The blood outside the car window and the situation inside created a bizarre and oppressive atmosphere, completely enveloping Ise Hinata.
Her mind was blank, with only Lu Cheng's whispers echoing repeatedly in her ears.
"Give it to me, and they can still live..."
"Understand?"
Ise Hinata's body trembled violently.
She suddenly looked up, her eyes now filled with terror and rage!
A pure and vast Amaterasu Divine Power uncontrollably erupted from her body!
Golden light instantly filled the entire carriage, carrying the majesty and wrath of a god, intending to completely purify the man who blasphemed the gods before her!
However, Lu Cheng merely watched her calmly, not even moving an eyebrow.
He didn't even withdraw the hand resting on her hand, only gently stroking her cold skin with his thumb.
It was such a simple action.
That brilliant divine power, capable of burning mountains and boiling seas, instantly vanished without a trace, like a punctured balloon, without even causing a ripple.
As if it had never existed.
In this car, before this man, everything she prided herself on was just a ridiculous illusion.
Ise Hinata's pupils contracted to their extreme.
All her resistance, all her anger, were completely shattered at this moment.
What remained was only endless, bone-deep coldness and despair.
"Do you see?"
Lu Cheng's lips curved into a compassionate sneer; his voice was like the most precise surgical knife, layer by layer, dissecting all her pride and faith.
"Your power, your National Luck, your god..."
"It can't even protect the people closest to you."
"What it brings you is not glory, but disaster."
"It is not your protection, but the cage that imprisons you, a curse that makes those around you bleed for you!"
Curse... these two words, like a black lightning bolt, fiercely struck Ise Hinata's soul!
She stared blankly out the window.
Yukino Shita Chizuru had already stood up, and another dark figure, Ruzuki Rin, had appeared at some point.
The two walked to Ise Ryuichi and Kamiya Makoto, who lay in a pool of blood, and with cold, efficient movements, placed two soft glowing pills into their mouths.
Those were... Lu Cheng's pills.
Was that man's "mercy"?
How ironic!
As an Amaterasu Shrine Maiden, she could only watch her younger brother bleed and hover on the brink of death.
She could only watch this guy... She remembered the forbidden pleasure she felt not long ago, at the arcade, when she used her divine power to grab a rabbit doll.
She remembered the genuine feeling of being "human" when she shed tears for the joys and sorrows of others at the cinema.
It turned out that brief "freedom" was the poison.
Once tasted the light, one could no longer endure the darkness of the cage.
"If I didn't have this power..."
"If I didn't have this damned bloodline..."
"Ryuichi... we would just be ordinary people..."
Ise Hinata's lips moved unconsciously, uttering broken murmurs.
The world she protected, the destiny she bore, all seemed so ridiculous, so... hideous at this moment.
A crystal tear finally slid uncontrollably from her perfect eye, down her pale cheek, and dripped onto the back of her hand, which Lu Cheng held.
It was scalding.
She looked up, meeting Lu Cheng's gaze again.
All the divinity and pride in those eyes, once as clear and cold as the moon, had faded.
Only a deathly stillness remained.
"I agree."
Her voice was dry, hoarse, yet carried a resolute determination, as if she had burned her bridges.
"But you must keep your promise."
"This is just... temporarily deposited with you."
"You must take good care of it!"
This was the last shred of dignity and the most humble... hope she could fight for as "Ise Hinata" and not the "Amaterasu Shrine Maiden."
"Of course."
Lu Cheng smiled, a gentle, warm smile.
"I always keep my promises."
He released her hand, his tone becoming soft, as if guiding a lost child.
"Now, relax."
"Don't think about anything, don't resist anything."
"Remove that heavy shackles from your soul with your own hands."
Ise Hinata slowly closed her eyes.
She abandoned all resistance, opening her soul.
The next moment!
Buzz----!!!
An indescribably brilliant golden pillar of light suddenly shot up from her body!
This light was so pure, so vast!
It pierced through the sturdy roof of the Rolls-Royce, soaring into the sky!
The entire night sky of Tokyo, at this moment, was dyed a sacred gold!
Countless sleeping citizens, in their dreams, seemed to see a sun rising from the east!
Within that golden pillar of light, a complex and majestic totem, composed of countless ancient runes, slowly condensed into form.
That was the materialization of Japan's National Luck!
However, this immense power, enough to change the heavens and earth, did not leak out in the slightest.
It merely, under Lu Cheng's will, obediently began to contract inward, condensing.
Finally, the sky-obscuring golden totem transformed into a golden core, only the size of a fist, seemingly made of pure light.
It floated quietly above Lu Cheng's palm, exuding a heart-pounding might.
Lu Cheng slowly clenched his hand.
The light completely receded.
The world returned to darkness.
As if the miraculous scene had never occurred.
Inside the car, Ise Hinata's body slumped against the seat, her face ashen, soaked in cold sweat, as if all her strength had been drained.
The sacred aura, inherent and surrounding her, had completely vanished.
At this moment, she was no longer a Shrine Maiden.
Just a beautiful, yet fragile... ordinary girl, as if she would break with a touch.
Lu Cheng felt the vast and immense energy flowing within him, and the curve of his lips grew more playful.
He slowly leaned into Ise Hinata's ear, looking at her pitiable, weak appearance, his voice low, yet with an undeniable, absolute dominance.
"Now, the first phase of the transaction is complete."
"Tonight, we should discuss the safekeeping fee..."