Hunting God Era

Chapter 221 The Crimson Lotus Grand Master

Genjin stepped into the neon-lit night of Kagoshima, his steps heavy, as if the mountains of Satsuma were pressing down on his heart.

The conflict during the day and Li Ye's words were like cold steel needles, constantly piercing through his past understanding.

The mysterious and powerful man from Shenzhou hung in his mind like a huge enigma. What was his purpose in coming here? Why did he say those things to him? What kind of power did those cold chains wrapped around his arm contain? Xuan Jin subconsciously stroked the rough surface of the chains, and an indescribable tremor spread from his fingertips.

However, what troubled him more than Li Ye's purpose was the actions of the people from the shrine and temple, and the cold reality that Li Ye revealed.

He firmly believed that although the upper echelons were inactive, the darkness was not insurmountable and the light would eventually come.

But at this moment, this belief is like fragile glass, full of cracks.

Could it be that those high-ranking nobles, priests of shrines, and monks of temples really collude with demons, regard human life as worthless, and treat their fellow countrymen as provisions?

Those in the upper echelons are in cahoots with demons.
He glanced at the chains binding his arms, pursed his lips, and ventured deeper into the city. Looking at the demons walking alongside the pedestrians in broad daylight, some hidden and others undetectable, he felt a chill run down his spine.

In the past, he would pretend not to see these minor demons unless they went too far. Firstly, taking action rashly could easily cause panic, and secondly, there were corresponding talismans around that could prevent them from harming people.

He would only take direct action against those who were truly harmful; otherwise, he would at least wait until night to carry out his demon-slaying and exorcising practices.

During my travels, I encountered people tormented by demons, received their gratitude, and even met with local secret agents, as well as some shrines and temples.

The people of the Dark Side invited him to join, but he refused. However, things remained peaceful. The people of the shrine also praised him. At that time, he simply thought that although their paths were different, they had things in common.

Humans are capable of understanding each other.

But now that he's come to his senses, perhaps he didn't infringe on their interests. For example, in that mountain town now, if their interests hadn't been affected, perhaps they would have been as friendly as before when they arrived.

But when their interests were at stake, they didn't even kill him; instead, they dealt with those who shared those interests first. He wasn't even among those interests. So, seeing that they were no match for him, but having achieved their goal, those people would retreat.

Can humans truly understand each other?
At this moment, rather than caring about the man's purpose in coming here, he was thinking about carefully observing the city and what it might be hiding.

He wandered aimlessly in the shadows of the city, his gaze sweeping across the streets like that of a hawk.

Those demons that were hidden or difficult to detect during the day became more active under the lingering effects of the Demon Festival and the cover of night.

A blue-faced, fanged creature with a long neck stretched out, trying to peer into a house with its doors and windows tightly shut. Several wispy, black smoke-like creatures hovered under the streetlights, emitting unsettling whispers. Even a few small, screeching creatures made a rustling sound at the dark sewer opening, foreshadowing misfortune.

In the past, Xuanjin would choose to ignore these minor demons that were not particularly harmful, or deal with them quietly when it was late at night, so as not to cause panic.

He once naively believed that as long as he did good and eliminated evil, he could eventually achieve great things step by step.

But now, in addition to vigilance, a deep suspicion has been added to his gaze as he looks at these demons.

Is their existence itself the result of tacit approval or even manipulation by the upper echelons?
Are those expensive yet ineffective talismans pasted on the lintels of countless households more like a carefully designed 'license fee,' symbolizing a distorted symbiosis?

But no matter what, he still has to do things.

At night, demons and monsters would emerge and begin to persecute people. The talismans that were pasted on were useless. Where the demons tried to enter, he couldn't help but take action to drive them away and secretly reinforced the talismans.

He also helped some people who hadn't had time to go home and had mistakenly entered the area contaminated by demons, and he was grateful for their help.

Is it true that he still has the power? Although he has encountered setbacks, as long as he has enough power, he can still continue to practice his own way. It is only a few individuals, some people blinded by greed, who would focus on this benefit.

Having received a good education since childhood, coupled with the solidification of his values ​​over the years, Xuan Jin's mind, which had been swayed by Li Ye's words, seemed to have calmed down somewhat at this moment.

That man was too alluring, but maybe that's not the case. If I persist and ask others, perhaps I can...
As he struggled to grasp a familiar sense of justice amidst his chaotic thoughts, a deliberately hushed conversation, laced with threats and wicked laughter, mixed with suppressed sobs, drifted from the depths of a dark, damp alleyway ahead.

The despair in those sobs instantly pierced Xuan Jin's sensitive nerves. His eyes narrowed, and he silently climbed onto the roof of the low building next to him like a raccoon dog. Using the eerie light and shadow cast by the mottled neon signs and the shadows of the building itself, he blended perfectly into the darkness and looked down at the scene in the alley below.

Deep in the alley, the light was completely swallowed up by the towering walls on both sides, with only a faint glow of neon lights from the main street in the distance barely outlining a few swaying silhouettes.

Surrounded in the middle was a high school girl in a sailor uniform. She hugged her arms tightly, her body trembling slightly from fear and cold, but her bright eyes burned with an indomitable rage and a deep-seated despair.

The collar of her school uniform was roughly torn open, and her face had fresh bruises, clearly indicating that she had just been in a struggle.

The people surrounding her were no strangers to Xuan Jin!

Two of them, dressed in hunting robes, were priests from a nearby shrine who had visited earlier. Although they were not the same person, their uniforms were identical.

Another was wearing a dark brown monk's robe, a monk from a nearby temple. The others were wearing flashy suits, with tattoos extending from their open collars to their necks, and fierce-looking eyes; they were members of the local gang.

None of that mattered. What made Xuan Jin's blood almost freeze was that at their feet, a dark green ghost child with wrinkled skin, less than a meter tall, with pointed ears and fangs, was drooling disgustingly at the girl and growling.

Those beady eyes gleamed with greed and lust. This demon was not wild; it wore a metal collar engraved with runes around its neck and was being led by a gang member on a short chain.

Xuanjin recognized this demon.

"Ghost Child" is a Japanese term; in the West, it's called a goblin or gnome, and the types that are born vary depending on the legend.

Japanese culture was integrated with Western culture, but in the process of integration, some things naturally changed, including demons.

The goblins of Japan have incorporated the unique characteristics of Japan itself, making them prone to harassing women, lustful and cunning, and capable of causing women to give birth to powerful demons.

Sometimes, it's not even goblins, but something else that's produced.

He initially thought this was just a result of alienation, but now it seems that's not the case.
Are they forcing this woman?

"Saotome Yuko, don't be ungrateful!"

The head priest, a middle-aged man with a sinister face, spoke in an icy voice, "It's your good fortune that your talent has been chosen by the demon child! Cooperate obediently and produce powerful demon child warriors for your family, and not only will your debt to the Satsuma Group be wiped clean, but our Tsukuyomi Shrine will also cover the medical expenses of your sickly father."

Production?

What is production? Before Xuanjin could ponder this further, the guest monk below clasped his hands together, hypocritically chanted a Buddhist prayer, and said:
“Yuko, this is the result of karma, and it is also your destiny. To be able to add guardian demon soldiers under the command of ‘Vajra Yaksha King’ is a great merit. If you obey, it is a form of spiritual practice. If you resist, it will only plunge you and your family into a deeper hell.”

Vajrayaksha Myō-ō?

Are the demons called "Vimalakirti" (明王) real, or are they some kind of sealed demons?
A Satsuma gang leader stepped forward with a sinister grin, his rough fingers almost poking the girl's face.
"Yuko-chan, your father's life and your brother's right to go to school are both in our hands! Think about it, as long as you take good care of this ghost child, once it plants the demonic seed in your belly and successfully gives birth to the holy child, your family will be turned around! This is a blessing that many people would rather die for!"

The girl trembled even more violently, tears of humiliation welling up in her eyes, but she stubbornly refused to let them fall.

After trembling, she closed her eyes in despair, nodded slightly, and said, "I...I understand."

Overjoyed, everyone released the ghost child from its grasp. The ghost child roared excitedly, its filthy claws reaching for the girl's skin.

At that moment, a violent and intense rage erupted like a volcano, shooting straight from Xuanjin's chest to the top of his head.

Li Ye's words exploded in his mind like a thunderclap.

The upper echelons are part of the power structure, no different from demons!
The scene before my eyes is the most naked and cruel commentary!
This is not inaction, this is organized crime!
This girl is qualified and a cultivator, but she is just an ordinary person. Her qualifications are now being used as a breeding tool, worse than an animal, and a breeding ground for demons!

The ghost child has this ability: the stronger the mother body it conceives in, the more powerful the demon it can give birth to. In other words, the demon inside the mother body absorbs the mother body's essence and is then born.

The more children a mother has, the weaker her physical qualities and cultivation become, until she can no longer cultivate and becomes completely useless.

But if they're just demons, that's fine!

These people, it's actually these people!
What about saving all living beings! What about having a compassionate heart! What about protecting one's territory!
It's all lies! It's utter evil disguised as holiness!

"You scoundrel! Stop right there!!!"

A roar filled with boundless rage and sorrow, like a lion's roar, thunderously echoed through the narrow alley. The sound shook the walls, causing dust to fall and making everyone in the alley tremble.

Xuan Jin's figure, like a golden-winged roc, swooped down from the shadows of the rooftop, carrying a resolute killing intent.

His primary target was the demon child who was about to commit violence.

The shrine priest was the first to react, filled with shock and anger: "Where did this wild monk come from!"

As he spoke, he formed a hand seal, and several ropes made of shadow appeared out of thin air, swiftly wrapping around Xuan Jin.

The Dharma protector monk also shouted sharply, raised his hand and took out a vajra, its tip flashing with cold light, and stabbed towards Xuanjin's vital point.

The Satsuma gang's thugs were even more direct, drawing their short knives or throwing out their finger cots and charging forward menacingly.

Faced with the siege, Xuan Jin showed no fear, only a burning rage that consumed everything.

He instinctively threw a punch, the force of which, imbued with the fierce aura of the Po Jun Pass, sent the two gangsters who charged at him flying backward, coughing up blood.

However, the shadowy ropes had already wrapped around his legs and arms, and the head of the Dharma protector monk's vajra was within reach.

These people were not weak, especially the gangsters, who were all at the second level. Their numbers were greater than the four who came during the day. In addition, Xuan Jin had just finished a battle and had not yet recovered, so he was immediately at a disadvantage.

If this continues, we will fail.
We cannot fail!

These people deserve to die!

At that very moment, the cold chains on his arm seemed to sense his helpless anger and suddenly became scalding hot.

An indescribable aura, cold and deathly still yet imposingly majestic, suddenly erupted from the depths of the chains.

Almost as if struck by a sudden inspiration, or rather, driven by this sudden surge of power, Xuan Jin abruptly swung his arm.

Whoosh!

The chain on his arm, like a venomous dragon awakening, stretched and extended instantly. It was no longer a metal chain in the physical sense; in the instant it was swung, it transformed into a dark, shadowy light that was between reality and illusion, moving faster than anyone else present could react.

A few more soft sounds,

The dark, chain-like light ignored physical barriers, binding everyone, including the demon, as if piercing through an illusion.

Karmic retribution!

There was no gruesome scene of blood splattering. The moment they were bound by chains and shadows, everyone froze at the same time. The light in their eyes disappeared at a visible speed, replaced by an empty, blank, and lifeless look, as if their souls had been instantly ripped away.

Immediately afterwards, several semi-transparent phantoms identical to the original body were forcibly dragged out of their bodies by the dark chains.

The moment those phantoms were pulled out, Xuan Jin seemed to understand something. He immediately took action, chanting incantations and activating talismans. The prayer beads in his hand no longer shone with the same dazzling light as before, but turned pitch black. They pierced through the bodies of these people, causing their flesh to break through like sieves, and then they fell down.

died!

"I understand, I get it."

Looking at the corpses of these people, and that filthy demonic child.

"I'm not killing people, I'm saving the world. The world, no, Japan, is rotten to the core. Only by killing them, wiping them all out, can we truly save the world!"

He raised one hand, his brows furrowed, and his face, which was originally peaceful and innocent, now looked fierce and menacing.

"Killing is for the sake of protecting life; cutting off karma, not killing people. Only by igniting the fire in this world can we be reborn in the pure red lotus!"

"My name is not Xuanjin, my name is Grand Master Honglian!"

(End of this chapter)