Not far ahead of him, a staircase led upward.
Okkotsu could feel it. Dhruv Lakdawalla was up there!
He took a deep breath. Sewage dripped from his clothes, collecting in a small puddle on the floor.
Okkotsu raised his head and looked at the half-open door at the top of the stairs.
A faint pink glow shone through the gap, and the air carried an ancient, oppressive aura of cursed energy.
It made every hair on his back stand on end.
The source of the "Inviolable Domain" was behind that door.
Okkotsu raised his left hand and glanced at the ring on his ring finger.
Rika could hold on for less than another minute. He had to end the fight within that time.
But just as Okkotsu stepped onto the first stair, a faint tremor came from beneath his feet.
Okkotsu looked down, his pupils abruptly contracting.
An enormous Giant-Toothed Monster shikigami burrowed out of the ground, appearing directly beneath his feet.
Okkotsu reacted immediately.
His movements just now must have caught Dhruv Lakdawalla's attention, prompting him to send a small shikigami to investigate!
The Giant-Toothed Monster was only half as tall as a person, but its teeth took up almost its entire head.
Its jaws were already open as it emerged through the gaps between the floor tiles, snapping at Okkotsu's calf!
Okkotsu's reaction was astonishingly fast.
Without even looking, he kicked hard against the step with his right foot, launching himself half a meter into the air. The Giant-Toothed Monster's jaws snapped shut on nothing, its teeth scraping a shower of sparks from the concrete.
Okkotsu twisted in midair and brought his sword down, gathering cursed energy along its edge. A single slash split the Giant-Toothed Monster in two.
But Okkotsu did not relax in the slightest. The