I'm a demon in Tokyo!

Chapter 382 The Death of Imagawa Yoshimoto
Five miles from Kyoto.

Complex spells lit up frequently, and rare consumables were scattered on the ground for free, turning into nodes for the establishment of the barrier.

All those who hadn't tried to stop Imagawa Yoshimoto's march to Kyoto, those who hadn't had a chance to try, and those who had tried but weren't giving up and continued to send men, gathered here.

It became the last line of defense to stop the great Onmyoji Che.

Ancient Onmyoji, warriors who have trekked here, infamous murderers, and even intelligent demons...

After confronting each other here, all the roadblocks from all corners of the world unanimously chose to cooperate temporarily.

Because everyone present knew that if he wanted to face Che alone, there was absolutely no chance of winning.

Even if he had been exhausted by countless checkpoints on his journey to Luoyang day after day.

So everyone chose to join forces.

If they can stop Che here and prevent Imagawa from going to Kyoto... then they can get a huge reward from the Demon Guild, enough to train three demon gods.

With such a vast amount of resources, even if the thirty-odd people present were divided equally among the demons, each person would receive a considerable amount, enough for them to live a carefree and happy life for the rest of their days.

Moreover, they were facing the great Onmyoji, Che.

Even if they fought with all their might and won, it would be considered a great achievement if one in ten survived. At that time, the rewards would be enough to satisfy any participant.

Those who shared the same goal but had nothing in common to talk about remained silent, each doing what they were supposed to do.

The Onmyoji continued to set up layers of barriers, and many warriors used secret techniques to overdraw their life force in exchange for greater power, trying to stand one-on-one next to the Onmyoji to protect them.

The demons displayed their various supernatural abilities, some making the barrier extremely insidious, others burrowing underground to hide themselves, waiting to target Che's vitals at the crucial moment.

The establishment of the last line of defense seemed strangely well-organized.

In reality, there was only a temporary coordinator making the plans—an old Onmyoji, with white hair and beard, aged to the extreme, and only a step away from being a ghost or god, stood in a position neither in front nor behind.

He is too old.

His once-proud talent gradually faded, and he fell into mediocrity.

There were no resources within the clan that could forcefully elevate him to the status of a ghost or god.

If he doesn't seize this last opportunity, he will surely die of old age within a year.

Since I'm doomed either way, I might as well give it a try.

The old man wanted to live.

This is the thought of most people in this "last line of defense".

They were filled with fear upon hearing the news, yet they stood there, unable to resist their greed.

Wow!
The distant sky darkened in an instant, and the once immovable avenue of heavenly light was suddenly blocked by a massive barrier that stretched from heaven to earth.

Even though they were thousands of meters apart, everyone could still feel the surge of spiritual energy caused by the barrier.

A cacophony of voices rose from all sides. Some worried that if Che died there, all their efforts would be in vain, while others hoped that the strangers blocking their way would wear Che down even further.

"Is that also... an obstacle blocking Che's path?"

One of the Onmyoji looked up and murmured in shock.

But the next moment, the enormous barrier, as vast as the sky, vanished and disappeared in an instant, turning into ashes and dissipating starlight energy that could no longer be observed.

In the blink of an eye, everything fell silent without warning.

This last line of defense was equally silent.

The noisy discussions fell silent, as if a pause button had been pressed.

"It's Che..."

Someone murmured that name.

Similarly, some people wanted to run away after witnessing this mind-blowing scene, not wanting to become an insignificant footnote on the long death list of the past few days.

Amidst the widespread panic, the aged high-ranking Onmyoji spoke in a hoarse voice.
"That is the [Spirit-Severing Barrier]."

The old man slowly said, "Although it only existed for two or three breaths, it was enough to cause Che to lose most of his spiritual power. The being that could set up such a spirit-severing barrier must have dealt Che a heavy blow before dying."

The aged Onmyoji asserted, "I haven't seen it. Not even lightning magic has appeared?"

The panic subsided instantly, and everyone heard the old man pause before speaking coldly.
"If you all want to escape, I will not stop you... but you need to think carefully. This is your last chance to stop Che. If you escape, you will have no further connection with this matter."

Besides, Che isn't far from here. Do you all think you can escape him?

The old man's words temporarily calmed the panicked hearts of the people.

—In fact, at this point, the cowardly and timid have long since disappeared; they just want an excuse to convince themselves.

"rational."

Many people echoed.

The alliance of Onmyoji, samurai, and demons spent considerable time making final preparations, and then they all became extremely focused.

Looking forward to it.

……

"Chejun, I have memorized the names and faces of the remaining soldiers."

After hearing Uesugi Tetsu say that Kyoto was just ahead, Imagawa Yoshimoto's previously muffled voice gradually became clearer and stronger from the first word onwards.

Finally, she pushed open the wooden door of the carriage herself, and stepped down from the carriage, still wearing her heavy black armor.

Imagawa Yoshimoto stood firmly on the ground, smiled at the slightly stunned Uesugi Tetsuya,
"Let's go, just the two of us."

Imagawa Yoshimoto's weariness and sickness seemed to vanish in an instant, and the girl, with her back straight, was full of energy, her voice clear, and her eyes bright, just like when they first met in Ariwa Village.

Uesugi Tetsuya understood.

This is the last glimmer of light.

The countdown has begun.

"What are you standing there for?" Imagawa Yoshimoto tilted his head slightly. "Does it mean that you think you can't protect me alone?"

"Do not."

Uesugi Tetsu shook his head: "Of course not."

Having received an affirmative answer, Imagawa Yoshimoto nodded in satisfaction and followed behind him to the head of the army, arriving beside the dragon horse that had been riding the previous two feet.

Ryoma was only temporarily lent to Nichi, and when he saw Imagawa Yoshimoto, he snorted happily.

"What kind of mess is this...?"

Uesugi Tetsu looked at the dragon horse, whose fur was covered in clumps of sticky blood, and waved his hand, letting a large amount of spiritually rich water wash it clean from head to toe.

"Xilulu!"

With a splash of water, the exhilarated dragon horse transformed back into the same heroic and majestic figure it had been when it set out to conquer Luoyang.

It lowered its head and gently sniffed Imagawa Yoshimoto's scent, feeling both pleased and puzzled.

The owner's aura is so healthy, so why does it give off a feeling of old age?
Ryoma didn't understand. It just nuzzled Imagawa Yoshimoto's arm affectionately and then lowered its body to indicate that the latter should lean on its back.

After giving a brief explanation to everyone, Uesugi Tetsu heard a voice behind him.

"Che-jun, let's go."

He heard Imagawa Yoshimoto say, "Go to Kyoto and become the ruler of the land."

Five miles outside Kyoto.

The first thing to appear before that last line of defense was not a large army of black-armored soldiers, nor a towering shikigami general, but a chilling Hannya mask.

The man wearing a prajna mask was leading the horse, with the woman sitting on its back, less than five miles from the capital city of Shangluo.

The head of the Imagawa family is Imagawa Yoshimoto.

Once she is killed, the bounty on the Demon Guide Association will be completed, and a reward so generous it would drive anyone mad will be in hand.

Within sight, there were only two people and a horse; there was no one else.

Despite having the advantages of time and location, and possessing dozens of backup plans, the temporary allied forces did not make a move.

No one dared to make the first move.

The mere appearance of that man called Che was enough to push everyone, both human and demon, to their limits. In the thick, deathly silence, the aged Onmyoji was afraid.

I was terrified, I was scared.

It wasn't until he actually saw Uesugi Tetsuya in person that he realized this was no opponent he could face, and that even gathering a few dozen rabble wouldn't be enough.

The old man opened his mouth, ignoring the various stares from those around him, wanting to negotiate: "Che, we can leave immediately, and I can guarantee..."

Before these difficult words could be finished, hundreds of pure black lightning orbs suddenly appeared in every part of the "last line of defense," covering all living, breathing, and moving creatures.

"Lord Yiyuan, please close your eyes."

Imagawa Yoshimoto gently closed her eyes, and a protective barrier formed by condensed dark energy blocked her way.

Then, lightning crackled and violently tore apart all the barriers, traps, and the demons that had cleverly hidden themselves.

A second sun appeared on Earth.

Uesugi Tetsuya, who was still in an overlimit state, didn't need to worry about consuming any spiritual power. He could simply use the Five Thunder Technique to saturate the group of worthless scoundrels and annihilate them all.

Even if dozens of people were combined, they might not be able to defeat this disgrace of the gods and demons. I don't know why he has the audacity to stand here.

However, in Uesugi Tetsu's perception, there seemed to be someone kneeling tremblingly on the road after the lightning.

This is not okay.

He patted the two swords at his waist.

Xiao Jia and Qing simultaneously flew out of their sheaths, transforming into two streaks of light, one white and one blue, and sped away.

White and blue intertwine.

Beheaded.

The aged head, still bearing a trace of regret, fell to the ground, charred by the fragments of lightning, and merged into the earth.

Uesugi Tetsu, with Imagawa Yoshimoto who had reopened his eyes and remained expressionless, calmly crossed the so-called defensive line.

"By the way, Xiao Jia and Xiao Qing, did you hear anything just now?"

Uesugi Tetsuya then remembered that he had heard an old man's voice before he released the Five Thunder Technique.

Both men said they didn't remember.

"Did I hear wrong...?"

Uesugi Tetsu casually replied, not paying much attention.

—The last batch, a total of thirty-seven people who wanted to try, were annihilated in an instant by the Great Yin-Yang Master Che, without even being able to retaliate.

Hours of preparation were essentially wasted.

The onlookers who had avoided the main road watched in silence, all glad that they were cowards and hadn't gone to their deaths.

Now anyone with eyes can see it.

Imagawa Yoshimoto has successfully entered Kyoto.

The Demon Guides Association, which issued the bounty, suffered such a huge defeat, yet no one is speaking up now.

Given Che's personality, he will definitely retaliate a thousandfold, just like he did to the Hozuki family...

Uesugi Tetsuya and Imagawa Yoshimoto stopped in front of the tall city gate of Kyoto.

After waiting for a while, no one opened the door, but no guards appeared or stopped them either.

"Is nobody here?"

Uesugi Tetsu didn't say much. He used his telekinesis to push open the heavy city gate and then, together with Imagawa Yoshimoto, saw the empty streets.

The common people all hid in their homes, and no one dared to show their faces.

The vast city of Kyoto seemed like a ghost town at this moment.

The Miyoshi Triumvirate, who should have done everything in their power to stop Imagawa Yoshimoto, also failed to appear—after seeing the long list of deaths, the triumvirate understood that this was an overwhelming force that they could not stop.

Moreover, they had already incurred considerable costs along the way.

But not even a splash of water was made...

By this time, the trio had already abandoned Kyoto and fled further north.

The Emperor also did not appear, and his whereabouts are unknown.

However, Uesugi Tetsu didn't care. It was just a puppet; there was no need to see it.

Just by looking at Imagawa Yoshimoto's expression, Uesugi Tetsuya could understand that she didn't need the Emperor's approval to become the ruler of the land.

Imagawa Yoshimoto gazed silently at the empty Kyoto for a while, without saying anything more.

"Che-jun, let's go to the city wall."

She dismounted and turned around.

At this moment, the enormous golden-red sun in the sky had already sunk nearly halfway below the horizon.

"Let's go see the sunset."

"it is good."

There was no one on the city wall either; it was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

Only then did Uesugi Tetsu realize that the once-powerful aura beside him was gradually fading.

It wasn't the worsening of her condition that shortened Yoshimoto Imagawa's life, but rather that her obsession, once fulfilled, would inevitably lead to her death.

The people of Imagawa's territory have been settled, so the closer Imagawa Yoshimoto is to Kyoto, the closer he is to death.

My own relentless journey to Luoyang actually accelerated the process.

And now, Shangluo has succeeded.

On the city wall, Imagawa Yoshimoto stood on the highest step.

This place is even higher than the highest point in the city.

She gazed at the winding road she had traveled and the gradually disappearing avenue of skylight, feeling the thousands of awe-inspiring gazes cast upon her from below and above.

Looking back, I saw the bustling scenery of Kyoto.

"Is this the view that everyone in the world can see?"

Imagawa Yoshimoto closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and couldn't help but smile, saying, "It doesn't seem like much."

Beyond the horizon, the sun sets in the west.

The dim, yellow light fell upon Imagawa Yoshimoto, as if draping her in a thin golden veil.

"Che-jun, do you know?"

Imagawa Yoshimoto looked at Uesugi Tetsuya, who was standing beside her, and cheerfully spoke up in a loud voice.
"I was born more than 20 years ago. At the age of 14, I left the temple and took over the position of head of the family."

In the same year, they won an unprecedented victory, unifying Suruga, Tōtōmi, and Mikawa provinces, and forming an alliance with Takeda and Hojō.

He worked diligently to govern the country, recruited many talents, and improved people's livelihoods. Later, he met you, Chejun, in Youdu Village. Before the world was restored, he finally managed to trick you into joining his ranks, but then you suddenly disappeared.

The calamity in Sanhe, the war with Hozuki, the incurable disease, Che-kun's return, and now the announcement to the world of Sangkyo...

"Imagawa Yoshimoto's life was both fortunate and unfortunate, so wonderful and full of ups and downs."

She sighed, then said lightly,

"But death, death can take everything away from me, leaving me with nothing."

"Death is truly terrifying."

Imagawa Yoshimoto's voice grew softer and softer.

"So, please, Che-kun, bear witness to me and remember me."

Her last gaze fell on the bare branches, her eyebrows slightly downturned.
"What a pity, the cherry blossoms haven't bloomed yet."

The sun has set.

(End of this chapter)