The red cross sword symbolizing Michael's divine power was drawn by Mika Misono, and the abyssal divine might instantly soared into the sky.
She gently swung the longsword in her hand.
The blade, which seemed to be dripping blood, sliced through the air and instantly glided through the mountain god's body as easily as cutting tofu.
A blood-colored sword light burst out of the mountain god's body and slashed toward the mountain peak behind it.
Boom!
The entire mountain let out a loud bang as half of the peak was vertically sliced open, the cut as smooth as a mirror.
In the Bible, Michael had once defeated the red dragon that could pull down a third of the stars, possessing terrifying strength.
However, because Gabriel's world belonged to a comedy anime, Heaven was vastly different from the records in the Bible, so it was impossible to perfectly recreate the biblical power.
Otherwise, even if it was just a projection, a full-powered strike from Mika Misono would likely have sliced open more than just half a mountain peak.
With two muffled thuds, the mountain god's bisected corpse fell to the ground, scattering countless red light particles from its body.
Perhaps even the mountain god hadn't expected it would die so quickly, failing to withstand even a single move.
As the last trace of angelic power in her body was exhausted, Mika Misono's body also began to turn transparent.
The longsword in her hand disintegrated on its own, and the divine might shrouding the sky vanished along with it.
Once the divine might dissipated, the heavy mountain pressing down on everyone suddenly disappeared, and they began to pant heavily.
Before disappearing, Mika Misono turned around and instructed Miko Yotsuya:
"Miko, you still have things to do now. Go up along this path. To prevent the mountain god from resurrecting through the goshintai, you need to make a trip up there yourself."
Miko Yotsuya tried her best to calm her frightened heart and nodded forcefully with a serious face. "I'll go up and destroy that shrine right now!"
She hadn't forgotten the guide Gabriel had given her.
Miko Yotsuya looked down to confirm that the holy cross was still in her hand, then gathered her courage and followed the reappearing stone steps up toward the Mitsuko Valley Shrine.
"Is it really okay to let her go alone? Why doesn't this old woman accompany her?"
Mitsue Takeda said worriedly.
Mika Misono shook her head slightly and pointed to the shrine spirit beside her, who had just climbed up from the ground and reverted to human form... no, it should be Towako Oka now:
"She should be an acquaintance of yours and Rom. While there's still time, you should have a good reunion. There's no need to worry about Miko."
Upon seeing the familiar figure reappear, both Mitsue Takeda and Rom stood frozen in place.
Towako Oka gave Mika Misono a grateful look, then cast a complicated gaze over her now aged disciple and grown-up grand-disciple.
Finally, she smiled in relief and said with a gentle gaze, "It's really been a long time, little Mitsue, and... little Rom."
Towako Oka had never thought she would reunite with Mitsue Takeda and Rom in this way.
Much less did she expect them to be accompanied by a legendary angel.
And not just an ordinary angel. A red cross... this was the archangel Michael...
"Master!"
"Miss Towako Oka..."
Seeing Towako Oka again, Mitsue Takeda walked over with trembling steps and tears in her eyes, while Rom lowered his head like a child who had done something wrong.
"Ahem, excuse me, we might need to take our leave first."
The goat-headed spirit arrived in front of Mika Misono, politely preparing to say its goodbyes.
Behind it, the three-headed monster's three mouths were bulging high. It was unknown just how many evil spirits it had stuffed in at once, so much so that chewing was now incredibly strenuous.
They didn't want to stay in this damned place for another second.
Previously, they had thought Mika Misono was one of their own, but just now they had felt the sense of crisis belonging to a natural enemy from her.
This discovery left them sitting on pins and needles.
It felt like an antelope lying among a pride of lions. Even if they knew the other party wouldn't hurt them, the psychological pressure was very real.
Therefore, the goat-headed spirit threw caution to the wind and directly ordered the three-headed monster to swallow the remaining evil spirits that had nearly been crushed to death by the divine might earlier, preparing to slip away.
Mika Misono naturally had no reason to stop them, so she allowed them to leave the area.
Meanwhile, Miko Yotsuya carefully avoided the cleaved fissure in the middle, followed the stone steps, stepped over the fallen torii gate, and arrived in front of the shrine.
"This is the place."
Miko Yotsuya stopped her steps and, without much hesitation, raised the lily in her hand.
When a thought arose in Miko Yotsuya's mind, the mechanism left behind by Gabriel was triggered. All the angelic power within this lily was instantly activated, and the third of the divine arts was ready to be unleashed!
The petals of the lily fell one by one. The surface of each petal lit up with golden inscriptions, swirling around Miko Yotsuya.
"...Save... save me..."
"Save... me..."
A woman's helpless cries for help echoed from the shrine without warning, pleading to the outside world.
Immediately after, without any forewarning, several incredibly realistic scenes flashed before Miko Yotsuya's eyes.
She saw a procession dressed in white ritual garments. Someone was holding a gohei with bells attached to it.
They walked up the mountain along the winding stone steps.
Following in the procession was a black-haired girl whose face was covered by a white veil. The girl was petite and clearly underage.
Suddenly, she saw a fox that had successfully hunted its prey in the bushes.
The fox also noticed her and quickly ran away.
But the girl suddenly smiled.
Following that, a few more scenes flashed by.
Parched earth, animals dead from disease, humans dead from starvation, a sweeping plague...
Inside the shrine, the black-haired girl from before was kneeling on the floor. Three items were placed in front of her: a cup of sake, animal bones, and some seeds.
A group of people below clasped their hands together, muttering obscure and incomprehensible incantations.
The wind suddenly blew past the bells on the gohei, letting out a crisp ring.
The scene shifted, and a sharp long sword was raised high!
"Save me..."
Along with a faint cry for help, all these scenes vanished.
Miko Yotsuya covered her mouth, a tear rolling down her eye uncontrollably. "That child... how could they do that to her... it's too cruel..."
The overwhelming despair and helplessness hitting her face made her feel incredibly awful.
The lily petals encircled Miko Yotsuya, and the radiating holy light protected her.
Miko Yotsuya gently touched one of the petals, then wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes and gathered her spirits.
"If I destroy the shrine, will it set you free?"
Miko Yotsuya stared fixedly at the shrine ahead. It was as if she could see right through the walls to the severed head of the black-haired girl enshrined within.
No one answered her.
Miko Yotsuya took a deep breath, gazed at the shrine tens of meters away, and spat out a single word with an incredibly gentle tone: "Kill."
Clang clang clang—!
The deep and drawn-out sound of Heaven's bell rang out!
All the lily petals erupted with a dazzling white radiance, and an endless sea of light instantly swallowed the entire shrine!