Chapter 84

After seeing Shizuku go sit in a corner off to the side, Uesugi Toru also found a corner to lie down in.

—Kisaragi Station, activated!

On his third visit to Kisaragi Station, Uesugi Toru, beneath the shrine, gazed at the slightly trembling railway tracks, understanding that Ye Chun would probably arrive in a few minutes.

But this time, he did not plan to keep accompanying Ye Chun in playing puzzle-solving games.

Solving puzzles with no clues was simply a waste of time; it was better to first continue exploring this big map called Kisaragi Station.

"Niizaki-sama."

Niizaki-sama, who had just returned a few minutes ago only to be called out again, had a smile of victory plastered across her face.

—In the Chang Shi, it's a world of just the two of us, me and Toru-sama.

—Can that bad woman Tokugawa Ririko do something like this!?

She slightly raised her chin, holding the hem of her skirt with both hands, and performed a bow toward Uesugi Toru: "popopo... Toru-sama, what are your orders."

She felt that Niizaki-sama seemed a bit strange today.

Could it be that she had been frightened by Shizuku and hadn't recovered yet?

Not paying much attention to this, Uesugi Toru believed that a famous Mononoke who had lived for over a hundred years could regulate her own mindset on her own, and he asked: "Are the Taiko Drum Bell's marks still there?"

That's right; since he had already slain the Baka Hayashi, Uesugi Toru was prepared to deal with the Taiko Drum Bell as well, and by the way find out what was behind the Isanuki Tunnel.

According to High-Speed Grandpa, if its ability was truly as Uesugi Toru had expected, then even with sufficient intelligence it probably wouldn't be easy to kill.

The ability to instantaneously transmit on the railway tracks was truly too outrageous.

One must always pick the soft persimmons to knead first.

So right now there was only one problem.

—Since this map called Kisaragi Station seemed to constantly restart, would the Mononoke originally within it be refreshed in the same way?

—Of course, it was a bit regrettable that Mononoke above Zero-Star could not be refreshed.

Otherwise he would have infinite Soul Ash to farm.

"I'm here, Toru-sama."

Niizaki-sama said in a gentle voice: "Staying motionless in the mountain forest beside the tunnel."

Again at the entrance, that is to say, among the Mononoke in Kisaragi Station, at least those not killed would refresh at the initial location.

Uesugi Toru did not hesitate much, directly taking Niizaki-sama and rushing over there.

Several minutes later, an old train slowly stopped at Kisaragi Station, and a girl holding a flip phone stepped down unsteadily with a somewhat panicked expression.

She stared at the unfamiliar station sign, her expression dazed: "Kisaragi... Station, where is this?"

On the other side, Uesugi Toru had already silently infiltrated the mountain forest.

Corona Breathing Technique, Fourth Form!

The Fourth Form could hide all of one's aura while gradually lowering the skin's temperature, making it an excellent assistant for stealth assassination.

Uesugi Toru, who had transformed into a Laughing Prajna, said in an extremely low voice: "Niizaki-sama, just point me to the location last, then you can go back first."

Because the Taiko Drum Bell's attack method was an AOE that could affect the surroundings, Niizaki-sama staying would only be a hindrance.

Niizaki-sama obediently nodded, and softly said by Uesugi Toru's ear: "Walk forward two hundred meters, then go left more than eighty meters, and it's there."

"Good."

After making the location clear, Uesugi Toru quickly advanced stepping on damp dirt and fallen leaves, and during the process he actually didn't break even a single tree branch thicker than a finger!

This was partly due to having reached the Proficient Level of Tennen Rishin-ryu, but more so due to the results of practicing power control with Shizuku for a full hour not long ago.

To become strong, precisely and freely controlling one's own power was indispensable.

Now, Uesugi Toru had already taken half a step on this path.

Silently arriving thirty meters from the location Niizaki-sama pointed out, Uesugi Toru turned his gaze around, but did not discover the presence of the Taiko Drum Bell.

Just as Uesugi Toru was feeling puzzled, a pile of somewhat unnatural fallen leaves beneath the cliff caught his gaze.

He slightly narrowed his eyes, and through the camouflage of the fallen leaves glimpsed that yellow-bottomed black-edged Taiko Drum, as well as four lifelike puppet dolls lurking beside it.

The entire Taiko Drum had a diameter of about two meters, and on it were outlined patterns similar to the Magatama Pattern, vividly lifelike, making one feel that the magatama might run out from the Taiko Drum at any moment.

As for the drumsticks and the wooden frame that should have held the Taiko Drum, they were not seen.

Uesugi Toru was about ten-odd meters above the bottom of the cliff, but this distance counted for nothing to him; on the contrary, he could use gravitational acceleration to unleash a more fierce sword strike.

Slash the Taiko Drum first, or slash the puppet dolls first?

Although the Taiko Drum had a large area and was easy to hit, Uesugi Toru always felt that those few puppets were where the true body of the Taiko Drum Bell lay.

Because for this Taiko Drum Bell, the Taiko Drum had appeared, but there was not a shadow of the Bell yet.

Facing this difficult choice, Uesugi Toru's choice was—

All of them!

Only children make choices; with the Corona Breathing Technique he had just learned and the Proficient Level Tennen Rishin-ryu, wouldn't it be a waste to not slash them all?

Thus, Uesugi Toru changed the form of his breathing technique.

Corona Breathing Technique, Second Form!

That small cluster of Corona Qi within his body instantly exploded, spreading throughout his whole body with a single breath, bringing a burning pain while simultaneously letting the Prajna's physical functions reach their peak in an instant.

At this moment, Uesugi Toru even felt that his eyes could spit fire!

"Hah—"

The exhalation sound like a lion-tiger's roar echoed in the silent mountain forest..

The Taiko Drum Bell that had been silently lurking had just heard this sound and had not yet reacted—

That cold blade light had already descended from the sky.

Like blazing fire converging into a line, Kaga Kiyomitsu's scorching blade prow slashed this huge Taiko Drum in half!

The black-and-yellow Taiko Drum toppled heavily toward both sides, and at that moment the four straw dolls saw the smiling Hannya that had appeared out of nowhere.

They were not afraid at all; instead, they all took out bells of various shapes and, with hateful murmurs, shook them.

In an instant, intense pain swept through every part of Uesugi Toru's body, especially his head, which was tormented as if being gnawed by ten thousand insects and ants.

But this Hannya could not be killed.

Wounds and pain would only make him, already not weak, even more powerful!

"Bells? I have them too."

Uesugi Toru gritted his teeth to deliver the finishing blow, completely chopping the Taiko Drum into a pile of scrap, while taking out the Komainu Bell and shaking it quickly.

Ding ling ling~

Suddenly, two straw Komainu emerged from the previously empty void; this time, without Uesugi Toru needing to speak, they had already identified their targets and rushed toward the four straw dolls.

Yet this bell sound that caused Uesugi Toru immense suffering seemed to have no effect on the Komainu.

The four straw dolls were greatly startled, and they all slowed the speed of shaking the bells in their hands, wanting to flee deep into the Mountain Forest.

"Hmph, think you can escape?"

Between one inhale and one exhale, Uesugi Toru, who had already converted this wound into stronger physical strength, had arrived behind the straw doll that had fled the farthest, and with Tang Bamboo Momentum, one slash split it in two from head to foot!

The two Komainu did the same; immune to the bell sound, they soon ran behind the straw dolls, crazily shaking their heads, wanting to tear them into pieces.

The battle situation was going very well; Uesugi Toru had not previously expected that the Komainu could actually be immune to this eerie sonic attack.

He was about to chase the last straw doll, but inexplicably felt a wave of indescribable palpitation.

Uesugi Toru gazed at the circular projection among the fallen leaves before him.

—That was precisely a Taiko Drum! A Taiko Drum that had been mounted on a wooden frame at some unknown time!

End of Chapter