Chapter 121: Ju-hina Yako Master Three-star
Is it simply a coincidence that led to the same name, or…
Shangshan Che slowly peeled off the transparent tape from the iron box.
But a name like “Yako” is used by far fewer people than common surnames like “Tanaka” or “Aoyama,” making it extremely rare.
The real Goto Yoko had long been tricked by Nishiyama Ryota into the mountain forest and buried alive before even meeting him, and her own grudge had already accumulated to form a Bone Woman for revenge.
If the two were truly the same person, then what exactly was the “Yako” he had seen before?
Shangshan Che turned back and saw another slightly shorter building behind the bathhouse.
Whether Goto Yoko was truly the same Yako he had seen while slaying the Princess Doll—presumably, the answer lay within that building.
But no rush for now.
Shangshan Che completely peeled off the layers of tape wrapping the pink iron box, carefully opened the lid, and saw stacks of small notes with yellowed edges placed inside.
The handwriting on them was still somewhat crooked, clearly written by someone young.
He looked at the first note placed on top.
【Decided to go to school in Yokohama today, so I can still come home every week to see Mom and Dad… But before starting school, I’ll bury the wish box first. I wonder which ones it will fulfill when I dig it up after graduation.】
Shangshan Che paused in silence, then took out all the stack of variously colored notes.
He planned to read them all.
This was also a way to determine if the two Goto Yakos were the same person.
The second one.
【Junior high is about to graduate! Mom asked if I want to go to nearby Yokohama for convenience to come home, or go to the big city Tokyo to attend school with Mengzi. Hmm… sounds tough to choose.】
The third one.
【Mengzi said she’s transferring to Tokyo. Don’t anime always say childhood friends who grew up together stay together? Heartbroken QWQ. But I think we’ll definitely meet again!】
The fourth one.
【Met my first friend at school, her name is Xingye Mengzi. She said we can be friends for life. A lifetime… feels so long.】
The fifth one.
【Today I played house under the cherry blossom tree with the dolls, got scolded by Mom, but it was fun. I want to play with the dolls from now on too.】
The last one.
【Birthday cake, Mom bought a doll, I’m happy!】
Roughly confirmed.
Shangshan Che closed the wish box again.
The “Yako” he had encountered before and “Goto Yoko” should be the same person.
“But truly, life’s twists are unpredictable.”
Placing the small jade box and the wish box together into the pit, Shangshan Che scooped handfuls of soil to bury them back and patted it down firm.
—Back then, when Goto Yoko thought a lifetime felt so long, would she have imagined that now she would end up buried in the same place as the wish box she had personally buried, together by a stranger?
Probably not.
Shangshan Che sighed with a touch of emotion and looked at the prompt that popped up after he buried the jade box.
【You have buried the “Bone Woman’s Wish” in the grave the Bone Woman desired. You have obtained the permanent buff·Tomorrow.】
【Tomorrow: Many things will gradually develop in the direction you desire as time passes.】
【—Tomorrow will always be a little better than today. I believe this so firmly, and I live by it.】
This buff looks quite good. Though it might not be perceptible right now, in the future where the tides of the era continue to surge, it might become a crucial boost.
Besides, he had only run an errand for her, so what right did he have to be dissatisfied with the reward?
Still, Shangshan Che stared at the description for a while and felt it somewhat ironic.
Whatever.
Closing the prompt, Shangshan Che decided to head to the small building behind—the home of Goto Yoko—to check it out.
Although the contents of the wish box suggested they were the same person, there was no absolute definitive evidence yet.
The situation in her home would determine whether Shangshan Che would make a move on the “Yako” who had left with Monk Huiming.
Shangshan Che gave a final glance at the small dirt mound under the withered cherry blossom tree, then withdrew his gaze, walked up to the small building, and effortlessly slid open the door on one side.
A thick cloud of dust rose up, making Shangshan Che frown and wave his hand.
He lowered his head and saw at least an inch-thick layer of dust in the gaps of the entrance hall steps… Judging by the extent, this house hadn’t been lived in or visited for at least four or five years.
Wearing Kaga Kiyomitsu at his waist, Shangshan Che used his left hand to open cabinets and room doors one by one, while his right hand rested on the hilt, ready to respond to any sudden situations.
But everything was unremarkable.
It seemed this attic was simply an abandoned house long unoccupied.
“One last room.”
Shangshan Che stood before the final room on the third floor, staring at the plaque reading “Storage Room,” a premonition rising in his heart that he would absolutely discover something.
Clack clack—
He somewhat laboriously pushed aside the dust-covered shoji door and peered inside.
“Tch.”
Shangshan Che narrowed his eyes.
The storage room floor was not only spotless but also devoid of any excess clutter, almost impeccably cleaned and organized.
In the center of the entire storage room stood a tall, exquisite seven-tier Hina Doll Altar, positioned directly facing the doorway.
The so-called seven-tier Hina Doll Altar is a tiered stand specifically for displaying purchased Dolls for Girls’ Festival, also known as Hina Dolls.
Apart from the first five tiers holding a total of 15 dolls, the sixth and seventh tiers held dowry furniture and vehicles respectively.
Originally, there was nothing unusual about this.
But on this seven-tier Hina Doll Altar before him, the first five tiers that should have held the Hina Dolls were completely empty, while the furnishings on the sixth and seventh tiers were all intact, equally spotless.
The surfaces of the furniture and sedan chair reflected faint light, almost as brand new as when just purchased.
So, who had been periodically cleaning this seven-tier Hina Doll Altar?
The answer was obvious.
Shangshan Che exhaled, took out his mobile phone from his pocket, and dialed Huiming’s number.
The Yako he had seen before, even if not a Hina Doll, was absolutely some other inhuman thing.
And now, that thing had slipped into Hongyuan Temple, which only had a few cats and kittens.
Just the previous One-and-a-Half Star Court Lady Doll had nearly overturned the entire temple; the masters of Hongyuan Temple absolutely couldn’t handle this “Yako” on their own.
But strangely… why hadn’t a Demons and Monsters tag popped up above Yako’s head when he saw her before?
Beep beep beep.
The busy tone from the phone interrupted Shangshan Che’s thoughts.
“Is there something wrong with this bathhouse?”
Shangshan Che pocketed his phone, kicked open a third-floor window, and leaped out, spotting two translucent figures appearing before that withered cherry blossom tree mid-air.
A line of identifiers popped up—
【Goto Bathhouse Earthbound Spirits（Two-and-a-Half Star）】
Earthbound Spirits, surprisingly.
Perhaps at other times, a mere Two-and-a-Half Star demon wouldn’t amount to much.
But at this critical moment where every second counted, earthbound spirits with strong vitality on their home turf could definitely delay him considerably.
Shangshan Che first tried to leave through the bathhouse’s main entrance but found it enveloped by a barrier that had risen at some point.
To leave the bathhouse, he had to first slay the earthbound spirit that had deployed the barrier.
“This is getting troublesome.”
Shangshan Che drew Kaga Kiyomitsu, exhaling hot white mist from his mouth, and landed with a boom not far from the two translucent figures.
Corona Breathing Technique·Fifth—
“What is your relationship with Yako…?”
A blurry tone reached Shangshan Che’s ears; he paused, looking toward the earthbound spirits’ faces.
One man and one woman, two faces extremely similar to Yako’s, came into view.
The Goto Bathhouse Earthbound Spirits were actually Goto Yoko’s parents?
Was negotiation possible then?
—If possible, Shangshan Che didn’t want to expend a large amount of spiritual power and internal qi before facing the “Yako” of unknown strength.
Today’s Awakening Spirit Mist was already used up; excessive consumption wouldn’t recover quickly.
So Shangshan Che said straightforwardly: “I’m a friend of Goto Yoko. I came this time on Yako’s instructions to bury her ashes under the cherry blossom tree.”
The two earthbound spirits, or rather Yako’s parents, trembled, asking in unison: “Yako… who killed her?”
“Rest assured, the one who harmed her has already been sent underground by me.”
Shangshan Che paused, then added: “You might not know yet, but the revived Hina Doll seems to have taken on Yako’s appearance and is harming people outside, and I’m on my way to stop her.”
“—So, let me go.”
Shangshan Che gripped Kaga Kiyomitsu’s hilt tightly and said seriously.
This was the final warning.
If these two suddenly appearing earthbound spirits remained unreasonable, whether they were Goto Yoko’s parents or grandparents, Shangshan Che would strike without hesitation.
Faint spiritual power fluctuations came from all directions.
Shangshan Che understood: this was the earthbound spirits voluntarily dispelling the barrier, reconnecting this space to the outside world.
The two earthbound spirits bowed deeply to him, their tones filled with apology: “Sorry, our daughter has caused you trouble.”
“Mm.”
Without saying more, Shangshan Che reverted to human form, redialed Huiming’s number, and left the Goto Bathhouse in a few strides.
Once outside the bathhouse, the call connected quickly.
But the voice from the other end wasn’t Huiming speaking, but another familiar voice.
“Shangshan Jun?”
Yako’s timid, somewhat frail voice came through.
Shangshan Che’s steps halted for an instant, without responding.
Then he heard Yako continue: “Young Master Huiming is making evening porridge in the kitchen, so it’s inconvenient for him to answer the phone.”
Yako seemed to have pressed the speaker button after saying this, as the distinctive chopping sounds and sizzling stir-fry noises from the kitchen came through.
Shangshan Che breathed a sigh of relief inwardly—since even Huiming, closest to Yako, was fine, it meant she hadn’t made her move yet and hadn’t realized her identity was exposed.
Good, made it in time.
“Um… Shangshan Jun, Young Master Huiming said if you’re coming, he’ll save a portion of the evening porridge for you.”
As she said this, Shangshan Che keenly detected a faint trace of joy in Yako’s tone.
His brows twitched slightly, then he chuckled warmly by the phone: “I’m coming, of course. I’ve just finished my business, so please save me a portion… Oh, and clear out a room for me too.”
Next, Shangshan Che pleasantly chatted with Yako over the phone about the evening porridge ingredients—Hui Ming was worried he might not be used to them, so he asked a few more questions.
Hanging up.
The smile on Shangshan Che’s face vanished instantly, turning into chilling coldness.
He hailed a taxi again and said the moment he pulled open the door,
“Get to Hongyuan Temple at the fastest speed.”
…
Forty minutes later, at Hongyuan Temple’s doorway.
The sunset was nearly gone, only a golden-red tip peeking over the horizon.
Stars and moon were faintly visible on the black canopy of the sky.
Demon Hour was passing, night about to fall.
Thump thump.
Shangshan Che forcefully struck the door cymbals twice; the crisp metallic clang echoed far in the quiet Hongyuan Temple.
No one?
Shangshan Che fell silent; just as he was about to draw Kaga Kiyomitsu to slash open the gate, the door opened.
The one who opened it was Yako, her glasses askew, face full of panic.
“Shangshan Jun! Everyone in the temple suddenly fainted for some reason. What do we do!”
“Fainted, huh.”
Shangshan Che flared his nostrils; no scent of blood.
No large-scale spiritual power fluctuations lingering around.
So he maintained his Jade Heart Incantation disguise, staring at Yako with concern: “Take me to see.”
“Okay!”
Following behind Yako, Shangshan Che soon arrived before a side hall.
Yako stopped at the doorway, face showing fear, gesturing for him to open it: “Shangshan Jun, everyone was eating evening porridge here originally…”
Shangshan Che glanced inconspicuously at Yako and pushed open the door without hesitation.
Inside the side hall was empty!
Apart from some basic furnishings, there wasn’t even a bowl of meal or a single person.
Shangshan Che turned back to Yako, expecting her to finally reveal her fangs, but surprisingly, the girl’s face showed undisguised shock.
“How could… no one be here? They were just here…”
Yako murmured in bewilderment.
This scene forcibly held back Shangshan Che’s Kaga Kiyomitsu that was about to be unsheathed.
What was going on?
He had even anticipated this “Yako” ambushing him from behind, so he would transform into White Hannya and deliver the strongest slash in an instant.
Shangshan Che stared at Yako’s head again for a while, finding no tag popping up still.
—The real Goto Yoko had undoubtedly died.
—So what exactly was this thing before his eyes?
Time ticked away, perhaps two seconds or three… It didn’t matter; in one breath, the last rays of the sunset had completely faded.
Demon Hour had passed.
Yako suddenly rolled her eyes back and collapsed to the ground without warning.
The next moment, chilling yin qi abruptly spread throughout the Buddha hall, clinging to Shangshan Che’s skin.
Taiko drum, big drum, small drum sounds rang successively, followed by deep flute tones weaving them into a melody.
Seeing this, Shangshan Che actually relaxed.
He drew Kaga Kiyomitsu: “If nothing had happened at all, I’d have to worry if I was caught in a trap.”
Accompanied by the echoing sorrowful, melodious singing, one Hina Doll after another slowly emerged from the fainted Yako, forming four layers inside and out.
The outermost layer consisted of servants with faces showing anger, sorrow, and joy respectively; they held sedge hats, wooden clogs, and wooden umbrellas.
Finally, prompts popped up before Shangshan Che’s eyes—
【Servant Doll·Anger（One-Star）】
【Servant Doll·Sorrow（One-Star）】
【Servant Doll·Joy（One-Star）】
Further in, on the left stood the Left Minister holding a long tachi, and on the right the Right Minister with a quiver on back and longbow in hand; their gazes sharp, fixed on Shangshan Che.
【Left Minister Doll（Two-Star）】
【Right Minister Doll（Two-Star）】
Deeper in were the five-member band playing harmonious music with various instruments, and the two remaining Court Lady Dolls holding sake vessels.
The five musicians were only Half-Star each, but the Court Lady Dolls were One-and-a-Half Star like the one he had slain before.
Shangshan Che scanned them at a glance; though there were 14 Hina Dolls total, only four posed a real threat to him.
The left and right ministers, plus the Emperor and Empress wrapped in the center.
The harmonious music faded; an arrogant question emanated from the deepest midst of the dolls.
“You, you’re called Shangshan Che, right?”
Shangshan Che looked up, meeting those pitch-black eyeballs—
【Empress Doll（Two-and-a-Half Star）】
The Empress Doll wore a yellow kosode imperial robe, a jeweled crown on her head, held a cypress fan, wore black clogs painted with gold lacquer, her makeup exquisite yet dignified and majestic.
Beside her, the equally regally attired Emperor half-lowered his eyes, silent.
At first glance, Shangshan Che almost mistook her for real.
Without responding, Shangshan Che only asked: “Where are Hongyuan Temple’s monks?”
No sooner had he spoken than the Left Minister with the tachi bellowed: “Insolent! How dare you speak disrespectfully to Her Majesty! Kneel!”
Her Majesty?
Shangshan Che extracted useful words from the useless statement—if the Empress was “Her Majesty,” had something gone wrong with the Emperor beside her?
“Stand down!”
The Empress Doll flicked her sleeve, making the originally ferocious-faced Left Minister retreat immediately.
This scene made Shangshan Che chuckle inwardly—was this them playing court pretend?
“Those monks are temporarily fine; after all, they are key materials for using the Hina Matsuri Curse to revive Yako.”
The Empress said flatly: “Shangshan Che, if you surrender and serve as the core sacrifice for the Hina Matsuri Curse, then both we and the revived Yako will forever remember your contribution.”
Shangshan Che was stunned—he hadn’t misheard, had he? This Hina Doll wanted him to give up resistance through mere words and be sacrificed along with all of Hongyuan Temple’s monks.
It was insulting his intelligence.
But these dolls’ goal… was actually to revive Goto Yoko?
Hadn’t the Hina Dolls gained life precisely because they were forgotten by their owner, then accumulated loneliness and resentment over time to form new consciousness?
Shouldn’t they resent Goto Yoko?
Shangshan Che decided to probe further: “Goto Yoko is already dead.”
“—That’s why we must use the Hina Matsuri Curse to draw power from the Yellow Springs, remodeling her soul using her childhood self as template.”
Mentioning Goto Yoko, the Empress Doll’s tone held deep resentment yet also boundless tenderness.
She looked toward the “Yako” collapsed on the ground: “We will place the remodeled soul into this body.”
“That way, Yako can eternally love us and stay by our side.”
These words left Shangshan Che silent.
So that was the Hina Dolls’ goal.
—Love breeds hate; what entanglement of love and hate could surpass this?
At the same time, Shangshan Che understood: either he would exorcise all these extremely obsessive, twisted dolls next,
Or he would be sacrificed by this group of Hina Dolls via some Hina Matsuri Curse, in exchange for a soul of unknown nature as “Goto Yoko.”
“—Alright, I agree.”
Stunning the dolls with unexpected words, Shangshan Che continued: “Yako is a good girl, so if my death can exchange for her life, nothing could be better.”
He smiled slightly at the Empress Doll: “So, what do I need to do?”
The Empress Doll hadn’t expected this human brimming with rich spiritual power to agree to her demand so readily.
So she paused, then laughed behind her cypress fan, her words laced with irrepressible joy: “Quick! Court Ladies, bathe and change clothes for this Mr. Shangshan…”
But before she finished, a thigh-thick bluish-purple lightning bolt descended from the sky, the thunder precise enough to pierce the atmosphere striking the Emperor Doll beside her.
Blinding electric arcs scattered, piercing the Empress Doll’s cypress fan and bringing her genuine pain.
At this moment, before the 14… no, 13 Hina Dolls, the black-haired, black-eyed human boy vanished abruptly, replaced by a four-tailed fox wearing a ferocious White Hannya Mask.
The four-tailed fox lightly shook its folding fan and said flatly: “Kill one first.”
Feeling his spiritual power nearly depleted, Shangshan Che stowed the fan and transformed into White Hannya.
Kaga Kiyomitsu unsheathed; pale color immediately spread in all directions.
Only now did the Empress Doll realize the human had tricked them, and in that moment used sorcery to thoroughly slay the Emperor Doll.
The Empress Doll whipped her head around, staring deathly at the Hannya Mask grinning ferociously at the corner of its lips, and raved madly,
“You… you!”
—Poor combat literacy.
Slashing apart the arrows shot by the Right Minister, forcing back the Left Minister with one strike, Shangshan Che inwardly judged the Empress Doll as such.
—Just a child with power but no idea how to use it.
The paper strength Two-and-a-Half Star Empress Doll was less threatening than the left and right ministers; as for the remaining musicians and servants, their threat was nearly zero.
Whoosh!
A sharp arrow from the Right Minister embedded in Shangshan Che’s waist, bringing deep pain.
He ignored it, striding toward the Left Minister without pause.
The Left Minister’s gleaming blade was already reflecting in Shangshan Che’s pupils; the long tachi about to fall, while Kaga Kiyomitsu was still in starting stance.
But I’m faster.
Shangshan Che took a deep breath; scorching internal qi surged to his body’s extremities in a flash, overflowing every muscle and nerve.
Slash!
Blade light capable of cleaving all dolls passed where the Left Minister had stood, but Shangshan Che’s hand felt no feedback of hitting anything.
Missed?
Shangshan Che’s motion hesitated slightly.
Before he could think further, alarm bells rang in his mind; chilling intent instantly climbed from his feet to the crown of his head.
Without hesitation, Shangshan Che retreated several meters, then saw clearly the source of the intense death premonition—
A perfectly ordinary pink cherry blossom petal.
A cherry blossom petal?
This thing…
Before his thoughts settled, Shangshan Che instinctively shifted position again, seeing another petal land on the plaza’s stone bricks.
Shangshan Che looked up to see scattered cherry blossom petals drifting down like rain from the night sky.
After a moment’s gaze, a red prompt popped up on the petals—
【Hina Matsuri Domain: Centered on the Ju-Hina Yako Master, cherry blossom petals will continuously fall around. Those touched gain the “Early Wither” mark. When Early Wither stacks to 10 layers, triggers “Instant Death” effect.】
“Ju-Hina Yako Master…?”
Shangshan Che’s pupils contracted slightly; at the spot where the Empress Doll had stood not far away, he glimpsed the tall doll clad in a red-gold-black kimono, its facial makeup exaggerated and twisted.
“Kill you… complete Hina Matsuri! Bring Yako back to life!”
It waved its six arms grasping sword and bow, drum and flute, screaming madly as a large red tag popped up above—
【Ju-Hina Yako Master（Three-Star）（Incomplete）】
Shangshan Che stared at it, thoughts racing in an instant.
Though the Ju-Hina Yako Master looked terrifying and the Hina Matsuri Domain’s effect was horrifying with its unheard-of instant death,
The petals fell slowly, not hard to dodge.
The qi emanating from the Ju-Hina Yako Master was far inferior to fellow Three-Star Snow Woman, White Bone, and Wax Figure.
Even weaker than Ai Bieli, whom Shangshan Che had chased in Ota Ward at only Two-and-a-Half Star.
Perhaps because he had preemptively killed the Emperor Doll, causing incomplete fusion, this Three-Star opponent seemed…
Exceptionally weak.
Dismissing the idea of calling Nanjo Emi, Shangshan Che dodged petals while confronting the Ju-Hina Yako Master, simultaneously pulling out his phone to call Huijue on Line.
Beep.
The call connected.
Shangshan Che said: “Huijue, something’s happened at Hongyuan Temple in your hometown.”
The previously noisy environment on the other end quieted instantly.
Moments later, Huijue’s calm voice came,
“This monk is coming.”
—If he had called Nanjo Emi, she could arrive in two or three minutes and one-shot the Ju-Hina Yako Master.
That would contradict Shangshan Che’s desire to slay it solo.
But calling Huijue meant he could back him up if Shangshan Che fell to the Ju-Hina Yako Master, likely ensuring Hongyuan Temple’s monks stayed safe.
Pocketing the phone, Shangshan Che cracked his neck and gripped the trembling Kaga Kiyomitsu tightly.
After his strength had greatly increased, foes like Princess Dolls and Bone Women were too weak, unable to withstand even a few casual slashes.
While Three-and-a-Half Star-plus demons like Snow Woman and Wax Figures were too strong, still able to one-shot him.
This one was right in the middle.
Perfect.
White Hannya grinned pleasantly, revealing long-absent blazing battle intent.
“Come.”
