Chapter 442 Cherry Blossoms Fall on an Uninhabited Island

He took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down, and grabbed the phone on the table. His voice was distorted and sharp with fear and excitement.

"A public announcement is issued nationwide in the joint name of the Royal Family and the Cabinet!"

"Three days from now! A one-day 'National Prayer Festival' will be held!"

"Everyone must participate!"

......

The National Prayer Ceremony has arrived as scheduled.

On this day, the entire Cherry Blossom Country was plunged into an almost frenzied celebratory atmosphere.

From bustling capital cities to remote mountain villages, tens of millions of people took to the streets and flocked to squares, shrines, and temples.

They were dressed in festive attire, their faces beaming with genuine, enthusiastic smiles.

"Blessed by Amaterasu!"

"Land of the Rising Sun, forever immortal!"

The deafening cheers merged into a massive wave of sound, echoing across the island nation.

They firmly believed that this was a divine blessing, the starting point for the nation's revival, but no one knew that the final destination of this train to "new life" was hell.

On the top floor of the Prime Minister's official residence, Tanaka, dressed in his most formal kimono, leaned against the railing and gazed into the distance.

Looking down at the fervent crowd below and listening to the thunderous prayers around him, his body trembled slightly with excitement.

He succeeded.

He will become the hero who leads this country back to the top of the world.

It was exactly noon.

The moment everyone has been waiting for has arrived.

A golden "sun" appeared without warning in the sky above Tokyo, the capital city, even more dazzling than the real sun.

The figure of Amaterasu slowly emerged in the center of that "sun".

She was dressed in a gorgeous white kimono, with her arms outstretched as if embracing her own child.

An indescribable golden light instantly enveloped the entire country.

The fervor on the faces of all the citizens bathed in light transformed into ultimate happiness and peace.

They laughed, tears of joy streaming down their faces, and stretched out their hands toward the gods in the sky.

Then, the mutation began.

The first old man touched by the light smoothed out the wrinkles on his face, and a happy smile froze on his face. The next second, his body, starting from his feet, transformed into countless cherry blossom-colored light spots and slowly rose into the air.

Then came the children around him, the crowded streets, the cities, the towns, the mountain villages…

Every nation that prays, without exception.

Their bodies, bathed in that holy golden light, with satisfied smiles, transformed into countless cherry-colored light particles fluttering in the sky.

Ten million, twenty million, fifty million...

Countless points of light converged into magnificent rivers, rising from all directions of the island nation and surging into the center of the sky, into the petite body of Amaterasu.

On the top floor of the Prime Minister's official residence, Tanaka's smile froze.

He watched helplessly as the sea of ​​revelry below turned into a desolate ghost town in just a few dozen seconds.

He watched those points of light, those once vibrant lives, being swallowed up by the "gods" in the sky, like rivers flowing into the sea.

"Ah...ah..."

He wanted to scream, but only a hoarse, broken bellows-like sound came out of his throat.

He wanted to escape, but his legs felt like they were made of lead and he couldn't move.

Golden light also fell upon him.

There was no intense pain; instead, there was a comforting warmth that reached the depths of my soul.

Fear was erased, and regret was washed away.

Tanaka's face involuntarily broke into the same happy smile as the other citizens.

"To...to dedicate myself to the great god..."

He muttered to himself, and his body transformed into a handful of light, merging into the long river of death that led to the sky.

The city is empty.

The towns and villages are empty.

The mountain village is empty.

In just ten minutes.

The wind blows through the streets, stirring up only unclaimed flyers and trash.

The entire Cherry Blossom Country has become a desolate, uninhabited island where even the chirping of insects and birds has disappeared.

...

"My God..."

In the secret command center of the Western European Union, the French diplomat stared intently at the images transmitted back in real time by satellite.

On the screen, the island nation, which was brightly lit not long ago, is now visibly sinking into darkness, signifying the disappearance of life.

"What happened? Their life signs... have all disappeared!"

"The heat source response is decreasing sharply!"

"Tokyo...Osaka...Kyoto...all of them...all of them..."

A technician's voice was distorted by extreme fear.

All the world leaders who witnessed this scene were terrified by this hellish scene that resembled divine punishment.

massacre?

No, this is worse than a massacre.

This was a smiling, willing, collective extermination.

They finally understood that the warnings issued at yesterday's meeting in China were not alarmist.

They were more grateful that they had chosen to submit, rather than choosing a different path like the Sakura Kingdom.

...

Over Tokyo.

Amaterasu Omikami closed her eyes, her face showing an expression of extreme satisfaction and ecstasy.

She could feel a vast power, formed by the convergence of tens of millions of souls and beliefs, filling her newly awakened and weakened divine body.

The light surrounding her grew brighter and brighter, and finally, it even condensed into golden, almost tangible flames on her body.

Her aura surged wildly, instantly surpassing the power of Yamata no Orochi, and even surpassing her own power at its peak.

This is... how ordinary people use it.

Amaterasu slowly opened her eyes. She looked down at the desolate land below, her eyes filled with no pity, only a hint of lingering greed.

"Not enough...not enough..."

She slowly turned her gaze toward the other side of the strait.

That vast land, even more abundant in spiritual energy.

There, there are billions of even more "delicious" souls.

"You're next."

Amaterasu let out a pleasant chuckle, and her entire body transformed into a golden rainbow that stretched across the sky, hurtling directly toward Chinese airspace at a terrifying speed.

She was incredibly confident; she wanted to descend upon that land in the most magnificent and awe-inspiring way.

She wanted to make those so-called "Chinese immortals" tremble and kneel before her divine power, and then... become a part of her power.

A golden rainbow tears through the clouds and spans the ocean.

Closer, even closer.

She could already see the coastline of China.

Just as she was about to cross that invisible territorial sea boundary, a figure appeared in front of her without warning, blocking her way.

There was no earth-shattering aura, no dazzling special effects, and she couldn't even sense the power emanating from that figure. That figure just stood there, completely ordinary.

It was Zhou Jue.

“Outsider deity, you have overstepped your bounds.”