The Legend of Tokyo Taoist

Chapter 133: Training trip (6)

The test of courage competition has nothing to do with the supernatural department. It is a regular program for bored teenagers in Japan during their summer training. The origin of this event can probably be traced back to the Heian period. It is an ancient tradition. The scary side will use all means to scare the participants. It is just a playful activity. Qian Xiaoyi would find it strange if they didn't hold it.

Kawasaki first took them to a cemetery on the mountain, where various tombstones stood. Because it was in the countryside, the styles of the tombstones were also different, which looked uneven, but they were all basically the same.

These tombstones are very crowded, one row after another. Although coffins are also used in Japanese burials, they are only used in funerals. In the end, they will be burned with the owner's fire and turned into ashes. The ashes will be worshipped at home for a period of time before being buried in the cemetery. However, because it is cremation, it does not require much space.

"Sorry to bother you all. Please don't blame me, please don't blame me..." As soon as Sato arrived here, he clasped his hands together and kept nodding and bowing.

Qian Xiaoyi took a look and found that the cemetery was very clean. Although there were a few faint scents around during the day due to the shade, there was basically no danger at all, not to mention the existence of any evil spirits.

All in all, it's pretty normal here.

Then they continued to walk up the mountain path. After a while, a mottled stone torii gate appeared in front of everyone. The plaque of the torii gate was blurred and the words on it could not be seen. The pillars on both sides were covered with moss. The whole torii gate was a bit dirty. The bluestone steps of the mountain path extended upwards, giving people the illusion that if they stepped in, they would go to another world.

In fact, this is also the meaning of Torii. Once this highly religious building appears, it means entering the realm of gods and breaking away from the secular world.

"It feels like... this place is even more eerie than a cemetery..." Owada Yui swallowed her saliva and stopped moving forward. Except for Kawasaki, the others were the same. The torii gate in front of them and the stairs that stretched infinitely upwards gave them a sense of awe.

"Hmm, a shrine?" Qian Xiaoyi finally became interested and walked up first. He had visited several shrines in Tokyo, and they were all very ordinary places. On the contrary, this kind of shrine in the countryside gave him a more spiritual feeling. If I had to say, it was almost the difference in popularity. In a popular place, the smell of money and worldliness would be stronger, which would dilute the spirituality of this religious place. However, because there were not many people coming here all year round, there was a more mysterious atmosphere.

"Teacher Qian, wait for us."

Seeing this, the high school students hurriedly followed. Rather than hesitating at the door and not daring to go up, they felt safer following Qian Xiaoyi.

After reaching the top and entering the courtyard, Qian Xiaoyi discovered that the stone sculptures on both sides behind the door were not Komainu, but statues of foxes, which meant that this was the Inari Shrine. Inari is the name of a group of gods in charge of the harvest in Japan, and foxes are their messengers, not objects of worship.

This shrine has also been abandoned and has not been taken care of for a long time, so it is in tatters everywhere. There is a strange atmosphere in the colorful forest.

"Fox, cemetery..." Qian Xiaoyi looked around the courtyard of the shrine and had some ideas.

Since the place is not very big, one can finish the tour in just a few glances. And with the urging of Sato and Owada, everyone left the shrine after a while, packed up their things and walked back the way they came.

They returned to the hotel along the same route, and by the time they arrived it was already evening, so they could have dinner after a short rest.

There was nothing fun in the countryside at night, and everyone was tired from walking today, so they were too lazy to do any night activities. After playing poker in the room for a while, they turned off the lights and went to rest.

Just as Inuyama Heita was hazily recalling the taste of barbecue in his dream, a voice sounded in his ears.

"Hey, Inuyama, wake up, wake up quickly." As soon as Inuyama Heita opened his eyes, he saw Ajian's big face. He was so scared that all sleepiness disappeared.

"Shh~" Ajian put a finger to his mouth: "Don't wake them up."

Inuyama Heita asked quietly, "What's the matter?"

"Brother Yi told me to wake you up now." Ah Jian said, "He said it's time for special training."

"Special training..." Inuyama Heita's expression became somewhat reluctant. He almost forgot the real purpose of participating in the training and thought he was really here to have fun.

At this moment, Inuyama Heita's cell phone vibrated. He picked it up and saw that it was a message from Qian Xiaoyi.

Qian Xiaoyi: [Come to the shrine, the flashlight is placed at the door. ]

"It's very far..." Inuyama Heita reluctantly got up, put on his clothes, sneaked out the door, and walked towards the shrine with Ajian.

Although it is a mountain road, the way to the shrine is not difficult to find. You just need to follow the mountain road all the way to the end. The forest at night becomes very strange, and it feels like another world. When you walk to the torii in front of the shrine, under the light of the pale flashlight, Inuyama Heita instantly had the illusion that he was the protagonist of a horror game.

"So scary... Are there any monsters or ghosts up there?" Ken huddled behind Inuyama Heita, feeling a little terrified.

"You... are a ghost." Inuyama Heita said speechlessly, "Why are you afraid of your own kind?"

"Huh? So what?" Ah Jian retorted, "Aren't you afraid of the Yakuza and the gangsters?"

Inuyama Heita was shocked and said, "That makes sense!"

Although they were a little afraid, they still walked up. As soon as they entered the shrine, they saw Qian Xiaoyi sitting on a stone. There were some strange props on the ground beside him, including ancient copper bells, incense burners and talismans. Even the copper coin sword was hung on his waist, as if he was going to have a big battle with some big monster.

"Brother Yi, what are you doing..." Inuyama Heita looked around vigilantly, as if facing a great enemy.

"Don't worry, we just came here to investigate in advance just in case, and we didn't find anything unusual." Qian Xiaoyi pointed to another stone pillar nearby and said, "Come and sit down, it's still growing tonight."

Inuyama Heita breathed a sigh of relief, came to Qian Xiaoyi, sat down, and asked, "What is the content of the special training?"

"Don't worry about that for now." Qian Xiaoyi said, "Because my training method is a bit special, you must understand some things first, otherwise you can't start special training. Then, the second lesson of employee training - advanced training... By the way, I haven't told you about the origin of my lineage, right? Listen carefully, I won't tell you a second time, these contents are very important for the following special training..."

(End of this chapter)