Chapter 99

"Huh?"

The girl with the thunder blade had been charging forward, teeth gritted, blade raised to strike, but she was caught by the edge of the black flames halfway there. Forced back, she barely managed to steady herself, her expression turning grave in an instant.

Rin, however, remained impassive, slowly raising the black divine fire as if swinging a sword.

The black flames flickered, reflecting a cold, sharp light in her eyes.

"Hurry up and go. Don't try to steal my prey here."

She then turned to look at Qi Xing, her gaze calm, though her tone carried a hint of lightness,

"Go chase after your 'main course'."

The words were spoken cleanly and decisively, as if all of [Amaterasu]'s schemes were nothing more than a hunting game in Rin's eyes.

— Even more surprisingly, Qi Xing actually believed her.

With countless monsters, plus [Susanoo] and [Tsukuyomi] clearly enhanced by the [Inner Realm], could Jingo Rin win?

Qi Xing truly believed the answer was yes. Rin could definitely blast them all away!

He had absolute faith in her.

"Fine."

So Qi Xing smiled at her words, thunder gathering beneath his feet,

"Then I won't steal your dessert."

By now, he had learned one lesson—when you can't find a solution, don't understand the situation, and are completely in the dark, you must avoid being hesitant in everything you do.

You don't necessarily have to be bloodthirsty, but you must be decisive and proactive.

If you want to do something, even if it's just a faint impulse, you might as well try it! The worst that can happen is hitting a brick wall, and if that happens, you just smash right through it!

As he finished speaking, he transformed into a streak of thunder, chasing after the back of the shrine maiden fleeing on the torrent!

The samurai girl did not intercept him, because stopping [Master Leipu] was not her job. Besides, dealing with the [Shrine Maiden of the Black God] was more to her liking.

She simply raised her katana with both hands in front of Rin, resting it over her shoulder, and struck a combat stance. It was the thunder blade battle form, designed to cleave enemies in two.

It was a katana three feet, three inches, and five fen long. The blade had no curve; it was a straight, ancient-style sword. The radiance of the blade resembled sunlight, and just by striking the pose, wind began to whip up around the blade.

It was a weapon worthy of being called a king's armament, a majestic longsword.

"The Ame-no-Murakumo-no-Tsurugi, also known as the Kusanagi Sword, is the divine blade Susanoo obtained after slaying the Yamata no Orochi."

The samurai girl sneered,

"But Susanoo is not just a god of warriors; he is also a trickster who bewitches and deceives his enemies, a fickle god capable of deceiving even the sun and shrouding it."

"You seem quite confident. But I am currently playing the role of the storm god capable of blowing out raging fires, wielding a divine blade that can shroud the sun, and leading thousands of evil monsters to surround you."

She raised her blade, her eyes filled with a touch of contemptuous mockery.

"Are you truly certain you can escape from my trap? Jingo Rin?"

Indeed, the samurai girl in this [Inner Realm] was like a replica of Susanoo, possessing power that surpassed that of mortal sorcerers. She also had [Tsukuyomi], who was also playing a role, helping her from the shadows, and even thousands of fog monsters besieging them.

If it were the invincible [Master Leipu], it might be fine. But considering the elemental disadvantage, was Jingo Rin really going to be alright?

Yet, a smile had already appeared on the shrine maiden's face.

"I heard that Qi Xing once defeated a demon king comparable to a god."

She suddenly spoke, her tone peaceful, yet it sounded like she was whispering an oracle,

"Winning the victory through a battle of total effort, a slaughter where he risked flesh and bone, fighting with his heart and soul."

"To be honest, I sympathize with his experience as a Jinchuriki, forced to fight against evil."

"But there is also a little bit of… envy."

She let out a gentle breath, her eyes growing brighter,

"After all, I have never had the chance to go all out and battle such interesting enemies as [Gods] or [Demon Kings]."

Her smile was like that of a lion; it was the smile of a beast.

"It doesn't matter if it's just a replica of a god."

"It doesn't matter if you bring swarms of monsters."

"Please, you two, do not disappoint me."

— — （ = – ω – = ） — —

097: Know yourself and know your enemy! Victory in every battle!

Although the ancients said that [Tsukuyomi-no-Mikoto] refers to the lightless, dark moon, the hidden moon, the symbol of night and silence…

But now, the identity of the person playing [Tsukuyomi-no-Mikoto], Kisaragi Mayu, and why she is standing on the side of [True Buddhism], has basically come to light; there are no longer any secrets.

Even the most mysterious [Amaterasu], though her true form has not been revealed and her real name is unknown, her origins and identity can probably be guessed at fifty or sixty percent.

On the contrary, the person playing [Susanoo]—that taciturn, cold girl holding the thunder blade—has yet to reveal her name.

Her background is a blank slate, her motives are unclear, and she has no connection whatsoever to the entire Northeast sorcery world.

Why is that?

The answer is actually very simple.

Because she is not from the Northeast region at all, nor is she a descendant of any sorcerer family. She has absolutely no grudge against Jingo Rin.

Her name is Shijo Aoi.

She is a genius exorcist girl from Tokyo, born into a family of pure muggles.

Her parents were plain, vanilla mortals—ordinary employees, minor managers at mid-sized companies—living a stable, unremarkable life, a typical secular middle-class family common in Tokyo with a decent enough financial situation.

However—when she was eight, Aoi displayed spiritual power.

At first, it was just trivial matters at home. She saw something bad attached to her father's shoulder and dispelled it with just a single finger.

Originally, her family was quite ordinary. Parents were like parents, children like children. But from that moment on, she realized she was [different], and soon she realized her power could be used for her own gain.

First, it started in elementary school, where she abused her spiritual power without any restraint. Classmates who resisted her were knocked unconscious by a single glare; bullies were forced to submit with her power; and insidious, annoying teachers were forced to resign through curses.

For about a year, she was practically the queen of the school, and her campus life was incredibly comfortable and pleasant. The kind of plot where a superpowered person is bullied, often seen in manga? For someone strong enough to use their power, it was just a joke.

But about a year later, other sorcerers finally noticed Shijo Aoi's existence.

First, a civilian exorcist heard the news and came to the school, wanting to stop Aoi.

As a result, she was knocked to the ground by the ten-year-old Aoi, who stepped on her head and forced her to kneel.

The second person who came met the same fate.

The third was the same.

Finally, a real heavyweight stepped in—the chairman of the Kanto Exorcist Guild, a first-rate powerhouse well-known in the industry, came personally and knocked Aoi to the ground with a single punch.

"This child has a limitless future."

Just like that, Shijo Aoi (eleven years old) was [recruited] by the Kanto Exorcist Guild, becoming the youngest registered civilian exorcist at the time.

Her talent was indeed genuine, and she was willing to train seriously—Aoi was the type who enjoyed training and relished the process.

Soon, her combat power advanced by leaps and bounds, and her income skyrocketed accordingly, eventually far exceeding the combined income of her parents.

Before she had even graduated from elementary school, her parents began using their daughter's money to buy new cars or go on luxury cruise vacations. As early as her first year of middle school, Shijo Aoi's entire family, and even other relatives, had already begun to operate with her income as the center.

The relationship of such a family might be somewhat similar to… the parents of a child star managing a fortune of hundreds of millions.

But since this child star could theoretically blow up the whole house if she ever got angry, the family relationship inevitably became twisted.

Her parents didn't dare to really [control] her, but they still controlled her finances and supervised her life under the guise of [doing it for your own good].

Gradually, Aoi (fourteen years old) began to feel dissatisfied.

(Why am I a genius, yet I have to be managed so strictly?)

It wasn't that she wanted more money; her current income was already comparable to that of an executive at a top-tier public company. Although a child's money would be supervised by her parents, they didn't dare to actually stop her from spending it, so that didn't really matter.

What she truly hated was—by what right do you manage me?

Her parents were just powerless muggles… well, parents are parents after all, so she could just put up with it.

The Exorcist Guild, by what right do they take a forty percent commission from me? Why must accepting commissions only go through the guild, and why must they set the prices?

Fine, then I'll just climb the ranks in the guild and become a high-level executive—what? Too young? Must have over ten years of exorcism experience?

Why? I just want a position worthy of my strength!

"Even if you are a genius, we cannot let you be a manager at fourteen."

The guild chairman's attitude was very firm.

"Others won't be convinced, and the result will only be chaos."

But not long after, fifteen or sixteen-year-old Shijo Aoi felt that the chairman who had easily knocked her down a few years ago—now, if she got serious, she could probably turn the tables and beat him.

"I want to be the chairman of the Kanto Exorcist Guild while I'm still a student!"

She had shouted this in her heart countless times.

But that was impossible.

Reality told her: even if you have talent, if you haven't reached the age, it won't work.

It wasn't because of the rules and regulations, but because—[everyone can't accept it].

Even if you were forced into that position, others might acknowledge it with their mouths, but they wouldn't respect you in their hearts.

Adults might not think waiting until their thirties is a long time. But for a fifteen or sixteen-year-old child, it was so far away that it felt like there was no end in sight.

It was at this time that Shijo Aoi heard that in the countryside of the Northeast, there was a genius girl even younger than her who had been named [Guardian of the North] at the age of only twelve!

Why? !

Her head was full of this question.

"First of all, that's the countryside,"

The chairman was still as calm as ever.

"This is Tokyo, which has always been more competitive. If you want to go to the countryside and be a local tyrant, no one would have stopped you in the first place."

"Secondly, Jingo Rin was able to slay a mountain hag at seven years old. A mountain hag is a fallen god. If you went to fight one alone now, you wouldn't necessarily win, right?"

So, it really was a question of power!

Indeed, although Shijo Aoi was a genius, she hadn't reached the absurd strength of Jingo Rin or [Master Leipu]—a [genius] is ultimately understandable, but those two just make people wonder if they are cheating. Jingo Rin was even a year younger than Shijo Aoi.

If she lowered her desires a bit, was satisfied with her current achievements, and took it slow, Shijo Aoi would surely be able to live an enviable and wonderful life. But she happened to be an arrogant person.

"Truly amazing. This is a kind of atavistic phenomenon of a god-person."

So when [Amaterasu] first appeared and met her, Aoi couldn't hold back.

"I can make you a national hero, let everyone think you are great, let the whole country worship you, need you, and fear you. How about it?"

[Amaterasu] said it lightly, with her usual smile on the corner of her mouth. Because she knew where the girl's weakness lay.

Knowing that the other party was not simple, and knowing that there must be a conspiracy hidden in this—

But Shijo Aoi couldn't hold back in the end.

She nodded.

This was her story.

She was indeed a little jealous of Rin, but Rin was not her enemy.

She just wanted—to live her life being adored by everyone!

Fight!

The divine fire boiled, the flame sword thrust out, the black flames roared through the air like an angry dragon, and the momentum of the scorching flames tore through the mist, incinerating the evil monsters.

The storm howled, the thunder blade broke through the air, and the lightning, wrapped in fury, slashed out, aiming to cleave even this monstrous, raging fire.

The sword of divine fire and the blade of the storm collided, instantly turning blinding white, and the world lost its color.

At first, the flames held the upper hand, wild and peerless, forcing the lightning to retreat three feet.

But just as Rin's flames were about to swallow the wind and thunder in one go, the divine blade shuddered, a fierce wind suddenly rose, turning into a vortex that swirled ingeniously, and it actually forced that peerless divine fire back bit by bit, causing the flames to roll back!