Demon Sword Maiden

Volume 13 - Takamagahara: Chapter 98 - The Fury of the Kegaretsu

Lily collected Marusaburo’s Divinity, his Divine Spirit Crystal, and a vast number of treasures.

“Just what is his background? How could he possess so many treasures? No… more importantly, who exactly is that father of his that he kept boasting about?” In total, Lily obtained another thirteen Oborozuki Souls. Without hesitation, she fused every one of them into the Oborozuki Muramasa, further increasing the blade’s power.

In her battle against Marusaburo, once Lily had shattered his numerous treasures with the power of the Blood Lunar Force, he who had relied entirely on treasures to bolster himself, was revealed for what he truly was. Though he possessed the realm of a Supreme God, he lacked the actual combat strength of one. Only then was Lily able to kill him through a war of attrition that consumed divine power.

Yet even for Lily, the cost of such a victory had been immense. Her divine power was as vast as an ocean, but upon reaching the realm of a Supreme God, whose divine power was not similarly boundless?

This exhausting battle of attrition had only been necessary because her opponent possessed a treasure capable of protecting the Divinity of a Supreme God.

No matter how resilient a Supreme God’s Divinity might be, direct strikes upon it could still transmit shockwaves capable of injuring the Divine Spirit Crystal within. However, with that treasure shielding it, accomplishing such a feat became extraordinarily difficult.

Although Lily could perhaps have forced Marusaburo to surrender his Oborozuki Souls in exchange for sparing his life, she had no intention of letting him go after all the Celestial Maidens he had slaughtered.

“A Kafuku Plaque?” The item in Lily’s hand was a cloudy jade plaque streaked with natural wood-grain patterns. One side bore the character for “Calamity,” while the other was inscribed with “Fortune.”

“So this is the treasure that protected Marusaburo’s Divine Spirit Crystal?” Lily asked doubtfully.

“Lily, only members of the Kegaretsu Clan can use this treasure. Although it is exceedingly precious, and there is likely only one such piece in the entire clan, neither you nor your sisters can use it. Even if you tried, not only would it fail to protect your Spirit Palace, it would also contaminate your bodies.” Fearing that Lily might actually experiment with it, Rinne quickly warned her.

“Ah…” Lily was so fascinated by treasures that she truly had been considering giving it a try. “Then doesn’t that mean this treasure is useless to me?” Not only could she not use it herself, she couldn’t even give it to her sisters for protection.

“Lily, move all the treasures into the Mirror Dimension.”

“Alright.”

After spreading out her divine senses and confirming that no threats remained nearby, Lily allowed her consciousness to enter the Mirror Dimension as well.

Within the Celestial Demon Path, divine sense could still be used for detection, but it suffered severe interference from the endless resentment permeating the land. Beyond roughly five hundred kilometers, distinguishing details became extremely difficult. Furthermore, the intensity of the resentment varied greatly from place to place, making it impossible to generalize. The environment was highly unpredictable and constantly changing.

Rinne still looked unwell, and Lily couldn’t help but worry.

Previously, Lily had suggested giving Rinne the collected solar corona force immediately, but Rinne had insisted that all of it needed to be gathered first. Only by refining everything together at once could the greatest effect be achieved.

“Follow me.”

Lily followed Rinne into the fifth room, the one filled with stars. There stood the loom. In the past, Lily had woven cloth from starlight upon it to replace the canopy of the Sakura Parasol. Later, one of her most important restraining treasures, the Moonlight Ribbon, had also been woven from this very loom.

Using a secret art, Rinne caused an ancient furnace to materialize in the distant reaches of the starry expanse beyond the loom.

“Lily, any treasures that are no longer useful can be thrown into this furnace and reforged. Through the process, they can be refined into Shiny Essences. These essences can be used to forge new treasures or absorbed by your existing treasures to strengthen them. However, not all treasures possess the ability to absorb essences. Only treasures of the Divine Artifact class can do so.”

Lily nodded. Within the furnace burned golden flames. The fire radiated an aura of eternal, undying existence.

“The art of treasure refinement is something you wouldn’t understand anyway, so I won’t go into detail. As for the treasures you’ve collected that no longer have any use, I’ll handle the arrangements for you. Anything at the level of a spirit artifact or above can be refined.”

“Understood.” Lily nodded obediently.

“Hmm. At this rate, even the treasure vault within the Mirror Dimension won’t be able to hold everything much longer.” Rinne muttered to herself.

“Um, Senior Sister…”

“What is it?”

“I’ve always wondered about something. All the other rooms have clear boundaries and dimensions, but this starry room seems endless. What’s going on here? And can that furnace fire really burn forever?”

“This place borrows a corner of the Spirit Realm.”

“The Spirit Realm?”

“It is the world where Shikigami reside. The Spirit Realm exists intertwined with every part of the Three Realms, yet at the same time it is an existence of an entirely different nature. Within the Spirit Realm, everything exists in spiritual form.

“We can enter the Spirit Realm because we ourselves are spiritual bodies now. The loom and the furnace cannot be taken out because they are objects formed from spirit essence itself.

“Since everything within the Spirit Realm is spiritual in nature, treasures can likewise be refined into spirit essence, which is what Shiny Essence truly is.

“As for the furnace, its flame can sustain itself eternally. However, increasing its intensity during refinement does consume energy. Fortunately, the flame can absorb the impurities extracted from treasures as fuel.

“Because of that, refining treasures not only fails to weaken the flame, it actually strengthens it. The more treasures you refine, the stronger and more vigorous the flame becomes.”

“That’s truly incredible.” Realization dawned upon Lily. ‘Why did Senior Sister seem to know everything? As expected of her!’

Across the vast expanse of Takamagahara lay a region where endless clouds churned in murky darkness.

Within a shadowy palace, numerous Celestial Maidens labored endlessly. Heavy godsteel shackles were fastened around their slender ankles, leaving deep scars worn into their flesh from years of confinement. Their expressions were filled with misery as they worked in silence.

At the center of the great hall stood a deity like a colossal statue, his entire body shrouded in filth and corruption. The dim light barely penetrated the chaotic mist that billowed around him, making his features impossible to discern. Yet even from the vague outline alone, he seemed hideous beyond description.

Crack!

Without warning, a jade plaque displayed along the side of the hall shattered.

“What!?” The turbid god was struck with shock. “No… impossible! Impossible! M-My son… my son, Saburo…! He’s dead!? Dead!!! AAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!”

The foul deity erupted with unprecedented rage. Under the crushing weight of that overwhelming Divine Might, the Celestial Maidens all turned deathly pale and collapsed unconscious one after another.

“Where did you go, Saburo!? Why did you die!? Who was it? Who killed my son!? Saburooooooo!!!” The chaotic deity howled in grief. Across nearly 5,000 kilometers, the sea of clouds surged violently, transforming into foul clouds of calamity that spread throughout Takamagahara.

At that moment, another terrifying figure wreathed in an aura of extreme depravity and chaos rushed into the hall. The unconscious Celestial Maidens, regardless of their strength, inhaled traces of that sinister aura. Their cheeks immediately flushed red, and their minds fell into confusion despite their unconscious state.

“Brother! Why are you so enraged? Your Clouds of Calamity have already spread into the territory of the Amatsukami!” The figure hidden within the chaotic mist spoke. Even his voice carried a disturbing fluctuation capable of stirring endless desire in all living beings beneath heaven.

“Yasomaga! Saburo… my son Saburo has been killed! I don’t even know where, but he was killed!”

“What? That’s impossible!” Even Yasomaga within the mist was utterly shocked.

“With the Kafuku Plaque, our clan’s strongest life-preserving treasure, personally bestowed by you, how could he possibly have been killed? Saburo may not have been powerful in battle, but his divine power was immense, and his body’s regenerative ability was extraordinary. His only weakness was protected by the Kafuku Plaque. No matter how powerful an enemy he encountered, he should have been able to escape. Who could possibly kill him?”

The colossal, turbid deity was consumed by grief, and heaven and earth alike seemed to grow more polluted with every moment. “He was my last remaining son! I had three sons. Taro and Jiro were both slain by Tsukuyomi no Mikoto! Saburo was the only son I had left. I had intended to pass the position of Calamity Lord to him one day. But who could have imagined that this child, who had only been born such a short time ago, would… would die before his own father! AAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH—!!!”

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