Inner Destroyer

　"We just need to recreate the narrative structure of the myth, prepare the stage and the characters, and perform the myth of 'Sealing Amaterasu' once again."

　The words of "Master Leipu" immediately set the Onmyoji Bureau into action.

　After all, this was their own business. Qi Xing could save them, but if they had no intention of contributing and were just hoping for a hero to rescue them, then Qi Xing wouldn't mind beating them up first.

　So soon, outside Aomori City, on a remote hill with exposed rock walls, the Onmyoji Bureau's convoy was already in place.

　At noon, Gojo Masamichi, along with a group of Onmyoji's exorcists, clergy, and technicians, stood in front of a natural cave that had just been discovered, with solemn expressions.

　"right here."

　he whispered.

　The cave's open terrain and solid rock formations perfectly mimic the structure of a "Tianyanhu." Its entrance faces northwest, far from the city lights, making it seem as if even the wind circumvents it, a fitting portrayal of mythological narratives.

　Several experienced shrine maidens had already begun work, quickly setting up the ritual shrine in front of the cave. The white wooden shrine swayed slightly in the mountain breeze, yet it stood out prominently. Straw ropes dangled from it, and the shimenawa ropes were already arranged in the required orientation for the ritual.

　"We must make this place the 'Iwado of Heaven'."

　Gojo Masamichi gave the order in a deep voice.

　"—We are going to recreate the myth of Amaterasu's retreat on this mountain."

　The exorcists and clergymen around had solemn expressions, and everyone's actions were extremely serious.

　They began setting up camp nearby, placing talismans and barrier spikes along the rocky edges, establishing a dual formation for summoning spirits and exorcising demons. They also requested the sacred mirrors, magatama, feathered robes, and musical instruments from the Onmyoji Ryo. To the left and right of the altar, they placed sakaki branches in front of banners made of five-colored silk: green, yellow, red, white, and blue, and hung the three sacred artifacts.

　There are even deer bones, something that is no longer used in modern Shintoism.

　Everyone present wore traditional ceremonial attire, and each one was a "character" in the story, both a performer and a caster.

　This is a re-enactment of a myth - it feels like a play, but it is definitely not a play.

　"Rep Master."

　Qi Xing was observing the ceremony from the sidelines when someone suddenly waved at him from a nearby dressing tent. He turned and saw a head poking out of the tent, a pair of eyes so cold they looked like they were spitting fire, staring back at him intently.

　It's Shijo Aoi.

　Even though she was still Susanoo yesterday, and still an enemy, this time the situation was urgent, and talented people were hard to find, so Gojo Masamichi simply urgently recruited her to redeem herself from her crimes and make meritorious contributions.

　Only Shijo Aoi's head popped out of the changing tent, gnashing her teeth in hatred. "Is this your punishment? Making me dance in front of people wearing this... this awful thing?"

　what?

　Qi Xing took a closer look at her, immediately realized what was happening, and nodded, "That's exactly what's needed. And your role has to be at the forefront, so only a master like you can play it."

　clothes.

　Shijo Aoi complained about her clothes—because what she was wearing was actually just three pieces of cloth tied together with string. In mythology, this character's attire was even more deplorable, but she was supposed to "dance naked and attract the attention of the gods."

　It seemed fitting to have the recently surrendered villain in charge at the forefront of the battle. Besides, she had played the role of deity in Yaobikuni's plan yesterday, so she must be better at reenacting myths than anyone else.

　"This plan may indeed succeed, but what if it fails? "Rep Master", have you considered

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　Have you passed? "

　The former Susano actor, wearing only three pieces of cloth, asked angrily,

　"Will I be struck by the Peacock King while wearing this piece of cloth?"

　“I have considered it.”

　Qi Xing said calmly,

　"Most people can't withstand the divine light, but you're barely at the level where you shouldn't be killed by it."

　"So when the time comes, you will grab the Ama-Kurokumo sword and fight with us."

　He said this lightly, and the expression on Shijo Aoi's face gradually changed from unwillingness to a complex helplessness.

　This "Rep Master" is really not pretending anymore.

　In the end, she didn't say anything more, but just quietly retreated into the tent and continued to change her clothes.

　And so it was, 1:27 p.m.

　Rin, Gojo Masamichi, the Onmyoji's exorcists, clergy, and a group of selected and qualified volunteer actors...all the staff are in place.

　Shijo Aoi and Kisaragi, the two "former enemies" who have redeemed themselves for their crimes, are now dressed in mythical costumes, one with a stern face, the other with a bitter one, and are waiting on the sidelines.

　There are still about eleven hours until the previously estimated "Northeast Asia formatting" time.

　Only a fool would put it off until the last minute; now is the time.

　Qi Xing took out the "Illusion" silver coin, flicked his index finger lightly, and silver light spun and rose.

　"Transformation."

　In an instant, his body changed like water and transformed into the ancient god of the primordial sea - Dragon King Yam.

　Thunder descended from the sky, thick clouds rolled, and seven giant snakes appeared from the void like mountains, wrapped in spiritual light and with tremendous momentum.

　The Dragon King took off on the wind and formatted himself for the first time towards the "Peacock King", flying straight into the 666 square kilometers of void territory.

　There was nothing in the lifeless, dark void, but Yam, the Dragon King of the primordial chaos, could certainly survive there.

　The Dragon King flew through the void and soon saw from afar - in the center of that blank area, there was a figure sitting motionless.

　He sat there quietly, as if meditating, his six arms joined in a seal, his face speechless. Five-colored divine light slowly swirled like an orbit, and the void behind him twisted and collapsed like a chasm. He was accumulating energy, preparing.

　The timing is right!

　In Canaanite mythology, the Dragon King Yam, like many ancient water gods around the world, was originally a multi-headed giant dragon-serpent with seven heads. Qi Xing usually found seven heads too troublesome, so he only conjured one.

　"Come on, artificial idiot!"

　But now he was laughing heartily, and the seven mouths of the dragon head opened at the same time, thunder and lightning torrential rain poured down, the sea god roared, and attacked the "Peacock King" who was sitting in the center of nothingness!

　click -

　The void shook violently, thunderbolts shattering the lifeless darkness, and the Peacock King immediately responded. The three faces slowly rotated, and the wrathful energy mask representing Susanoo shifted to the center.

　Among the six arms, one arm was raised high, and the "Ten-Gripped Sword" instantly slashed out a platinum-colored slashing wave, accompanied by a furious divine will, like the collapse of the sky, shattering all the oncoming thunder and rainstorms!

　To deal with the multi-headed dragons and snakes representing floods, of course you have to use the mask of "Susanoo". This is the optimal solution of "Procedure".

　This was exactly what Qi Xing wanted. He could hardly hold back his laughter.

　At the critical moment, his huge body as the Dragon King turned into nothing and disappeared!

　His definition of "illusion" is water.

　The highest good is like water, and therefore it is close to the Tao.

　Water has no fixed form and cannot be captured. It cannot be hit, but it cannot be hurt.

　A great martial artist once said that all martial artists should aim for "water." Although Qi Xing preferred the hard fist style, he certainly understood its principles.

　The body is as empty as water, and the body is like the flow of water. Even the sword of God can only pass through the mirror flowers and water moons.

　Qi Xing took the opportunity to urge the thunder again, and this time it finally hit the "Peacock King" hard!

　It didn't bleed; giant spirits don't bleed. But the divine giant, struck by the sevenfold lightning, still suffered several cracks on its right shoulder. The five-colored halo behind it trembled briefly, and within the ripples of light, several symbols of secret mantras emerged, becoming ineffective and extinguished.

　Faintly, one can see a large number of text lines flowing out like "blood" and dissipating like "air".

　This is the refined, ultra-high-density divine word that Samael wrote in the past, which was written in hundreds of millions, trillions, or even countless more lines.

　This is the djinn's "injury." Its programmatic divinity is struck.

　Qi Xing didn't hesitate to fight and immediately fled backwards. Using his Illusionary Power, a swarm of Dragon Kings emerged from the sea and pounced on the Peacock King, attempting to tear him apart.

　After the first battle and the information provided by Sasa, it has been confirmed that the "True Buddha Great Peacock King" has three faces and six arms. The three Noh masks represent the three phases of "joy (Amaterasu)", "anger (Susanoo)", and "sorrow (Tsukuyomi)" respectively, and the six sacred artifacts held by the six arms represent six "powers".

　Six powers! Compared to the two "silver coins" Qi Xing possessed, it was overwhelming! How terrifying! Could he win?

　However, Sasa told him, "The powers of the djinn, who have acquired specific forms in the human world, are different from the powers of the Silver Coin. While their powers are equal in effectiveness to yours, their effects are static, operating only within strict boundaries of what they can and cannot do."

　"The Karma-Tracking Arrow can only be used to track Karma attacks. It cannot be split up to do anything else. These effects and limitations are fixed."

　"However, although the power of "Silver Coin" is limited by its own concept, its actual effect is still dynamic and theoretically has no limit. "Silver Coin Messenger" can independently define how to use this

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　Concepts have unlimited flexibility as long as you have enough imagination and courage.”

　Endless possibilities.

　But the price of this possibility... well... everyone knows it. When you reshape reality with godlike abandon, you inevitably run the risk of miscalculating your thinking and being hurt by your own presumption. The price of "saying what you say is what you will do" is to be careful not to speak without thinking.

　The powers of the Giant Spirit and the Silver Coin Messenger are not ranked in order, so Qi Xing doesn't need to worry about that right now. His illusion can be dispelled by the Peacock King - but only if...

　"Peacock King" first changes the middle face to the face of "Amaterasu".

　The three faces began to rotate again. The Face of Sorrow, Tsukuyomi, trembled slightly, but it was not activated. After thinking, it chose the Face of Joy, Amaterasu.

　"Om, Mahavairochana, all wishes are fulfilled, the radiance is boundless, illuminating the three thousand worlds."

　"The wheel of heaven's justice, blazing with golden light, exposes all evil spirits from all directions."

　"Follow my Mahavairocana mantra—it illuminates the true nature and purifies all illusions."

　The "Yata Mirror" is held high, and the golden light shines through the fog, illuminating all directions!

　The brilliant light of the sun shattered the illusion and illuminated the confusion! Qi Xing's "illusion" power collapsed in an instant, turning into a void of water shadows that scattered and dissipated - but this was exactly what Qi Xing wanted.

　If they continued to fight head-on like this, Qi Xing would be beaten to death by the "Peacock King" using multiple powers, just like last time. Qi Xing would still lose if he went head-on with the giant spirit now.

　So he canceled his Dragon King transformation, turned back into a human, and gathered the "illusion" power weakened by the sunlight, only covering himself with all his strength.

　"The show has begun."

　With a low laugh, he flew away at lightning speed, his true energy exploded, and turned into lightning!

　The "Peacock King" naturally began to pursue.

　How could he not pursue? He'd already let the target escape last time, and this time, he wasn't dead yet, even actively attacking. If he continued to sit still, the enemy would likely harass him repeatedly, disrupting the "formatting" preparations and affecting the mission's progress.

　They must be pursued, suppressed, and eliminated—the intelligence of the giants made the natural judgment.

　It still maintains the face of "Amaterasu", and the Eight-foot Mirror shines in its raised hand, trying to re-lock the "truth" of Qi's awakening.

　Amidst the shaking of nothingness, the "Peacock King" stepped out of the formatted void, chased after Qi Xing, and flew towards the "Tianyanhu" that was waiting for the myth to be repeated.

　It found that Qi Xing had flown all the way to a remote and barren mountain with exposed rock walls.

　There was a cave on the mountain. Qi Xing flew there and dived in.

　The Peacock King needed no hesitation, nor did he harbor any suspicion. He paid no attention to the tiny mortals hiding around him, avoiding his radiance (though he was aware of their existence). His skyscraper-like form instantly shrank to about two meters, and he soared into the dark cavern in a cold and silent manner.

　This is the moment everyone has been waiting for.

　It's too late, it's faster than that!

　Lin leaped out of his hiding place like a blazing flame and brought down a huge rock that he had prepared in advance - a large granite stone used for sacrificial ceremonies! With a loud bang, the rock sealed the cave entrance, and it closed instantly.

　This is the solar eclipse myth that trapped the sun in a cave.

　The "Peacock King" has fallen into the trap.

　111: Courage

　There is a story in Japanese mythology:

　Amaterasu Omikami, the sun goddess in Shintoism, was so disheartened by the atrocities committed by her brother Susanoo that she hid in Ame-no-Iwato and refused to show up again.

　The sun set, the world fell into darkness, demons ran rampant, epidemics raged, and disasters occurred everywhere.

　To get her out of the cave, the gods gathered in front of it and held a feast. The dancing goddess Tiandiannu danced at the entrance to add to the fun, while the other gods laughed and clapped their hands, creating a lively atmosphere.

　Amaterasu heard the commotion outside and was puzzled. She asked, "I've been hiding, why are you all so happy?" The gods replied, "Because a god more noble than you has arrived."

　Amaterasu was curious and stuck her head out of the cave to check. The gods had already pointed the Yata Mirror at Iwato, allowing her to see her own reflection in the mirror.

　Just when Tian Zhao was stunned, the Hercules, Tianshou Linan, pulled her out of the cave and brought her back to the light.

　This is the myth of "Ama-Iwato".

　Japan has a tradition of blending Shinto and Buddhism, also known as "mixing Shinto and Buddhism." Simply put, this is the fusion of beliefs and rituals between Japan's native Shinto religion and Buddhism, which was introduced from the Tang Dynasty.

　For example, some gods are considered to be incarnations of Buddha. In other words, this god is a god in the "Shinto system", but in the "Buddhist system" he is a Buddha or Bodhisattva, possessing both identities.