"Have we entered the endgame?"
Rozen, who was continuously chanting the litany of the Hachiman deity, was simultaneously carrying out his own work while keeping a firm grasp on the battlefield situation, taking all developments into view.
Possessing the ability of Thought Partitioning, and being naturally skilled in multitasking, Rozen could easily divert some of his attention to monitor other areas while maintaining his primary focus.
Even though what Rozen was currently doing was an undertaking as monumental as attempting to dominate a deity, with his current abilities, he handled it all with ease.
Otherwise, Rozen wouldn't have been able to simultaneously assist Natsume and Suzuka in controlling the spiritual energy within them, allowing them to fully release their third seal without hesitation and unleash their complete power.
Through sharing the five senses with his shikigami, along with the abilities of Wise Eye and Mind's Eye, Rozen had already gained a good grasp of the state of the battle.
"The war inside the shrine is about to end."
"This side of the battlefield has stabilized."
"The rest is just a matter of time."
Such thoughts quickly flashed through Rozen's mind as he focused his attention on Souma Takiko.
"Ugh…! Aah…! Aaaahhhh…!"
Souma Takiko's struggles became increasingly intense, her cries of pain growing louder. The divine aura around her surged as if going berserk, turning into swirling vortexes and howling storms, shaking the altar until it was on the verge of collapse.
At this moment, the spirit of Taira no Masakado had fully possessed Takiko's body, merging with her spiritual energy.
Were it not for Rozen's attempt to dominate Masakado, the ritual would have already been complete, and the descent of divine upon the world would be declared.
But now, Rozen's jutsuryoku was still flowing through the spiritual veins into Takiko's body, transforming into layers of binding curses—like countless spikes of jujutsu—driving deep into Masakado's spirit. Realizing the threat, Masakado struggled desperately, making it impossible to rampage alongside Takiko.
Rozen could already feel that, as the curse bindings progressed, Masakado's spirit was gradually being brought under his control.
It was like forming a contract with a shikigami, building a connection between them.
But unlike a normal shikigami contract that created a spiritual conduit, Rozen's method of domination was built with shackles, chains, and collars—binding Masakado's essence tightly. Once completed, Masakado would be utterly obedient to Rozen.
And this domination was not physical or spiritual—it was at the fundamental level of his spirit.
What did this mean?
It meant Masakado's very soul would be "brainwashed" to include obedience to Rozen as an intrinsic part of his being.
A fire god has a violent temperament because their divinity holds a wild, fiery nature.
A water goddess is gentle because her divinity carries the calmness of flowing water.
What Rozen was doing now was implanting "obedience to me" into Masakado's spirit and divinity. Once successful, Masakado would naturally obey Rozen and show absolute loyalty because it would be as inherent as any divine trait.
Accomplishing this should have been impossible, but Rozen used his unparalleled mastery of jujutsu, spiritual power surpassing even that of deities, clever setups, and skillful exploitation of the Divine Descent ritual. Because Masakado had not yet fully awakened his self-consciousness and had merged with Takiko's spirit in a vulnerable state, Rozen was able to take advantage of the opening.
Otherwise, while Rozen might still be able to shackle a god, altering a deity's divine nature was beyond the realm of possibility—even for him.
For this reason, the half-awakened self-awareness of Masakado had already sensed the threat and began resisting furiously, causing the curse bindings to start destabilizing.
However—
"It's already too late, Masakado."
Rozen smiled coldly as the vast spiritual energy within him surged and began to gather, condense, and compress.
In an instant, his spiritual energy transformed, turning into compressed mana, and gradually elevated into High-Grade Mana.
"Boom!"
From Rozen's body, brilliant spiritual light erupted, and a pair of golden wings unfolded from his back. His High-Grade Mana gushed into the spiritual veins, replacing them entirely, and surged into Takiko's body like a flood, forming an even stronger set of curse bindings that pierced into Masakado's spirit.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!"
A divine howl of agony echoed from Takiko's throat.
At this moment, Rozen gave it his all—not only did he convert all his spiritual energy into compressed High-Grade Mana, but he also activated the secret art of Crimson Wing Formation, amplifying the output tenfold.
Before such power, even a god could do nothing but kneel.
Takiko's cries grew weaker and weaker.
On the other side, due to Rozen's spiritual energy transforming into High-Grade Mana, which flowed through the shikigami contracts, Natsume, Suzuka, and Kurahashi Kyouko also fully awakened.
"Boom!"
"Boom!"
"Boom!"
Massive spiritual energy erupted from the three of them, their bodies shining with brilliant light.
"Haah!"
Natsume gave a sharp cry, and her fox fire transformed into a celestial inferno, like a meteor shower from the heavens, roaring as it engulfed Kumomaru.
Kumomaru didn't even have time to scream before being completely incinerated—turned to ash.
"Haaah!"
Kyouko also let out an uncontrollable cry. Her two yaksha surged with explosive power, their speed soaring as they darted toward Kurahashi Genji, crashing directly into him.
"Pffft!"
Genji spat out a mouthful of blood, slamming into the wall and sliding down in stunned silence.
As for Suzuka, she had already grabbed Yashamaru by the head, lifting him high before slamming him into the ground.
Then, amid roaring impacts, Suzuka raised her fist and relentlessly pounded Yashamaru.
"Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!"
Like thunder, each strike shattered the earth below, cracking and caving it in.
"Die!"
"Die!!"
"DIE!!!"
Suzuka's voice, part sobbing and part screaming, accompanied each strike, smashing the ground until a crater was all that remained—so deep it was shocking.
Yashamaru had long since been obliterated, not even leaving behind a final word.
With that, all of the Yase Doji of the Souma clan were destroyed.
Back at the altar, Takiko's voice fell silent. At some point, her eyes opened and turned to Rozen.
In them, only reverence, admiration, awe, and endless loyalty remained.