Volume 3
Chapter 14
Part 3
Tears of
Slumber Reaching the Heavens 3
Translator : PolterGlast
Dodging the blast of
wind that exploded near her, Saki swung her pure white naginata.
She squandered the
divine energy that ceaselessly welled up from the depths of her heart, pouring
it into maintaining Aragamioroshi.
——He!!
In sync with Kankyō
Dōji's descending fist, she released her kneaded divine energy.
Kihoin-style
Spirit Technique, Shoden, ―Kyūshou.
A shockwave erupted
from the ground, sweeping up crimson flames and sweeping the ogre's feet away.
For a being as massive
as a Giant Ogre, it should have been a shock that would throw it off balance.
However, Kankyō Dōji's
fist scattered the swirling heat wave and headed towards Saki.
"For a mere Ogre,
you sure are tough!!"
"——Fool. I have
accumulated merits and virtues, and the will of the gods will never reach my
body.
You better bow your
head and take solemn refuge in my Lord through death."
From between the gaps
of his bared fangs, a constant recitation of sutras reached her.
Undeterred by the
purifying flames, Kankyō Dōji approached, crawling along the ground.
Fortunately, the
fighting style of this Ancient Ogre was not so different from the one Saki
knew.
The Ogre boasted its
physical protection, and the embodiment of violence that trampled with its
powerful arms. But all of it was perfected at an incredibly high level.
―No. It wasn't just that.
Saki gnashed her teeth
instinctively. If that were all, it would be impossible for him to remain so
composed in the face of divine power. Unlike Incarnations (High-rank Kegare),
Metamorphs (Medium-rank Kegare) have a limit to the miasma that can reside
within their bodies.
A technique that
involves controlling miasma, understanding the body, and being sublimated with
incredible skill.
She had to admit it.
—This Ogre was,
"Strong!!"
Saki, despite the
despair that closed in on her, still did not retreat, and instead confronted it
head-on.
Her posture was like a
swallow reigning over the earth. Violet divine energy erupted, gouging the
ground beneath Saki's feet with flames.
Kihoin-style
Spirit Technique, Chuden―
"―Jūji-no-Suri."
A cross-shaped sword
flash instantly turned into a firestorm.
The flames of
purification engulfed Saki. But the storm of fists unleashed by Dōji easily
blew this away.
"It's
futile."
Saki's divine power
confronted the embodiment of violence unleashed from both sides without fear.
Kihoin-style
Spirit Technique, Consecutive Technique―
"―Tsuinaougi."
The flames of
purification given by a distant divine pillar forcibly repelled the fist and
exposed Kankyō dōji's chest.
A perfect opportunity.
Saki's arm flipped, and the pure white tip of naginata wrapped in flames
pierced forth to the center.
Kihoin-style
Spirit Technique, Chuden―
"―Kitsutsukitōshii!!"
The blow that struck
repeated explosions was indeed thrust into the Dōji's abdomen.
However, the tip only
reached the surface. Dōji's fist seized the overflowing flames along with the
blade, and Saki's offensive came to an abrupt end.
"Kuh."
"You're just a
little girl after all. Even if you have the support of a wood-element divine
pillar, you'll end up being tossed around and fall."
―Just an immature fool, swayed by your own talent.
The sneer he told her
overlapped with Ravana's mockery.
No matter how much
infinite divinity a divine pillar bestowed upon Saki, it was still only an
impromptu action.
―Saki was aware of this herself.
There was no doubt
that her firepower and endurance had increased incomparably compared to before.
But that was all. The
fact that Saki, who was still clumsy with her spirit techniques, was using them
hadn't changed. Her skills and experience were only what was expected of her
age.
The blade of the
naginata, which was being gripped by the fist suddenly being lifted up.
"Ugh!"
"The price of
immaturity—"
Unable to resist, her
slender body was thrown into the air.
"You should atone
with that body!"
Kankyō Dōji's fist was
launched at Saki, who was floating in the air.
A straightforward
attack, underestimating her inability to escape. Seizing the momentary opening,
Saki's body danced in the air.
Kihoin-style
Spirit Technique, Uraden, ―Hayabusa-shoke.
Carving a trail of
afterimages in the air, she narrowly dodged the fist.
The divine energy
dwelling in her naginata flashed like a fang and fell onto Kankyō Dōji's
forehead.
Layering Pārijāta's
authority on the blow, she concentrated the firepower of her divine energy and
the recoil returned to Saki at a single point.
The maximum power that
Saki could reach engulfed the Ogre's face, and a spiral of flames raced behind
her.
A solid response
returned to her hand.
"Ha, —!?"
"Insolent.
How dare a mere scrap
of wood bite into the benevolence of my Lord."
Kankyō Dōji's fist
swung and struck Saki's flank, where she had raised a voice.
The impact,
transmitted through the naginata she barely held as a shield, choked her
breathing.
Half of Kankyō Dōji's
face was scorched, but it seemed far from a fatal wound.
A shadow of death in
the shape of a giant fist fell on top of Saki's head as she fell to the ground
and rolled.
There was no way to
dodge. The thought of death (resignation) crossed Saki's mind.
"Enretsu!"
With those words, a
flying slash flashed from one of the spiritual paths, causing a large
laceration on Kankyō Dōji's shoulder.
——Huh!?
An unreasonable blow
that easily surpassed the Ogre's tough skin and deep understanding.
Black blood spurted
out, and stopped the Giant Ogre in his tracks in confusion.
"Who?"
"I see. I
wondered why, after making me wait so long, you would come to the sanctuary
instead of my master. Now that I think about it, it makes sense. —Isn't this
fate, Kankyō Dōji?"
A boy, holding an
unadorned sword, emerged from the torii gate and laughed mockingly.
"For a mere
metamorph like you to be devoted to a divine pillar is a laughable story. Has
the man-eater even grasped a single bit of enlightenment?"
"……Hyakkimaru.
Are you going to engrave defeat on this body once again?"
Hundreds of years ago,
he was the leader of the Giant Ogre that wielded tyranny in the Nakiri
territory. Looking up at his huge frame, Nakiri Jin took a swing of his divine
artifact.
Severing even the
moisture that filled the divine realm, he carved its trajectory in the void.
Hyakkimaru's power
strengthens its wielder to the point that one can fight Kankyō Dōji head-on. It
also has a divine attribute that erodes the defenses of any Ogre species within
its range.
Although it is limited
to Ogre species, it would not allow any defeat.
That rugged divine
artifact was the most abhorrent existence to Kankyō Dōji.
"Very well."
A roar of fury escaped
from the depths of his throat as he glared at Jin.
"I will grind you
to dust and avenge the humiliation I have tasted in the past!"
——Gaa, aa, aaa!
No longer interested
in Saki, Kankyō Dōji roared and raged.
---
Just before he could
cleave Ravana in two, the brilliance of Rakuyō Zakuro turned to ash in Akira's
palm.
The blade of
contradiction cast a shadow on the slender throat, and then dissipated in vain.
"When I once had
ten heads, I challenged nine divine pillars with my own body.
We were outnumbered.
Without any way to defeat them, we sought power and cultivated ourselves
through asceticism, which became our divine artifact."
He simply divided the
existence of humans into ten ideologies and enshrined them in his ten heads.
——The Nine Dharma
Treasures.
In this asceticism,
the heads along with sutras inscribed with mantras were cut off and burned in a
volcano.
When Ravana's nine
heads, leaving behind his true human nature (ahamkara), were burned in the
essence of fire, he gained the power to never be defeated by any divine pillar.
The Noh mask is a
divine artifact forged from that asceticism. If the nine Noh masks were to be
completely destroyed with the divine energy and sacred artifacts belonging to
the Fire element, Ravana would be able to reproduce the ultimate outcome of his
asceticism as the divine realm's attributes, in exchange for all of them.
Even with the power of
a god slayer, one could not harm Ravana more than nine times. Because the
moment the attack reaches Ravana it will be regarded as a defeat.
Akira's body, which
had become like a bare hand, moved fatally.
"After I seal
that divine artifact that holds the power to kill a divine pillar."
The divine pillar's
blue right arm turned. The whip blade roared.
The enormous mass that
was struck down turned Akira's spirit weapon, which he used as a shield, into a
wreck with a single blow.
"——All that
remains is to overthrow Takamikura and break the chain of the Five
Elements."
In desperation, a
talisman danced from Akira's hand, activated in the gap between them.
The explosion blew the
iron whip away and flung Akira's body to the other side.
After he rolled on the
ground and stopped, he activated all the remaining regeneration talismans. The
pale blue flame healed his divine energy, and squandering it all, Akira wished
for the divine artifact that remained in the depths of his heart.
"Be
glorious, ——Jakuen Gayou!"
The blade of the
divine artifact that appeared in his palm remained transparent and silent. All
that Akira grasped was no different from a sturdy iron sword.
Nevertheless, he
kicked the ground, leaving an exhalation.
Coinciding with the
downward strike, he activated an offensive talisman.
A temporary divine
energy dwelled in the blade, heading towards Ravana.
The pilgrimage of the
Five Elements had forced Akira to fight many battles. The talismans remaining
in his hand were probably few.
Smiling cruelly, the
divine pillar swung her right arm.
The returning Urumi's
(iron whip) blade entangled with Jakuen Gayō.
"——Haa!!"
Shizumi's yell pierced
out sharply.
She intercepted the
approaching Vajra with Kaiten Kyokuya, however, Ravana pressed her free left
palm against Akira's body.
Ravana's divine domain
attribute crept into the inner part of Akira's heart, baring its fangs at the
bond connecting Akira and Shuka.
Following that,
everything that Shuka had given Akira disappeared from his heart.
—Along with a tremendous sense of loss, Jakuen Gayō
vanished like an illusion.
"Why do you think
I summoned the divine pillars to the Cornerstone Mountains? —It's to sever the
chain of the Five Elements through Kanna-no-Mikura and seal the Cornerstone
Mountains.
If I topple Takamikura
in this state, it would be the same as if I had taken control of the five
dragon's lairs."
Only one divine pillar
can reside in one dragon's lair. But what happens if one divine pillar has
multiple bodies, like Ravana who has ten heads in one body?
She would be reborn as
a new divine pillar that would retain the functions of the divine pillars of
Takamagahara and rule over multiple dragon's lairs.
That was Ravana's true
goal in aiming for Takamagahara.
"I won't let
you!"
Even after being
deprived of all means of resistance, Akira did not stop. His offensive step did
not falter, and he grasped the spirit of water that danced in the void with his
outstretched palm.
An avalanche of water
Qi filled Akira's body.
Taking on a black,
twinkling radiance, Akira accelerated the spirit power swirling in his dantian.
He strengthened
himself with Aragamioroshi. His offensive step shattered the ground, and the
gushing water created a sharp blade in his right palm.
—Although he was born in Kokuten Province, Akira knew
little of the Gioin-style. In the past, when he was shunned as a pseudo-kegare,
the people of Ugetsu mocked him, saying that these spirit techniques would be
tainted if seen by him, so they kept Akira and the spirit techniques extremely
far apart.
It would be difficult
for Akira to replicate the spirit technique no matter how much he wanted to, as
he did not know the underlying swordsmanship.
But if he based it on
the Kihoin-style, he could reproduce a crude imitation.
"Strike!!"
With the spirits'
support, he unleashed a series of attacks capable of severing even steel.
All of Ravana's arms,
except for the one holding Vajra, which held Kaiten Kyokuya in check, smashed
through the water slashes unleashed by Akira.
Amidst the flying
water blades, Ravana's unwavering mockery met Akira's gaze. Crushed by even a
momentary pause, Akira swung his palm horizontally.
A newly unleashed
flying slash reached the blue-colored skin, but it shattered into spirit
lights.
"I told you that
I am the divine pillar of the ocean. ——There's no way such a mere drop will be
able to pierce me."
"But I can still
stall for time, right?"
Responding to Akira's
shout as he readied another water blade, Ravana smirked.
"Indeed.
—However, it's the same as admitting you've run out of
options."
"!"
Having been hit right
on the mark, Akira gasped.
Ravana instantly
closed the distance to Akira, who had involuntarily retreated.
"Even if it's
Kanna-no-Mikura, it will take at least a night to re-dye a soul dyed in the
Fire Element with another divine pillar. Since I've gone to so much trouble,
I'll finish you off now."
"—I won't let
you."
Parrying the iron whip
that swung diagonally at Akira, Shizumi stood in its path.
The tip of Kaiten
Kyokuya danced, and the resulting impact widened the distance between her and
Ravana.
The divine artifact
shaped like a lacquered spear was firmly planted, pointing towards heaven and
earth.
"Divine
Domain Release."
At the same time as
the girl's determination spilled from her cherry-red lips, the tip of the
divine artifact pierced a hole in the ground.
"Water
reflection, swaying like an upside-down moon"
The tip of Kaiten
Kyokuya transformed into a concept and thrust itself into the water dragon
veins that flowed through Mount Kayanowa.
"Circling
and disappearing, winter's hazy glow."
The enormous fire that
had manifested engulfed the water, and steam exploded.
Instantly, with a
roar, a heat wave engulfed Ravana.
Rewriting the Five
Elements, forcefully drew the Fire Element to Mount Kayanowa.
It was a roundabout
way to be wary of Ravana's authority, but if stirred by the purification and
destruction that the fire element possesses, she surely would not go unscathed.
"……Fufu, you
surprise me."
A cool, unfazed voice
echoed from beyond the clearing steam.
"Since the water
element didn't work, you tried to purify me with the fire element. It's not a
bad idea, but it's a bit too simple."
The heat wave stirred
the divine pillar's saree, ruffling it slightly.
A faint sound of feet
stepping on the ground. The iron whip sliced through the steam multiple times,
and Ravana, unharmed, pressed closer to Shizumi.
The divine pillar's
authority, stretching towards Kaiten Kyokuya, sealed Shizumi's fate. The tip of
the spear sprang up, and the iron whip flicked as the spearhead and the butt
switched places.
"Kuh!"
"It's over,
Kanna-no-Mikura. I'll put an end to all your worries here."
Shizumi's body was
thrown backward by the powerful, heavy blow. In exchange, Ravana closed the
distance to Akira.
They clashed, and the
water blade barely deflected the unleashed iron whip.
However, the Vajra,
which was launched from the other side, was aimed at Akira.
He kicked the ground
and tried to retreat, but the iron whip bared its fangs from behind him as
well.
The undulating
trajectory blocked his escape route, and Akira realized he could not escape.
Shuka's divine
blessing, which had filled Akira, was already depleted, and not even a trace of
the divine artifact remained.
Everything was gone,
and he was back to his old, helpless self.
——Listen, Akira.
As Akira prepared to
lose one of his arms, a voice, once whispered by someone, suddenly resurfaced
in Akira's mind.
——Remember this...
A girl's wish engraved
in the gap of drowsiness, heated by the lingering heat of summer.
Nostalgic. A forgotten
decree from his childhood.
——When the first light of dawn breaks, and the day
passes under a blue sky, and twilight dyes everything crimson. It is in that
moment, piercing through all of it, that my true name will be born.
Remember this.
At the end of the sea where the obsidian shines, I will wait for you, Akira.
Akira's way
home is mine.
Unconsciously, he
reached out for the iron whip.
In a moment that felt
like an eternity, Akira's desperate cry was answered, and a black radiance
transformed into a shield before him.
——It is the Northern Spirit Turtle. Immovable,
slumbering in this mortal world.
Easily deflecting the
iron whip and blocking the Vajra, the turtle shell pattern barrier, small yet
dense, remained unmoved, repelling Ravana as she attempted to close the
distance.
——The ruler of the cradle, seated in the obsidian sea.
Akira's eyes glowed,
becoming infinitely transparent. They transformed into white, blue, red, and
finally into a black radiance that colored the night sky.
His very soul
trembled, yearning for the name he had once suppressed.
"I
beseech you, Banshou Banko Daigongen."
A divine spirit
belonging to the same Water Element. Ravana overlaid the Nine Dharma Treasures
with her divine energy and tried to pierce Akira's shield.
"Slumber
in silence, Winter's Spirit Turtle Genrei-hime!"
——Found you.
A voiceless voice
echoed from far above.
A whirlpool of water
erupted from beneath Akira, washing away everything and then disappearing as it
scoured the ground.
Akira, who remained at
the center of it, opened his eyes and saw the familiar figure of a young girl.
Dressed in a simple
kimono adorned with obsidian and decorated with silver threads, glittering like
the night sky.
She was the same girl
he knew, who seemed to be about ten years old.
"Kuro-sama."
Naturally, Akira
called out the name from that time.
Her slender shoulders
trembled with emotion.
"Name..."
More eloquently than
words, tears rolled down her cheeks as she responded.
"You called my
name, didn't you? ——My name, once more..."
"It's been a while.
——Genrei."
Hearing her divine
name spoken to her, Genrei weakly struck Akira with her fist. It was a tangible
confirmation of her existence, something she had thought she had lost.
"Please don't go
anywhere."
Genrei could tell that
Akira was making a troubled expression.
But even so, she shook
her head and continued to speak.
Crying, she struck out
with her fist again and again,
——Confirming over and
over the miracle of Akira's presence.
When he was a child,
he only thought of her as an older girl.
Her slender, trembling
shoulders were weak, as befitted her appearance.
―But now, for the first time in his life, Akira
realized that he had somehow surpassed her.
-----
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