"The times have already begun to change?"
Hearing Hao's words, Arimasa Tsuchimikado fell silent.
He reflected on various matters, then took a deep breath and exhaled slowly before looking at Hao Asakura:
"Has the so-called shackles binding the world that you mentioned been released?"
"The shackles have disappeared."
Hao Asakura nodded slightly, revealing a faint smile:
"Five hundred years ago, I completed my accumulation, comprehended the true essence of techniques, and established the Shaman system. Well, according to the SDS people's terminology, this is called grasping concepts and meeting the conditions for promotion to Demigod."
"Unfortunately, I could never take that final step, as if the world itself was rejecting my ascension."
"Thus, I could only continuously innovate techniques, master new concepts, and expand my breadth since vertical advancement was impossible."
"But now, those restrictions I could sense have begun to loosen."
Arimasa Tsuchimikado narrowed his eyes, slightly surprised:
"Yet Nue's ritual clearly failed."
Hao Asakura's expression turned somewhat peculiar at this point, his tone subtle: "He fell just before dawn."
"What do you mean?" Arimasa was stunned.
Fell before dawn? Did it mean what he thought it meant? Could the misfortune be that extreme?
Hao Asakura wanted to laugh, but restrained himself out of pity:
"If his ascension had been delayed by just one more minute, or if he had chosen to continue battling with that Luo Shu a while longer, Nue's promotion wouldn't have failed."
"At least he wouldn't have been stuck on the final step to becoming a Demigod."
"Ah?" Arimasa was dumbfounded.
Though he'd guessed his ancestor—that Abe no Seimei, who wanted to be a monster rather than human, that Nue—would be unlucky, he hadn't imagined it would be this unlucky.
Just one minute short?
That cursed?
At this thought, Arimasa's expression also turned strange:
"Did Nue know about this?"
Hao Asakura said kindly: "Before he died again, I sent him a message explaining the reason for his failure."
"Oh, and incidentally informed him that his opponent had just been promoted to Demigod."
Here, Hao deliberately let Nue mistakenly believe Luo Shu had become a Demigod—clearly aiming to crush both body and spirit.
In truth, Luo Shu was actually Hero Rank.
But in Hao's view, having grasped the conceptual foundation of Demigods, Luo Shu's promotion was only a matter of time.
Thus, it didn't prevent him from using Luo Shu to break Nue's spirit.
"He was, after all, someone who paved the way for me. Dying in ignorance would have been rather regrettable."
Hao Asakura's face wore a smile.
'You're ruthless...' Arimasa's mouth twitched.
He knew full well that Hao held Nue in low regard.
Perhaps due to his childhood experiences with his mother, Hao actually held great respect for maternal figures like Hagoromo Gitsune, who deeply cherished their children.
The promotion to Onmyoji—the Demigod Class of the Shaman system—required vast emotional energy to open the Gates of Hell, with the ascendant placing prepared symbols of yin and yang into their respective realms.
The key point here is that the ascendant must simultaneously endure the impacts from both reality and Hell.
Under the guidance of Hao Asakura, Arimasa Tsuchimikado chose to master the concept of yokai. Utilising soul-splitting techniques and his own half-yokai bloodline, he divided himself into a yokai self and a human self, continuously strengthening both bodies to meet the requirements for enduring the impact.
Meanwhile, Abe no Seimei—also known as Nue—wanted to achieve it in one step. By harnessing Hagoromo Gitsune's power to absorb the darkness of human hearts, he exploited the mystical connection formed by being reborn through her. He refined Hagoromo Gitsune into his own yin symbol, using her as a human pillar to descend into Hell and complete the ritual.
Arimasa Tsuchimikado understood all too well that it was precisely this kind of ruthless behaviour—sacrificing even one's own mother as material for ascension—that made Hao Asakura discard Nue without hesitation, using him to test the world. Even in defeat, Hao sought to crush both body and spirit.
In truth, as another student under Hao's tutelage, Arimasa also looked down on this ancestor of his.
'Thinking one could take a shortcut to ascension by sacrificing family—how naive.'
Arimasa shook his head, then asked curiously:
"You just mentioned that Nue's opponent ascended to Demigod? Does that mean the head of the SDS's Hidden Management Department successfully became a Demigod?"
Hao Asakura replied calmly, "Not yet. But to those below Demigod, there's no difference."
He understood the power of Concept Entanglement all too well. Thus, he knew well that for Luo Shu, who had mastered this skill, facing beings below Demigod would be no different from facing insects.
Given that, it was better to simply treat him as a Demigod.
Hearing this, Arimasa nodded in realisation:
"So, the SDS now has its first Demigod?"
Hao, however, corrected him:
"No, the second."
"There's another female Demigod hidden within the SDS, one in a very peculiar state."
"A peculiar Demigod?" Arimasa wasn't overly surprised by this.
In fact, based on divinations by Hao and numerous members of the Onmyou Agency's Astronomy Division, achieving perfect Demigod status before today was impossible.
The world instinctively suppressed such existences, keeping them perpetually one step away from Demigod in every aspect.
And attempting to cross that final step would inevitably invite indescribable calamity.
This suppression wasn't absolute—it would gradually fade over time.
This was precisely why Hao had sent Nue to test the waters.
His divinations had hinted at the imminent loosening of these restrictions.
"How strange is this SDS Demigod?"
Hao murmured to himself, recalling the Kurumi Tokisaki he had just encountered.
"She's grasped a concept, possesses a Demigod's physique and spirituality, and her accumulated power meets the requirements, even reaching the level of a complete Demigod. Moreover, her body contains the potential for her concept to advance further."
Arimasa was stunned:
"Isn't that already a full Demigod? Wait—how did this SDS Demigod bypass the world's suppression to become complete before the restrictions lifted?"
Hao shook his head. He didn't know Kurumi's exact circumstances—only that he had glimpsed certain things.
"She should possess a concept that has advanced even further—a power beyond that of a Demigod. That power, as I mentioned to you before."
"That power called Authority..."
Hao Asakura thought of the Five Elements he commanded and sighed softly:
"The female Demigod from the SDS possesses a fragment of Authority, yet cannot fully master it."
"Perhaps she exploited this very fact to ascend as a complete Demigod despite the world's suppression."
Arimasa Tsuchimikado suddenly understood: "So... she deliberately left her power incomplete?"
"The world's suppression only allows those seeking to ascend to a Demigod to approach it infinitely, always lacking that final step in some direction."
"Meanwhile, that SDS Demigod first elevated her conceptual power further, then actively dispersed it, forcibly creating imperfection to evade the world's suppression."
"A brilliant approach indeed."
Arimasa couldn't help but marvel.
The SDS truly had capable individuals!
One could take extra steps when ascending from below Demigod rank.
According to the information Hao Asakura had shared, beyond the Demigod lay Apostles who wielded the power of Authority.
And ascending from Demigod to Apostle required no ritual—only weaving one's own Authority fragment from concepts.
That female SDS Demigod likely took advantage of this. At Hero Rank, after mastering conceptual power, she directly attempted Authority weaving. Success would allow her to become an Apostle in one leap upon ascension!
But the world's suppression would inevitably introduce flaws, making such ascension doomed to fail.
Yet she deliberately let the world suppress her Authority, regressing it to conceptual power while perfecting all other aspects of her Demigod state.
"Spirit, physique, energy accumulation, and concept—when all four reach Demigod level, one becomes a complete Demigod."
"She deliberately advanced her concept into Authority territory, then used the world's suppression to direct the flaw specifically towards the Authority, downgrading it to a concept while perfecting everything else."
"If the world won't let me ascend perfectly, then I'll control where the suppression strikes, guiding it precisely where I want it to, achieving ascension through detours?"
"Genius conception!"
Had Hao Asakura not explained, he'd never have imagined someone could perform such unconventional manoeuvres.
Observing Arimasa's excitement, Hao cautioned:
"Knowing this method is enough—don't attempt it lightly."
"Having your Authority shattered by the world during Demigod ascension is no trivial matter. The slightest misstep means death."
"Rather than such risks, follow conventional steps—at least that's safer."
Recalling how Kurumi Tokisaki's conceptual power leaked uncontrollably, Hao shook his head.
Defying the world this way resulted in power one couldn't finely control. And in his view, power beyond perfect control might as well not exist.
"I understand, teacher."
Chastened, Arimasa immediately lowered his head.
Seeing this, Hao said no more. The warning was given—if Arimasa still chose that path, so be it.
"Prepare arrangements. I require seclusion at the Onmyou Agency."
"As for Nue's affairs after his death, don't interfere. Let the SDS take those things from Gokadoin House as compensation for this incident."
Hearing Hao Asakura's words, Arimasa Tsuchimikado was momentarily stunned:
"Seclusion? Didn't you just need to remedy your flaws to become a complete Demigod?"
The next second, Arimasa Tsuchimikado immediately realised Hao intended to attempt breaking through to the Apostle level.
Realising this, he immediately said solemnly:
"Please wait a moment. I'll immediately prepare a secure location for your Apostle ascension."
At this point, Hao Asakura spoke with a complicated expression:
"No need to prepare. Before coming here, I've already ascended... becoming an Apostle wielding the Five Elements Authority."
Arimasa Tsuchimikado drew a sharp breath. After the world's suppression disappeared, he immediately skipped past Demigod to become an Apostle?
Had his accumulation been this substantial?
But then, Arimasa noticed Hao's complicated expression and asked in confusion:
"What's wrong now?"
Hao Asakura closed his eyes, his facial muscles twitching uncontrollably before finally gritting his teeth:
"I attempted to advance beyond Apostle, but..."
"The world's suppression has returned!"
"Again?!"
Arimasa Tsuchimikado froze, dumbfounded:
"So you're saying... from now on, everyone can only advance to Apostle level?"
Hao Asakura didn't answer, merely darkening his expression as he said:
"Prepare the observatory and the secret chamber. I need to conduct further research."
"Understood!" Arimasa Tsuchimikado immediately went to make the arrangements. At this moment, he truly dared not provoke Hao.
After Arimasa Tsuchimikado left, Hao Asakura gazed at the sky with an exceptionally complicated expression, surveying the world before him:
"Only allowing the emergence of Apostles... Is that it? Have you instinctively sensed the truth of the Abyss as well?"
Hao Asakura remained silent for a long while before finally letting out a deep sigh:
"Just where is this era headed...?"