"Hmm?"
Tianqi Sanluo frowned, facing the dark muzzle of Tokisaki Kurumi's gun.
"I'm sorry, Miss Tianqi. In order to ensure that my upcoming battle with Miss Mana won't be affected by any external interference, I'll have to trouble you for a bit."
From the expression on Kurumi's face, it didn't look like she was lying.
And given Kurumi's current strength, even if her true body had descended, she definitely wouldn't be a match for Tianqi Sanluo.
Kurumi probably wanted a fair and just fight against Mana—to completely shatter her confidence and make her clearly understand the absolute difference in power between herself and a Spirit.
As for why she would aim her gun at Tianqi Sanluo, who was supposed to be an ally? Most likely because Tianqi Sanluo had acted rashly earlier—taking out that unstable clone ahead of time—causing Kurumi's main body to feel threatened.
After all, no one wants to be in a full-on battle while having to constantly guard against a possible sneak attack—
For example, a backstab from an ally.
"Oh, I see. I don't really care—of course, that's assuming you can actually pull it off."
Tianqi Sanluo shrugged. At least for now, this ally was still useful. There was no need to start a fight over something this trivial.
If Kurumi simply didn't want her to interfere and didn't intend to turn hostile, then this shot probably wouldn't be lethal. Even if it was, it most likely wouldn't break through Tianqi Sanluo's defenses.
Given her ability to control time, this bullet was likely meant to pause or slow down time.
However, the fact that she actually dared to point her gun at her—well, that clearly meant Kurumi hadn't been beaten enough recently and was starting to think too highly of herself.
She needed to be taught a good lesson about what true power really meant.
"Miss Tianqi is as confident as ever, I see."
Kurumi said with a faint smile, pulling the trigger.
At the very moment that the pitch-black bullet—transformed from shadow—shot out from the muzzle, a dark mist began to spread over the black section of the triangular pendant on Tianqi Sanluo's necklace, gradually engulfing the entire pendant's surface.
At the same time, aboard the airship Fraxinus, an alarm sounded sharply—the system had detected an enormous surge of spirit energy from Tianqi Sanluo.
"Spirit power reading—negative value detected... Genie (Shura) has inverted!"
A crew member shouted in disbelief at the numbers displayed on the spirit power monitor.
"What?! How could that be..."
As chaos erupted aboard Fraxinus, Murasame Reine frowned deeply, staring at Tianqi Sanluo through the monitor screen, her left hand unconsciously tightening into a fist.
"Shura Trial."
Tianqi Sanluo softly called out the name of her final Angel—no, her Demon King.
In an instant, infinite darkness burst forth from the triangular pendant, swallowing everything around her, forming a black vortex.
Within it, boundless and violent spiritual energy rampaged uncontrollably—everything except Tianqi Sanluo herself was completely annihilated.
Kurumi's Second Bullet hit the black vortex, but it didn't even cause a ripple before it was torn apart by the raging energy and vanished into nothingness.
"What?!"
Kurumi was utterly shocked.
Not only her—Shinomiya Mana and Itsuka Shido also stared wide-eyed at the towering black vortex.
Even though they weren't Spirits, they could feel the immense, violent spiritual pressure emanating from it.
After several dozen seconds, the vortex slowly dissipated—revealing Tianqi Sanluo, expressionless, holding a long sword roughly seven feet in length, black and red in color.
The sword's blade was wide yet thin, etched with blood-red runes. Its square-edged design resembled the legendary Heavenly Emperor Sword seen in ancient dramas.
Golden patterns adorned the hilt, and the tassel at the end shimmered in royal purple-gold, lending the weapon a regal air that contrasted sharply with its ominous aura.
Had she not seen it with her own eyes, Tianqi Sanluo would never have believed that the Demon King she possessed looked like this.
When she first learned its name, she had imagined something far more grotesque.
But regardless of appearance, its power was unquestionably real.
Shura Trial, the Demon King—corresponding to the third and final mutated Holy Pillar of the Triad: the Pillar of Violence.
Perhaps by coincidence—or perhaps not—just like her designation, Genie (Shura), only when Shura Trial descended could Tianqi Sanluo unleash her truest and greatest power.
To put it bluntly, her entire spirit armor had always been designed as a perfect match for this very Demon King.
Unlike her other two Angels—Burning Immortal Flame (Fire Attribute) and Polar Ice Burst (Ice Attribute)—
Shura Trial was not bound to any element.
It had only one ability:
Destruction.
Yes—this power, born from the most powerful and corrupted of the Three Holy Pillars, represented the ability to annihilate all things.
That was also why, after the Kabbalistic Tree of Life realized the Holy Pillar's energy had mutated and failed to purify it, it ultimately chose to stand aside.
Its own weakened power and the Pillar of Violence's overwhelming dominance forced the Tree of Life to abandon the idea of restoring balance—leaving it instead for Tianqi Sanluo to manage on her own.
And now, both to show off her true might and to keep Kurumi from thinking she could manipulate her, Tianqi Sanluo had finally drawn her trump card.
After all, even without it, they were still no match for her.
So what if they knew?
Ultimate destruction has no countermeasure.
From what she had learned from the Tree of Life, the only being with a comparable force was Ain (Nothingness)—a being that had long since transcended the Tree itself.
"Well, well... I didn't expect Miss Tianqi to have another Angel."
Kurumi forced out a strained laugh after recovering from her initial shock.
As a Spirit, she could sense clearly just how terrifying the power contained within Tianqi Sanluo's black-and-red sword truly was.
"Strictly speaking, it's a Demon King. But whatever—it doesn't matter anymore."
Tianqi Sanluo swept her gaze lazily around.
Everything the black vortex had touched had seemingly been erased from existence—leaving behind no trace, as if that space had never existed.
The iron fences and railings behind her had been wiped out as well, forcing her to move to another spot where she leaned casually against the fence, twirling the long sword in her hand, occasionally glancing toward Kurumi and the others.
"All right, you can continue your battle now."
"..."
For some reason, a deathly silence fell over the scene.
Everyone's eyes turned simultaneously toward Tianqi Sanluo—or more precisely, toward the Demon King in her hand.
Kurumi, of course, knew what a Demon King was.
After realizing that her Second Bullet had no effect and feeling the inverted spirit power surging from Tianqi Sanluo, her gaze grew increasingly wary and uneasy.
She had thought that, with the power of her Angel of Time, even if she couldn't defeat Tianqi Sanluo head-on, she could at least stall her for a while or escape if needed.
But now... it seemed she had overestimated herself.
The sense of oppression emanating from Shura Trial—
It was something she hadn't felt since that woman, the one who had given her her Spirit Crystal.
As for Mana, though she didn't understand what a "Demon King" was, her intuition told her clearly—this was not someone she could afford to provoke.
And Shido... well, as expected, he was completely dumbfounded.
"Hmm? Why are you all staring at me?"
Seeing that no one was fighting and everyone was just staring at her, Tianqi Sanluo raised her Demon King unhappily and gave it a few casual swings.
That tiny motion alone was enough—Mana and Kurumi instantly shifted into full alert, ready to turn tail and run at any second.
"Ah, I see now."
A faintly mocking smile curved Tianqi Sanluo's lips as she dismissed Shura Trial, recalling it into herself.
That, too, was intentional.
After all, even this so-called ally, Tokisaki Kurumi, wasn't truly on her side.
Since that was the case, she might as well use the Demon King's overwhelming aura to firmly intimidate them—so they wouldn't dare act recklessly again.
Incidentally, once the Demon King was withdrawn, Tianqi Sanluo's spirit power returned to its normal positive state.
"Well then, you can continue now, right?"
Having achieved her purpose, Tianqi Sanluo went back to her usual stance—
ready to sit back, relax, and enjoy the show.