In the middle of the battlefield stood a colossal creature. Its head was like a tiger's, its body like a spider's, and it had eight long legs and a mouth full of fangs. Terrifying-looking bristles covered its body, which stood seventy or eighty meters tall.
It was the Earth Spider, a great youkai famous throughout the Eastern Island.
The giant spider monster had been captured and sealed by Emperor Jimmu. But after Emperor Jimmu died, the seal weakened, and the Earth Spider had escaped long ago.
Now the legendary Earth Spider stared at something in front of it that was smaller than its eye, filled with terror.
It was a woman, with a pair of small, antler-like horns on her head.
She wore a kimono and held a folding fan. Her long black hair fell down her back, and her face wore a leisurely expression.
"Princess Kiyohime, you've slaughtered countless of my descendants. What more do you want?!" the gigantic Earth Spider roared in human speech, its voice tinged with anger... and a trace of fear.
"What do I want? Of course... I want you dead!" The woman looked at it calmly, her words carrying a hint of resolve.
"Don't push me too far!!!"
At her words, the Earth Spider flew into a rage! This was too much...
So what if it had accidentally destroyed the place she lived? It hadn't done it on purpose. Who could have known that, when it woke up, a temple would be right beside it—with a powerful great youkai living inside?
"You destroyed my Dojo Temple and the only thing I had left to remember Anchin by. I won't be able to quell my hatred until I kill you." As she spoke, Princess Kiyohime's expression turned bloodthirsty as she looked at the Earth Spider.
Kiyohime had once been human. Her name alone revealed that she was the daughter of a noble family.
She fell in love with a monk named Anchin, but he abandoned her. Using a pilgrimage to Kumano as an excuse, he left her behind, and Kiyohime could only wait for him.
When her beloved never returned, Kiyohime realized she had been deceived. She ran after Anchin day and night, without even putting on her shoes, enduring every hardship along the way. By the time she finally caught up with him on the road to Dojo Temple, she no longer looked human—or even like a ghost.
Seeing that his lie had been exposed, Anchin hurriedly begged the Kumano deities to restrain Kiyohime. Then he swiftly crossed the Hidaka River, fled to Dojo Temple, and begged the abbot for help before hiding inside the temple's great bell.
By the time Kiyohime reached the banks of the Hidaka River, there were no boats left. But she resolutely plunged into the water anyway, transforming into a creature with a human head and a serpent's body. She continued chasing him ashore, and at last reached Dojo Temple, where she and Anchin perished together in the flames.
But Kiyohime did not die. Driven by her endless devotion to the one she had passionately loved, she transformed into a dragon through sheer obsession.
Afterward, Kiyohime stayed at Dojo Temple, hoping that one day she might see Anchin again.
Who could have guessed that, a few days ago, the Earth Spider before her would suddenly burrow up from underground, causing the ground to collapse over a huge area and Dojo Temple to cave in completely?
Kiyohime had nearly gone mad. She had hunted the Earth Spider for days, killing countless of the offspring it had raised.
"You've gone too far! I'm a great youkai too!"
Seeing that Kiyohime still wouldn't let it go, the Earth Spider stopped fleeing. It opened its fearsome maw and spat a huge torrent of poison at her.
The poison rushed toward Kiyohime like the waters of a mighty river!
Yet Kiyohime remained calm. Just as the poison was about to reach her, she flicked her folding fan.
A gigantic fire dragon appeared, instantly turning the Earth Spider's poison into steam.
Seeing that its poison had failed, the Earth Spider didn't seem bothered. It shook its enormous body, and countless spiders as big as washbasins crawled out of it.
The sight of them swarming together was horrifying.
All the little spiders crawled toward Kiyohime, and the Earth Spider charged at her too. With its enormous body, every step made the ground shake.
Watching the Earth Spider move, Kiyohime didn't hesitate for a moment. She transformed into a gigantic horned serpent—a dragon.
The giant serpent opened its jaws and unleashed a mighty dragon's breath...
Everything before it was reduced to ruin...
Faced with the dragon's breath, the Earth Spider hurriedly retreated.
The battle between Kiyohime and the Earth Spider sent the youkai within a hundred li fleeing in every direction.
After all, in a battle between great youkai, it was easy to get caught in the crossfire. Dying that way would be a pointless death...
Don't think a hundred li is a long distance. For most great youkai, the area covered by a battle could stretch far beyond that.
Then... at that very moment, Yae Sakura encountered more and more youkai.
Until... she encountered a whole host of demons!
When a host of demons traveled together at night, it was called the Night Parade of One Hundred Demons. But since it was daytime, a host traveling together was far less impressive than a night parade.
The Night Parade of One Hundred Demons referred to an alliance formed by a hundred or more youkai and ghosts.
When these youkai formed an organization and concentrated their power, their leader benefited from it and gained tremendous strength.
This great power spurred many youkai to strive to become the Lord of All Demons.
After all, once a youkai was acknowledged, even in name, as the Lord of All Demons, it could advance in rank. Becoming a true great youkai was no longer impossible.
Looking at the host of demons before her, Yae Sakura was thrilled!
She hadn't gotten a single crystal so far, and now... they were finally delivering crystals right to her.
"Lady Yae!"
Xia Ji clutched Yae Sakura's sleeve tightly. There were so many youkai in front of them... Xia Ji was terrified.
With so many youkai, could Yae Sakura really handle them all by herself?
She was very worried.
"Just stay behind me. Don't run off, and I won't let them touch you." Yae Sakura reassured Xia Ji, then led her right up to the host of demons and stood in their way.
The one leading the host of demons was a famous youkai: Jorogumo!!