That's interesting- I couldn't really make using "death lasers" work, but that's also a function of my preference for Contingency spells over manually cast spells. Since, as far as I can tell, what soul you get from attacking is random, it's easy to just not get your attack spell. Of course, Contingencies take up a lot of space, which means that it's hard to get both an AOE form and high numbers using Distress Signals Turned Celebration. My main use of it in that run was actually just as some bonus damage on my Ordered spell with Share the Fruits of Faith (since I was protected).
I won a second time just now with my main spell being The Chains Bleed Rivers, Haughty as the Saints Were, and Polish Rage to Sheen- killing everything in one melee attack meant that I really only needed a little healing to get through things.
My third win was with two main spells: the first was A Stone to Crush Disobedience, Four Ways, Yet All Paths Converge, False Charms and Pretend Affection, and two instances of Distress Signals Turned Celebration, while the second was The Chains Bleed Rivers, Haughty as the Saints Were, and Undo the Sacrament of Blood. Healing twice per turn meant that I was nearly unkillable.
Axioms that I haven't found a use for yet: Rebuild the Flesh of Old (it's far too expensive space-wise for something that's pretty useless without a synergy), and Soaked Tails Trail Across the Soil (again, expensive, and I'm not sure why I'd want it). Signals Sever the Skies looks fun, but the shape is too awkward for the kinds of chain-reactions that it's presumably meant to be used for (no space for sufficient beams).