Gilgamesh's chariot transformed into a streak of golden light. As it surged forward, the surrounding Dragon Tooth soldiers continuously exploded, disintegrating.
But at this very moment...
The stone pillars floating around the Sky Garden suddenly emitted a red glow.
In the next instant...
A red beam of light appeared, heading in the direction of Bai Ye and Gilgamesh.
Bai Ye extended a hand to the side, and the Steel Slime rapidly surged, then solidified into the Xuanyuan Sword.
Golden Sword Qi!
Bai Ye unleashed a sword strike forward.
The Xuanyuan Sword vibrated in Bai Ye's hand, emitting a "hum, hum" sword song. Then, accompanying Bai Ye's strike, a crescent-shaped golden sword qi shot forward.
Boom!
The golden sword qi collided with the red beam of light, resulting in a deafening explosion.
The beam and the sword qi detonated simultaneously.
An incredibly potent wave of energy erupted, pushing outwards in all directions.
In the blink of an eye, the surrounding Dragon Tooth soldiers shattered under the impact of the wave, turning into scattered bones that fell from the sky.
Gilgamesh's eyes lit up. He looked at the Xuanyuan Sword in Bai Ye's hand and said, "A fine sword."
"Hey, don't get any ideas about the Xuanyuan Sword," Bai Ye warned. "You've already collected enough treasures, leave this child alone!"
Bai Ye was now very familiar with Gilgamesh's disposition.
Arrogant, conceited, fond of fine wine and food, and his greatest pleasure was to gather all the treasures of the world into his Gate of Babylon.
Gilgamesh snorted, "Then remember not to die in battle, or I will take this sword from your corpse."
With that, Gilgamesh's chariot transformed into golden light once more and charged forward.
The second massive stone pillar glowed again, and a red beam of light reappeared, shooting towards the two, attempting to halt their advance.
Boom!
The golden light of the Vimana charged forward, colliding with the red beam.
The thunderous roar of the explosion echoed again, and then, the red beam was forcefully pushed aside, dissipating into countless red halos that scattered in all directions.
Gilgamesh unleashed his might, appearing extremely overbearing. After pushing aside the red beam, he grazed past the massive stone pillar, extended his hand, and grasped the Spiral Sword.
In the next instant, Gilgamesh raised the Spiral Sword and slashed sideways.
A current of electricity swept across, striking the stone pillar fiercely.
With a resounding crash!
The stone pillar tilted to the side. A crack ran from top to bottom, piercing through the pillar, even shattering the magical runes carved upon it.
Following this, Gilgamesh pressed onward, continuing forward and landing within the Sky Garden.
...