Chapter 440: Successful Myth Alteration
When three people say there's a tiger, such a story unfolds.
Therefore, as an agent of the National History Compilation Committee, Touma Amakasu was watching the online fermentation with a headache.
The anomalies at Mount Nikko were actually being live-streamed.
In fact, there had been occasional live streams of supernatural phenomena before.
But they were quickly covered up by the state's power.
However, with this live stream, he had attempted to shut it down multiple times, but to little effect.
Simply closing one person's live stream was useless; even shutting down the server of that online platform was ineffective.
Moreover, it was clear that someone was causing trouble, with a force deliberately ensuring the broadcast continued.
So, even if those online platforms were closed, viewers could switch to other platforms beyond their reach, and others would continue rebroadcasting it.
Why not implement signal jamming at Mount Nikko then?
It wasn't that they hadn't tried, but it had also been sabotaged.
Of course, what troubled Touma most—no, what horrified him—wasn't just the exposure of the live stream, but the large number of people spouting incorrect myths.
These people were bizarre, adamantly believing that the mythological knowledge they had received was correct and that others were wrong.
Their words and actions were particularly fanatical and obsessive, and they all suddenly and eerily turned their gaze toward Mount Nikko.
And these people weren't just idle crowds; they included all sorts of individuals.
There were teachers in the middle of lessons, police officers on duty, drivers behind the wheel, and so on.
They all stopped their work, muttering incessantly to themselves.
Then, Touma sensed a subtle, indescribable power from these voices, coalescing as if trying to change something.
So, what was wrong with these people?
These were clearly the individuals infected with the Black Death.
It was evident that their perceptions had been altered; they seemed to be under control.
The exact number of such individuals remains impossible to calculate at present. Perhaps not all infected people would exhibit these symptoms—maybe the infection's intensity wasn't sufficient—but based on the current data, it undoubtedly exceeded ten million people.
This meant that these ten million individuals could be given other commands at any moment, plunging the entire nation into chaos.
The mere thought sent chills down one's spine.
However, it didn't seem as though they were being completely controlled. They still retained their sense of self, but they had become delusional due to external manipulation.
This led to another question: why were countless people distorting mythology?
Touma quickly realized the truth—they were genuinely attempting to twist myths, thereby affecting the gods within those legends.
Currently, they were targeting one particular deity, distorting and demeaning him.
From the live broadcast footage, Susanoo's reactions made it clear that this approach was indeed effective—his mythological foundation was being shaken.
Countless people continued to twist the original myths, altering them relentlessly.
As a result, the Earth Mother Goddess, who should have been successfully dethroned by Susanoo in the original myth, was now reclaiming her rightful position.
When the roles were reversed, it would be Susanoo's turn to face retribution.
"Ah, it's happening!"
A Hime-Miko with chestnut-colored hair not far from the scene gasped in astonishment, as if witnessing something unbelievable.
"What's happening?" Kaoru asked beside her.
"Those falsehoods... are transforming into reality. This—this is the weaving of a new myth," Yuri stammered, her face filled with disbelief.
Her spiritual senses allowed her to perceive countless minds converging into an unimaginable force, actively altering the existing mythology.
Susanoo's identity as one of the Three Noble Children was fading, being degraded into that of an unnamed, despicable god of deceit.
Thus, as Susanoo's identity vanished, the power belonging to that identity was also disappearing.
The consequence was that the god was finding it increasingly difficult to withstand the attacks of the knight opposing him, and it seemed he would soon be slain.
At that moment, eight serpent-like entities suddenly lunged at Susanoo, striking him before he could react.
No, it would be more accurate to say they bit him—eight snakes released from the feminine form of Ame-no-Murakumo-no-Tsurugi had clamped onto Susanoo's limbs...
As a result, he could no longer evade any subsequent strikes from the knight. His death was now inevitable.
But just then, a burst of flames abruptly engulfed Susanoo.
The flames appeared terrifyingly intense, forcing the biting snakes to hastily release their grip and retreat.
Yet, within those flames, Susanoo laughed maniacally as he burned. It didn't seem like the flames had saved him—everyone could tell this was a fatal blow.
What was even more shocking was that the one who had unleashed these flames was the high school student holding Prometheus—Godou Kusanagi.
The flames originally intended to defeat the Great Sage Equaling Heaven were now being used to kill Susanoo?
"I see..."
Kaoru began to understand.
Susanoo knew his defeat was inevitable. Before the tampered myth could fully take effect, he chose to die by Godou Kusanagi's hand.
Thus, Godou Kusanagi would inherit part of Susanoo's Authority upon becoming a Campione.
In the next instant, another figure emerged from Susanoo's body, rushing toward Godou Kusanagi as if his spirit had left its shell.
The two vanished in an instant—no, they had descended into the Netherworld.
"Apocalypse Knight, was it? Our battle has only just begun!!!"
Susanoo, blazing like a torch, snarled fiercely at the knight.
"Is that so? I look forward to it."
The one who responded—Renji—merely smiled faintly.
The Susanoo before them had not been truly eradicated, for the figure that had suddenly fled like a departing spirit was another of his divine personas.
Moreover, why was he now revealing himself so openly?
Hadn't he previously believed it best to avoid exposing his identity?
The reason was Athena's earlier meddling, which had likely already exposed his ID identity in this world.
Furthermore, the experiment of myth alteration had now succeeded.
Thus, he no longer feared that the myths associated with his ID would be fully deciphered, allowing others to exploit his weaknesses.