With a final, venomous threat hurled into the wind, the Night-Blade God withdrew.
As his presence faded, the darkness receded like an ebbing tide.
Daylight returned to the world.
And only then did those who remained truly see what had become of the place where they had stood.
The snow mountain could no longer be called a mountain.
After the devastation wrought by Yudou and the Night-Blade God, it had been erased from the map entirely.
The exorcists who had come here—though they had not directly joined the battle—had been caught in shockwaves akin to natural disasters. Most of them were dead. Of those still standing, only a handful remained.
The Night-Blade God's retreat brought a collective sigh of relief—
Followed immediately by a heavier dread.
Because after what they had learned today… who could possibly return to a peaceful state of mind?
The humans present desperately wanted to go back and tell the world the truth—that everything had been a scheme orchestrated by the gods.
But they soon realized—
They were not out of danger yet.
The Night-Blade God had fled.
But he had left behind the one who had defeated him.
If it had been the earlier "Hyakki"—the one who still possessed reason—perhaps negotiation would have been possible.
But now?
Even a fool could see that something was deeply wrong.
To speak with this version of Hyakki was unthinkable.
Simply meeting those pitch-black eyes was enough to crush the spirit.
As for Yudou—his eyeball had fully regenerated. His aura surged once more, stabilizing at the very peak of the Lower World: SSS+.
But with the Night-Blade God gone—his primary target lost—
The corrupted Yudou was visibly enraged.
He stomped the ground repeatedly, each step causing the earth to cave in. Then he tilted his head back and roared at the sky.
Like a furious child denied his prey.
He vented like that for over a minute.
And then—
He turned his gaze toward the other living beings still present.
The remaining humans.
And Ibaraki-dōji—who had only just broken free from the divine restraints binding him.
The moment Yudou's gaze fell upon them—
It was as though death itself brushed against their skin.
Whether they were B-rank exorcists… or even Ibaraki-dōji at SS-rank—
It made no difference.
In front of the current Yudou, "B-rank" and "SS-rank" were distinctions without meaning.
An SS-rank might struggle a little longer.
But the outcome would not change.
Watching him slowly approach, the surviving humans lost their nerve.
They had survived the earlier battle between yokai.
They had escaped avalanches.
They had clawed their way back from the brink of death again and again amid disaster-level shockwaves.
And yet—
All that effort now felt meaningless.
No one even considered resisting.
They knew it was pointless.
Even running was a fantasy.
Even if they charged him together, fearless unto death—
Would they even be able to scratch him?
Humanity might be the most resilient of creatures—
But resilience requires at least a flicker of hope.
If all that lies ahead is endless darkness, then no matter how hard one crawls forward, one finds only deeper despair.
"Kuuka… go to my house. Bring my mother and my little sister here. There may still be one last chance."
The homunculus Yudou—still heavily injured and cradled in Yamato Kuuka's arms—forced himself upright and spoke.
Kuuka stared at him, bewildered.
"Are you joking right now? Do you even understand the situation? Why would you bring Aunt Masami and Ruki here? It's dangerous! We're barely surviving as it is—and you want your family to come here?!"
She truly could not understand.
If there was anyone Yudou cared about most in this world—
It was Amanoin Masami and Amanoin Ruki.
Every decision he had made—joining the Countermeasure Division, all his later actions—had one premise: ensuring his family's safety and giving them a better life.
There had even been times when Kuuka and Kujō Hinano had secretly envied them.
The depth of emotion Yudou devoted to his family surpassed what he showed anyone else.
"That's precisely why they need to come," the homunculus said quietly."If they don't… none of us will leave here alive.
The influence of the 'Evils of This World' is still deepening. The stronger he becomes, the more thoroughly he falls into corruption. If we miss this window… it will truly be over."
As Yudou's clone, no one understood the blackened Yudou better than he did.
Because of the lingering consciousness of the oni army from earlier, Yudou still retained the faintest shred of awareness.
But if this dragged on—
The negative emotions saturating the world would only continue feeding the 'Evils of This World' that opposed him, until they devoured him completely.
"There's no point hiding it anymore," he continued."Amanoin Yudou is Hyakki. Hyakki is Amanoin Yudou. The 'Redeemer' you've seen… and Hyakki… they're the same person.
Though my true body has been corrupted, there is still subconscious restraint. Even if he attacks, he won't target those he knows first. He'll let you leave. Others might not be able to—but you can.
You're the only one who can bring him back.
So I'm counting on you, Kuuka."
The words struck Yamato Kuuka like lightning.
The truth he revealed—
Shook her more than the Night-Blade God's revelations about the gods' conspiracy.
At the same time—
She felt something else.
A sharp, painful disbelief.
The boy she had fallen for.
The one she had confessed to.
Was a yokai?
"There's no time," the homunculus cut in."I'll explain everything later.
Just know this: from the very beginning, I never once intended harm toward the humans of Tokyo.
As for what you choose to do—that's up to you.
Now I have to stop my original body. And I don't have long."
With that, he forced himself to his feet once more.
Gripping the Kusanagi Sword, he charged toward his corrupted self.
"Jorōgumo! Yuki-onna!"
As he sprinted forward, he called their names.
Two elegant figures materialized at his sides instantly.
"Yudou-sama! ×2"
"Limit his movements as much as possible. He still retains a sliver of awareness. As beings closely tied to him, he shouldn't strike to kill us immediately.
But be careful. We don't know when the 'Evils of This World' might deepen their hold again."
They were his right and left hands.
And as his homunculus, he even carried a fragment of Yudou's soul.
When the three of them rushed forward—
The corrupted Yudou did not lash out.
Instead, he tilted his head like a curious child, studying them.
He did not immediately strike.
"Bakudō Ninety-Nine, Second Division—Bankin!First Song: Shiryū!"
As he ran, the homunculus chanted rapidly, pouring every last drop of his remaining spiritual power into the spell.
Massive bands of cloth burst from the earth like wild vines, wrapping around the corrupted Yudou's body in layers upon layers—
Until he resembled a tightly bound mummy.
But it wasn't over.
Even after the bindings sealed him, the homunculus halted, forced more residual spiritual power from his exhausted body, and began the second incantation.
"Bakudō Ninety-Nine, Second Division—Bankin: Second Song—Hyakurensan!"
Dozens of gigantic iron spikes shot in from all directions, piercing through the wrappings and pinning them into place, completely fixing him in position.
And then—
Hands pressed together.
The final chant.
"Bakudō Ninety-Nine, Second Division—Bankin: Final Song—Bankin Taihō!"
As the final words fell, a colossal monument engraved with the Buddhist manji symbol descended from the sky—
Crashing down with the force of Mount Tai collapsing—
And crushed the bound, mummy-like Yudou beneath it.
Bakudō #99 was a supreme-level binding art, normally usable only by masters of kidō.
Yet Yudou, having utterly exhausted himself, had unleashed it in full sequence.
It all happened in an instant.
And those watching could only stare in stunned silence.
Especially the head of the Kagamori family—renowned specialists in sealing arts.
He had once heard that the wielder of the Kusanagi Sword excelled in swordsmanship but was mediocre at onmyōjutsu.
But looking at this—
That rumor had clearly been nonsense.
If this level counted as mediocre—
Other exorcists might as well smash their heads against tofu and give up.
After completing the triple incantation, Yudou turned toward Jorōgumo and Yuki-onna.
They exchanged a glance—
Then moved at once.
Jorōgumo's body shifted, revealing her true form: the upper half a breathtaking beauty, the lower half a monstrous spider.
"Spider Silk Hell!"
Her yokai power flared.
A massive torrent of silk burst from her abdomen, quickly wrapping around the manji-engraved monument—
Enveloping it in yet another massive cocoon.
"The original body's condition is unstable," the homunculus warned."Do not absorb his yokai energy. Redirect it elsewhere instead."