Yasaka Magatama!

With that said, Jashin feared the youth in the distance might react, so He did not give Him much time. With a swift motion, He sliced open the wrist of the shrine maiden Miko, and a steady trickle of blood began to drip from the wound.

"Does Your Excellency truly require a bit of my blood?" Miko asked, staring at Jashin in confusion.

Jashin was currently racing against time and had no intention of entertaining the shrine maiden's stalling questions. A red light unfurled in His hand, sweeping up the Moryo lying on the ground.

The blood dripping from the shrine maiden formed a thread that made contact with the Moryo.

Whatever He did, the blood slowly began to merge into it.

"Hahahaha, it is done!"

At that very moment, Uchiha Genmei arrived, a flash of golden light streaking past!

His voice was cold and biting as he spoke:

"Monster... do you really think I would give you the time?"

The Jashin, severed at the waist, gave a hideous laugh:

"Hehehehahaha—you are too late!"

Before their eyes, that body rapidly decayed, turning into ash like rotten wood within moments and dissipating into the heavens and earth.

An incredible sight emerged; in the blink of an eye, a boundless river of blood appeared out of thin air, hanging high above their heads!

Unclean?

Filthy?

Depraved?

None of these words were sufficient to describe it.

Uchiha Genmei watched this anomaly, his expression stern, and he turned the hilt of his blade, preparing to strike.

Rip.

"Aaaaaah!" The pained cry of the shrine maiden Miko rang out.

He turned his head to see a massive torrent of blood gushing from the cut on the shrine maiden's wrist.

The Moryo fared no better; its body exploded with a loud bang.

It transformed into a dark red stream of blood laced with a hint of gold, merging with the blood of the shrine maiden Miko.

With a whoosh, it flew toward the river of blood in the sky.

Clang!

With a light chime of his blade, he severed the gushing line of blood on the shrine maiden's arm.

Seeing Uchiha Genmei save the shrine maiden, a sneer echoed from the filthy river of blood in the sky: "It matters not; My goal has been achieved!"

Turning a deaf ear to Jashin's mockery, Uchiha Genmei cast a cold glance at the river of blood in the sky.

He approached Miko and looked at the shrine maiden, who was breathing as faintly as a gossamer thread.

He sighed helplessly:

"It seems that for an enemy of that caliber, the Sannin in their youth are still not quite up to the task."

"Matatabi, help me stand guard. Do not let Jashin launch a sneak attack."

The giant beast, having arrived at some point, replied in a deep voice: "Understood."

Seeing Matatabi standing guard, Uchiha Genmei looked toward Miko.

The patterns in his eyes swirled, and the Light of Resurrection of Amaterasu-Omikami caressed the shrine maiden's entire body.

Before long, Miko caught her breath, braced her hands against the ground, and slowly stood up.

"I am sorry for letting Your Excellency save me once again."

Hearing Miko's apologetic words, The young man smiled slightly:

"It's no trouble, just a small favor, and besides, you are the employer."

Suddenly, an ominous buzzing sound echoed from the sky.

The unsettling noise vibrated through the atmosphere, causing Uchiha Genmei to look up.

The River of Blood was changing; the filth was slowly sinking toward the downstream, causing the crimson hue on the other side to gradually fade.

"A bad premonition." The feeling made him uncomfortable, and his expression turned stern.

Flames of chakra ignited around his body, and in an instant, Susanoo manifested.

"I'll test it out. After all... there's no reason to just stand by and watch an enemy successfully transform!"

Susanoo opened its hands, and golden divine energy coalesced into a string of magatama.

[Yasaka Magatama!]

The golden giant flicked its hands, and the magatama turned into meteors, bombarding the River of Blood in the sky.

An unexpected event occurred.

Before the magatama's attack could even draw near...

Distortions emerged in the void, swallowing the projectiles whole.

"What is this?" The frowning youth felt a flicker of annoyance, and Susanoo raised its Divine Sword, preparing to launch another strike.

Miko, the shrine maiden standing nearby, hurriedly stopped him:

"My Lord, do not waste your chakra. It is useless. During the forced connection with Moryo..."

"At that time, through the echoes in Its mind, this concubine already discovered the true identity of Jashin."

Hearing the shrine maiden's counsel, the youth was somewhat surprised.

"What do you mean?"

Miko paced to the youth's side, standing shoulder to shoulder with him.

She stared at the River of Blood in the sky, which was beginning to undergo a transformation.

She parted her lips slightly:

"In the past, this land was the era of the gods."

"The Lord of Takamagahara sent his son, born of his brother, to descend upon Ashihara no Nakatsukuni—this very land—to establish a nation and a dynasty."

Speaking of this, she touched the scar on her wrist that had already vanished.

She continued to explain:

"And the ruler of Ashihara no Nakatsukuni at that time was Moryo... no... I should say, His Majesty Okuninushi."

Hearing this, Uchiha Genmei understood.

He said calmly:

"So, is Jashin that god who intends to descend upon the earth and seize Okuninushi's Ashihara no Nakatsukuni?"

Miko, the shrine maiden, nodded solemnly.

She said in a low voice:

"That is correct. It is He who descended upon the earth to usurp the realm of Okuninushi."

The youth was still confused; what did this have to do with being unable to attack?

He asked directly:

"And how does that relate to why I shouldn't continue attacking?"

She reached out a hand, pointing toward the sky...

Miko said:

"He is currently merging with the noble power of Okuninushi, turning this process of recreating mythological history into a Ritual of Great Offering."

The shrine maiden bit her lip...

She sighed bitterly:

"He is no longer just Jashin now, but the Lord of the Land descending upon this earth."

"Before His transformation is complete, the very earth beneath our feet will protect Him, ensuring no one can harm Him."

Uchiha Genmei understood, and looking at the changes in the sky, he said:

"I see. The protection of the planet? It seems that, for the moment, I am unable to do anything to Him."

Yet, in his heart, he was astonished that the Jashin of the Land of Hot Water from the original story actually had such a background.

And also...

If these gods all possessed such ability, how could they have been slaughtered so thoroughly by Isshiki and Kaguya?

Could it be that these Eight Million Gods...

Aside from a rare few, ninety-nine percent of them are just trash...

The river of blood in the sky slowly began to clear, shedding its filth and shimmering with specks of blue starlight.

The water of blue starlight suddenly surged... splash... splash...

Amidst the roaring sound of the swirling currents...

A handsome youth with black hair and blue eyes, dressed in a simple, ancient white robe, slowly emerged.

He was not particularly tall, standing at about one meter sixty.

He stood suspended in mid-air...

His body shuddered, and the vast blue star-water was drawn into his body from behind.

He clenched his fists, his cold, stern gaze... shifting toward the vast, discarded filth beside him.

It was as if he were looking at something repulsive.

He let out a cold snort:

"I might as well make use of the waste generated by my unpleasant actions while I was dormant!"

He reached out and gripped the air toward that mass of shed, filthy blood...

Riiip...

That massive pool of filthy blood instantly transformed into a giant serpent with eight heads and eight tails.

"Hahahahaha, delightful, delightful."

He let out a joyous laugh, then lowered his head to look down at the boy and the shrine maiden below.

With a sinister grin:

"Heh heh... descendants of the Goddess of Rabbit."

"Prepare to die!"