My Lady Amaterasu Is the True Ruler of Takama-ga-hara!

Two priests flew off the phoenix palanquin.

The commotion at the Gion Festival grew even louder.

People farther away could not see what had happened on the palanquin, but those nearby had seen it clearly.

The two priests had barely touched that child before they were sent flying.

"Did I really just see that?"

"Is this some new trick the Eastern Islanders came up with?"

Wearing a porcelain mask, Reiko stood at the edge of the phoenix palanquin. Under everyone's anxious gaze, she stepped onto the air and walked down, one step at a time.

Every anxious gaze turned to shock.

"She walked down on air?"

"That has to be fake."

"Where are the wires? I can't see any."

Reiko ignored the adults' uproar. She drove the length of black wood into the ground, the hard concrete road giving way beneath her hand like tofu.

The black wood sank into the ground, and something incredible happened.

It shot upward, growing into a lush tree in the blink of an eye.

The tree stood seven or eight meters tall, its trunk too wide for several burly men to encircle. Paper offerings and sacred ropes hung across it, lending it an air of peace and blessing.

Everyone who saw it was so stunned they nearly forgot to breathe.

Walking down from the phoenix palanquin on air might somehow be explained away. But a piece of black wood growing into a tree taller than several stories in mere seconds could only be called a miracle.

Reiko touched the trunk of the Sacred Tree with her small fingers and spoke slowly.

"Wood of the sacred, what use is it without the chief deity?

"Flowers on the jeweled branch—how can mortal things bloom in Yomi?

"At the mirror's beginning, eight feet stand in vain upon the high plain.

"The god of this life—is that distant tale truly real?"

"This is..."

One of the priests sent flying from the palanquin forgot his pain. Staring at the Sacred Tree, he gaped. "Is this the ritual for summoning Amaterasu Ōkami recorded in Queen Himiko's Chronicles of Empress Jingu?"

Queen Himiko had ruled Yamatai during the Yayoi period of the Eastern Isles. She appeared nowhere in their official histories, but Shinto records and historical accounts from neighboring China and the Cosmic Kingdom mentioned her.

Himiko was called an incarnation of Amaterasu Ōkami. When she was born, the sun rose from Takama-ga-hara and illuminated the earth. When she died, the sun hid in Ama-no-Iwato, leaving the earth without light.

After the queen's death, she left behind the Chronicles of Empress Jingu, which was said to record a way to communicate with Amaterasu Ōkami.

But the book had long been lost. Only portions of it had been copied and preserved in Shinto Shrines.

If he had not taken a particular interest in Himiko and read the Chronicles of Empress Jingu at the shrine, he would never have known what this ritual meant.

"But isn't that just mythology? Could the myths be true? Do gods really exist?"

"Priest of Ise, do you know what this is?" The priest who had been thrown off the palanquin with him turned at the sound of his voice.

"Priest Ito, if I remember correctly, this is the ritual recorded in the Chronicles of Empress Jingu for summoning Amaterasu Ōkami from Takama-ga-hara."

The Ise priest's heart pounded, and his body trembled uncontrollably.

Shinto had many branches, and each major shrine worshipped a different chief deity. The chief deity of Ise Grand Shrine was none other than Amaterasu Ōkami.

If what they were seeing was real, and Amaterasu Ōkami truly answered the summons...

Ise Grand Shrine would benefit most of all.

For one thing, given Amaterasu Ōkami's standing in Takama-ga-hara, Ise Grand Shrine could unite every Shinto shrine in the Eastern Isles.

The Sacred Tree under Reiko's hand shuddered, and its lush green leaves drifted down through the air.

Layer upon layer of nearly transparent ripples spread outward, pushing the onlookers back and clearing a wide space.

Within the ripples, a strange vision slowly appeared.

The clear blue sky looked like crystal. Lush grass covered the vast plains, where herds of cattle, donkeys, and fine horses galloped freely.

Far away, a rolling sea of trees filled the horizon. Countless rare birds and beasts dwelled within it. Winding streams and lakes ran through the plains, mingling with wisps of cloud like a blue gemstone.

The magnificent palaces of the gods rose above that gemstone.

High above all, they looked down upon every living being.

Everyone attending the Gion Festival stared in amazement. The tourists might only have thought the vision beautiful, not knowing what it represented, but the Kyoto locals knew. This was unmistakably Takama-ga-hara, as described in the "Old Traditions" of the Kojiki.

According to the "Old Traditions" of the Kojiki, the gods created the world in Takama-ga-hara, then dwelled there and ruled over all living beings.

"Please make way! I'm a reporter with NHK. Excuse me, please let us through." Fukamizu Iiko squeezed to the front with her cameraman.

She had come to cover the festival only to complete an assignment for the station. She had not expected a story this big.

Could the myths of the Eastern Isles actually be true?

As a reporter, she had seen plenty of faked miracles. Television stations had even helped edit footage of some so-called miracles just to make a story.

But this was different.

Both the Sacred Tree that had grown in seconds and the vision of Takama-ga-hara defied everything she knew.

She was absolutely certain this was no high-tech fake. It was a real miracle.

"Takama-ga-hara! My lady Amaterasu Ōkami is coming after all."

By now, the Ise priest was beside himself with excitement.

After witnessing such a miraculous sight, he was beginning to believe the myths were true.

How else could he explain what stood before him?

"Must it be Amaterasu Ōkami? Why couldn't it be Uka-no-Mitama?" Priest Ito murmured as he gazed at Takama-ga-hara.

Amaterasu Ōkami was not the only deity in Takama-ga-hara. Uka-no-Mitama, worshipped at Fushimi Inari Shrine, dwelled there too.

The Ise priest was old, but his hearing remained sharp. Hearing Priest Ito behind him, he gave a dismissive chuckle. "Priest Ito, my lady Amaterasu Ōkami is the true ruler of Takama-ga-hara."

Your Uka-no-Mitama may be a great deity of Takama-ga-hara too, but how could she possibly compare to Amaterasu Ōkami in standing?

Priest Ito's hand slowly clenched beneath his long sleeve, worry crossing his face.

Shinto had many branches, each major shrine with its own deity. If Amaterasu Ōkami truly descended from Takama-ga-hara, Fushimi Inari Shrine's standing within Shinto would plummet.

"That should do it."

Jiang Hao judged the timing was right and decided to make his next move.

The Takama-ga-hara within the ripples suddenly changed.

From the gods' magnificent palaces came a man riding a Sacred Palanquin. He wore white ceremonial robes embroidered with gold and a crown upon his head. His long, pale-gold fingers gripped the Sacred Tree, and behind him was a divine disk inscribed with brown incantations.

The moment they saw this great deity, countless people present cried out his name at once.

"Amenominakanushi!"