The Fall of the Spider

In the dense forests west of Heian-kyo, eight Onmyoji magical arrays distributed according to the Bagua positions centered around the Tsuchigumo began to emit a steady glow. Amidst surges of spiritual power, the arrays laid by the Onmyoji linked together across the earth. This grand array, formed by dozens of Onmyoji, released a powerful incantation force that pinned the Tsuchigumo’s massive body to the spot, rendering it unable to move. The Onmyoji's formations were proving highly effective.

Standing on a small hillside not far from the battlefield, Minamoto no Yorimitsu watched the scene with a slight curl of his lips. He spoke indifferently to Onikiri at his side.

"They have begun. Go, Onikiri. Show them your strength as well."

"Yes, Master!" Answering Yorimitsu without hesitation, Onikiri gripped the hilt at his waist and bolted forward, racing toward the Tsuchigumo at a blinding speed.

On the battlefield, the powerful incantation force held the Tsuchigumo in place, leaving it momentarily unable to counterattack. Seizing this opportunity, Mokou and Menreiki launched a long-awaited counter-offensive.

"Hey! Mask yokai! I need to blast a hole in this thing. Can you manage that?" With flaming wings spread wide, Mokou shouted toward Menreiki.

"I can... I need a moment..." Menreiki replied tonelessly. She slowly spread her hands, and the mask fragments surrounding her gathered in front of her. They began to spin rapidly, rippling with seven-colored demonic energy. As they spun, the fragments merged into the cracked Seven Masks of Hata no Kawakatsu, their demonic power constantly accumulating and amplifying.

As if sensing the impending danger, the Tsuchigumo, though bound by the arrays, struggled to lift its head. It looked at the floating Menreiki and Mokou and unhinged its horrific mouthparts, letting out a deafening, high-pitched shriek.

Its voice carried a massive amount of demonic energy as it spread, not only incredibly loud but also piercingly sharp. It tortured the minds of all living beings nearby while the fluctuations of demonic energy disrupted their internal flow.

Under the influence of the Tsuchigumo’s cry, the Onmyoji maintaining the array suddenly felt splitting headaches. The spiritual power within them became turbulent, causing the grand array to flicker and destabilize, showing signs of imminent collapse. Menreiki, who was gathering demonic power, also found her focus wavering under the sonic assault. The masks that had begun to merge momentarily loosened, causing her to knit her brows in frustration.

"So grating..."

At that moment, a figure streaked across the ground. With a few powerful bounds of his long legs, he leaped onto the Tsuchigumo’s back and reached its head. It was Onikiri. In his hand, he held a tachi that was vibrating intensely; the resonance from the blade actually neutralized the Tsuchigumo’s sonic waves.

"Scouring Ring... Spider Cutter!"

Onikiri leaped from the Tsuchigumo’s head and delivered a slash toward its mouthparts mid-air. The strike was magnified by a surge of demonic energy, carving a massive gash across the creature's mouth. It severed the vocal organs within, turning the Tsuchigumo’s roar into a pathetic wail. The disruptive sonic waves ceased instantly, and Onikiri plummeted back into the forest, following the pull of gravity.

Seeing the shriek interrupted, Menreiki steadied her breath and exhaled slowly. The mask fragments around her integrated rapidly into seven cracked masks. These masks, each bearing a different expression, spun as they funneled demonic power toward the center. Finally, a brilliant seven-colored light erupted from between them.

"Pierce through..."

A seven-colored beam of magical energy surged from Menreiki’s masks, striking the Tsuchigumo’s head. It melted through the incredibly thick carapace at high speed. After breaking through the shell, Menreiki’s beam continued its path of destruction, boring straight through the Tsuchigumo’s massive body until it exited the other side.

Skewered from head to tail with a massive hole, the Tsuchigumo let out a strange, mournful howl and struggled feebly within the binding array. Even though a tunnel five or six meters in diameter had been blasted through it, it was still not dead. It writhed weakly under the suppression of the Onmyoji array, the flesh on the walls of the wound quivering and crawling as the creature's sinister power began a rapid regeneration.

"Don't even think about getting back up! Die right here!"

At that moment, the flaming wings on Mokou’s back—which had been gathering power for some time—suddenly expanded. Raging flames enveloped her entire body as she transformed into a firebird in mid-air, charging straight at the Tsuchigumo. With a sharp cry, the flaming bird dove into the wound opened by Menreiki, deep into the Tsuchigumo’s core. There, Mokou resolutely self-detonated.

BOOM!!

Accompanied by a thunderous roar that shook the heavens, a massive explosion detonated inside the Tsuchigumo. The internal high pressure caused the Tsuchigumo’s armored body to swell momentarily. Countless tongues of fire erupted from the gaps and cracks in its carapace, and a thick pillar of fire spewed directly from its head.

The devastating internal blast brought by Mokou nearly destroyed the Tsuchigumo’s internal organs. After the spectacle of fire geysering from every orifice lasted for a while, the charred Tsuchigumo slumped powerlessly to the ground, motionless. The wounds, which had stopped regenerating, told everyone that the great yokai Tsuchigumo had finally lost all signs of life.

Far from the Tsuchigumo’s battlefield, within the underground cavern where the White Tiger Altar was located—connected to the surface by a massive crater—the battle between Yamato Takeru and Miketsu continued. The crisp ring of clashing steel echoed through the hollow space as the Demonic Fang Blade and Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi struck each other, sending out brilliant sparks.

To leverage her own strengths, Miketsu actively sought close-quarters combat. To counter Miketsu’s Kishin power, Yamato Takeru used the sinister power within the Kusanagi to modify his own body. He transformed his sword-arm into a grotesquely bulging, malformed mass of muscle, increasing his strength a hundredfold to resist Miketsu’s strikes.

Relying on her Kishin power and causality vision, Miketsu held a massive advantage against humanoid opponents. Consequently, she dominated the fight from start to finish, keeping Yamato Takeru suppressed. However, no matter what injuries she inflicted upon him, they healed at lightning speed due to the sinister power. Even when she pierced his heart, he recovered instantly by drawing upon the sword's power.

Though he was being suppressed throughout the encounter, Yamato Takeru did not seem panicked. Instead, he resisted Miketsu’s attacks in total silence. This stoic attitude triggered Miketsu’s vigilance; she felt as though Yamato Takeru was simply biding his time, waiting for something to happen.