At first glance, it looked ordinary in size, simple in form, without any ornate decoration.

But in the very next instant, the axe suddenly expanded, growing wildly with the wind, transforming into a colossal battle axe a thousand meters long, like an inverted primordial mountain spanning the heavens!

Its terrifying presence pressed down like a tangible mountain descending from the ninth heaven, as if one strike could split heaven and earth apart anew.

The giant axe hovered high in the sky, and its shadow covered the earth.

Even the once-arrogant eight-headed demon looked small beneath it.

Moryo's expression finally changed.

"No! No!! Noooo!!!"

The demon that had earlier mocked even the Sage of Six Paths now spoke with unprecedented fear and trembling.

Its eight grotesque heads twisted wildly, releasing a torrent of incoherent pleading: "True Lord! True Lord!! Spare me! Spare me!! I can… I can serve you!! I know many secrets of this world!! I..."

True Lord?

Miroku's heart jolted violently!

Faced with Moryo's humble begging, the figure gave no response.

He simply lifted the axe that seemed capable of splitting heaven and earth.

The next moment, it fell, then a colossal force like the creation of the world erupted downward.

Wherever the blade passed, even space itself seemed to distort and tear apart, emitting an unbearable groan.

Before the axe even fully descended, the earth below had already begun to tremble violently and crack apart!

Rumble!

A catastrophic quake erupted as if two continental plates were violently colliding and grinding against each other.

Within a radius of several thousand meters, the earth emitted terrifying creaking sounds and suddenly sank hundreds of meters!

From the cracked crust, red magma surged upward, turning the entire region into a boiling sea of lava!

The land shattered piece by piece, massive chunks of soil and rock were thrown into the sky by an immense compressive force, only to be ground into dust midair by the shockwaves!

The pitch-black sky was illuminated by countless burning sparks. Light pierced through the mist, casting down upon a fractured earth that seemed as if it had been struck by divine punishment!

"Miroku, go back."

At the very moment this world-destroying scene filled her vision, as she widened her eyes trying to see the final outcome, a calm, gentle voice echoed beside her ear, as if spanning across time itself.

'He, he can actually see me?!'

Miroku's mind shook, and she subconsciously tried to speak, but in the next instant, the world spun, and her vision shattered into countless streams of light scattering away.

"Hah!!!"

Miroku suddenly sat up in bed while gasping heavily. Cold sweat slid down her cheeks, soaking her inner garments.

Within the quiet shrine maiden palace, lantern light swayed gently. Outside the window, night wind passed through the corridors carrying the fragrance of grass and trees.

Everything was as tranquil as ever.

Yet Miroku's heart could no longer calm down. She sat blankly on the bed, her gaze unfocused.

Who exactly was that person?

Why were the Demon-Slaying Sword and Demon-Repelling Bow in his possession?

And True Lord… was that his name, or some kind of title?

Miroku sat on the edge of her bed, staring at the silent night outside the window for a long time without moving, the image of the prophetic dream replaying in her mind again and again.

That indistinct figure like a celestial being, the axe that cleaved heaven and earth, and Moryo's near-collapse level of begging.

The shrine maiden lineage's prophetic dreams had never been wrong, which meant that at some point in the future, Moryo would indeed be unsealed…

And then be suppressed, or even completely slain, by that being called the True Lord, in an absolute crushing manner.

"Come in!"

After a long silence, Miroku took a deep breath and steadied her mind before speaking.

The guard captain Hotei entered quickly with several guards and knelt on one knee.

"Your highness!"

"Hotei…" Miroku paused for a moment before continuing, "Investigate whether there exists a person named True Lord within the Land of Ogres. It may also be a title rather than a name. If nothing is found there, secretly gather information in other countries."

"Remember! Keep a low profile, and absolute secrecy is required."

She paused again.

"If you find any clues or individuals related to this, treat them with the utmost respect. Do not offend them under any circumstances. Do you understand?"

"Yes, your highness!"

Hotei respectfully accepted the order and withdrew from the palace with his men.

Outside, night wind brushed his face as he walked, pondering the command.

True Lord?

Such a strange name, is there really someone with that name?

Hotei frowned, somewhat confused.

Normally, kun or san are suffixes used for addressing peers or juniors.

But he could sense that the True Lord mentioned by the princess was clearly not a normal usage.

From her serious tone, this person in her prophetic dream must represent something extremely unusual.

Most likely, it was an honorific title.

True Lord… Lord Shinichi?

As he murmured it, a name suddenly flashed through his mind without reason: Shinichi Higashino, the astonishing youth who had recently stirred turmoil across the Shinobi World, but he immediately shook his head and laughed at himself.

But how could that be? If the True Lord were really Shinichi Higashino, with the princess's prophetic ability, the information would never have been so vague.

He must just be overthinking it. With that thought, Hotei pushed the idea aside and began preparing the investigation.

...

Meanwhile, while Miroku secretly searched for the True Lord's whereabouts, the war machine of the Shinobi World continued to roar without the slightest pause.

On the northern battlefield, the Village Hidden in the Stones used the Land of Moon as a stepping stone to launch a large-scale invasion of the Land of Lightning.

At first, they achieved considerable success, even breaking through the Village Hidden in the Cloud's border defenses.

However, the Village Hidden in the Cloud's counterattack came swiftly and violently.

It was as if they intended to pour all the humiliation and resentment accumulated from Konoha onto the Village Hidden in the Stones.

The third Raikage personally took command at the front lines, charging alongside his son A, pushing the Village Hidden in the Cloud's morale to its peak.

The Village Hidden in the Stones' initially unstoppable offensive was forcefully halted, and both sides quickly entered a brutal stalemate.

Meanwhile, in the southwest and southeast of the Shinobi World, Konoha opened two fronts simultaneously, directly resisting the fierce assaults of the Village Hidden in the Sand and the Village Hidden in the Mist.

Although both enemies attacked with overwhelming force and manpower, Konoha demonstrated astonishing resilience and organization.

Not only were its defensive lines as solid as a rock, but it also occasionally seized openings to launch effective counterattacks, gradually stabilizing the front.

Once again, this demonstrated to the entire Shinobi World the profound foundation and strength of Konoha, the strongest of the five great ninja villages.

Even while facing two great villages simultaneously, and having to remain alert to potential threats from the northwest and northeast, Konoha still stood like a towering mountain, unmoved in the storm.

As the war continued, a new and unusual item began to spread from Konoha's front lines into the eyes of the Shinobi World: medical scrolls.

At first, these were special supplies issued only to elite Konoha frontline units, produced in limited numbers and kept strictly confidential.

However, as the war dragged on and battles increased, more and more of the Village Hidden in the Sand and Village Hidden in the Mist ninjas personally witnessed the same scene on the battlefield.