Astartes of the Bear School

Chapter 1469 1441. [Zanxin] Exorcism Ceremony
As Lan En expressed his "not being in the way" attitude, Daisuke Kikuchi bowed to Lan En again, then straightened his open-chested yukata robe, then raised his sword and stepped into the [Eternal World] circle.

Lan En was standing in a normal open space at this time, watching Daisuke Kikuchi's actions with his arms folded across his chest.

The warrior with disheveled, half-white hair swung his sword at the air without any murderous intent.

Although he had never engaged in any strenuous exercise like fighting before stepping into the [Eternal World] circle, being able to stand inside and swing a proper sword strike was already much better than the panicked young warrior just now.

Lan En's [Spiritual Vision] had already been opened, and he was staring at Daisuke Kikuchi and [Tsuneyo] under his feet from the side.

The demon hunter only saw that after swinging the sword aimlessly, Daisuke Kikuchi was obviously running out of energy.

But there is no doubt that he has more experience in dealing with the [Ordinary World] than others.

Therefore, his lack of physical strength was more like doing a short period of anaerobic exercise. He could recover most of it by just taking a short breath.

Unlike the militiamen and young warriors before, the physical energy they consumed in the [Eternal World] was like aerobic exercise to the limit, and they had to rest well to let their bodies recover.

This is the difference in advantages and disadvantages caused by different body movement strategies.

And the magical thing happened when Daisuke Kikuchi had exhausted all his energy, took a breath and recovered a lot!

In Lan En's [Spiritual Vision], the life energy in Daisuke Kikuchi's body dimmed slightly as he swung his sword, which was the effect of his physical strength being wasted.

But then, as his physical strength quickly recovered, his life energy gradually brightened again.

Lan En seemed to hear a slight sound in his ear because he "saw" the whole process.

"Hey~"

As the life energy rekindled, it seemed to resonate with the [Eternal World] circle, or to be more precise, a 'reverse resonance'.

[Changshi] is a force that does not belong to the human world and will naturally suppress human life.

However, if the power of human life suppresses the [ordinary world] in a special and effective way, even for only a moment, then this power will be dispersed and return to the underworld.

With the help of physical recovery, the resonant response caused by the brief moment when life energy turns from dark to bright.

Even human warriors who do not read Buddhist scriptures and do not understand Yin and Yang Taoism can dispel the [Eternal World] summoned by monsters and protect the human world!

Even Lan En, who had experienced many different landscapes, different powers and mysteries in the world, couldn't help but raise his eyebrows with interest after seeing what Daisuke Kikuchi did.

Because Daisuke Kikuchi simply swung his sword in the air, Lan En was unable to see what abilities the samurai in this world had in terms of swordsmanship skills.

However, just the skills demonstrated by Daisuke Kikuchi in controlling and applying the physical strength and life energy in the body were enough to make him feel refreshed.

If this technology is studied in depth, is it possible that after they chop people for a long time, most of their physical strength can be recovered just by taking a breath?

Moreover, the process of recovering physical strength can naturally break through [Eternal World], a negative energy that is opposite to the force of life.

The circle of [Eternal World] under Daisuke Kikuchi's feet, which was like surging ink, suddenly collapsed as he finished his action.

The way the ink circle disintegrated and disappeared was exactly the same as the way the hungry ghost's corpse disintegrated and disappeared just now.

"Use [Zanshin] to purify [Tsuneyo]." Kikuchi Daisuke then purified the second ink circle, and then sheathed the sword with a sense of ritual while scolding his son. "I have taught you more than once!"

[Zanshin], it sounds like this is the name of the technique used to purify [Jōse] just now.

"I know, but..." Kikuchi Sadakichi didn't dare to retort, and could only lower his head and mutter softly, "I didn't know that was [Changshi], and I couldn't see it either."

The old warrior sighed bitterly, then turned to the witcher who had just watched.
After walking closer, he spoke in a low voice, a little embarrassed.

"I originally thought that after my son really killed a hungry ghost, his [Void Wisdom] should be accumulated to the point where he could see the [Eternal World], but now I think his aptitude for inspiration is probably not that good."

"I'm so sorry to have embarrassed you."

[Void Wisdom], as the name suggests, is the wisdom to observe and communicate with non-human things.

If you don't have a talent for inspiration, it seems that even [Changshi] can't be seen.

I'm afraid that after stepping in, I will just feel extremely tired for no apparent reason, but I won't even be able to figure out what's going on.

In terms of function, [Void Wisdom] seems to be somewhat similar to [Clairvoyance], but if it is just 'communication' but not 'seeing deeply and improving oneself', then this ability seems to be more important to Onmyoji.

Used for communication, subduing shikigami, etc.

For a samurai, it is even simpler. As long as the [Void Wisdom] is maintained to the point where he can see the various methods used by monsters, it will be enough.

Daisuke Kikuchi told Sadakichi Kikuchi that monsters would call out to the [Eternal World], but the feeling of entering the [Eternal World] cannot be experienced simply by talking about it.

Only when you really go through it, you will know the discomfort and frustration.

No matter how much you tell people who haven't experienced it, they won't be able to react immediately.

It was not until Daisuke Kikuchi had purified the two pieces of [Changse] that the village finally had some order from the noise.

Five or six militiamen were terrified, but they still ran towards us, gritting their teeth. They were very Japanese, shouting and yelling to encourage themselves as they ran.

But considering the courage they showed at this moment, Lan En didn't hate them.

But when they really arrived, they found that everything was fine. The group of militiamen who had been yelling loudly just now suddenly looked at each other in embarrassment, just like the previous militiamen.

Daisuke Kikuchi obviously didn't care too much, as long as no one died, it would be fine.

"Alright! Everyone who just encountered the monster, gather together and don't leave!"

The old warrior announced loudly.

But the audience seemed to know what was going on, so they did not show panic or unacceptable attitude.

"We will wait for the village chief to come, and then we will clean up the [filth] on our bodies. Bringing dirty things back home will bring disaster to others. Do you hear me?"

"Hi!"
The militiamen and Kikuchi Sadakichi agreed in unison.

Just as Kikuchi Daisuke said, not long after, the village chief also rushed over amid the noise.

It looked like he had just been woken up and had come here in a hurry, but as if he had to adhere to the ritual, he tied a rope around his chin to stabilize the priest's hat on his head as he walked over.

Behind him, several villagers followed with a bunch of miscellaneous items.

"how is it going?"

The rope around the chin hadn't been tied yet, and the man hadn't arrived yet, but the village chief's voice had already come over, shouting.

People move closer together with the sound.

"H-Is anyone in trouble? Where's the monster? What kind of monster is it?"

The priest was not a samurai after all, so the rapid footsteps made him take a while to catch his breath.

"No one is hurt, and the monster is dead. Hurry up and do the ritual. Come on, come on."

Daisuke Kikuchi pulled the village chief, who was still unable to stand, towards the open space where the hungry ghost appeared.

The villagers who followed the village chief began to put down the things in their arms skillfully and quickly.

It was a simple small table made of wooden boards, and a small shrine.

In less than a few minutes, a simple Shinto altar was set up.

It looks like a wooden hut, with a cherry blossom branch placed on the plate inside, and thinner shimenawa and paper pendants hanging on the eaves of the hut.

After everything was laid out, the village chief counted the heads of the people present, then pulled out a stack of "surrogate dolls" from his wide sleeves, counted them and put some back.

A daigou is a paper doll used to bear filth and curses on behalf of real people in Shinto rituals to exorcise evil spirits and eliminate disasters.

"Please, please." Daisuke Kikuchi bowed repeatedly and invited Lan to stand in the first row of the ceremony, seemingly because Lan had saved his son and the lives of the militiamen. Compared with the daytime, he seemed very enthusiastic.

After the village chief counted the number of puppets corresponding to the number of people, he began to chant in front of the simple altar with ups and downs of sentences, according to the Shinto rituals, and from time to time coordinated with movements and steps.

Lan En watched Daisuke Kikuchi beside him out of the corner of his eye, and with his observation and learning abilities, he followed suit and made his own reactions and movements.

Put your hands together and bow your head in prayer.

It seemed that the ritual of exorcising evil spirits and removing filth was not complicated at all and it was finished in a short while.

As everyone clapped their hands together in prayer, the village chief lit the dolls on fire. After they were burned out, everyone showed expressions of relief at the same time.

"Okay, okay, is everything okay?" The village chief's solemn and dignified priestly atmosphere disappeared immediately after the ceremony. He complained and pounded his waist.

"Ah, offering sacrifices to the gods is really troublesome. Even if you offer sacrifices, monsters will still appear in the village!"

"Don't say such nonsense!" Daisuke Kikuchi immediately shouted to the village chief, "Be careful not to offend the gods!"

The militiamen from Shisanzakura Village laughed at the two noisy old men, as if they were used to it.

"It's okay, it's okay." The village chief untied the string of his hat from his chin like an office worker untying his tie, waved his hand and said, "The cherry blossoms in our village are very kind, not as troublesome as those in other places."

Shintoism worships many "gods", and they are of varying quality.

Not only the natural spirits of mountains, rivers, plants and trees, but even the monsters and evil spirits that have committed numerous evil deeds are qualified to have temples built for them and to receive offerings.

It's just that this kind of offering is more like "appeasement" - to frame the evil ghosts and gods into the identity of "gods" through rituals and offerings, so that the original behavior style of the ghosts and gods will be restricted by their identity, reducing the harm.

However, even if it is worshipped, this kind of "god" is a very vicious and dangerous one compared to many other "gods" in Shintoism.

The huge cherry tree enshrined in Jusanzakura Village does not seem to be of this type.

(End of this chapter)