Fierce Battle... Successors of the Three Sacred Treasures versus the Three Heavenly Kings

As the spectators at the KOF arena evacuated swiftly under the guidance of the security personnel, Silver Seven remarked, "What is the use of running? The gods descend, and all things are reborn... You foolish humans, your destruction was due 1,800 years ago..."

"In your dreams! Our ancestors once sealed you away," Chizuru Kagura brought up the feats of her forebears to rally the fighters present. "Today, we, the descendants of the Three Sacred Treasures, can do it just the same!"

"Hehehe..." Yashiro Nanakase sneered with contempt and retorted, "You are gravely mistaken... Humans are like a plague, frantically devouring and destroying nature. You are greedy, vicious, and constantly waging wars and massacres. That is why the god of my clan has awakened to purify this world... Is this not the bitter fruit you humans have sown yourselves?"

Chizuru Kagura was taken aback. There was undeniable truth in what Yashiro Nanakase said. Humans were the lords of all living things, yet they destroyed the environment, wantingly slaughtered other species, and did not even spare their own kind. In the eyes of other creatures, humans might very well be the most terrifying virus of all.

Unfortunately, even at this moment, very few awakened to this realization. Humans were inherently the most selfish of species, willing to destroy everything in their path for their own survival. Although Chizuru Kagura knew that the man of the Orochi clan spoke the truth, for the sake of survival, they had no choice but to unite this group of renowned fighters to eradicate this peril.

"Hmph! Enough nonsense!" Kyo Kusanagi stepped forward, flames blazing intensely on both palms. "Allow me to test the prowess of the Orochi clan!"

As he spoke, he threw a punch: One Hundred and Fourteenth Style: Bite.

Yashiro Nanakase smiled coldly. He pressed his palms against the ground, causing the earth to shake violently and hurling Kyo Kusanagi's body into the air.

"What terrifying earth power!" Goro Daimon, who also possessed the ability to draw strength from the earth, narrowed his eyes. The ancestral blood flowing through his veins filled him with fear, but as a lifelong friend of the Kusanagi family, he had to protect Kyo Kusanagi.

"Roar..." Goro Daimon slammed both fists into the ground. His mountain-moving strength shook the arena intensely. This was one of his signature moves, "Earthquake," forcing Yashiro Nanakase, who had intended to pursue, to come to a halt.

"Hmph! So you are the human who obtained a portion of our natural power!" Yashiro Nanakase looked at Goro Daimon.

Mutou suddenly recalled. Back then, the Three Sacred Treasures families feared that the Heavenly Kings would unite and break free, so they had stripped the Four Heavenly Kings of their natural powers. Because the attributes of "fire and wind" were too overwhelming, they had no choice but to channel the powers of "earth and water (lightning)" into the originally timid mages Daimon and Nikaido. Consequently, their descendants inherited the supernatural abilities of earth and lightning.

"Hehehe... Interrupting someone else's duel is terribly impolite, you know!" Chris's crisp, childlike voice rang out. Then, she spread her arms wide, brought them together in front of her chest into a fist, aimed at Goro Daimon, and shouted, "Fire!"

Mutou saw it clearly. This was Orochi Chris's technique: Flames of the Sun God. This fire attribute was something Goro Daimon could not withstand; while he might be able to fend off Chris's physical attacks, he could not block the damage inflicted by the fire attribute.

However, someone else stepped in to block this attack.

"Dragon Fire Dance!" A ball of blazing fire similarly intercepted the Flames of the Sun God. It was Mai Shiranui. There was a character for fire in her name, and she could unleash fire-attribute attacks even in her techniques—though not because she possessed innate fire-control abilities, but rather through the clever use of explosives.

"Hehehe... The light of a firefly dares to rival the sun and moon!" Chris sneered, and immediately, the flames surged forward like ocean waves.

"Dangerous!" Chizuru Kagura quickly shouted a warning, only to see Chris laughing joyfully and appearing instantly before Mai Shiranui. Chris's body was immediately licked by raging flames. On the innocent face of the child, a murderous intent that could freeze one's soul emerged: "Ha, you actually dare to play with fire in front of me!" Chris wore an angelic smile as the thick sole of her shoe trampled heavily onto Mai Shiranui's soft abdomen.

"Ah!" Mai Shiranui's face spasmed in agony as she curled her body tightly.

"Mai..." Andy cried out angrily as he charged forward.

"Stop!" Chizuru Kagura also shouted. Her body then blurred, splitting into two illusory Chizuru Kaguras that attacked Chris. It was like a dance, smooth and fluid, seemingly leaving openings everywhere, yet upon closer inspection, it was utterly flawless. This was the Two Hundredth Style: Second Activation of the Prayer.

Two top-tier experts attacked simultaneously. Chris's smile vanished. Especially since Chizuru Kagura herself wielded a Sacred Treasure and was a master-level fighter, Chris managed to evade Andy's attack but was struck by one of the Chizuru Kaguras. Two consecutive blows landed on her, sending sharp pains through Chris's body as if her bones were falling apart.

"Interesting!" Chris managed to laugh despite the pain, acting like a child of her actual age as she crossed her arms and tried to guess which one was the real Chizuru Kagura. "This one!" Just as the words fell, a burst of flame shot from Chris's hand toward the Kagura on the left, but the attacked Kagura instantly vanished, and the flame fizzled out shortly after traveling. At the same time, another phantom appeared. "Clap, clap, clap, clap!" Chizuru Kagura's eccentric pugilistic art caught Chris off guard. Countless strikes landed on her almost simultaneously, sending Chris stumbling back repeatedly.

Just as she managed to evade Chizuru Kagura's pursuit and wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth with astonishment, that Kagura also rapidly vanished. The true shrine maiden stood not far away, her white robes fluttering in the gentle breeze as she gazed at him with solemnity.

"Interesting... Very interesting!" Instead, Chris burst out laughing and happily clapped her hands.

"Forget it, it seems you are no match for her. I'll take over!" An awakened Shermie cupped her hands around her mouth and exhaled a ball of black lightning like blowing a horn, targeting Chizuru Kagura directly.

Yet the moment she struck, a purple flame skimmed across the ground toward her, as poignant and dazzling as brilliant fireworks. A tall man dressed in red and black clothing appeared in the arena. The breeze lifted the hem of his clothes, and a crescent-moon-like ornament hung around his neck. His rebellious yet faintly sorrowful gaze locked onto Shermie.

"Go to hell!" Iori Yagami was always as cold as ice; it seemed he only ever knew how to say that single phrase.

"Hehehe... Sharing the blood of the Orochi clan indeed! Chris's fire-wielding power was granted by the god of our clan, you know. You deal with him!" Shermie chuckled lightly. As she spoke, she engaged Chizuru Kagura, perfectly swapping opponents with Chris.

"Shermie, stop fighting! Don't you know that the resurrection of Orochi requires the physical bodies of the three of you? You will die..." The one shouting was Zigui. Perhaps, toward the number-one beauty of this world, his feelings were genuinely heartfelt.

Shermie paused slightly and looked at Zigui: "Foolish human! To actually think you could win the favor of my Orochi clan!"

Zigui was stunned for a moment and cried out, "Shermie, don't you remember us... the time we spent together?"

Shermie, however, said nothing more. With a light shout, she glided toward Chizuru Kagura, seemingly intent on closing the distance to unleash her specialty grappling techniques.

On the other side of the battlefield, Kyo Kusanagi was locked in fierce combat with Yashiro Nanakase. Yashiro had always excelled in grappling techniques and defense, and after obtaining the power of Orochi, his strength had surged explosively. Kyo unleashed one technique after another: One Hundred Style: Ghost Burn, Two Hundred and Twelfth Style: Moon Flare, One Hundred and Fourteenth Style: Bite, One Hundred and Twenty-Eighth Style: Wound, One Hundred and Twenty-Seventh Style, One Hundred and Twenty-Fifth Style, One Hundred and Fifteenth Style, One Hundred and First Style: Chant, Four Hundred and Second Style: Punishment Chant...

Yet no matter what technique he used, Yashiro blocked them completely, and even the damage from the fire attributes was absorbed and converted by his earth power. If Goro Daimon had not been there to distract him, Kyo would likely have been struck down by Yashiro's Shattered Earth long ago.

"Vile insect! You dare make an enemy of me using borrowed power!" Yashiro suddenly flew into a rage. With a few flips, he flashed in front of Goro Daimon and, before the latter could react, roared, "Roar of the Earth!" With a single punch, he knocked Goro Daimon down, then picked him up like a sack of sand and slammed him heavily back into the ground. Watching his opponent struggle to his feet in a stumbling, unsteady manner, Yashiro said in disappointment, "Is that all you've got? With this kind of skill, can you really claim to have borrowed the power of my earth?"

His words clearly drove Goro Daimon past his breaking point. He lunged forward, shouting almost hysterically, "Go to hell, Hell's Paradise Drop!" This was one of Goro Daimon's ultimate techniques, but regrettably, his mountain-moving strength failed to budge Yashiro at all. Yashiro's feet were planted as if rooted to the ground as he calmly stated, "Upon the earth, no one's strength surpasses mine!"

As he spoke, Yashiro grabbed Goro Daimon: "Then let me show you my earth power! Dark Hell's Paradise Drop!"

However, his arm was grabbed by a young man wearing a student uniform: "Your opponent is me!" The raging flames on Kyo Kusanagi's hands flared up along Yashiro's body, forcing Yashiro to release Goro Daimon and leap backward. Seizing the moment of his jump, a sharp glint flashed in Kyo's eyes: "You are invincible upon the earth, but what if your feet are no longer touching the earth?" With a light shout, flames suddenly burst from his hands, surging fiercely toward Yashiro.

"Final Battle Esoteric Technique!" Mutou thought excitedly, but regretfully, because this technique relied on Kyo Kusanagi's innate talent, the Shadow-Copy Technique could not replicate it. In fact, it wasn't just Kyo's technique that couldn't be copied; Chizuru Kagura's illusory attack methods were likewise beyond Mutou's replication ability. Mutou knew this was because Chizuru Kagura's attacks all borrowed the power of the Yata Mirror.

Still, Mutou was already satisfied. Watching this battle between the descendants of the Three Sacred Treasures and the Heavenly Kings left him dazzled and mesmerized. This was a battle between top-tier experts of this world. Even if the Shadow-Copy Technique could not replicate their skills, witnessing it expanded Mutou's combat experience, which would vastly improve his close-quarters combat proficiency in the future.

Just as Mutou's mind wandered for a split second, Rudolf Xuan suddenly reminded him: "That's not right. The power of these three Heavenly Kings should go far beyond this. Why are they barely managing to hold their ground against the descendants of the Three Sacred Treasures?"

Prompted by these words, Mutou refocused his attention on the actions of the Heavenly Kings. Just at that moment, Kyo Kusanagi's Final Battle Esoteric Technique struck Yashiro Nanakase, and a brilliant flash of flames engulfed him...