Chapter 754: The Inheritance of Absolute Evil
BOOM!
A terrifying shockwave erupted from the direction of the forest. In the instant Kaito Shirogane turned his head, it exploded from the woods on the other side.
Accompanying the feedback was the dissipation of a massive number of spirits.
Someone had simultaneously crushed both Cursed Spirits—which possessed physical forms but theoretically couldn't be killed by attacks lacking cursed energy—and Vengeful Spirits—which lacked physical forms entirely—using nothing but pure fists.
Rumble~
Smoke and dust, accompanied by splintered wood and ectoplasmic fragments, cascaded towards them.
Kaito Shirogane stood his ground. The Black Visage, however, reached out a hand, and a terrifying spiritual pressure burst forth in an instant.
BOOM!
Like an invisible barrier, the shockwave collided with the forcefield-like barrier created by the spiritual pressure, forming a clearly visible arc-shaped indentation.
At the same time, all the powerful individuals present sensed an extraordinary existence.
Madara Uchiha's hands dropped from his chest, his eyes already shifting into the shape of the three-tomoe Sharingan.
Artoria turned her body, taking two steps forward with her black Holy Sword in hand, placing herself in front of Kaito Shirogane.
The Guardian Spirit, Lu Bu, who still didn't understand much of the current situation, stood on the periphery.
Satoru Gojo stood upside down in the air, his hands in his pockets. He hadn't touched the ground since that labyrinth shattered. He was increasingly enjoying this feeling of adventuring in various chaotic worlds.
To him, the so-called world of Jujutsu Sorcerers was far too small and narrow.
No matter how powerful a Jujutsu Sorcerer was, or how special a Cursed Spirit might be, compared to the things he had seen while following this host...
They all reeked of a petty, small-time atmosphere.
Satoru Gojo opened his eyes. Within the Six Eyes, it was as if a blue sky and white clouds were drifting.
Smoke, dust, and flying sand—everything slowly vanished within the Six Eyes. In his complete field of vision, a blond boy wearing a blue high school uniform and headphones, with his hands in his pockets, emerged from the other side of the woods.
And on his wrist, the special bracelet already had four Stars embedded in it.
"Izayoi Sakamaki... This is... the Little Garden world?!"
Shamanic power burned across Hakumen's body. Foxfire instantly transformed into a white, gold-trimmed robe, the hood covering her head and face.
Seeing the newcomer, her pupils shrank to the size of pinpricks.
Hakumen was still somewhat unaccustomed to the dense magical energy within this body, and her head was a bit dizzy. She already had an extreme and twisted personality by nature, so the influence of All the World's Evil actually wasn't that significant to her.
She even felt that it perfectly aligned with her own thoughts.
This world was fundamentally one influenced by far too many fools. Only a very small minority could realize the truth of the world and seize power from it.
Like her, and like... Mercenary Tao.
But right now, all of that was secondary. Damn it, this was actually the Little Garden world?!
The corners of Hakumen's mouth curled up uncontrollably. That sense of pleasant surprise slowly radiated from the relaxation of her brows and eyes.
Even though she had lost the ability of the [Mandate of Heaven Sequence] cards, as long as she still possessed this brain, she remained confident she could acquire power from a high-tier world like this!
Kaito Shirogane also saw the newcomer. Izayoi Sakamaki had already appeared in the Mantra Network early on.
However, in the perception of the Mantra Network, Izayoi Sakamaki appeared no different from an ordinary person.
Clearly, that powerful Gift—which was still branded as [Truth Unknown]—was at a level completely unidentifiable by perception abilities on the level of the Mantra Network.
It wasn't just the Mantra Network and Observation Haki; Kaito Shirogane was now a Martial Arts Grandmaster of the Self-Style Realm, possessing a state akin to the unity of heaven and humanity.
His perception of others' Qi was almost no different from a priori intuition.
In other words, upon seeing a person, he could intuitively sense their strength or weakness.
Yet, facing Izayoi Sakamaki, this martial arts realm still failed to perceive the other party's condition.
If not for that appearance, the posture he took when attacking, and the reality that he had actually just shattered thousands of his spirits with a single punch right before his eyes...
Kaito Shirogane probably wouldn't have been able to tell that the person before him was a terrifying powerhouse possessing 4-Digit strength.
Kaito Shirogane instinctively took a step forward.
Izayoi Sakamaki's gaze also instantly fell upon the tall Kaito Shirogane.
His eyes caught the bracelet and Star on Kaito Shirogane's wrist.
"A 1-Star participant, huh..."
Then, Izayoi Sakamaki stopped, seemingly somewhat disappointed.
He could tell that the guy in front of him wasn't bad. At the very least, his gaze and aura were impressive.
However, the strength of the spirits he released was extremely low.
"Hey, Mercenary Tao, are you crazy?!"
Hakumen was startled by Mercenary Tao's insane action.
Izayoi Sakamaki was a textbook "overpowered protagonist" (Long Aotian), and even that label wasn't enough to describe him on the level of absolute power.
Izayoi Sakamaki harbored an unidentifiable Gift within him, thus classified as [Truth Unknown].
This Gift simultaneously possessed the [Gift to Shatter the Heavens and Earth] and the [Power to Shatter Gifts]. It was a highly contradictory Gift.
It meant Izayoi Sakamaki simultaneously held a miracle possessing immense power, yet this power could also shatter miracles themselves.
From his displays, Izayoi Sakamaki could easily shatter mountains and rivers, cleave the ocean in two with a single punch, and throw projectiles at the third cosmic velocity. At the same time, his physical constitution could completely nullify powers like petrification and death curses, possessing extreme resistance to instant-death attacks.
He was a plot character who, no matter how you looked at it, could not be defeated by Reincarnators at their current stage.
If one wanted to make an enemy of this kind of guy... Hakumen's mind subconsciously began to formulate countermeasures.
She was extremely knowledgeable about the timeline progression, hidden settings, and branching timelines of various plot worlds.
This was the fundamental reason she had reaped massive rewards in various task worlds.
Izayoi Sakamaki had not yet truly unleashed the power of his [Truth Unknown] Gift, at least there was a massive difference from the power he displayed when fighting the [Final Trial of Humanity: Absolute Evil — Azi Dahaka].
Izayoi Sakamaki's martial arts skills couldn't yet be considered outstanding. Although his physical combat prowess was strong, he was ultimately relying on that overly terrifying Gift to fight.
When facing a 4-Digit who was particularly skilled in martial arts, he would fall into a bitter struggle and a disadvantage.
Therefore, to conquer Izayoi Sakamaki, besides figuring out a way to deal with the powerful immunity granted by his special constitution, one also needed a martial arts master...
Hakumen subconsciously looked at Mercenary Tao.
But she immediately rejected this conjecture in her heart.
According to her current intelligence, even if Mercenary Tao's martial arts reached the realm of gods, in the face of an absolute disparity in base stats, he couldn't possibly match him.
Perhaps...
She recalled that posture Mercenary Tao took after transforming in the Fate world. Under the enhancement of the Counter Force, that version of Mercenary Tao truly gave off a terrifying feeling of invincibility.
But not right now.
Kaito Shirogane's brows relaxed, and white mist began to emanate from his mouth and nose.
Thump-thump, thump-thump, thump-thump!
The sound of a heart beating like a war drum echoed.
In fact, the few people closest to him clearly heard a triple heartbeat.
This guy has three hearts inside his body?!
Izayoi Sakamaki also curled up the corner of his mouth, his gaze returning to the tall man with half-black, half-white long hair.
He felt it—the other party's uniqueness, and that intensely rising will to fight.
BOOM!
A pitch-black and crimson aura erupted violently, instantly sweeping from the forest in all directions.
Izayoi Sakamaki still stood his ground with his hands in his pockets, his hair slightly rustled by the wind.
"Not a bad aura~"
Kaito Shirogane took another step forward. Hakumen's face turned pale.
It's over, I forgot this guy is completely insane. There's no stopping him...
She subconsciously looked at the others, only to see that everyone seemed entirely unsurprised by this. The Black Visage stood his ground, Satoru Gojo stood in the sky, and Madara Uchiha crossed his arms again.
The Black Saber also stepped aside.
"Do you guys completely fail to understand the situation right now... That guy is not someone we can match as we are. Once we fight, we might..."
"Silence, Mongrel!"
The scolding from behind was extremely harsh. Hakumen turned her head, only to see the usually arrogant and indifferent Gilgamesh leaning against a massive tree trunk, watching the scene before him with a calm, slightly appreciative gaze.
Seeing this guy—who had fused with her through a special method, causing her own divinity and Heroic Spirit traits to be affected—still looking at her with that kind of gaze...
Gilgamesh grew increasingly arrogant.
He slightly raised his head, using his height advantage to appraise this woman who lacked a powerful essence through half-lidded eyes.
"Hmph, this is probably something you will never be able to comprehend."
"That fundamental difference in essence."
Hakumen frowned and turned back, only to find that the others all wore expressions as if this were a matter of course.
A bunch of lunatics!
Hakumen cursed inwardly.
At this moment, Kaito Shirogane took yet another step forward.
Izayoi Sakamaki, with his hands in his pockets, also began walking towards Kaito Shirogane.
He wasn't the type to remain unmoved in the face of provocation. Likewise, this guy in front of him exuded a scent that piqued his interest.
Swoosh~ BANG!
Kaito Shirogane's speed was too fast. In the eyes of the others, his figure seemed stretched out many times over. But at this moment, a figure from the sky accurately slammed down in front of Kaito Shirogane.
BOOM!
The earth was struck by a terrifying impact force. The ground rolled outwards like ocean waves. The moment the terrifying impact touched Kaito Shirogane's figure, his body vibrated weirdly once, and all the impact force was instantly dissipated.
He stood his ground, his pupils already transformed into golden irises, and his gaze met Izayoi Sakamaki's shifting eyes.
Even after activating the 8th Stage of Setsuna, Izayoi Sakamaki still easily captured Kaito Shirogane's movements.
This guy...
The excitement in Kaito Shirogane's heart was about to break through the ceiling.
But the next moment, a fair, delicate hand swiped past Kaito Shirogane's face, grabbing towards Izayoi Sakamaki's collar with extreme speed.
Swoosh!
Like an animation with missing frames, Izayoi Sakamaki instantly dodged the woman's hand, and with a backhand, grabbed the long ears on top of the head of the woman wearing a maid outfit.
"Ah! Let me go right now!"
"What on earth are you doing?! Didn't Lord Shiroyasha warn us that there's a massive conspiracy behind the Gift Games here?!"
"We don't have time to waste here..."
The girl struggled continuously, but Izayoi Sakamaki just giggled and let go of her ears.
Even when they were just fooling around, their speed was still incredibly fast.
Kaito Shirogane could certainly keep up with this speed, but the speed at which [Black Rabbit] had just appeared in an instant was actually quite a bit faster than his base state after activating the 8th Stage of Setsuna.
This girl, her strength is quite outstanding too~
Sensing Kaito Shirogane's gaze, Black Rabbit turned her head and saw the strangely styled man. Although his face was handsome, he had half-black, half-white long hair.
His aura was even more unfathomable, giving off a feeling of holiness interwoven with evil. The visual impression was very strange.
However... Black Rabbit suddenly sniffed the air. From the man, she faintly caught a scent that made her feel extremely uncomfortable.
She took half a step back, her expression no longer as relaxed as when she was fooling around with Izayoi.
"Who are you?"
"Why are you exuding that kind of scent?!"
Kaito Shirogane also slowly straightened up. He could feel that Izayoi Sakamaki's will to fight had vanished.
An opponent clearly stronger than you losing the interest to fight you—this feeling displeased Kaito Shirogane.
Although he knew the answer to Black Rabbit's question, he had no interest in answering.
"It seems the only way to have a proper fight is in a Gift Game."
Kaito Shirogane recalled the twisted and coercive rules in the Gift Game those three had just now.
Theoretically, he could also set up a Gift Game unique to himself and twist the rules in a direction advantageous to him.
He glanced at the Star on his wrist and the size of the parchment.
He gained a more thorough understanding of this Gift Game, which was highly likely designed by imitating the concept of [Duel City] from [Yu-Gi-Oh!].
As long as he kept finding people to play Gift Games with, acquiring more and more Stars to increase his authority, not only could he participate in higher-level Gift Games, but he could also design even more twisted Gift Games himself.
As long as the Gift Game was designed brilliantly enough, there was a chance to overcome the strong as the weak, defeat powerful enemies, and seize the powerful Gifts they possessed.
Kaito Shirogane turned to walk back, but Hakumen brushed past him.
Hakumen walked resolutely toward the two members of [No Name]. She was extremely adept at unearthing hidden storylines, and simultaneously, very skilled at grasping the psychology of plot characters.
"Miss Black Rabbit, if you don't mind, could you allow me to explain this matter to you?"
Izayoi Sakamaki gave a thoughtful look at Hakumen, who was walking over, and then at the martial artist walking back, as well as the group of spirits waiting for him.
These people indeed all exuded some inexplicable scent.
It wasn't an odor, but more like a feeling, an... emotion.
It was... [Evil]!
The corners of Kaito Shirogane's mouth curled up. Hakumen's actions were entirely within his expectations. He didn't need useless trash who only followed orders blindly.
On the contrary, he valued someone like this, who could excavate power on her own, much more.
Although Hakumen lacked the talent and capacity of a combatant, in other aspects, she could indeed be called brilliant.
"Miss Black Rabbit, this scent is known as... [All the World's Evil]!"
"It originates from a guy named [Angra Mainyu]."
Seeing Black Rabbit's eyes change slightly, Hakumen nodded repeatedly, her voice sounding as if she were recounting some deep secret.
"Yes, yes, yes. It is the incarnation of [Absolute Evil] revered by Zoroastrianism, the very faction that the Demon Lord [Azi Dahaka]—the one who destroyed your homeland—belongs to."
Black Rabbit's blue hair instantly turned red. Just the appearance of that name made her feel as if she were seeing the destruction of her homeland all over again.
[Final Trial of Humanity: Absolute Evil], Demon Lord, Azi Dahaka...
That guy!
Three hearts, three heartbeats, the scent of Absolute Evil...
Black Rabbit was about to strike almost instantly, but a pair of hands grabbed her ears once again.
"Calm down a bit."