On an Inazuman beach, Akira Shindo stepped out from a spatial rift.
"The Herrscher of Life and Death, huh?"
A faint trace of white power appeared in his palm.
"Let's give it a try."
Looking up, Akira Shindo spotted a small crimson finch perched nearby. With a light wave of his hand, spatial power wrapped around the bird and brought it into his grasp.
Crack…
"Oh?"
Akira Shindo raised an eyebrow.
"So souls really do exist in Teyvat."
Now that he possessed the authority over life and death, he could clearly see the little bird's soul.
With a slight shift of his thoughts, milky-white power wrapped around the finch.
The next moment—
The bird's soul instantly returned to its body.
Its drooping head lifted again, and the little finch began chirping frantically as it struggled.
Akira Shindo loosened his grip.
The bird immediately flapped away, disappearing into the sky without any sign of discomfort.
"The power of resurrection… it's actually this strong."
Akira Shindo took a deep breath.
He had a feeling that the authority of life and death was far more than simply reviving things that had just died.
"The power of life and death doesn't merely grant you immortality or the ability to revive the recently deceased," the system explained beside his ear.
"You can also revive any being that has already died, as long as you use the authority according to the rules."
"In other words, if you wished… even someone like Raiden Makoto, who now only exists as a faint trace of consciousness, could be directly resurrected."
"Resurrect Raiden Makoto?"
Akira Shindo froze.
If Raiden Ei ever found out about that, she'd probably lose her mind.
"Ei should still be hiding away in the Plane of Euthymia, shutting herself off from the world, right?"
Akira Shindo rubbed his chin.
If he could revive Raiden Makoto, then no matter what conditions he proposed—
Raiden Ei would probably agree to them.
Heh heh heh…
Akira Shindo suddenly felt like he had discovered the perfect strategy for winning over his wife Ei.
With Ei's quiet and somewhat awkward personality, trying to woo her normally would be almost impossible.
She probably didn't even understand what love was.
"And there's also Lady Saiguu," Akira Shindo continued thinking.
"If I told that sly fox I could revive her… Yae Miko would probably lose her mind with excitement."
The more he thought about it, the wider his smile became.
Possessing a treasure invites trouble.
The power of resurrection would undoubtedly become the most coveted ability in all of Teyvat.
Countless people would covet it.
But with Akira Shindo's current strength, he was already comparable to top-tier gods.
Unless the Sustainer of Heavenly Principles personally came down to deal with him, Akira Shindo was confident he wouldn't lose to any other god.
After all—
The authority of life and death didn't just represent life.
It also represented absolute annihilation.
He could erase any being weaker than himself directly from the level of rules.
Combined with the divine weapons Abyss Flower and Key of the Void, Akira Shindo felt confident he could even clash with Morax.
And if his templates ever upgraded to SS Rank…
He was confident he could even beat up the Sustainer of Heavenly Principles.
"Ah—! Help!"
Suddenly, Akira Shindo faintly heard a distant cry for help.
"Hm?"
His eyes narrowed.
In the next instant, he vanished from where he stood.
He had already agreed to become the Chief Divine Priest of Inazuma under Yae Miko.
If the people of Inazuma were in danger, he would naturally intervene.
Inside a Kairagi camp, a beautiful young girl struggled desperately, her face pale.
A Kairagi wearing purple armor was dragging her toward a broken wooden bed.
Nearby, several Nobushi watched excitedly.
Since becoming bandits, it had been a long time since they'd seen such a beautiful woman.
Once their boss had his fun, maybe they'd get a taste afterward.
"Go ahead and scream, beauty," the Kairagi sneered wickedly.
"You can scream your lungs out—no one's coming to save you."
"Stop struggling. Just behave and serve me. I might even spare your life."
"You bastard! Let go of me!" the girl cried, her face drained of color as tears streamed down her cheeks.
Hiiragi Chisato had never imagined something like this would happen.
She had only come out to handle a small matter.
Who could have expected this disaster?
Having grown up in luxury, she had never been treated like this before.
The guards she brought with her had all been killed.
And she didn't possess a Vision.
There was no way she could resist the towering Kairagi.
"Shut up!"
Irritated by her crying, the Kairagi snarled.
"Cry again and I'll kill you right now! Warm bodies work just as well!"
Chisato trembled.
Her tear-filled eyes widened, and she didn't dare make another sound.
She felt utterly hopeless.
She couldn't even imagine the consequences if she—the daughter of the Kanjou Commission—were violated by these bandits.
"I… I have money!" she said through clenched teeth.
"As long as you don't touch me, I'll give you as much money as you want!"
"Enough for you to live comfortably for the rest of your lives!"
"Just… don't touch me…"
"Oh?"
The Kairagi's eyes flickered.
Judging by her clothes, she clearly came from a wealthy family.
If he could really get enough Mora to live comfortably for life…
He hesitated slightly.
At that moment, a Nobushi rushed over in panic, holding a piece of paper.
"Boss! I found this on one of her guards!"
"We're in big trouble!"
"What's with the panic?" the Kairagi snapped, snatching the paper.
"She… she's the daughter of the Kanjou Commission!"
"We've offended one of the Commissions!"
The Nobushi's voice trembled.
The Tri-Commission held the highest authority in Inazuma.
Each commission stood at the very top of the nation.
Destroying a small group of bandits like them would be as easy as crushing ants.
"Damn it!"
After reading the document, the Kairagi's expression changed dramatically.
Then he glared viciously at Chisato.
"You little bitch. Trying to trick me?"
"If I leave you alone, you'll just have your father send people to kill me!"
"Damn it… looks like I'm dead either way."
A savage grin spread across his face.
"If I'm going to die, I might as well drag you down with me!"
"We'll play with you until you're dead. Even if we die afterward, it'll be worth it!"
"Ah—! Don't come any closer!"
Chisato was completely desperate now.
"Someone… please save me…"
"Save me…"
In her heart, she desperately prayed to the gods.
Could someone—anyone—come save her?
If someone did…
She would be willing to give anything in return.
But no god answered.
Seeing the Kairagi approaching, despair filled her eyes.
She bit down on her tongue, ready to commit suicide.
Even if she died, she would never allow herself to be defiled.
She was the daughter of the Kanjou Commission.
She had her own pride.
And just then—
A white streak of light shot across the sky.
BOOM!
It pierced straight through the Kairagi's body.
Everyone froze.
They stared in shock.
A long spear—white shaft, black handle—had pinned the Kairagi firmly to the ground.
And the Kairagi was already dead beyond doubt.
"Who's there?!"
The sudden scene made everyone's hair stand on end.
The Kairagi had been the strongest among them.
He had even killed Vision bearers before.
Yet now—
He had been impaled by a spear that came from nowhere.
"..."
The Kairagi had been standing very close to Chisato.
Warm, bright red blood splashed across her face, giving her delicate features a strangely eerie beauty.
But she didn't scream.
Instead, she calmly looked toward the sky—
Toward the direction from which the spear had come.
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