In a secret chamber blanketed by countless candles, Masamichi Yaga had changed into a Shinto priest's kariginu (hunting robe). In his hand, he held a wooden wand adorned with zig-zag paper streamers—a Gohei—used for purification and prayer before exorcism rituals.
Yaga strictly followed the "Left-Right-Left" motion, waving the wand over Kenmei's back while occasionally sprinkling purified holy water on him.
"Clear your mind of distractions..."
To facilitate the ritual, Kenmei withdrew all his psychic energy. He sat silently in the center of the ritual altar. As the Gohei gently brushed over his body, he felt a strange sensation—his heart grew tranquil, and a wave of drowsiness washed over him.
Yaga took a deep breath, swapping the ritual tool for a Vajra pestle (Demon-Subduing Pestle), and slowly chanted:
"Azure Emperor of the East, Red Emperor of the South, White Emperor of the West, Black Emperor of the North, Yellow Emperor of the Center. The Three Terraces of the Big Dipper, the Five Stars of Astronomy. Demon Seal, Bind!"
As the incantation was released, dozens of spinning golden magic circles appeared beneath Kenmei. Mysterious Sanskrit and Buddhist symbols glowed brilliantly within the circles.
This was the Eight-Direction Avalokitesvara Demon-Subduing Formation, created by the master sorcerer Genshin a thousand years ago. It possessed the power to exorcise and purify all evil. Legend had it that the sarira (relic) left behind after this master's passing became the legendary Special Grade Cursed Object: Prison Realm.
The pale candles surrounding them shed their eerie atmosphere, emitting a holy light instead.
Even more astonishingly, the paintings of Rakshasa and Asura on the four walls seemed to come alive, their fierce eyes bulging as if they were about to leap off the murals.
"Azure Dragon avoids ten thousand soldiers, White Tiger avoids misfortune, Vermilion Bird avoids gossip, Black Tortoise avoids ten thousand ghosts, Yellow Dragon subdues demons."
As the chant progressed, the Vajra pestle in Yaga's hand radiated a light as brilliant as the sun, containing the power to dispel all monsters and spirits.
The characters on the magic formation began to leap off the surface like tadpoles, streaming continuously from all directions toward Kenmei's body.
When the first rune imprinted itself onto Kenmei, the dormant cherry blossom magatama crest on his arm finally reacted. It began to emit a bewitching red glow.
As more runes climbed onto Kenmei's body, the red light grew increasingly wicked. The surrounding candles began to flicker uneasily.
Noticing this, Yaga sped up his chanting.
"Homage! Universal Diamond! Violent Demon Hindrance! Great Wrathful One! Destroy! Terror! Holy Wrath Speaker! Acala!"
When the golden light on the Vajra pestle reached its peak, Yaga thrust it violently toward the glowing, eerie cherry blossom mark on Kenmei's arm.
The moment they made contact, the quiet chamber was filled with the sound of a billion mouths laughing shrilly in unison, mocking Yaga's overconfidence.
"Damn it..."
Yaga felt his head was about to explode like a bomb. Two streams of fresh blood trickled from his ears due to the sudden sonic assault.
Yet he didn't let go. He gripped the Vajra pestle tightly, trying to tear apart the crest's power, locked in a stalemate.
But when the flame of the first candle in the chamber shrank rapidly and extinguished without warning, Yaga's heart skipped a beat.
That was just the beginning. More and more candles were blown out slowly by some invisible force.
As the "ghost blowing out the lamp" phenomenon continued, the light in the chamber dimmed. soon, only thirteen candles remained, flickering weakly in the wind like dying embers.
The once-vivid murals faded before the eerie red light. In the dim candlelight, the eyes of the war-god Asuras and Rakshasas began to weep blood. They were exhausted.
CRACK.
The first sound of fracturing came from the Vajra pestle in Yaga's hand. More and more cracks appeared on its surface.
In the next second, amidst the sound of the ritual tool shattering, Yaga spat out a large mouthful of blood. His body was blasted backward several meters by an inexplicable, terrifying force, knocking over countless golden candlesticks along the way. He didn't stop until he slammed heavily into the wall, sliding down into the ruins, his fate unknown.
At that moment, the final candle extinguished.
The chamber plunged into total darkness. Only the red light from Kenmei's arm and the piercing, terrifying laughter echoing continuously remained.
Initially, the laughter sounded like countless female voices. But as it went on, it became increasingly manic and horrifying. Just the aura within the sound was enough to make one lose their sanity.
Then, an even more ominous aura spilled from the pattern on Kenmei's arm, instantly enveloping the entire chamber.
It felt as if a Great Terror was descending. The runes on the walls flipped. The exorcism symbols in the formation beneath Kenmei twisted under the red light, the characters contorting until they turned into piles of flesh-like substance.
Eventually, the entire chamber was covered in indescribable fleshy tentacles. An unimaginable volume of flesh wriggled madly, dripping with blood-colored liquid. Terrifying, evil Cursed Energy churned on the surface of these monstrosities, and the veins on the flesh glowed with a scarlet light.
Throughout this, Kenmei sat quietly like a cold statue, seemingly unaware of the changes around him.
The flesh in front of Kenmei churned, quickly gathering and expanding into a giant flower bud about two meters long.
Thump-thump.
When the first heartbeat sounded from within, all reality around it began to erode. It was rapidly covered by a terrifying power—if one had to describe it, it was like the pinnacle of a Sorcerer's innate technique, a Domain Expansion, carving out a new space within reality.
Riiiiiip.
The sound of tearing flesh echoed. A slender, flawless white arm reached out from the bud-like object. Finally, a body so beautiful it would stun the gods struggled free from the filthy, foul flesh.
It was a girl with red pupils and long, snow-white hair like fine silk. Her beauty was unparalleled.
The crimson Cursed Energy wrapped around her was of an unimaginable density. Compared to her, Geto's pride and joy, the Special Grade "Rainbow Dragon," was insignificant—like comparing heaven and earth. Just looking into her eyes felt like being burned; her very existence twisted the space around her.
On the girl's forehead was the same symbol as the Nine-Tailed Fox. Under the flickering scarlet light, her smooth skin seemed coated in a bewitching glow.
In this atmosphere of a terrifying fleshy hell, there was a breathtaking, soul-freezing beauty.
As she moved forward, the disgusting flesh on the ground receded like the tide. She stopped when she reached Kenmei.
"Following the promise made back then."
Looking at him so close, a trace of tenderness appeared on the beautiful girl's cold face. She slowly crouched down, reaching out to caress Kenmei's cheek.
"I have come to find you."
SMACK.
Unexpectedly, Kenmei's closed eyes snapped open. He slapped her hand away.
"Sorry, we're not close."
Staring at her with emotionless eyes glowing blue, he spoke coldly:
"Also, who are you?"
At that moment, a magnificent, terrifying blue silhouette slowly materialized behind Kenmei.
It was his strongest trump card—the Scarab Occult Terminator.
In this dark, fallen hell of flesh, the blue giant stood tall. Its ceramite armor was engraved with hieroglyphs, and its body, filled with forbidden runes, radiated immense psychic energy that distorted space, making it appear even more solemn, holy, and inviolable!