Compared to the soaring morale on the Countermeasures Division's side, the yokai faction was now sinking into despair.
Before this, the Kamaitachi had been utterly unstoppable on the battlefield—either facing no equal at all, or single-handedly holding back three of the enemy's main combatants at once.But now? Their boss couldn't do anything against some wet-behind-the-ears kid.
If that human ever freed up his hands, what were they supposed to do—keep fighting for fun?
No—truth be told, they were already barely holding on.
There were three yokai forces attacking Shibuya. In terms of leader strength alone, the Kamaitachi was unquestionably the strongest, a full A-rank existence.
However, compared to the other two factions, most yokai had refused to side with it.
The reason was simple: its small, wiry body and seemingly "scratchy" damage made it look unimpressive at a glance.
And that decision had come back to bite them hard.
Aside from the Kamaitachi itself, the overall quality of its subordinates was painfully average. There wasn't a single B-rank among them—the strongest were only a handful of C+ yokai.
Against the current Yamato Kuuka and Kamishiro Isshin, that level of strength simply couldn't last long.
The Kamaitachi—the strongest—was completely tied down by Ren Kuroda.The C+-rank yokai acting as lieutenants were being cut down by Yamato Kuuka as if she were chopping vegetables.
The tide of battle had already turned.
Anyone with eyes could see it: once Yamato Kuuka, wielding the long-bladed Onikiri, charged into the yokai ranks, there was no one who could stop her.
At her current pace of slaughter, defeat for the yokai was only a matter of time.
And thanks to the overwhelming sense of security Ren brought—along with Yamato Kuuka's brutal momentum—the morale of the human side skyrocketed.
As the battle dragged on, humanity experienced something almost unheard of:
They were pushing back the yokai.
Watching from above as his subordinates were either hacked apart or fled in utter panic, the Kamaitachi finally snapped awake.
It turned toward Ren, fury twisting its face.
"You provoked me on purpose from the very beginning," it snarled."You wanted to keep my attention locked on you… didn't you?"
Calming down at last, the Kamaitachi realized just how foolish it had been.
As the commander-in-chief and strongest combatant, it had allowed itself to be completely enraged by a few offhand words.
Thinking back now—why had it insisted on locking horns with Ren at all?
Why not just go around him and slaughter the others?
The answer was obvious.
Ren clearly possessed some ability that allowed him to predict when and where the Kamaitachi would appear—otherwise, there was no way he could have defended so perfectly.
Ren claimed he was standing still, but in reality, even if he did move, he probably couldn't catch up.
So instead, he used "standing still" as bait—dragging the Kamaitachi's resentment and pride to the breaking point, trapping it here indefinitely.
The Kamaitachi believed it had seen through everything.
It glared at Ren with burning rage—and a grudging sense of contempt at his sheer cunning.
But now that the trick had been exposed, all it had to do was stop wasting time on this kid.
If it attacked the others instead, there was still a chance to turn the battle around!
The Kamaitachi moved again.
This time, it did not target Ren.
Instead, it shot straight toward Yamato Kuuka, who was rampaging freely through the yokai ranks.
Seeing the gale rush toward her, Kamishiro Isshin, directing the battle from the rear, felt his heart leap into his throat.
Clearly, he'd come to the same conclusion as the Kamaitachi: Ren hadn't stayed still because he didn't want to move—he simply couldn't keep up, and had chosen that tactic to stall.
Now that the Kamaitachi had seen through the plan, it had switched targets.
With its yokai power fully unleashed, the Kamaitachi left nothing to chance.
This time, it activated its strongest ability.
Using its yokai power, it split itself into two additional solid clones, forming a stacked formation—like figures piled atop one another—wrapped in a storm of slicing wind, surging straight toward Yamato Kuuka.
These two clones possessed the same speed as the original.
And when all three acted together, their combined velocity became even more terrifying.
In this overlapping formation, they could strike multiple vital points in a single instant—perfectly compensating for the Kamaitachi's lackluster raw attack power.
This ability originated from regional legends claiming the Kamaitachi was actually three brothers.
In truth, there was only ever one.
The other two had always been part of itself.
"Hear the shriek of the divine wind—With the force that shatters armies…Swift as the Wind · Army-Breaker!"
The Kamaitachi unleashed everything.
It was absolutely certain this attack was foolproof.
Yet just as its claws were about to tear through the sword shrine maiden's vital points—
A figure it loathed beyond measure appeared before it again.
A wind blade carrying the crushing force of Army-Breaker descended from above, tearing straight through the wind-blade tornado—
And grievously wounding the Kamaitachi trapped inside.
"Didn't you know?" Ren's voice rang out calmly."Turning your back on a swordsman is incredibly dangerous."
"I was planning to farm a bit more reputation…""But since you're in such a hurry to end things, I'll oblige."
"Controlling the wind is impressive—But unfortunately for you…"
"The wind is my friend too."
The Kamaitachi's greatest strength had always been its speed.
In every other regard, it was painfully average.
Its small body was never meant to tank damage, and with mediocre attack power, getting into close combat with Ren left only one possible outcome.
A wind-infused slash effortlessly tore apart the currents protecting the Kamaitachi.
At the critical moment, it made a ruthless decision.
It instantly sacrificed the two yokai-powered clones, using them as shields—while its true body erupted into motion at maximum speed and fled.
The destruction of the two clones would severely weaken its yokai power.
But that didn't matter anymore.
Ren's sudden appearance had made one thing painfully clear:
This human didn't just see it.
He could keep up.
And judging by the power of that strike, he was anything but harmless.
If speed—its greatest advantage—meant nothing, then a direct confrontation would be suicide.
The Kamaitachi made a decisive choice.
It abandoned the attack on Shibuya entirely.
It didn't even bother retrieving its subordinates—choosing instead to flee for its life.
The loss of the clones could be recovered with time.
Once healed, it could attack another region.
As for this human kid?
The Kamaitachi never wanted to encounter him again.
Watching the Kamaitachi escape by sacrificing its clones, Ren couldn't help but smile bitterly.
An A-rank Kamaitachi specialized in speed—once it committed to fleeing, even Ren had no way to stop it.
Of course, if he activated Half-Demon Transformation, he might have caught it.
But with so many eyes around—and no real need—Ren turned and plunged back into the battlefield instead.
With the Kamaitachi routed, the yokai army's mental defenses collapsed completely.
Their boss had run.
What was the point of fighting anymore?
And now that terrifying human had joined the fray—why bother resisting at all?
The first yokai fled.
Then the second.
Then the third…
Looking at the still-dense ranks of enemies, Ren muttered thoughtfully,
"These guys don't look like anything good anyway…Might as well test that sword technique."
"Scent the quiet of the mountain forest—With the rising force of Wenchang Wood…Slow as the Forest · Wenchang!"
Ren sheathed his blade and stood still.
A sharp gleam flashed in his eyes.
In the next instant, Oniwound burst from its scabbard—
Once.
Twice.
Nearly ten times in rapid succession.
Among the techniques of Wind, Forest, Fire, Mountain, Slow as the Forest was a wide-area, multi-hit attack—something he'd never had the chance to use before.
Ring-shaped slashes expanded outward from Ren, growing with the wind, lined up like disciplined soldiers marching in formation.
Under such overwhelming coverage, very few yokai managed to escape.
Even those strong enough to survive the first wave were immediately overwhelmed by the second… the third…
The strength of Slow as the Forest was obvious: massive coverage and repeated damage.
Its weakness was just as clear—long charge time.
It was best suited for situations where the enemy was numerous and already on the brink of collapse.
Watching Ren defeat the most troublesome boss with sheer dominance—and then wipe out the remaining forces with masterful swordsmanship—everyone present was dumbfounded.
Some even realized something awkward:
They were… kind of unnecessary.
Not only had he taken down the boss—
He hadn't even left them any minions.
Standing calmly with his sword sheathed, Ren glanced at his steadily rising reputation points, showing little reaction.
There was something he'd noticed long ago—something that had been bothering him.
Ever since he acquired Wind, Forest, Fire, Mountain, he'd realized something strange.
Swift as the Wind, Slow as the Forest, Invasive as Fire, Immovable as the Mountain—
They seemed to correspond to eyes, ears, mouth, and nose.
Sight.Hearing.Taste.Smell.
Even the technique names appeared to align with stars of the Big Dipper—Army-Breaker (Po Jun), Greedy Wolf, Giant Gate, Wenchang.
Humans possessed seven senses.
The Big Dipper had seven stars.
Beyond sight, hearing, taste, and smell, there were still touch, consciousness, and Manas-consciousness—the so-called microcosm.
And among the stars, there were also Lu Cun, Lian Zhen, and Wu Qu.
Which raised a tantalizing question—
Did Wind, Forest, Fire, Mountain have more techniques?
Or perhaps…
The potential to evolve even further?