The sealed Herrscher of Corruption could absorb the negative emotions of surrounding humans, then use them to break the seal... or even corrupt the other's body.
Originally, with the Herrscher of Corruption's strength, she wouldn't have needed any special conditions; she could directly and forcefully corrupt others. But after being sealed for over 50,000 years, only a part of her body escaped the seal, so... the Herrscher of Corruption's strength was barely one-tenth of what it used to be.
Even so, the Herrscher of Corruption was still a Herrscher, a destroyer of civilizations, her power far from insignificant.
Originally... following the original timeline, the Herrscher of Corruption would have possessed the body of miko Yae Sakura, who craved power and harbored a corrupted heart.
However... due to the Serenade's actions, the person Yae Sakura cared about most is safe, and she now possessed immense power.
As a result, the Herrscher of Corruption, currently at only one-tenth of her usual strength, couldn't possibly infest and control Yae Sakura...
Even without Yae Sakura, to the Herrscher of Corruption, it's just a matter of finding another suitable host. As long as there's enough negative human emotion in the vicinity, with people twisted by their desire for power, she can escape the Box's seal just as easily.
It's like changing from using a straw called 'Yae Sakura' to another straw, that's all.
Yae Village, on the surface... appears to be a place where everyone in the village is kind and generous, living harmoniously together...
But this is true of the surface only...
The hearts of the villagers are far too complicated for most people to imagine...
Even during peaceful times, they sacrificed a young girl every few years. And that's not even counting other periods! This kind of village... is really backward and savage.
The seal on the box had cracked open partially, allowing the Herrscher of Corruption to finally extend a portion of herself beyond it.
The reason for "a portion" was because the Herrscher of Corruption had no physical body. Her true form was a source of virus. With the seal broken, a part of the virus had leaked out.
However, due to her current weakened state, she couldn't forceully corrupt the strongest individuals in the village.
She had no choice but to settle for the next best option, choosing someone who was despairing and craving power... someone who was reasonably pretty.
After all, the black box was still in Serenade's hands, so the Herrscher of Corruption couldn't straying too far away. Her target had to be someone from Yae Village.
And among these people, first eliminate the males... then eliminate the ones who weren't good-looking.
Not many were left, and then from these few girls, she had to choose the one most suitable for herself. Only the girl chosen as a sacrifice barely fit the criteria.
Even the Herrscher of Corruption was feeling utterly hopeless...
Here she was, a mighty Herrscher, unable to find even a single suitable body...
But as long as she could get out, that was good enough. And perhaps... she could even take this newly born civilization, still in its infancy, and bring about its downfall once more.
"The real show has only just begun. I shall let you witness the true nature of a Herrscher's power!" The girl stood atop the rubble, her body possessing that of the Herrscher, with an air of arrogance. She reached out with her right hand, and when she unfurled her fingers, a black crystal materialized in her palm. Starting at mere thumb-sized, it rapidly expanded to the size of a soccer ball within seconds.
"Go..." The Herrscher of Corruption uttered softly. The crystal flew directly towards the prone fox god, swiftly burrowing into its skull.
In the blink of an eye...
A burst of intense Honkai energy radiated from the fox god. Before anyone could process it, its wounds had completely healed. Moreover... its form grew larger by a significant margin, and its entire body ignited with a powerful black flame. Its eyes, devoid of any rationality, glared at Serenade with an uncontrollable, frenzied ferocity.
Even then, the fox god's power continued to surge unabated.
"Serenade-nee..."
"Serenade..."
Gazing upon the even more terrifying Fox God before them, Yae Rin and the others couldn't help but grow even more apprehensive.
Relax! As long as I'm here, you'll be safe."
As she observed the increasingly powerful Fox God, even Serenade couldn't suppress her rising caution. What the Herrscher of Corruption has bestowed upon this Fox God must be the strength of a Herrscher!
While the current Fox God might not yet possess Judgement-level power, it was undoubtedly far stronger than merely Emperor Rank.
However, even at this heightened level, it would still be insufficient.
The Fox God let out a deafening roar towards the heavens, causing the sky to gradually turn a dark crimson. The air currents above began to swirl rapidly as blood-red clouds descended from above.
It was a scene that looked like the very end of the world!
"Not good!" Serenade's face paled as she observed the unfolding events in the sky. According to her knowledge, there had been no mention of such immense power before.
At that moment, a rain of fire suddenly fell from the heavens, resembling a shower of shooting stars.
The fiery deluge descended at an alarming speed, quickly igniting everything in its path - trees, houses, and the earth itself!
In moments, Yae Village was engulfed in a sea of flames. Only Serenade's vicinity remained unscathed, protected by a barrier she had hastily erected using ice elements.
Thus, she and her companions were spared.
But this was only the beginning. The fire rain was merely a domain manipulation by the Fox God, not a direct attack. The initial damage caused by the fire rain was but a secondary effect.
Its main purpose was to prime the ground for the Fox God's subsequent assault.
Almost as soon as the fire rain ceased, the Fox God opened its colossal maw and unleashed a massive black fox flame, akin to a dragon's breath, hurtling directly towards them.
The power of the Black Fox Flames was exceedingly high, even Serenade feeling she couldn't take them head-on.
However, Serenade wouldn't be foolish enough to do so.
Placing the Tranquil Rhapsody at her waist, Serenade spread her arms apart... and two golden crosses materialized, one on each side of her body.
"Oath of Judah! Unsheath..."
Serenade tossed both crosses in front of her. As they hit the ground, they transformed into massive crosses several meters tall. In the next instant... the golden light of the Oath of Judahs expanded.
When the Black Fox Flames struck, they were instantly repelled by the golden glow!
But...
"What? Oath of Judah? And there are two of them?" From within the barrier, Kallen observed the two crosses thrown by Serenade, her mind reeling.
It felt like she was living in a dream...
The Oath of Judah was forged from the core of the Eleventh Herrscher of the previous civilization, not like the Xuanyuan Sword, which could be mass-produced as a Key of Dominion. There was only supposed to be one Oath of Judah.
Now Serenade had pulled out two Oaths of Judah?
Then... Kallen rubbed her eyes; she wasn't seeing things, these were the Oath of Judahs.
When it came to the Oath of Judah, there was no one more familiar with it than Kallen.
The Oath of Judah was Kallen Kaslana's exclusive binding weapon against Honkai Beasts. The center of the Judah Cross bore the knightly shield emblem of the Kaslana family.
But... what was going on now?
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TL Note: Changed my name, No longer am I Emiya