In order to become a Heroic Spirit, I had no choice but to cause trouble in history.

"...The villagers are evil, and you, who have become a monster, are also evil, but...what is the root of evil? And if I kill the monster, you, who are not evil, will also disappear."

"Does this mean that in order to punish evil, I have also killed good?"

"In that case..."

"Please don't feel burdened, Anno Samurai." The girl stood up, revealing an expression completely different from her previous indifference.

"Don't mistake me for a benefactor." The girl looked down at the mountain and at the lake. "From the very beginning, my purpose was not to save those villagers."

"They are undoubtedly rotten people, evil, and filthy."

"Their souls are not worthy of redemption. What I care about... is that I don't want anyone else to enter this deep quagmire of resentment."

Zuocun looked at the girl.

A wisp of red cloud had already risen on the horizon, and the floating corpses on the surface of Lake Kurokawa were slowly sinking and disappearing into the lake, turning the clear water black once again.

"...I'm just atoning for my sins, not doing anything good. You know, I'm the same person as that guy over there."

She pointed to a stone pillar on the west side of the lake, and standing on the pillar was the black monster.

"Thank you for listening to my story, Anno Samura."

"She is invincible now, she is unbeatable."

"You are a good person, and the only survivor. So, I beg you here to end my weeping."

"My only weakness as a demon will be the day I am turned into a human pillar, which is August 5th."

"Only on that day will she become weak and vulnerable to being killed."

"Also, please remember me if you can."

"Remember this, the person who made the promise with you."

"My name is Hoshiguma Setsuna."

Zheng—

Zuo Cun gripped the hilt of the crane-feathered sword, gazing at the large stone at the village entrance.

Hoshiguma Setsuna, I'm back, keeping my promise.

------------

Chapter 309 Entering Purgatory

1855 years.

8 month 3 day.

Although at the end of July, Samura, Ryoma, and Ms. Oryu arrived together in the town closest to Kurokawayama.

However, the group stayed there for about a week before setting off again.

The reason is...

"Hey! Zuocun! Is that white-haired youkai pretty?" A girl with light pink hair asked Zuocun, who was walking ahead of her, her eyes sparkling.

"...Hair as white as snow, eyes as cold as ice, that's the yokai lady." Zuocun gazed at Kurokawa Shimomura, nestled at the foot of a lush mountain, his eyes slightly narrowed.

Ah, as expected, it's still the same as always.

It is deceptive; it is a place of certain death, like a hellish place, yet it looks no different from an ordinary village.

Unlike the last time I visited, Kurokawa Shimomura, no longer hidden in the snow, is more conspicuous, and I imagine more travelers will approach, hoping to find lodging or ask for some porridge or rice.

However, the final result was...

Upon arriving at the village entrance, the four men looked at the stone with large red characters printed on it and couldn't help but feel a chill.

“This place is…” Ryoma’s hand unconsciously gripped the hilt of his sword.

He was a kind-hearted man who never thought of hurting or killing anyone. Therefore, even though his swordsmanship was quite good, he rarely drew his sword and did not have the habit of keeping his hand on the hilt of his sword like other samurai.

However, after learning about this place from Zuocun, Ryoma felt... just from seeing those few words.

It wasn't fear, but heartache.

Such a tragic event was entirely due to disgusting bad habits.

An innocent girl was captured, her limbs were cruelly cut off, she was sealed in a mud pillar, and she was sunk in the water.

If I can successfully cleanse this country, I will definitely eradicate all these bad habits!

Miss Ah Long didn't seem to have any particular feelings about the others.

She had witnessed far too much killing between people, and one-sided killing by monsters.

In some ways, humans are far more terrifying than monsters.

But what about monsters that are transformed from resentful people?

Moreover, I heard there's a powerful bear demon here?

Miss Ah Long's hair was fluttering in the air.

That being said, although it's comfortable and fun to be by Ryoma's side, but...

She hasn't really used her hands in a long time.

The previous duel with Zuocun was a disappointment; Miss A-Long didn't get to enjoy it at all. I wonder if this time...

Miss Okita possesses the vivacity unique to a 13-year-old girl.

However, Okita Souji is no ordinary thirteen-year-old girl.

She practiced shrinking earth techniques tirelessly, day and night, just to escape and play.

And she is a samurai.

With his bag on his back, Okita Souji wandered aimlessly from Edo towards the southwest.

Then, unexpectedly, he met Samura, who was maintaining his sword by the roadside in this small town, and naturally joined the group heading to Shimomura Kurokawa.

The veins on Zuocun's right hand, which was gripping the hilt of the knife, bulged.

Zheng—

The large stone with the words "Kurokawa Shimomura" written on it was split in two.

Hoshiguma Setsuna... I've come to fulfill my promise and end this fifty-year-long madness.

“After nightfall, we enter another state.” Zuocun walked ahead. “Okita, Sakamoto, and Ms. A-Long, thank you for accompanying me to this hell that does not belong to the human world.”

“…I want to cleanse this country, so let’s start here.” Ryoma’s heart was heavy.

"Don't worry, Miss A-Long is very reliable!"

Okita didn't say anything; she gripped her sword hilt nervously and looked around.

"Please remember, after dark, anyone who appears in the village, no matter how insignificant or weak, is nothing more than an evil spirit still clinging to the drowned corpse. Please... be sure to kill them without mercy," Zuo Cun said thoughtfully.

The group nodded in agreement.

Zuocun looked at the western horizon.

The sun was already teetering on the brink of collapse.

A bead of cold sweat trickled down Ryoma's and Okita's faces.

Zuocun squinted.

The sun...sets.

Night begins.

In Lake Kurokawa, the long hair of the yokai Hoshiguma Yukina flows backward, the human pillar emerges from the water, and nearly six hundred drowned corpses rise from the lake.

The world of evil spirits has arrived.

"They've arrived," Zuo Cun said.

As darkness fell, the lights in Kurokawa Shimomura suddenly came on.

Pedestrians appeared on the road, and the sounds of villagers talking could be heard.

It was as if the village still existed.

Inside the Kurokawa residence, a fifty-year-old man frowned.

Hideo Kurokawa, as the village chief of Kurokawa Shimomura, was still the village chief even after being killed by the vengeful spirit of Yukina Hoshiguma. He was the village chief of the evil spirit.

Occasionally, when Hoshiguma Yukina doesn't want to appear in the village, it's Kurokawa Hideo who has a certain degree of command over these evil spirits.

It wasn't that Hoshiguma Yukina granted him this power, but rather that even among evil spirits, Kurokawa Hideo was the most evil.

He sensed that four unfamiliar presences had appeared in Kurokawa Shimomura.

In the past, there have been instances of several people appearing together in Shimomura Kurokawa, but today's four...

Anno Samura, Ryoma Sakamoto, Souji Okita, and Ms. Aryu stood back to back in the square of Shimomura Kurokawa.

Some of the "villagers" seemed to sense the presence of living people and came out of their homes, peering greedily towards the square.

The evil spirit that takes the living to the back mountain will be rewarded with a "resentment" from Hoshiguma Setsuna, and will become even stronger.

"Oh my, when did you guests arrive in the village?" An elderly villager approached the four with a smile.

"No more nonsense, remember, these things are not human!" Zuo Cun pulled out a pheasant feather and shouted.

The old man realized something was wrong and stepped back a little.

"Guest, what are you saying?" The old man looked frightened and raised his hands.

Longma was somewhat reluctant and was still hesitating.

The old man narrowed his eyes, his hands becoming swollen: "Caught someone who let their guard down!" Then he charged towards Longma.

puff-

"Hey... what do you want to do to Ryoma?" Miss Ryoma's eyes were dark as she looked at the old man who had been pierced by her claws.

"Puhaaaa—Damn it, who are you people?" The old man, now transformed into a drowned corpse, stared at Miss A-Long in disbelief.

Just then, more villagers gathered towards the square, including some who clearly did not appear to be villagers.