The black, awe-inspiring god of death was colossal in size as well.
Even from an extreme distance, Shara and the others could clearly see it.
What puzzled them—just as it puzzled Az Dakahaka—was this:
If Ren Kuroda had been holding onto power of this magnitude, why hadn't he used it earlier?
Why endure a brutal beating first, only to reveal it now?
Behind Ren now loomed the three-headed, six-armed oni deity.
And this time, it was different.
In the past, that demon-god form had been little more than a grand, intimidating projection—an imposing silhouette woven from demonic energy and sheer presence.
A façade with style, but lacking substance.
This time, however, the oni god was no illusion.
No phantom born of aura or yokai power.
Like Az Dakahaka's Dragon's Legacy, this was a true, physical existence.
The six-armed demon god roared the moment it manifested.
Then it moved.
With terrifying speed, all six blades slashed in unison, carving deep, bone-revealing gashes across the dragon's massive body.
By the time Az Dakahaka snapped out of his shock and spread his wings to ascend into the sky, his body was already riddled with wounds.
And within those wounds—
Black flames burned.
They clung to his flesh like parasitic maggots, devouring him from within.
Because he had believed victory was already secured, Az Dakahaka's guard had slipped.
That single moment of complacency had cost him dearly.
When he first saw those dreadful black flames igniting across his body, panic surged through him.
He had experienced Ren's black fire before.
It had effortlessly crippled one of his arms.
Now those flames covered him in multiple places.
At this rate, Dragon's Legacy itself might be destroyed.
But as he steadied himself, Az Dakahaka quickly realized something.
The black flames coating Ren's blades this time still possessed that relentless, ever-burning property—
Yet in terms of sheer destructive force and corrosive intensity, they were nowhere near as monstrous as before.
"I don't know what happened to you," Az Dakahaka said coldly, hovering in the air, "but the power of your Human Final Trial—'Final Evil'—has clearly weakened since the beginning.
"That means my previous attacks did have an effect on you."
He glanced down at the fallen gods and Buddhas, now reduced to nothing.
"Those gods are gone. Avesta can no longer be activated.
"But your condition isn't much better. Your aura may seem stronger than before, but you can't fool me. The potency of your Gifts has diminished. You're nothing but an empty shell propping yourself up."
The black flames—burning with wrathful, negative emotion—continued to slowly eat away at his body, hindering the regeneration of his wounds.
Az Dakahaka understood something clearly:
If this turned into a prolonged battle, it would be disadvantageous for him.
Yet despite his words, he was deeply wary of the Ren standing before him.
Far more wary than he let on.
He couldn't read him.
Just moments ago, he had glimpsed the light of victory—
Only to have it swallowed by even denser darkness.
And there was another concern gnawing at him.
Was this truly Ren's limit?
If he forced him into another corner—
Would Ren explode with yet another surge of power?
Looking at the towering oni deity Ren had become, Az Dakahaka quickly weighed their strengths.
At worst, it was an even match.
Perhaps four-to-six, slightly in Ren's favor.
He had lost the "fertilizer" required to activate Avesta.
But Ren had endured countless devastating blows earlier. No matter how powerful his aura seemed now, his body and strength could not possibly be unaffected.
Ren's deep voice echoed from within the demon god.
"There's no need to fish for information."
He exhaled slowly.
"Honestly, I didn't expect this either.
"I truly thought I was finished. Thought I might even be sealed by you.
"But I never imagined… that the sins I carry would be this many.
"Enough for me to become a second Human Final Trial."
Az Dakahaka, who had been considering a tactical withdrawal due to uncertainty, froze in midair when he heard those words.
They shattered his understanding of reality.
No—
They shattered the very logic of Little Garden.
A Demon King bearing two Human Final Trials?
Was that even possible?
He wasn't the only one stunned.
Far away, Indra and the others were watching through a conjured water mirror. When they heard Ren and Az Dakahaka's exchange, they were equally dumbfounded.
They had initially assumed Ren's sudden surge was simply the result of hidden strength.
But now?
He hadn't just powered up.
He had become a new Human Final Trial.
And the most absurd part—
He had already been one.
"While it sounds outrageous," murmured the white-haired noble who possessed the Simulated Star Creation Map—Reincarnation—currently in a near-omniscient state, "there's no precedent for this in Little Garden. But it's not entirely impossible.
"If we consider a 'Human Final Trial' as a kind of spiritual core or Divinity… then he simply possesses two cores."
"Impossible!"
Az Dakahaka's voice thundered.
"The essence of a Human Final Trial is unbearably heavy. How could one body carry two?
"You claim to bear a new Trial.
"Then what is its name?!"
As a Human Final Trial himself, he knew the rule well.
To challengers, they could not conceal the name of the Trial they bore.
Just as he represented "Absolute Evil."
Just as Ren had represented "Final Evil."
Ren did not hesitate.
"There's nothing to hide.
"The new Trial I bear is called 'Yokai Theory.'"
He continued calmly.
"Though it speaks of yokai, it is not limited to them. The term 'yokai' here refers to anything that transcends one's understanding.
"It originates from humanity's fear of unknown beings. That fear is born from ignorance—an inability to comprehend what lies beyond their knowledge. It is the dread and curiosity sparked by encountering the unfamiliar."
"No matter how far humanity advances, there will always exist higher dimensions of understanding beyond them.
"Through continuous exploration and analysis, humanity grows.
"But the more they understand the world, the more acutely they feel their own insignificance.
"They continue to explore—yet when faced with the unknown, awe inevitably arises within their hearts.
"That awe can become 'yokai'—or something else entirely.
"The essence I bear is both that awe… and the thirst for knowledge that new things inspire."
..
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