Chapter 81: The Witch's Creed

At this moment, there were two clear centers of attention at the wedding. One was Song Mingyuan, glass in hand, mingling with the guests and sharing laughter. Thanks to Tsukimiya Suzuna’s explanations, Chen Zi’ang now knew that those clustered around Song Mingyuan were nearly all figures of great prominence.

The other focal point was, naturally, Qin Senhe. He was leading his son, Qin Song, around the venue, offering toasts to nearby guests. Compared to the distinguished company surrounding Song Mingyuan, the caliber of guests around Qin Senhe was noticeably inferior—a reflection, as Tsukimiya Suzuna put it, of the current state of the Qin and Song families.

Both families traced their lineage back to the earliest followers of the first governor, Shi Zhiqing, as imperial adjutants. The Song family had been entrusted with fleet command, while the Qin family led planetary assault forces. After subduing the Takamagahara planet, Shi Zhiqing was formally instated as the sector governor, becoming a regional lord with few reliable men. Aside from promoting members of his own clan, he also elevated many from the Song and Qin families.

It was then that the divide between the two houses began: the Song family shifted toward administrative roles, while the Qin family remained rooted in the military. Excluding the dominant Shi clan, during Shi Zhiqing’s military governance, the Qin family’s influence far outstripped that of the Songs. But when Shi Jintang began peaceful reforms, the Song family’s fortunes rapidly turned, and by Song Mingyuan’s era, they had thoroughly surpassed the Qin family, rising to become the second most powerful bureaucratic clan in Takamagahara.

The Qin family’s decision to back the up-and-coming legislator Qin Senhe was, in fact, a sign of concession. Song Mingyuan was already at the pinnacle as the sector’s confidential secretary—there was no further path for advancement along the civil service track. He had reached the end; how could anyone hope to overtake him now? Promotions were entirely in his hands! Thus, the only way forward for the Qins was the legislative route.

Of course, none of this had much to do with Chen Zi’ang at the moment, but he made a mental note to recount all of it to Lu Yunfeng later, for the sake of boasting.

Old Lu, you know nothing about politics. I’m the one who’s seen the big stage, aren’t I?

As he was still observing Song Mingyuan’s party, he suddenly noticed Tsukimiya Suzuna’s gaze fixed in a certain direction.

Following her line of sight, Chen Zi’ang’s heart nearly stopped.

He saw Nishikawa Miye, dressed in an aquarium staff uniform and carrying a tray, swiftly weaving past guests and closing in on Qin Senhe with alarming speed.

"Watch out!" Chen Zi’ang roared, instinctively reaching for a gun at his waist.

Only to realize he’d brought neither a gun nor his Mandrake Law Sword.

His shout instantly drew the attention of many guests. Qin Song turned his head reflexively—and his head was the first to fly off.

The weapon that decapitated him was a massive scythe made of swirling black mist. After severing Qin Song's neck, its momentum remained unchecked, plunging into Qin Senhe's chest.

Qin Senhe hadn't even registered his son's death when he felt a sudden chill in his chest—the cold numbed the nerves around the wound, so he felt no pain, only hearing a woman's mocking, gleeful chuckle in his ear:

"Can't even protect your own son's life, yet you think you can shield beasts?"

That was the last thing he heard in life, for Qin Senhe’s body quickly turned cold, all warmth greedily siphoned away by the black mist scythe. His flesh shriveled, blood froze, bones decayed and crumbled—every trace of vitality vanished in an instant.

The guests scattered in panic like startled sheep. Smirking, Nishikawa Miye looked up to see a colossal tentacle crashing toward her.

The Abyssal Grasp—a blow of terrifying force, capable of manifesting anywhere with uncanny agility. Its only flaw was the momentary delay as it emerged from a spatial rift. Had it been any faster, it might have saved the Qin father and son.

Nishikawa Miye stepped back, swinging the black mist scythe once more. Each sweep trailed watery ripples through the air, countless ice crystals spinning and drifting in the wake—a clear sign that the witch Nishikawa Miye wielded powers linked to death and cold.

In the fierce collision, black mist and viscous slime exploded outward. Nishikawa Miye retreated again—it was unclear whether she was pulling back tactically or had been knocked back by the tentacle’s force.

Then a sudden spray of blood blossomed at her throat.

From the shadow behind her, a dark, blade-wielding figure surged forth, so swift that the moment it materialized, its blade had already pierced through, slashing Nishikawa Miye’s throat.

An ordinary person would have been incapacitated immediately by such a mortal wound. But Nishikawa Miye merely clutched her throat with her left hand as if to staunch the bleeding, then hurled the black mist scythe with all her might—straight at Chen Zi’ang.

She had seen the truth: even if she slaughtered every guest present, Tsukimiya Suzuna wouldn’t so much as furrow her brow, but if she attacked the man by her side, Suzuna would fight with all her strength to protect him.

Sure enough, the shadow warrior that had blocked Nishikawa Miye’s path instantly melted away like water, reappearing from the shadow at Chen Zi’ang’s feet to shield him from the blow.

But faster than the shadow warrior was a massive, bloated tentacle.

The Bloated Grasp—it resembled a larger version of the Abyssal Grasp but was, in truth, a wholly different entity.

The Abyssal Grasp that had been sliced by the black mist scythe had nearly half its girth severed, rendering it incapable of further attack. Chen Zi’ang decisively dismissed the summoning, sending the wounded tentacle back to the divine realm.

It wasn’t that the god Suhu was inferior to the Ghoul King, but rather that Chen Zi’ang’s own powers were too weak—the tentacles he could summon were simply not strong enough.

Yet when the Bloated Grasp was struck head-on by the black mist scythe, it withstood the blow.

In Chen Zi’ang’s spiritual perception, some strange force spread from the wound, radiating outward like nomads rampaging through the heart of civilization, plundering and destroying everything in their path.

Then it encountered fierce resistance.

The Bloated Grasp’s ability to propagate—Chen Zi’ang wasn’t sure if it counted as true reproduction, but from the wound, countless fleshy nodules rapidly sprouted, growing so quickly that they outpaced the deathly power, soon eradicating it entirely.

What followed was a wild proliferation of the nodules, which spawned another thick, branching tentacle that surged like a roaring dragon, engulfing Nishikawa Miye and hurling her into Dolphin Bay.

Chen Zi’ang was unable to confirm Nishikawa Miye’s fate, but he immediately realized he had to dismiss the Bloated Grasp at once.

For the branching tentacles were not limited to just one.

Uncommanded, the Bloated Grasp stretched its uncontrolled, wildly growing limbs in every direction—toward everyone nearby, friend and foe alike. Before it could devour the remaining guests, Chen Zi’ang hurriedly sent it back to the tentacled god’s realm.

By then, Nishikawa Miye had plunged into the lake, her fate unknown, and the entire venue was in chaos, people fleeing in every direction.

Chen Zi’ang strode to Qin Senhe’s side to check on him and his son.

Unfortunately, both were beyond saving—Qin Song decapitated, Qin Senhe looking like a victim of severe hypothermia. There was no hope of revival.

"How is it?" Tsukimiya Suzuna hurried over, glancing at the two corpses on the ground. "Well, they're done for."

"W-what should we do?" Song Xi crept up cautiously, clinging tightly to Tsukimiya Suzuna’s arm. "Should—should we call the police?"

"Mimi, we are the police," Tsukimiya Suzuna replied with a sigh.