It's time to improve the strength of the infinite world

Chapter 490 Fellow Daoists, Please Gather in the Banner—

"How could this be!"

Princess Toyohime gritted her teeth and resolutely stepped forward to protect her younger sister behind her, confronting the red and white shrine maidens opposite her without flinching.

"Absolutely impossible!"

This statement is truly powerful and resounding.

Although the princess was well aware that what was now controlling the human girl's body was a non-human divine will.

But to give up resistance and watch her sister become a sacrifice... that was an ending the Moon Princess could never accept.

"...You want to protect her?"

The red and white shrine maiden tilted her head slightly, the ribbon in her black hair swaying gently in the wind, and calmly asked.

Her tone was very flat, and her delicate, fair face was expressionless, revealing a coldness similar to Reimu Hakurei's usual demeanor.

But that's different.

Everyone could sense the fundamental difference—that indifference tinged with a chilling aloofness.

It was as if "she" didn't care how the other side would respond, because that wouldn't change the final outcome.

"...!!"

Toyohime's pupils suddenly contracted.

She could feel that gaze piercing through her, like a god looking down on an ant, too lazy to even bestow contempt upon it.

In that instant, the air seemed to freeze, and even the drifting leaves appeared to be suspended in mid-air.

Everyone present held their breath; time seemed to freeze at that moment.

Not far away, the shimenawa rope of Moriya Shrine moved erratically without wind, making a soft rustling sound, as if even the barrier itself was trembling under some kind of pressure.

The red and white shrine maiden's gaze remained calm. Her pupils, reflecting a non-human golden light, mirrored the figures protecting Watatsuki Yorihime, yet she seemed to be gazing at insignificant dust.

A war had just ended...

But it seems—

It seems another war is about to break out...

Watatsuki Yorihime's fingertips dug deeply into her palms, her pale lips trembling slightly.

She could feel her master's taut back as he stood in front of her, and she could hear her sister's rapid breathing.

She took a deep breath and slowly loosened her trembling fingers.

Princess Moon's pride transformed into determination at this moment. She gently pressed down on Toyohime's shoulder and took a step out from behind her sister.

"Please stop."

Princess Yorihime's voice was soft, yet it caused everyone to freeze in place, "If sacrificing myself could quell this conflict..."

Before she could finish speaking, Yagokoro Eirin suddenly turned around: "Yorihime! What are you saying—"

But the purple-haired girl with a high ponytail simply shook her head, revealing a tired yet determined expression. Her gaze passed over her sister and went straight to the priestess who had already been deified.

"Oh dear, what are you doing? This is such a bad influence..."

A flippant, chuckling voice broke into the conversation at that moment.

With light, graceful steps, like a white-haired magician girl as nimble as a swallow, she seemed completely oblivious to the dragon god's majesty and the tense atmosphere on the scene—

He walked directly between the two opposing sides.

In any case, the frozen atmosphere was broken.

"How about you do me a favor and let this matter drop?"

Using the "Face Fruit" rhetoric with ease, Miss Merry approached the Red and White Priestess, smiling as she raised her staff.

"And look..."

As the girl said this, she waved her staff without hesitation.

Just for a moment.

Time and space seem to be in disarray.

In an instant, reality was torn open like a fragile piece of paper.

A series of cracking sounds filled the air, as if the glass curtain wall of the entire world was collapsing.

The torii gate of the distant shrine began to distort, and the vermilion pillars split into countless overlapping images in the field of vision, each image representing a different flow of time.

Some are decaying, some are brand new, and some have never even been built.

The falling leaves froze in mid-air, each vein overlapping with every possibility—

They simultaneously exist in all states: blooming and decaying, existence and withering, past and future.

The mountain outlines in the distance also began to writhe, like clay being kneaded by an invisible hand, and the horizon folded into impossible angles under the power of a higher dimension.

"you……"

The red and white shrine maiden's golden pupils contracted slightly, because what "she" saw was not a phenomenon caused by magic, but something more fundamental.

And everyone who witnessed this scene saw the same thing on their retinas.

A Mary, composed of countless possibilities, stands smiling at the intersection of all timelines.

Her silhouette overlapped with countless versions of herself from parallel worlds, each of them making different movements, yet strangely unified in this single moment.

It is as if its existence is no longer limited to this moment and this place, but rather like an observer that transcends time and space.

“See,” the girl’s voice echoed from the past, present, and future simultaneously, “even I possess this power!”

The tone was clearly intentional.

It carried a very obvious irony.

next moment--

The staff was put away, the disordered physical constants returned to normal, and the material fragments from other timelines disappeared into multiple spacetimes.

Just a moment later, everything returned to normal.

But everyone knows that something has just happened.

"What? Am I going to be erased too?"

The lovely white-haired girl stood smiling like a flower, her smile becoming increasingly dreamlike and beautiful, yet her eyes seemed to still reflect some kind of otherworldly scene.

It is clear.

This means we're going to get involved in this matter.

"..."

"..."

The red and white shrine maiden frowned slightly, as if she was seriously thinking about something.

"Don't even think about it. The results so far are already quite good. Even Tsukiyomi couldn't be truly eliminated, so how could this Lady Yorihime be dealt with so easily?"

The Flower Magician was trying to persuade this troublesome supreme deity to accept the current outcome and stop here.

As she spoke, she glanced at the purple-haired girl with a high ponytail who had stepped forward, her gaze lingering briefly on the top of the girl's head.

Then, he said something meaningful—

"After all, this Lady Yorihime is a true chosen one..."

you do not say.

In Meryl's view, the words "Chosen by God" were clearly visible above the head of the girl with the knife.

—The font is large and prominent.

—It still has a gilded border, the kind with built-in special effects.

—At first glance, it looks like someone who has spent money on a browser game.

Such a distinctive feature, like a firefly in the night, is bound to attract attention immediately. The same goes for Mary; if she hadn't seen it, all would have been fine, but now that she has, she can only step forward to help.

We can't just do nothing...

I still need to boost my own sales figures...

Princess Yoshihime looks like a promising talent, a specially marked prospect. If I see her and don't do anything about it, that guy will inevitably think I have a bad work attitude.

To be honest, this is what Mary truly thinks.

Otherwise, given her wicked sense of humor, she wouldn't have stood up so easily and clearly stated her position.

In particular, this stance is directly opposed to the Dragon God—the supreme god of Gensokyo.

"God's Chosen..."

The red and white shrine maiden lowered her eyes and said coldly, "If that's the case, then we should eliminate her even more."

Watatsuki Yorihime herself also showed a confused expression.

What divine choice? Are you talking about yourself?

But she had no idea that, apart from receiving that divine power, she hadn't received any other special treatment.

Princess Yorihime subconsciously looked at her most intelligent master and found that the former Moon Sage was also frowning, seemingly deep in thought.

"That has to be possible first. Right now, it's quite clear that this princess is on our side..."

Miss Meryl shook her head, disagreeing.

Such a powerful divine being indeed indifferent to worldly affairs and does not consider many trivial matters.

"..."

"..."

"Speaking of which—who are you?"

The priestess, in her divine state, remained silent for a moment before speaking again indifferently.

“Lord Dragon God, this is Meli, a magician from another world…”

Yukari Yakumo seized the opportunity and stepped forward to introduce herself—

"It was Melly who first warned us about this incident, and it was also thanks to her guidance that we were able to hold out until the arrival of the Dragon God..."

"Eh?"

The Flower Magician uttered a syllable expressing doubt.

"I'll give you a hint? When?"

The youkai from the boundary was taken aback by the question. She turned to look at Miss Meryl: "It's...it's that health bar, and the name Tsukiyomi is displayed..."

Perhaps sensing something was amiss, the seventeen-year-old girl's tone became unusually hesitant.

"And there's background music too, which is all very intuitive, isn't it?"

have to say--

Although at first, the design was clearly quite morbid.

However, everyone's combat intuition was extremely sharp, and they quickly discovered that this kind of prompt was very intuitive and could provide very effective information feedback in real time.

Because you can clearly see the BOSS's health and know the damage you've caused...

The intensity of the background music (BGM) can be a strong indicator of whether the opponent is about to unleash a powerful attack...

The change in name can also indicate when someone is transitioning to a new phase...

Once you understand this point, you'll be able to grasp the rhythm well.

—It could even be said that the excellent pace of the battle at that time was partly due to this factor.

"..."

"..."

"I...I didn't give you any hints..."

Miss Mary's expression looked very strange.

"In order to prevent Tsukiyomi from noticing my presence before I could seize control, I didn't do anything unnecessary..."

"..."

"..."

"Then...who gave the hint?"

Yukari Yakumo's expression also became subtle. She twitched her eyebrows and gently unfolded her folding fan to cover the lower half of her beautiful face.

"Of course it's me."

A slightly mocking laugh rang out.

Everyone instinctively turned to look, and saw a slender hand reach out and gently rest on Watatsuki Yorihime's shoulder.

The movement was so natural, as if the hand was meant to be there—as if it had always been on her shoulder, but no one had noticed.

Then, a figure slowly walked out from behind her.

There was no distortion of space, no fluctuation of light and shadow, and not even a trace of incongruity.

He appeared out of nowhere, yet it seemed as if he had always been standing behind Watatsuki Yorihime.

Everyone had a ridiculous illusion—

This person didn't just arrive; he's been there all along.

It's just that their eyes have only now finally gained the right to "see him".

"..."

"..."

The aura of awkward silence! Activate!
The entire scene fell silent instantly, as if even the night wind had stopped.

Miss Meryl twitched her lips, but reacted very quickly, immediately flashing a sweet and adorable smile: "Master..."

At this moment, the Red and White Shrine Maidens also realized what was happening.

She calmly stared at the sudden appearance of this being—

"Are you the master of that power?"

"Yes."

The young man laughed heartily, his brows and eyes relaxed, as if he were simply discussing the day's weather.

"I'm sorry for the trouble, but let's leave it at that..."

"..."

"..."

"What if I say no?" the Red and White Shrine Maiden asked coldly.

"That would be a bit of a problem, since I'm not exactly a good person either."

The young man blinked, chuckled softly, and spoke in a gentle voice.

He raised his hand, and the world suddenly went dark.

Above the once clear night sky, a dark banner silently unfurled, as if the night had been torn open.

The banner billowed in the wind, instantly obscuring the entire sky. Its vastness seemed to shroud the whole planet in its shadow.

Countless distorted faces vaguely appeared on the banner, their wails and whispers intertwining to create an invisible oppression that even froze the air.

Xia Zhi's smile remained bright, even carrying a touch of sunshine-like warmth:

"Fellow Daoists, please join us in this small gathering under the banner—"

(End of this chapter)