Chapter 877

Time passed, and fifty years had already gone by in Gensokyo.

"Lady Yukari, time to wake up!" Yakumo Ran walked into Yakumo Yukari's room and pushed open the window, letting the sunlight shine in from outside.

One could see the lump of the quilt on the bed wiggle a few times, and a head poked out from within: "Ran, is it morning?"

"Yes, Lady Yukari. Why has your sleeping time been getting longer and longer lately? Is something wrong with your body?" Yakumo Ran asked with some worry.

"I am the Sage of Youkai, Yakumo Yukari; how could there be anything wrong with my body?" Yakumo Yukari let out a yawn, waved her hand, and said, "Isn't it almost winter now? I'm just hibernating, aren't I?"

"Hi, hibernation?" Yakumo Ran's voice rose by several octaves. As Yakumo Yukari's Shikigami, she had seen with her own eyes how Yakumo Yukari had gone without sleep or rest for decades to build Gensokyo; how could she suddenly say she wanted to hibernate now?

"Yes, hibernation." Yakumo Yukari nodded, looking very much like she was about to pull her head back in and continue sleeping.

"Lady Yukari, Lady Yuyuko has come to see you. Could you please get up first?" Yakumo Ran said with some helplessness.

"Yuyuko is here?" Yakumo Yukari immediately crawled out from under the quilt.

"Yukari, is your body really alright?" In the reception room, Yuyuko kept tossing pastries into her mouth while asking with some concern. "Although I know the passing of Reimu had a huge impact on you, you must also take care of your own body! After all, we still have to wait for Lingyun to return!"

Ever since Reimu passed away, the frequency with which Yakumo Yukari appeared before others had decreased, and she spent more and more time sleeping, even handing over part of the management of Gensokyo to Yakumo Ran. It was only after hearing about this that Yuyuko had rushed over to check on Yakumo Yukari's condition.

Yakumo Yukari let out a yawn and gave Yuyuko a gentle smile: "Yuyuko, don't worry! I understand my own physical condition. It might just be that I didn't rest at all while constructing Gensokyo before, and now I'm just making up for that lost rest. Besides, as a Gap Youkai, I actually have a very long dormant period every year!"

"Is that true, Yukari?" Yuyuko was still somewhat uneasy.

"Ha, rest assured, I wouldn't deceive you!" Yakumo Yukari said with a smile.

Yuyuko stayed with Yakumo Yukari for a day, and only after knowing that Yakumo Yukari's body was truly fine did she return to Hakugyokurou with peace of mind.

After seeing Yuyuko off, Yakumo Yukari crawled back into her quilt once more. In truth, the reason she had been spending a large amount of time sleeping lately was not just because she wanted to make up for her past rest, but because there was a deeper reason.

After moving into Gensokyo, Yakumo Yukari had discovered an abnormal expansion of her power. Moreover, as time went on, this expansion grew increasingly powerful. Even though her intuition told her this situation would not cause her harm, she had to be cautious. To strengthen her control, Yakumo Yukari had to spend a great deal of time improving her mastery. And for a Gap Youkai, there was no better way to improve one's mastery than by sleeping.

Most importantly, Yakumo Yukari discovered that as long as she entered her dreams, she could enter a peculiar world. In this world, countless fragments floated about, and every time she entered one of these fragments, she could see a strange scene.

Although most of those scenes were unchanging, the long river that seemed to carry countless worlds and the vast sea containing countless mysteries made her lose herself in them every time. Most importantly, within those fragments, she could sometimes see a blurred figure. Although she did not know who this figure was, Yakumo Yukari was certain that this person must be the one she had been searching for all along.

"Brother..." Yakumo Yukari clutched her chest, where some kind of abnormal emotion seemed about to gush out.

"I will, I definitely will find out your identity, I swear it in the name of the Sage of Youkai!" Yakumo Yukari said with conviction.

Thinking of this, Yakumo Yukari turned over. In her hand, a ray of light rose, and a Crystal appeared in her palm.

If one looked closely, one could see that a tiny figure was actually sleeping inside this Crystal. And this figure was none other than Reimu.

"Reimu, to think you would actually appear within the World Cornerstone. Could this be an opportunity given to you by this world?" Yakumo Yukari examined the Crystal in her hand.

Although she did not know why Reimu had appeared inside this Crystal, Yakumo Yukari was certain that as long as there was a catalyst, the Reimu sleeping within the Crystal would be able to wake up once more. And at that time, Reimu would surely be able to break through the shackles of life and death and appear before everyone in a brand-new form.

"Right, there is also this thing..." Yakumo Yukari reached out her hand, and two Yin-Yang Orbs appeared in her palm.

"Let this thing be the legacy of the Hakurei Shrine and be passed down forever." Yakumo Yukari loosened her hand, the Yin-Yang Orbs in her hand fell, and were subsequently swallowed by a Gap.

Hakurei Shrine.

The new Hakurei Shrine Maiden was humming a little tune, holding a broom and sweeping the fallen leaves on the shrine plaza. Suddenly, a Gap opened above her head, and two Yin-Yang Orbs fell from the Gap, hitting her on the head.

"Ouch, ouch, ouch—" The Hakurei Shrine Maiden let go of the broom and clutched her head. "Who has such a lack of public morality, throwing things around randomly!"

The Hakurei Shrine Maiden looked at the thing that had hit her head with annoyance, and could not help but open her mouth wide.

"Th-this is a Yin-Yang Orb, but, but didn't they disappear after Sister Reimu passed away?"

After a moment of silence, the Hakurei Shrine Maiden picked up the two Yin-Yang Orbs from the ground.

"Perhaps this thing was sent over by the Sage of Youkai." The Hakurei Shrine Maiden could not help but think of that Youkai with golden hair who was always getting along with Reimu. "Did she send Sister Reimu's Yin-Yang Orbs over so that this thing could be passed down in the Hakurei Shrine?"

The two Yin-Yang Orbs sensed the Hakurei Shrine Maiden's spiritual power, detached themselves from her hands, and hovered by her side.

The Hakurei Shrine Maiden sighed softly and walked back into the shrine with the Yin-Yang Orbs. Inside the shrine, there was a brand-new statue where the gods were originally worshipped; it was a golden dragon with silver pupils.