Mutagen



Day 342 - 1:45 PM - Aftermath Zone, Chuo City, Ruins of Tokyo

A dome of energy spread out with Mark at its center. Violent winds surged inside the dome, seen from the rapid movement of dust forced out from within.

The inside of the dome of energy was like a weaker energy storm, similar to what the Yamata-no-Orochi caused during its rampage. Only this time, the energy storm was smaller as it only came from the Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi Mark held.

Of course, the dome was not only created by the Divine Sword. Mark's Demonic energy and Ignis' aura also caused it to form.

Outside, the dome of energy might look harmless. However, anyone stepping inside it would become riddled with wounds from the sharp and violent winds. It could even be deadly for those without resistance.

Nonetheless, Mark stood still within that surging wind. His eyes did not even blink once as he focused on the two swords in his hands.

And then, a strong surge of wind spread out of the dome, making Thirteenth's hair flutter strongly. As for the two Goddesses, they remained unaffected since the bodies of their avatars were ethereal.

After the surge of wind, Mark stood still within the dome of energy with both swords' blades crossed tightly. However, his eyes were out of focus. And while violent energies continued to surge out of the swords, the spirits they had seemed to have vanished.

"I can't believe this."

Amaterasu voiced out in acceptance as she saw Mark's current state.

While Magwayen did mention the method earlier, Amaterasu was still quite unconvinced. 

Even among Gods, very few could open a world within their subconscious. And those few had the highest potential to become Gods of Creation. Yet, Amaterasu witnessed such a rare thing on a mere mortal.

Now that Amaterasu witnessed the fact in action, she could not help but feel a little interested in the strange Demon before her eyes.

"Don't you dare try."

Magwayen suddenly said, not caring about the difference in her status to a Goddess of Light from a higher realm. 

"I am merely interested. I am not a person who would distastefully steal someone else's blessed one."

Amaterasu gave out a kind but also bitter smile. She did not expect the Visayan Goddess of the Underworld to be too protective of her person.

To the side, Thirteenth could only shrug. She wished she could just kick these annoying outsiders out of this world. In the end, she decided to ignore the two and focus on Mark.

However, it seemed that what Mark was doing caught some attention.

A familiar figure flashed from place to place. The person stepped on the river, causing the water under her feet to momentarily turn to ice as she vanished as soon as she took the step.

Amaterasu looked at the approaching figure. Her eyes showed kindness as she welcomed the figure of her seamstress.

"You have arrived."

Amaterasu greeted the surprised Priestess with a kind smile.

"My Goddess... I came because I felt something, but what is happening here?"

Ise Hikaru, the Priestess, respectfully asked Amaterasu before panning her eyes on the otherworldly cast gathered in this place.

"He is sorting his loot," Magwayen spoke. "At least, that is what he had in mind."

The Priestess stared at the familiar yet unfamiliar Goddess of the Underworld. Then, she looked at Mark and the swords he held before noticing that Mark's eyes seemed to be out of focus.

But before the Priestess could say anything more, Magwayen asked her.

"Can you protect him for a little bit? Although it might not be necessary, there is still a low chance of any disturbance disrupting everything."

Although the Priestess had some questions, she did not mind accepting the request. Compared to Mark's help to the Reclaimed City, protecting him for a short period was a small task. However, considering the powerful dome of energy surrounding him, protection might not be necessary at all. It was just his Goddess being a little too overprotective.

But then, it seemed that Mark indeed needed some protection. It was because some shambling figures showed up at the border of the aftermath zone from the ruins beyond. It was no surprise that what Mark was doing attracted some attention.

In any case, there was nothing much the Priestess needed to do. She just erected a smaller barrier similar to what she used to protect Ariake. Because of Mark, the effect of hiding presences did not seem to work properly. However, the barrier still stopped the uninvited guests from moving closer.

And with this, the only thing left to do was to wait.

***

Mark opened his eyes, looking at the scene in front of him that felt both familiar and unfamiliar.

No, it was definitely familiar.

As he looked at the surroundings, it seemed that Mark's subconscious world had taken the shape of the place he always dreamed of. It was not a place he desired but a place that kept popping up in his dreams in the past.

It was a place where he would always stand by the roadside and see a single sparrow perched on a stick of dead tall grass in the middle of a vacant grassy field.

But, of course. There was no sparrow here at the moment.

Instead, a giant eight-headed snake was there, threateningly staring at Mark.

Aside from Mark, there was another figure beside him, a little boy floating by his right side.

The boy seemed a little tired. But it was expected. After all, the boy had to drag that giant snake into this world.

"Master, can I leave the rest to you?"

Ignis asked Mark.

"Yeah, it's fine," Mark replied. "Just take a rest in the back until I finish this."

After receiving the permission, Ignis floated to the back, hiding behind a hill on the other side of the road.

The eight-headed snake stared at Mark while also paying attention to the unfamiliar surroundings. It could not even understand how in the world it got to this place.

Mark took a step forward into the grassy vacant lot.

ROOOARR!!!

The giant eight-headed snake immediately let out a threatening roar.

But Mark did not even flinch from the deafening roar. Instead, he let out a smile on his lips.

"This is the second time we're fighting, right?"

Mark raised his eyes, staring at a particular head of the eight-headed snake.

"You seem to look smaller than before. And your other heads don't feel alive at all."

The prideful spirit of the Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi flinched as Mark pointed out its weakened state.

This spirit was just a fragment of the Beastly God of Chaos. This eight-headed snake was its true form, and the one that caused the destruction of the Reclaimed City was an empowered form due to the ritual and sacrifices it received.

The one before was a true incarnation, while the one in front of Mark right now was the fragment.

Not wanting to show weakness, the eight-headed snake opened its eight mouths. However, only a sign of one element seemed to form.

All eight heads spewed a wind surge at Mark, creating a tornado-like attack. If Mark received this kind of attack in the real world, he could die while being torn to shreds.

But this place was not the real world.

Mark raised his right hand.

SNAP!

With a single snap of his finger, the tornado dissipated in an instant.

The eight-headed serpent became muddled by the scene it witnessed. What was going on? Why was this mortal still alive? Such questions clearly appeared in the serpent's mind from the expression it had in its eyes.

"Hahh..." Mark sighed. "You don't seem to realize. In this place, we're standing on different podiums. I am the God in this place, and you're nothing but a mere beast here."

ROOOARR!!!

The serpent roared, offended by Mark's words. It was clearly unwilling to accept such a reality.

Mark frowned with indignation. Those words he said were the last attempt to try and subdue this spirit.

"No, there is still one last thing to try."

Mark said as he conjured a sword by his side.

With a command from Mark, the sword flew straight to stab the serpent's body.

CLANG!

However, to Mark's surprise, the serpent's tough scales actually repelled the sword.

No, Mark should not be surprised by this as he shook his head. Even the Deity of Bloodshed managed to carry some of his abilities into this world. A God's fragment should be able to do the same.

Then, Mark could only brute force it.

Mark raised his right hand to the sky. The intrusive thoughts of his inner Otaku came calling.

One after another, giant hammers formed in the sky from the countless black ripples in space. How many were there? Even Mark did not know.

The serpent looked at the sky and saw the black hammers. Its terrified eyes showed it remembered when Mark smashed a giant hammer on its body in the previous battle and crushed its scales.

"Unlimited Hammer Works."

Mark declared in a playful tone as the hammers rained from the sky.

BOOOOM!!!

The space shook as the hammers as three-meter-long hammers rained endlessly onto the giant serpent.

ROOOARR!!!

The giant serpent tried to retaliate as it spewed a tornado stronger than the strongest recorded in human history. However, the tornado served no effect on the hammers as they all slammed on the serpent's body.

ROOOOARR!!!

The roar of anger soon turned into anger of pain. However, the spirit's mentality remained unyielding.

Mark stared at the suffering serpent spirit. Its scales scattered, crushed by the hammers. Its body distorted as its flesh deformed. However, its eyes remained resolute.

The spirit of the Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi would rather die than become enslaved by a lowly being.

Mark continued the rain of hammers, creating new ones after the others vanished. But the serpent remained unyielding.

At the back, Ignis looked at the suffering serpent. It was etched in his heart not to make Mark angry in any circumstances. On the other hand, it showed a little sympathy for a fellow sword spirit.

In any case, it was an enemy until it submitted, which was clearly unlikely.

The hammers continued to rain for some time. Mark did not show any mercy. Or rather, he should be incapable of such towards enemies.

And now, the rain of hammers stopped. It was not because the serpent finally yielded. It was because there was no serpent to see anymore.

After countless pummeling of hammers, the serpent spirit was unable to maintain its existence anymore. All that was left was a surge of raw energy that did not have any semblance of sentience.

It really never submitted even until the last breath.

"Ignis."

Mark called Ignis, and the latter knew what to do.

Ignis flew towards the formless clump of energy and opened his mouth. With one suck, it swallowed all of it into his mouth.

And there, Ignis began shining. His body slowly lost its shape and turned into a ball of light hovering in space.

Mark approached Ignis. As he tapped on the ball of light, he knew Ignis had fallen into a deep sleep.

Since Mark had already succeded, it was time to get out.

***

Outside, a tornado formed around Mark. It was seen from kilometers away as it almost reached the sky.

However, the source of the tornado was not Mark. It was the two swords in his hands.

As the tornado surged, the two swords left Mark's hands. The two swords floated up above with their blades crossed.

The focus returned to Mark's eyes as he raised his head. The two swords began glowing into a ball of light, just like Ignis.

But it did not take long, and the ball of light began to deform. It soon took the shape of a sword, but its features remained to be unseen as a bright light covered its entirety.

And then, an explosion occurred. The explosion ripped apart the tornado, and a surge of strong wind spread out for kilometers in every direction. At the same time, the bright light shattered, and the new appearance of Ignis laid bare for everyone around to see.

Ignis floated down into Mark's arms. However, the sword showed no sign of movement.

Mark could tell that Ignis was still in a deep sleep. Nonetheless, Ignis had already taken a new elegant form.

Ignis was a flamberge. Its signature feature was its wavy blade. But now, the waviness on Ignis' blade was too minimal that it was barely noticeable. It might as well be a straight oriental sword.

Yes, Ignis was an oriental sword now.

As Ignis fused with a higher-level sword, the features of the Divine Sword became more prevalent. Furthermore, the end of his hilt had a serpent head, and the handguard had carvings of the Yamata-no-Orochi.

And the powerful pressure that was coming from Ignis. It was far different from before.

At this time, Magwayen's voice entered Mark's ear.

"Congratulations on the creation of your [Divine Demon Sword]."

A [Divine Demon Sword]. It was a set of words that felt contradicting, similar to the words holy and demonic.

And that was right. Something like this should not exist on Earth. After all, there was no way a mere Demon Sword could consume a Divine Sword.

It was only possible because Mark was the master of the Demon Sword.