Chapter 985

The moment the hatch closed behind him, warm yellow light and warm air from the air conditioning rushed toward him, sealing out the salty dampness of the sea wind outside.

Asuka had returned, and she had gone with the Village Flower Palace to deal with the bomb, but although Asuka found the bomb, she didn't know how to defuse it; however, this was no problem for the Village Flower Palace, who wrapped the entire bomb in tidal water, letting the water element seep into every crevice of the bomb, rendering it ineffective.

"Sakura-sister?" Asuka only then learned the full story, and she ran over, still shaken: "Are you alright?"

"Well — maybe — possibly — roughly — " Sakura actually didn't know what had happened to herself either, and she could only say hesitantly: "Anyway, I'm still alive, right?"

"Great!" Asuka bounced over and hugged Sakura, while Miyawaki Sakura forced a smile, thinking: If Sakura had known these two guys, Uesugi Shiro, were so dangerous, and understood what this inner world was, and what these heretics were, and what "all Buddhas returning to the sect" meant, and what "one palm shatters the skull" meant, Sakura back then wouldn't have just gone along with it!

Sniffle, sniffle, sniffle, all I can say is: Seek wealth and honor in peril!

Sakura also wanted to be rich, have few troubles, live close to home, have high status and great power with light responsibility, but alas, no one has lifted me up; I'm not some noble peerage, nor am I some Shinto sect leader — Sakura is just a pure, innocent little sakura from Kagoshima in Kyushu. How can I become famous without clinging on? How can I gain popularity without clinging on?

In the end, clinging on and clinging on, I clung myself into becoming a Public Security undercover agent, clung myself into becoming an inner world entity, and nearly lost my life.

However, as she thought, Sakura's face suddenly flushed with a crimson hue.

Tooth sound! This is exactly the tooth sound Sakura wanted!

Sakura doesn't want a peaceful, stable life where she can see the end! Sakura wants a life of grand, sweeping waves — from the Peach Garden Oath to warm wine slaying Hua Tuo, from the three sakura battling donkey cloth to Sakura riding alone across a thousand miles of Kyushu, from the general election beheading Zhu Rina and burning Akasaka, to flooding Uesugi and fleeing Osaka Castle in defeat — Sakura wants a life of thunderous, heroic grandeur!

Upon thinking this, Sakura suddenly felt her ambition swell.

Meanwhile, Mai Xuejie watched Sakura's face shift — one moment excited, the next dejected, then excited again, then shaken — and she frowned.

What is this guy thinking?

At the same time.

Uesugi Muneyuki stood in place, watching them turn the corner of the hallway, and he let out a long breath.

Sakura is still alive, but she has become the sheath of the Sword of Heavenly Clouds.

Aside from that, there is no difference; she at least still looks like a normal human on the surface, as for her age — 【19】 Having become an inner world entity and the sheath of the Sword of Heavenly Clouds, Sakura has gained longevity, but at least for the next ten years, there's no need to worry about that.

The cherry blossoms that had become Inner Village Biology and the Tenchōun Sword Sheath gained longevity, but at least for the next ten years there's no need to worry about this.

Hmm?

Uesugi Muneyuki suddenly had a very dark thought.

What if I turn Xuejie, Minami, Master, Mikoto-nee, and Asuka into weapon souls and spirit rings?

Winter Fist, thoughts like a gushing spring! Second form, Winter Sword, thoughts never ceasing!!! Third form, Winter Palm, life after life!!! Winter child, winter child, winter child!!!

You already have a path to death!

But he was just thinking; in reality, he only has seven chakras, one of which is himself, meaning he has only six positions available from start to finish.

With only six positions, he can bring them into the void and to the far shore.

After thinking that, he turned his head and looked behind him.

Higashitani Miyabi was standing about three steps behind him, already soaked through — that was the water from when she was rescued from the deck earlier, and she hadn't had time to change clothes.

Her off-white flowing shirt clung to her body, semi-transparent, outlining the line of her collarbone; the hem of her horse-face skirt was still dripping, leaving a small dark wet patch on the carpet; a few strands of her hair clung to her cheeks, her wrist still bore an injury, and in her hand she gripped the dead mobile phone — she looked disheveled, but her eyes still shone brightly.

Uesugi-san!

I have done service for Uesugi! I have shed blood for Uesugi!

How do you plan to reward me?

I've uncovered a major scoop! For you!

"Miss Higashitani, come over here for a moment? Just a moment!" Uesugi Muneyuki laughed even more brightly.

Higashitani Miyabi's lips curled slightly upward.

Finally! After going through so much, he finally took the initiative to call her over!

Higashitani Miyabi didn't know what Uesugi Muneyuki wanted to say, but seeing his tone so gentle, the words "come over for a moment" coming from his mouth sounded like some kind of major progress no matter how she listened.

Could it be?

She stepped forward with a light, quick pace, her stride carrying a hint of lightness, like the anticipation of an imminent reward.

Higashitani Miyabi walked quickly to Uesugi Muneyuki's face, less than a step away, just as she was about to say, "Uesugi-san, how about it, I'm awesome, right?" — Uesugi Muneyuki's hand had already shot out.

Uesugi Muneyuki's movement was swift, swift enough that Higashitani had no time to react.

She only felt her head pressed by a palm — not too hard, not too light — with steady, irresistible force, slamming her head hard toward the side!

She staggered, the black silk of her horse-face skirt swaying, the world spun, and she found herself back in the dragon's carriage — her vision inverted, and she saw the half-human-tall decorative water feature on the hallway wall: a series of imitation ancient copper shallow basins, each holding a few koi, with several lotus leaves floating on the surface.

The basin is about thirty centimeters deep, the water quite clear, and through the surface one can see the pebbles lining the bottom.

"? I — uh?"

Then her face was shoved into the water.

The moment water surged into her nasal and oral cavities, her mind went completely blank.

Uesugi, you?! 【49】 Instinct made her struggle, but the pressure from the palm on the back of her head was just right — it wouldn't let her hit the basin bottom and get hurt, yet it gave her no room to lift her head.

Instinct made her struggle, but the force of that palm on the back of her head was just right—it wouldn't let her strike the basin's bottom and get hurt, yet it left her no room to lift her head.

"Mmm-mmm-mmm! Gurgle-gurgle-gurgle!"

The sound of her own struggling on the water surface was distorted by the waves into muffled gurgles; her fingers gripped the edge of the basin, her nails scraping against the copper wall, producing a piercing screech.

Not1, not2, not3, 4, 5, 6,

By the eighth second, the air in her lungs began to burn intensely.

She began to feel a clear, extreme-limit shitsoku sensation, her legs went weak, and her knees began to bend.

At the twelfth second.

Black spots appeared at the edge of her vision, and in her mind flashed the thought, "He won't really drown me, will he?" — that thought was instantly overwhelmed by more primal brainstem instincts.

Fifteenth second.

She felt she was about to lose consciousness, the burning in her lungs had turned to numbness, and her fingers slipped from the basin's edge.

Eighteenth second, Uesugi Muneyuki finally released her head.

"Ah! Ah! Ah ah ah ah ah!!! Uesugi! What are you doing?! You, you want to kill me?!""

Eto Miyabi finally struggled out of the washbasin, her whole body kneeling on the carpet, hands braced on the floor, coughing violently, gasping for air in large gulps.

Large amounts of water streamed down from her hair and face, mixed with tears and the fluid choked up from her nasal cavity, her throat felt as if it had been sandpapered raw, stinging painfully, she desperately breathed in, never having felt air to be so sweet.

"Feeling good?" Uesugi Muneyuki said lightly.

"What are you doing? Ouch!" Eto Miyabi cried out in distress: "I really thought you were going to kill me!"

"Eighteen seconds, I held you underwater for eighteen seconds." Uesugi Muneyuki stood with his hands behind his back: "And Sakura stayed underwater for four minutes."

Eto fell silent at once.

"Sakura stayed underwater for nearly four minutes." Uesugi Muneyuki repeated, his voice very calm, like stating a forensic report on a drowning: "She was dragged by a dead person to a depth of 110 meters, suffocated and lost consciousness, her heartbeat stopped. If it weren't for some things you cannot comprehend, beyond common human knowledge—she would now be in the morgue."

"And I only let you drown for eighteen seconds."

She opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but then closed it again, lifting her head to look at Uesugi's face, the layer of "I want to dig up a big story" excitement in her gaze shattered to the ground, revealing what lay beneath, she finally felt dread.

This woman finally realized: if he hadn't jumped in, that nineteen-year-old girl would truly not have come back.

And she, Eto Miyabi, was the one who caused the girl to fall into the abyss, her lips moved, her voice hoarse as if sandpaper had scraped over it: "————Sorry. I didn't think they would————they would seize people for sacrifice————"

"You certainly didn't think of it, you're not involved in this. You're a reporter, not a detective, not an agent. You shouldn't be dragged into something of this degree." Uesugi Muneyuki's voice remained calm, but his tone carried something like the fine crack before ice shatters: "But you got dragged in. And your life was bought with someone else's life."

"So next time, can't you————give me a heads-up beforehand, or at least think it through before acting?"

"I did give you a heads-up! You said, please transfer the request to Investigation Division 2!" Eto still refused to back down.

"Is this Investigation Division 2? This is Spiritual Investigation!" Uesugi Muneyuki paused upon hearing this, then said angrily.

Eto Miyabi lowered her head, her fingers gripping the edge of the carpet tightly, her shoulders trembling slightly.

After a good while, her voice sounded again, trying to regain her last bit of stubbornness: "But————you and Mai-sama have my back. You guys are so strong—one can stay underwater for four minutes without dying, one hand chop shatters a person's skull—you're here————what do I have to fear————"

"You were spying on my diving?!" Uesugi Muneyuki exclaimed in surprise.

"Yeah, that day you went diving at the Blue Hole, I watched you go down and stay down for dozens of minutes before surfacing, that diving instructor said you had a serious illness, and privately said this guy, how the hell does he play underwater for dozens of minutes without CCR and still not get decompression sickness?"

Uesugi Muneyuki looked at her for two seconds, then laughed.

This woman, you say she isn't prepared? She actually is very prepared.

You say she is very prepared? But actually she isn't prepared at all.

The Souda matter is, this matter is also————

He shook his head, reached out and pulled Eto Miyabi up from the ground, her legs were still soft, she couldn't stand very steadily, relying on his arm to steady her balance: "You bastard, I really don't know how to evaluate you."

Uesugi Muneyuki shook his head repeatedly: "Like those civilians who believe Superman will always show up in time—sooner or later, Superman will also get tired."

"Because Uesugi-san, you are my Superman! Forever God!!!" Eto Miyabi's eyes glowed.

Uesugi Muneyuki released her arm, stepped back.

He looked at her, fell silent for two seconds.

Reason returned, he also knew, some things cannot be blamed on Eto.

Just like a patient died of illness, you don't blame the disease but blame the doctor?

Is it the doctor who let you die of illness?

Likewise, is it Eto who caused the heretical cult ritual? If Eto hadn't come, would the heretical cult ritual not exist?

No.

"To be honest——" Uesugi Muneyuki's tone changed, he put away that layer of teasing shell: "Although things started because of you, your recklessness helped us a great deal. You stormed their stronghold, filmed those two volumes of documents, exposed their plan—if it weren't for you startling them in advance, making them rush the ritual, we might only have realized it at the last moment. When the bomb really detonated and the ship began to tilt, no matter how strong, we couldn't have saved so many people."

He paused: "And moreover, there's one thing, you gave me the chance to come into contact with some————things I originally had no possibility of contacting. So although you almost got Sakura killed, you also let everyone avoid the real danger."

"And moreover, you filmed many things, when the police come————they will be useful."

"On this point, I indeed want to thank you!"

Eto Miyabi lifted her head, looking at him somewhat incredulously, she thought he would continue scolding her: "Really?!"

"Yeah, it's true." Uesugi Muneyuki nodded: "So, no repetition. Next time you want to conduct an investigation, at least tell me first. Don't go alone into enemy territory. You promise this, tonight's matter will be settled."

Eto Miyabi fell silent for a few seconds, then nodded slightly: "————Okay, I won't dare again."

Uesugi Muneyuki looked at her soaked shirt and messy hair, suddenly thought of something, the corner of his mouth curved slightly: "And besides————"

"What?" Eto Miyabi immediately responded.

"That wound on the back of your head, you'd better have the ship's infirmary take care of it. Don't let it get infected."

"And then?" Eto Miyabi lifted her head, the layer of "big news" light in her gaze flared up again—but this time with a hint of another meaning: "And then, how do you plan to thank" me?"

Uesugi Muneyuki glanced at her, fell silent for a moment. "————Tonight, turn right at the end of the corridor, third room, the storage closet next to it has an empty cabin, I'll go check on Sakura later. If you still have strength, go back first to change into dry clothes. Wait until I finish with that side"

He trailed off.

Eto Miyabi looked at him, eyes shining, waiting.

"Do you still remember our promise?"

Eto Miyabi's breathing lightened for an instant.

Here it comes! Finally here!

Cow come!!!!!!!

"I will definitely go! I'll save you a door."

After saying this, Eto Miyabi turned and walked toward the other end of the corridor, walked two steps, she stopped, her steps light, smiling and cheerful: "Mr. Uesugi————Thank you. Really, you are a good person!"

Then she hurried off, obviously eager to go back to take a bath and change clothes.

Cow come!

Uesugi Muneyuki watched her disappear around the corridor corner, then turned toward the suite's direction, couldn't help laughing and shaking his head.

This time it also counts as a blessing in disguise!

Divine Sword, Sword of Heavenly Clouds! Already fallen into his hand!

With this sword————what in this world could still oppose him?

Bull!!!!

And at the same time, United States, California, Rocky Mountains.

Souda Sosuke happened to come to the United States for a tryout, he was invited to visit the ranch in the Rocky Mountains, Otani Shōhei received him, but just as the two stepped onto the ranch's land, a bull was provoked by Souda Sosuke and charged at him.

"There's a bull ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!"