<h4>Volume 11 - Yamata no Orochi: Chapter 9 – One Of The Four Heavenly Kings</h4>


    “Who goes there?!” The group of ck-armored soldiers charged forward, but with just a thought from Lily, all the troops within her field of vision fell simultaneously, in by her invisible cherry blossom des.


    Defeating Kato’s vanguard force wasn’t Lily’s only objective foring here. She aimed to gauge the strengths and weaknesses of Yoritomo’s forces. By summoning several Yomi beast painted projections, she unleashed a massacre within the valley. The beasts, tearing into the ck-armored soldiers, sowed discord in the ranks, for among them were numerous allied demons and beasts. The ensuing chaos blurred the lines between ally and enemy. Yet, under Lily’smand, her beast projections, slicing through everything with ruthless precision, made no errors.


    Meanwhile, Lily herself withdrew into the shadowy veil of the maze formation.


    The majority of the ck-armored army, ancient Hojo demon soldiers from Kamakura, held an inherent distrust for the Yomi demons. To them, it appeared the demons had turned feral, attacking indiscriminately, allies included. The scenepelled them to retaliate with equal ferocity, miring all sides in strife.


    “Cease this instant!” Themand boomed across the battlefield, a thunderous deration that halted the chaos momentarily.


    Two demon generals, cloaked in ancient ck samurai armor with ominously styled helmets adorned with sharp horns and sinister masks, appeared. Towering at five to six meters, they marched through the air with purpose. Upon sighting a beast projection, their destruction was swift and decisive.


    The Yomi demons, aligning with the orders of these imposing figures, ceased their onught. Of the seven or eight spectral beasts Lily had conjured, several had already faded, their energies spent, while the survivors were efficiently dispatched by the demon generals.


    “Double-soul Big Dipper Stage,” Lily murmured from within the mist-shrouded maze, experiencing the fray through herst beast’s senses.


    “These generals possess an aura, dark and terrifying, far beyond that of standard demon soldiers. Within the Heian Dynasty’s known circles, double-soul Big Dipper Stage masters are scarce. These two must hail from Yomi,” she concluded.


    Despite the generals’ arrival, casting their foreboding shadows across the valley, the soldiers’ own strife had decimated their numbers. Mosty dead, having turned on one another in the chaos.


    “Even the main general, Kato Keiren, has fallen. Humans are indeed feeble,”mented one of the generals, his gruff voice apanied by the dance of tiny blue mes in his eyes.


    The other, eyes alight with blood-red mes, chimed in contemptuously, “They stand no chance against our Carefree City. Nestled deep within the Land of Yomi, we wield a power unchallenged.”


    “We’d have never ventured to Ashihara, obeying Minamoto no Yoritomo’s beck and call, if not for the human world’s soul bounty.”


    “Yet, these orderse from the city lord himself, rendering further discussion moot. s, the souls harvested here, mostly those of mummified demons and soldiers, are far from satisfying,”mented the blue-eyed general, a haunting resonance under his mask as ck smoke coiled around him, signaling his consumption of the fallen’s souls. His counterpart followed suit, partaking in the grim feast.


    Lily, cloaked in confusion, pondered, “What is Carefree City? A Yomi force akin to the Matori Abyss? The collusion of Minamoto no Yoritomo with such entities and their summoning here baffles me.”


    Lily had once vanquished formidable demons that ventured into the human realm through the Gate of Yomi on Iyo Ind, and had even confronted several archdemons from the depths of the Matori Abyss. Yet, news of a Gate of Yomi being discovered within the Heian Dynasty had not reached her. Those subterranean rifts—were they the paths these demons took? If so, the danger they posed was unfathomable, a thought that made the prospect of investigating these rifts an inevitable task in Lily’s mind.


    Questions swirled in her head, chiefly about the orders from Yoritomo that even the demon generals heeded. What bond tied the Lord of Carefree City to Minamoto no Yoritomo? And to what extent did Yoritomo’s influence spread tomand such obedience from the denizens of Yomi? These mysteries weighed heavily on Lily.


    As the final echoes of her projections faded into ck mist, Lily’s sensory connection to the battle waned. The ominous procession of the ck-armored army soon trudged into the valley, a sight marked by indifference to the fallen, underscored by the crushing of bone and armor underfoot. This legion,prising Yomi archdemons, exotic beasts, and demon generals of grotesque visage and malevolent presence, moved with a singr purpose.


    At the heart of this dread army, borne by eight formidable demon bearers, was a colossal ck sedan chair, its ancient heft denoting power, marked by the crest of the Genji n. From this dark throne alighted Lord Kamakura, a figure of deceptive ordinariness, clothed in a dark blue kimono and crowned with a tall hat, his stature imposing.


    “Prepare a proper burial for Kato Keiren,” intoned Lord Kamakura, a thread of genuine regret woven into hismand, honoring the high-ranking general who had stood by him in the conquest of rule.


    Adjacent to Lord Kamakura stood an enigmatic youth, a samurai garbed in crimson armor. His hairstyle and white forehead band were overshadowed by his inhuman features: pale blue skin, golden eyes, and a triad of blood-red horns. His back bore arge de, ornate and alien, its scabbard etched with patterns not of this world.


    “Lord Kamakura, are there truly formidable female samurai in thesends?” inquired the young demon, a hint of excitement in his voice.


    Kamakura’s voice was calm yetden with truth as he spoke, “Indeed, if we can shatter this maze, a host of powerful and ravishing female samurai await us. It’s said to be a gathering of the Heian period’s most exquisite beauties.”


    The young man chuckled mischievously, his golden tongue flickering out like a me, a testament to his unrestrained nature. “Now that is tempting!”


    “Young Master Muyu, remember, as the son of the Lord of Carefree City, you are bound by our pact. Kagami Lily is mine to im. I shall be the one to torment her for a millennium before I exact revenge for my brother’s demise,” asserted a hulking demon general, his stature reaching five meters. His appearance was striking with a sumo’s topknot, azure skin, and eyes like fresh blood.


    “You presume she’s yours to im? On the battlefield, each of us must lean on our own strength. If capturing that woman is your desire, then make it so with your own two hands!” Muyu Hikomoto’s tone, edged with the authority of one of the four heavenly kings, left no room for doubt; he rejected the notion of dependence or shared glory in their grim task.


    Matori Nishin, known as the third leader of the Matori Abyss, replied with rising irritation, “What arrogance! Your ties to Carefree City do not cow me.” His words, sharp with defiance, refused to acknowledge any supposed intimidation from Hikomoto’s prestigious background.


    Unperturbed by the challenge, Hikomoto restated the hierarchy between them. “Be mindful of our ranks. Your title is that of a demon general, while I am elevated as one of the four heavenly kings.” His words carved a clear divide between their stations, seeking to diminish Matori’s significance.


    “So what?” came Matori’s terse rebuttal, slicing through Muyu’s grandstanding. It was a stark refusal to acquiesce to the perceived authority of the heavenly king, a reminder that titles do not equate to absolute power.


    Amidst the rising tension, Kamakura’s voice cut through, measured and firm. “Both of you, don’t underestimate the enemy,” he warned. “You are free to fight the other female samurai, but Kagami Lily is a legendary figure who even managed to kill Shuten Doji. Although it was a coincidence


    ¹, it still shows how dangerous this woman is.”


    The name Shuten Doji elicited a reaction from Matori, whose plump face twitched in either ignorance or disbelief. “Shuten Doji? Who is that?” he questioned, his knowledge of the infamous figure seemingly nonexistent.


    Hikomoto scoffed at the mention of such figures. “I’ve heard that a lecherous little monk turned into a demon and imed to be one of the world’s three great archdemons. A guy like that is nothing in front of my father!” His words dripped with disdain, underscoring his father’s might.


    Kamakura furrowed his brow and delivered a stern warning, “You two cannot afford to be reckless. In the face of Kagami Lily, caution is imperative. It would be best if I dealt with her personally.” His concern was evident as he addressed the heavenly king and demon general before him, both newly arrived from Yomi and brimming with strength, particrly Hikomoto, whose youthful exuberance could betray him into underestimating their foe.


    If not for Yoritomo’s inability to summon figures of the City Lord’s caliber to Ashihara, the matter would have been trivial. Yet, it wasn’t solely a question of capability; the Carefree City Lord would not readily abandon his strategically crucial city. He had dispatched his son here for training and in alignment with Yoritomo’s schemes.


    Meanwhile, ensconced atop an ancient tree within the maze, Lily was immersed in meditation. Ayaka’s soul transmission pierced her focus: “Lily, the army hasmenced its assault; they’re starting to dismantle the formation.” Lily’s eyes snapped open in acknowledgment.


    The expansive maze, stretching over 300 kilometers, was under siege. Ayaka’s connection to the formation alerted her to breaches, which shemunicated to Lily, along with the invaders’ direction.


    Lily navigated thebyrinth with ease, her senses extending outward, though those outside were blind to her presence. She witnessed a throng of Yomi sorcerers and shamans congregating on an altar, their incantations aimed at dissolving the maze’s barriersyer by painstakingyer.


    “Hmph, don’t even think about it,” Lily dered, unleashing several Yomi beast projections. They emerged from the misty forest, charging at the sorcerers and sowing discord among the demon soldiers who were caught off guard.


    “Calm down! It’s just some puny demons!”


    In response, two ck-armored demon generals emerged from the back lines, their long swords pulsating with a demonic aura, and they engaged the beast projections with a flourish. A disy of demonic sword light erupted, and the area was soon shrouded in billowing ck smoke. To Lily’s surprise, her beasts, formidable as they were, fell quickly to the prowess of these demon generals.


    “It’s these two again; they’re strong!” she acknowledged, her tone carrying a hint of respect. Among the projections, Lily’s cat demon weaved through the chaos at a breathtaking speed, aiming straight for the sorcerers. Abruptly, a red light streaked through the fray—a whisper of movement, a chill that touched Lily’s mind even from a distance. The cat demon’sst sight was a diminutive demon samurai, d in bright red armor, his skin bluish-purple and horns blood-red, wielding a sword of remarkable power.


    “They’ve all been defeated?” Lily murmured, annoyancecing her voice. These beasts were of unmatched strength in their own right.


    “The two demon generals at the double-soul Big Dipper Stage are formidable, but that short figure in red armor is a force to be reckoned with—perhaps as mighty as a quadruple-soul level being, capable of challenging even Taira no Masakado himself.”


    “Yoritomo has found a powerful ally indeed. One or two such figures I can manage, but any more, and even I would falter should they unite with Kamakura clone against me.”


    Although Kamakura was at the quadruple-soul level, his being a clone of Yoritomo imbued him with an exceptional might not typical for others of his stage. Lily was keenly aware that if these archdemons from Yomi joined forces, her situation would be perilous.


    Meanwhile, Muyu Hikomoto, the son of the Carefree City Lord, looked upon the sorcerers with impatience. “It’s taking an eternity to breach the formation! There must be a potent human onmyoji shielding it. Observe!” With a dramatic gesture, he unveiled a small sculpture, a curious amalgam of a woman’s head and a bird’s body. Tossed skyward, the sculpture birthed phantoms of demonesses, beguiling as they danced towards the sorcerers, weaving around them in a purple, seductive haze.


    In an instant, the sorcerers’ expressions morphed into a mix of passion and savagery, their power surging remarkably. The formation’s defenses started to crumble more rapidly, as if gales from Yomi were clearing the obfuscating mists.


    Pushing their capabilities to the brink, the sorcerers’ blood burst forth, drawn into the astral currents to amplify their assault, though their vitality faded swiftly with the exertion.


    “What sort of wind is this?” Lily gasped, her shock palpable. Even as she fortified herself with her spiritual energy, the malevolent breeze remained unimpeded.


    From within the formation, hundreds of kilometers distant, Ayaka’s voice pierced the tense air, “Ah!” The pained exmation was followed by a strained message, “Lily, it’s bad! The maze formation is on the verge of copse!” Her voice conveyed urgency and a tinge of fear, foreshadowing the chaos that was about to unfold. <h4>Footnotes:</h4>


    Robinxen: Well it was but also wasn’t…