"Hahaha! Destroy! Destroy! Destroy everything for me! All of it... I'll ruin you all!" Somewhere in Gensokyo, Flandre flapped her arms mid-air, countless streams of blood-light drifting down as she turned. Her delicate face was twisted into utter madness, her crimson eyes filled with brutality and carnage... Destruction, destruction, destruction—everything was being ruined by her hands!
"A demon! She is a demon!" A peak Spirit-rank expert trembled, his eyes wide with terror after witnessing a mere Earth-rank cultivator being squeezed into oblivion by Flandre. As he gazed upon the girl's bloodthirsty smile, all will to fight vanished, and he turned to flee.
Hiss!
Just as he spun around, a sharp sting pierced his chest as if struck by something. He instinctively looked down, seeing a longsword wreathed in roaring flames embedded deep in his abdomen. The searing pain burrowed straight into his soul.
That was Flandre's exclusive weapon—the flaming demonic sword, Laevateinn. It shared the same nature as Remilia's Gungnir, both weapons drawn from mythological legend. Though not the original artifact, they possessed the same fundamental attributes.
"Running away without permission is not what good children do..." Hearing the voice behind him, he slowly turned his head and saw the demon-like girl grin as she raised her right hand.
"No... don't!" He clearly understood what that meant. Under the terror of impending death, he instinctively begged for mercy, but...
"Bad children must be played until they break." As she spoke, Flandre gently clenched her right fist.
Crack! In an instant, the peak Spirit-rank expert dissolved into countless pieces of gore, scattering into the air... This was undoubtedly the most gruesome scene imaginable; any normal person witnessing it would scream.
Unfortunately, Flandre was not normal. She was a vampire, a crazed destroyer. Blood, ruin, and death did not frighten her; instead, they made her more exhilarated, and simultaneously... more powerful!
"Then let's play together again... everyone."
Flandre chuckled, her gaze already fixed on the other enemies on the field. Anyone caught in her sight, even an Earth-rank expert, felt a chill crawl down their spine.
The terrifying Second Miss, the fearsome King of Carnage—she alone was enough to dominate the entire scene.
Of course, she was not the only beast of carnage on the battlefield. Komeiji Koishi's astonishing combat power could not be overlooked either. Her elusive attacks were impossible to track with conscious thought; the moment one sensed them, evasion became impossible.
If no one could perceive the unconscious mind, then no one could resist Koishi's assault.
"Hahaha... hahahaha..." Koishi played merrily, a naive smile gracing her face. But to her enemies, this innocent and lovely girl was supremely dangerous—a true harbinger of death capable of snatching their lives at will.
Those slightly stronger could endure, but the weaker ones, facing the mysterious and horrifying attacks of the two girls, were already scared witless. They could neither flee nor fight back, driven to near despair.
"Ah, that is..." Just then, they saw a tall figure descending from the sky, wielding a pitch-black spear. This sight filled them with both relief and joy, for that was their King.
But what followed was something they could not believe. They expected the King to be their savior, yet as he drew near, the black spear swept out, instantly cleaving several peak Spirit-rank experts in half, sending them to an untimely end.
"Why... why?" Their eyes were wide open, unable to comprehend what had happened even in death.
Those who witnessed this scene, even Earth-rank experts, lost their composure. A dual collapse of spirit and body, signaling a complete rout.
Flandre, Komeiji Koishi, and Hourai the Beast—though all were only early Earth-rank and certainly not among Gensokyo’s strongest echelon—while the Devil King's forces contained dozens at this rank—they were fighting three against many, and shouldn't have achieved such results, but!
Their abilities were simply too overpowered (bug-like). One destroys everything in sight, another attacks the unseen unconscious, and the third is an anomaly that masks true identity... Any single one of these powers was enough to inspire dread; when combined, describing them as invincible seemed too weak.
Even Yakumo Yukari or Fengjian Yuka could barely suppress these three. It was no wonder that those of the same rank or lower were utterly crushed... The power of the monstrous, unrivaled among their peers!
...
"Well then, how about... dying once?"
Saigyouji Yuyuko wore an infinitely gentle smile, her weightless body floating in the air. Her movements were fluid and graceful, displaying the bearing of a high-born lady, exuding captivating charm with every gesture. However, none of the enemies surrounding her were fooled by her beauty; instead, they were trapped in indelible terror and despair.
Because as Yuyuko finished speaking, her comrades began falling one after another—their lives extinguished, bodies ruined, and spirits separated from their forms... Most terrifyingly, the comrades who became undead immediately turned on them, launching frenzied attacks, even resorting to self-detonation in a bid to take their foes with them.
"In my eyes, there are only two kinds of people: those I guide into becoming undead, and those who are killed by my undead and then become undead themselves. Which kind will you choose?" Yuyuko smiled behind her fan, a meaningful look in her eyes. "A feast of the dead, truly an interesting affair, wouldn't you agree, Youmu?"
Requiring no direct action, just a simple temptation, Yuyuko had already annihilated the surrounding enemies, leaving only a few scattered survivors... This was the horror of the Princess of the Undead, the terror of the power of Death itself.
...
"Hyouka ⑨ Saki!" Meanwhile, Cirno, having gained the power of Super Evolution, engaged seriously in her battle... Calling it a battle was perhaps inaccurate; she was simply savoring the thrill of being the "strongest."
Wielding an ice-pop-shaped greatsword, she roared out with immense Nine-power. Five other swords flew out from different directions, slicing at the enemies while also serving as footholds for her to accelerate and change direction, allowing her to unleash even faster, frenzied slashes.
At this moment, Cirno displayed an invincible aura; almost no one could withstand a single exchange with her.
"I am the strongest! Hahaha..." When no enemies remained around her, Cirno brought the six swords together to form one massive greatsword, lifting it single-handedly and laughing up at the sky.
...
After Yakumo Yukari brought Lin Luo out of the Fifth Dimension, she immediately returned to the Hakurei Shrine. To completely reclaim the upper hand in timing and terrain advantage, she had to break the Five-Dimensional Barrier as quickly as possible... Although the advantage had swung to Gensokyo's side, the enemy commander had yet to appear. If this momentum was not secured immediately, the final victory remained uncertain.
Timing and terrain—whoever controls them is the protagonist!
Lin Luo had initially intended to visit the Scarlet Devil Mansion, as its defenses were the weakest. But just as he was about to act, he received a message transmitted from Eientei... It was from Hourai Eirin!
Lin Luo's expression immediately changed. Hourai Eirin's prophecy was beginning to materialize—the Devil King had indeed chosen Eientei, choosing the host with one hundred percent compatibility!
With hardly any hesitation, the instant he received the message, Lin Luo used his dimension teleportation ability, limited to only five uses... heading straight for Eientei!
...
On another front, thanks to the efforts of powerful figures across various sectors, the full-scale war in Gensokyo was finally beginning to subside... Youkai Mountain, Human Village, Scarlet Devil Mansion, Forest of Magic, Netherworld—in every location, Gensokyo was crushing the invaders with overwhelming superiority. The Devil King's forces were reduced to fewer than ten remaining Earth-rank experts in less than an hour. Realizing the tide had turned, these survivors knew they could not linger and gathered together. But before they could decide their next move, the once-red sky suddenly darkened.
Looking up, the entire sky was filled with red, yellow, and green Danmaku, scattered like stars. In the center of this barrage, three girls stood suspended in the air. To the right was a shrine maiden with long green hair holding a Gohei, a faint smile on her delicate face, exuding the aura of Heaven and Earth—unmistakably Earth-rank.
To the left was a black-and-white magician seated on a flying broom, wearing a large hat. Her beautiful golden hair fluttered in the wind, a slight curve on her lips—a smile that clearly displayed her capacity for violence... Although she did not exude an Earth-rank aura, given the myriad of bizarre events in Gensokyo, they dared not underestimate her.
And standing in the very center was a black-haired shrine maiden dressed in red and white robes. She had been keeping her eyes closed, but the moment their gaze fell upon her, she suddenly snapped them open. Her sharp eyes conveyed supreme confidence and power.
These remaining Earth-rank experts instantly changed color. While the red-and-white shrine maiden did not project an overwhelmingly strong presence, their subconscious instincts screamed that they must absolutely not make an enemy of this maiden!
"Intruders from beyond, I am Hakurei Reimu, the shrine maiden of Gensokyo. Whether you are human or Youkai, let me show you what a true... Barrier!" is.
Having been trapped within the Five-Dimensional Barrier for so long, Reimu was clearly furious, which is why she heavily emphasized the word "Barrier." As her voice faded, before those Earth-rank experts could react, countless talismans instantly formed a circle, sealing every one of them in.
"This is..." Everyone's face changed dramatically. What the talismans sealed was not just their persons, but the entire space—from above to below, from heaven to earth, an area spanning several li was now completely under the red-and-white shrine maiden's command.
This move could be called Sealing Heaven and Locking Earth!
"You have nowhere left to run!"
Reimu pointed her Gohei forward, radiating imposing dominance.