From God of Lies to Lord of All Worlds

Chapter 299: This Is All Your Own Doing!

"It seems you are incapable! These so-called weapons cannot even scratch the Rashomon Demon!" The handsome man spoke again, and his words silenced everyone with fear once more!

They were still reeling from the devastating defeat of the Self-Defense Forces, completely forgetting that they themselves were also in extreme danger.

"Prime Minister, this is the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department. We are gathering our forces to mount a resistance, but what should we do now?"

The inquiry from the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department brought a sliver of life into the room, yet no one dared to move a muscle.

All eyes were fixed on the handsome man as he tossed the fresh corpse into the gaping void beside him. A sickening series of crunching sounds echoed through the air.

The sounds of chewing were like notes in a terrifying melody, ringing in everyone's ears and sapping their strength until they could do nothing but stare in paralyzed horror.

On the nearby monitor, the feed showed the massive monster continuing its march down the street, completely ignoring any potential threats!

"Now, you may ask your questions!" the handsome man said, pointing directly at Shimao.

"Who... who exactly are you?" Shimao asked, mustering his courage to speak up.

"Ah... it has been a very long time since anyone asked me that. How nostalgic..." the man said with a beaming smile. "Let me think... A long time ago, your people seemed to call me—Shuten?""Shuten Doji?" A hushed gasp ripped through the crowd, crystallizing the vague terror in their eyes into something horribly tangible.

If the man had merely been frightening before, that fear had now taken on a terrifyingly specific shape.

This was Shuten Doji, the legendary great Yokai, the terrifying Oni King!

This was infinitely more horrifying than some unknown monster. Countless legends surrounded him, the most infamous being the tales of him and his followers feasting on human flesh.

He was the mythical Oni King, one of the three great Yokai of Japan, possessing an illustrious and unimaginably vicious reputation!

"What are you planning to do?" Shimao asked again.

He was finally starting to regain his composure. If this entity truly wanted to kill them, he likely would not be wasting time talking. Right now, it seemed the monster was merely here for his own amusement.

"I came to see exactly who prepared such a grand gift for me!" Shuten Doji said with a cheerful smile. "You accomplished something that the people of the Heian period never dared to do. Shouldn't I come and express my gratitude?"

Hearing this, everyone exchanged bewildered glances, completely failing to understand his meaning.

But Shuten Doji was in an excellent mood today, so he decided to enlighten them. "Of course, I know you do not understand. That is fine, as long as I do!"

"During the Heian period, those people were absolutely terrified of me. They built shrines, established the Onmyōryō, and trained samurai just to oppose me. They even produced a master swordsman like Minamoto no Yorimitsu, all because they were terrified I would devour enough spectral energy to grow in power and establish my own realm!"

"Because of that, they even had Onmyoji clean up and bless their battlefields. They made those disgusting Buddhist monks purify every inch of tainted land so I could not feed!"

"But you people actually built an official shrine for souls right in the middle of your own country. You offer endless incense and sacrifices day and night, allowing these souls to thrive on the incense offerings. Yet, they possess absolutely no divine blessing, only monstrous, overwhelming hatred!"

Shuten Doji looked at them with a peculiar expression. "If even a single Onmyoji or imperial enshriner had been involved, that shrine could never have been built... And yet, you managed to build it anyway!"

"This gift is more than enough to warrant a personal visit so I can thank you face-to-face!"

At this point, if the people present still could not figure out what his target was, they would have lived their long lives in vain!

A shrine for souls, devoid of any divine blessing, filled with monstrous hatred... Putting these three points together, what other place could it be but the Yasukuni Shrine located in Chiyoda Ward?

That place was the spiritual totem of the Japanese right-wing, a memorial site for war criminals. But listening to him now, it sounded like it had become a treasure trove that even Shuten Doji felt compelled to show gratitude for?

Someone actually stood up and blurted out, "It is our honor to receive your gratitude!"

The moment those words left his mouth, everyone stared at him like he was an absolute idiot. Even Shuten Doji gave him a bizarre look. Only then did the man realize he had made a terrible mistake.

Everyone here was an intelligent politician, so why was there a fool among them? Did it sound like the Yokai was genuinely thanking them? How did this idiot even make it into the cabinet?

But by the time he noticed the delicate shift in the atmosphere, it was already too late. Shuten Doji actually laughed out loud at the sight of him.

"Well then, now I understand exactly why such a place exists. It turns out it is entirely due to your sheer stupidity!"

Hearing this, Shimao could not hold back any longer. "Your Excellency, once you take the shrine, will you leave?"

"Leave? Why would I leave?" Shuten Doji looked at him, his face covered in a wide, mocking smile. "With such warm hospitality, how could I bear to leave? Do not worry. Once I finish digesting all those souls, this entire city will become my domain!"

"Those Onmyoji and Buddhist monks probably never imagined that the one who would ultimately win everything would be me, Shuten Doji!"

"Oh, right, do not be in such a hurry to run away! My little pet still has a score to settle with you all!"

"Hahahahaha!"

Shuten Doji laughed uproariously, and then his body simply vanished from the spot. A second later, everyone spotted the man standing atop the massive Yokai. Captured by news helicopters from all over Tokyo and broadcast to the entire world, the man commanded the gigantic monster as it marched toward its target.

Meanwhile, inside the cabinet room, a dead silence fell over everyone.

It turned out this was entirely their own doing. The catalyst for this catastrophic event was actually their own actions!

The silence held until a left-wing legislator suddenly erupted in a furious roar, "Look at this! Just look! This is what you did! This is the disaster you people have brought upon our nation!"

"I will never understand. What exactly is there to venerate about those war criminals? Huh?"

"You desperately want every single administration to go and pay their respects, don't you? Even when you do not dare to go yourselves, you still send people to deliver money and offer incense, right?"

"You even distort history to make people think they were war heroes? Throwing grand festivals for them every single year? Well?"

"Are you trying to tell everyone that you never actually lost the war? Or are you trying to make others believe you were never occupied?"

"Absurd! Deceiving yourselves! Utterly stupid!"

"And now look, retribution has finally arrived! Even the ghosts and monsters think your actions are outrageous and came specifically to check out the situation! You are literally aiding the enemy!"

"This monster is already this powerful now. Once he devours those spirits that have been worshipped for decades, feeding off the praises and sacrifices of so many people, have you even considered how unimaginably powerful he will become in the future?"

"When disaster struck Kyoto, you refused to send help, claiming that protecting Tokyo was the priority! Well, now it is Tokyo's turn. Go ahead and protect it! What? Cat got your tongue? Have you forgotten how to speak?"

"This is a mess of your own making, so you go clean it up! Do not tell me you are just going to find someone to bow and apologize again? Surely not!"

"I cannot believe I am going to die alongside you parasites!"

The more suppressed and stifled this left-wing legislator had been previously, the more satisfying it felt to unleash this torrent of abuse.

They had always wanted Japan's image to be peaceful, serene, and harmless—much like Germany—instead of the current reality, where the country was still driven forward by hateful sentiments, still pushing their so-called 'great revenge', and still venerating those war criminals!

Normally, his limited power meant he was at his wit's end, unable to change anything. But now that a Yokai had actually shown up to praise them, did that not serve as the ultimate proof of just how catastrophic their actions were?

"Next, is this man-eating Shuten Doji going to turn this city into a place like Shituling?" someone guessed, their voice trembling uncontrollably.

This flesh-eating great monster, this massive Yokai, had actually found something in this city to enhance his power. Absolutely no one knew just how terrifying he would become!

They dared not even imagine it. And because of the parting words he had left them with, none of them even had the courage to flee.

He was an Oni King, an infamous Oni King! If he truly wanted you dead, there was nowhere you could possibly run!

"Hurry! Hurry and contact Master Cangqiao Qingci! He is an Onmyoji, and he has dealt with the Oni King before. He should know what to do! Hurry!"

Suddenly, someone shouted as if struck by a moment of clarity, desperately ordering the staff to make the call.

But very soon, even worse news arrived.

"Your Excellency, didn't you state yesterday that we should not contact them, and that you did not want them contacting us either? We have already completely severed communications with Kyoto!"

Naturally, this was their own order. After all, Cangqiao Qingci had demanded their money, and when he stopped asking for money, it felt like he was demanding their lives!

Which high-and-mighty politician would not be furious at such a thing? So they immediately severed all ties with Kyoto. They firmly believed those people would accomplish nothing and would eventually come crawling back to beg them for help.

Hearing this, Shimao was utterly stunned. "If it is severed, reconnect it! Do we really have to teach you how to do your jobs?"

"Prime Minister, reconnecting requires the other party's consent. They are not even in the police station right now, and we have no way to contact anyone else in that city..."

The cabinet was left in utter disarray, the city descended into complete chaos, and high in the sky above Chiyoda Ward, a colossal shadow was already closing in on the Imperial Palace!