Netherworld Hell, the underworld made manifest—as the environment around Asakura Myojin changed, the three girls' hearts sank to the bottom.
A Yellow Springs swamp, a Night Parade of One Hundred Demons—could they possibly block this?
Would Chakra Ninjutsu be effective against evil spirits? Perhaps, no one had ever tried it. Maybe Sealing Jutsu would work better!
However, Sealing Jutsu seemed only capable of sealing large water tanks, nothing else.
Alas! She sighed. One only regrets not having enough skills when they are needed. This was the same principle as studying; it seemed she really needed to learn more Ninjutsu when she had time.
She wondered if there would even be a 'next time'? This ultimate move, the Night Parade of One Hundred Demons, was a bit too much; she feared there wouldn't be a next time.
The range of Netherworld Hell rapidly expanded, and evil spirits crawled out of the swamp, their faces contorted with the perverse pleasure of desires unleashed. Their gazes, full of certainty that they would devour the three girls, filled them with dread no matter how they looked at it.
The key was that these evil spirits were corporeal, not ethereal souls. With a casual stretch, their arms and fingernails elongated, becoming sharp weapons comparable to kunai, carving multiple deep grooves into the ground. Rocks and the like were effortlessly sliced in half without any delay.
This...?
The three girls looked at each other, as if trying to find courage in the other, but instead, they each gulped hard.
They were still timid and utterly helpless! At this moment, they felt like crying.
...
The environment of Netherworld Hell rapidly expanded, and the three girls immediately became alert, quickly retreating to avoid it. Karura had tested it with sand. If the sand was enveloped by this Netherworld Hell, it would quickly turn into dead black sand, completely devoid of spirituality, so they could only dodge.
Fortunately, the Netherworld's environment, centered on Asakura Myojin, expanded to a diameter of one hundred meters and then stopped. Then, evil spirits crawled out of the hellish swamp one by one, exactly one hundred of them, no more, no less.
…
The Skinning Ghost, with eyes darting around, was completely skinless. His skin was in his hands, dripping with fresh blood and hanging shreds of flesh, clearly freshly peeled.
The Headless Ghost's head hung to one side, connected to his neck only by a flap of skin. From the severed point, his cervical vertebrae and gushing blood were visible. Especially the stark white teeth on his severed face, grinding with a clacking sound, as if only devouring the three girls' flesh could sate his desires.
The Hanging Ghost, with a long tongue protruding and wide, staring eyes, had the best appearance among these All Hundred Ghosts. But this fellow was smiling, emitting a wicked grin in such a state, sending a shiver down Inoyue's spine and causing goosebumps to uncontrollably erupt.
"I'm scared!" Inoyue's legs trembled slightly; she was truly terrified. Karura was the best-composed of the three girls; at least her legs weren't shaking. As the All Hundred Ghosts materialized, her face was as still as water, incredibly solemn.
…
The Night Parade of One Hundred Demons, one hundred evil spirits, one hundred different appearances.
Fear!
Terror!
How many bad deeds must one have done in a past life to encounter a scene like this Night Parade of One Hundred Demons! The key is, I was a good person in my previous life, right? I didn't do anything immoral.
No matter how Inoyue complained inwardly, the All Hundred Ghosts were restless. After Asakura Myojin gave the command, they all inexplicably looked back at him in unison, and then wildly roared as they charged towards the three girls.
That glance from the All Hundred Ghosts was full of allure, as if saying: after we deal with these three women, we'll come back for our interest. Evil spirits are evil spirits; they even demand interest from the one who summoned them. Truly, they pluck a feather from every passing goose, living up to their name as evil spirits.
…
A chilling wind swept over, and sharp roars converged like thunder. This scene fully displayed the wild nature of the evil spirits.
Karura's yellow sand gathered, like waves and tides. Whether it would be useful, she had no idea. But to simply wait for death was not the style of a Kage-level expert like her.
"Ah!…" Inoyue roared. When people are afraid, they will shout to embolden themselves, and this trick was somewhat effective. In her previous life, when she walked alone at night as a child, speaking loudly was this very trick, and it worked well.
However, that was then, and she had never truly seen ghosts before. This time was different; not only did she see ghosts, but they were also one hundred fierce ghosts among them.
Shouting was useless; those who were meant to be afraid would still be afraid, and legs that were meant to shake would still shake.
The chilling wind blew, the ghostly aura was eerie, and the evil spirits cackled wickedly. Inoyue could even feel the evil spirits' long fingernails scratching her face—cold, with condensed death energy, as if her life force was being drained.
"I'm going to die!" This was Inoyue's true thought.
"I'm only eight years old, still a minor!" Just as Inoyue was unwilling and the three girls were in despair, the All Hundred Ghosts suddenly stopped, emitting sounds of frantic despair.
In an instant, Netherworld Hell rapidly shrank, taking the struggling All Hundred Ghosts and quickly returning them into Asakura Myojin, who had transformed into an evil spirit.
Netherworld Hell disappeared, but the evil spirit Asakura Myojin suddenly hopped around on one foot, clutching his right leg, and suppressed sounds of pain escaped his mouth. His current appearance was like a passerby who had suddenly been hit on the foot with a hammer; his painful expression made Inoyue and the others wince in sympathy.
…
The pain, the dark ghostly face was pale with agony, making the three girls feel a little pity.
Asakura Myojin's right lower leg quickly ignited with a flame, then directly turned into ashes. Without a hint of hesitation, it simply vanished.
The sudden transformation was a bit too fast, catching everyone off guard, including Asakura Myojin himself at this moment.
After a moment of stunned silence, Asakura Myojin looked up, somewhat hysterically: "You must die."
It was as if the three women before him were responsible for his current state; this hatred was deeply ingrained, leaving the three girls utterly bewildered.
"Women should just be obediently killed off." Asakura Myojin seemed a little crazed, speaking nonsensically. The deathly aura around him grew denser, now visible to the naked eye, a shocking sight.
His right lower leg was originally gone; just now, a phantom of his lower leg suddenly appeared, then suddenly vanished again.
So now, Asakura Myojin's walking finally returned to the posture a cripple should have, limping.
…
Asakura Myojin, starting as a god, then a ghost, and now perhaps neither human nor ghost, always carried a hint of pity in his demeanor. In this state, he still wanted to kill Inoyue and the other two to vent his anger; one truly didn't know what to say.
Asakura Myojin naturally saw the looks in the three girls' eyes, which only made him laugh more wildly: "Sacrifice my body to summon the Asura of Hell."
An aura even more alarming than the previous Night Parade of One Hundred Demons erupted from him. That monstrous aura suggested that the impending Asura had already experienced the slaughter of all humanity.
"No, this is even more dangerous!" But even knowing the danger, there was no way to stop it, because the dense death energy on Asakura Myojin was truly fatal upon contact.
Pfft, suddenly, the sound of a balloon deflating rang out again. Asakura Myojin's Yin-Yang Release was abruptly interrupted, and the Asura was not summoned.
The three girls felt relieved, because just the aura alone was something they couldn't resist.
No matter how powerful this Asura was, if the Jutsu wasn't completed and it couldn't come out, it was nothing.
…
…
The sound of the balloon deflating seemed to be produced when Kakuzu, who was not yet dead, burst out of Asakura Myojin's lost right leg with his Earth Grudge Fear. This time, it was accompanied by Kakuzu's cold voice: "An outdated Onmyōji actually presumes to use my Earth Grudge Fear as a medium to cling to life in this world. Hmph hmph!"
As soon as Kakuzu finished speaking, the Earth Grudge Fear completely burst out of Asakura Myojin's body, gushing forth like flowing water.
Thus, Kakuzu, who was initially thought to have been annihilated by a single word, was officially resurrected.