Chapter 55: Terrifying to Think About, Impossible to Consider, Too Dreadful to Investigate

The crowd was outraged.

The conversation between Sakura Tian Fumiyuki and President Yamazaki sparked public fury.

It was foreseeable that as the video spread, under mounting public pressure, the government would be forced to intervene, and in an effort to ease the backlash, it would crack down on the zaibatsu and yakuza, forcing them to rein in their actions to some degree.

Leaving that aside, one thing was certain: the apartment land development project would be halted, because under public scrutiny, no zaibatsu would dare take over the project at this time—even if they did, they would have to follow proper procedures and pay every single yen in compensation.

Both outcomes—fair compensation for relocation and halting the project—were acceptable to Kamikawa Mitsu; this was a fair deal, not the earlier coercion and forced acquisition.

The barrage of comments condemning the zaibatsu, exploitation, Sakura Tian Group, and Yamazaki Company continued until Sakura Tian Fumiyuki handed over two innocent girls to Yamazaki.

Throughout the entire process, everyone became keyboard warriors, the comments filled with profanity, barely stopping short of blowing up Sakura Tian ’s ancestral graves.

And just as Sakura Tian Fumiyuki handed over the innocent girls and led Yamazaki toward the first-floor exit.

【HIGH ENERGY AHEAD!】

【HIGH ENERGY AHEAD! NON-COMBATANTS EVACUATE IMMEDIATELY!】

【HIGH ENERGY AHEAD! EVERYONE TAKE COVER QUICKLY! PREPARE YOUR HEART MEDICINE!】

The door opened—and the tone shifted abruptly.

Sakura Tian Fumiyuki and the others appeared in the Huanghun Demon World.

The first-floor door of Sakura Tian Group was like a key to the demon world; the moment it was pulled open, the key turned, and the passage to the demon world opened.

【IT’S A PORTAL!!】

【CONCRETE EVIDENCE! THE FIRST-FLOOR DOOR OF SAKURA Tian GROUP IS A PORTAL】

【Doraemon! Your portal has been stolen by Sakura Tian Group!】

【Doraemon, come out! Did you embed the portal into Sakura Tian Group’s first floor?】

【A JUSTICE STRIKE FROM DORAEMON!】

【So how did they get there? Just by opening a door?】

【Yes, just by opening a door. So don’t open doors—opening doors is dangerous. From now on, when entering or leaving your home or any place, jump through the window.】

Many were baffled yet awed, unable to understand why Sakura Tian Group’s door opened directly into the demon world.

Some tried to uncover the truth, replaying the video segment over and over, staring for a long time, yet found no explanation.

In their understanding, Sakura Tian Group must have accidentally triggered some special mechanism that led them to the demon world.

They never imagined that Sakura Tian Group simply opened a door and arrived in the demon world.

【I get it—it’s Hōma no Toki!】

【Are you idiots? This is Hōma no Toki!】

【Pay attention to the clock on the wall in the video—estimate the time they opened the door, and notice the sky in the demon world.】

【They opened the door at exactly 7 p.m.—the final moment of Hōma no Toki at dusk.】

Amidst the flood of mocking and baffled comments, a few others appeared.

Suddenly, not everyone was clueless; some analysts, after meticulous observation and thorough reasoning, reached a conclusion.

At this moment.

The classroom erupted; everyone was talking about “Hōma no Toki.”

In Japanese Onmyōdō tradition, it was said that dusk (5–7 p.m.) and dawn (3–5 a.m.) were the times when spirits and gods were most likely to appear, when humans and ghosts coexisted.

At that moment, day and night intermingled, heaven and earth turned dim, indistinguishable as black or white, light or darkness—the most chaotic instant of the cosmos.

This moment was called Hōma no Toki.

Looking around, classmates chatted eagerly; seeing their astonished and bewildered expressions, Kamikawa Mitsu glanced subtly at Tsukuyomi Xia Mei.

When the video first showed Sakura Tian Group opening the door and entering the demon world, every classmate either wore a blank stare or a confused “wtf” face, completely unable to comprehend what was happening.

But.

One person was the sole exception.

Tsukuyomi Xia Mei!

She was the only one who not only didn’t look confused but immediately recognized and named it as Hōma no Toki.

“This Tsukuyomi Xia Mei is no ordinary person,” Kamikawa Mitsu murmured under his breath.

He wasn’t surprised that Tsukuyomi Xia Mei could deduce Hōma no Toki—after all, she came from a shrine family—but he was surprised she reacted instantly.

From this alone, it was clear she understood ghosts and spirits deeply, and that she was exceptionally intelligent.

To instantly deduce Hōma no Toki from a single glance—her thinking, insight, and analytical ability were nothing short of brilliant.

Immediately after.

The video continued, and as viewers watched Yunhu’s scenery, the video showed Sakura Tian Group encountering an eerie, deserted street, an earthquake, suffocating demonic aura, and demons appearing.

Yet the filming angle in the video was utterly different from that of Yunhu’s scenery.

The video footage clearly suggested the cameraperson stood right beside Sakura Tian Group, live-recording their ordeal from start to finish.

Everyone noticed the odd filming angle.

Instantly, a flood of amazed comments poured in.

Everyone was curious, astonished, and shaken.

【NH137’s odd filming angle was one thing, but why is this video the same? Who is this uploader?】

【Could the uploader have been taken to the demon world too?】

【I now seriously doubt whether the uploader is human or a demon.】

【I can’t take it anymore—combine NH137 with this video, and it’s terrifying to think about.】

【My god, who is this uploader? How can he film what no one else can? Both videos give me the feeling I’m right there on the scene.】

【NH137 was explainable, but this is the demon world—how did the uploader film this…?】

Countless people went mad.

They realized the filming wasn’t just shot from an immersive angle—the video also captured Sakura Tian Group’s conversations.

Unlike Yunhu’s scenery, this video wasn’t silent!

It further reinforced the impression that the cameraperson had been present, recording every word and action of Sakura Tian Group.

The more you thought about it—the more terrifying it became.

Impossible to contemplate.

Too horrifying to investigate.

The moment anyone imagined the uploader filming in the demon world and returning to upload the video, many shuddered, their skin prickled, their scalps tingled with dread.

Who exactly was “The Deceased King”?

He could film in the demon world and return to produce and upload the video—did that mean he returned to reality unharmed? Yes! He must have returned unscathed; otherwise, how could he have had time to make the video?

Then how did he return? He never appeared on Arata Street.

He didn’t appear on Arata Street, yet returned to reality to upload the video—didn’t that mean he used another route back?

But how did he know about other routes?

Did he know how to travel between the demon world and reality?

If he knew… how did he learn? Was the sealing of the passage between the demon world and reality connected to him?

Also, if he knew the passage, had he already had contact with demons?

And since he returned unharmed from the demon world, wasn’t it possible he wasn’t human at all—but a demon? After all, if he were a demon, he wouldn’t fear being killed in the demon world and could easily return unscathed.

If he were a demon, what kind of demon was he?

Or perhaps he wasn’t a demon—he was human. Then how did he return unharmed? Did he have a way to fight demons? What kind of person was he? Could he be an Onmyōji, a shrine priest, a miko, or a monk?

And why did he film these videos? Out of curiosity? If not curiosity, then what purpose?

If he filmed them for a purpose, then what special motive lay behind his earlier NH137 video?

Or were both videos filmed for the same reason? If so, was there a connection between NH137 and Yunhu’s video? What connection? Was NH137 also caused by demons…?

The more one thought.

The more questions arose, one after another, endless and unending.

And the more one thought, the more terrifying it became—the more one felt touching upon some great secret, the more one realized “The Deceased King” was unfathomable, profoundly terrifying, and extraordinary.

At this moment.

Countless hearts were shaken, breaths quickened, hearts pounded, blood and bodies heated involuntarily.

…