Chapter 98: Two Thousand Soul Ash Points, The Richest Episode!
The Soul Ash Conversion Box in his hand, in its plain appearance, was no different from the one Shangshan Che had obtained from slaying a living being.
But the weight was different—
【 Conversion Box filled with Soul Ash（Special Item】
【 Effect: Upon use, obtain 1000 Soul Ash.】
【—filled with ten thousand portions of crude Soul Ash converted from Living Souls, it could hold no more.】
The description was brief, but incredibly practical.
“Only ten thousand portions…”
Shangshan Che silently used it, and the Soul Ash Conversion Box in his hand instantly became lighter.
【You have obtained, Soul Ash × 1000!】
Now, Shangshan Che’s Soul Ash reserve had leaped to an astonishing “2144”!
Not only could he easily afford two Cold Steel Armguards, but he could also draw two more ten-pulls, making him unprecedentedly wealthy.
The solid state of mind brought by sufficient Soul Ash, Shangshan Che exhaled, and then took out the 【Nue’s Heart】 that had just dropped.
A dark red heart, fully as large as Shangshan Che’s two fists, fell into his hand. Hot blood still flowed on its surface, and as it slowly pulsed, blue-green blood vessels were clearly visible.
【Nue’s Heart】
【Quality: Rare】
【Effect: Upon consumption, you will randomly comprehend one talent related to “Wind.”】
【—Nue, without wings, can still soar.】
“Consume…?”
Shangshan Che gazed at the foul-smelling heart in his hand, larger than his mouth, for a long time, his expression troubled.
But it was impossible not to eat it.
“There’s no need to delay eating it until later.”
Shangshan Che muttered to himself, tilting his head back, and in two or three bites, he chewed and swallowed the Nue’s Heart.
He could clearly feel the foul-smelling but hot blood gushing into his mouth like water after his teeth bit through the relatively tough outer skin, followed by the heart muscle and blood vessels with a texture like jelly and gel…
Crunch, crunch.
After a round of chewing, Shangshan Che, feeling extremely nauseous, looked at the panel—
【You have consumed, Nue’s Heart!】
【You have comprehended a new talent, Vortex!】
【Vortex】
【Effect: You will be able to clearly perceive the flow of Qi and consume Spiritual Power to alter it.】
【—To you, Qi is akin to water.】
It only took a few seconds to read through the prompts, and Shangshan Che could clearly feel the “flow of Qi” mentioned in the talent’s effect.
Not just the speed and direction of the wind blowing outside, and its effect on him.
More importantly, even standing still, Shangshan Che could now discern the location, flow rate, and quantity of all the Corona Qi within his body, and control it.
If previously cultivating a Breathing Technique involved guiding the Corona Qi to circulate and strengthen itself repeatedly within the body.
Then, after awakening the “Vortex” talent, all the Internal Qi seemed to have become an extension of Shangshan Che’s limbs, flowing unimpeded through his body.
For example, now, Shangshan Che could tear a mass of Corona Qi and split it into dozens or hundreds of portions, applying a suitable amount to subtle wounds for healing.
This was something he, who would only apply a large mass of Internal Qi to a wound to stop bleeding and disinfect it, could never do before.
“Truly, an unexpected surprise.”
Shangshan Che grinned. He believed that the talent’s efficacy was by no means limited to this; there were certainly more wondrous uses waiting for him to explore in depth.
But for now, he should take the still-dripping Nue’s corpse back.
…
A little past four in the morning, the parking lot.
Nanjo Emi, Kurosaki Akira, and a specialized healer Onmyoji, who had rushed to the scene, jumped down from the back of a black truck.
As soon as she landed, Nanjo Emi felt the shadow beneath her feet begin to stir restlessly.
She looked around but only saw Shizuma Mafuyu and Lili Zi.
“You go lift her up first,” Nanjo Emi pointed at Shizuma Mafuyu. The Onmyoji, resembling a middle-aged man, nodded and summoned a strange young monk wearing a straw hat, who then ran up.
“The Shadow Woman was deliberately left here by him?”
Nanjo Emi frowned, and a semi-transparent thread of Spiritual Power shot from her fingertip into Shizuma Mafuyu’s shadow, forcibly pulling out that viscous darkness.
A pained voice, as if suffocating, echoed in the parking lot: “Oh dear, oh dear! Little Emi, don’t strangle me, I’m going to die!”
Nanjo Emi remained unmoved, pulling the wriggling shadow that dared not take form in front of her, and coldly questioned, “I told you to stay by Shangshan Che’s side without leaving after he came out, what have you been doing?”
“He himself said to leave him, he was going alone… Ouch, ouch!”
The shadow thrashed violently in mid-air, making Kurosaki Akira, watching from behind, involuntarily touch his neck.
The next moment, he took out a dressing mirror, and after a few seconds, said, “There are no demons around, but there is an abnormal situation.”
Nanjo Emi nodded, indicating she knew, then pulled the mass of shadow to her front, gripping its upper end firmly with her five fingers.
“Now, explain.”
Her own shadow danced freely, as if mocking the Shadow Woman.
The Shadow Woman let out a weak wail, then tremblingly uttered bubble-like sounds, “I’ve been with him for a long time, and I feel he’s not much different from you, little Emi. Since that’s the case, obeying his orders…”
Nanjo Emi frowned as she listened. This was one of the drawbacks of giving away a separated Shadow Woman within a doll.
—You never know what the separated Shadow Woman has experienced, how much her cognition has changed, and whether she will still resolutely follow the orders you initially gave.
“Back to the smelting furnace.”
Just as Nanjo Emi was about to throw the shadow into her own shadow, she smelled the strong scent of blood unique to demons.
She looked up and saw the injured boy, holding the corpse of a robust demon, approaching amidst the dim streetlights, giving a two-fingered salute towards them with a blank expression.
“Fortunately, he’s still alive…”
Nanjo Emi let go, allowing the Shadow Woman in her hand to fall to the side, and then two shadows immediately erupted in fierce arguments, tearing, and fighting on the ground.
Kurosaki Akira, who had been very vigilant, raised an eyebrow upon clearly seeing the demon’s corpse and yawned, “It seems I ran for nothing, Junior Officer Nanjo.”
Saying that, Kurosaki Akira waved his hand, “I’ll have Miyugi keep watch around here. If anything happens, just ask him. I’m going back to the carriage to catch up on sleep.”
Nanjo Emi grunted. She saw Shangshan Che grab Lili Zi and then throw the Nue’s corpse in front of her.
She gazed at the brutally separated Nue corpse for a moment, then looked at Shangshan Che, whose clothes were almost in tatters, and asked, “How’s the injury?”
Shangshan Che shrugged, “I won’t die.”
“Then let’s go, I’ll heal you later. This abnormal event here will be investigated by specialists tomorrow.”
Since everyone had returned alive, Nanjo Emi couldn’t be bothered to care about what had happened before. “There was an error in this commission’s rating, it’s the Special Affairs Office’s negligence. You’ll receive compensation in a couple of days.”
She grabbed the Nue’s corpse, threw it into the opening on the side of the truck, and then beckoned the two to get into the carriage behind.
They could see Shizuma Mafuyu, pale-faced, lying on a stretcher in the center of the carriage, with a strange-looking young monk treating her beside her.
Kurosaki Akira was leaning in a corner with his eyes closed, breathing steadily.
The truck slowly started.
“Oh right, Sister Nanjo,” Shangshan Che remembered what the Nue said before it died and took out the Soul Ash Conversion Box. “I had a new discovery while fighting this Nue.”
Nanjo Emi took the box and squinted at the patterns on it. “This is?”
Shangshan Che said, “The Nue said before it died that it could convert human souls into a substance called Soul Ash—it had living beings run around with this thing precisely for this purpose.”
“There’s still a living being wandering in this area with this conversion box, unexterminated.”
He attributed the source of the information entirely to the Nue; after all, a dead demon couldn’t speak.
“Soul Ash…”
Nanjo Emi opened the conversion box, and after seeing the two or three specks of crude Soul Ash within, she clicked her tongue displeasantly. “Anything else?”
“The Demon Guide Association.” Shangshan Che emphasized, “It said that all of this was done at the behest of its so-called Overlord from the Demon Guide Association.”
A few seconds later, receiving no definite response, Shangshan Che asked in surprise, “Sister Nanjo, you haven’t heard of this organization?”
Nanjo Emi shook her head and asked, “Kurosaki, do you have any impression of these three words?”
Kurosaki Akira muttered something while opening his dressing mirror, then scoffed, “Never heard of it.”
Silence fell in the carriage for a moment.
And at this moment, Nanjo Emi’s shadow writhed and ran to the center, and the Shadow Woman’s voice came out, “I know, I know! I think I know! Ouch, don’t hit me… Is it that fun to punch your left hand with your right hand!?”
Nanjo Emi pressed her palm down lightly, ending the Shadow Woman’s self-inflicted fight.
The next moment, two black statuettes resembling thinkers stood tall.
The Shadow Woman on the left spoke lively, “Demon Guide Association! That’s the name, right!”
The Shadow Woman on the right stated coldly, “Probably three to four hundred years ago, when I was playing with companions, I heard the Head of the Family repeatedly mention this word.”
Three, three to four hundred years ago? That would trace back to the Edo Period or even further?
Everyone present except Nanjo Emi showed different expressions.
Nanjo Emi tapped her knees with her fingertips, heedlessly letting the blood she had splashed earlier soak her pant legs. “Anything specific?”
The two Shadow Women shook their heads simultaneously. “We only remember that the current Head of the Family had a conversation with someone from the Demon Guide Association. Beyond that, we don’t know much.”
“—After all, we were still young back then!”
Head of the Family?
Shangshan Che savored the word. Did Sister Nanjo come from an ancient Onmyoji family?
This was easy to guess. The fact that she could raise a demon like a Shadow Woman centuries ago and have it survive to this day, and that it had contracted with Nanjo Emi to become a Shikigami, was indicative.
However, Nanjo Emi, from any perspective, seemed more like a corporate slave from a pure ordinary background, completely lacking the demeanor and habits of an heir from a prominent family.
—Could it be, another cliché story of being expelled from the family due to poor talent, or possessing a demon bloodline, or some other special reason?
Shangshan Che stroked his chin—wouldn’t that mean he might get to witness Nanjo Emi personally perform a “Dragon King’s Return” act in the future?
That would be interesting.
Lili Zi, sitting beside him, her eyes moved slightly, and a look of utter confusion appeared on her face. She said nothing more.
“I understand, thank you both for your efforts in recalling,” Nanjo Emi’s palm pulsed with a spell as she took out a new exquisite doll and pointed at the Shadow Woman on the left. “You go in.”
The Shadow Woman, as if granted amnesty, shot in with a whoosh, bestowing spirituality and liveliness upon the lifeless Nanjo Doll.
“Shangshan Jun, here you go.”
Grasping the Nanjo Doll, which began to wildly wave its short arms and legs as if declaring victory, Shangshan Che heard Nanjo Emi say,
“This is the last doll. Once it’s used, there won’t be any more.”
Shangshan Che, who had been wondering whether to move or have the Special Affairs Office deal with his father, gazed at the doll and said thankfully,
“Sister Nanjo, thank you.”
With a casual nod towards Shangshan Che, Nanjo Emi tapped the leg of the stretcher in the center with her toe, startling the dazed Shizuma Mafuyu.
“Mafuyu, don’t sleep. If you fall asleep now, it’ll be for two or three days,” Nanjo Emi said with her arms crossed, her expression a little embarrassed. “Do you want me to burn out?”
“Ahaha… Sorry.”
On the stretcher, Shizuma Mafuyu, whose fingers trembled uncontrollably after the adrenaline subsided, gave a wry smile. She quickly clenched her fists to prevent her small movements from being discovered.
Nanjo Emi rubbed her fingers on the hem of her white shirt. “To prevent you from falling asleep, let’s chat for a while.”
“Okay, okay!”
Shizuma Mafuyu tried her best to prevent tears of fear and lingering dread from spilling from her eyes. She took two deep breaths, suppressing the pain and trembling in her voice, and said with a smile, “Speaking of which, Manatsu, she…”
Inside the carriage, the relaxed and pleasant chatter of the two continued.
About ten minutes later, Shizuma Mafuyu seemed to suddenly remember something and suggested, “Lord Nanjo! I remember there’s a meteor shower in a week. If you have time, would you like to go to the mountain peak to watch it together?”
She then turned to Shangshan Che and Lili Zi. “Miss Lili Zi, Shangshan Jun, would you like to come too?”
Nanjo Emi chuckled, “Of course, after work.”
Lili Zi: “I don’t mind.”
Shangshan Che blinked, feeling that a week’s time was a bit uncertain, so he said, “I’ll come if I have time.”
“Great! Then it’s decided,” Shizuma Mafuyu seemed unexpectedly lively after being injured. “I’ll bring Manatsu too.”
The truck first drove to the hospital. The accompanying Onmyoji took Shizuma Mafuyu to the hospital, and Kurosaki Akira also got out, saying he was going home to sleep.
Shangshan Che asked, “Sister Nanjo, do you still have overtime?”
“I have to report today’s events and check the documents,” seeing that the injured person had left, Nanjo Emi immediately irritably took out a cigarette. “Demon Guide Association, that doesn’t sound like a good name… Also, will applying some powder really heal your wounds?”
Earlier, during the temporary treatment in the carriage, the young monk had taken out a gourd and poured some white powder onto his wounds, which could stop bleeding and heal injuries.
Shangshan Che actually felt the effect was surprisingly good.
If he slept with Two-Foot Adult for another night, these injuries should heal by about seventy to eighty percent, and it wouldn’t delay his time entering the Eternal World.
So he asked, “Are there any available beds at the Special Affairs Office?”
“The Special Affairs Office is crowded early in the morning lately, even sleeping on the floor would be tight,” Nanjo Emi pointed at Lili Zi. “But Miss Tokugawa has a private room.”
Lili Zi said, “I’ll sleep on the floor, the injured come first.”
“Uh…”
Thinking about having to sleep with Two-Foot Adult in front of Lili Zi for a night, Shangshan Che didn’t know how to phrase it.
Forget it, it’s good enough to have a place to stay. He’d take it one step at a time.
Just as Shangshan Che was thinking this, he heard Lili Zi say, “If your injuries are healed tomorrow, I’ll teach you those two little tricks. The sooner you learn, the more proficient you’ll become.”
“—I’ll sleep for a night and be fully revived!”
Shangshan Che patted his chest, then gasped in pain.
The three of them got out of the car and entered the Special Affairs Office. Nanjo Emi separated from them first and plunged into the sea of documents, while Shangshan Che followed Lili Zi to the upper floor and entered her room together.
Upon turning on the light, they found the room to be very spacious, easily thirty to forty square meters excluding the restroom.
Yet, in such a large space, apart from a bed with gray bedding, a desk, and a cabinet, there was nothing else.
Shangshan Che dubbed it “prison style”!
The vast open space spanned the center of the room. Shangshan Che didn’t even need to think to know that Lili Zi used this space for cultivation.
“Lili Zi, your room is quite… minimalist.”
“I’m just simply not busy with other things,” Lili Zi shook her head and pointed at the bed. “Shangshan Jun, you can sleep directly. No need to shower, I’ll go get another quilt.”
Without waiting for Shangshan Che to tell her about Two-Foot Adult’s upcoming presence, Lili Zi had already walked out of the room.
“Alright…”
With a chuckle, Shangshan Che summoned Two-Foot Adult.
After explaining the current situation to her, Two-Foot Adult, who had been full of worry, immediately went from sadness to joy and clung to his waist like a koala.
Looking at Two-Foot Adult, who had returned to her girl form, Shangshan Che poked her hat: “Two-Foot Adult, don’t be like this…”
“Popo… Does Adult Che not even want to fulfill this small request for us?”
Two-Foot Adult raised her face pitifully, tears about to stream out.
This time, let it slide.
Shangshan Che’s mouth twitched slightly, and he lay on Lili Zi’s bed, closing his eyes.
After the events of tonight, the opportunity to enter the Eternal World had just cooled down once.
The water pressure came quickly and went just as quickly.
Shangshan Che immediately took off and ran towards Katsumi’s shop.
Gacha pulls can be done anytime, but this randomly appearing mysterious shop boss won’t always be here.
Although the other party said three days, it might disappear at any time, just like the blacksmith.
When passing through Isanuki Tunnel this time, Shangshan Che discovered that the specters that had originally gathered at the tunnel entrance had all disappeared.
“Strange…”
But he didn’t stop, and soon, following the route in his memory, he arrived in front of the shop with the sign “Wonders Under Heaven, All-Inclusive.”
He pulled open the door and walked in, the sound of the wind chime interrupting Katsumi, who was singing a solo.
“Yo—welcome…”
Mid-sentence, Katsumi paused, his tone tinged with surprise: “How much time has passed, Adult, you are…”
Shangshan Che said nothing and directly placed a thousand points of Soul Ash on the table, completely stunning Katsumi on the spot.
