One moment, everyone was still standing atop the snow-covered mountain, a scene as serene and ethereal as a fairyland.The very next second, however, pitch-black darkness came crashing down without warning—so deep that one couldn't even see their own hand in front of their face.
And those engulfed by the darkness could clearly sense that they were no longer on the snowy peak they had been fighting on just moments ago.
The surroundings were still cold, yet this chill no longer came from physical low temperatures. It was a different kind of cold altogether.
In fact, compared to the frigid snow mountain, the ambient temperature here was noticeably warmer. And yet, wrapped in this darkness, everyone felt their skin shiver even more violently than before.
This trembling had nothing to do with the environment.
It was the instinctive reaction of living beings—an inborn response to danger radiating from all directions.
"There's no need to panic," Ren Kuroda's calm voice echoed from the darkness."This is an ability I released. If we let him continue using fire-based spells so recklessly, the entire mountain would trigger a massive avalanche.So I used my power to pull both you and him into this space."
When they first sensed the dense yokai aura saturating the surroundings—an aura that was profoundly sinister and eerie—Tesugi-onna and the others had immediately gone on high alert.
But the moment Ren Kuroda's voice rang out, all of them let out a deep sigh of relief.
"This pitch-black environment… it's really an ability used by Lord Ren?"Nekomata tilted her head in confusion."But then why does the yokai power permeating this place feel so evil and ominous?Lord Ren is an oni, that's true, but the aura he gives off has always felt warm and overwhelmingly strong. It shouldn't feel this spine-chilling and malevolent."
Even after hearing Ren Kuroda's explanation, the yokai still found it hard to wrap their heads around the situation. The aura filling this space was simply too different from the Ren they knew.
The sudden darkness was, in fact, the Reality Marble · Oni Domain that Ren Kuroda had acquired in the Moonlit World.
As for why Nekomata and the others felt that the aura permeating the Reality Marble was so evil, unsettling, and utterly unlike Ren's own—
That was because the very power forming this Reality Marble originated from the aggregation of all humanity's negative emotions: the Evil of This World.
As the embodiment of every negative sentiment humanity had ever produced, calling it "the ultimate evil" would not be an exaggeration. Even yokai like Nekomata instinctively recoiled from its sheer malevolence.
The drastic change in environment shocked Tesugi-onna and the others—but what they didn't realize was that the Kagari family elder was in an even worse state.
In fact, his shock far surpassed theirs.
As an exorcist, the instant he was dragged into this space, he felt something eerily familiar about the surroundings.
This place… resembled a Grand Barrier.
A so-called Grand Barrier was something only the most powerful onmyoji could construct, requiring enormous preparation and vast quantities of rare materials.
Even in the present era, while a few Grand Barriers still existed, they were all relics from ancient times.
In the modern world, there was no longer a single exorcist capable of independently constructing a Grand Barrier.
After all, that was tantamount to creating an entirely separate world.
And yet—this thing that even human exorcists could no longer create… was now being deployed by a yokai.
"No… this shouldn't be a Grand Barrier," the Kagari elder muttered."Though it exists as a separate space, a Grand Barrier shouldn't have the ability to forcibly drag others inside.Which means… this must be an ability inherent to that yokai himself.But since when did oni possess such power?"
Before he could think any further, a uniform rhythm of footsteps suddenly echoed around him.
Though the darkness was absolute, the flames burning over his body still provided him with a limited field of vision.
And as the footsteps drew closer, the Kagari elder finally saw what was approaching.
Oni.
Not just a few—but an army of oni numbering in the thousands.
The sheer number alone was staggering, but what truly sent a chill through him was their overall strength.
The average level of these oni… was C-rank yokai.
At that moment, the Kagari elder finally confirmed something.
Ren Kuroda did not belong to the oni forces entrenched in Hokkaido.
Even the oni in Hokkaido, powerful as they were, could at best match this level overall—and they were currently occupying territory they had fought tooth and nail to seize. There was no way they would abandon it and send their entire army here.
"Let's continue our fight," Ren Kuroda said evenly."As for these oni, you don't need to worry about them. I have no intention of letting them interfere.I brought you into this space simply to choose a more suitable battlefield. These oni are nothing more than attachments of this domain."
As if to prove his words, the oni army stopped advancing after surrounding the two of them. They stood in perfect formation, unmoving, silently awaiting their king's victory.
With the Nichirin Blade in hand, Ren Kuroda kicked off the ground—shattering it beneath his feet—and shot toward the Kagari elder once more.
This domain was nothing like the snow mountain outside.
Within Ren's Reality Marble, there was only darkness, silence, and a ground littered with countless withered bones.
The flames burning on the Kagari elder's body made him stand out like a massive beacon in the pitch-black environment. Unlike before, there were no obstacles he could use to evade Ren's attacks.
Fire spells were shattered barehanded by Ren, one after another.
And once Ren closed the distance, the battle quickly became completely one-sided.
In truth, the moment Ren revealed this space—and especially after witnessing the thousands-strong oni army—the Kagari elder had already lost the will to fight.
Dying here did not bother him. He had resolved himself to death long ago.
What truly terrified him was this—
With power like Ren Kuroda's, and with such forces at his command… would Tokyo—the last remaining safe haven for humanity—soon fall as well?
This time, they had offended him alongside the Onmyoji Bureau. Even if Yūichi and the others escaped the mountain, would Ren come knocking on the Kagari family's door next?
Given Ren's strength and the power he commanded, that possibility was far from unlikely.
Now the Kagari elder finally understood why Ren had introduced himself earlier as "Hyakkiya".
Because he truly possessed that qualification.
Look at the malevolent aura of this space. Look at the terrifying presence of those oni soldiers.
If this oni ever set his sights on Tokyo, humanity would undoubtedly face another great calamity.
Hyakkiya—simply put, the Lord of the Night Parade of a Hundred Demons. The strongest among all yokai.
When Ren had first stated that title to Seo, the Kagari elder had assumed it was a joke. After all, yokai were everywhere now, yet none dared claim the mantle of lord over all demons.
But standing here now—watching Ren Kuroda radiate that overwhelming presence, surrounded by an army that obeyed his every command—the Kagari elder could no longer dismiss it as mere bravado.
Ren's personal strength, his powerful lieutenants outside, and now these thousands of oni—
Among all yokai forces in the world, this was unquestionably one of the strongest.
He truly had the potential to contend for supremacy.
One day, becoming a genuine Hyakkiya was not impossible.
Yet the Kagari elder no longer cared who would become the Lord of a Hundred Demons.
What he feared was what Ren Kuroda would do next—to Tokyo.
Other yokai factions were strong, yes, but they were scattered across the country, and humanity still had champions to hold them at bay.
But now, without anyone realizing it, a being with the potential to become Hyakkiya had already infiltrated Tokyo itself.
If an attack came while the city remained unprepared—led by an army like this—the consequences were unthinkable.
The fragile balance between humans and yokai would shatter instantly. With humanity's heartland under assault, other yokai factions would seize the opportunity to launch their own offensives.
As time passed, the Kagari elder's spiritual power—having peaked—began to visibly decline.
Power gained by burning one's life and soul naturally weakened once the fuel approached exhaustion.
Ren Kuroda noticed it immediately.
After casually severing one of the elder's arms, Ren realized what was happening.
He had originally thought that, having finally met a decently skilled exorcist, there was no need to rush the kill. He had even planned to learn a few powerful fire spells from the man.
But what the Kagari elder did next… caught Ren completely off guard.
Previously, the elder had always dodged Ren's Nichirin Blade.
This time, he didn't evade at all.
He allowed the blade to pierce straight through his chest.
And instead of retreating, he lunged forward—throwing himself into Ren's embrace.
With his only remaining arm, he locked it tightly around Ren's waist.
Then, unleashing the very last of his strength, he slammed both of them backward—straight into the ranks of the oni army.
Having done all that, the Kagari elder wore a look of complete relief.
And then—
He detonated all the remaining spiritual power in his body.
..
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