Chapter 341: Yoimiya Festival, Welcoming The Arrival Of Inari Kami! The Thing This Mister Desires, He Shall Not Get
At first, the two gate-guarding Fox Phantoms were still vigilantly staring at Two-Foot Adult, whose qi seemed slightly odd—looking like a Bodhisattva at first glance, but completely unlike one in temperament upon closer inspection.
But after Lord Shangshan solemnly guaranteed to them, the Fox Phantoms no longer obstructed them much, merely reminding them with a look.
“This torii gate is said to have been donated by Toyotomi Hideyoshi.”
Miss Gen’s faint voice sounded from behind, making Lord Shangshan look up and gaze at the grand red torii gate for a moment.
“Monkey, huh…”
Lord Shangshan murmured almost inaudibly.
Toyotomi Hideyoshi would be his enemy in the “not-too-distant future.”
If he succeeded, would this torii gate disappear? Or would someone else donate it instead?
——The stone pedestals on both sides, adorned with Fox stone sculptures, were also engraved with【Dedication】, the sculptures having endured high heat, sun exposure, wind, and rain here for countless years.
These two Fox Phantoms were probably the same.
Thinking of this, Lord Shangshan casually wiped out some Soul Ash, put it in a small pouch, and tossed it perfectly into the hands of the two diligent yet bored Fox Phantoms.
——They were all just workers; a little consolation shouldn’t be a big deal.
The two Fox Phantoms were startled by the tossed item and were about to raise their naginatas in warning when they suddenly felt their bodies lighten slightly.
They sensed it briefly and discovered that the cowhide paper pouch contained extremely pure Soul Crystals.
Even just carrying it close to the body made their whole bodies feel a bit lighter.
The gate-guarding Fox Phantoms were silent for a moment, then slightly bowed toward Lord Shangshan, who had already walked past the steps.
At this time, Lord Shangshan was examining the humanoid dolls on the left and right at the entrance, each about half a person’s height and carrying a bow and arrow.
He didn’t recognize exactly what they were called, but they resembled the Left and Right Minister humanoids he had encountered before, only these were even more exquisite all over.
Moreover, there was a strange sense that they might move at any moment.
Behind him, Karuta, who recognized the familiar architecture, slightly loosened her clenched fists and relaxed a bit.
Miss Gen continued to scan the surroundings with her peripheral vision and, upon discovering that no one in the crowd had noticed their anomaly, felt a slight surprise in her heart.
If it were just her and Lord Shangshan, it would be fine, but now there were four of them in total, and they weren’t even walking together…
Miss Gen concluded in her heart—
Lord Shangshan’s onmyōdō techniques were probably no longer inferior to those of long-famous Great Onmyoji.
Since ancient times, those who practiced Dual Cultivation of Spirit and Martial Arts were almost always one primary and one auxiliary.
But Lord Shangshan seemed to balance both equally.
Miss Gen wondered where this extra energy and time came from…
Lord Shangshan passed through the torii gate and truly entered the【Sacred Realm】 of Fushimi Inari Shrine.
The so-called torii gate was less about distinguishing the Sacred Realm where deities reside from the Mortal Realm where humans live, and more a reminder.
A reminder to all “visitors” that they had stepped into the Sacred Realm.
However, Lord Shangshan felt nothing special, probably because his level was too low to sense the difference or attract the attention of the deities in the grand shrine.
“Che Adult! Look look, there are people performing plays up ahead!”
Two-Foot Adult’s surprised voice came along with the tugging sensation from his waist, as she climbed from the ground onto Lord Shangshan’s shoulder in a few moves.
Then she swung her legs over and sat down.
Lord Shangshan: “Get down…”
Before he could say two words, Two-Foot Adult preempted him with a pitiful light sigh: “There are so many people for worship; I’m so short I can’t see anything, what to do…”
Lord Shangshan: “Grow taller and bigger.”
Two-Foot Adult grinned and leaned to his ear: “Then should Che Adult sit on my shoulders?”
“Then let’s keep it like this.”
Lord Shangshan endured listening to the geisha’s shamisen performance for a while, then found his head hurt even more.
Sure enough, he couldn’t appreciate it at all.
But glancing back, he saw Miss Gen with an accustomed expression, while Karuta was gently nodding her chin to the beat, clearly enjoying it.
“Looks like my taste, quality, and cultivation are still too low…”
Seeing Karuta still listening, Lord Shangshan didn’t leave immediately but circled the area.
Not far away, there was a small shrine sign reading【East Maru Shrine】.
Lord Shangshan didn’t quite understand this and pondered whether shrines could contain other shrines inside…
Whatever, Fushimi Inari was so vast anyway; they might not even finish seeing it all.
If there was time left when leaving, they could check inside there.
A bit further in, he saw two more Foxes seated on stone pedestals—one with a golden sheaf of wheat in its mouth, the other balancing a golden Incense Burner on its tail.
They were two seven-tailed foxes, emanating a faint, barely detectable Ghost God qi.
Their gazes were solemn, staring motionlessly ahead like sentinels.
Seeing this, Lord Shangshan said nothing and gave them nothing, merely nodding in greeting to both.
Both responded with their eyes.
By the time Karuta, flushed and embarrassed, hurried over after finishing a song, Lord Shangshan had already noticed that many torii gates in the grand shrine were engraved with【Dedication】.
Miss Gen said this meant the torii gates were donated by worshippers, mostly to exchange for some good luck and fortune.
Hearing this, Lord Shangshan looked ahead to Fushimi Inari’s famous attraction—the Thousand Torii.
Every one of those densely packed torii gates prominently bore【Dedication】.
“No wonder there are so many torii gates; turns out they’re all free…”
Lord Shangshan muttered, used a small trick to part the crowd in front of them, and the four entered the passage formed by torii gate after torii gate.
Along the Thousand Torii, every nine gates had Fox Phantoms holding naginatas guarding both sides.
The defenses were extremely strict, allowing no Demons and Monsters to exist.
After walking deeper for a stretch, Two-Foot Adult, perched high with a good view, kicked her legs and twisted Lord Shangshan’s gaze toward another crowded spot.
“Che Adult, should we go check over there… I saw… po! Lots of people worshipping over there!”
Lord Shangshan had been thinking of stopping by to worship and see if anything happened, so he nodded,
“In that case, let’s worship there first… Also, Two-Foot, you should get down; it’s not right to ride on my head while worshipping.”
“Eh? No no, Che Adult…”
Though Two-Foot Adult said this, after entering the shrine, she obediently jumped down and walked beside Lord Shangshan.
He lined up at the end of the long queue, glanced at the crowd ahead, and had just taken out a few 5-yen coins when he felt his hem tugged.
“Che Adult, don’t forget to wash your hands before worshipping!”
Lord Shangshan blinked.
Shrine worship did seem to involve that.
Seeing Lord Shangshan’s dawning realization, Two-Foot Adult put her hands on her hips and hummed smugly as if claiming credit.
The former naturally understood and patted Two-Foot’s little head in reward.
The water at the purification area flowed from a row of lush green bamboo tubes; even before touching it, Lord Shangshan could sense it was no ordinary water.
He stared at it with the Eye of Interpretation for a while and found it not only rich in Spiritual Energy but probably also with some exorcism and fortune-boosting effects.
Ordinary little ghosts or grudges would likely dare not approach upon sensing this qi.
No wonder Fushimi Inari Shrine had such massive foot traffic and incense.
They even put effort into the hand-washing water; it would be abnormal if it didn’t work and drew few people.
After washing hands with Two-Foot and Karuta, Lord Shangshan oddly looked at Miss Gen, still standing a few meters back.
“Miss Gen, not washing?”
Miss Gen shook her head without thinking: “I don’t believe in this, so no need.”
Her disbelief was not the same as that of ordinary people.
Lord Shangshan stared at her for two seconds and smiled,
“If Lili Zi were here, she’d probably say the same as you.”
Without waiting for Miss Gen’s reply, he continued: “Then please wait here for us a moment, Miss Gen.”
The worship queue was long but didn’t take much time, so it was their turn in minutes.
Two-Foot Adult and Karuta seemed very familiar with the worship procedure; they went to the side of the Approach, tossed the 5-yen coins Lord Shangshan gave them into the box,
then two bows, two claps, one more bow, and finally closed their eyes to silently make their wishes.
Lord Shangshan, on his first worship, naturally followed their lead.
In his heartstrings, Qing and Little Jia also made wishes together.
But when it truly came time to close his eyes and wish, Lord Shangshan suddenly didn’t know what to wish for.
After pondering in the darkness for several seconds, he sensed the two women beside him had gently exhaled, having finished their wishes.
Lord Shangshan opened his eyes accordingly.
He turned his head slightly and saw Two-Foot Adult with her index finger to her lips saying “secret,” and Karuta with her head down, too embarrassed to look at him.
Lord Shangshan left the front of the shrine and plucked his heartstrings,
“What wishes did you make?”
Asking, of course, Little Jia and Qing.
Qing was about to say it had to be kept secret when Little Jia blurted it all out: “I told Inari Kami I hope Inari Adults will bless Master to always live well!”
Qing followed helplessly and slowly: “Wishes spoken aloud won’t come true…”
“Uh!?”
Little Jia was startled, her tone panicked.
“—Then how about I go sincerely wish to Inari Adults again!”
“It’s fine.”
Lord Shangshan told it: “Inari Kami will hear; the wish won’t fail.”
“Is what Master says true?”
“When have I ever lied to you?”
“A-Qing, is this real?”
“…”
“If Lord Shangshan says it’s true, then it definitely is.”
“Okay!”
“By the way.” Lord Shangshan was a bit curious, “Little Jia, did you only wish for me?”
“Yeah.”
“Because Little Jia is too dumb to remember so many people… my heart can only hold Master.”
Lord Shangshan and Qing fell silent together.
Moments later, he touched the hilt of Kaga Kiyomitsu without speaking.
Looking back, they saw Miss Gen quietly gazing at a large cluster of red lanterns nearby, with many mikos hanging lanterns under the eaves of the grand shrine’s buildings.
Above the lanterns were three big black characters—【Yoimiya Festival】.
“This is…”
“—This is the festival to welcome and thank the Inari Gods.”
A little miko by the roadside, carrying two large bags of materials and wobbling with effort, stopped and explained to them.
Lord Shangshan used his Qi Barrier to lighten most of the load’s weight for her and smiled slightly at the miko: “Can you tell us more?”
Suddenly feeling super strong, the little miko raised the materials in her hands, nearly lifting them over her head, drawing shocked stares from the surrounding crowd.
“Ahem…”
The little miko quickly set down the materials and spoke to the somewhat indistinct yet likable face before her: “Can we talk while walking?”
“Of course.”
Lord Shangshan walked beside the little miko and heard her explain in detail,
“Yoimiya Festival is the festival held the night before the【Hongu Festival】. Inari Adults don’t permanently reside in the shrine halls but descend only on the night before the Hongu Festival, so—”
The little miko drew out her words: “That’s why everyone holds the Yoimiya Festival tonight to solemnly welcome the Inari Adults for the rite!”
She continued in a lowered voice: “It’s said… because this is the first year supernatural power has truly spread, this year’s Yoimiya Festival is unprecedented in scale.
Guests, you’re in for a treat!”
“I see.” Lord Shangshan pondered, then looked at Miss Gen, “Miss Gen, are you in a hurry?”
“One day isn’t much.”
Miss Gen immediately understood: “Besides, I’m curious about this festival too.”
“Then we’ll wait half a day.”
Lord Shangshan nodded.
“In the past, two or three thousand lanterns were considered a lot, but guest, guess how many lanterns there are this year?”
Without waiting for Lord Shangshan’s answer, the little miko, with a mysterious look, answered herself: “Eighteen thousand! A full eighteen thousand… and the number is still increasing!”
Lord Shangshan glanced at the busy mikos and blinked,
“So many lanterns—will they fit?”
“Of course not… even stuffing every nook and cranny won’t fit them all, so the extras will be placed on the ground; Inari Adults didn’t say that’s not allowed anyway…”
The miko reached her spot, set down the two bags, and immediately looked at Lord Shangshan.
She pulled a sheet from her waist, eyes sparkling: “By the way, guests, offering a large lantern is 20,000 yen, small one just 5,000 yen—same prices as always!
What do you think, a good deal?”
Afraid he might refuse, she quickly added: “The divine messengers said donating these lanterns wards off evil and disaster for everyone. Want to donate one?”
Lord Shangshan found it amusing: “Donating lanterns for exorcism and disaster avoidance—do they really work?”
The little miko stuck out her tongue,
“Sincerity makes it work; insincerity doesn’t.”
The miko raised a finger and explained logically: “Think, guest, with so many people in the world, Inari Adults can’t possibly bless those who don’t believe in them, right?”
“That’s… somewhat reasonable.”
Lord Shangshan nodded and noted the words.
“Anyway!”
The little miko clapped her hands and called to the side: “Fukuda Obaasan, could you help check what these guests should pray for?”
The elderly miko called Fukuda Obaasan lifted her eyes from the sales window.
Her gaze, heavy with the weight of years, passed over the slightly awkward Karuta, the expressionless Miss Gen, and finally settled on the mildly smiling Lord Shangshan.
Fukuda Obaasan seemed about to speak but sighed instead,
“What this mister seeks… probably can’t be obtained by praying in the grand shrine.”
