Chapter 243 The Taishan Fukun Ritual

　　Yukii Tokutomo Kageie was defending against Takemikazuchi's attacks when suddenly, a warning bell went off in his mind. A row of talismans flew from his sleeve, transforming into an iron wall. In an instant, the mountain-splitting power of a large number of swords arrived, bisecting Motoyama Castle from top to bottom!

　　Being a Japanese artifact, splitting its own city was naturally effortless!

　　"Amatsu-no-Ohaba Ken (Sword of Abundance)!"

　　Such immense power could only be unleashed by Munenori Yagyu's divine sword, Amatsu-no-Ohaba Ken!

　　Yukii Tokutomo Kageie felt a rising sense of unease!

　　Why would a divine sword attack a city occupied by its own country's soldiers? The only explanation was that the Yagyu Sword Saint, who had just rushed out of the city, was now dead!

　　This was a frightening thought! There was no one within the Ming army capable of killing a master of Yagyu Munenori's caliber!

　　Unless...

　　"Baka! That celestial has come!"

　　Yukii Tokutomo Kageie cursed his belated realization. When Takemikazuchi suddenly appeared and fiercely attacked Motoyama Castle, he had assumed it was some kind of Ming spell or formation controlling them. Now, it seemed that was not the case at all!

　　There was no formation, nor any Ming sorcerers. It was likely only one person who had come!

　　"Gather all the onmyoji here immediately! Prepare the Taishan Fukun Ritual at once!"

　　He waved out several talismans, which burned in the air and turned to ashes, carrying his voice to the surrounding onmyoji! Even if he couldn't gather ten onmyoji of the pure Yang realm, he would gather as many as he could and use as much power as possible!

　　The onmyoji who were performing various rituals immediately stopped their work upon receiving the summons. Riding shikigami transformed into large birds, they flew to Yukii Tokutomo Kageie's side, their expressions filled with disbelief and fear.

　　"Onmyo-no-Suke (Assistant Director of Onmyoryo) Yukii-sama! What is happening? Why must we prepare the Taishan Fukun Ritual? We don't have ten pure Yang realm onmyoji here!"

　　The onmyoji were pale. If they performed the formation without ten people, the result would likely be their immediate demise, a live performance ending in death.

　　The Taishan Fukun Ritual could both save and kill, a powerful curse formation that traded life for life. They had to sacrifice an equal number of lives on their side to curse the powerful enemy.

　　They were all afraid of dying because of it, and voiced their concerns about what had happened, and whether things were truly so dire!

　　"Gentlemen! Did you see that attack just now! The Yagyu Sword Saint is likely dead! That was a strike from the Amatsu-no-Ohaba Ken, our country's divine sword, now used to attack us. I suspect that Ming celestial is nearby!"

　　"If we don't use the Taishan Fukun Ritual, we will all die here. The other great rituals of the same level as the Taishan Fukun Ritual cannot be performed with your current powers. Only the Taishan Fukun technique is usable."

　　Japan had four major onmyoji lineages: the Tsuchimikado family represented by Abe no Seimei, the Kamo family inherited from the Shugendo ghost gods, the Yukii Toku family which was a branch of Kamo, and the "Harima School," a folk lineage headed by Ashiya Doman.

　　The right to perform the Taishan Fukun Ritual for generations was held by the Tsuchimikado family. Yukii Tokutomo Kageie had once been an adopted son of the Tsuchimikado family, so he had obtained some fragments of the Taishan Fukun Ritual's magic scrolls. Although the power he could unleash was not as great as that of the Tsuchimikado family, in the current situation, anything that worked was fine.

　　"Everyone wants to live and is unwilling to help me perform this ritual array. But even if we sacrifice, luck may favor some of us. If we don't sacrifice, we will all die."

　　"As long as he shows himself, we can capture him and then perform the great ritual!"

　　The grim either-or choice, coupled with the second strike from Amatsu-no-Ohaba Ken, completely destroyed the onmyoji's confidence! They had no choice but to join the preparations for the Taishan Fukun Ritual. At the same time, Yukii Tokutomo Kageie burned another talisman, seemingly summoning something to help!

　　He had to force that celestial out! Otherwise, there was no way to capture his fate!

　　With the second strike, Motoyama Castle was completely shattered. Mountains, rocks, bricks, and tiles collapsed and overturned in all directions with the force of a nation. The army commanders engaged in fierce battles also paled, realizing that it was their own divine sword that had launched the attack!

　　"A Ming celestial must have come!"

　　Yoshhiro Shimazu and Hideie Ukita, among other corps commanders, expressed shock.

　　Had he crossed the mountain castles and positions ahead, unknowingly, and broken into the great rear of Motoyama Castle like this?

　　The key was... that the change of ownership of the divine sword meant the Sword Saint was dead!

　　Under the black sky of night, two demonic auras rose from the vicinity of the collapsed Motoyama Castle, boiling and surging. What broke through the mountains were not people but two great yokai gifted with the power of a false immortal!

　　Bones gathered from the ground, forming a huge skeleton monster. The grievances of the dead gathered and were driven by a desire for revenge, turning into a great yokai. It could not come out during the day and could only appear in the world after nightfall.

　　The giant skeleton began to slap around in the surrounding mountains, causing landslides and earthquakes. The bones on its body were from Japanese, Korean, and Ming soldiers, a mixture of corpses from all sides.

　　The other great yokai, flying in the sky, did not possess a strong sense of resentment. Instead, it had a powerful Buddhist aura. Standing on the head of the giant skeleton monster, it clasped its hands together, looking like Acala, with streamers of flame wrapped around it.

　　Little Celestial Master was still immersed in the shock of Ji Xiang's annihilation of Yagyu Munenori and could not free himself. Suddenly, he was startled back to his senses by the huge demonic aura.

　　"Giant Skeleton Monster, Waterfall Spirit King!"

　　Little Celestial Master's expression changed again when he saw the two yokai, but he was not as panicked as before. These two great yokai were the leaders of the myriad demons in the nearby mountains and fields, with the Waterfall Spirit King as the most respected. This was a Buddhist yokai, and the Giant Skeleton Monster was not so large before. It was only built up from the corpses of Korean soldiers and civilians. Now, with the addition of Japanese and Ming corpses, it was no different from a large mountain.

　　"Luring me out? It seems that something is waiting for me, probably a curse."

　　Ji Xiang watched the two great yokai wreak havoc around him. These two fellows could be considered the top giant yokai in the world. Having obtained part of the power of a false immortal, they could wrestle with remnants of immortals, but they were definitely not qualified to fight against true immortals.

　　In the end, great yokai were just earthly things.

　　Without becoming a yokai immortal, everything else was bullshit.

　　"You say someone has prepared a curse? It must be the onmyoji of the Yukii Toku family!"

　　Little Celestial Master immediately reminded him, saying that he knew many of the other party's spells. He then looked solemn and began to ponder: "The onmyoji of the Yukii Toku family want to prepare a curse to kill an immortal, and there is only... the Taishan Fukun Ritual!"

　　"But are there ten pure Yang level onmyo masters in Motoyama Castle?"

　　Little Celestial Master frowned, muttering to himself, seemingly a little disbelieving: "He wouldn't want to abandon all the lives of the onmyoji under his command to exchange for an immortal's life, right? This is a gamble, a desperate bet. If it fails, he will die without a burial."

　　"Oh, a desperate bet? That's indeed something these people would do. Japan itself likes to gamble with national fortune, take a chance, and if they turn the tables, it will be amazing." Ji Xiang smiled:

　　"Taishan Fukun Ritual, I've heard a little about it. I'll go and meet them and see if this Taishan Fukun Ritual is as powerful as the rumors say."

　　Little Celestial Master was shocked: "You know it's a curse and you still want to show yourself?"

　　Ji Xiang didn't care: "Some calamities are better faced sooner rather than later."

　　"No! Absolutely not!"

　　Little Celestial Master quickly grabbed Ji Xiang, his face frightened: "The Taishan Fukun Ritual is not aimed at harming the physical body, but at poisoning the soul and primordial spirit! Those cursed will be forced to exchange life for life. Once you show yourself, and your fate is captured, they can use their lowly lives to exchange for your immortal saint's life!"

　　"This curse that exchanges names is launched using the Taishan Fukun divine position as a medium. You also know about the three books of life and death, right? It's like having your name crossed out on all three books at the same time, even more powerful than that!"

　　"Because the books of life and death cannot kill the fate of an immortal, but this kind of sacrifice can!"

　　Little Celestial Master explained that, after all, the books of life and death did not require too much cost, but this one was risking their lives with you, so it was normal for the effect to be stronger. How could you use your face to take a skill that cost lives? Wasn't that courting death!

　　"Don't worry, I have prepared a spell to break the curse."

　　"I heard that most of Japan's spells that involve ghosts and gods, except for Taishan Fukun, are derived from the spells of En no Ozunu, and the spells of this ancestor of ghosts and gods are derived from the Mahamayuri Vidyarajni."

　　"Is that so?"

　　Little Celestial Master was stunned for a moment, and then nodded: "Yes... yes, it is."

　　"That's good enough."

　　Ji Xiang nodded and pinched a magic seal with his left hand.

　　In an instant, colorful streamers of light soared into the sky. Ji Xiang rode the clouds and came to the Waterfall Spirit King. Amatsu-no-Ohaba Ken swept out horizontally!

　　"Caught him!"

　　Yukii Tokutomo Kageie looked overjoyed at this time!

　　As expected, it was a Ming celestial! Now that he had been forced out, the Taishan Fukun Ritual would begin immediately!

　　At the same time, the other corps commanders also discovered the colorful streamers of light soaring into the sky in the distance and were shocked. They did not expect this Ming celestial to be so close to them. Fear filled their hearts, while Yoshhiro Shimazu shouted loudly, telling the others not to panic!

　　"The Taishan Fukun Ritual has begun! That Ming celestial is doomed!"

　　Yoshhiro Shimazu recognized the great formation that the onmyoji were preparing. He looked excited, like a jackal that had smelled blood. In his opinion, the Ming celestial would probably not know how he was killed until the moment of his death!

　　The fall of the Ming celestial!

　　"Is it the Taishan Fukun Ritual? Can Yukii Toku-sensei perform this great magic? We don't have ten pure Yang level onmyo masters here."

　　Hideie Ukita, wearing a mask, questioned Yoshhiro Shimazu between breaths. Before them and many soldiers, the roaring Mountain Mother God blocked them, preventing them from going to other battlefields.

　　"It doesn't matter, it's just that a few more onmyoji will die. No matter how many people die, their judgment is correct. If the Ming celestial doesn't die here, then a large number of our people will die!"

　　Yoshhiro Shimazu laughed, as if he had already seen the fruits of victory exchanged for the lives of those onmyoji!

　　In any case, these onmyoji would be remembered in this battle!

　　Probably!

　　In their expectant eyes, the huge image of the Taishan Fukun had appeared in the sky, and the power of the curse had also begun to exchange. From the beginning of the life exchange, an onmyoji in the formation suddenly fell, and at the same time that his life disappeared, his soul was taken into the Taishan Fukun's divine position across thousands of miles of ocean, falling into the land of the Yellow Springs.

　　The second onmyoji quickly lost his life and fell to the ground.

　　The third, the fourth, the fifth...

　　Yukii Tokutomo Kageie also saw that the Ming celestial had killed the Giant Skeleton Monster with one sword, and the aftershocks of the sword pressure had repelled the Waterfall Spirit King. But now, he was pausing in the sky, staying on the clouds, his whole body beginning to become dirty and black. You could see the loss of essence, turning into countless white auras that dissipated outward!

　　"He is doomed!"

　　The great onmyo master thought so with certainty!

　　.....

　　But the Ming celestial had a different view.

　　Ji Xiang looked at the calamity of the mortal world above his head. Because he did not stop it, the curse technique did indeed have an effect on his soul, and the effect was very outstanding. His spiritual consciousness was gradually blurring, and the essence stored in his body was constantly leaving, as if he was about to return to the west and die in the Yellow Springs in the next moment.

　　However, the calamity of the mortal world was constantly decreasing.

　　"Reduce it a little more, reduce it a little more..."

　　"Okay, that's about it. The calamity of the mortal world obtained from the Compendium of Materia Medica's derivation has all been dissipated. This bloodletting therapy is still very significant."

　　"Next..."

　　Almost reaching his limit of bearable consciousness, Ji Xiang decisively pressed the pause button.

　　Turning his eyes to the distance, Ji Xiang drove the clouds and flew to a position where everyone could see him. In the place where the demons were surging, he raised his arm and swung a sword!

　　With one strike, he cut off a mountain and killed thousands of demons.

　　He gathered thousands of good deeds!

　　The Korean royal way seemed to react, eagerly like a drowning man grabbing a lifeline, desperately selling all his remaining assets to Ji Xiang, who was killing a large number of demons at this time.

　　Thus, one thousand two hundred good deeds and wishes suddenly gathered!

　　The small window of the Heavenly Lord suddenly opened, and strands of wishes flew out of the bodies of the Japanese soldiers without them knowing, gathering to Ji Xiang!

　　"The more people there are, the easier it is to be witnessed. The meaning of soldiers' existence lies in this. Now, you should have exhausted all your tricks and have no other backhands."

　　"Then I can let go and fight."

　　Ji Xiang suspended Amatsu-no-Ohaba Ken in the sky, raised the miracle of the Christian law with his left hand, and pinched the Peacock Vidyarajni secret mantra with his right hand!

　　Next.

　　Rebel against the heavens and reverse everything!

　　.....

　　The atmosphere of decline suddenly soared. At this moment, among the ten onmyoji, the remaining three who had managed to survive with difficulty suddenly died!

　　Their lives were taken away by the Taishan Fukun. Blood spurted out of Yukii Tokutomo Kageie's seven orifices in an instant, and his soul was also backlashed, suffering great damage. But he ignored his injuries and stared in horror at the Ming celestial who had suddenly descended before his eyes!

　　What was going on, how could this be!

　　"How could the Taishan Fukun Ritual be ineffective against you? Are our lives too lowly to exchange for yours!"

　　In unwillingness and near death, Yukii Toku still asked this question that seriously troubled him at this time. But next, he saw Ji Xiang stretch out his right hand and place it on his head.

　　The immortal stroked his head, and his hair grew long and he lived forever.

　　He listened blankly to the immortal in front of him, as if he was reciting a sutra of salvation for him, and unconsciously followed suit:

　　"Maha Mayuri Vidyarajni."

　　"Peacock Vidyarajni Secret Mantra!"

　　His body disintegrated, the poison was eliminated, and the power of the Taishan Fukun disappeared from his body, but Yukii Toku himself was unable to get up again, falling into the formation, and being pierced through the head by Amatsu-no-Ohaba Ken, which smashed the entire Motoyama Castle from the sky to the ground!

　　The mountain castle collapsed. What the other corps commanders saw was a white mist covering the stars and the moon, and a sword falling head-on from that mist!