Chapter 221: Urgent Time-limited Mission! Four-star Supernatural Phenomenon Promotion Omen Haunted House, Time Is Tight, Push Through All The Way!
A violent and abnormal push from behind and sense of weightlessness suddenly applied to the Ox Demon’s body, causing it to topple sideways caught off guard.
Fortunately, it was sitting at the corner of a seat and reacted quickly, grabbing the nearby handrail with one hand to prevent itself from being flung off the seat by this force.
But many lesser demons with insufficient strength weren’t so lucky.
The lesser demons were already squeezed together, hunching their backs, with barely any space to place their hands.
Thus, in the second instant after the train began accelerating, a large pile of lesser demons tumbled messily to the other end of the carriage, piling up into a small mountain.
What a spectacular sight.
“Damn, what the hell…”
The Ox Demon cursed fiercely under its breath, but only inwardly, not daring to say it out loud.
It wasn’t that stupid.
The Ox Demon silently stared at the opposite side—that black-red luxurious seat that remained completely unmoved even under the extreme acceleration, and the little Hannya on it.
A translucent shield rose from under the seat, enveloping Shangshan Che and Tamamo, offsetting all phenomena caused by the train’s acceleration.
“—This kid, could he be the son of the Kisaragi Station master!?”
The Ox Demon clicked its tongue inwardly.
Of course, it still kept its mouth tightly shut.
If it said it out loud… heh, the Inugami whose muscles had grown into its brain was a living example of the consequences.
The train’s acceleration was very obvious.
Before acceleration, Shangshan Che could barely make out the scenery passing by the train window.
But after he said “five minutes,” everything outside the window turned into colorless pure white lines—even the color information was flung away by the unreasonable speed.
Tamamo subconsciously gripped the seat armrest tightly but felt no push from behind, so she was stunned for a moment, taking a good while to react, then asked hesitantly,
“Elder Brother Shangshan, is this train that can carry demons one of your family’s businesses?”
No, it’s not, absolutely no relation, thank you.
Originally, Shangshan Che wanted to immediately distance himself from this train extremely similar to the Eternal World Train in front of this senior intelligence agent from the Special Affairs Office.
But since he was sitting here now, and the train accelerated because of his words.
Then surely, someone’s gaze had been silently watching him from some unknown corner.
Also waiting for his answer.
So Shangshan Che thought for a while, then chuckled to brush it off: “The situation with this matter is a bit complicated, specifically speaking…”
Seeing him answer like this, Tamamo immediately shook her head then nodded,
“Elder Brother Shangshan, no need to say more, I get it!”
This sentence directly saved Shangshan Che from needing to think of a follow-up answer, making him sigh inwardly that chatting with smart people was really too easy.
If it were some straightforward guy instead, he’d definitely dig into this question root and stem, not stopping until he got an answer.
With that said, Tamamo shifted her gaze back to the disheveled demons who had stood up again and were squeezing into seats, clamping her legs together.
The current situation was almost like fencing in a harmless little lamb with a fence, then putting it in the same transport carriage with a group of fang-baring, blood-sucking Northeast tigers.
For Tamamo, an ordinary person, to be in close contact with so many demons who could slap her into several pieces, it was impossible not to be afraid.
This had nothing to do with her own thoughts; it was purely the body’s instinctive reaction.
“No need to be afraid.”
Shangshan Che seemed to see through her thoughts and said calmly: “As long as we’re on this train, the demons must absolutely follow the rules and be good passengers.”
Tamamo gave two dry laughs without saying more, just fixing her gaze on the rapidly shortening distance on that station display.
Four minutes and ten seconds later.
The train, which had already accelerated to its limit, suddenly slowed to zero speed and stopped.
Buzz buzz!
Shangshan Che could almost hear the train body groaning under the strain.
The demons in the carriage were launched from their seats with even more ferocious momentum than last time, unceremoniously blocking the front end of the carriage.
Feeling a surge in its body, the Ox Demon turned its head and silently stared at the solid handrail that it had slightly dented from gripping too hard.
It had only one thought in its mind right now.
—Damn it, this won’t require me to pay for it out of pocket, will it!
—The answer was definitely yes, because to save some soul ash, it hadn’t bought 【Kisaragi Train】 VIP customer service!
“Time to get off.”
Shangshan Che’s hoarse voice interrupted its thoughts.
The Ox Demon, whose heart was bleeding, looked up and saw the White Hannya, whose strength was barely passable, picking up a black card and a white note from that unique seat.
The note aside for now.
But that card…
The Ox Demon’s basin-sized face twitched.
What did it see?
—VIP card!
—And black gold! The highest level! And it’s said this level is just a rumor, never actually issued!
The Ox Demon turned its head and found that the few rich and imposing guys nearby who had bought bronze and silver VIPs were equally dumbfounded, with even more intense expressions than its own.
At that moment, its heart balanced out.
Staring at the White Hannya walking off the train with the ordinary human beside her, the Ox Demon, having noted this incident, spread its legs a bit indignantly to loosen up.
But its legs couldn’t spread, because there was a demon sitting right next to its right hand.
It turned its head and discovered that sitting beside it was a Three-and-a-Half Star Red Hannya.
“Get out of the way!”
The Ox Demon glared angrily, making the originally bloodthirsty Red Hannya silently move aside, but the other side was also a Ghost God level great demon who said the same to it.
In the end, the Red Hannya could only stand awkwardly in the aisle center, glaring furiously but helplessly at the not-so-distant black-red exclusive seat.
It clenched its fist, swearing inwardly.
—Thirty years from now, I will sit in a seat like that too!
……
Shizuoka City, brand-new bus station.
Shangshan Che, stepping off the train, immediately said to the one beside him: “Tamamo, check how far the incident site is from here.”
Tamamo, already prepared, immediately reported the number: “Southwest direction, straight-line distance 1.2 kilometers!”
“Ten seconds.”
Shangshan Che grabbed Tamamo as before, and amid a huge whooshing sound like a hurricane passing, shot up into the clouds, then plummeted from 100 meters high in a few breaths.
Boom!
In the sudden smoke and dust, shattered asphalt and debris flew out, landing on the somewhat stupefied Special Affairs Office agent.
Wh-what happened?
The agent, coordinating nearby intelligence and information, blinked with difficulty, subconsciously wanting to press the virtual red button on his mobile phone.
But the next moment, the familiar identification emerging from the smoke made him abandon the idea.
“Hello, Shizuoka City Agent K203, I’m Tamamo from Numazu City.”
Tamamo, in uniform trousers on her lower body but still in pajamas on her upper, speaking at rapid speed in stark contrast to the serious atmosphere around,
“The one beside me is Shangshan Che, agent from Tokyo City Arakawa Ward, who has participated in resolving Ghost God level incidents.”
Hearing the key phrases, the agent first glanced at Shangshan Che, whose body emanated terrifying spiritual power fluctuations, then immediately perked up.
—Ignoring Tamamo’s exchange with the local agent for now, Shangshan Che silently raised his eyes, looking toward the interior of the yellow-black warning line.
What the Eye of Interpretation saw was not the clear blue sky without a cloud in sight behind him.
But a deep black symbolizing curse and isolation.
Endless deep black converged into an opaque giant bowl, upside down over this area not far from Shizuoka City center.
Dense tadpole script wriggling with ominous qi clung to the black surface.
Like a barrier.
But Shangshan Che knew that what was before him was not a barrier set by Onmyōdō.
——”Haunted House”.
Nanjo Emi had told him that the Special Affairs Office called this phenomenon that.
This was the inevitable, most obvious first sign when a Three-and-a-Half Star supernatural phenomenon advanced toward Four-Star, i.e., Ghost God level transformation.
This was also a phenomenon that could only form when 【supernatural phenomenon】 advanced; ordinary demons’ promotions wouldn’t cause such a commotion.
In the Haunted House, the supernatural phenomenon’s own abilities and related supernatural phenomenon rules would be greatly enhanced, while some rules in the mortal realm would also undergo varying degrees of mutation.
For ordinary people, it was extremely dangerous.
Shangshan Che narrowed his eyes, sizing up the edge of the Haunted House just 10 meters away.
But this Haunted House didn’t seem as creepy as Nanjo Emi had described…
【Emergency Limited-Time Mission, “Demon Guide Association’s Probe” now activated!】
As he thought this, a red mission prompt suddenly popped up before Shangshan Che’s eyes.
Demon Guide Association’s probe?
Shangshan Che remembered that the Black Phone Booth was indeed a supernatural phenomenon under the Demon Guide Association, but what did this “probe” mean?
He had no time to think more and first looked at the detailed mission description below.
【Mission objectives as follows—】
【Main Objective · Probe Hand: Prevent the supernatural phenomenon “Weakened Black Phone Booth” from advancing to Four-Star.】
【Side Objective · Tamamo’s Request: Rescue Tamamo’s five family members from the disaster area and ensure their survival.】
【Note: If the supernatural phenomenon “Weakened Black Phone Booth” is exorcised, mission rewards will greatly increase!】
【This limited-time mission has a short duration; please settle the mission before the supernatural phenomenon “Weakened Black Phone Booth” completes Four-Star advancement, or it will be considered a failure.】
“Weakened Black Phone Booth”!
Shangshan Che’s eyes lit up; his earlier feeling was indeed correct!
Why did this Haunted House give such a mild oppressive feeling?
—Because the Black Phone Booth itself was already weakened to the brink under the Special Affairs Office’s pursuit!
If delayed a few more days, it would be exorcised by Special Affairs Office specialists in some corner, so it made a desperate stand in Shizuoka City for a chance to advance to Ghost God level and survive.
Shangshan Che breathed a sigh of relief and turned his gaze to the side objective.
He hadn’t forgotten that he came to Shizuoka City because of Tamamo’s request!
“Five people… Tamamo’s one sister, two brothers, and parents.”
After spending a dozen seconds to sort out the situation, Shangshan Che walked toward Tamamo, who was bombarding the agent with questions like rapid-fire.
Agent K203: “We’ve already sealed off the Haunted House area at the fastest speed and called for support from the nearest Ghost God level force; they’ll arrive in about forty minutes!”
Tamamo said anxiously: “Forty minutes, who can wait that long! Right now, immediately, the specific situation inside the Haunted House, supernatural phenomenon precautions, how many Special Affairs Office teams are there, their statuses, the best routes inside the Haunted House, all of it…”
“No need for all that trouble.”
Shangshan Che raised his hand, gently pressing the shoulder of the smaller girl who was already out of breath from talking.
Tamamo’s trembling body gradually calmed.
She took several deep breaths before turning her head with a dry smile: “Elder Brother Shangshan, thank you…”
“Agent K203, I only need to know two things.”
Shangshan Che expressionlessly held up two fingers toward the agent: “First, the location of the Black Phone Booth main body.”
“Second…”
Shangshan Che looked at Tamamo, who immediately understood and quickly said: “Agent A032’s mobile phone location!”
The agent was momentarily speechless.
Because these two pieces of information weren’t accessible at his level.
Sweat beaded on his forehead as he immediately started operating his mobile phone,
“Um, you two, I’ll ask on your behalf…”
“No need.”
A middle-aged man’s voice came from nearby.
And the next second, he was already in front of Shangshan Che.
“Yasui Junior Official!”
The agent turned back and immediately straightened his spine.
The man called Yasui pressed his palm down virtually, then turned to Shangshan Che and extended his hand: “Shangshan Jun, you’re that subordinate of Nanjō Great Officer, right… I saw you once at the True Sword Match.”
This made things much easier.
After a simple handshake, just as Shangshan Che was about to speak, Yasui interrupted,
“—The location of the Black Phone Booth main body isn’t confirmed yet, but all Black Phone Booth locations appearing in the Haunted House have been marked on the map and will be sent to you immediately.
A032’s mobile phone location will be sent along.”
“Additionally.”
Yasui Junior Official glanced at Agent K203 and said seriously: “Issue orders to all teams still in contact inside the Haunted House—from now on, this Shangshan Agent has the highest command authority!”
“Yes!”
The agent immediately responded, quickly sending out the order with flying fingers.
At the same time, an astonished shout came from the Jeep dozens of meters away: “Dropping in a commander, what is Yasui that guy up to?!”
Shangshan Che followed the voice and saw six fully armed agents in Special Affairs Office uniforms inside the car, averaging only One-and-a-Half Star strength.
How dare they enter the Haunted House of a supernatural phenomenon breaking through to Four-Star…
To deliver heads to the Black Phone Booth?
He sighed and used his qi barrier to block the Jeep.
The qi barrier formed lines into the six agents’ ears: “I’m Shangshan Che. You six stay outside for now; come in when I give the order later.”
Ignoring the six’s reactions, Shangshan Che heard Yasui Junior Official explain: “Most teams that entered the Haunted House earlier have lost contact; they are the highest comprehensive quality team we can dispatch in a short time.”
With that said, Shangshan Che saw this Three-Star Onmyo Junior Official, who had to stay outside the Haunted House to maintain basic order, salute him.
Then Yasui lowered his head, clenching his fist in shame,
“Shangshan Ge Xia, please… please make sure to…”
“Don’t worry.”
Shangshan Che hung the Hannya Mask at his waist, draped on the Priest’s Robe, hung the Koma-inu Bell, folding fan and Five Thunder Pearl at his waist, and fitted Cold Steel Armguards on both arms.
Finally, after placing his hand on Kaga Kiyomitsu’s hilt, he smiled at Yasui Junior Official,
“Leave it to me.”
Shangshan Che turned back and took the Special Affairs Office mobile phone handed to him by Tamamo.
He heard her say,
“This is a one-to-one copy of my mobile phone; all information will sync. The current page is the chat with Chisa-chan… that is, my sister.”
Tamamo paused, then bowed deeply to him: “Shangshan Jun, no matter what, please prioritize your own safety.”
Kaga Kiyomitsu buzzed puzzledly.
If it were him, at a time like this, he’d definitely make others risk their lives to save the master!
“Tamamo, lift your head.”
The girl, pale and haggard beyond recognition, looked up to see the somewhat mismatched man assure her thusly,
“One hour from now, just wait for your family reunion.”
With those words, Shangshan Che lifted his foot and set it down, already crossing that black membrane into the Black Phone Booth’s Haunted House.
In an instant, the sky turned pitch black.
The falling sunlight became sparse, and the surrounding atmosphere turned eerie and sinister in one step.
Behind him, Tamamo’s voice came muffled,
“—Shangshan Jun, don’t forget to check the related supernatural phenomenon rules!”
Supernatural phenomenon rules?
Now wasn’t the time to play those little games with the Black Phone Booth.
Pushing straight through without affecting travel speed, then protecting Tamamo’s family, was undoubtedly the most correct choice.
Shangshan Che donned the Hannya Mask, then took out the Life and Death Taiko Drum from his Storage Bag, flipping it to the “Life” side.
With qi, he struck it heavily!
Dong! Dong! Dong!
The taiko drum’s muffled roar swept through streets and alleys like wind devouring clouds, making the Black Phone Booths standing in the shadows tremble slightly.
Qi erupted under Shangshan Che’s feet, bringing him to 100 meters in the sky.
Overlooking the still empty ground, Shangshan Che took a deep breath, letting his cold voice echo with the drum sound across half the Haunted House,
“—Black Phone Booth, get out here!”
Ding-a-ling!
Ding-a-ling!
Ding-a-ling!
Under repeated provocations, the bell sounds that were almost death knells for ordinary people rang one after another.
And the sounds grew louder and louder, the frequency increasingly close, as if converging into one voice.
Shangshan Che lowered his gaze, and upon seeing the Black Phone Booth clones appearing in his vision, the corners of his mouth under the Hannya Mask curved coldly,
“Good.”
Retracting his gaze, Shangshan Che rushed swiftly toward the location Tamamo provided.
He didn’t spare another glance at the Black Phone Booths below.
Only a folding fan, infused with vast spiritual power, hovered in mid-air, blooming with supernova-like dazzling light.
Rumble rumble rumble!
Dark clouds gathered, thunder roared in fury.
The Black Phone Booth clones on the ground didn’t even have time to react before being precisely enveloped by falling purplish-black lightning.
In panic, heavenly thunder!
……
At the same time, the center of the Haunted House.
At the entrance to the first floor of the department store mall, inside a temporary shed set up for some event.
A girl in a little white dress and small yellow hat, even more petite in stature than Tamamo, stood holding a Special Affairs Office mobile phone.
【Tamamo Agent: Chisa-chan, from now on don’t panic; a very powerful big brother will come to save you all soon. Hide with your brothers and parents, don’t make any noise, okay.】
【A032: Got it, big sis!】
Chisa-chan, currently in sixth grade of elementary school, after replying, reread the 【supernatural phenomenon rules】 and 【precautions】 that Tamamo mentioned several times.
She temporarily set down the Special Affairs Office’s black brick phone and cautiously peered out from the swaying curtain, scanning the surroundings once more.
Messy streets, collapsed building ruins, crowds screaming and running not far away.
And her own head, still buzzing until now, as if bugs were crawling in and out.
Not long ago, everything here was perfectly fine.
Chisa-chan turned back and saw her unconscious parents and the black-suited uncle in the shed, plus her two brothers slumped on the ground, biting small paper wads to stay silent.
For a moment, Chisa-chan wanted to collapse on the ground and cry loudly like her brothers.
Then someone would come comfort her.
But Chisa-chan knew that wouldn’t do.
Right now, here, she was the oldest child.
Her brothers depended on her, her parents depended on her, and this uncle who had protected them before also depended on her.
She could only rely on herself.
Only herself!
Hang in there, Chisa-chan, hang in there!
You can do it!
As big sis said, Chisa-chan first took three deep breaths to forcibly calm her dizzy self.
—First, let’s analyze.
—Big sis said, never approach places with crying, bell sounds, or phone rings, and don’t make calls.
This, she couldn’t do.
Because Chisa-chan’s ears were full of these sounds now, and she couldn’t move either.
Earlier, many people ran out of the mall; now they were all sprawled haphazardly on the ground, seemingly fainted.
She could only set all the collected phones to reject calls and enable do-not-disturb mode.
—Second, don’t run.
—Because family is here; running would attract that phone booth’s attention.
Chisa-chan bit her lip hard, her brain that couldn’t even solve linear equations racing.
So, what she could do now was figure out her current position to make it easier for big sis’s big brother to come save them.
Even though big sis said the phone had location, isn’t it best to prepare more for everything?
Chisa-chan turned back.
Especially when it concerned her family’s lives.
The simplest way was to send her navigation location to big sis.
But the network was down.
No navigation app on this uncle’s phone, and no maps downloaded on theirs.
Chisa-chan suppressed the urge to cry, furrowed her little brow, thought hard for a while, then remembered what her geography teacher said in class!
—Landmark buildings!
Right! Landmark buildings are the fastest way to recognize a place!
Chisa-chan, having seen two Shizuoka City travel guides, risked peeking out from the shed again, staring at the distant mountain peak for a while, comparing it to the guide’s pictures.
Kunōzan Tōshō-gū!
She quickly withdrew her gaze and sent this discovery to Tamamo.
Right after, Chisa-chan suddenly remembered that when she peeked out just now, she seemed to see a phone booth different from the dozen or so she’d seen before.
Those previous phone booths looked very old, with long history, covered in much copper rust and dust.
Only the one she glimpsed with her peripheral vision while looking at Kunōzan was spotless.
Exceptionally brand new!
Chisa-chan first thought to take a photo and send it.
But considering the risk of being discovered by that 【supernatural phenomenon】, she could only describe the discovery in text.
Buzz.
The phone vibrated; even from the text, Tamamo’s excitement was clear.
【Tamamo Agent: Chisa-chan, you did a huge merit!】
But Chisa-chan, who should have been happy, wasn’t excited at all.
The girl swallowed hard with difficulty.
Because, at some point, the surroundings had suddenly gone completely quiet.
