Chapter 205: Jia Qi, you

The phenomenon that appeared in the third year of Chenghe, "Yun Jing Tian, its boundaries at Kunliang, passing through Kecheng, gradually fading away," was called "an anomaly."

In the fourth year of Chenghe, "Zao Sai Warm Spring God, thunderous vibrations, day and night without cease. The warm spring flowed like a river, thick as paste, burning and blocking, snapping trees, forming new pools, boiling sounds like thunder," was called "so strange as to be countless."

The phenomenon that appeared in the first year of Tian'an, "Zao Bi Ran Tui Luo," was also called "an anomaly."

The event that appeared the same year, "Holding a Water Clock That Sounded Three Times," was called "an oddity."

"The people of the time regarded these as anomalies," and such cases were too numerous to count.

Since then, for hundreds of years, new-era yao had continuously been born upon this land, taking countless bizarre forms, each with unique traits and abilities, yet all dependent on "fear" for their existence.

Aside from the primordial yao born of heaven and earth before this—such as a certain eternally seventeen-year-old girl—nearly all yao were born from the fears within human hearts.

At this moment, Yagumo Shiki worried that the decline of human reverence might lead to the extinction of yao—truly far-sighted and deeply strategic.

As Jia Ji listened to Yagumo Shiki's highly enticing words—"Among all yao, your kind is the most warlike; spirits are your best opponents. Let Yeya burn"—he focused intently, absorbing her rhetorical skill, preparing to apply it next time.

Even though he used his fists more than his mouth, who knew when his rhetoric might finally succeed spectacularly, turning enemies into allies in one or more astonishing turnarounds?

"To the moon! To the moon!"

Jia Ji, who delighted in stirring up chaos, loudly shouted behind Yagumo Shiki, who had revealed a mysterious smile and elegantly rested her chin on her hand like a noblewoman (girl), acting as the crowd's hype man.

As for whether they could win?

"Hey, it's just the Moon Capital—nothing like the Magnetic Moon Capital! Unless there are the Four Great Silver Moon Gods, even if the Miwata sisters fanned me and shaved my part, I'd still charge the front line. That's the value of mastering all of Beidou Shenquan! Even if Yueyuejian shows up… well, at least I could still run away."

If I don't see Yagumo Shiki's shocking kneel, didn't I come here for nothing? Who's going to compensate me?

The Oni, a race that always speaks plainly and loves fighting—thrilled at the mere thought of battle—should have raised their banners immediately upon hearing this, especially their Four Great Oni Kings as leaders.

Yet all four of them now fell into deep thought, their faces troubled.

Star Bear Yongyi took a deep gulp of wine, sat upright, and was about to speak, when Iblis Suixiang stopped her.

If it were only herself, she wouldn't care—she'd fight anyone she wanted and instantly agree. But this was a matter concerning the entire race; she couldn't lead her subordinates to certain death.

Previously, when she and Jia Ji shattered Dajiangshan, tens of tons, hundreds of tons of stone collapsed directly. Luckily, those below were all Oni—only dozens of unlucky ones were crushed into meat patties, pulled out, placed down, and soon healed almost completely.

For ordinary yao, they'd have been reduced to legend, forced to be reborn from scratch.

Of course, this also revealed just how formidable the Oni's physical constitution was—though they were few. Nearly all notable Oni in Nihon were gathered here, totaling barely a thousand or so.

After a swift exchange of glances, the wisest-looking among the Oni Kings, Zimu Huashan, stepped forward, having remained calm and composed throughout.

"Gather all elite yao to attack the lunar surface? I understand Yagumo Shiki's concern is not baseless, but how many spirits dwell on the moon? How much resistance exists? All of this remains unknown…"

Before she finished, the crowd below erupted in fury.

"Without battle, we cannot survive!"

"Let us go!"

"Fight with everything! Don't overthink it!"

"It's just the moon! With Lord Jia Ji here, we can just push it back!"

"Even if we die, it's worth the price!"

The yao possessed strong pride—a natural trait for beings of such power. They had encountered "spirits" before, even torn some apart; it was nothing extraordinary.

They certainly did not believe themselves inferior to those cowardly spirits hiding behind the far side of the moon.

The so-called "spirits" were mostly "deified corpses," existing only through human belief—if belief vanished, they'd perish like yao… There were no humans on the moon. How much power could even the ancient spirits retain?

There were no humans, but there were moon rabbits.

Moreover, the ancient spirits who had broken free from their mythological chains, no longer bound by human belief, were incomparably stronger—by orders of magnitude—than these "eight million gods."

Of course, the current Oni knew none of this. They only knew who they were—and that they could go to the moon and fight.

"To the moon! Declare war on the Moon Capital! Declare war on Yueyuejian! Declare war on the Moon Sage! Declare war on the Moon Princess! Declare war on the moon rabbits! Declare war on Chang'e!"

Faced with these Oni, driven mad with desire for battle, even the Oni Kings could say nothing more.

Every Oni here longed for battle against strong foes. None would willingly lose power and vanish silently into time.

The wind howled—but not as fiercely as the Oni's roar.

After several minutes of silence, the Oni Kings' eyes burned with resolve.

"There is one more matter—"

Jing Jie Luo raised one finger and asked: "Now that Dajiangshan is destroyed and the lunar surface not yet taken, where do we go now?"

The subordinates didn't care—but these famed Oni Kings couldn't keep camping on the streets forever, could they?

All eyes turned with resentment toward Jia Ji. He bore twelve-tenths of the blame for Dajiangshan's destruction. It had been a simple sparring match—easily decided without breaking the spirit-reinforced ground. Yet it had escalated to this.

"It feels like you smashed the pit just to smash a pit."

"Indeed…"

"Jia Qi, your explosive fist really went too far."

Jia Ji coughed awkwardly twice. He had once hated the "smash-the-pit" theory—but who would know he hated smashing pits unless he smashed the biggest one?

"Uh, I think the Tengu currently living at Hachinohe are doing fine—lush mountains, clear waters, beautiful scenery. Why not take it from them?"

All four Oni Kings' eyes lit up at once, speaking in unison:

"Brilliant idea!" x4

The Oni's plan to enslave the Tengu was originally devised by Jia Ji (fake).

(End of Chapter)