Words of Madness

In the deep mountains beside Lake Suwa, Takemikazuchi stood in the sky with his arms crossed. Though his expression remained unchanged, he watched the scene below with growing anxiety. At this moment, Suwako had been driven into a corner by Futsunushi-no-Kami and Ame-no-Hinatidori-no-Kami; her final defeat seemed only a moment away.

The situation was beyond redemption, yet Takemikazuchi still hadn't found a way to intervene and help without being noticed. His techniques were too distinctive and their effects too loud; the moment he made a move, he would be instantly recognized.

'It seems... I can only hope that Uka-no-Mitama won't direct her wrath at me later... As long as I stay hidden in Takamagahara and don't go out, she shouldn't be able to do anything to me...'

At this point, Takemikazuchi was already beginning to look for an escape route for himself.

Returning his gaze to the ground, Suwako clutched her injured shoulder, standing at the bottom of the fissure split open by Futsunushi-no-Kami. Her eyes looked up at the two gods looking down on her with disdain, while her peripheral vision flickered toward something hidden within the cracks of the jagged rocks behind her.

'No... most of it is still buried underground. I need them to dig a bit deeper...'

Suwako thought to herself. She decided to continue utilizing Futsunushi-no-Kami's immense destructive power.

Suwako pressed her hand against the ground. Instantly, a stone stalagmite burst from the earth, shielding her. Then, she dove back into the ground to tunnel, attempting once more to escape through the earth.

"Heh... that same foolish earth-tunneling technique again? It cannot escape my eyes..." Seeing Suwako's actions below, Ame-no-Hinatidori-no-Kami chuckled. Holding an absolute advantage, they remained composed in the face of Suwako's renewed attempt to flee. There wasn't a hint of worry, for they knew Suwako could not escape no matter what.

"She's still in this direction..." Ame-no-Hinatidori-no-Kami continued to point forward. Seeing this, the silent Futsunushi-no-Kami once again transformed his arms into long sword blades.

"There is no need to waste any more time. Let's end this in one go..."

With that, Futsunushi-no-Kami swung his blade-arms down in rapid succession. Divine power transformed into sword qi, slashing into the earth. The ground was shattered under the cutting force of the God of Blades. One deep fissure after another was carved open. Amidst the continuous roaring, the wounds in the earth grew larger and larger, and the dust from the exploding rocks scattered across the sky.

Accompanied by Futsunushi-no-Kami's incessant slashing, the originally slender fissure continued to expand. After dozens of strikes, Futsunushi-no-Kami finally stopped his hand. Beside him, Ame-no-Hinatidori-no-Kami waved his hand, conjuring a great wind that gradually blew away the sky-filling dust.

"No need to blow it away; she won't survive..." Futsunushi-no-Kami spoke indifferently as he watched Ame-no-Hinatidori-no-Kami's actions. He was confident that under such a dense barrage of slashes, it wouldn't matter how deep Suwako hid underground.

Futsunushi-no-Kami was extremely confident in his own attacks. After he finished slashing, he prepared to leave immediately. However, Ame-no-Hinatidori-no-Kami beside him wore a grave expression.

"No... she is not dead yet. She is still alive..." Through his perception, Ame-no-Hinatidori-no-Kami murmured. Futsunushi-no-Kami turned around in disbelief and spoke directly.

"What? Could I have missed? Didn't you say she was in this direction?"

"Indeed... she should be in this direction, and she is still there now... Your attacks did not miss... it's just that... none of them harmed her." Ame-no-Hinatidori-no-Kami continued to speak with a heavy expression. Upon hearing his words, Futsunushi-no-Kami looked stunned.

"What..."

As the dust in the sky was gradually dispersed by the wind, the scene it had concealed began to reveal itself.

Under the continuous slashing, the original fissure had greatly increased in depth and width, having been completely expanded into a deep abyss canyon.

Ame-no-Hinatidori-no-Kami and Futsunushi-no-Kami both focused their gaze on the bottom of the canyon. At the base of that abyss, an object caught their eyes. Looking at it, both gods couldn't help but widen their eyes.

"That is..."

"What is that thing..."

Appearing at the bottom of the abyss was a massive lump of dark red flesh. This mass of flesh was about ten meters long and wide, covered in intersecting blue veins and tumors. A single slit ran across the middle of the mass, and a thick iron chain was woven through the flesh, stitching the slit shut. At a glance, it was incredibly bizarre and disgusting.

When they saw the appearance of that mass of flesh, an instinctive sense of extreme revulsion arose within the hearts of Ame-no-Hinatidori-no-Kami and Futsunushi-no-Kami. In the sky, Takemikazuchi also felt his heart twitch the moment the flesh mass was revealed, a sudden sense of crisis blooming within him.

"Ugh... disgusting thing... what on earth is this!"

Futsunushi-no-Kami shouted, then slashed a wave of sword qi toward the bottom. The sword qi accurately struck the massive lump of flesh, but it only caused it to writhe slightly. It showed no signs of damage; not even the skin was broken.

"This..." Futsunushi-no-Kami stood frozen in shock. Just as his astonishment and confusion intertwined, Suwako's voice came from behind the mass of flesh.

"This is a former collectible of mine."

Suwako slowly stepped out from behind the flesh mass. Just now, she had used this mass of flesh as a shield to block Futsunushi-no-Kami's attacks.

"This is a collectible I made specifically by tearing off a part of an annoying fellow's body to commemorate him... When I look at this thing, I can recall the moment I tore him apart. That was the most refreshing moment of stress relief..."

Suwako spoke with a smile as she grabbed one end of the iron chain. After a certain light shimmered on her body, Suwako pulled with force, ripping the iron chain sewn into the flesh mass straight off.

Instantly, the previously dormant mass of flesh writhed on its own. The slit that had been stitched shut opened wide—it was a terrifying, giant mouth filled with jagged, sharp teeth!

Eons ago, there was once an ancient god of ten thousand mouths who spread noise throughout the world to proclaim its name. Eventually, it was dismantled by a group of ancient gods who were tired of the annoyance. Suwako was one of those ancient gods at the time, and while dismantling that ancient god, she had kept some souvenirs.

"Open your mouth, Purwaiz! Let this world remember you once again!"

Suwako called out loudly, and that terrifying giant mouth began to utter words of madness.

"Ah! Purwaiz! Demon of sensation! Voice of the abyss! Aurora pollution! Nightmare of terror! The arrival of the call of all things! The dread of the gods' heart-demon..."

A piercing sound that could puncture eardrums expanded from the jagged-toothed giant mouth. Futsunushi-no-Kami and Ame-no-Hinatidori-no-Kami were instantly struck by this brain-piercing demonic sound, their souls pained and their spirits ravaged by every syllable and phrase.

Though this frantic and intense voice of an ancient god used a completely different language, any living being could understand it. This language was like a carving knife, etching its content directly into the deepest parts of the spirit, turning into an indelible mark amidst extreme agony.

The unspeakable pain forced them to cover their ears, and they cried out with distorted faces.

"Aaaah! Stop it!"