Regardless of how Hikigaya teased Tamamo-no-Mae, Hagoromo Gitsune's grand undertaking of childbirth continued. With Hikigaya refraining from intervening, the Edo yokai and Kyoto yokai soon resud their battle, becoming entangled in a chaotic fray.
Hagoromo Gitsune, seeing that the situation was favorable, finally made her move. Unlike Tamamo-no-Mae, who excelled at large-scale destructive spells, Hagoromo Gitsune manifested her power through physical combat.
When her nine tails were fully extended, she was essentially a high-grade industrial shredder; wherever they swept, only wreckage remained. The tails themselves possessed an automatic defense capability and concealed nine different types of weapons.
From Hikigaya's perspective as a martial artist, Hagoromo Gitsune was a consummate master of combat. Her movents were concise and fluid, her speed was incredibly high, and her defense had no weak spots. Coupled with her ability to switch weapons at will to alter her offensive and defensive styles, no one from the Nura Clan or the Keikain family was her match. In just a few exchanges, they were beaten into a pathetic state, forced to dodge frantically in all directions.
Among them, Keikain Ryuji tried to play dirty, attempting to seal the still-loading Abe no Seii in the sky, but Hagoromo Gitsune used a single tail from a great distance to smash the stone pestle he summoned into a cloud of rubble.
This act, however, annoyed Hagoromo Gitsune. A long spear shot out from her tail, pinning Keikain Ryuji directly to the ground. Had he not reacted quickly enough, his head would have been punctured. The others fared no better; the spells cast by the Onmyoji didn't even make a sound when hitting Hagoromo Gitsune. Against these opponents, she drew a giant iron fan, blowing away any Onmyoji or Edo yokai who dared to approach with a single swing.
This clean and efficient fighting style provided Hikigaya with an excellent viewing experience. By comparison, the contestants on the Edo side were clearly biased toward sorcery, which left Hikigaya uninterested—what spell could be more impressive than the authority of a god? At the very least, compared to Tamamo-no-Mae's magic, they were bottom-tier. Even Nura Rikuo's combined techniques were rely a novelty, offering little to see.
Thus, the fact that she was wounded in the original work was purely due to the author's "plot armor" and Seii's assistance. In the world where Hikigaya existed, that plot armor seed to have vanished.
Based on Hikigaya's absolutely neutral judgnt, only Tamamo-no-Mae and Hagoromo Gitsune were in a tier of their own; everyone else was re small fry. These runts couldn't even hinder Hagoromo Gitsune, let alone sabotage her. Had she not been anchored next to Abe no Seii's resurrection egg with most of her attention on her child, she would have finished the slaughter long ago.
However, Hagoromo Gitsune's combat techniques were so exquisite that Hikigaya felt sowhat inspired. Logically speaking, Hikigaya and Hagoromo Gitsune shared so similarities. Hikigaya had mastered all the martial arts of the One Shadow Nine Fists and the forr Eight Shining Blades, possessed an irrationally massive amount of cursed energy, and had learned a robust system of ancient Egyptian magecraft during the era of Rasses II. He had been pondering how to better integrate the different combat systems within himself.
Previously, the best reference before him was Luo Hao—a typical example of soone who fused authorities, martial arts, and magecraft. But as Voban had told him, there isn't much reference value between Campiones; one should simply follow their own personality. So, Hikigaya followed his whims.
The problem was, Hikigaya himself didn't know what his "personality" actually was. Did laziness count? Did enjoying being a bystander count? Thinking about sex upon waking up probably didn't count... that seed like a universal human trait. After thinking about it, Hikigaya decided not to dwell on it; it would make him lose his spark.
After a while longer, the situation in the field beca increasingly obvious. The Kyoto yokai had all stopped fighting because Hagoromo Gitsune alone was suppressing and pumling everyone from the Nura Clan, Toono, and the Keikain family. A field of bodies lay on the ground. The Kyoto yokai were afraid that if they got too close, they'd be taken out by "stray fire."
Every yokai and human in the area watched that figure of feminine dominance in silence. Hagoromo Gitsune, at full power, suppressed the entire scene; whether subordinate or enemy, none could lift their heads.
Tamamo-no-Mae was already biting her own tail in jealousy. She had been wanting to jump in, but unfortunately, Hikigaya wouldn't let her.
Suddenly, her eyes lit up, and she blurted out: "Aya! It looks like he's coming out!"
Accompanying her crisp voice, a distinct crack sounded from the resurrection egg in the sky. It was as if a pause button had been pressed; the spectators and the combatants all froze, their gazes focusing on the sky.
The cracking sounds ca one after another, each louder than the last. As the fissures continued to expand, finally, the first piece of "eggshell" peeled off. Fragnts of the obsidian-bright shell, varying in size, fell from the sky. On each piece, a different scene was reflected—mories belonging to Hagoromo Gitsune.
Fragnts of imagery ford a gallery of mories in the sky: the softness and resolve in Hagoromo Gitsune's heart, what she believed in and what she feared, those she loved and those she hated. Everything was laid bare before everyone, filling the sky and reflecting in the pupils of every human and yokai.
In this sea of countless mories and bizarre illusions, everyone present felt exactly what Hagoromo Gitsune felt. They walked with her through a thousand years of entangled love and
hate, joys and sorrows. The world fell into total silence as all eyes turned to the woman in the sky.
Her snowy white fox tails lost their aggression, and her long black hair fluttered in the wind. Tears slid down her beautiful face. Hagoromo Gitsune's eyes were filled with endless maternal love as she gazed dotingly at the child she had awaited for a millennium.
It was a tall man. His body was covered in explosive muscles, solid as steel pillars. His hair was very long, draped all the way to his waist.
Hikigaya narrowed his eyes.
'Seriously, n need to get regular haircuts. Take this guy for example—if his hair were any longer, he might accidentally wipe himself with it when he's on the toilet... and since your hair is that long, why aren't you covering your front?'
"Seii!" Hagoromo Gitsune called out the man's na, her voice trembling.
She still vividly rembered every detail from the mont Abe no Seii was born from her womb to the last ti she saw him. She had watched that child grow, becoming a great Onmyoji praised by all, and at night, the leader of the many yokai of Heian-kyo.
Compared to her mories, the man before her was vastly different from the Abe no Seii of old; he was not a half-yokai, but a full-fledged yokai. Yet, the feeling of a mother-son blood connection could not be mistaken. This was her only child, Abe no Seii!
"Seii..." Hagoromo Gitsune was overco with emotion. She failed to notice the look in Abe no Seii's eyes as she flicked her fox tails and flashed to stand directly before him. "Quick! Let Mother hold you!"
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