Chapter 206: Dramatic Change From Historical Influence Of 3, The Sickly Deceased Imagawa Yoshimoto! Totsuka-no-tsurugi, Defining The Sea Of Qi!
Only a few seconds have passed?
Shangshan Che, who had prepared to wait a whole day and temper his bones in the meantime, stood with his mouth agape, taking several seconds to recover from his shock.
He removed the mask from his face and, upon confirming it was indeed the White Woman Mask【White Woman Mask】, murmured in slight confusion,
“I didn’t put it on wrong either…”
“Naturally, it’s not Your Excellency’s issue.”
A small gap on the straw face opened and closed, producing the unique rustling sound of straw rubbing together.
Katsumi snapped his miniature folding fan shut and hopped onto the branch in front of Shangshan Che in a few quick movements, looking him straight in the eye as he said,
“In recent days, the mild aftershocks of the tide have arrived… I took the opportunity to scatter many clones, reconnecting with numerous long-lost clients.
One clone happened to land nearby, so it rode the wave into the Mortal Realm.”
So that’s how it is…
Shangshan Che recalled the towering wave that had just passed overhead.
Mild?
Real or fake?
What would the real thing look like then?
He tentatively asked, “Are you referring to the aftershocks of the tide that will hit the Mortal Realm in a couple of days?”
“Your Excellency sees clearly.”
Katsumi nodded vigorously—his clone was only the size of a palm, so any smaller movement would make it hard to see.
This won’t do.
It might lead customers to misunderstand his intentions.
“By the way.” The straw figure looked Shangshan Che up and down, unable to hold back a gasp of admiration. “Your Excellency, it’s only been a few days, but your strength has already far surpassed before.”
Katsumi couldn’t help laughing. “See, my eye for quality is as sharp as ever!”
“Just good luck, happened to stumble into a ghost secret realm. Nothing worth mentioning.”
Shangshan Che shook his head—he wouldn’t reveal too much truth to a merchant like Katsumi.
Who knows if this information might be passed on to other demons and monsters in the Eternal World as “bonus intel” sometime later.
Katsumi gave a noncommittal hum, clearly unconvinced.
But he didn’t pry further; asking too much about a customer’s private info wasn’t good practice.
A merchant, after all, was here for business.
“So, Your Excellency.”
Katsumi dropped the previous topic and bowed slightly. “What did you summon me for this time?”
“Selling and buying.”
Shangshan Che answered concisely, waving his hand to take several large items he wanted to sell out of his storage bag. “Katsumi, take a look.”
Plague God Bell, Fine Steel Pestle, Bloodstained Broken Hina Crown, and Ashigaru Armor…
As for the miscellaneous small items and materials, he didn’t take those out for now.
—The Plague God Bell’s effects stacked eight times with Kaga Kiyomitsu’s but were still much weaker; the Hina Crown could summon at most one-and-a-half star, maybe two-star dolls at best, and couldn’t keep up with him anymore.
No need to mention the armor; Shangshan Che had never intended to use it from the start.
As for the Fine Steel Pestle, he could decide after seeing Katsumi’s offer.
The straw figure resembling Katsumi’s eyes lit up instantly.
He examined the items with tsks of amazement, finally fixing his gaze on the matte iron pestle gleaming under the sunlight.
“Impressive!”
Katsumi happily opened his folding fan. “The items Your Excellency wants to sell are all of truly fine quality!”
“However, this clone of mine really can’t cross the tide to collect goods easily.”
The straw figure pondered for a moment. “Your Excellency, why not set a time, don the mask in the Eternal World, and I will surely arrive shortly.”
He pointed at the Fine Steel Pestle. “Especially this iron pestle; I have a Ghost God level ox demon client who needs it and can surely offer a price you’ll be satisfied with.”
Katsumi cupped his hands. “Thus, please keep it for now, Your Excellency.”
A Ghost God level wanting a Rare Grade weapon?
No… probably its durability from the effects is what caught their eye.
Shangshan Che smiled faintly and nodded,
“Of course.”
With agreement reached, Katsumi continued, “What does Your Excellency want then?”
“—Business has been booming lately, so even my main body in the Eternal World can’t move freely. Please state the types of items you wish to buy first, and I’ll have a clone bring them.”
“Five Elements materials, any quality high or low.
Time-wise, let’s set it for one day from now.”
Shangshan Che flicked the Kaga Kiyomitsu at his waist and continued bluffing. “Recently found a Master Craftsman; want to reforge my weapon.”
“I understand…”
Katsumi had just bowed with his folding fan, preparing to leave, when his gaze was firmly locked onto the Kaga Kiyomitsu peeking a small section of blade from Shangshan Che’s waist.
Unable to look away.
Buzz?
Kaga Kiyomitsu sensed the gaze and vibrated lightly in confusion.
Katsumi’s eyes widened, and he immediately raised his voice. “Your Excellency—!”
“Not for sale.”
Shangshan Che rarely interrupted the other.
He replied flatly, slapping the curious Little Jia back in with one hand.
This brat always had to cause some trouble to settle down.
Shangshan Che sighed inwardly—Little Jia still didn’t seem to know how attractive he was to others.
Only after Kaga Kiyomitsu was fully sheathed again did Katsumi snap out of his lapse.
“Apologies.”
He composed himself, jumping down from the branch apologetically. “If Your Excellency has no further business, I’ll go prepare the goods.”
Shangshan Che nodded. “Safe travels, Katsumi Boss.”
The straw figure bowed again.
He turned and leaped, vanishing from Shangshan Che’s sight in an instant.
After the strangely dressed straw figure left, Kaga Kiyomitsu, just pushed back in, peeked out a small section of blade again and asked curiously,
“Little Jia… Little Jia doesn’t understand what Master and the straw person were saying…”
Shangshan Che pursed his lips speechlessly at that.
With all the polite language and circumlocutions between him and Katsumi…
If Kaga Kiyomitsu could understand, he’d have to make a【Mortal Realm’s Smartest Genius Daito】 award certificate for it tomorrow.
Recalling the scene, Shangshan Che irritably crooked his finger and knocked on Kaga Kiyomitsu’s scabbard.
Giving Little Jia a flick on the forehead.
“Ugh.”
Kaga Kiyomitsu vibrated dully, emitting a sullen, puzzled emotion.
Feeling bad after, Shangshan Che gently stroked the spot he’d just knocked, sighing,
“Little Jia, in the future, don’t pop out of the scabbard around strangers.”
Kaga Kiyomitsu vibrated in confusion.
Shangshan Che feigned menace. “Because they might be bad guys! Bad guys might run off with you! Then you’d never see me again!”
Kaga Kiyomitsu seemed to buy the kid-scaring routine completely, freezing motionless without even responding.
Shangshan Che nodded inwardly in satisfaction.
That’s more like it.
Otherwise, if Kaga Kiyomitsu poked out to scout everywhere they went, it’d attract a ton of unnecessary trouble.
Shangshan Che smiled, transforming into a four-tailed fox while opening LINE on his phone and circulating Spirit Control Technique to sense the Mortal Realm’s changes between heaven and earth.
LINE was still spinning loading due to the mountain’s lousy signal, but Spirit Control Technique already gave Shangshan Che the answer from countless clues,
“The tide’s aftershocks aren’t here that fast, huh.”
Not too far off, but at least it meant he could take a proper break and relax.
Shangshan Che grinned, clicking on Nanjo Emi’s grayed-out profile picture once LINE finally loaded.
Tap, and her latest status popped up.
【—On vacation, do not disturb.】
Well.
Probably Sister Nanjo had just finished boozing and was sleeping soundly.
Shangshan Che backed out and tapped the also-offline Huijue’s profile, sending him two messages.
【Moon Sand Sauce: Master, my shikigami Two-Foot Adult got her cognition corrupted from absorbing too much wish power, so she’s sealed herself in her familiar.】
【Moon Sand Sauce: If you have any good solutions or ideas, please contact me ASAP.】
Thinking it over, Shangshan Che followed up with a thank-you sticker.
Alright, now just wait for the expert’s reply.
About to clear all his red notifications as usual, Shangshan Che paused, noticing not many from the last couple days.
Everyone seemed busy with their own things… except Kitano Runa, that shut-in, who dumped a barrage of kuku messages like venting to a tree hole.
Even without replies, she kept sending.
Shangshan Che tapped in and saw her asking which April new anime he’d watched, recommending a bunch of “masterpieces” and “great works.”
Not only that, she sent a July new anime preview PV link and rambled on.
Mixed with tons of stickers, or it wouldn’t have hit “99+” notifications.
If he were still living in a magic-less world, he’d probably get along great with Kitano Runa.
But now…
Shangshan Che sighed, typing a reply.
【Moon Sand Sauce: Big sis, I don’t have time to watch anime.】
Next was the Arakawa Ward seed tournament group he’d been added to.
In a few days, the group had nearly doubled in size.
Shangshan Che nodded in satisfaction. “Looks like plenty of promising newbies.”
Lurking and scrolling the chat, where everyone discussed simple stuff, Shangshan Che suddenly felt drowsy, his eyelids growing heavy,
“Why does the Mortal Realm’s spiritual energy feel so abundant?”
Shangshan Che yawned. “It’s making me ‘spirit-drunk’…”
Pocketing his phone, Shangshan Che planned to ride the train home and crash properly, following the sleepiness.
Soon, he boarded a relatively empty train and sat in a corner seat to nap.
But just as he was about to doze off, a nearly forgotten thought flashed like lightning through his mind, jolting Shangshan Che fully awake.
Sleepiness gone.
He’d almost forgotten!
—This time, he’d racked up a full 3% Historical Influence in the Sengoku Period! Plus massive reputation boosts for himself and Imagawa Yoshimoto!
—He hadn’t checked the changes yet!
Shangshan Che hurriedly pulled out his phone, opening the browser to type “Imagawa Yoshimoto.”
But with his finger already on the【search】 bar, the phone screen went black.
Out of battery, shut down.
Shangshan Che: “…”
At this pants-off critical moment, the phone dies.
Actually, shutting down now made sense.
He had no idea how long since he’d last charged it; even unused in the storage bag, the few times he’d taken it out drained it plenty.
But the timing.
Perfectly awful.
Shangshan Che gritted his teeth irritably, retracting the fingertips crackling with starry lightning.
—Whatever, finding a spot to charge won’t take long.
Messing up the phone by accident would be a hassle; no telling how much data it’d lose.
Next stop, get off.
Shangshan Che thought so, staring at the route map above the train, tapping the slightly cold stainless steel handrail.
Until the mild, mechanical female voice announced.
“Next stop, arriving soon…”
Hiss.
The train slowed to a stop, its somewhat old doors sliding open on both sides.
Once the queued passengers had all exited, Shangshan Che stood from his seat and headed to the door.
“Shangshan Jun, getting off here for some urgent business?”
A familiar-to-the-core voice halted his steps.
Shangshan Che looked up, spotting the calm-tempered girl with black high ponytail and everyday clothes under the hazy sunlight.
Simple loose long-sleeve white T, paired with capri jeans.
Nothing more.
She stood with one hand in pocket, watching him like bumping into a good friend, casually chatting.
The train’s departure chime prompted her to step aboard.
The two stared silently.
Shangshan Che took a deep breath, as if making a major decision.
Facing Lili Zi, he asked their first words since reuniting.
He asked,
“Got a power bank?”
Even with Lili Zi’s heart calmer than Walden Pond, a flicker of astonishment crossed her face.
……
“So, you wanted off here and asked for my power bank purely because your phone died?”
“Exactly right.”
Back at their original corner seats, the two sat side by side.
In Shangshan Che’s hand was now the girl’s phone.
“What era is this? Heading out with a phone that can still die.”
Lili Zi, having just advised a certain shut-in girl, withdrew her gaze, legs crossed as she muttered, “Shangshan Jun, you need to hire an expert at home too…”
Opening Lili Zi’s phone revealed an exceptionally clean interface.
Aside from essential chat, social, and info apps, not a single entertainment app installed.
From beside him came Lili Zi’s slightly curious voice,
“Whatcha looking for.”
“Some history.”
“Oh.”
Lili Zi lost interest, propping her cheek with her right fist and quietly gazing at the scenery flashing by outside the window.
A few days apart, Lili Zi actually had plenty to say to Shangshan Che.
But running into him suddenly on the train, she realized there was no need to ramble much.
The girl raised her hand, lightly pinching a thread drifting from Shangshan Che.
This Sword Principle was the best answer.
“Skill and Reason, huh…”
To her left, Shangshan Che typed “Imagawa Yoshimoto” into the search bar again.
Hit search.
Tapped into Imagawa Yoshimoto’s Wikipedia.
Shangshan Che read line by line, but the entry still said Imagawa Yoshimoto fell at Oko shazam.
Key historical point unchanged.
That shouldn’t be.
He’d minimized Mikawa Province’s losses, she seized real control of all local clans, even prepared ahead of World Revival.
Plus, after experiencing so much together, Imagawa Yoshimoto wouldn’t make that careless mistake again.
Shangshan Che scrolled up, seeing the info on suppressing the Mikawa Uprising in 1556 at absurd speed.
Proving his changes to history were real.
“Weird…”
Instead of exiting, Shangshan Che opened an incognito tab and searched “Sengoku Great Onmyoji Che.”
With his Sengoku reputation over 8000, the records should be way more detailed now…
【No relevant search results】
The blank search page filled the screen, stunning Shangshan Che.
Scrolling down yielded only general onmyoji results, nothing on “Sengoku Great Onmyoji Che.”
Not a trace.
As if he’d never existed.
After repeated futile searches, Shangshan Che returned to Imagawa Yoshimoto’s page.
And found the line about him using lightning magic at her coming-of-age ceremony gone.
Shangshan Che fell silent.
How could this be?
Hadn’t his reputation skyrocketed?
So why completely unsearchable?
Doesn’t make sense.
“Still searching? What for?”
Lili Zi turned, nudging his calf with her toe.
Shangshan Che stared at Imagawa Yoshimoto’s much lengthier wiki, asking, “Lili Zi, do you know Imagawa Yoshimoto?”
The girl blinked, thought a bit, then replied, “Oh… yeah, I’ve heard of her,
“—A daimyo from the Sengoku Period, pretty famous.”
Shangshan Che’s eyes lit up as Lili Zi continued casually, “I remember her as the arch-rival who went toe-to-toe with that Sixth Heavenly Demon King.”
“—Supposedly, she died of affliction midway through the Battle of Oko shazam.”
“You even know that, genius history girl.”
Shangshan Che started to nod, then caught the oddity in Lili Zi’s words.
Died of affliction?
His thoughts stalled, a chill creeping up his spine.
Imagawa Yoshimoto had cultivated her breathing technique to Qi Circulation, on the verge of building her own Palace of Flesh—how could she die of affliction?
Lili Zi huffed lightly. “When that Demon King Oda attacked, she found Imagawa Yoshimoto dead of affliction in her main camp.”
She shrugged. “Come on, every three-year-old kid knows this famous event crystal clear.”
Shangshan Che barely heard the rest, lost in silent thought.
Died of affliction.
The term forced him to recall Affliction’s curse before dying.
Shangshan Che was speechless.
What had the four years after he left turned into?
Had he picked the wrong time to leave?
One crucial point.
—If even three-year-old kids knew Imagawa Yoshimoto’s name, had she appeared in the Eternal World now?
Thoughts swirled chaotically in Shangshan Che’s mind.
Until the phone was snatched from his hand.
Lili Zi patted his back hard, startling him.
“Time to get off, Shangshan Jun.”
The girl raised the hand holding the phone, her voice drifting faintly from ahead,
“Home.”
Shangshan Che snapped back, exiting the train like waking from a dream.
—Hearing footsteps behind, Lili Zi turned her attention to the still-open page on the phone.
The girl eyed Imagawa Yoshimoto’s sprawling wiki, brow raised in confusion. “When did he turn into a history buff…”
Back then, Shangshan Che never cared about history, clueless on the topic.
If even three-year-olds knew Imagawa Yoshimoto died of affliction at Oko shazam, he was worse.
And just reading a wiki wouldn’t sink him into that oblivious reverie.
Lili Zi narrowed her eyes.
Her Sword Heart stirred, telling her something fishy was up.
Soon, they returned to the big villa.
At the familiar home door after so long, Shangshan Che was about to release Little Jia from the bag when he sensed pervasive… Sword Principle around him?
Shangshan Che turned, surveying the Sword Principle enveloping dozens of meters.
No, this was Sword Domain…
Lili Zi’s Sword Domain.
He hadn’t noticed while focused on history earlier, but now he could barely sense the Sword Domain he’d never grasped before.
Though only just “seeing” it.
Probably because his Sword Principle was only at beginner level.
Lili Zi opened the door deftly; Shangshan Che followed her into the empty dojo.
About to ask about Skill and Reason, he heard Lili Zi snap her fingers,
“Lunch first?”
Shangshan Che opened his mouth, swallowing his words.
Then he nodded, smiling,
“Sure.”
It had been ages since he’d eaten Lili Zi’s cooking.
Lili Zi waited seconds, then proactively asked after he didn’t release Two-Foot Adult,
“How many bowls?”
“Two’s enough.”
Meeting Lili Zi’s gaze, Shangshan Che’s smile stiffened. “Two-Foot Adult she… uh, had a little issue.”
Lili Zi paused slightly, asking no more.
She just glanced at the once-noisy, now-empty corner.
Days ago, Two-Foot Adult had struck Samurai Zantetsumaru here alongside her.
The girl turned seamlessly, heading upstairs; her intermittent voice drifted from the stairs to the empty dojo,
“I’ll go make food; might take a bit without prep…”
Shangshan Che replied okay, watching her back vanish.
“Take a bit, huh.”
Then some light exercise before lunch to eat more later was fine.
Leaning against the big “Martial” character, Shangshan Che gripped his cobalt-blue star, taking out the Fragment of the Ten-Hand Sword.
He closed his eyes, internally viewing his Void Qi Sea, now much larger than at the start.
Starting small, it expanded quickly.
In just these days, it’d grown about half again.
Remember, Sengoku had 15x time flow.
In the expanded Qi Sea, the four-tailed fox card dominated, filling two-thirds and squeezing the White Hannya card to the brink.
Shangshan Che wondered oddly, “Both same quality, same star rank.”
But he soon set it aside.
Overthinking useless; he knew too little about Qi Seas.
Now, test if this Super Epic Fragment of the Ten-Hand Sword could be one of his Void Qi Sea’s Five Elements Defining Objects!
Wrapping the fragment tightly in Qi Barrier, Shangshan Che tried sending it into the Qi Sea with the Qi.
Soon, with a pop, the Qi Barrier and fragment entered together.
Success!
Shangshan Che let out a surprised eh.
He hadn’t expected it so easy.
Next instant, a stark warning prompt jumped into his mind.
【Attention! You have placed “Potential Defining Object·Fragment of the Ten-Hand Sword” into Void Qi Sea!】
【Confirm as Void Qi Sea’s unique Defining Object?】
In that moment, the layers of Qi Barrier around the fragment dispersed, revealing it hovering above the Qi Sea, radiating dazzling golden light!
Instantly, whether the previously domineering four-tailed fox card or the already-bottom White Hannya card, both were pinned firmly to the base layer.
Thus, Shangshan Che clearly sensed.
If he chose now, making this Fragment of the Ten-Hand Sword his Qi Sea’s unique Defining Object.
His Qi Sea would expand explosively, dozens or hundreds of times larger in a heartbeat!
Becoming a top-tier metal attribute Qi Sea!
Possibly even gaining mysterious powers tied to Susanoo or Yamata no Orochi!
6.6k! Monthly votes!
