Even judging by the Evil King's inherent strength, he was absolutely qualified to rank among Gensokyo’s top combatants. He could even put up a decent fight against figures like Kazami Yuuka or Hachiwa, and in a one-on-one duel, a desperate situation like the current one would never arise, but... this was not a duel; it was a swarm.

The high-tier combat powerhouses of Gensokyo each possessed a near-bug-like ability. Even if their absolute strength fell short of the Evil King's, these unique powers could still inflict damage upon him, especially those like the Second Miss, Yuyuko, whose very nature allowed them to bypass conventional strength hierarchies if the target possessed the property of 'death.'

With so many surrounding and attacking one individual, several of whom were stronger than him, the Evil King, no matter how mighty, couldn't turn the tide much. He simply couldn't defy fate.

Similarly, his usual supreme self-confidence, facing an undeniable path to defeat, prevented him from remaining calm. Fighting multiple opponents in such a disadvantageous scenario barred him from utilizing his full strength. Failing to utilize his full strength meant his mind couldn't settle, and a restless mind drastically diminished his power... thus creating a vicious cycle. At this moment, if the Evil King could muster even seventy percent of his true strength, it would already be considered miraculous.

Therefore, when facing Yakumo Yukari's sudden strike, the Evil King had absolutely no capacity to defend himself. In an instant, the world was divided by dimensions... the three-dimensional world is solid, while the two-dimensional world is flat; he became the flat projection appearing within the solid.

His massive body, which usually exuded supreme pressure, now resembled a flat diagram viewed through a screen painting. This dimensional dislocation gave everyone watching a profound sense of dissonance.

“Aaaah!!!!” The Evil King roared like a trapped canvas, his voice raw and filled with agony.

Yakumo Yukari’s boundary power was far more complex than it appeared. Every dimensional segregation represented a distortion of fundamental laws. Although no one knew precisely which law Yukari had fractured, the destruction of any law carried the potential to reverse the very rules governing biological survival.

For example, altering the boundary between life and death, turning the life-sustaining blood and water into a venom that erased existence...

It is well known that higher-dimensional mysteries possess overwhelming destructive power against lower dimensions. Yakumo Yukari, who specialized in manipulating the transition between the third and second dimensions, delivered an attack from the three-dimensional plane into the two-dimensional form; the resulting power was far more than a mere additive bonus... Although the Evil King could wield fifth-dimensional energy, that power was clearly incomplete, and under such a disadvantage, breaking through Yukari’s dimensional control in a short time was utterly impossible.

Moments later, amidst the harrowing shriek, the Evil King's body completely dissolved into a pool of blood.

Splash! Splash! Splash...

The moment the Evil King died, the ability of No Order activated, and instantaneously, his body was restored to its original state. But barely reformed, the cold-faced Yakumo Yukari unleashed her boundary power again... the Evil King died once more.

From life to death, from death to life, repeating this sequence several times, the Evil King’s spirit was nearly shattered. While the protection of the No Order power guaranteed he could never truly perish, his consciousness remained acutely aware. Even the strongest individual could not endure the agony of repeated death. More critically... the No Order ability was not infinite. Once its energy reserves were depleted, it could no longer activate, leaving him facing true demise!

Especially since he had previously summoned multiple copies of himself—that maneuver consumed far more No Order energy than simple resurrection could account for. After his fatal strike against Lin Luo failed earlier, to conserve the energy required for resurrection, he now dared not summon any more duplicates.

So, during an unknown iteration of his revival, the Evil King’s potential burst forth. Before Yukari’s attack could land, he vanished into higher dimensions at an unimaginable speed.

If he could just hide in higher dimensions, temporarily escape the current predicament, and recover enough energy, he might yet find an opportunity for success. Though being heavily outnumbered was a disadvantage, with so many Hosts present, successfully eliminating just one of them meant victory was still his; he didn't need to defeat every opponent here... this was the Evil King's logic. But!

“Higher-dimensional power is not unbeatable!” Not far away, Kazami Yuuka’s expression hardened upon seeing him retreat into a higher dimension. In a flash, she lunged forward, her speed like lightning, arriving at the spot where the Evil King had been with almost no time delay. With a sharp shout, she drove her right fist fiercely toward the void.

Boom!!!

The force of her punch shook heaven and earth. The space she struck shattered like glass, breaking the three-dimensional reality. And from within that fractured space, the Evil King was violently ejected... Yuuka’s power, transmitted from a lower dimension, transcended time and space, forcefully blasting the Evil King, who had been concealed in the fifth dimension, back out.

To shatter dimensional barriers with pure force—how terrifying. Such an awesome technique could only be achieved when the concept of 'Strength' reached its absolute domain.

Looking across all of Gensokyo, there was no one besides Kazami Yuuka who could manage it!

“There is another one, absolute strength,” Lin Luo murmured to himself. Even though he was already aware of Yuuka’s might, he couldn't help but feel a jolt of shock now. In the Forest of Magic, she had pierced the dimensional space he had labored so meticulously to find, merely through her sheer aura; this was no accident, but founded upon absolute power.

If Yakumo Yukari represented the pinnacle of 'Ability,' then Kazami Yuuka embodied the zenith of 'Strength.'

Suddenly, Lin Luo felt a faint stir of realization. Abilities are the mystical and abstract manifestation of power, while strength is the direct, destructive expression. So, what kind of realm would be reached by combining these two?

Leaving aside the epiphany Lin Luo had gained, on the other side.

Blasted out of the higher dimension by Kazami Yuuka’s punch, the Evil King sustained truly severe damage this time. His entire armor was shattered, his face deathly pale, and huge gulps of blood sprayed from his mouth as he tumbled backward.

There are inherent barriers between dimensions. Uncontrolled traversal between two different dimensional spaces causes terrifying spatial turbulence; if one were unlucky, they could be shredded by it. The fact that he was still alive suggested his luck hadn't entirely run out... but only for the moment.

“Turn, give him one!”

Indeed, the Evil King's luck was about to hit rock bottom, because just then, a spinning girl flew in from a distance—it was Hina Kagiyama, the goddess in charge of misfortune. A little distance behind her were Aya Shameimaru and Keine lie, the White Owl. With an excited cry from Aya, Hina extended her slender hand toward the Evil King.

“Wheel of Misfortune, heed only the divine rhythm of the Goddess of Misfortune, and affix the calamity of bad luck upon those who disturb the peace of this world.”

As the words left her lips, the massive cloud of misfortune, visible even to the naked eye, that had gathered around her instantly surged toward the Evil King, enveloping him completely... As the Goddess of Misfortune, Hina was originally meant to draw away misfortune from humanity, bringing them happiness. She would not attack others with malice, but that was under normal circumstances. When Gensokyo’s all-out war commenced, to protect the humans of Gensokyo, she must direct malice toward the enemy.

To bear the sins others cannot bear, to protect the people others cannot protect—this... is the Goddess of Misfortune!

Being surrounded by misfortune wasn't inherently fatal; as long as the flow of luck wasn't triggered, nothing would happen. Furthermore, at the Evil King’s level, he could shatter Order itself, granting him a certain immunity to mere bad luck. After all, although Hina was a deity, she wasn't inherently that powerful. However... given the Evil King’s current dire situation, where his very life was at stake, he had no time to neutralize the misfortune. Hina’s strike was undoubtedly adding frost to the snow for him.

Before he could react, a massive mountain suddenly appeared above him, descending with the crushing momentum of Mount Tai... boom, boom, boom—he was slammed into the Bamboo Forest of the Lost.

While Eientei was technically within the Bamboo Forest of the Lost, Eirin Yagokoro’s Sanzai Scroll did not encompass the entire forest. At least, the array would not activate within several hundred meters centered on Eientei, a fact the Evil King knew, making him constantly hesitant to step into the Sanzai Scroll's domain.

While Yuuka’s attack was powerful, it couldn't have thrown him directly into the Sanzai Scroll. But under the influence of misfortune, an invisible force was imparted... much like in the worlds of Final Destination, where even the smallest coincidence can become a fatal trap.

The Evil King’s consciousness was still relatively clear. Upon seeing the mountain, his face immediately changed, and he instinctively tried to flee, but Eirin Yagokoro arrived in time, using the power of a black hole to block his retreat.

“The Sanzai Array has been activated! Do not let him leave this place!” Eirin Yagokoro shouted simultaneously.

“Then seal off his path to higher dimensions,” Yakumo Yukari said with a slight smile, pointing her folding fan forward. “The Boundary of Being and Nothingness!”

Whether entering from a higher dimension to a lower one, or vice versa, a passage was required. With the Evil King's ability, he could conjure that passage instantly, but only if the other dimension existed... Eirin Yagokoro converted the world of 'Being' into a world of 'Nothingness,' effectively isolating Gensokyo from the dimensional space, severing its connection to other dimensions.

This was not an earth-shattering display of power; put simply, it was a barrier, akin to the division between Gensokyo and the reality outside, only this time the intensity was significantly higher. With this, the Evil King’s route to higher dimensions was sealed.

“Damn it! These wretched women...” Realizing he couldn't enter higher dimensions, the Evil King cursed inwardly.

Among the enemies before him, Kazami Yuuka and Yakumo Yukari undoubtedly posed the greatest threat. One could forcibly shatter higher dimensions, and the other could seal the gateway to them. With both threats present, he had nowhere left to run.