Chapter 56: Hidden Faction: Shintoism

Bai Cangshu did not believe in the supernatural, and he groped around the Spirit Body of the fox God's Envoy again, but in the end, he could not touch the Spirit Body itself at all.

His actions caused the expressions of the white-haired old Shrine Priest and the fox God's Envoy above the torii path to change.

They could sense that Bai Cangshu had no reverence for this solemn shrine, or even for the Inari God itself.

Watching this scene, the Professor also felt his breathing tighten, and his body subconsciously shrank back; he felt that if the situation went wrong, he should just run away immediately.

The Professor is a 【Chosen One】; every 【Chosen One】 possesses a special ability related to the Authority of space, and that ability is often the first one obtained after entering the Reincarnation Space.

The first ability the Professor obtained was called 【Crystal Divination】, which was originally just a low-level ability close to a parlor trick, with quite low accuracy and the limitation of having to use a crystal ball.

But after he learned it, the ability mutated; the D-rank 【Crystal Divination】 became the B-rank 【Crystal Revelation】; he only needed to consume a crystal of any quality to obtain a certain "revelation."

This kind of "revelation" is sometimes a premonition of danger, sometimes a special kind of Inspiration, and sometimes, it is some very secret information.

The Professor guessed that perhaps his sensitivity to the plot and his talent for digging up various hidden events were the manifestation of this 【Chosen One】 ability.

After he became a Reincarnator, the essence of this 【Chosen One】 began to materialize with the help of the abilities he acquired.

At this very moment, the reason he appeared in front of this largest shrine in Kyoto was because, after consuming a piece of high-quality blue crystal, the revelation he received was related to those shrines in Kyoto that had declined due to the changes caused by Kibutsuji Muzan.

He felt he understood where the greatest help for the 【Demon Slayer Corps】 faction in the Main Mission lay, so he came to trigger the mission.

It was just that the Professor did not expect that "Tao Baibai," who should have been the type to ignore everything and charge straight for the Prince's temporary palace, had actually arrived at this 【Fushimi Inari-taisha】 a step ahead of him, and seemed to have directly triggered some incredible side mission.

"Old sir, if there is anything, you can just say it directly. I am a person who, heh, is fair in all my dealings."

Bai Cangshu walked straight through the Spirit Body of the fox God's Envoy, which caused the latter's form to become unstable for a moment, and Bai Cangshu looked directly at the old man in front of the shrine on the mountain and spoke.

The old man lowered his head, yet his voice traveled down the hundred-meter mountain path with ease; this kind of internal energy is simply not something an ordinary person could achieve.

"I am merely a Shrine Priest serving Lord Inari; since the God's Envoy has returned, naturally everything is decided by the God's Envoy."

The little fox ignored the Professor and instantly appeared in front of Bai Cangshu again.

"Arrogant Mortal, Lord Inari will bring down disaster!"

The little fox's red eyes became somewhat scarlet at this moment, and that disguised, soft and cute appearance also instantly became somewhat sinister.

【Hidden Faction · Shintoism, your Reputation has decreased, currently: Neutral (70/100)】

Bai Cangshu and the Professor saw this notification at the same time; the Professor widened his eyes, feeling somewhat wronged, but Bai Cangshu's smile grew even wider.

Even though he was so impolite, the Shintoism faction's view of him was still neutral-leaning-toward-friendly.

It could be seen to what extent this 【Shintoism】 force had been suppressed, and how dilapidated this Inari God's shrine had become.

Bai Cangshu also realized at this moment that his previous thinking had indeed not been thorough enough.

In the Main Mission, the current balance of power between the 【Demon Slayer Corps】 and the 【Muzan Faction】 is close to 1:9; the gap is terrifyingly large.

If he relied solely on his own idea of hunting down pro-Ghost ministers, princes, and lone Twelve Kizuki.

I am afraid the difficulty of completing the Main Mission would appear to be somewhat too high.

After all, the Reincarnators participating in this cooperative mission are all 【Paper】-rank Reincarnators; he, being able to quickly kill a Lower Rank alone, is already a case of Breaking the Rules.

The best among the Lower Rank are likely already at the 【Parallel-Lower】 level, and the Upper Rank will have an even more drastic, tiered improvement.

Ordinary 【Paper】-rank Reincarnators, facing this mission, cannot possibly hunt down many Lower Rank to complete the mission.

The Space will not give a mission that is certain death; therefore, reversing the balance of power is not just about killing the Muzan Faction, but also about finding help for the Demon Slayer Corps. Those third-party forces that have suffered losses because of Kibutsuji Muzan and related forces are all potential help.

Thinking of it this way, his train of thought instantly opened up.

He looked back at the Professor who was disguised as a woman; the other party indeed had some tricks up his sleeve.

With this layer of thought, Bai Cangshu looked down at the little fox, then still looked up and said to the old man, "You also want to kill Hirohito and Kibutsuji Muzan, right?"

The old man trembled all over; he looked at Bai Cangshu, his skin and flesh unmoved, yet his voice came out as usual.

"Sir is joking; Prince Hirohito is the descendant of the Emperor, naturally we have no other thoughts, it is just that..."

"Kibutsuji Muzan acts perversely and ravages the human world; my God naturally must uphold the righteous path."

The old man said this, but Bai Cangshu only laughed mockingly.

Shintoism evolved from the indigenous shamanism of Japan and was designated as the state religion during the Meiji Restoration; it should have continued until the end of World War II, but the development process of this world has changed.

Kibutsuji Muzan, this evil Ghost who can wantonly bestow "immortality," caused this group of Shrine Priests, whose supernatural powers had been fading since the Heian Period, to lose favor in a short time.

Like the Inari God, this agricultural god, will fall even further due to the Industrial Revolution.

The Professor coughed twice at this time; he was worried that if he didn't speak up, this "Tao Baibai," who was so crazy that he was impolite even to Plot Characters, would anger a rare ally, so he crouched down at the right time and spoke to the fox God's Envoy.

"We can help the Great Inari God uphold the righteous path, but correspondingly, you must also provide us with some convenience and help."

Seeing the Professor and the little fox start to communicate, Bai Cangshu walked toward the top of the mountain.

His Footwork was extremely fast, and in a breath, he had already arrived at the entrance of the shrine; at this time, he smelled the rich scent of incense inside the shrine, but the interior of the shrine was no longer so clean.

The old Shrine Priest no longer lowered his head to put on that humble appearance; he was not tall, about one meter seven or a little less, and had to look up slightly to see Bai Cangshu's face.

"How is it? Fushimi Inari-taisha is the number one shrine in Kyoto; those who came to worship in the past were endless, the incense never went out, and under the gaze of the Inari God, we..."

"Heh, it has declined."

Bai Cangshu interrupted the latter's thoughts of being immersed in the good old days without any courtesy, which made the old man finally sink his face.

The old Shrine Priest held his right sleeve with his left hand, and his right hand formed a hand seal; a gust of wind appeared out of thin air, causing his beard and hair to scatter at the same time.

An inexplicable power appeared from the shrine, and subsequently, in Bai Cangshu's perception, the Shrine Priest seemed to become taller in an instant, and a heavy sense of oppression began to radiate continuously.

The old Shrine Priest muttered incantations, his right hand forming a sword finger, and suddenly pointed at Bai Cangshu.

Bang! The old Shrine Priest's pupils shrank; Bai Cangshu's figure instantly appeared in front of him, one hand already gripping his wrist, while the other fist had already appeared in front of his neck.

"Is this so-called Yin-Yang Arts or Divine Arts?"

"Too slow."

【You have triggered the Hidden Mission · Fallen Miracles】

【Mission Description: With the development of the era, the mysterious is fading, and a host of forces are all fading away, but Shintoism is not reconciled to decline; they are determined to return to the center of politics again】

【Mission Content: Help the Shintoism Faction clear away the forces hindering their development】

【Mission Reward: Hidden Faction · Shintoism unlocked, Reputation Store unlocked】

(End of chapter)