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“Sisters, let’s hurry and keep moving,” Lily urged, her voice tight with urgency.

Now that the Celestial Demon Path was open, only minor figures who had gotten the news early had emerged so far. But once word spread across all Three Realms, no one could predict the scale of chaos that would erupt in the human world.

Lily’s heart burned with unease.

She was not some self-sacrificing saint. Yet she could not forget the final words of Minamoto no Yoritomo before his death.

“Lily… protect this world in my place!”

That had been the last obsession of a true warrior.

Though Yoritomo had been her enemy, Lily had, time and again, been saved and aided by the very resolve that defined the warrior’s path. She did not believe in kindness without cost, nor would she force herself into hollow righteousness. Yet she had slain those warriors, and some worthy of respect had even died for her sake.

What she chose to protect… was the path itself.

With a swift leap, Lily surged forward, accelerating through the air. Seeing her determination, the sisters understood without needing words and followed one after another.

After traveling roughly 150–250 kilometers, Lily suddenly sensed fluctuations from the Mirror Dimension.

“Wait.” They came to a halt as her consciousness slipped into the Mirror Dimension.

“Lily.” It was Haihime. Upon seeing Lily, she seemed slightly embarrassed.

“Sister Haihime, what’s wrong?”

“Lily, I’m sorry… I know you’re dealing with something urgent, perhaps even dangerous. But after what happened last time, I decided I must tell you immediately. This is something you should judge yourself. I won’t make that decision for you again.”

“What happened?”

“Just now, Yanagihada came to Herikaku City and found us. She said a woman calling herself Yoruko arrived outside the city, carrying a rather unusual katana, asking to see you.”

“What!?” Lily’s expression changed instantly. “Madam Yoruko!?”

Haihime and the others naturally knew of the relationship between Lily and Yoruko. Lily had told them before that Yoruko’s soul was currently with the Madam of Yomi.

However, Yanagihada and the other Dark Celestial Maidens were unaware of Lily’s deeper connection with Yoruko.

“Where is Yoruko now?” Lily asked at once.

“At first, Yanagihada and the others didn’t trust her. But it’s said Yoruko showed the Madam’s token, and only then did they tell her you weren’t in the city and had gone to Tsukushi Island. Yoruko seemed shocked, saying she had just come from there. She immediately turned back and headed toward Tsukushi Island to find you.”

Tsukushi Island was vast, and divine power could not be used to probe it. It was almost certain that Lily and Yoruko had just missed each other.

“Madam Yoruko…”

Remaining by Madam’s side would have been safe, even if she faced harsh punishment. So why had she come to the human world?

“Did Yoruko say anything else?”

Haihime shook her head. “None of us were there at the time. Yanagihada said Yoruko claimed she was acting under the Madam’s orders. It’s something extremely important that must be told to you personally, and she also has something she must hand directly to you. Yanagihada asked her to wait in the city, but she insisted it was urgent and turned back toward Tsukushi Island immediately.”

“That’s bad! Sister Haihime, thank you for telling me in time. I can’t talk any longer.” With that, Lily swiftly withdrew from the Mirror Dimension.

Right now, all manner of demons and gods from across the Three Realms were converging on Tsukushi Island. For Madam Yoruko to return at such a time… it was far too dangerous.

“Lily, what’s wrong?” the sisters asked, noticing the change in her expression.

“It’s Madam Yoruko. She’s heading to Tsukushi Island to find me. Judging by the time… she should already be inside the island.”

“Yoruko?” Ayaka’s eyes widened. “You mean… she…”

“She was sent by Mother. But right now, Tsukushi Island could be harboring unimaginable enemies. Madam Yoruko is in danger!” Lily said urgently.

“But we can’t use divine power to search. Where do we even begin looking?” Nanako asked.

“Divine probe? Hmph.” Lily let out a cold snort as a surge of divine power erupted from within her body. Her long hair billowed wildly as her figure lifted into the air.

“Lily, don’t act recklessly! Won’t this alert the grand formation?” Ayaka warned.

“Alert it?” Lily’s gaze turned icy. Madam Yoruko… had once died because of her. How could Lily allow herself to miss her again!?

**Boom—!**

A vast, surging wave of divine power roared outward, sweeping across Tsukushi Island like a violent tempest. In an instant, the entire island, though situated in the south, was engulfed in a blizzard of swirling cherry blossoms.

Previously, in Heian-kyo, her distant probing had been blocked by the grand formation. But this was not a probe. This was Lily unleashing her Lunar Sakura Force, combined with domain treasures like the Sakura Parasol, fully manifesting her domain.

This wasn’t searching. This was war. A formation meant to block detection could never stop this. To Lily, nothing was truly untouchable. It was only a matter of the price one was willing to pay.

And now, the only sister she had failed to protect, the one who had died because of her, was in danger again. What else could possibly matter? Before, she had wanted to uncover the secrets of Tsukushi Island without alerting the conspirators, keeping the advantage by remaining hidden.

But now, Madam Yoruko was in danger. Who cared about any of that anymore? Let them discover her. Let them be alarmed.

The memory of that night, of Yoruko’s tragic death, surged through her mind. Lily’s power exploded skyward, so overwhelming that even if Ame-no-Tajikarao himself descended, she would still dare to fight!

“Lily…” The sisters felt the fury radiating from her, yet none spoke.

In the span of a heartbeat, everything, from Yamatai, to the depths of Tsukushi Island where demons and gods gathered, to the final stronghold of Ashikaga Kiyoshi and the Cloistered Emperor, all fell within Lily’s grasp.

Within Osaifu, Aokoke Iwagami, whom Lily had spared not long ago, was still shaken to his core as he paced restlessly inside the castle tower.

“Hm? Why has the sky… changed?”

A boundless cascade of sorrowful cherry blossoms drifted down from above, each petal carrying the icy wrath of a goddess.

“Cherry blossoms? Tsukushi Island is sweltering. How could sakura possibly bloom here? Th-this is…!”

Sensing something profoundly unnatural within the falling blossoms, Aokoke’s bloated body trembled violently. Within those petals, he could clearly feel the aura of the very goddess who had nearly slain him.

Terrified, he collapsed onto the floor, staring as the beautiful petals floated in through the window.

“G-Goddess… what is this overwhelming fury contained within this rain of flowers…?”

A blizzard of sakura swept across the heavens, bleak and desolate. Over quiet Tsukushi Island, the goddess’ wrath descended in full.

In almost an instant, Lily’s awareness swept across the entirety of Tsukushi Island, grasping every crucial detail. Very quickly, she found Yoruko. Yoruko was moving along a path on the eastern side of the island, likely following directions given by Yanagihada, trying to catch up to Lily. After all, Yanagihada knew where Lily’s group had first landed.

But once Lily and the others entered Osaifu, they had changed direction toward Yamatai. How could Yoruko have known that?

“Yoruko!”

Memories surged through her mind, their parting that night in Heian-kyo, and later, in Yomi, when she had seen Yoruko’s soul wandering Hyakki Street as nothing more than a sword-bound spirit. The grief of that moment, and her own helplessness, still lingered like an unhealed wound.

“Madam Yoruko… this time, I won’t lose you again!”

**Buzz—!**

Lily transformed into a brilliant streak of crimson light and shot into the sky, racing toward Yoruko’s direction. Like a comet tearing across Tsukushi Island, everything beneath her trembled as mountains quaked and all living beings recoiled in fear.

**Boom—!**

Moments later, as Yoruko hurried along her path, a dazzling crimson-blue radiance descended from the sky before her. Amid the raging winds, Lily’s figure emerged, her flowing crimson sleeves billowing as she appeared directly before Yoruko, her chest rising and falling under the storm’s pressure.

“Madam Yoruko…”

For some reason, though she still addressed her as ‘Lady,’ Lily felt, at this moment, that Yoruko was one of the closest sisters to her heart.

“Lily… Lily, is that you?”
“Madam Yoruko!”

Without hesitation, Lily rushed forward and pulled Yoruko into a tight embrace. The feeling was so real, as if she were once again holding the Yoruko from those days in Heian-kyo.

After all, the Madam had used the Great Imperial God’s power over life and death to reconstruct Yoruko’s body.

Of course, Yoruko’s strength was still limited. Even the Madam could not directly create a body at the level of a Supreme God. Yet the gift she had bestowed upon Yoruko was anything but ordinary. This body had been refined using numerous Great Imperial God-tier treasures from both the Celestial and Yomi realms. Not only did it surpass Yoruko’s former physique, it far exceeded the innate potential of most Celestial Maidens.

However, between maximizing innate talent and immediate strength, the Madam had chosen to fully enhance Yoruko’s potential. Even with her power, she had to make compromises. It was impossible to create a body that possessed both supreme potential and divine-level strength from the outset.

Yoruko’s current body was known as the “Mizu no Kanata.” It was not only powerful, but also imbued with a captivating feminine allure. Still, to preserve Yoruko’s true self, her appearance remained exactly the same as before, including her figure, without any exaggeration.

“Lily…” The two women held each other tightly, neither speaking for a long while, as though their bodies alone conveyed the years of separation, their unspoken grief, and the tears of their bond.

Only after some time did they gradually calm down and part, though their hands remained clasped together.

“Lily… you feel different now. More mature… somehow, even more feminine.”

“Madam Yoruko, you’re still just as you were back then… that’s… that’s such a relief… I never wanted to see another sister lost…” Tears shimmered in Lily’s eyes.

“Perhaps this was all fate. But no matter what, we’re together again now.”

Their fingers intertwined, hearts and hands connected.

At that moment, the other sisters arrived one after another. Rei carried Nanako over her shoulder, one hand firmly pressed against her small backside to drag her along, otherwise she wouldn’t have kept up.

“Put me down already!” Nanako jumped down with a flushed face, hurriedly straightening her skirt.

Seeing the others, Yoruko realized she didn’t recognize most of them. She had only met Rei a couple of times before, but Ayaka… Ayaka was her closest friend, her confidante. She looked toward Ayaka and smiled, giving a gentle nod.

Ayaka stepped forward, taking Yoruko’s hands. The two shared a deep bond, though of a different kind, exchanging a few warm words of concern and greeting.

“Lily, weren’t you supposed to be moving in secret? Why make such a commotion? I’ve been searching everywhere for you,” Yoruko asked, turning back to her.

“Forget that for now. Since you’ve come, Madam Yoruko, I believe you know far more than we do about the turmoil shaking the Three Realms. Tell me everything,” Lily said.