Seiki was actually thrilled. He'd always known Miroku had some crazy power, but hadn't really thought much about it until Moryo himself said it required Miroku's voluntary offering. That's when he started plotting to get that power for himself.
The result was exactly as he'd expected—the refined soul essence of the shrine priestess lineage, accumulated over thousands of years, had all been poured into his body. Even though most of that power had been temporarily sealed, the remaining portion alone was enough to drastically boost his strength.
Previously, although he was already quite powerful, aside from the external advantage of Dragon Pulse Chakra, he had still been at the level of an ordinary human in every other aspect. The reason he seemed so strong was simply because he was a "well-rounded warrior" with no weaknesses whatsoever.
Put simply, when all his attributes were A-level, compared to typical experts who might only have two or three A-level traits, as long as one cleverly utilizes their advantages, it's naturally easy to defeat the opponent.
But now things were different. His soul had always been extremely powerful, arguably at an A+ level, and after receiving this new power, he had definitely reached S-class—way beyond the limits of normal humans.
At this point, he actually felt confident enough to go head-to-head with the likes of Madara Uchiha and Hashirama Senju during the Valley of the End battle.
"Finally, I've taken another small step closer to the Otsutsuki..."
Seiki murmured inwardly, looking at Moryo—who wore a stunned expression—and smiled. "Demon, you previously said this power requires the priestess's voluntary offering, right?"
"That's right." Moryo answered, then cut in impatiently, "So where have you hidden the priestess?"
"No need to rush." Seiki didn't answer directly, instead shifting topics. "You should've already recognized the power I used earlier, right? Also, this isn't the first time I've dealt with your kind of demons."
After watching Seiki stroke the ring on his finger for a moment, Moryo fell into thought, then coldly snorted. "Ah, so it's Zero-Tails."
"Zero-Tails?" Seiki rubbed the ring thoughtfully. "But he told me his name was Zero-Tails!"
"Zero-Tails?" Moryo was first taken aback, then burst into laughter, bending over with it. "Ahahaha! That idiot! Hasn't he been beaten enough yet?"
Seiki asked in confusion, "What's so funny about that?"
"You've dealt with Zero-Tails, and you're also the summoner of that mucus-eater, so you must know something about those ancient times," Moryo asked.
"You mean the story of Hagoromo and the Goddess of the Hare?" Seiki countered.
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"Looks like you really do know," Moryo recalled the past, his voice carrying both fear and rage. "After that world-ending war, we knew we couldn't defeat those outsiders, so we willingly retreated, relinquishing this world."
"At first, everything was peaceful. But then, that idiot Hagoromo—who knows what he was thinking—actually chose to abandon eternal life, extracting the Ten-Tails from within himself, and during his final days, went on a rampage wiping out us remnants of the old era."
At this point, Seiki's eyes narrowed. "Don't you know that Hagoromo has actually remained alive in another form in the ninja world all along?"
"The Moryo didn't notice Seiki's unusual reaction. It spoke angrily, 'We are the true masters of this land. Even though we have already given up this world, he still refuses to let us go. Then we have no choice but to fight back with all our strength!'
'It's just a pity, that guy Rikudou was too strong. Even in a half-dead state, he still easily defeated us!'
Seeing that the rulers of our old era were either dead or sealed away, Anmu, that fool, became frightened and voluntarily carved a 'zero' onto his own head, changing his name to Zero-Tails in an attempt to appease Hagoromo.
'But what was the result? Hagoromo didn't even recognize it, mistaking its attempt as mockery and provocation. In a fit of rage, he nearly beat it to death.' The Moryo sneered. 'That idiot can't even remember his own name now; he might have gotten his brain damaged back then.'
So it used to be an old bootlicker. No wonder it recovered so quickly back then... Seiki mused inwardly. He had always found it strange that the Zero-Tails bore a 'zero' on its head. It seemed too coincidental to be natural, but now he understood it was self-carved!
After venting, the Moryo finally remembered the matter at hand. 'Hey, what exactly are you trying to say?'
'My point is, the Sage of Six Paths's era is over. In the current world, the sacred lands of the three Sages are spreading, demons are lurking in secret, and even gods are beginning to awaken. This era should be a golden age where all powers can flourish and coexist. Perhaps we can find a balance to peacefully coexist.'
'Peacefully coexist?' The Moryo was somewhat intrigued. Though it considered itself superior, Seiki's earlier attacks had indeed left a deep impression.
Such a powerful human already deserved to speak to it as an equal. Before recovering its full strength, it didn't want to engage in a life-or-death battle with him.
Thinking thus, the Moryo asked, 'Then what do you mean? Are you willing to hand over the miko?'
'Not only that,' Seiki smiled slightly. 'I can even convince her to hand over her power willingly!'
'Really?' The Moryo perked up excitedly.
'Of course. I'm very sincere about this,' Seiki said earnestly.
After the excitement passed, the Moryo cooled down. 'Tell me your conditions.'
It certainly didn't believe Seiki was that selfless.
'I told you already—I'm very sincere!' Seeing the Moryo insisted, Seiki could only sigh helplessly. 'Then let's talk about the Sages, gods, and demons instead. I'm quite interested in these secrets, but unfortunately, Lady Katsuyu was unwilling to discuss much.'
The Moryo scoffed in disdain. 'Of course she wouldn't talk. After all, in this world, they played the role of rather dishonorable traitors.'
Seiki listened calmly without showing any unusual reaction.
When its provocation failed to rattle him, the Moryo sneered and continued, 'Simply put, the Sages are special in their usage and understanding of natural energy. Gods are strong in soul, while we demons possess bodies capable of infinite regeneration.'
Seiki timely displayed a trace of surprise. 'Natural energy, soul, and body?'
"Natural energy is versatile and ever-changing. In terms of sheer power, those cultivators indeed surpass us. However, their ability to survive life-threatening situations pales in comparison to ours. This is why they quickly chose to submit after witnessing the overwhelming power of outsiders."
"But we are different," Moryo declared proudly. "A god's soul is immortal, and a demon's body is imperishable. Weak gods and demons might be killed, but beings like us could only be sealed away by Hagoromo himself."
"But weren't you sealed away by a miko?" Seiki asked curiously. "Does this mean the miko's power also comes from the Sage of Six Paths?"
Moryo fell silent for a moment before reluctantly explaining, "Back then, I tried to defeat Hagoromo by merging with the divine system. Unfortunately, the two forces clashed violently. I had no choice but to split the divine essence away, forming two separate entities—chimei and Moryo."
"However, my other half was corrupted by human faith, gradually transforming from chimei into a miko. Eventually, that part of me foolishly concluded that my original form was the source of all evil, and went to extreme lengths to seal me away!"
Seiki felt a chill inside as he listened. Man, the divine system really was dangerous. Even back then, as a primordial demon lord, Moryo should have fully understood the nature of gods, yet look at him now — cracked under the pressure and even ended up sealing himself away!
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