Reborn as a lotus, she initially refuses to hand it over to the state.

The Deep Sea Whale King opened its eyes, its massive body hovering above the dark seawater.

Before anyone knew it, streaks of black tide had already climbed up its scales.

It looked down at the black tide below, a hint of fear appearing in its huge pupils.

It originally thought that by conquering Tokyo Bay and driving out humans, it could occupy this sea area.

However, when the Black Tide appeared, it discovered that it was merely a pawn chosen by some being.

Deep within the Kuroshio Current, countless black fleshy buds wriggled.

A slender black tentacle slowly emerged from the sea and gently landed on the massive head of the Black Whale King.

The Xuanjing King's body stiffened.

A struggle surfaced in those enormous, lantern-like eyes.

"I have already conquered Tokyo Bay for you."

Its deep sound echoed continuously across the sea.

"The blood and food from the island nation are enough for you to recover some of your strength, why force me further?"

Upon hearing this, the tentacle in the black tide retracted.

The next moment, on the outskirts of Tokyo Bay, a large number of marine creatures polluted by the Kuroshio Current raised their heads.

Covered in black stripes, with pitch-black eyes and devoid of any intelligence, hundreds upon hundreds of Black Tide Sea Beasts swam toward the island nation's mainland.

The Deep Sea Whale King watched this scene with an increasingly gloomy expression.

It knew in its heart that from the moment it stepped into Tokyo Bay, there was no turning back.

Ise Grand Shrine, an island nation.

This ancient shrine, which remains intact even after the spiritual energy has been restored, has now become the largest refuge in the southern part of the island nation.

Outside the shrine, tens of thousands of survivors gathered on both sides of the mountain path.

Among them were ordinary people and awakened individuals wielding weapons, each with an undisguised weariness and fear on their face.

News of the fall of Tokyo Bay had already spread throughout the island nation, and everyone knew that the monsters that emerged from the Kuroshio Current were spreading inland.

In front of the main gate of the shrine.

An elderly man dressed in white hunting robes stood quietly on the stone steps, holding a black staff.

He is the current chief priest of Ise Grand Shrine, Fujiwara no Kami.

Behind Fujiwara no Kyouji, Tsukiri Yukimi, dressed in a pure white shrine maiden outfit, held a Kagura bell in both hands, her face somewhat pale.

She could hear a low, guttural roar coming from the distant sea.

That wasn't the sound of ocean waves, but the desperate lament of countless lives polluted by the defilement of the world.

"Fujiwara-sama."

Yue Lixue spoke softly, "They've arrived."

Fujiwara no Miyaji raised his head.

In the distant mountains and forests, a large flock of birds took flight, and then, the black tide continued to spread upstream along the river.

In the tide.

Strange fish covered in black armor crawled ashore, their fins transforming into sharp bony claws as they slithered rapidly through the mud.

They weren't numerous, only a few hundred, but each one exuded an aura of the second to third tier.

And at the very center of the Kuroshio Current.

A giant black crab, over fifteen meters long, slowly crawled out of the river.

Its carapace was covered with wriggling fleshy buds, and its two giant pincers dragged across the ground, leaving deep grooves in the rocks.

Early stage of Tier 5, Black Tide Crab King.

"Form ranks!"

Fujiwara no Kyoji shouted.

Outside the shrine, dozens of Onmyoji simultaneously took out talismans.

Streams of spiritual energy flowed into the ground.

hum!

Golden light shone forth, and outside the ancient palace, a Yin-Yang barrier covering an area of ​​several hundred meters rapidly took shape.

"Shikigami, appear!"

Fujiwara no Kamishi's staff fell heavily to the ground.

A three-headed, gigantic shikigami emerged from the barrier.

A white fox, a green snake, and an armored warrior wielding a long sword.

The three shikigami pounced simultaneously, charging into the black tide beast horde.

boom!

The white fox breathed out flames, burning more than a dozen black tide monster fish to charcoal, which the armored samurai then slashed down with their swords.

One of the giant claws of the Black Tide Crab King was severed, and black blood splattered onto the ground.

A cheer erupted outside the shrine.

However, the smiles on everyone's faces froze completely the next moment.

The charred and chopped corpses of the Black Tide Monster Fish began to wriggle again.

Black fleshy buds sprouted from the corpse.

In the blink of an eye, the dead monster fish stood up again, even more in number than before.

The giant claw that the Black Tide Crab King had broken off was also rapidly regenerating in the black tide.

"If pollution is not eliminated, it will not be eradicated."

Fujiwara no Kyoji's face turned grim. He finally realized that these things were not ordinary beasts at all.

"Withdraw the barrier!"

Fujiwara no Miyaji shouted, but it was too late. The Kuroshio Crab King raised its head and spewed out a large spray of black water.

puff!

The white fox spirit was pierced by a water arrow, and its body was quickly covered by black pollution.

The once pristine white fox's eyes instantly turned pitch black.

It turned around and pounced towards the divine palace barrier.

"evil creature!"

Anger flashed in Fujiwara no Kyoji's eyes. He bit his fingertip and pressed the blood onto his staff.

"With my blood, I will sever!"

boom!

With a single slash, the armored samurai struck down, and the corrupted white fox shikigami instantly transformed into a shower of spiritual light. Fujiwara no Miyaji let out a muffled groan, blood spilling from the corner of his mouth.

With his natal shikigami destroyed, his aura instantly plummeted. Seizing the opportunity, the Black Tide Crab King brought down both of its giant pincers simultaneously.

Boom!

The divine palace's barrier trembled violently, and large areas of runes shattered. Outside the divine palace, the survivors were pale-faced, and many had already begun to flee.

"Fujiwara-sama!"

Yue Lixue saw Kagura Bell clutching her hand, her eyes filled with anxiety.

Fujiwara no Kami wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and said sternly, "Yukimi, retreat into the shrine. Once the barrier breaks, you take the ancient mirror and leave. We cannot let it fall into the hands of the Black Tide!"

Yue Lixue saw that he did not move.

She glanced back into the depths of the temple, where an ancient bronze mirror, which had been enshrined for hundreds of years, suddenly began to vibrate.

hum!

A distant and ancient voice echoed in Yue Lixue's mind.

"The Kagura of the Moon is not for killing, but for guarding the heart, guarding the land, and guarding those who have not been swallowed by darkness."

She stood there, stunned.

The next moment, a ray of cool moonlight flew out from the ancient mirror and landed between her eyebrows.

Countless unfamiliar images flooded her mind, and Yue Lixue closed her eyes.

When she opened her eyes again, the Kagura bell in her hand was already tinged with a faint silver glow.

"Fujiwara-sama."

The girl took a step forward and stood before the shattering barrier.

"Please hold me off for another ten breaths."

Fujiwara no Kyoji looked at her, his expression suddenly changing.

"good!"

After saying that, Fujiwara no Miyaji burned his spiritual power, and the remaining two shikigami rushed out at the same time.

Instead of attacking the Black Tide Crab King, they clung tightly to its giant pincers, buying time for Yue Lixuejian.

Yue Lixue gently shook the Kagura Bell.

jingle!

The clear, crisp sound of bells echoed throughout the entire shrine. The sound wasn't loud, but as the Kagura bells rang, moonlight seemed to fall from the sky.

"Moon Goddess Music, Pure Tide."

A sliver of silvery moonlight fell into the black tide.

Without any earth-shattering explosion, the black markings on the bodies of the Black Tide Monster Fish, illuminated by the moonlight, melted away as quickly as ice and snow.

Many of the strange fish remained frozen in place, a brief glimmer of clarity returning to their dark eyes.

Then, his body disintegrated into a large pool of black water.

The Black Tide Crab King let out a mournful roar, and the fleshy buds on its carapace withered continuously, while Yue Lixue's face also quickly turned pale.

She had just received the inheritance, and this Moon Goddess Music technique could only purify the black tide within a hundred-meter radius, and could only last for a few breaths at most.

"retreat!"

Fujiwara no Kami saw an opportunity and led the remaining Awakened Ones back to the Shrine.

Yue Lixuejian was also helped up by two priestesses.

The shrine gates are closed.

The Black Tide Crab King did not continue its attack. It stared at the faint moonlight above the shrine from afar, a hint of fear flashing in its eyes.

A moment later, it dragged its wounded body back into the black riverbed.

In this battle, Ise Grand Shrine held its ground, but Fujiwara no Kami was seriously injured, and one of his talisman's heads was destroyed.

More than half of the awakened ones outside the temple were also killed or injured.

Yue Lixue saw that she had received the inheritance, but could only temporarily guard a small area around the Divine Palace.

The situation in the island nation did not improve as a result; instead, it became even more desperate.

Inside Heilong Lake.

Chu Zhou saw the briefing on the battle of Ise Grand Shrine through the latest information sent by the Ninth Bureau.

His gaze fell on the blurry satellite image.

Above the shrine, a sliver of silvery moonlight appeared exceptionally faint amidst the surrounding black tide.

The strange stone snorted coldly: "It does have some luck, actually managing to awaken the remaining legacy of the ancient god's palace."

Chu Zhou said calmly, "How long can she hold out?"

Strange Stone was silent for a moment: "At most, she can defend one city. If the root of the Black Tide is not eliminated, she can only defend one place, and other places will fall. She cannot defend that small island nation."

Upon hearing this, Chu Zhou asked, "My beloved consort just mentioned the inheritance of the Ancient God Palace. Is that Ancient God Palace powerful?"

Upon hearing Chu Zhou call him "beloved concubine" again, Guai Shi immediately said irritably, "Lotus Demon, if you keep talking nonsense like this, I'm going to get angry."

Chu Zhou smiled and said, "No, Little Stone, you're the best."

Guai Shi was clearly aware of Chu Zhou's temperament, and snorted before saying, "What Ancient God Palace? To put it bluntly, it's just a small inheritance. In the ancient forbidden era, it wouldn't even be worth mentioning."

Goodness, Guai Shi's tone was actually correct; if he said that, it means it's probably true.

Just how powerful is the strange rock?

Chu Zhou didn't want to think too much about it; given the current situation in the island nation, it was none of his business.

However, through this battle, he also fully confirmed the characteristics of the Black Tide: ordinary kills were useless.

The source of the Black Tide must be purified, or the true core of the pollution must be eliminated.

At this moment, Xuanjia's voice came again from the Lingnan water veins: "Master, the Rift Sea Crocodile King has intercepted a fourth-tier Black Tide Sea Beast outside the Nanjiang Water Gate."

"There seems to be a special crystal core inside that sea beast."

P.S.: WeChat Official Account (青川不渡)