Torment

At the edge of Heian-kyo, on the dividing line between pitch-black clouds and the clear sky—the border where the divine realm met the land of resentment—a group of Onmyoji clad in white kariginu were riding upon flying shikigami. They crossed the boundary of the sky, plunging deep into the darkness.

Leading them was Yura, still disguised as Ashiya Doman. Behind her followed a host of Onmyoji, all flying directly toward the source of the resentment. Each of them held their hands in sacred seals, with several talismans hovering around them. The Onmyoji were using their spiritual power to ward off the erosion of the invisible malice.

"Tsk... dealing with this resentment is such a massive pain..." Yura grumbled under her breath. To handle this powerful curse, they had spent a considerable amount of time. Even now, though they could withstand the curse to enter the black clouds, they were unable to move very quickly. Their speed was far inferior to Miketsu's.

Despite this, the Onmyoji continued to press toward the epicenter of the incident. Even with the protection of a deity, they had no intention of simply standing by and doing nothing.

As the Onmyoji flew beneath the black clouds, Minamoto no Yorimasa, hidden within the woods of a small hillside they passed, witnessed their progress. His brow furrowed as he began to pray to the Great Snake.

...

Far from the heart of Heian-kyo, within the Minamoto Clan's Forbidden Grounds, Miketsu was patiently maintaining her suppression of the Miko Orochi. At that moment, the voice of the Great Snake echoed from the sky once more.

"You... you actually let those Onmyoji come here?"

"Oh, that? Since they aren't part of my clergy, I didn't issue them any orders. I simply had my miko pass along some information... Their decision to rush here was their own," Miketsu replied slowly, her tone quite relaxed.

Hearing Miketsu's words, the Great Snake fell into a brief silence. He surely knew what it would mean if the group of Onmyoji arrived successfully. The sealing arts the Onmyoji specialized in could completely seal the weakened Miko Orochi. If that happened, the problem could be resolved without having to destroy the entity, meaning the Great Snake's goal for this incursion would once again fail.

Faced with this unfavorable situation, the Great Snake remained silent for a few seconds before speaking again, his voice much darker than before.

"Heh... I truly did not expect a mere false god like you to possess such formidable spiritual power. But do not get ahead of yourself. Though the vengeful souls of these miko are currently suppressed by you, they are still held firmly in my grasp..."

Following the Great Snake's words, Miketsu suddenly felt a surge of unease. Without warning, the Miko Orochi, which had been weakened under the Purifying Light, snapped its eyes wide open. Its body twisted in agonizing contortions as it let out heart-wrenching roars.

"What did you do!" Miketsu demanded, her brow furrowed as she watched the transformation occurring within the Miko Orochi.

"Nothing much. I merely activated another measure I had prepared in advance. These vengeful souls were molded into this form by my power, so naturally, I can control and influence them to a certain degree...

"Right now, I am using my power to torture their spiritual bodies from the inside, forcing them to experience boundless agony so that their resentment grows within this suffering..."

Although Miketsu's spiritual power had exceeded the Great Snake's expectations, he had originally intended to simply wear her down and see how long her power could last. However, after learning that the Onmyoji were on their way, he immediately abandoned that plan. He knew that waiting any longer would only play into Miketsu's hands, so he resorted to other means.

Torturing the spiritual forms of those vengeful miko souls caused their resentment to swell from the pain. This resentment would progressively strengthen their power until it reached the threshold required to summon him to interfere with the human realm. This was the Great Snake's backup plan.

Watching the Miko Orochi twist and wail in pain before her—even slamming its heads against the ground and biting itself—Miketsu intensified the radiance of the Purifying Light of the World. However, it still could not stop the Miko Orochi's agony or its self-destructive behavior. In a daze, she seemed to hear the extreme cries of pain from the miko trapped within the Great Snake.

These miko, who had met with misfortune in life, were still being subjected to endless torment after death. In life, they were used by humans as tools to appease an evil god; in death, they were used by that same evil god as tools for his descent. They hated everything, yet even that hatred itself was a power to be exploited. There was no word for such existences other than 'pitiful.'

"Stop!" Miketsu cried out as she listened to the miko's screams. However, the Great Snake clearly had no intention of listening to her.

"Stop? Heh... has your heart grown soft? Inari Okami! If you want to end their suffering, then act! Use your arrows to grant them release from all this misery!" The Great Snake's voice echoed wildly through the space, stinging Miketsu's ears. She could not help but grit her teeth.

Though Miketsu was merciful, she was no bleeding-heart saint who scattered her compassion indiscriminately. If destroying the Miko Orochi wouldn't also lead to the Great Snake's interference, she would have long ago stepped forward to give these miko a painless end. But the Great Snake's current actions left her unable to make a choice, for every path seemed to lead to the same result.

If she acted to destroy the Miko Orochi, their resentment would peak at the moment of their destruction, thereby summoning the Great Snake. If she did nothing, she would simply be watching as the miko were tortured, allowing their resentment to accumulate to its peak anyway, triggering the same conclusion.

For the Great Snake, he would have preferred to see Miketsu's spiritual power exhausted, eventually allowing the Miko Orochi to ravage Heian-kyo and force the release of the Four Symbols Seal. But given the circumstances, he was forced to choose this method. If he waited for the Onmyoji to perform a sealing, all his previous efforts would go to waste.

The Miko Orochi shrieked frantically in its pain. Its eight snake heads bit and tore at one another, only to heal rapidly. Amidst the endless wailing, the miko's resentment skyrocketed, the power generated by their malice rapidly approaching the peak required by the Great Snake.

As Miketsu watched helplessly, it seemed she could only stand by as the miko were turned into complete sacrifices to allow a large-scale return of the Great Snake's power.

But just then, a slightly wicked female voice rang out in Miketsu's mind. Aside from its tone, the voice was identical to Miketsu's own. It was the voice of Dakini-ten.

"Oh my... it seems you've run into quite a bit of trouble this time. Miko who cannot be purified... this is actually quite interesting. How about it? Would you like to use more of my power this time?"