Epic Of Caterpillar

Chapter 2809 - 2810: Ambush

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After a slightly complicated but ultimately lighthearted Cosmic Beast hunt, we returned to the karaoke lounge—only to find a large group of Yakuza waiting for us.

They radiated strange auras and seemed to know exactly where we were, though they hadnʼt entered Frankʼs Divine Realm. Most likely, they couldnʼt breach it as easily as we could.

The first strange thing was how they stood there, waiting, as if they knew the precise moment we would arrive. The second was the nature of their auras, which flared just as my Spirit Plane detection device activated.

Unfazed by the threat of becoming enemies of Tokyoʼs three great families, the man in sunglasses scoffed and laughed.

”Hah! Weʼve received power from a certain deity. Vampires, Werewolves, even the Amaterasu Clan... we donʼt care.”

And then it happened.

With a snap of his fingers, the world around us began to shift.

Spiritual Energy surged from the man, flooding the room and summoning a powerful Domain—an entire world made of vibrant spiritual crystals.

The purest spiritual energy filled the air, overwhelming our lungs and triggering violent reactions in our bodies.

My current body was still weaker than my true form, which had become this vesselʼs ”soul” in a sense.

Even so, I managed to expel the rapidly crystallizing energy from my lungs and body using a breathing method that circulated Mana and Ki outward.

But the others werenʼt faring as well.

”Ugh...! W-What is this place?! Agh!” Frank coughed up crystals, blood dripping from his mouth.

”Itʼs full of colorful crystals... Ack! Spirit energy! S-So much! Iʼve never felt anything like this... itʼs filling our lungs—donʼt breathe! Cover your mouths!” Matsuo gasped, coughing blood and shards. ”Aagh...!”

”W-Whatʼs this? Ngh...” Hiromi groaned.

”What the fuck!” Erika snapped.

”Haah, this place is...?” Mammon muttered. He was the only one aside from me who had adapted quickly.

”Welcome, little bastards! This is our Spirit Domain!” the sunglasses-wearing Yakuza laughed, gripping a katana in one hand and a gun in the other. ”Weʼre sick of you brats from the three families! Today, our counterattack begins! Weʼre sending your heads to your parents—by mail!”

”Are you insane?!” Matsuo shouted. ”E-Even if you kill us now, do you really think you can face all three factions?! Weʼre backed not just by Amaterasu-sama, but by other Kami as well—A A A A A A G G H!”

Matsuo screamed as the Yakuza slashed at him. A rainbow-colored electric spirit attack surged from the blade, electrocuting him and sending him writhing in agony.

”Shut the hell up! None of you have ever been taught a real lesson, huh?” the Yakuza growled. ”Youʼre all spoiled bats who donʼt know any better!”

”...” I stood still, feigning pain. ”Ugh...! But where did you get that power? And who are you, anyway?”

”Heheh, what a beautiful young lady...” the man chuckled, licking his lips as he looked at me. ”Before we kill you, we might as well have some fun with these girls first, right boys?”

”Hell yeah, Aniki!”

”I call dibs on the purple-haired one!”

”Oh, Iʼve never had a vampire before. Think sheʼs tight?”

”Iʼll raw dog that werewolf, hahaha!”

”Y-You disgusting bastards, shut your mouths!” Erika roared, rising to her feet even as crystals formed across her body. ”Iʼm going to tear you to shreds!!! AWOOOO!”

RUMBLE!

”Huh?!”

Her transformation triggered. She became a majestic golden werewolf, and the explosion of pure Ki from her body temporarily cleansed her of the spiritual contamination. She charged at the nearest thug.

”DIE!”

”Tsk!”

The man flinched and stepped back, then raised his hand and summoned a massive hammer made of blue, yellow, and red spirit crystals. The elements of ice, thunder, and fire surged through it as he swung.

”Wha...?!”

CLAAASH!

A shockwave of golden Ki and spiritual elements erupted. Erika intercepted the blow with her clawed hands, but her claws cracked and shattered. She vomited blood and was sent flying, crashing into a towering spire of crystal.

BOOOM!

”Erika!” Frank screamed, coughing blood, half of his body crystallized. ”N-No...! This canʼt be happening...!”

He crawled toward her, finding her broken and impaled by several spirit crystals.

”Heheh! Itʼs over for you bastards!” the Yakuza leader laughed.

”So let me get this straight—you wonʼt even tell me your name?” I asked. The atmosphere turned cold, and the light from the crystals dimmed.

All five Yakuza turned to me, their expressions shifting as I spoke in a voice they could no longer ignore.

”And who the hell are you to talk like youʼre someone important?” the leader asked, lowering his sunglasses. His sharp eyes glowed with rainbow spirit light.

”Oh, youʼd be terrified to know,” I said with a wicked smile, stepping forward.

”...?!”

They quickly realized the truth. The spirit energy wasnʼt harming me.

In fact, through my Martial Arts and Arcane Path techniques—combined with my new Alchemy—I was synthesizing the rich spirit energy of this domain.

I was converting it into Ki and Mana, accelerating my Cultivation.

This space was perfect. I was completing more Mana Entanglement Threads by the second.

My consciousness was expanding rapidly.

Isnʼt this ideal? I needed a challenge to push myself forward.

No System.

No Skills.

Just me—and everything Iʼve learned.

Now, Iʼll push it all to the limit.

But first—

”Arcane Path Runic Formation.”

FLAAASH!

Using the Rune knowledge I learned from Medea, combined with my understanding of Consciousness and Formation Creation, I manifested a large runic array.

A spell formed, imitating the effects of one of my skills.

”Healing Sunray.”

FLASH!

A radiant beam of sunlight burst from the floating Arcane Formation in my hands—something like a Magic Circle, but designed to persist longer.

It had only been a theory in my mind, but now that Iʼd done it... it worked.

”A-Ahh!”

Erika gasped as her wounds began to heal. Frank helped by pulling the crystals from her body, then activated his own skill.

”T-Thank you, Kireina. You saved Erika! Leave the rest to me! Gift of Life!”

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