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Chapter Sixty: The Final Battle

The inertia of a world is ultimately something that Shinko cannot stop. Even with Jibril's help, the barrier she set up eventually shattered.

The mirage-like portal to space and time continued to expand. The previous situation where both sides could only see each other but could not reach the other side was merely an effect exerted by Xin Ke. However, it has now returned to its original appearance and function.

When the humans and monsters, who were wary of each other, suddenly discovered that their outstretched hands or claws after their routine provocations could actually touch each other, war broke out in a way that no one had anticipated.

Looking out from the high mountains outside the city, this historic city appears to be setting off fireworks, with fire and electricity, and occasionally you can see wisps of black smoke spreading wildly in the shape of sharp claws. In addition, the insect monsters call out their kind that have not yet transformed into monsters. Even from this distance, it makes people's scalps tingle.

The people who guard this city, or rather, those who guard the front lines of this world, also have their own ways of fighting back: the clear light emitted when Onmyoji summon shikigami or unleash their spiritual power, the dense bursts of gunfire like popping beans, and flamethrowers that can spew out scorching flames.

Science and metaphysics go hand in hand, and when some ancient monsters revealed their enormous true forms, laughing wildly and preparing to carry out a massacre, they were brutally pierced through their bodies in a thunderous roar, and the huge hole was beyond the monsters' powerful self-healing ability to save them.

While it wasn't surprising that modern humans could withstand the attacks of these ancient demons, the brutal penetrating damage still left Suer somewhat stunned as he stared blankly in the direction from which it had come—above the sea.

It was a naval gun. In this era of aircraft carriers and missiles, modern humans have actually brought out battleships that were originally used for port defense. The unfortunate monsters were hit by 406mm armor-piercing shells, which also pulverized the monsters and buildings around them.

Of course, missiles were also indispensable. Although in order to prevent friendly fire and reduce the combat effectiveness of the defended city, the missiles could only hit some very obvious targets, but their power still made many monsters look at them with fear.

In less than an hour, the city had been transformed into a scene ravaged by a meat grinder. This was not merely a description of the casualty figures, but rather the overall appearance of the entire city. The corpses of the dead monsters were piled up in the streets and on rooftops, or even hung directly from the upper floors. The charred flesh emitted a foul odor, and the carbonized torsos were crushed into dry powder after being impacted.

The casualties were heavy, not only for the monsters, but also for the troops who had entered the city. Even though their casualty ratio was very high, the unexpected war with an unknown species still cost them a bloody price.

The viciousness and excessive vitality unleashed by the crazed monsters before their deaths, coupled with the various unpredictable demonic arts produced under the influence of their demonic power, would have likely caused the death toll to rise even higher if the army had not been accompanied by Onmyoji as a supplement.

But there are still too few Onmyoji.

But there are too many monsters.

The cannon fodder are almost all dead.

These first wave of monsters rushed to the front with the idea of ​​making a name for themselves. Those who survived would possess the fame and power that monsters value most. Meanwhile, the monsters who had gathered under the banner of the great monsters had not yet officially entered the fray—until now.

“The probing is over,” Suer said with a sigh.

He wanted to prevent all these unnecessary casualties, but human strength has its limits. In the end, all he could do was delay the arrival of this moment. The two sides, who had been preparing for so long, only made the war even more intense.

Jibril has already moved through the battlefield.

From the moment the war began, countless lives were lost and transformed into blue and white ghosts. Ghosts appeared among both humans and monsters, passing through the veil of time and space to the place that called them.

Saigyouji Cherry Blossoms.

“I didn’t expect you to stay here instead of running away with Saigyouji Yu,” Su Er said, glancing at Yakumo Yukari again.

“…Where could she possibly run off to?” Staring blankly at the distant battlefield, the battle between technology and metaphysics was a sight even Yukari Yakumo had never witnessed before. “Yu’s lifespan has long been tied to that secret technique and that cherry blossom tree. When that technique was first completed, I might have been able to resolve it, but after all these years… haha.”

"...My condolences," Su'er said, looking at the obviously somber female monster. She didn't know what to say and could only offer dry words of comfort. "Were all those ghosts eaten by that cherry blossom tree?"

"It's been eaten, or you could say it's returned to the earth's veins... The formation that the Saigyou Master set up has undergone changes that we can't describe, and it's even possible that all of this is caused by it... Do you want to destroy this formation directly?" Yakumo Yukari asked blankly.

Destroying the entire formation would mean the death of those two trees, which in turn would mean the death of Saigyouji Yu. She had come to Su Er to ask him to destroy the formation, so that Saigyouji Yu could at least escape her inevitable fate.

But even if the formation is ignored, as long as these ghosts from the past and present keep entering that cherry blossom tree, Saigyouji Yuu will still be doomed to die... It's as if the tree has taken away the girl's entire existence. When Yakumo Yukari touches her hand, even without direct sunlight, you can vaguely see the bones under Saigyouji Yuu's skin, and even what's under her palm.

Located at the most important node of the earth's veins, that cherry blossom tree was nourished by the entire earth's veins and another tree. It could be said that it absorbed everything to sustain itself. This evil existence was forcibly transformed by the Saigyouji monk into an existence that brought blessings to the region, which could be said to be going against the will of heaven.

To use the power of the formation to annihilate the intelligence that the cherry blossom tree could have developed long ago can be considered going against the heavens and even damaging one's merits. After all, growing in such a place, it should have transformed into a spirit or monster long ago, but it has been dragged on for so many years.

Now, the cherry blossom tree finally instinctively realized that an opportunity had come; it wanted to be reborn and become a complete life.

It has nothing to do with good or evil, nor with likes or dislikes.

Chapter Sixty-One: Street Fighting

These fundamental issues are not yet open to the involvement of either side in the war. For the monsters who have lived peacefully in human society for hundreds of years, today is a day of regaining their courage, even if it comes at a great cost.

With a flourish of his long sword, Nura Rikuo, surrounded by a hundred demons, let out a boastful shout. His body was covered in unusual patterns, undoubtedly indicating that he had been entangled with other yokai.

According to Nurarihyon, after undergoing new training and specializing in the unique nature of the demonic power of Nurarihyon, Rikuo Nurarihyon has temporarily acquired the strength to become the new lord of demons and monsters. All he needs to do now is to build up the prestige he needs most in the upcoming great battle.

"Be careful, Commander!"

"It's okay, it's okay~"

With a hearty wave of his hand, Nura Rikuo watched as his yokai were already engaged in battle with the ancient yokai that kept pouring out. While searching for valuable prey, he glanced out of the corner of his eye at the guy still wearing a black trench coat.

Compared to his confident declaration of war, the vampire duo on the other side were much more lively. With their superior flexibility and strength, they leaped between the monsters' claws, and long knives they pulled out from somewhere were plunged into the monsters' bodies, splitting their carapaces in two.

He landed lightly on the ground, and standing back to back with Kiss-Shot, he naturally felt the gaze that was watching him. He turned his head and smiled, then stretched out his hand and gestured a number—a subtle little competition.

No longer looking like a child, she had regained the appearance of an adult woman. When standing next to Araragi Koyomi, Kiss-Shot was even a head taller than him. As Nura Rikuo became more and more familiar with Araragi Koyomi, he naturally learned some things about this female vampire.

According to her own account, she came to Japan to find a burial place for the dead, but now that she has a new family, she no longer wants to die and eats sweets every day with the determination to get diabetes.

Is it possible for vampires to get diabetes?

Shaking his head, Nura Rikuo stopped thinking about things unrelated to the battle. The vampire duo had already started moving again, and as the head of the Nura family, how could he fall behind?

"Men! Charge with me!!!"

Having uttered such a cry, Nura Rikuo appeared behind a yokai the next second, slashing his long sword as easily as a hot knife through butter, cleaving its body in two.

'one'.

Silently counting in its mind, a huge mouth full of sharp teeth opened behind Nura Rikuo, but when it happily bit down, it found that it did not feel like it had bitten anything at all. It was as if it had only touched the foam on the surface of the water, which was just an illusion.

[A mirage]

puff.

Amidst the splatter of blood, the yokai that had silently launched a sneak attack on Nura Rikuo lost its life and slowly collapsed to the ground.

'two'.

After we win the competition, we'll take advantage of the momentum and invite that guy Li to drink Sanqi wine again.

Rikuo Nura has made his decision.

They are very powerful, but when placed on a map with an entire modern city as the battlefield, the Nura Clan's group of yokai and the vampire duo Araragi Koyomi become less conspicuous ripples. Various other beings reveal their identities and protect the city in various ways, making it a diverse and colorful scene.

The ruins of a building that had been almost completely emptied of everything that could be moved—or more accurately, the ruins of what used to be a building—were transformed after being subjected to several rounds of naval bombardment and the rampage of monsters. This small area resembled Stalingrad in 1942. The buildings were at least halved in half, and the remnants of cement and steel bars were piled up to a height of about two or three stories. Even the ground was leveled and raised several stories high.

Amidst these ruins, a young woman with long red hair... well, a mature woman, was nimbly leaping across the barely usable ground in her high heels. It was hard to imagine that her standard urban office lady uniform could support her in performing such difficult movements; apart from a slight rip in her black stockings below the knees, there wasn't a single flaw.

With a graceful turn in mid-air and a sharp slam of her raised right hand, the rapier she held in her hand emitted an astonishing white light, cleaving the demon that was chasing her in two.

The wound at the cut was as smooth as a mirror, still retaining a faint glow, and not a drop of blood had flowed. However, the monster that crashed to the ground struggled and hissed for a while before finally losing its life.

"Heh... Hey, are you done yet?! It's really pathetic that the Demon King has become such a useless piece of trash. You might as well just stay here and work properly!" The red-haired office lady sneered as she looked at the monster's corpse at her feet and turned her head to provoke in another direction.

boom!!!

As if in response to her words, amidst the roar of collapsing buildings, accompanied by a rapidly fading, unwilling wail, a burly man, eight feet tall and with an eight-foot waist, raised his hand to disperse the dissipating dust and emerged from the ruins that were now beyond repair.

"...You really do seize every opportunity to attack me," the muscular man's voice was somewhat deep, but when placed on his massive body, it had absolutely no energy.

His torso, hands, and feet were covered in black hair, and his feet had hooves like those of a goat. He also had very sharp horns on his head. If Suer were here, he would probably be very surprised to find that the facial features of this muscular man, who was clearly not human, were very similar to the simple country youth who had worked with him at McDonald's.

"It's suspicious that the Demon King chose to protect this human city instead of retreating! There must be some conspiracy! How can I, as the hero, turn a blind eye!" the red-haired OL said confidently.

"Hey, whatever you want," the muscular man sighed helplessly, squinting at the chaotic scene of demons dancing in the distance. "Even a regular human army would feel a strong sense of fear at a time like this. Well, I can understand, after all, these are inhuman monsters."

"If you can't keep up, go home and rest early, okay?"

Who do you think I am?

They snorted at each other, and the next second, the two disappeared from the ruins.

Only when invaded by foreign enemies can one discover just how many extraordinary people live in this small city... or perhaps they are not even human at all, but at this moment most of them choose to stay and protect the world they have become part of.

Is this also a victory?

Chapter Sixty-Two: The Seal is Lifted

"..."

"..."

"...Platycodon?"

For the first time, instead of his usual arrogant and haughty demeanor, the white-haired dog demon looked at the girl in the sailor uniform under the tree with a complicated expression, muttering unconsciously to himself.

The middle school girl has grown up and become a high school girl, but what is more surprising than this increase in age is that Kagome Higurashi is still here even though all the ordinary people in the city have already evacuated.

At first, Kagome Higurashi only applied with the mindset of giving it a try, but she never expected that her grandfather would agree to her request after just one deep look at her, and even help persuade her worried mother.

In the years when the overlap between the two eras became increasingly severe, Kagome Higurashi had been living in her family's shrine. She was naturally familiar with the white-haired yokai nailed to her family's sacred tree, but no matter how she called out to it before, there was no response. If she reached out to touch it by climbing a ladder, she could only pass through the yokai's figure and touch the bark.

Judging from the arrow that pierced the monster's chest and pinned it to a tree, this might be what the book refers to as being sealed away, which is why it appears to be asleep.

Then came the moment when the passage between the two eras truly opened. The front mountain of Higurashi Shrine was no longer safe. Kagome Higurashi simply carried the pink orb, which should have been incredibly precious, to the ancient well and sacred tree on the back mountain, because she knew that the demons had set up protective spells there.

But what she didn't expect was that when the two eras truly intersected and everything was no longer just an untouchable illusion, when she appeared in front of the Sacred Tree this time, the white-haired monster reacted in a new way to her arrival.

He opened his eyes, and the precious jade she held in her arms once again emitted a white light.

The shouts of the monsters chasing up the mountain behind them grew closer and closer. They could smell the scent and sense its presence. All they had to do was touch it to ascend to the position of a great monster and become an object of reverence for the other monsters.

Nervous, Kagome even considered whether to jump directly into the well through the spell, and just then she heard the voice of the white-haired demon.

I'm furious.

"What Kikyo? My name is Kagome! Higurashi Kagome!" Higurashi Kagome exclaimed reflexively, looking up before realizing that this was yet another youkai she could communicate with. "Oh, you're awake?"

"...Kikyo...Kagome...Kikyo...Kagome..." The white-haired dog demon muttered these two names repeatedly as if possessed. His ears twitched slightly as he looked in the direction Kagome had just run from. "Looks like you're not exactly safe, Kikyo...Can you pull out this arrow? I can take care of those blind fools for you, you know?"

Except from the very beginning, the white-haired dog demon's gaze remained fixed on the pink orb in Kagome Higurashi's arms, never wavering for a moment.

"I already told you my name is Kagome!" Kagome stomped her foot angrily. Hearing the increasingly loud noise behind her, she gritted her teeth, stuffed the jewel into her pocket, and picked up the ladder she had gotten from the Sacred Tree when she tried to touch the illusion.

Since Suer didn't deal with him, there shouldn't be any problems, right?

I think so?

"Hey! Hey! It smells like a person! A sweet and soft person! Hurry up, hurry up!"

"No! You idiot! Look at her! That glowing thing!"

"Oh!!!"

"Is it that one?! It must be that one!"

"The Shikon Jewel!!!"