White light enveloped the entire hall.
Those mages were all frozen in place, unable to move.
It wasn't just because of fear, but more because their spiritual power was completely suppressed; Kikyo's spiritual power was like a colossal tidal wave, crushing these minor mages' power into dust.
"This... this is impossible..."
The oldest mage muttered to himself, his cloudy eyes full of disbelief.
He had practiced for thirty years and considered himself a somewhat famous Onmyoji in this region.
But now, he couldn't even move a finger.
The pressure of that spiritual power was too strong, so strong it reminded him of the Great Onmyoji he had caught a glimpse of outside the Kyoto Onmyo Bureau in his youth.
In fact, setting aside techniques and such, in terms of pure quality and quantity of spiritual power, this was even stronger.
What kind of monster was this woman in white and red?
By the door.
Nurarihyon's kiseru dropped from his mouth.
He stared blankly at the figure in white in the center of the main hall, his golden slit pupils filled with shock.
"This..."
He swallowed hard.
As a Nurarihyon, he prided himself on being knowledgeable; he knew most of the yokai in the Kanto region and had dealt with many human monks—relying on the elusive nature of a Nurarihyon, no one could keep him pinned down.
But he had never seen spiritual power of this magnitude.
It was suppression, a suppression on the level of a domain.
Within the area covered by that white light, all spiritual power was governed by her will.
Nurarihyon could feel the Demonic Qi within his body being tightly suppressed by that spiritual power.
He wanted to move, but found that his body wouldn't obey him either.
It was that spiritual power warning him—do not move.
"Is this the miko whom many consider to be the strongest of this era... Kikyo of Kaede Village?"
He muttered, his voice filled with shock.
And, an irrepressible excitement.
Kikyo's name was not just known among humans; it was well-known among the yokai clans as well.
For this miko who guarded a village, the chaotic and bloodthirsty yokai, while not necessarily afraid, would only dare to confront her in groups, based on their limited capacity for reason.
To face her alone was a guaranteed death sentence.
For the yokai, this was ironclad proof of her immense power!
But before this, Nurarihyon hadn't really cared.
Whether it was the scene of her piercing the Kamaitachi and illuminating the night sky, or that arrow that pinned the false god, the Toad, to the ground, in Nurarihyon's eyes, while both were powerful, they weren't enough to threaten him—he couldn't afford to provoke her, but he could certainly avoid her.
Now it seemed he had underestimated her.
Before the strike that pierced the Kamaitachi, Kikyo had already expended a great deal of energy.
The arrow that pinned the Toad yokai was not even her full strength!
"I previously thought the title of'strongest' was just exaggerated..."
"It turns out it's true."
Spiritual power of this level was no longer a realm that ordinary human monks could reach.
This was talent.
The kind of talent that the heavens bestowed upon one.
No wonder that Oni Samurai from just now dared to charge in directly.
If it were him, he would dare to as well.
With someone like that backing you up, who wouldn't dare to do whatever they wanted?
In the center of the main hall.
Kanbe Hikaru's blade tip was still pointing at Suda Shigenobu's throat.
The short, fat lord was completely terrified; a large wet patch had spread on his crotch, and the smell of urine filled the air.
"Spare... spare me..."
His teeth were chattering, and he couldn't speak clearly.
"I'll give everything back to you... and money... gold..."
"Whatever you want, I'll give it to you..."
Kanbe Hikaru looked at him.
The firelight reflected on that pale, handsome face, and his crimson eyes looked like two burning ghost fires.
"The thing I want."
He said.
"You cannot give it."
The blade fell.
There were no fancy moves.
Just the simplest slash.
But that slash was so fast that even Suda Shigenobu hadn't seen it clearly.
He only felt a chill on his neck.
Then, his vision began to spin.
He saw his own body.
That short, fat body, wearing an ill-fitting hitatare, was spurting blood.
He also saw that young Oni Samurai.
Beneath that guy's sword.
Was his body.
Then, his vision went completely dark.
...
Blood splattered all over the ground.
Kanbe Hikaru picked up Suda Shigenobu's head and turned around.
His movements were natural, as if he were doing something completely ordinary.
Killing.
For a yokai, for an Oni Samurai, this was indeed as ordinary as it could be.
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