A Galaxian Explosion?
No, not quite.
Deathtoll felt as though he had been plunged into the deepest darkness before the Big Bang.
There was no light, no time, no space, and not even a single dimension.
Then, without warning, the explosion that created heaven and earth erupted.
Countless masses of matter that would form the primordial universe, galaxies, and stars were hurled into the depths of space by an unimaginable force.
That was what Deathtoll felt.
Or rather, that was what he saw.
Enormous galaxy clusters and vast clouds of nebulae poured out in dense waves from the spinning stellar vortex behind Ryosho, carrying the tremendous energy of creation, power sufficient to create everything and destroy everything.
Deathtoll’s eyes gleamed.
The Lightspeed Fist he had unleashed flickered only briefly before the terrifying energy, comparable to the Big Bang, swallowed it completely within this miracle of creation.
Deathtoll himself was no exception.
The Leaf covering his body was torn apart piece by piece beneath the force of the fearsome technique.
Then his body was swept into the dazzling splendor of the universe’s creation and shattered along with it.
Magnificent!
Crateris.
In a single instant, he had pushed his Cosmo to the absolute limit of his life, awakened the Seventh Sense, and comprehended a terrifying technique comparable to the Big Bang.
I would love to give this move a name.
The Big Bang?
Too obvious.
Singularity Projection?
That did not capture the grandeur of the Big Bang.
Deathtoll stared at the spinning stellar vortex behind Ryosho, and his eyes suddenly lit up.
At the birth of the universe, all matter and every particle were granted a form of momentum that would remain eternally conserved.
Angular momentum.
Just like the stellar vortex spinning endlessly behind Ryosho.
…
Was it over?
Ryosho weakly raised his head and looked across the empty Yomotsu Hirasaka.
Clusters of green ghostly flames flickered across the desolate land, while the eternal winds of the Underworld howled mournfully over the hills.
The souls marching in line resembled flowing rivers.
They eventually converged before the Abyss Cave, then leaped into that realm of eternal death one after another, never to be reborn.
The anguished cries coming from within the cave were the final sounds they would ever leave behind in this world.
Death was the ultimate destination of all things.
So why did it inspire such despair?
Such fear?
As Ryosho watched the scene before him and listened to the blood chilling screams rising from the Abyss Cave, a profound sadness welled up in his heart.
“Hey, what are you staring off into space for?”
At that moment, Deathtoll’s voice rang out again.
Ryosho immediately tensed as though facing a formidable enemy and assumed a fighting stance.
“Stop!”
Seated atop the Coffin of Silence, Deathtoll hurriedly raised a hand to halt him.
“All right, that’s enough.
I surrender.
You’re quite something, kid.
You didn’t disappoint me.
You actually managed to awaken the Seventh Sense in a single instant.
I, Deathtoll, have never been wrong about a man.”
Ryosho frowned, still watching Deathtoll with complete vigilance.
“The moment I saw you, I knew you were no ordinary kid.
You had great potential.”
“And it turns out I was right.”
“Hahahaha!”
Deathtoll wriggled his fingers in a bizarre manner and threw back his head in laughter.
“You’re much better than that fellow Deathmask.
I’ve decided.
You will be the next Cancer Gold Saint.”
Ryosho was completely baffled.
Still, he could more or less understand what Deathtoll meant.
Deathtoll had been acting the entire time, testing him and helping him awaken the Seventh Sense.
Ryosho felt somewhat frustrated.
“Even after awakening the Seventh Sense, I still couldn’t kill you.”
“Hey, you little brat.
Why do you hate me so much?”
Deathtoll sat cross legged on the stone coffin.
“If I hadn’t made the act convincing, how would you have fought with your life on the line?
How could you have awakened the Seventh Sense?”
“Besides, how do you know you didn’t kill me?”
“I was already dead to begin with.”
“I was only temporarily resurrected as a Ghost.
You should be grateful that the one summoned was me, Deathtoll, guardian of the entrance to the Realm of the Dead and a Gold Saint personally chosen by Athena.
Otherwise, you would already be completely dead.”
“Gold Saints who died and were summoned back as Ghosts retain only the great strength and extensive combat experience they possessed in life.
They have no kindness left in them.
They become malevolent spirits in the truest sense.
Even if they were good while alive, the baptism of the Malevolent Spirit Formation would corrupt them into genuine malevolent spirits.”
“Only I, Deathtoll, could evade that method of cleansing the soul and preserve my true self.
That was why I could test you here and help you awaken the Seventh Sense.
Otherwise, not even your bones would remain by now.”
“True Gold Saints are far more terrifying than you imagine.”
“If you believe that briefly awakening the Seventh Sense means you can defeat a Gold Saint who remains in the Seventh Sense at all times, then you are gravely mistaken.”
Deathtoll delivered the entire speech with righteous indignation.
Ryosho immediately picked out the most important details.
The Malevolent Spirit Formation?
A soul baptism?
He frowned.
“Then who summoned all of you?
It truly wasn’t Saga?”
Deathtoll jumped down from the Coffin of Silence, walked over to Ryosho, and placed a hand on his shoulder.
“You’re asking me?
I want to ask you the same thing.
Who did you people offend badly enough that they would pay such an enormous price to summon Gold Saints who died long ago?”
“And forget about Saga!”
“The power to bring the dead back to life is not something a human can possess.”
“That is the authority of a god.”
Deathtoll pointed toward the heavens with reverence.
“A god?”
Ryosho’s frown deepened.
“Could it be Hades, the King of the Underworld?”
“Hades?”
Deathtoll stroked his chin thoughtfully.
“It does fit his style, but I don’t think it was him.
If Hades were responsible, he wouldn’t bother hiding it.”
Ryosho recalled how Hades had resurrected the Gold Saints during the battle at the Twelve Temples of the Underworld.
Come to think of it, Deathtoll was right.
Then who could it be?
There were countless Greek gods and just as many enemies of Athena.
Who could possibly know which god was behind it?
“Be careful, kid.
I definitely won’t be the last.
From what you said earlier, someone else was resurrected before me?”
“Yes.
That person could use the Galaxian Explosion, but their strength was nowhere near yours.
I initially thought it was Gemini Saga, but the level of power didn’t match.”
“Then that explains it.
That fellow was probably Cain, the previous Gold Saint.
While I was undergoing the malevolent spirit baptism, I vaguely heard that there had been a failed specimen before me.
I suppose that was the weaker one you mentioned.”
“Come to think of it, my own strength wasn’t complete either.”
“But that reveals a serious problem.
Whoever is behind this is rapidly improving their summoning ability.
Next time, they may be able to summon a Gold Saint at full strength.”
“As far as I know, there were several terrifying figures among the previous generation of Gold Saints.
If any of them are summoned…”
Deathtoll could not help shuddering.
“You’ll be completely dead, kid.”
“All right, that’s everything I know.”
“I’m leaving.”
With his hands on his hips, Deathtoll began walking toward the Abyss Cave with a crablike gait.
“Wait!”
Ryosho called out to him.
“What is it?
Something else?”
Ryosho glanced at the line of text that had appeared in his field of vision.
[A complete Saint Spirit has been detected.
Would you like to invite it to reside within the Saint Spirit Tablet?]