Chapter 68: New Grudges And Old Scores, Blue Ghost Attacks
Zhou Zhenyu fell heavily to the ground.
A nearby nurse saw it and immediately stepped forward to try to stop Shangshan Che.
Shangshan Che let them stand between him and Zhou Zhenyu, merely looking down at Zhou Zhenyu who was lying on the ground, his expression somewhat inexplicably dazed,
“Feeling a bit more clear-headed now, old Zhou?”
“I… I…”
Zhou Zhenyu recalled what he had just said, feeling utterly incredulous.
He covered his face, murmuring in pain and confusion: “Mengzi just passed away, how could I have the face to say something like that?”
—It seemed old Zhou had sobered up under his personality correction punch.
Shangshan Che breathed a slight sigh of relief.
Heart Poison, though extremely terrifying once rooted and activated, capable of making anyone who saw it shiver, was at least not unsolvable in its early stage right after being planted.
He had just noticed Zhou Zhenyu’s emotions becoming abnormal, so he tried throwing a punch to see if it could snap him out of it.
But… how exactly does Heart Poison spread? Zhou Zhenyu had only met his ex-girlfriend for a dozen minutes or so.
Zhou Zhenyu shook his head, wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, sent the three or two nurses away, and then said: “I just felt like I wasn’t quite myself.”
“It’s fine now.” Shangshan Che shook his head, “Old Zhou, you should still hurry and leave Tokyo. Weird things have been happening here a lot lately.”
Without asking the reason, Zhou Zhenyu slowly nodded: “Thanks.”
“Though, after I get back, I do need to pull myself together properly.” After a long silence, Zhou Zhenyu said seriously, “This is the end of one chapter of my life, and the new starting point of another.”
Shangshan Che smiled: “Then old Zhou, safe travels.”
The two walked side by side to the hospital doorway.
Shangshan Che stood in place, while Zhou Zhenyu waved to him, turned, and walked into the bustling traffic, disappearing into the steel jungle in an instant.
He stood silently in place, waiting for Shizuma Mafuyu.
Suddenly, a wind blew.
Shangshan Che brushed the hair covering his eyes aside with his fingers and looked up, discovering that Tokyo’s originally hazy sky had been enveloped by leaden dark clouds.
It was about to rain.
……
Shizuma Mafuyu was very punctual; if she said half an hour, it would be absolutely neither a minute early nor a minute late.
Shangshan Che got into the old van and saw Shizuma Mafuyu, who looked like a workplace elite, handing him the small iron box.
Shizuma Mafuyu: “Inside is the commission reward from Junior Officer Nanjo.”
Shangshan Che opened it.
Inside the iron box, a crystal-clear red small orb, as if alive with vibrant flames, was fixed at the center.
A prompt immediately popped up—
【Essence of Cong Yuan Huo】
【Quality: Excellent】
【Effect: Depending on the method of use, it can imbue weapons or items with different special attributes.】
【Method of Use One: Directly infuse spiritual power. Use on a specified weapon item to add “Weak Burn Attribute.”】
【Method of Use Two: Find an experienced craftsman for forging. This method will add an extra unknown attribute to the weapon item on top of Method One.】
【—Essence of Cong Yuan Huo, a rare treasure.】
Craftsman?
Shangshan Che first thought of the blacksmith, but the blacksmith had left Arakawa Village and his whereabouts were unknown.
However, he had left behind an apprentice with a small voice.
Shangshan Che examined the prerequisite of “experienced,” feeling somewhat unsure.
Although that little fellow looked young, yokai appearances couldn’t be judged by normal standards.
He temporarily closed the iron box, pocketed it, and decided that no matter what, he should first go see that little fellow.
After all, the effect of adding an extra attribute was quite tempting.
“I’ve received the reward.” Shangshan Che asked, “So, Ms. Shizuma, can you tell me more details about the commission?”
“First, I need to make one thing clear.”
Shizuma Mafuyu said: “I’m only responsible for taking you to the destination; I won’t get involved in anything else.”
“That’s only natural.”
Shangshan Che nodded—dealing with incarnated demons wasn’t something to show others anyway.
“Mm, then let me first tell you the target’s basic info.” Shizuma Mafuyu calmly ran another red light as she spoke, “The target supernatural phenomenon is named Horse-Brained Music, with strength between one-and-a-half star and two-star.”
“Horse-Brained Music?” Shangshan Che expressionlessly tapped his knee with his knuckles, “When did it appear?”
“The last couple of days.”
Horse-Brained Music that appeared in the last couple of days… this couldn’t be called a coincidence anymore.
Although Horse-Brained Music was one of the “Seven Wonders of Honjo,” barely counting as a local supernatural phenomenon neighboring Arakawa Ward.
But at such a critical time, the Special Affairs Office in neighboring Sumida Ward couldn’t possibly do nothing and let a classic supernatural phenomenon like this come over.
Shangshan Che was ninety percent sure that this Horse-Brained Music was the one he had encountered at Kisaragi Station.
But that made it even stranger; the distance between Kisaragi Station and Tokyo was more than just a star or two.
In traffic, Shizuma Mafuyu took out several clear photos and documents and handed them to Shangshan Che,
“—Junior Officer Nanjo said, this Horse-Brained Music might have been accidentally swept into Arakawa Ward by 【Deep Ocean Current】 when it crossed into the mortal realm, so it sustained considerable injuries.”
“—However, in contrast, it seems to have gained an opportunity in the ocean current, acquiring a new ability.”
Deep Ocean Current?
Shangshan Che looked at the documents, which stated “Both the mortal realm and the Eternal World are merely continents, floating and sinking in the deep oceans.”
With that metaphor, he understood that this Deep Ocean Current was largely the same as real-world ocean currents.
“Legend has it that Horse-Brained Music can only transform into a drumming yokai, but now it’s different; it seems able to transform into many demons and possess their abilities.”
“Among them, the strongest demon it transforms into is a special Hannya.”
Shangshan Che flipped through the photos, then saw one that looked exactly like him, but empty-handed and roaring.
Confirmed, this was the Horse-Brained Music he had encountered.
Fortunately, the Special Affairs Office had identified it early as Horse-Brained Music; otherwise, he would have been saddled with an unfounded crime, and everyone would be out to get him.
Shangshan Che let out two cold, emotionless laughs.
What a coincidence, time to settle both old and new scores together…
“I understand the details.”
Shangshan Che placed the photos and documents on the car seat, honing his Ki-Gong Technique while casually looking out the window.
At that moment, the van happened to pass by the Special Affairs Office entrance, where Lili Zi and Kondo Yuya’s backs flashed by.
Lili Zi seemed to sense something, smiled and turned back, waving to him through the van’s reflectionless black glass.
Kondo Yuya, who was handing off work to his subordinate, took a moment to ask,
“—Tokugawa, what’s up?”
“Nothing.”
Tokugawa Ririko exhaled a Qi Sword over a meter long, then turned her head and coldly looked toward a spot about two hundred meters behind.
At the corner two hundred meters away, Niijima Yuta, cloaked in a trench coat, immediately withdrew his gaze and quickened his pace away, cursing monster under his breath.
“Tokugawa Ririko’s senses are too sharp, and Kondo Yuya is with her… too hard to approach, ruling her out for now.”
“Better to find Shangshan Che first.”
In the shadows, the Blue Ghost tsked and once again raised his hand to condense a translucent water mirror in his palm, trying to spy on Shangshan Che’s location.
—This was one of the three talents he gained after turning into a Blue Ghost: Water Mirror Scrying.
But… pa!
The Blue Ghost’s water mirror shattered explosively in an instant, even leaving a trace of blood on his cheek.
Unable to scry.
Niijima Yuta fell silent; this was the first time he had encountered such an intense water mirror reaction.
Very well, then change the scrying target to “the person Shangshan Che values most.”
This time, due to the vague target, the spiritual power required grew exponentially; based on the Blue Ghost’s original spiritual power reserves, it absolutely wouldn’t suffice.
But Niijima Yuta grinned and unhesitatingly pulled a black pill from his trench coat pocket and tossed it into his mouth.
Thus, his vitality and lifespan burned wildly, in exchange for a temporary surge in spiritual power.
The water mirror divination result came out.
“Tokugawa Ririko…”
Niijima Yuta’s face twitched; he hadn’t expected to scry the same target again.
With no choice, he excluded Lili Zi and performed a second water mirror scrying.
Moments later, Niijima Yuta’s face turned extremely grim,
“Nanjō Emi.”
He panted heavily, eyes gleaming with malice.
Taking the last pill from his pocket, Niijima Yuta noticed that this time the spiritual power consumed was less than the previous two.
The Blue Ghost grinned delightedly: “An ordinary person, huh.”
On the water mirror appeared the face of a young man.
