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Transmigrating over ten thousand years late, I was forced to become a mighty presence-Chapter 701 - 317: The Sacrificial Pawn_2
Shen Yuan’s eyes revealed a hint of surprise as he glanced at the unstable aura of Noro Mai beside him and spoke:
"Since she is the Amaterasu Miko, what right do you all have to dispose of her?"
Izanagi’s expression stiffened.
"The Amaterasu Miko is also a servant of the gods. Having committed such a grave mistake, we naturally have the right to punish her."
But such words, obviously, could not persuade Bull Head.
Steam billowed from his nostrils as the bullish supernatural being’s expression grew increasingly unpleasant.
"To offend the Taoist and only wish to use a mere mortal as a scapegoat, I greatly doubt whether Sky High Plateau truly recognizes its own mistakes."
As soon as these words were uttered, it sent a shiver down the spines of the gods from Ying Island who had emerged from Sky High Plateau.
The words of Bull Head were very clear: using Noro Mai to resolve the matter was evidently insufficient.
To quell the anger, the sacrifice of a god with proper status was required.
Izanagi’s face turned extremely ugly.
Since five years ago when the four High Gods averted a crisis, Bull Head and several High Gods had resided in a palace in Sky High Plateau without concerning themselves with worldly affairs, only appearing to confront formidable enemies when Hell’s spirits and demons launched a major assault.
Although they rarely involved themselves in the affairs of the Ying Island Divine Pantheon, not a single god dared to belittle Bull Head’s will.
Facing Bull Head’s piercing gaze, Izanagi involuntarily lowered his head, his eyes flitting over many gods from the Void Refining Stage who had descended to the mortal world.
Eventually, Izanagi’s gaze settled on the goddess holding rice ears, with white foxes behind her.
"The Inari God Miketsu has disregarded Sky High Plateau’s order, inciting the gods to descend to the mortal world and offend the Supreme Taoist, a crime most heinous!"
The Inari God’s face turned deathly pale, and the surrounding gods from Ying Island, while inwardly breathing a sigh of relief, looked at the Inari God with eyes filled with pity.
This Inari God had been discarded by Izanagi.
Under normal circumstances, Takemikazuchi, who had offended Shen Yuan and been suppressed by a single hand, would have been the most suitable scapegoat.
The problem was that Takemikazuchi had the support within the Ying Island Divine Pantheon second only to Amaterasu Omikami; Izanagi and Izanami were his parents.
Izanagi was absolutely unwilling to sacrifice his own offspring.
Especially since Takemikazuchi was one of the top deities among the gods of Ying Island, a considerable aid for Izanagi; he could only choose a scapegoat from among the other gods.
Among the gods of Ying Island, the Inari God was in charge of the power of harvest and was the most worshipped deity, second only to Amaterasu during peaceful times.
The extensive worship had once elevated her to the Peak Stage, close to the levels of the Main Gods, Izanagi and Izanami.
But as the world revived and Hell specters wreaked havoc, mere power over the harvest could no longer satisfy the people’s faith.
They urgently needed strong powers to protect themselves, which led to the decline of the Inari God’s worship, almost causing her to fall from the pantheon seat.
Furthermore, the Inari God was not skilled in combat, considered to be the weakest among the many major deities of Sky High Plateau.
Being designated as the scapegoat thus seemed to be a matter of course.
"No! It was clearly Takemikazuchi who offended the Supreme Taoist, so why should I be punished?"
Izanagi’s brow furrowed slightly, and he said displeased, "This has nothing to do with strength, the mistakes you’ve made should be borne by you!"
In between his words, Izanagi had already raised his right hand, with the might of the entire Sky High Plateau imbued within him. The pressure he emitted caused even Bull Head and the others to cast a sidelong glance.
With Izanagi’s strength, punishing the Inari God naturally did not require using the power of Sky High Plateau; his display of force was obviously meant to showcase his strength to Shen Yuan and the others.
The underlying message was that one major deity was sufficient to settle the dispute, and if the matter was pursued further, the gods of Ying Island, with home-field advantage, might not necessarily fear the four High Gods even if they played their last cards.
A golden spirit treasure sword materialized in Izanagi’s hand, radiating the oppressive force of the entire Ying Island Divine System.
The sword’s tip pointed at the Inari God, and under the immense pressure, she was forced to reveal her white fox form.
The gods felt a common distress—although the Inari God was the one to be punished, it was inevitable that they too felt a sense of sorrow as a god of the Ying Island Divine System faced downfall due to this incident.
Many gods looked toward Shen Yuan and the four High Gods with eyes that faintly carried a trace of resentment.
Witnessing the scene before him, Izanagi bathed in divine light couldn’t help but reveal a barely discernible smile.
Upon learning that this so-called "Father of All Gods" was related to the four High Gods, Izanagi realized that the other party’s existence might very well disrupt the current order of Sky High Plateau. Your next read is at novelbuddy
The four High Gods were powerful, and now with the addition of an inscrutable Supreme Taoist, Izanagi felt a sense of urgency.
In case the other party sought to leverage their advantage in strength to seize control of Sky High Plateau, thus overthrowing the master, Izanagi would find himself at a disadvantage.
His killing of the Inari God Miketsu seemed like a concession to the Supreme Taoist, but the fall of a great deity outside of the battlefield would inevitably incite hostility towards the Supreme Taoist from the other gods of Ying Island.
If the four High Gods and the Supreme Taoist aimed to wrest control of Sky High Plateau, the other gods of Ying Island would definitely not agree, and thus his goal would have been achieved.
Beyond that, deep within Izanagi’s heart lay a more profound thought.
The reason why Inari God Miketsu had garnered a level of worship second only to Amaterasu during times of peace was largely due to Amaterasu’s support.
The close relationship between the Inari God and Amaterasu, to a certain extent, represented the will of Amaterasu extending among the gods.
Banishing the Inari God with this opportunity was naturally an excellent chance for Izanagi, so that even when Amaterasu emerged from seclusion, she would first direct her hostility towards the four High Gods and the Supreme Taoist.
The sword that embodied the will of Ying Island’s gods descended, and the Sky High Plateau thundered as if heaven and earth had been split by this enormous crack.
Underneath the burst of divine light that reached its zenith, all life would return to Hell.
But in the next moment, an even more fierce sword light rose from the earth, and the Bronze Ancient Sword had appeared in front of the Inari God before anyone knew it.
The Darkness-Light Sword, interwoven with 10 Directions Universe Qi, traversed space to meet the blade that carried the will of Ying Island’s gods.
The world was enveloped in a fiery white light, followed by the collapse of vast swaths of space, with fissures spreading from the void toward infinite distances.
Under the shattered heavens, a realm seemed to form around the Inari God, sheltering the deity manifested as White Tiger, unharmed.
"How is this possible!"
Izanagi’s pupils suddenly contracted.
He was surprised by Shen Yuan’s intervention, but what shocked him more was that this sword, filled with the might of the Ying Island Divine Pantheon, was actually blocked head-on by Shen Yuan.
His estimate of Shen Yuan’s strength climbed several levels higher, and Izanagi promptly asked in a deep voice,
"The gods of Ying Island are willing to give an explanation to the Supreme Taoist, but why did the Supreme Taoist stop it, what exactly do you intend?"
With his right hand, Shen Yuan sheathed the Darkness-Light Sword and then slowly said,
"This is just wishful thinking on your part, I never said I wanted any supernatural being’s life."
His words paused slightly, a smile filled with profound meaning appeared in Shen Yuan’s eyes.
"Ever since arriving at Pingan Capital, I have never actively taken action, nor have I killed anyone.
Why then does Lord Izanagi insist that I desire the lives of deities, to the extent of proactively killing the Inari God?"
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"Who really wishes to kill the Inari God, is it me or Lord Izanagi?"
With a light laugh, Shen Yuan flew towards the direction of Pingan Capital, followed closely by Bull Head, the four High Gods, Bai Zhao, and Noro Mai.
Izanagi’s expression turned extremely unsightly; he could feel that aside from his many descendants, the eyes of the other deities looking at him were now tinged with doubt.
He was able to preside over the gods in Amaterasu’s stead during her seclusion because he was highly esteemed, plus he had the support of his many descendants.
Shen Yuan’s few words had planted seeds of doubt, enough to cause great damage to Izanagi’s prestige.
Meanwhile, flying towards Pingan Capital, Shen Yuan opened his right hand, and in his palm lay a golden ear of rice.
This ear of rice came from the Inari God and was a small part of her rice ear artifact, bearing traces of lengthy periods, seemingly passed down through time from thousands of years ago.
Others might see it as a unique artifact, its quality merely on par with spirit treasures.
To Shen Yuan, however, this ear of rice held extraordinary significance.
For it was from the rice that Shen Yuan had planted and refined himself in the Sky High Plateau thousands of years ago.
Reminiscing about the Inari God in her white fox form loosely matched one of the little white foxes that once ran rampant in the rice fields, Shen Yuan’s smile deepened.
"Silence someone by killing them? It seems the Ying Island Divine System is not so peaceable after all!"