Chapter 233: The Third Defining Object, Scale Armor Of Sea Light! Metal And Water Generate Each Other, Re-entering The Walking Assembly!
【Proof of Walking】
At this moment, even the item name on the panel was emitting a faint glow, as if prompting Shangshan Che to use it at this time.
But Shangshan Che opened the detailed panel to check and found that its effects and description had not changed at all.
So, the method to use it was still to enter the Walking Assembly and hand it over personally to the Magatsu-kami waiting inside.
Shangshan Che glanced out the window.
Outside, it was unknown when a drizzling light rain had started, with a few drops hitting the transparent car window, blurring his view.
—The 1.5 Tide had just begun, and even though Shizuoka City seemed safe and sound for now, who could say for sure what would happen later.
If he entered the Walking Assembly right now, it would be too disrespectful to the aftermath of this Tide and to the Factory Owner of the Eternal World who had planned for quite some time.
Shangshan Che’s mind flashed with the image of that smiling face wearing a monocle that he had seen in the Arakawa Ghost Village before.
Factory Owner · Z……
“Better to wait until the Tide subsides before entering the Assembly to meet the Magatsu-kami.”
Temporarily closing the panel, Shangshan Che’s gaze continued forward along with the steady speed of the car.
Along the way, he saw quite a few brass mechs appearing on the streets.
But almost all of them were eliminated or subdued by Special Affairs Office agents who arrived immediately, with strength at least one star higher, before they could cause any chaos.
Even if no agents came, inexplicable black sword lights would descend from the sky, directly melting away these 【combat sequence】 mechs belonging to the Factory Owners.
Another faint strand of black fell with the rain, turning a brass mech that had just appeared and hadn’t fully gathered information from the Mortal Realm into a puddle of black water.
Subconsciously, a layer of goosebumps rose on Shangshan Che’s skin.
This sword light… gave the feeling of instant death upon touch, leaving no room for mercy.
Even if it were him, he probably wouldn’t escape unscathed.
“Shizuoka City’s Starlight Barrier actually has this kind of effect built-in…”
He muttered to himself, and after witnessing one black sword light after another falling, he arrived at the entrance of the Shizuoka City Special Affairs Office Headquarters.
Shangshan Che opened the car door and got out first.
There were no obvious malicious auras of demons or Supernatural Phenomena around.
He turned his gaze to the office building right in front of him and couldn’t help but exclaim: “The barrier here is ridiculously strong.”
In Shangshan Che’s perception, the multiple layers of barriers enveloping the Shizuoka City Special Affairs Office Headquarters stacked together formed something like an impenetrable turtle shell.
Just a slight leak in the barrier’s operation allowed Shangshan Che to sense the vast, sea-like spiritual power maintaining its function.
Far more complex and powerful than the black barrier he had seen at the Yagyu Dojo that could withstand Ghost God level.
The Special Affairs Office’s foundation was inadvertently revealed at this moment.
“How come our Arakawa Ward doesn’t have a barrier like this…”
Shangshan Che smacked his lips, not knowing what the situation was like in Arakawa Ward now.
But as long as Sister Nanjo was there, things wouldn’t get too bad no matter what.
For something like those black sword lights from before, she could probably snap her fingers and unleash a bunch for targeted strikes on the emerging demons.
No more thinking about that.
Shangshan Che shook his head and sensed the Ghost God aura surging from the office building.
With the Tide’s arrival, the local Ghost God level in Shizuoka City had indeed returned.
It’s just this aura…
Meanwhile, the two solemn-faced Special Affairs Office agents guarding the doorway noticed the “Sword Principle” surging around Shangshan Che.
“Hello, Agent Shangshan.”
The two nodded slightly toward him, seeing Shangshan Che’s identity in the electronic information prompt that popped up before their eyes.
Their tone inevitably carried some respect.
—Because most people on the path of “Skill and Reason” chose “Sword Skill,” choosing the technique they had honed since first gripping a sword.
After all, Sword Principle was too ethereal and elusive.
But they didn’t know that Shangshan Che had chosen “Skill and Reason.” If they did, they might even ask for his contact info on the spot in hopes of future exchange.
After stopping in front of the barrier and going through an exceptionally simple identity verification, the three passed through the barrier and entered the Special Affairs Office.
Just after crossing the barrier, Shangshan Che could clearly feel a gaze with a hint of scrutiny landing on him, its source unknown.
It was that Ghost God level one.
This was probably why they were let in so easily.
The first floor was empty, with the clerks originally responsible for reception and registration nowhere to be seen, likely off doing more important work.
Just as Shangshan Che was about to speak up, a pure black feather floated down leisurely before his eyes.
Accompanied by a puff of green smoke, a man with waist-length black hair and a calm expression stood before Shangshan Che.
“Agent Shangshan, pleased to meet you.” The man nodded to him and extended his right hand. “I am the Ghost God currently guarding Shizuoka City, Tengu.”
—【Tengu Clone（Three-Star）】
A label prompt like this popped up above his head.
Shangshan Che shook hands with him, not particularly surprised.
From the moment he got out of the car, he had felt that this Ghost God aura was different. Seeing the Tengu now just confirmed his thought.
But besides that, it felt somewhat familiar…
Shangshan Che fell into thought, staring impolitely at the all-black-clad Tengu for a moment, recalling the black sword lights he had seen many times on the road.
He suddenly looked up, sensing the familiar sense of crisis once again.
So that’s how it is…
The one releasing black sword lights through the barrier in the city was the Tengu’s main body.
Seeing Shangshan Che’s action, Tengu revealed a faint smile: “Found out, huh? Very perceptive, Agent Shangshan.”
“Not at all. Your Excellency Tengu’s Sword Technique is masterful, truly astonishing.”
Just seeing that sword light from afar, Shangshan Che could sense the complex Sword Principle contained within.
That was perhaps an even more outstanding understanding of Sword Principle than Lili Zi’s, and considering that Tengu was a demon, possibly someone’s shikigami, it was all the more remarkable.
“I know the purpose of your visit, Agent Shangshan, but with the Tide at its peak right now, I really can’t spare extra energy.”
Tengu said calmly: “Once the Tide eases, I’ll take you to retrieve the Scale Armor… please forgive me.”
Shangshan Che nodded: “That’s only right.”
He naturally knew what was more important, and besides, a few hours were no big deal.
“Hmm… there’s a little fellow in the back who wants to say hi to you all, who’s been hiding back there for a while.”
As he said this, Tengu’s smile deepened a bit.
He stepped aside, revealing Chisa who was peeking from behind the corner with her little head.
She waved toward them,
“Um… hi, Brother Shangshan, Sister, and Brother Yagyu.”
The girl, following what she was taught at home, first called out all three names before trotting over with little steps.
Tamamo clicked her tongue inwardly upon hearing this, pondering how after just knowing each other a few days, “Brother Shangshan” was placed before her—what had the two been chatting about on Line these past couple days?
No, she had to check later.
“A very cute little fellow, who made no small contribution a couple days ago.” Tengu sighed with some regret. “Unfortunately, her talent isn’t great, or I might have taken her as a disciple.”
It was rare for a Ghost God level to personally comment on “talent,” so Shangshan Che asked more:
“What does Your Excellency Tengu think is lacking in Chisa’s talent?”
Tengu didn’t speak.
Shangshan Che understood his meaning.
—As long as even one aspect of her talent was passable, Chisa would already be his disciple by now.
After a brief exchange with Chisa, Shangshan Che heard Tengu say,
“If there’s nothing else, please follow me upstairs.”
Hearing this, Tamamo behind him grinned at Shangshan Che, gave a thumbs up pointing to herself, and said: “Don’t worry about us, we’re familiar with this place, Eldest Brother, you go up alone!”
Shangshan Che said no more.
He followed the Tengu Clone into the elevator and went all the way to the top floor of the Shizuoka City Special Affairs Office.
Ding dong.
The heavy elevator doors opened.
In an instant, several massive projection screens appeared before Shangshan Che’s eyes, bathed in omnipresent deep blue light.
He could see dozens of Special Affairs Office agents seated in the outermost circle, intently focused on their desk work.
Some tapping away at keyboards, others holding wired phones to their ears exchanging information, none noticing the elevator opening.
The projection screens displayed maps of the entire Shizuoka City, predictions for this Tide’s crisis level, and many rapidly changing data points that Shangshan Che couldn’t understand.
On the maps, red dots representing demons would occasionally appear from time to time.
In the inner circle, a total of eighteen Onmyoji proficient in the Astronomy Path, with robust auras, stood at their respective nodes, maintaining the operation of most of the barriers centered on this.
At the very center of the deep blue Onmyōdō Spell, also the center of the entire floor, the black-haired, waist-length man turned his head and looked over at him.
“If there’s nothing, come over and watch with me.”
Tengu’s voice reached Shangshan Che’s ear from over ten meters away.
The latter didn’t speak, just nodded and walked along the temporarily dimmed spell pathway to Tengu’s side.
“Watch.”
Tengu’s lips moved.
Shangshan Che followed his gaze and slightly widened his eyes.
Because what appeared before Shangshan Che at this moment was the entire appearance of Shizuoka City!
In minute detail.
Skyscrapers, streets and alleys, climate changes, people hurrying to homes or safe zones, Special Affairs Office agents rushing to various places, and the occasional random demons and Supernatural Phenomena appearing in the city.
Shangshan Che and Tengu “stood in the clouds” together, seeing him extend a finger and gently press toward a certain spot.
Then, black sword light fell simultaneously.
The barrier extended Tengu’s power, becoming his limbs.
The view contracted in an instant, allowing the two to confirm the demon’s demise, then returned to the original scale in a moment.
Just as Shangshan Che was about to marvel at the Special Affairs Office’s novel technology, he suddenly saw Tengu raise his hand and release another sword light.
A chill rose in his heart, the source close at hand.
He instantly understood Tengu’s intent.
For a being of this level standing right beside him, exterminating demons almost without holding back…
As for how much he could learn before the Tide subsided, that depended on Shangshan Che himself.
Shangshan Che stopped random thoughts, swallowed a portion of Soul Incense Ash, and began seriously observing Tengu’s movements, the trajectories of spiritual energy flow, and the traces of fine Sword Principle.
The Eye of Interpretation opened, making all of Tengu’s actions instantly slow and clear.
And after entering the flow state, time passed exceptionally fast.
Shangshan Che felt like only a blink had passed when the blurred Shizuoka City scenery vanished from the corner of his eye.
Tengu, slightly fatigued, withdrew his hand and asked Shangshan Che emerging from the flow state: “Agent Shangshan, did you gain anything?”
【You observed “Tengu”‘s use of spiritual power and gained some understanding. Your skill, Spirit Control Technique · Qi proficiency +100!】
【You observed “Tengu” drawing his sword and gained some understanding. Your skill, Natural Reason School proficiency +100!】
【You observed “Tengu” drawing his sword and gained some understanding. Your trait · Sword Principle（8%） has now changed to Sword Principle（9%）!】
Shangshan Che shook his head, and after exiting the high-speed thinking state, he nodded earnestly: “Thanks to Your Excellency, I gained quite a lot.”
“That’s for the best then.”
Tengu smiled.
Shangshan Che looked up again and found that all the red dots on the projection screen map had completely disappeared, leaving it spotless.
Half of the surrounding eighteen Onmyoji were temporarily resting, sitting cross-legged on the spot to adjust their breathing.
“There’s still quite some time before the next wave.” Tengu plucked a black feather from his arm, creating a clone. “Let my clone take you to retrieve the Scale Armor first.”
His main body and clone spoke to Shangshan Che together,
“Five Elements Qi Sea, metal generates water… I’m sure you’ve been eager for this, Agent Shangshan.”
The clone stepped forward, his voice coming: “Please follow me.”
Metal generates water?
Shangshan Che’s heart stirred, knowledge of the Five Elements generation and conquest rising in his mind.
He had thought he needed to gather all Five Elements Defining Objects to see this effect, but unexpectedly, it was activating now.
He quickened his pace behind the Tengu Clone and left the top floor.
Shizuoka City Special Affairs Office, 29th floor.
After passing through layers of identity verification and checkpoints, Shangshan Che finally saw his original purpose for coming to Shizuoka Prefecture, also the “mission reward” mentioned by Nanjo Emi—
Dim yellow lights fell, yet reflected shimmering, multicolored waves in the transparent glass case.
Countless complex and vibrant colors bloomed from that entirely azure Scale Armor, meticulously riveted from scales, like the most exquisite gem in the world.
But on this exquisitely perfect Scale Armor, there were dozens of glaring gaps, occupying nearly a quarter of it.
In Shangshan Che’s eyes, the dazzling surface of the Scale Armor even emitted faint golden light.
Light belonging above Epic.
Tengu tapped the glass surface with his finger, causing the glass that seemed alive to retract.
In the secret room, he silently gazed at the Scale Armor for a while before extending his finger to remove the most central, most enticing deep blue scale from it.
After removal, Shangshan Che could clearly see the entire Scale Armor change from faint gold to an extremely deep purple.
Tengu turned and placed the scale in Shangshan Che’s hand.
He said softly,
“Sea Light… is an old acquaintance of mine.
Giving you this most important scale is both an investment in the new generation and my belief that you won’t let it go to waste.”
The scale rested in Shangshan Che’s palm. Even after being placed here for a long time, it wasn’t cold; instead, it emitted a warm, jade-like texture.
Deep purple light enveloped the scale, and the panel popped up—
【Scale Armor of Sea Light】
【Quality: Epic+】
【—The Scale Armor from Sea Light’s chest. It once witnessed centuries of worldly changes alongside Sea Light, seas turning to mulberry fields, and after falling off, endured long years of baptism.
Now, it has fallen into your hands.】
Epic+ quality… almost equivalent to the Uguisudori’s Feather he bought from Katsumi for six thousand points.
Shangshan Che glanced at the other scales on the Scale Armor—they were probably just Normal Epic quality, even at the lower end of Epic.
Tengu giving him this one and only scale was indeed a great gift.
Just holding the scale in his hand, Shangshan Che clearly felt his Sea of Qi inside—or rather, the Fragment of the Ten-Hand Sword within the Sea of Qi—sense something, causing the entire Sea of Qi to stir up.
Tengu naturally saw this change and chuckled: “If you want to use it to define the Sea of Qi these next few days, you can stay here, no problem.”
“Thank you.”
Shangshan Che gripped the scale tightly.
……
At the same time, Arakawa Ward Special Affairs Office.
“You lot only show up after this wave of Tide is over. You guys sure can hold your patience.”
In the office, Nanjo Emi, lounging in her recliner, yawned sleepily and lightly snapped her fingers.
In an instant, the demons in various parts of Arakawa Ward who had just completed their promotion borrowing the Tide’s aftermath and hadn’t had time to wreak havoc all died amid eerie spiritual power fluctuations.
High in the distant sky, the Calendar Doctor, who had just blatantly completed a second sky patrol without hiding his tracks, clicked his tongue in wonder,
“This woman is truly terrifying. Just over a month since the cap was lifted, and she’s already reached this level…”
The Calendar Doctor oddly rubbed his chin,
“Speaking of which, doesn’t she work overtime every day? Where does she find time to cultivate?”
Arakawa Ward, Shangshan Che’s residence.
Lili Zi, sitting alone in the center of the dojo, opened her eyes calmly.
A pure Sword Domain instantly expanded centered on her, slicing and dicing all nearby demons and monsters before Nanjo Emi could act.
At the same time, the train marked with Kisaragi sped through the surging Tide sounds, batch by batch sending timid demons mistakenly sent into the Mortal Realm back to the Eternal World.
“Next stop, Sengoku Graveyard…”
“Next stop, Sengoku Graveyard…”
The train doors opened, and many lesser demons who had emptied their savings hurried off in panic.
Outside the doors stood two polite passengers, one on each side, waiting for those disembarking before boarding.
The girl on the left shouldered a small iron hammer, her wheat-colored skin, muttering uncertainly: “The Third Place trial actually requires taking a train. Hope I didn’t get on the wrong one.”
The tall passenger on the right, face covered by an iron mask, narrowed his eyes and murmured to himself: “Is this the train my lord mentioned, that leads to the Mortal Realm…”
Once no one else got off, the two strangers boarded together.
The train doors slowly closed.
……
After obtaining the scale, Shangshan Che temporarily bid farewell to Tengu, who had to prepare for the next wave of Tide, and came to an unused cultivation quiet room.
Shangshan Che used Internal Vision on his Sea of Qi and found that after several minutes, the Fragment of the Ten-Hand Sword fused with the Hannya card was still active.
It was practically impatient for the Scale Armor of Sea Light.
Before this, the Fragment of the Ten-Hand Sword scrap belonging to metal attribute and the Uguisudori’s Feather belonging to fire attribute had no relation, naturally defined independently.
But this time was different.
“Metal generates water, water conquers fire. Not sure what new effect this will bring.”
Shangshan Che was still looking forward to it.
Just like the previous two times, Shangshan Che wrapped the Scale Armor of Sea Light in Qi Barrier and placed it above the Sea of Qi as usual, to see the reaction.
The next instant, the Uguisudori’s Feather burst up from the Sea of Qi with a bang, its body igniting in blazing black flames, clearly very displeased with the Scale Armor.
From another direction, the Hannya card wrapped in golden light rose, welcoming the Scale Armor’s arrival very friendly, even expectantly.
Finally, the hovering Scale Armor in mid-air showed no reaction, ignoring both hostility and goodwill.
Neutral and upright, allowing Shangshan Che, the master of the Sea of Qi, to command it.
Shangshan Che nodded repeatedly: “That’s more like it. Those scraps and feathers were all so arrogant when they arrived, couldn’t even tell who was boss.”
He released control over the Scale Armor, letting it define itself in the Sea of Qi.
Then, a massive tangible Qi Barrier hand grabbed the ready-to-attack Uguisudori’s Feather and pressed it down in an instant!
Gulu gulu~
Scorching bubbles rose on the Sea of Qi surface, then burst with crackles.
Clearly, the Uguisudori’s Feather was very unwilling.
But no matter how unwilling, it had to obediently submit to the visible regulation.
The azure Scale Armor flew a circle above the Sea of Qi, then slowly descended over the pink-white sea surface, merging as one with the Four-tailed Fox card that had just emerged from sea level.
Whoosh.
Shangshan Che could see the already lifelike Four-tailed Fox card surface now framed with shimmering azure edges, and even the background inside the card turned into dazzling rainbow colors.
Scale Armor of Sea Light, defined here.
【Due to your Void Qi Sea being influenced by the “Scale Armor of Sea Light” definition, your Willpower +1】.
【Due to your Void Qi Sea being influenced by the “Scale Armor of Sea Light” definition, your Spiritual Arts +2】.
【Due to your Void Qi Sea being influenced by the “Scale Armor of Sea Light” definition, your water attribute resistance has increased!】.
【Influenced by the “Scale Armor of Sea Light” definition, the “Fragment of the Ten-Hand Sword” has produced a linkage effect with it!】
【Please check the linkage effect yourself!】
Boom boom!
The Hannya card at this moment darted to the Four-tailed Fox card’s side, pressing close to it, with no prior animosity or rejection.
Golden light and blue light bloomed simultaneously, then intertwined to become even brighter.
The entire Sea of Qi rumbled loudly because of this, expanding crazily toward the boundless boundary for the third time.
But this was just the most insignificant change.
In the Eye of Interpretation’s view, the two Incarnation Cards fused with Defining Objects began rotating at a fixed rate, continuously borrowing each other’s power to enhance themselves and their essence.
Besides that, the Qi Barrier produced at the same time was substantially stronger than before—more than doubled, even.
The body’s self-healing ability also improved significantly.
The effect of metal-water generation was evident.
And this was just the generation effect from two individual attribute Defining Objects.
“The Sea of Qi now has an extra vibrant, lively feeling…”
Shangshan Che’s gaze was puzzled, not figuring out where this feeling brought changes.
Of course, the Scale Armor’s definition didn’t bring only positive effects.
—The Uguisudori’s Feather was isolated.
Under the increasingly bright azure and brilliant gold lights, the Uguisudori’s Feather’s black appeared especially dim.
At this moment, it was shrunk below the sea surface, not releasing its might proudly even after the giant hand disappeared.
But that was a minor issue.
The two Incarnation Cards were busy maintaining the metal-water generation, with no time to care about the lonely Uguisudori’s Feather.
“With the experience from the previous definitions, this one was unexpectedly calm.”
Shangshan Che pushed open the quiet room door, feeling the increasingly abundant power and Qi Barrier in his body, walked to the window, and quietly listened to the surging Tide sounds between heaven and earth.
He still remembered the urgency and unease in his heart when he first heard this Tide sound.
But now, Shangshan Che’s mindset was completely different.
Just like the Special Affairs Office facing the Tide’s aftermath—no upheavals, no surprises, just as expected arrival and smooth passage.
Gazing at the gradually clearing sky, Shangshan Che laughed, taking out the disc-shaped Assembly Token from his Storage Bag.
Under the sunlight, the bronze disc’s edges glimmered faintly.
……
When Shangshan Che opened his eyes again, he heard Tide sounds far fiercer than in the Mortal Realm by a thousand or ten thousand times, as if to drown the world.
“Long time no see, Walker Shangshan.”
In a daze, Shangshan Che heard a voice tinged with joy and surprise,
“You obtained this ‘Proof of Walking’?”
