"This is..."
Hearing the inexplicable voice in her mind, Hachishaku-sama's pupils contracted in shock.
She knew what this was, but found it hard to believe.
Miko Yotsuya, Mai Sakurajima, Yui Yuigahama, Rio Futaba—every psychic, upon truly awakening, would hear a voice in their mind representing their true inner self, their so-called Soul Materialisation.
But...
Could she, an evil spirit, also awaken to Soul Materialisation?
[Evil spirit...]
As if hearing Hachishaku-sama's inner thoughts, the voice in her mind spoke slowly.
[Born from the convergence of people's negative impressions, born as an evil spirit, you have now found your true self.]
[Whether you are an evil spirit or how you were born no longer matters.]
[From this moment on, and henceforth, all your actions are guided by your own will.]
[This is the truth.]
[Here, call out your true name.]
Hachishaku-sama took a deep breath, and when she opened her eyes again, the wound on her arm from the evil spirit's bite was enveloped in white mist. Under the astonished gazes of Shoko Makinohara and Menma, it healed completely within a single breath.
"Here, I call out my true name."
"Hachishaku."
As Hachishaku-sama called her own name for the first time, her tall form—previously clad only in a simple white dress—transformed into an exquisite white Western-style gown, and she donned a wide-brimmed sun hat.
Bare, snow-white feet stepped upon the wooden floorboards, and with the change in attire, a heart-palpitating aura began to permeate the surroundings.
"This is me... my true self..."
Hachishaku-sama slowly raised her head, her black eyes fixed on the horde of evil spirits flooding into the room. An undisguised killing intent radiated from her gaze as she spoke in an icy voice.
"Only the boss... is allowed to eat me!"
Though Hachishaku-sama's stature didn't grow any taller, the spiritual power she emitted was clearly on a completely different level from before.
She took a step forward, and her snow-white, delicate skin, complemented by the white Western-style dress, created a beautiful appearance. Yet her usually adorable and refined face now bore a twisted madness that sent chills down one's spine.
"All of you, die!"
Hachishaku-sama let out a terrifying roar, her hands reaching out to grab an evil spirit by its shoulders. With a vicious grin, she tore it directly in half.
Then, the nails on her right hand suddenly elongated, piercing straight through an evil spirit's chest. She lifted it up and flung it with all her strength against the nearby wall.
"Come!"
Having called forth her soul's true name, with spiritual power surging to terrifying levels, Hachishaku-sama stood protectively before Shoko Makinohara and Menma. Facing the swarming evil spirits alone, she whispered with a sinister smile.
"Let me, Hachishaku-sama, experience more pleasure!"
If Miko Yotsuya or Rio Futaba were here, witnessing Hachishaku-sama's near-maddened enjoyment of slaughtering evil spirits and hearing her arrogant words, they would both be reminded of the same person.
Could it be that drinking milk...
Could subtly change one's fighting style?
Hachishaku-sama had truly taken after the boss she had chosen.
...
Meanwhile, in the abandoned building of the Reverse World.
Ye Xing, who was battling evil spirits, seemed to sense something.
"Hachishaku... has finally awakened..."
Through the power of their contract, even while in different worlds, Ye Xing could faintly sense the changes occurring in Hachishaku-sama, just as he could sense that Tamamo-no-Mae in the Reverse World was facing a life-threatening crisis.
He was quite satisfied with his first and only evil spirit employee.
But right now, that wasn't what he should be focusing on.
"Ye... Ye Xing-kun..."
Tamamo-no-Mae leaned against the wall, forcing herself to stand up.
"This... this humble one... can still fight..."
"Fight my arse."
Ye Xing didn't even turn his head, keeping his eyes on the dozens of evil spirits before him as he raised Onimaru Kunitsuna and softly chanted.
"Chidori Nagashi."
Black lightning, formed from evil spirit power, flashed through the area, accompanied by clear, melodious chirping.
Dozens of evil spirits instantly dissipated into black smoke.
But before the black smoke could completely vanish, dozens more evil spirits surged up from the staircase below, immediately filling the void and continuing their assault.
Ye Xing swung Onimaru Kunitsuna, the jet-black blade cutting down evil spirits one after another.
"Your power is completely exhausted. If you keep forcing yourself to fight, you'll be eaten."
Hearing Ye Xing's nonchalant words, Tamamo-no-Mae gritted her silver teeth. Though unwilling to admit it, she knew in her heart that he was right.
She'd reached her limit.
Though Tamamo-no-Mae possessed formidable power, having just endured an arduous battle mere minutes ago, her spiritual power was nearly depleted.
In her current state, she couldn't even revert to her original form.
Yet...
Watching Ye Xing standing there, wielding Onimaru Kunitsuna as he ceaselessly slaughtered evil spirits, Tamamo-no-Mae couldn't help but feel astonished.
Not only was his power immense, but his stamina was equally remarkable.
Over half an hour had passed since they entered this abandoned building.
Evil spirits continuously emerged from the black mist, flooding the stairwell and launching suicidal assaults on this floor without granting Ye Xing even a moment's respite.
Yet Tamamo-no-Mae could detect no trace of fatigue on Ye Xing's face.
Only pure, unadulterated enjoyment.
'Truly worthy of being the man whose true name is The End of Eight Million,' she thought. 'He possesses abilities I cannot hope to match.'
But...
Tamamo-no-Mae glanced out the window.
The black mist showed no signs of dissipating, instead growing increasingly dense and writhing constantly.
The moon in the sky had also turned a deeper crimson.
From the beginning of the battle until now, how many evil spirits has Lord Ye Xing slain?
Hundreds?
No - thousands, perhaps even tens of thousands.
As the saying goes, even an elephant can be killed by enough ants.
Tamamo-no-Mae looked at Ye Xing standing there, lightly biting her lower lip with a deeply concerned and anxious expression.
No matter how powerful his abilities were, he was ultimately human.
At such close range, witnessing the terrifying, distorted faces of the evil spirits and hearing their piercing screams for such an extended period - even if his strength sufficed, the psychological pressure must be unimaginably heavy.
Just as Tamamo-no-Mae was thinking this, she suddenly noticed Ye Xing muttering something while dispatching evil spirits.
She pricked up her ears - being a fox spirit in her true form, she could discern Ye Xing's murmurs even amidst the chaotic screams.
But when she finally made out the words, Tamamo-no-Mae was utterly bewildered.
"Hmm... this one tastes like pancakes."
"This one's quite chewy, like gummy sweets."
"Oho, this one's juicy - like eating fruit to cut through the richness."
Tamamo-no-Mae stared in complete confusion.
Wait...
Mate, are you performing exorcisms or serving as a food critic?
And you're giving reviews now?
In that moment, Tamamo-no-Mae suddenly realised how naive her assumptions had been.
From her perspective, Ye Xing was facing horrifying, distorted evil spirits that chilled one to the bone just by looking at them.
But in Ye Xing's eyes...
These creatures lunging toward him were merely food with different flavours!
Psychological pressure?
What psychological pressure could there possibly be!
"You can see me!"
With a vicious roar, a humanoid head-like object suddenly flew out from the stairwell, opening its massive mouth to tear at Ye Xing's neck.
"A Nukekubi?"
Ye Xing sidestepped the creature's lunge, expertly extending his left hand to grab the slender neck connected to the Nukekubi's body before pinning its head beneath his foot.
Thump.
With a dull sound resembling a watermelon bursting, Ye Xing crushed the Nukekubi's skull under his foot, shaking his head with a light chuckle.
"Although you were a minor boss who occupied two chapters back then, that was still the early stages. You can't keep up with the current version anymore."
This Nukekubi, just like the one in that unfinished building back then, wasn't a true Nukekubi but rather a counterpart formed in the Reverse World from people's negative impressions of the name "Nukekubi" and its stories.
So it was perfectly normal for multiple Nukekubi to exist.
"Speaking of which..."
Ye Xing continued swinging the blade in his hand, his voice carrying laughter.
"You could be considered the matchmaker between Haruno and me."
Seeing that Ye Xing still had the mood to comment on the evil spirit's taste and speak in abstract terms, Tamamo-no-Mae finally relaxed somewhat.
However, as she watched the increasingly dense black mist outside and the moon in the sky growing more crimson as if about to seep blood, she felt an ominous premonition.
She had never witnessed such significant changes occurring in the Reverse World.
Tamamo-no-Mae now understood the nature of the Reverse World - it was a world formed from human thoughts.
Did this mean...
Something had happened in the real world's Kyoto that she wasn't aware of?
...
"Finally... all taken care of, huff..."
Hachishaku-sama, having dealt with over a hundred evil spirits, sat directly on the ground without caring about her appearance. Unlike her usual adorable image of squatting in corners while holding milk, this time it only made Menma and Shoko Makinohara feel heartache.
"Sister Hachishaku."
Menma ran up to Hachishaku-sama with a worried expression.
"Are you alright?"
"Yes, I'm fine."
Hachishaku-sama waved her hand, forcing a smile.
"Could you get me a carton of milk from the fridge? I'm hungry."
"I'll get it for you."
Hearing this, Shoko Makinohara immediately ran to the refrigerator, took out a carton of milk, inserted a straw, and handed it to Hachishaku-sama.
The latter took the milk, took a large gulp, and that adorable, blissful expression appeared on her face again.
Of course, something like milk couldn't replenish spiritual power.
It merely provided some psychological comfort to Hachishaku-sama, who was exhausted from invoking her soul's true name for the first time.
Though.
What she truly wanted to drink wasn't this cold milk, but another kind of warm milk that only one person could give her.
"Where has the boss gone..."
Though not particularly clever, Hachishaku-sama had sensed something was wrong.
Normally, Ye Xing should have been able to detect such a large-scale evil spirit movement no matter where he was in Kyoto City.
Why hadn't he appeared even after the battle ended...
Could it be...
Hachishaku-sama shook her head, dismissing the terrifying thought, and murmured to herself.
"No, impossible, the contract hasn't disappeared, that's proof..."
Just as Hachishaku-sama relaxed, completely drained from invoking her soul's true name for the first time and unable to move even a finger, suddenly an evil spirit's head appeared at the doorway, rushing toward Hachishaku's neck with speed almost impossible to follow with the naked eye.
"Sister Hachishaku, watch out!"
Shoko Makinohara, almost without hesitation, instinctively threw herself in front of Hachishaku-sama.
"Shoko..."
Hachishaku-sama tried to stand up, but her body felt utterly weak, making any effective movement impossible.
Just as the evil spirit's fangs were about to sink into Shoko Makinohara, a crimson thread suddenly materialised in mid-air, tightly coiling around the neck of the evil spirit before abruptly constricting.
With a sound that set teeth on edge, the delicate red threads cleanly severed the evil spirit's neck, causing its head to fall to the ground and dissipate into a cloud of black smoke.
Before Hachishaku-sama, Shoko Makinohara, or Menma could react, the red threads vanished as if they had never appeared.
"Hachishaku, Shoko, Menma!"
The next moment, Miko Yotsuya - already changed into her combat attire - burst through the main entrance, her golden eyes filled with anxiety.
"I'm late - is everyone alright?"
Shoko Makinohara gave a slight nod.
"Big sister Miko, we're fine, but big sister Hachishaku..."
"Hachishaku?"
Miko Yotsuya rushed to Hachishaku-sama's side and knelt down, her voice full of concern.
"Are you okay?"
Hachishaku-sama managed a weak smile and nodded.
"Yes... It's just that using that power for the first time... has left me quite exhausted."
Though Miko Yotsuya and Hachishaku-sama walked different paths - one human, one spirit - they shared a strong bond.
After all, in the original Supernatural Society team, aside from Ye Xing, who often operated alone, this human-spirit duo had worked together, experiencing countless exorcisms side by side, naturally developing a close relationship.
"That power?"
Just as Miko Yotsuya was puzzling over this, Rio Futaba's voice came from behind.
"Hmm... It's similar to our Soul Materialisation. Didn't I tell you before? Tamamo-no-Mae also possesses that kind of power - the ability to release her true form."
Miko Yotsuya turned to see Mai Sakurajima and Rio Futaba, both already in their combat attire, along with Yui Yuigahama in her normal clothing. She finally let out a relieved sigh, a slight smile touching her lips.
"Everyone's safe and sound - that's wonderful."
Though Yui Yuigahama had received spiritual infusion and raised her spiritual power by several levels, she was still the last to awaken Soul Materialisation and had the least combat experience. Even now, she didn't know how to separate the power of her soul's true form to create spiritual armour that could enhance her defence and physical attributes.
"Not quite everyone..."
Yui Yuigahama pressed her lips together, worry evident in her peach-pink eyes.
"Ye Xing..."
"The boss is fine."
Hachishaku-sama forced herself to offer reassurance.
"I can sense the state of our contract - the boss is perfectly fine right now, not in any life-threatening danger. You don't need to worry."
"What we should be worried about isn't his situation."
Rio Futaba proceeded to explain the current circumstances to Hachishaku-sama, Menma, and Shoko Makinohara.
Hearing that Ye Xing was trapped in the Reverse World, the two spirits and one human before them all showed anxious expressions.
"Then quickly open a Gate to rescue big brother Ye Xing!"
"No, wait a moment."
Rio Futaba seemed to have thought of something, speaking thoughtfully.
"Setting aside whether Hachishaku in her current condition can even open a Gate, even if we do open a passage between the two worlds, how can we ensure what emerges will be Ye Xing rather than... something else?"
Opening a Gate comes with certain restrictions.
One of these is geographical correspondence.
In other words, if Hachishaku-sama were to open a Gate here, a Gate in the Reverse World would also appear in the exact same location.
Currently, there's no way to contact Ye Xing, making it impossible to confirm his specific whereabouts within the Reverse World.
Even if Hachishaku-sama successfully opens a Gate, what should be done afterwards?
Someone must enter the Reverse World to contact Ye Xing, then return to the real world together with him before the Demon Hour ends at dusk - otherwise they would have to wait until tomorrow morning.
During this period, would the evil spirits in the Reverse World simply stand by and watch them act?
After opening a Gate, everyone would face not only the evil spirits of the real world, but also those restless entities from the Reverse World - essentially being attacked from both sides.
"Without certainty of retrieving Ye Xing, and without knowing what changes have occurred in the Reverse World, rashly opening a Gate could very well bring about our complete destruction."
As she spoke these words, Rio Futaba clenched her teeth tightly, her eyes revealing a look of frustration.
Of course she wanted Ye Xing to leave the Reverse World as soon as possible and return to their side.
But...
As the chief strategist of the Supernatural Society, Rio Futaba was responsible for setting aside all emotional factors and maintaining absolutely rational, coldly detached thinking.
On the way here, she had witnessed the panicked citizens of Kyoto, thrown into chaos by the power outage and severed mobile communications.
What effect would such large-scale negative emotions have on the Reverse World?
Rio Futaba had no way of knowing.
She only knew one thing.
The enemy currently dared not open a Gate, fearing that Ye Xing would escape the Reverse World.
Similarly, they couldn't open a Gate either, as it might allow anomalies from the Reverse World to enter the real world through it.
Both the Supernatural Society team and the mastermind behind this attack on all of Kyoto...
Neither side dared to gamble.