Chapter 54: Footsteps Deepen the Crane

Professor, Liu Qi, Elizabeth, and Bai Cangshu, the four of them, sat in a train headed for Kyoto; due to the previous incident, they had basically reached a consensus.

Professor had originally intended to take the Stone Pillar and Flower Hashira to kill the Government Army and officials who came to search for the 【Blue Spider Lily】 near Tanjiro's home, as this would not only farm Reputation but also prevent the hostile faction from helping Muzan complete himself.

But Bai Cangshu rejected this plan and proposed a more "vicious" scheme.

The 【Kakushi】 members accompanying the Demon Slayer Corps helped Tanjiro's family and the people living on the nearby mountain relocate; after Bai Cangshu and his group used advanced modern weapons to crush the incoming Government Army, they directly set fire to the entire mountainside.

Except for a few 【Blue Spider Lily】 plants they had harvested in advance, everything was reduced to ashes.

Although Kochou Kanae opposed this plan, after Himejima Gyoumei used a Kasugai Crow to contact the Master, the Master agreed to the plan.

In fact, only this kind of plan could ensure that Kibutsuji Muzan would not obtain the 【Blue Spider Lily】 in the short term, but since Kibutsuji Muzan already knew that the 【Blue Spider Lily】 only blooms during the day.

Then, theoretically, it was only a matter of time before he obtained it.

Ubuyashiki Kagaya understood this logic, so he would not think Bai Cangshu's plan was cruel, but would only worry that it was not done thoroughly enough.

"Since we have all confirmed the upcoming Main Mission, I assume everyone here is a newcomer and it should be impossible for anyone to have something like a 【Scapegoat Doll】, so from here on out, our actions must either succeed, or... we die."

Professor looked at the group and spoke thus.

"I think it is necessary for us to further share our information to facilitate future combat arrangements; in the event we encounter a powerful enemy like an 【Upper Rank】, I fear we would all be in danger if we fight alone."

Professor spoke very tactfully; in reality, in her judgment, aside from "Tao Baibai" having the possibility of defeating some Upper Ranks, the others would almost certainly meet an end where they were killed by an Upper Rank.

The strength of an Upper Rank Ghost Moon is worlds apart from a Lower Rank; even with an Intelligence advantage, knowing the opponent's Blood Demon Art, and being equipped with advanced firearms, they—these 【Paper】 grade Reincarnators—still could not bridge the chasm of raw strength.

In speed, power, Regeneration, and margin for error, the Upper Rank Ghost Moons held an overwhelming advantage in every aspect.

Elizabeth and Liu Qi also understood what Professor meant and did not object.

Elizabeth, who always gave off an unapproachable vibe, was the first to speak.

"Vincent and I are members of a team under the loose Gathering 【Salted Fish】; because it is a loose Gathering, there is no resource support, and we are just Paper-grade Reincarnators who can use team functions to carry out missions."

"That special Gathering where even the president is said to have disappeared?" Professor seemed to have heard of this Gathering with the somewhat sloppy name.

Elizabeth nodded and continued.

"And my personal highest attribute is Spirit, 12 points; I can conduct mental communication within a 10-meter range, and then..."

Elizabeth glanced at Bai Cangshu, finally sighed, and said, "I possess an incomplete high-level ability, 【Heart Grasp】, which can crush the opponent's heart, but because my Spirit attribute is insufficient, I can only execute it when I can see the enemy's heart..."

As Elizabeth spoke to the end, her tone was somewhat soft; this imposing woman, nearly one meter eighty in height, seemed somewhat embarrassed by the inadequacy of her ability at this moment.

Professor nodded without saying anything, and Liu Qi took the opportunity to begin his own introduction.

Only Bai Cangshu looked at Elizabeth with an inexplicable smile, causing the latter to subconsciously look away.

Bai Cangshu sneered inwardly; sure enough, this is what Reincarnators are, a bunch of poor wretches who can never obtain a sense of security.

He was certain that Elizabeth's ability was absolutely not the 【Heart Grasp】 she claimed, because merely crushing a heart would never be enough to instantly kill a Lower Rank.

But that is how Reincarnators are; even when sharing information for the sake of cooperation, they will selectively conceal things.

This incomplete Intelligence will become the catalyst for a total wipeout when encountering a strong enemy.

But Bai Cangshu could not blame this behavior; after all, even he would not honestly reveal the foundation of his own abilities.

This kind of loose team cooperation was, to him, utterly tedious.

Bai Cangshu suddenly pushed open the window glass on the side of the carriage, and the night wind poured in instantly.

The others were all startled.

Liu Qi was still subconsciously reporting his abilities.

"I am Liu Qi, my highest stat is Strength at 13 points, I specialize in melee combat, Specialty level Lv5, and the chosen Specialty direction is specialized slashing..."

Bai Cangshu stepped onto the table in front of him, and amidst the gasps of surrounding passengers, his body sprang out of the carriage; the corners of his mouth hooked up—this Liu Qi was actually honest enough to be laughable.

Bai Cangshu gripped the iron plating on the outer edge of the carriage roof with both hands and pushed hard; in a counter-intuitive way, he flipped himself onto the roof of the carriage. He waved his hand at those below.

"You all go ahead and play this boring team house-game; I will handle the target myself."

Seeing Bai Cangshu act this way, Professor sighed, having no other choice.

But in his heart, he actually felt a faint sense of relief; when acting with Bai Cangshu, he always felt completely suppressed by the other party, to the point where he always felt he lacked confidence.

And perhaps, for the Reincarnators on their side, splitting up was the most efficient way to complete the Main Mission.

To reverse the balance of power, besides killing the political reinforcements of the hostile faction as much as possible, one must also find ways to seek assistance for the Demon Slayer Corps faction.

Professor's eyes lit up; he suddenly realized that in certain aspects, even that "Tao Baibai" could not compare to him at all.

Bai Cangshu sat on the roof of the carriage; the Japanese trains of this era did not pass through tunnels. He sat on the train, feeling the wind whistling through the mountains and fields, his mouth and nose still struggling to maintain 【Ripple Qigong】, and the wound on his right hand was now nearly healed.

A scarlet glow appeared in Bai Cangshu's hand, which he then crushed.

【You have opened a Scarlet Drop Card】

【Drop opening in progress...】

【Calculating target Killing Points; target Killing Points: 4, reward increased by a small margin】

【Calculating your Killing Points...】

【Detected that Ex051 holds 2 Sin Points; you will receive 1 additional reward selection option】

【Calculation complete; for this opening, you may select 2 items from the following rewards】

【A: 30% of Dimension Points】

【B: 2 items from the Backpack】

【C: Obtain an additional 10% of the Main Attribute added to your own attributes】

【D: Randomly draw 1 Specialty, retaining a maximum level of Lv3】

【E: Randomly obtain 1 ability, ability can only retain a level of Lv1】

Bai Cangshu noticed that the various values during this opening were somewhat shrunken compared to Evans's Drop Card.

The biggest impact was likely that he had directly gained 1 point of Agility when he killed Evans, whereas this time he had not.

In other words, essentially, the Space did not want Reincarnators to kill each other in such cooperative mission worlds; it was because of the uniqueness of being a 【Sinful Reincarnator】 that he had obtained a certain degree of "overstepping," gaining the special Authority to potentially generate Scarlet Drop Cards in such mission worlds.

"Select C, D."

【You have chosen C: Attribute Extraction, extraction is now beginning】

【Your Agility attribute has increased by an additional 1 point】

【You have chosen D: Specialty Extraction, extraction is now beginning】

【Extracting...】

【You have obtained Basic Footwork Mastery, detected that you already possess this Specialty, increasing the Specialty level slightly】

【Basic Footwork Mastery has been increased, current: Lv5】

【You may choose one Deepening direction】 (Note: Deepening directions can be chosen at Lv4, Lv7, and Lv10; if a Reincarnator already possesses the Specialty at that level before entering the space, the choice is made at the next level)

【A: Cat, your Footwork is as light as a feather, making minimal noise when moving】

【B: Crane, your Footwork is nimble, and your jumping and air-time are additionally increased】

(End of chapter)