Inner Destroyer

　This is because the Japanese countryside can be really boring for young people.

　For a young Japanese man in the countryside, the only entertainment he has every week may be to ride a bicycle for half an hour on weekends to a department store that is more than ten years old, and have dinner with friends at the food court on the third floor where he has already eaten four times.

　Chain restaurants are certainly not uncommon in big cities. But here in the countryside, even Starbucks closes at five o'clock. The only McDonald's within a half-hour drive is a bit better, closing at nine o'clock along with the mall. If you don't have a car, there are only five or six buses a day, and they don't run on weekends.

　You can certainly see how fashionable life is in big cities through the Internet, but when you turn off the screen, the scenery outside the window remains unchanged.

　Getting a driver's license, earning income, going to study and working in big cities... For young people in the countryside, all of these are actually means of escaping the monotonous daily life.

　This is normal. It's just a choice. Just like some people still choose to stay.

　As one of the people who stayed behind, Chang Pu felt regretful about this, but he never complained or lamented.

　"Have you ever thought about going out?"

　Qi Xing asked with a smile.

　"of course not."

　Acorus proudly returned

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　答，

　"I am the lady's attendant and Rin's sister."

　So now, she is going to help the young lady expose the true face of this unlucky playboy!

　"By the way, Mr. Qi,"

　So now, Acorus showed a playful and mischievous smile,

　"You have such a beautiful fiancée, yet you're dating someone else's maid. Isn't that nice?"

　She probably wanted to stimulate Qi Xing's sense of guilt.

　An hour ago, this might have worked. But Qi Xing had just figured things out and was in a good mood. So he grinned back, "Don't say that. You're more than just a maid."

　Oh? Is he trying to say that Ayame is also the agent of the "Guardian of the North"?

　Acorus smiled and asked, "Oh, then what am I?"

　Qi Xing also smiled and replied: "You are a ninja."

　This simple yet inexplicable sentence instantly made Changpu stop in his tracks and her smile froze.

　"When you walk, your center of gravity is always slightly forward, and your knees tend to bend inward, allowing you to adjust direction quickly without making any noise."

　Qi Xing explained casually,

　"And the way you select food with your fingers, even though it looks casual, is actually very subtle. Your fingertips won't even leave marks on the skin... This is a ninja habit."

　"Not to mention, I can see you have a dagger and shuriken hidden in your clothes."

　He looked at Acorus with a half-smile.

　"Right? You deliberately keep yourself in a state where you can draw your sword at any time."

　The smile on Changpu's face was a little hard to maintain, and there was even a little sweat on her forehead.

　But the next second, she managed to regain her composure: "You are really observant, Mr. Qi."

　"I'm not a very observant person." Qi Xing shook his head. "The signs of hard work and training are obvious."

　You know, although he can't be considered a martial arts master (because Qi Xing lacked any contribution to the creation and inheritance of martial arts), but Qi Xing is at least very good at learning the art. After all, he has practiced hard for ten years and is extremely talented.

　Furthermore, this world actually does have ninjas, even Taimanin. Qi Xing had killed many ninjas over the past ten years, and had even fought alongside government Taimanin. So, he could tell instantly that this Xinxiang Ayame, from all her gestures, was actually a female ninja.

　She must have trained very diligently. It was a pity that her talent was limited and her inheritance was poor, so she was probably one level weaker than Elaine.

　But Qi Xing never despises or thinks that those who practice righteously and diligently are too weak (unless they do something really stupid).

　"No matter why you practice this kind of hard work, whether it's for the one you love or for your own pursuit, it's a good thing. This is something beyond your identity, something that belongs only to you."

　"If others can't see it, they have no vision."

　Qi Xing said with a faint smile, as if he was just stating the facts without any awareness of provoking anyone.

　But the teasing smile that Acorus had originally had had a slight subsidence at this moment.

　She lowered her head and looked at the bag of vegetables in her hand, suddenly not knowing what to say.

　Qi Xing just continued to walk beside her, as if nothing had happened, strolling leisurely with a happy smile on his face.

　He actually didn't think about anything complicated, but he was in a good mood at the moment, so he just said whatever he thought.

　But that simple sentence was like a stone falling into the girl's heart, and it took a long time for her to calm down.

　Acorus already felt a little regretful.

　-

　In the past two days, ever since they took a hot spring bath together, Lin felt that Qi Xing seemed to be more inclined to avoid her...which wasn't quite right.

　It should be said that it feels like keeping a respectful distance and maintaining a polite distance.

　Although she was confused and a little disappointed, Lin's intuition was always sharp. She sensed that Qi Xing seemed to be thinking about something, so she didn't bother him for the past two days.

　But today, she saw her adopted sister Acorus returning home with a lost look on her face.

　The man walked into the entrance hall, his movements were slow, his eyes were wandering, and his cheeks were flushed.

　"What's wrong, Ayame? You don't have a fever, do you?"

　Lin was naturally a little worried.

　As a result, she saw Chang Pu's whole body seemed to have just returned from the dead. He was stunned for a moment, then looked at her sadly and murmured, "Miss..."

　"That Qi Xing is truly a dangerous man who's good at playing with women. You must stay away from him..."

　what?

　Now Lin was finally puzzled: "What's going on?"

　"I just took Mr. Qi for a walk around the village. We were just trying to buy some things."

　"And then, he actually kept praising me the whole way! You know? That kind of gentle, earnest, yet seductive kind of praise—like being wall-banged, the kind that makes your mind go blank, your heartbeat speed up, and your soul leave your body! I almost couldn't handle it!"

　What does it mean to be overwhelmed by praise?! Rin couldn't understand it at all!

　"Miss, you must stay away from him! He's like one of those dark male protagonists in girls' comics, clearly burdened with a dark and tragic past. But he's also incredibly delicate, and he can touch a girl's heart at the crucial moment."

　"Once you're tricked by him, you can't escape. There's no way back!"

　Why?! Is he some kind of demon?!

　Rin's situation is special; she doesn't even know what "love" feels like.

　As for Acorus, although she has never been in a relationship... she is obviously

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　I read too many shojo comics.

　The sisters love romance manga, and the other loves shonen manga. Lately, every time a new Jump series comes out, Rin reads "Monster No. 8," "Sakamoto Nichijou," and "Ruri Ryuu," while Ayame picks up "Hima and Den."

　Lin was puzzled for a while, but finally couldn't help but ask: "So what did he say to make you become like this?"

　"I...I, I don't want to say..."

　Chang Pu squatted at the entrance with her knees hugged, sobbing softly.

　"It's too embarrassing to say it out loud...Miss, you will laugh at me for the rest of my life..."

　"So how exactly do you want me to be careful about him?"

　It’s a pity that Elaine is not here, otherwise if she heard this conversation, she would definitely be deeply moved. Qi Xing is indeed such a sinful man!

　It goes without saying that this misunderstanding will eventually be resolved, but it's hard to say what will happen to a certain devil's butt by then.

　In any case, March 9th ended like this.

　A few days passed quickly.

　The official exorcists continued to suppress the few remaining rebellious local sorcerer families. Like the Juyaku family, they all possessed a regenerative immortality, apparently granted by True Buddhism, and their combat power was astonishing.

　Ordinary exorcists were no match for the immortal monsters. Qi Xing and Lin had been flying around these past few days, following their reports to defeat these stubborn villains. They either killed them on the spot or had the exorcists on the scene take them back and seal them away.

　At the same time, the experts led by Elaine did not forget to work overtime, pondering and researching, trying to figure out what the "True Buddhism" was doing and what this strange immortal body was all about.

　Four days later, after they had wiped out five of the local families who persisted in resisting, their research finally yielded results.

　093: What have you done so far?

　March 14th.

　One of the three noble sons of "True Buddhism", "Tsukuyomi Betsuro", Ruyue Jian, has been busy working overtime day and night in recent days.

　It doesn't seem quite right to say that she was working overtime, after all, she didn't get overtime pay for it.

　In reality, since being taken away by Amaterasu, Kisaragi has never lacked money. Amaterasu's attitude towards her is essentially, "Here's your card, use it as you please." If she performs her duties well, Amaterasu will grant her a limited, but definitely sufficient, fortune.

　But when she took the money and joined "True Buddhism", she never thought that things would turn out like this today.

　Now the central government’s civil servants are hunting them down all over the Northeast. What’s the use of having money?

　Although Amaterasu claimed that everything was under control, she actually suspected that the situation had gotten a little out of control after she was killed by Raipujin.

　Even though Amaterasu still claims that she has plans.

　Anyway, for now, "Amaterasu" continues to let Kisaragi stay in this base and work hard to help her build things.

　The moon and the underworld share a natural affinity, a fascinating commonality across both Eastern and Western mystical cultures. There are some dark spells that the Sun Goddess herself cannot wield, requiring the gifted descendants of the Kisaragi family, known for their long lineage of sorcerers, to perform.

　Similarly, "Susanoo" - the samurai girl with the thunder sword can only continue to stay in this secret base, bored.

　"Amaterasu" asked her to prepare to accumulate strength, recuperate her body and mind, prepare for the final battle, and guard the base by the way. She was not allowed to run out and cause trouble without permission.

　So now the Thunder Blade Girl can only swing her sword in the secret base.

　This behavior was usually similar to meditation, but no matter how hard she swung the knife, she couldn't calm down now.

　Because anxiety is continuing within the base of "True Buddhism."

　Why are you anxious? Why are you worried?

　Of course, it was all because of that "Rep Master" who suddenly jumped out to cause trouble!!

　If he hadn't suddenly come to northeastern Japan and suddenly dragged the central government's public servants into the game - if there was only one "Guardian of the North" Jingorin, they, the "Three Nobles", would be sure to deal with it now!

　Now that things have gotten so serious, "Amaterasu" is still insisting, but "Tsukuyomi" and "Susanoo" are actually a little hesitant in their hearts... Let's not talk about what "Susanoo" is thinking, at least Ruyuejian definitely doesn't like to see even the remaining distant relatives being killed by the Onmyoji Bureau.

　But now that we are on the pirate ship, there is of course no chance of escaping. We can only go all the way to the end and see what the outcome will be.

　"Speaking of which, cocoon."

　After completing a thousand empty swings and temporarily stopping her practice, the Thunder Blade Girl suddenly asked,

　"Why were you pulled in by Amaterasu?"

　Ruyue Jian was stunned, and her hand, which was originally grinding the talisman ink, paused slightly.

　She didn't really want to talk about it.

　But in this oppressive and anxious secret base, perhaps she also needs an audience. Or maybe she is just too tired, too tired to hide anything.

　So she put down her brush and explained in a low voice, muttering a little reluctantly: "I

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　Didn't your family get captured by the God Gorin because you changed your profession to become a curse caster?"

　"My property was confiscated, and all my family heritage was destroyed. Although I have a decent talent for spells... with a record like this, I can never hope to become a licensed sorcerer in my lifetime."

　"So, are you going to give up magic and go work for a regular company?"

　"But I don't even have the money to go to college. The support agency will only take care of me until I finish high school. And it's still too difficult to find a good job after graduating from high school."