Her groggy consciousness began to reconnect with her body, and her senses slowly returned. As her mind gradually cleared, Miketsu slowly opened her eyes, then instinctively clutched her forehead.
"Hiss..."
Taking a deep breath, her mind still somewhat muddled, Miketsu sat up from her reclining position and began to observe her surroundings. She found herself lying on a sturdy stone bed, surrounded by an expanse of lush green meadows.
Shaking her head to clear the cobwebs, Miketsu stepped off the stone bed and walked forward a few paces. She realized she was standing at the edge of a high cliff. Looking out from the precipice, a vast and beautiful world unfolded before her eyes.
There were towering mountains and flowing waters, rainbows and colorful clouds. Between the soaring stone peaks lay forests of ancient, giant trees. Beyond the forests was a rolling, vast sea of clouds. Looking around, she realized this sea of clouds completely encircled the mountains, waters, and forests.
This was, remarkably, a massive floating island. Miketsu herself was atop the highest peak at the very center of this aerial landmass. Radiant clouds swirled in the sky above the island, while flocks of white cranes soared between the mountains. Pavilions and towers were faintly visible throughout the landscape, and in the outer sea of clouds, other smaller floating islands could be seen.
Sea of clouds, mountain peaks, rosy light, flowing water, flying birds, and grand pavilions... the combination of all these things gave Miketsu only one impression: a celestial wonderland.
"This place is..."
"This is one of my humble dojos, located within a Secret Realm atop the Kunlun Mountains."
The voice that answered Miketsu was old yet resonant. Turning her head, she saw a white-haired Daoist dressed in white robes, possessing an ethereal and transcendent air. She remembered him; he was the one who had been with the avatars of the Chief Gods earlier.
"It's you... This is your dojo... How did I end up here?" Miketsu asked directly, her heart filled with confusion.
"Hehe... Do you not remember why you came to this humble one's abode?" The Daoist stroked his long beard and smiled kindly. His words caused Miketsu to furrow her brow.
"I don't remember? Should I?"
"You should try to recall more carefully. You have only just returned to your celestial body; it is understandable that your memories are somewhat disorganized."
"Think carefully..." Following the Daoist's words, Miketsu began to strain her memory, digging through her still-chaotic consciousness for fragments of the past. Finally, a blurred memory surfaced, and she froze in place.
"I... I remember now. My godhead was shattered by the power of the Moon Feather Princess, and then... it was as if my soul had left my body. I felt as though I could suddenly grasp countless things, as if I possessed infinite power... And then... I pulled Chang'e out from within the Moon Feather Princess and sealed her back into the moon once more."
With a look of astonishment, Miketsu spoke slowly. She remembered everything she had done, but she didn't know how she had been able to do it, or why she had felt the need to.
"I re-sealed Chang'e, though I don't even know how I was able to seal her, or why I had to. At the time, I just knew I had to do it, as if I had done it before..." Rubbing her temples, Miketsu continued to organize her chaotic memories.
"After that... I began to strip away Chang'e's influence on the world, but because my power was unstable, I had to stop at the very end. Then... you said you would have me return to this original body and that you would repair my godhead."
After finishing her explanation, Miketsu looked at the Daoist. He nodded slightly with a smile. Miketsu synthesized her recovered memories and finally reached a conclusion that left even her stunned.
"I... I am an Ancient God. An Ancient God residing within the body of a Modern God. The shattering of the godhead allowed my power as an Ancient God to be released without restriction, which is how I was finally able to seal Chang'e."
"Precisely... However, manifesting in this world purely in the form of a divine soul would damage your essence. Therefore, you had to return to this celestial body. For you, the godhead is not merely a seal, but also a form of protection," the Daoist continued with a smile. Hearing this, Miketsu couldn't help but place her hand over her heart and speak softly.
"Not just a seal... but also a protection?"
Touching her chest, Miketsu felt the Inari godhead within. It overlapped with Miketsu's godhead inside her body. Miketsu's consciousness was still dormant, and the godhead itself was vibrating strangely, likely because it had only just been repaired.
"Was it you who repaired my godhead?"
"No, not just me... him as well..." As the Daoist spoke, he pointed into the distance. In the far sky, a floating orb of light was emitting a faint white glow. Miketsu remembered it; that was the orb of light that had appeared alongside the phantoms of the Chief Gods.
While all the other Chief Gods had concrete forms, he was the only one who remained a mere orb of light without a manifested image.
"That is..."
"That is also the avatar of one of the Chief Gods of the major pantheons. Before he ascended to godhood, he was a friend of this humble one. He is likely the most powerful Modern God in this world, though that strength came at a price." Looking at the orb of light, the Daoist spoke with a hint of complex emotion. Miketsu, however, noticed an important point in his words.
"Before he ascended to godhood... In other words, are all Modern Gods actually mortals who ascended to godhood?" Miketsu asked bluntly. In this white-robed Daoist, she saw the possibility of unraveling the mystery of the Modern Gods.
"Yes. The Modern Gods were all once mortal. In the distant past, they might have been human heroes, human leaders, or perhaps the ancestral spirits of humanity. They might have even been demonic or spirit beasts that protected humans. Through a certain catalyst, they were able to soar to the Celestial Realm and ascend as gods, replacing the decaying Ancient Gods of the final era to shepherd all living beings." Looking at the sea of clouds on the horizon, the white-robed Daoist slowly answered Miketsu's question. Miketsu stood frozen in place, stunned by the revelation.
"Human heroes and leaders from ancient times... even ancestral spirits and demonic beasts..."
"Indeed... Your current vessel is Uka-no-Mitama-no-Kami of the Yamato Pantheon, who has long resided in the East. So, let me use those you are familiar with as an example. The Mihashira-no-uzunomiko of the Yamato Pantheon were actually the leaders of three large tribes that ruled the East long ago. Among those three tribes, the largest was called Yamatai. And the most exalted Chief God among the Mihashira-no-uzunomiko, Amaterasu, was the Queen of Yamatai, known as... Himiko."
Rate on N.U.
