In the midst of a fierce and tumultuous battle, he slew a hundred divisions of Akṣauhiṇīs, demonstrating extraordinary might and valor. In her anger, she drank the blood of the Dānavas, consuming a hundred kharparas, her wrath unrestrained. Skanda unleashed a shower of arrows upon the Dānavas, wounding and scattering them across the battlefield. Among the demons present were Vṛṣaparvā, Vipracitti, Dambha, and Vikaṅkana. As the conflict raged, Kālī entered the fray, and Śiva himself protected Kārttika. All the gods, Gandharvas, Yakṣas, Rākṣasas, and Kinnaras gathered to witness the unfolding drama. Kālī strode onto the battlefield, letting out a lion’s roar that echoed across the land. She repeatedly uttered a dreadful, wild laughter, her fierce fangs bared and her rage terrifying. Kauttari, in her fury, drank the honey, further intensifying the chaos. Upon seeing Kālī, Śaṅkhacūḍa swiftly entered the battle, determined to confront her. Kālī hurled the Agneya weapon, its flames resembling those of cosmic destruction. She followed with the Varuna weapon, intense and wondrous, then the Maheshvara weapon, blazing like fire. The goddess unleashed the Nārāyaṇa weapon, its power invoked by sacred mantra. This weapon rose upward, again resembling the flames of cosmic destruction, and she carefully hurled the Brahma weapon, also preceded by mantra. With the Brahma weapon, O King, she brought about cessation. Yet the king, with a net of divine weapons, countered and brought about cessation as well. He used a net of sharp weapons to shatter the attack into a hundred pieces. She was forbidden to hurl the weapon further, and a bodiless voice spoke: “As long as the armor of Hari remains on his neck, neither old age nor death will touch him—such is Brahma’s boon.” With ease and anger, he seized a hundred thousand demons, but with a sharp divine weapon, the demon repelled them. The lord of demons, using divine weapons, shattered the attacks into a hundred pieces. The glorious king of demons, lord of all powers, grew in stature; Kali, filled with wrath and terrifying, struck with her fist at great speed. She broke his chariot and struck the charioteer, then seized Śaṅkhacūḍa effortlessly with her left hand. The demon staggered from pain and, for a moment, lost consciousness. Yet he did not engage in hand-to-hand combat with the goddess. Instead, he bowed to her, holding her in devotion and as a mother, for he was devoted to Viṣṇu. The goddess seized the demon and whirled him around again and again. A splendid aerial chariot, adorned with the finest jewels and enchanting to behold, appeared. Driven by great hunger, she consumed the blood and abundant flesh of the demons. She narrated the events of the battle, recounting them in their proper order from beginning to end. Still, a hundred thousand of the lords of the demons remained on the battlefield. It was decreed that, in battle, the lord of the demons would be slain by the Pāśupata weapon. The king, greatly wise and possessed of immense strength and valor, stood prepared. At this moment, Nārāyaṇa said: Nārada himself went to the battle, accompanied by his followers. Śaṅkhacūḍa, upon seeing Śiva, descended from his aerial chariot, quickly bowed to him, and then ascended his chariot once more. The battle between Śiva and the demon lasted a full year, a testament to the enduring power and determination of both.