Chapter 205: Final Evaluation: Ss! Great Onmyōdō Nine Syllable Mantra! Super Epic Defining Object, Farewell Katsumi
Current Stage Quest completion: 101%.
Four days later.
The top of Nishio City, which had already stabilized.
Shangshan Che, who was forcefully bone-forging with his Qi Barrier, felt a flicker of surprise in his eyes.
His movements paused, causing a dull ache to surge from his joints and bone marrow.
Shangshan Che immediately refocused, took a deep breath, and after completing this round of bone forging, exhaled heavily,
“Finally done…”
Your skill, Corona Breathing Technique proficiency +6.
Corona Breathing Technique （ Jade Bone 171/400 ）
Shangshan Che stood up and stretched his muscles, his gaze calmly sweeping over the disappointingly small increase in proficiency, thinking that progress was indeed slow without the medicinal bath’s assistance.
“Finally done…”
Behind him, a sentence identical in tone and rhythm to his own was echoed by Kaga Kiyomitsu.
Shangshan Che pouted, rendered speechless.
For the past few days, whenever no one was around, Kaga Kiyomitsu, who had been quietly observing from behind, would begin to mimic him like a parrot, repeating everything he just said.
To Shangshan Che, it was like having a TXT game text constantly “auto-reading.”
And it couldn’t be turned off, skipped, and more importantly, Little Jia spoke with an AI-like tone.
Indeed, no matter how many times Shangshan Che spoke, Kaga Kiyomitsu couldn’t break this bad habit… but he couldn’t really do anything to Little Jia.
At this point, Shangshan Che was getting quite annoyed.
He secretly clenched his fist in his heart: “I need to find time to properly deal with this rebellious Little Jia.”
Just then, the sound of armored footsteps approached from the stone stairs: “Che Adult, a letter from the Head of the Clan—the mop-up operations in Mikawa Province have concluded.”
Shangshan Che nodded: “Alright.”
As expected.
After all, the quest completion was already 101%.
Speaking of this completion rate, Shangshan Che had initially thought 100% was the limit, but unexpectedly, it could continue to break through.
This meant that, theoretically, the quest completion could continue to increase over time.
However, there was no set number of days for this “passage of time.”
After all, the soldier next to him had already said that the large-scale mop-up of Mikawa Province had ended not long ago.
Next, Imagawa Yoshimoto and the Imagawa Clan’s focus would be on dealing with the impending World Revival.
With this thought, Shangshan Che turned his head and looked down at Nishio City, which was now somewhat empty, devoid of plague.
— Although Nishio City had completely stabilized, and all demons within the city had been wiped out, the environment was slowly returning to its original state.
So, what was the price?
Shangshan Che could see that on the formerly crowded streets, only a dozen or so slowly moving figures could be seen at a glance.
In these past few days, Imagawa Yoshimoto had not only ordered Okabe Motonobu to eradicate demons and anything related to Jodo Shinshu.
In addition, the vast majority of ordinary people who had been “brainwashed” by Wish Power and lost their sense of self were also executed by Imagawa Yoshimoto’s instruction.
— Acting as someone favored by a Deity, this was done with the consent of any family member or relative who still had their self-awareness.
Although cruel, it was a necessary action.
Because once the mind was completely permeated by Wish Power, there was no means of recovery.
Otherwise, Two-Foot Adult would not have needed to return to the Ksitigarbha Statue.
If these people were not killed, then within a few days, these “Wish Power meat machines” who relied only on instinctual prayer and eating would starve to death en masse after consuming all the food in their homes.
Finally, this would lead to the outbreak of plague and other large-scale epidemics in Nishio City once more.
Even, if instigated and manipulated by some remnant of Jodo Shinshu, it could cause a small-scale riot.
It was the same for other regions, cities, and villages.
Only by acting decisively and swiftly like this could the related influence be minimized, and full preparations made for the arrival of World Revival.
Shangshan Che withdrew his gaze.
He hadn’t smelled blood before, so it was likely that Imagawa Yoshimoto had ordered them to be taken to the leeward side outside the city for unified disposal.
Shangshan Che recalled Imagawa Yoshimoto’s expressionless face when she returned the night before two days ago and sighed slightly: “She must not be feeling well either…”
Therefore, although the entire Mikawa Province had stabilized, it was still severely weakened, not even half of what Mikawa Province was before the Affliction arrived.
And the Imagawa Clan’s army.
Both the Ashigaru and Samurai must have suffered significant losses in such an efficient, almost disregard-for-loss mop-up operation.
Furthermore, Affliction Kin were covered in viruses that needed to be disposed of, with no usable parts. They did not, like demons, drop Soul Ash or Soul Spirit Points when killed.
This wave was a huge loss for Imagawa Yoshimoto, a disaster from the heavens.
Fortunately, he was here, which allowed the Imagawa Clan to advance rather than retreat.
— First, Imagawa Yoshimoto purged the Elders within the clan, consolidating all power into her own hands.
— Then, with decisive action, she subdued the restless local magnates in Mikawa Province, who now had no power to resist, and gained some of their loyalty through this incident.
Most crucially, Imagawa Yoshimoto learned of the World Revival a week in advance and had already obtained a Basic Onmyōdō manual that could absorb Spiritual Energy.
At this time, the other Daimyo were probably still wondering about the subtle changes around them.
In the tide of the new era, a step ahead means being ahead at every step.
By the time the other Daimyo figured out what was happening, the Imagawa Clan would likely have produced many budding Onmyoji.
“Uh… Che Adult? Che Adult?”
The calls of his name were repeated several times before Kaga Kiyomitsu pulled Shangshan Che out of his thoughts.
Shangshan Che turned his head and saw the same Samurai as before: “Is there anything else?”
The Samurai bowed his head: “The Head of the Clan also said to request you to proceed to Yoshida Castle today.”
Shangshan Che patted his head upon hearing this.
Oh, he almost forgot about this.
Yesterday morning, Imagawa Yoshimoto had said she needed to return to Yoshida Castle to discuss some matters with the Matsudaira Clan and asked him to come over before World Revival.
“I understand, is there anything else?”
The Samurai shook his head: “No more, Adult.”
Shangshan Che waved his hand: “Then you may withdraw. I will call for others if needed.”
The Samurai bowed and retreated, disappearing from Shangshan Che’s sight without a word.
After the person had completely left, Shangshan Che looked at the numerous prompts that had appeared due to the quest completion exceeding 101%.
Your quest completion has been detected to exceed 100%!
You have obtained, Key of History: Stasis （ Special Item ）!
Shangshan Che blinked his eyes in confusion.
What is this?
Another Key of History with an unfamiliar suffix had appeared.
Let me see what this is about…
Holding this Key of History, which looked the same but was gray in color, Shangshan Che examined its panel.
Key of History: Stasis （ Special Item ）
Effect: When using Key of History: Stasis to return to the Mortal Realm, you will obtain “Key of History: Anchor.”
— Time, please stop for a moment.
What is that thing behind it?
Shangshan Che moved his thoughts, and a second panel popped out.
Key of History: Anchor
— Upon use, return to the point in time when “Key of History: Stasis” was used.
I see.
Shangshan Che understood.
This newly acquired Key of History: Stasis was equivalent to a save point that could be placed in the Sengoku Period at any time.
Simply put, he could return to the Mortal Realm whenever he wanted, and then use the Key of History with the suffix “Anchor” to return to this save point.
This was quite good.
Shangshan Che tossed the Key of History in his hand and smiled.
He had originally thought that after the 1.5th wave arrived in the Mortal Realm, he would have to shuttle back and forth between the Sengoku Period and the Mortal Realm, constantly dealing with jet lag.
Now, with this Key of History, the pressure had greatly reduced.
He could completely put aside the unfinished second part of the Main Quest for now and come back after dealing with most of the matters in the Mortal Realm.
However, these two Keys of History were most likely single-use items.
Then, the timing of use…
With this thought, Shangshan Che shook his head.
Wasn’t the timing of use already obvious? Did it require further thought?
Tossing the Key of History back into his Storage Bag, Shangshan Che officially settled the current Stage Quest with his thoughts.
The next moment, prompts continuously popped out, pushing the previous prompt aside.
Settling Stage Quest: Mikawa Uprising completion…
You and Imagawa Yoshimoto jointly suppressed the demons in the Mikawa Region, with a completion rate of 101%, earning a basic evaluation of A.
Your Historical Influence reached 3%, basic evaluation A → S-!
You personally killed all key figures of the Stage Quest: Mikawa Uprising—Sickness Incarnation, Hōshu: Lotus Light, evaluation S- → S+!
Due to your actions, the title “Imagawa Yoshimoto” spread further throughout the land, greatly increasing her Sengoku Period reputation, evaluation S+ → SS-!
You further spread the title “Great Onmyoji: Che” throughout the land. Your Muromachi Period · Sengoku Period reputation exceeded 8000 points, evaluation SS- → SS!
Settlement complete!
Your Stage Quest: Mikawa Uprising final evaluation is: SS!
Your Main Quest Part Two: Lord of the Tokaido’s evaluation has been improved!
Current evaluation is: A+!
Note! Rewards will be issued after returning to the Mortal Realm using Key of History: Stasis!
Shangshan Che’s initial focus was on the Historical Influence that reached a full 3%.
He knew that the last time he saw a precise figure, it was only 1.5%, and now it had doubled.
But in a flash, Shangshan Che’s gaze was drawn to the series of unprecedented quest ratings that followed, and he looked all the way to the end.
“SS-class evaluation…”
Shangshan Che murmured. This was the highest-level evaluation he had ever received.
But after two seconds, Shangshan Che narrowed his eyes and began to ponder.
He felt like he had done everything he could, putting in his utmost effort, yet the evaluation was only SS?
Then how would one achieve SS+, or even SSS above that?
Did he have to locate the Affliction the moment he received the quest and descend upon it with a single blow?
Or was it because too many people died in Mikawa Province… this was possible, as neither he nor Imagawa Yoshimoto had paid much special attention to the situation in Mikawa at first.
Shangshan Che sighed and stopped thinking about it.
Anyway, the quest was over, and he had to look forward.
As long as he remembered this quest experience, he could thoroughly review it before sleeping.
He looked up at the sun, which was already nearing the zenith, and instinctively called out: “Two-Foot Adult, let’s go…”
After waiting for a good few seconds, Shangshan Che suddenly realized.
That girl in the white dress could now only confine herself within the Ksitigarbha Statue.
He calmly turned around and, beckoning Kaga Kiyomitsu, who for the first time in two days was not repeating his words, headed towards the horse stable,
“Little Jia, let’s go.”
One person and one sword found a horse at the stable and set off towards Yoshida Castle.
Without obstruction.
Not long after the sun set, Shangshan Che could see the outline of Yoshida Castle from afar on the horizon.
As he got closer, he could clearly see rows of torches lit on the battlements of Yoshida Castle.
Imagawa Yoshimoto, clad in dark armor with a solemn expression, stood in the center.
And when Shangshan Che blinked again, he clearly noticed that a gaze silently locked onto him from a great distance.
Even as he rode his horse through the night.
He sighed: “That eyesight, others can truly only envy.”
Kaga Kiyomitsu, still in his scabbard, echoed him with great feeling.
Shangshan Che couldn’t be bothered to pay attention.
Shifting his gaze, he saw Okabe Motonobu standing beside Imagawa Yoshimoto, and Matsudaira Motoyasu, head bowed, lost in thought.
Some armored, high-ranking Samurai and Hatamoto also stood behind them on the battlements.
It was just that Shangshan Che looked left and right but couldn’t find Shiraishi—by rights, as Okabe Motonobu’s stable boy, he should have been qualified to stand with him.
He would ask later.
Before long, Shangshan Che arrived at the battlements of Yoshida Castle.
He sniffed the air, which was far fresher than before, and after the castle gate was opened wide, he patted his warhorse, signaling it to walk inside on its own.
As for Shangshan Che himself, he leaped to the edge of the battlements in a few steps, stepping on his right foot with his left, and landed steadily.
He patted the shoulder of a Hatamoto who was blocking the way, looking somewhat dazed, and said gently: “Please let me pass.”
“Oh… Oh! Che Adult, my apologies!”
The Hatamoto, startled by the sight, trembled and retreated to the side with a look of awe.
The front-row Samurai and Hatamoto all retreated, making way for Shangshan Che with unspoken tacit understanding, clearing a path directly to the center of the battlements.
Shangshan Che was about to wave to Okabe Motonobu when he saw her stern expression and then remembered that there were so many Samurai present.
So he just shouted, “Long time no see, Okabe Excellency.”
“Just a few days, Tetsu-sensei.”
After exchanging pleasantries, Shangshan Che, who had approached, condensed his Qi Barrier into a thread and asked softly, “Where is Shiraishi?”
Okabe Motonobu replied with the same method, “Still in the city, training by himself.”
Training? Training his stomach’s tolerance and digestive capacity?
Shangshan Che raised an eyebrow.
Seeing his expression, Okabe Motonobu earnestly added, “He’s been working very hard these days.”
Shangshan Che composed his expression… That little fellow Shiraishi is actually serious, could it be he’s sulking because I didn’t take him and doesn’t want to see me?
After some thought, Shangshan Che didn’t ask further.
Shiraishi has some pent-up anger and wants to go cultivate alone, that’s a good thing.
This little guy is surely thinking that I’ll cultivate hard and then show off my incredibly impressive cultivation results to shock him and prove him wrong…
Shangshan Che was happy to see it happen.
Shiraishi becoming stronger would certainly bring more good than bad.
He was still waiting to see Shiraishi replace Hattori Hanzo historically and become a Great Ninja.
Huh?
Shangshan Che, who suddenly felt a trace of Spiritual Power Fluctuation around him, looked over and saw that it was coming from a Samurai.
Although it was faint, it was undeniably present.
Shangshan Che then scanned the surrounding Samurai, most of whom were respectful, awed, and admired him, and found that they all bore traces of absorbing Spiritual Power.
He looked knowingly at Imagawa Yoshimoto, who was gazing into the distance.
—Perhaps they all learned the Onmyōdō she found.
As for her personally, she didn’t have any; I suppose she must have had better choices?
“They’re coming.”
Imagawa Yoshimoto suddenly spoke, causing Shangshan Che to direct his gaze in the same direction as hers.
The World Revival that was imminent allowed her to sense even a faint sign of it.
“Yes.”
Shangshan Che listened to the surging tide constantly echoing between heaven and earth, and nodded, “They’re coming.”
Splash!
After his internal Sea of Qi churned for a while, Shangshan Che spoke, perhaps for the first time, making a request to Imagawa Yoshimoto,
“Lord Yoshimoto, could you please help me find Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures related to the Five Elements—that is, Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, and Earth—later on?”
“Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures?” Imagawa Yoshimoto’s tone held some confusion.
“That is… precious metals, plants, or materials taken from Demons that contain abundant Spiritual Energy and look incredibly valuable just by looking at them.”
Imagawa Yoshimoto still didn’t quite understand.
But she silently nodded, as if taking note.
—Time has reached its limit here.
Shangshan Che closed his eyes.
If he delayed any longer, this World Revival from five hundred years ago would truly arrive.
After this, the truly spectacular Warring States Period would begin.
At that time, would he still be able to restrain himself from leaving for a long time?
Therefore, this timing was just right.
Perfectly right.
Shangshan Che exhaled gently, turned, and prepared to descend from the city wall to use the Key of History.
Just as he took a step, Imagawa Yoshimoto’s voice came from beside him, “Che… Mister, the spectacle that happens once a century is about to begin, don’t you want to watch it together?”
Shangshan Che turned back, smiled at the armored girl who was watching him,
“I’ll be back shortly after leaving for a bit.”
Imagawa Yoshimoto didn’t try to stop him further.
She hummed and watched Shangshan Che’s retreating figure until he disappeared around a corner in the crowd.
Imagawa Yoshimoto withdrew her gaze.
She remained silent.
For some reason, a feeling suddenly arose in her heart.
A feeling…
…
…
【 Confirm using Key of History: Stasis? 】
“Yes.”
And so, the entire world turned to faded gray once more, and Shangshan Che’s consciousness began to withdraw upwards.
Rumble!
Before returning to the Mortal Realm, Shangshan Che could hear the reverberation of the towering tidal waves from above echoing through the water.
Unlike the previous two times.
This time, the tidal waves had already reached his back.
【 You have temporarily left the late-mid Muromachi Shogunate period · Sengoku Period. 】
Shangshan Che opened his eyes in the intensely sunlit mountain forest.
He squinted and muttered, “No matter how many times I come, I can’t get used to this feeling of day and night instantly reversing.”
Instinctively taking out his mobile phone, Shangshan Che checked the date and found that it was only May 27th today.
May 27, 2024, in the morning.
Only about four days had passed since he encountered the Mikawa incident.
Shangshan Che rubbed his temples dazedly, a tired expression on his face,
“It feels like such a long, long time has passed.”
But the next moment, a suddenly appearing prompt interrupted his thoughts and lamentations, forcibly making Shangshan Che alert.
【 Distributing Stage Quest · Mikawa Rebellion Reward… 】
【 You have obtained Great Onmyōdō · Nine Syllable Mantra Scroll （ Incomplete ）! 】
【 You have obtained “Fragment of the Ten-Hand Sword”! 】
The rewards were simple, with only two extremely brief lines.
There wasn’t even a basic Soul Ash guarantee.
Shangshan Che was stunned.
Fewer words didn’t mean less importance; it meant the opposite.
After a long while, he grinned, “This is truly a heavyweight…”
A fragment of a Great Onmyōdō on par with Spirit Control Technique, and a part of the legendary weapon used by Susanoo to slay Yamata no Orochi.
Enough.
It was completely enough.
This was more than enough!
With a single thought, he clicked on the two items, and panels popped up one after another.
【 Great Onmyōdō · Nine Syllable Mantra Scroll （ Special Item ）】
【 Effect: Upon tearing, learn the Nine Syllable Mantra · Rin. 】
【 —An ancient scroll that stores the legendary Great Onmyōdō · Nine Syllable Mantra. Due to its age, its origin is untraceable. 】
【 Fragment of the Ten-Hand Sword 】
【 Quality: Super Epic 】
【 —A sliver of sword blade that was chipped off by the serpent’s tail when Susanoo slew Yamata no Orochi. 】
“Super Epic?”
Even though he was mentally prepared, Shangshan Che was still stunned for a moment when he saw such a quality displayed above a metal fragment that wasn’t even half the size of a fingernail.
This was possible?
He held up the unremarkable, iron-gray scrap in his hand and pointed it towards the sun, saying, “Little Jia, this thing is a notch higher than your quality…”
Kaga Kiyomitsu: “!!!”
Little Jia didn’t speak, only vibrated.
“Could this be used as a Defining Object for the Sea of Qi?” Shangshan Che tapped the metal fragment in his palm with his finger. “If it can, then the Metal attribute of the Five Elements would be covered.”
He immediately resolved to try it out when he returned home or entered the Special Affairs Office.
These remote mountain areas were not very safe.
—Placing a powerful Defining Object into the Sea of Qi might cause one to fall unconscious or lose control of their body.
Who knew if the demons in the mountain forest had been cleared out; it would be bad if someone picked up his corpse.
This item storing the Great Onmyōdō would also not be used for now.
For the same reason, just in case.
But there was one thing he could do now.
Rather, it was something best done in a deserted mountain area like this.
Shangshan Che transformed into White Hannya, took out the long-neglected 【 White Woman Mask 】 from his backpack.
And placed it on his face.
This was the cheapest of the three masks that could summon Katsumi, costing only 2,000 Soul Ash.
However, correspondingly, Katsumi would arrive the slowest.
Flipping through the items he intended to sell, Shangshan Che muttered to himself,
“I wonder how long I’ll have to wait here…”
But after only a few seconds, accompanied by the dissipating sound of illusory waves, that long-lost, melodious, and drawn-out voice rang in his ears,
“Yohoho—Long time no see, Walker Adult~”
Shangshan Che, who had just put on the Woman Mask, was greatly astonished.
He looked at the rustling bushes beside him, which were parting to the sides.
Emerging from the verdant foliage was a Straw Figure resembling Katsumi, wearing a golden God of Wealth Hat and holding an Ukiyo-e Folding Fan.
He was fanning himself, rubbing his fingers together, and smiling at Shangshan Che.
