Tonight, Alice joins the hunt.

If Alice's prediction is correct, the thousands of dead samurai from that city, after their fall, will gather a massive amount of resentment, which, with the help of the earth's ley lines, will give birth to an incomparably powerful demon general. This demon general will be the first target Zhan Lan will need to deal with after her awakening, and will also become her channel to join the Western Army, one of the two factions in Sekigahara, thus truly participating in this rare epic battle in Japan.

However, when Alice arrived at the point of slumber, what appeared before her left her completely dumbfounded.

"This place is clearly a place that gathers poison and yin energy... It should be a place where the earth's veins gather evil energy, where not a blade of grass grows, and where even staying here for a few minutes will make a person sick..." she muttered to herself, looking at the noisy scene in front of her, feeling that her brain could hardly think.

"But why... has this place been turned into a hot spring inn!"

"what the hell!"

If she had a fan or some other small trinket in her hand, she would definitely have smashed it to the ground to express her anger. However, her hands were empty now, and even if she were to throw something, she could only smash the puppet strings. And these strings seemed only good for cutting the floor, not smashing it, so she had to give up, and a breath stuck in her throat, unable to be expelled.

"I—!" She stomped her foot angrily on the compacted gravel outside the inn, the wooden clogs she'd worn to blend in with the local customs making her feet ache. This outburst attracted the attention of several passersby; thanks to the removal of the optical shielding, many had noticed her from the start. After all, this was Japan in 1600 AD, and a blonde, blue-eyed Westerner like her, dressed in a magnificent kimono…wasn't a common sight.

What are you looking at! Can't you see anyone throwing a tantrum?

Alice roared inwardly, but outwardly she couldn't possibly reveal such a blatant breach of decorum. She took a deep breath, barely suppressing her inner rage and adopting her usual elegant demeanor. A slight, magical pressure emanating from her gaze repelled the locals who approached her with curiosity. Her fingers, hidden beneath her wide robe sleeves, trembled slightly, and a purse filled with public silver (Japanese gold coins were enormous at the time) appeared in her hand.

Japan's hot spring inn culture dates back to the 7th century AD, so it's not surprising that one existed in that era. What's unusual is that it shouldn't be here.

Zhan Lan's sleeping spot is inside this inn, perhaps corresponding to a certain spring. Although Alice completely couldn't understand how the deliberately arranged Yin-gathering forbidden land had transformed into such a prosperous and popular hot spring resort without her any prior knowledge, she knew that if she went to investigate personally, she would definitely find some clues.

Everything happens and evolves for a reason; a desolate, barren place can't suddenly become a bustling hot spring inn. And if you want to get enough information, the simplest strategy is to ask the owner of the place directly.

She blinked, quickly adjusting her mindset to one conducive to communication. Her hands, hidden in her sleeves, made a few simple gestures, and a wave of information—equivalent to a weakened version of 'repelling idlers'—activated the brain regions related to 'laziness' and 'fatigue' in many nearby travelers. They quickly felt a wave of boredom, their minds filled with weariness and boredom. Although Alice had deliberately weakened the effect because it didn't need to be too obvious, at least for the time being, they wouldn't hinder Alice's subsequent actions.

An elegant smile played on her lips as she walked with seemingly light but actually swift steps to the center of the inn. Her fingers rested on the table as she looked at the signboard girl, who was also affected by the magic and appeared dazed.

A ten-tael public silver coin rolled off her fingers and onto the table.

“I need a spring pool, a separate, undisturbed pool.” A strange light appeared in her eyes. “And I need to specify the location of this spring pool.”

"Okay...okay." The signboard girl's already unfocused gaze became even more hazy after being distracted by the silver ingot, showing no intention of resisting Alice. "Which place do you want?"

"Thirty degrees south of west, twenty-two meters from where you are now," Alice replied.

"That...that's the owner's private property. It's not open to the public..."

“I think that’s fine. You just need to inform her and have her come see me later to complete your duty.” Alice stared at her, repeating herself as the second silver coin quietly slipped away. “That’s fine.”

"This... is no problem." The poor woman's eyes were vacant as she led her through the corridor to the hot spring pool she needed. Just as the signboard girl had said, this pool was the owner's private property—spacious, quiet, and, most importantly, completely deserted.

“Please enjoy your meal…guest.” The unfortunate soul, now under her spell, bowed and quietly withdrew. “If you need anything else, please ring that bell. I will also report what is happening here to my master immediately, and she will come to see you soon.”

"Thank you for your hard work." Alice waved and let the woman leave on her own.

She carefully examined the hot spring in front of her.

Without a doubt, this was the dormant point where she had left the concealment spell. She could still sense that the spell was operating and sending a 'everything is normal, no anomalies' signal to the receiving station she had set up. However, there was no doubt that the spell had become a complete shell; not only were the messages it sent incorrect, but even its original concealment and invisibility abilities were completely gone.

The technique had been altered, and through a method she was familiar with and had prepared countermeasures for.

“Mental pollution.” Alice’s lips twitched. “Similar to that guy named Sesshouin Kiara, it’s undoubtedly a method of the idealistic school. But I should have already taken precautions.”

She could sense that the monitoring ritual used to detect the Mind-Based Magic hadn't been disrupted. Clearly, the opponent hadn't broken the shielding array from the outside but had attacked directly from the inside. To achieve this, the most likely explanation was that Zhan Lan had suddenly awakened and mastered Mind-Based Magic to corrupt the spell. But if that were the case, Alice would have sensed her awakening the moment she did.

Then the possibility is another one...

Alice lowered her eyes, a restless thought creeping into her mind as this possibility was considered. She wasn't sure what she would do if it were true. But it probably wouldn't be anything good.

Her eyebrow twitched suddenly.

Someone is approaching... a considerable energy fluctuation, with characteristics of a mental being. It's uncertain whether it's spiritual or not, but it's not an ordinary person... Could it be the master of this place?

I hope it won't turn out the way I imagine.

One of her hands fell to her side, and beneath the wide sleeve of her robe, a highly concentrated plasma sphere rapidly took shape. The next instant, the Japanese-style sliding doors in front of her opened. From behind the doors, a face familiar to Alice was revealed.

The plasma ball in her hand quietly disappeared.

"...Zhan Lan?" She stared at the beautiful woman in the kimono before her, her mind a jumble of confusion. "You...how did you wake up? But how could this be?"

However, what happened next only deepened the confusion in her mind. The beautiful woman before her looked puzzled, then replied in a polite yet distant tone, "You must have mistaken me for someone else. My surname is Shinozaki, Shinozaki Arashi. I'm not acquainted with you at all."

She continued, her tone laced with accusation: "You're no ordinary person, are you? As a visitor from the Far West, it's not surprising that you possess extraordinary power. But you've abused this power, recklessly using it on these innocent people. Isn't such behavior somewhat inappropriate for your status? Please reconsider."

Alice glanced at her slightly pointed ears, then at her swollen chest. At such a close distance, the immense mental power couldn't possibly misidentify her. Undoubtedly, it was psychic energy, spiritual power, and there could only be one person who met all these criteria.

【I don't recall blocking your memories! Have you even forgotten that you're from Earth?!】

She took a deep breath, preparing to organize her thoughts to deal with this inexplicable situation. But just then, the sound of the surname 'Shinozaki' that she heard, accompanied by a series of fragmented and hurried footsteps, gave her an even worse premonition.

She watched as a very familiar, pretty little girl with an innocent, smiling face ran in. She hugged Zhan Lan's knees and called out sweetly.

"mom!"

Her name should be Sachiko Shinozaki, the one who controlled Tenjin Elementary School, orchestrated a curse ritual covering the entire city, and was both the enemy of the Nirvana Witch and the priestess who sacrificed herself to her. Sachiko Shinozaki, who killed many people, yet also held a steadfast sense of justice and a desire for sacrifice within her heart.

And now she was just like a genuine seven-year-old girl. Overflowing with genuine joy and affection, she hugged the woman who should be called Zhan Lan but called herself Xiao Qi Lan, and called her 'Mom' without a single impure thought.

Alice didn't want to say anything more, nor did she know what to say.

Alice gave up thinking.

Section Thirteen: Analysis

Giving up thinking doesn't necessarily mean surrendering reason to instinct. It also means there's no need to think at all, because in this situation, thinking is unnecessary; all the clues are already laid out before you.

Alice tucked her hands into her sleeves, her thumbs touching the knuckles of her other four fingers one by one.

One, two, three, four.

First, the origin of everything lies in the world of Ju-on, in 1600 AD. In that era, an immortal witch known as Nirvana crossed the sea and arrived in Japan. Then, for some reason, she was defeated and sealed within a city. A family called the Shinozaki was tasked with guarding this seal, and they successfully suppressed it for centuries. Until the early 20th century, the Shinozaki family bloodline unexpectedly died out, leaving only seven-year-old Sachiko Shinozaki alive as a ghost. But she continues to fulfill her ancestors' duty, guarding the seal.

However, perhaps because the Shinozaki family was wiped out, their lineage broken, or for some other reason, in the mid-to-late 20th century, the magic circle sealing the Nirvana Witch malfunctioned. The Nirvana Witch's curse, resentment, or simply a component of her power leaked out. Although it couldn't escape the city, it manifested as invisible black mist in the sky, corroding the ordinary people in the city. Given time, she would surely be able to escape.

Sachiko Shinozaki discovered this problem in time and devised a countermeasure—she set up a demon-raising array in the city, causing the power leaked by the Nirvana Witch to transform into independent demons that fought each other. Although these demons killed many ordinary people, they continuously drained the Nirvana Witch's power, preventing her from truly reviving. Among these demons, one individual was special: the consciousness that naturally evolved from the Nirvana Witch's immortal body after her soul separated from it—Tomie Kawakami.

The ghosts and monsters fought each other, sometimes attracting exorcists from the outer city to handle the situation. Regardless of the outcome, the power of the Nirvana Witch was constantly being depleted. This was the origin. Until the main god of the Central Continent determined this world to be the terrifying world of Ju-on 2 and sent the Reincarnation Squad to this world.

She took a light breath, and the knuckles of her fingers, which had been touching, tapped back against the tip of her thumb.

Four, three, two, one.

The reincarnators of the Central Continent Team suffered heavy losses in the world of Ju-on, yet their mission only required them to survive for seven days. Killing Kayako wasn't a mandatory requirement but rather an optional side quest, as it was simply impossible. To completely destroy Kayako and remove her curse, the prerequisite was to defeat the Nirvana Witch. If the Central Continent Team had triggered this hidden ultimate quest at that time, the difficulty rating of the side quest would likely be at least S-rank.

Therefore, the Nakasu team failed to get involved in this mission. They didn't encounter Tomie, nor did they encounter Sachiko Shinozaki. However, the situation on their second visit was completely different. Enemies that had previously required immense effort and risking their lives to defeat had all become easily defeated D-rank side quests. It was precisely because of this that Tomie, wanting to help the main character escape, noticed the once-weak Nakasu team.

That's why Zheng Zha encountered Tomie Kawakami, and under her covert manipulation, Zheng Zha was able to enter the Heavenly God Elementary School, which was originally isolated outside the rift space. Realizing she couldn't survive against Zheng Zha, Sachiko Shinozaki reluctantly brought Zhao Yingkong, who also possessed considerable fighting power, into the academy, attempting to use her to counter the external forces brought by Tomie. It was precisely because of this that Alice and Patchouli were able to follow their trail to Heavenly God Elementary School and learn the truth behind everything.

The Nirvana Witch wants to escape, and Sachiko Shinozaki wants to seal her away. The demons are all derivatives of the Nirvana Witch, like parasitic vines connected to her source of power. Killing them isn't difficult, but to remove the curse and obtain the side quest from the main god, the Nirvana Witch must be dealt with first.

That's why Alice and Patchouli opened the Memory World. Their goal was to drag all the mortals in the city corrupted by the witch into it. Only in this way could the Nirvana Witch be trapped as a whole within the Memory World. Once they found her and killed her, everything would end.

She wasn't strong enough, at least not against Alice and Patchouli, two witches with specialized skills. Within this world of memories, if Alice could find her, she would surely die. Therefore, based on this certainty of victory, Alice adjusted the subject matter, setting the world of memories in 1600 AD—the most chaotic era in Japanese history, and also the era most closely associated with the Nirvana Witch. This was to make her a whetstone for the rest of the Central Plains Team, thus giving meaning to the thirty-day exchange period in the Ju-on II world.

However, things have gone awry. Before the stage was even set up, the sleeping members of the Central Continent Team awoke without her noticing, and the worst-case scenario is that they, like the ordinary residents, have been corrupted by the Nirvana Witch. Although this will be resolved within thirty days, and they will be easily dealt with by the Main God upon returning to the Main God Space, it also means they failed to complete the side quest on their own, and the Main God may not award them any rewards.

But... it doesn't matter anymore.

Alice looked at Zhan Lan, who called herself Shinozaki Arashi, and Shinozaki Sachiko, whose face was innocent and childlike. Although she didn't know who had awakened them and then blocked their memories, nor was she sure if they had been corrupted... at this point in time, she had a way to deal with it.

The rule she established for this world of memories was that death would cause memory loss. But in reality, it wasn't loss, but rather a shielding. This was to instill a sense of urgency in the members of the Zhongzhou team on stage. Once they were removed from the world of memories, everything could return to normal.

So……

“I’m sorry,” Alice said softly, her eyes lowered. Her aura suddenly changed, from peaceful to menacing, and surging magic emanated from her, the chaotic waveforms of information transforming into streaks of lightning.

"A guest?" Zhan Lan instinctively shielded Sachiko Shinozaki behind her, looking at Alice with a wary expression. "Did I go too far? I'm so sorry, please don't be angry."

“You’ve lost so many memories…” Alice said calmly. “But it doesn’t matter. As long as the result is as expected, the process is not my concern. Since you’ve already lost so many memories, then… losing a few more won’t matter.”

She raised her hand, and a ball of blazing white electricity gathered at her fingertips.

"Try to live on, Zhan Lan... or Xiao Qi Lan. Or, die with your daughter." The next moment, the ball of electricity at her fingertips suddenly exploded, and the azure and blazing white lightning tore at the entire hotel like a savage beast.

The wooden structure crumbled in an instant, and the guests soaking in the other nearby pools were burned to ashes before they could even react. Guests and waiters further away screamed and fled naked—only to be pierced by leaping bolts of lightning and reduced to meaningless corpses.

With a loud 'bang!', Zhan Lan, carrying Sachiko Shinozaki, was ejected from the ruins of the inn, enveloped by a thin layer of shield. In her hand, she held a chanting spear, the gathered spiritual energy transforming into a shimmering disintegrating force field on the spear blade.

She screamed, looking at the hotel ruins littered with dead and wounded, and instinctively hugged Sachiko tightly in her arms.

"What have you done?!"

The black sword, woven from the puppet strings, struck the spear of the chanting spear as she uttered the last syllable. She staggered, the shockwave disrupting part of her body and causing her to cough up a mouthful of dead blood.

“The plan has been revised.” Alice’s delicate face remained expressionless.

"I don't know who disrupted my script and ruined the unprepared stage. It might be Nirvana, it might be Chu Xuan, or it might be both working together. But it doesn't matter, because the tide is in my favor."

"As long as the result is achieved, the process is irrelevant. Since the stage has been destroyed before it was even set up, then I will be your enemy. Resist! For I will wage a war that will overturn history and cleanse every corner of this world before the deadline set by the Supreme God arrives."

Author's Note:

....................................

Let me explain the plot; I feel like many people don't understand it.

...Perhaps what I did was unnecessary? But the fact that I needed to write this...probably signifies my failure in itself.

Section Fourteen: Preparation Tutorial for a Tumbling Lesson

Since the stage has already been destroyed, there's no need to wait any longer until the Battle of Sekigahara on September 15th. Although Alice has altered the history of the memory world countless times, to the point that she's grown tired of it, she wouldn't stoop to doing it again if the need arose.

On that day, Fushimi Castle was struck by lightning, resulting in numerous deaths and injuries. Half of the castle was reduced to ruins, and according to survivors, a pale blue meteor fell southwards at the end of the lightning strike.

The following day, demons and ghosts were said to haunt Kyoto. Toyotomi Hideyoshi's principal wife, who had supported her husband's rule over all of Japan and later, during the conflict between the Eastern and Western armies, instigated the defection of the Western Army general, indirectly leading to the tragic death of Nene Kita-no-Mandokoro, the last ruler of the Tokugawa Shogunate for centuries, along with the deaths of many of her samurai and retainers. This event ignited the long-simmering shadow of war over Japan.

The Battle of Sekigahara was essentially a civil war within the Toyotomi faction, a conflict between the civil and military officials. In an era where everything required a grand banner, both sides naturally needed a figurehead to support them. The Western Army supported Asai Chacha and her young son, Toyotomi Hideyori, whom she bore for Toyotomi Hideyoshi. The Eastern Army, naturally, sided with Kita no Seinin Nene.

And now Ningning is dead.

Her death did not signify the immediate decline of the military faction, but the loss of such an important figurehead was indeed a significant blow to them. Therefore, Tokugawa Ieyasu, the leader of the military faction, issued a declaration the following day, questioning the cause of Nene's death and pointing the finger at Chacha and the civilian faction that supported her. Meanwhile, the allied forces for the campaign against Osaka were quickly assembled. Taking advantage of the grief over the fallen figurehead's death, which could still inspire the soldiers' fighting spirit, this would become the military faction's greatest counterattack yet.

The war then began.

This is a war that will engulf the Japanese mainland, unlike the Battle of Sekigahara in history, which ended in just one day. This war will be more brutal, more protracted, and more... like a nightmare.

..........................................

"It was all a dream. Was I too fixated on completing my plan?" Alice stood atop Osaka Castle, watching the soldiers who had gathered at the command and whose numbers were still growing as they assembled at the camp outside the castle. She couldn't help but purse her lips, a touch of sadness in her heart.

She spared Zhan Lan's life... Of course, killing Zhan Lan would have been pointless. She let Zhan Lan escape with Shinozaki Sachiko, and then bombarded them with a gravity wave that was heavy enough but not fatal enough, turning them into shooting stars that disappeared from sight.

Of course, a technique for positioning was attached before that.