Miss Heber is fighting her way out of the Lostbelt!

As Okita Souji's life as a "human" draws to an end, her sword becomes increasingly unstoppable. However, it is not just a secret sword, but a much larger and unrivaled "thing" rising from that sword light.

That is the determination to never regret even though you know you are going to go to hell.

Its name is the sword intention - [Purgatory Severed Sky, Unknown Future].

According to the honorific title of the ancient swordsmanship, it is called "Future Sword".

The future swordsman, Okita Souji!

Image: "Sword Light", Location: "Images/1740229889-100425178-113027963.jpg"

......

The sword light passed over the Ghost King's shoulder unhindered, bringing up a cruel bloody color.

It’s not that Souji Okita doesn’t want to kill the Demon King directly.

It was the axe raised by the Ghost King - if she had hit the Ghost King's throat just now, the axe would have smashed her chest at the same time.

"Come again." The Ghost King waved to Okita Souji.

Before he finished speaking, the sword light came like a fleeting white horse, drilling a new wound in the Ghost King's ribs.

"Are you anxious?" The Ghost King laughed heartily. "This is the first lesson I'm teaching you: use your emotions to fight your desires. Don't be such a fucking clay sculpture at such a young age!"

The dying ghost king smashed his axe to the ground, and crimson thunder climbed along the cracks in the ground. Okita Souji was forced to retreat again.

"Even the Buddha, even in meditation, was affected by the devil. The more he sought so-called peace, the more rage he would emit. To put it bluntly, demon blood is just that kind of bullshit. Do you understand?"

"Do whatever you want to do on a daily basis. Eat when you're hungry, sleep when you're tired, confess your feelings to someone you like, and fight when you need to vent. Don't let your desires build up!"

The Demon King looked at Okita Souji, whose bloodshot eyes had receded, and raised his axe high.

"Next, I'll teach you the second lesson: identifying with yourself."

A mighty crimson thunder wrapped around the golden axe and slammed heavily into the sword light. The Ghost King's gruff voice rang out again: "I am a ghost, I am also Kintaro, and I am also Sakata Kintoki. These identities are not contradictory at all."

"Stop being so hard on yourself. When someone criticizes you, just go up and slap them twice and they'll behave themselves!"

"Ghosts are creatures that appear to be free, but are actually not happy at all." A smug smile appeared on Sakata Kintoki's no longer handsome face.

Fighting for survival is understandable, but killing to satisfy one's own desires is a mistake.

How can freedom be sought only from outside?

The Demon King pushed forward and forced Okita Souji to retreat once again.

His voice deepened. "Now, let me teach you the third lesson: facing death."

ps: There is another one being written

Eastern Vol. 117: The End of the Demon King; Praying for Peace; Inari Taisha Shrine

All ghosts are the same. They indulge in pleasure and wallow in fighting to numb their nerves.

It seems that they think that by using this method they can escape the fate of the ghost clan's extinction.

They indulged in fun, wearing bright and bizarre clothes, wearing extremely scary masks, and doing all kinds of incredible things.

Some would set bones on fire and place them in a big pot to cook on a bamboo wheel; some would go out naked and perform exaggerated dances on the roadside; some would kill people at random and then use their bones to make music... These things were called "strange" by witnesses.

Some people even took this as a good idea and began to imitate these behaviors in cities, causing a small trend.

Sakata Kintoki disagreed.

Ghosts dare not face their own death, but instead trample on the lives of others. Over a long period of time, this bad habit, which was originally caused by fear and avoidance, was actually regarded as a "virtue" by ghosts in later generations.

"Bullshit virtue."

Sakata Kintoki looked at the sword light that was no longer violent, retracted his axe, took off the amulet on his chest, and threw it at Okita Souji.

"Killing is the means, death is the result. If you don't even have this awareness, how can you be worthy of taking up the sword? You should understand this principle better than I do."

The sword light disappeared, and Okita Souji took the amulet.

"Understand?" The Ghost King smiled hoarsely, standing on the stone steps leaning on his axe.

As per convention, he should recite some farewell poem or haiku or something.

With the death of the last pure-blooded demon in the world, demons in the strict sense will also perish.

If he had a choice, he wouldn't want Okita Souji to continue the demon bloodline, but since he saw it, there was no reason not to help.

Just like how the young Tamamonomae gave him hope when he was rescued from the ruins of Mount Oe, he now has to give this hope to others.

Being able to save one more lost kid before dying is the best thing that can happen, and there is no need to use any more words to embellish it.

"gone."

Sakata Kintoki smiled slightly, and his free and unrestrained head drooped.

Okita Souji held the amulet.

"Thank you."

She turned and walked up the hill.

The Ghost King was still standing, his body riddled with holes, no longer associated with the word heroic.

But Okita Souji felt that the Demon King was like a monument, or like a mountain.

She suddenly thought of a poem.

This is what the poem says.

"If relatives are still sad, others have also sung."

"What is there to say about death? My body will be buried in the mountains."

......

Okita Souji hung the amulet on the hilt of his sword and wrapped it tightly around it.

When the lines on the palm intertwine with the rope of the amulet, it brings a feeling of friction, just like bitter tea blooming on the tip of the tongue.

Souji Okita walked up the path lined with blooming mountain flowers.

She finally arrived at the top of the mountain where cherry blossoms were in full bloom. Outside the Buddhist temple, Heber was waiting for her with rice in his hand.

Those deep green eyes looked at her with a smile.

The aura of the fox demon became more and more lofty and otherworldly, as if she was about to fly into the darkness and disappear in the next moment.

"Ms. Okita, do you have any wish?" Heber suddenly asked.

Souji Okita simply drew out his own sword.

The Kikuichimonji Temple reflected the clear skylight and the girl's determined eyes and eyebrows.

"Ms. Tamamo, I don't know where you will go, or whether we will ever meet again."

The young swordsman felt her heart pounding. She felt she should be braver, so she spoke whatever came to her mind.

"But at least bring my sword—it'll be like I'm with you." Okita Souji's eyes hardened. "So please—don't forget me!"

She once again transformed into a sword and slashed at Heber.

It was truly a flowing and graceful sword light, like the eyes and eyebrows of a girl wet by the rain, or like the boundary where the sky and the sea intersect.

The sword light passed over the gradually fading body of the fox demon and stopped in the Buddhist hall.

Okita Souji didn't turn around, and there was no sound behind him.

The young swordsman stood in the Buddhist temple, clenching her teeth tightly and saying nothing.

She pursed her lips and forced herself to raise her head.

In front of the altar, she saw an old boxwood bracelet and a cushion on the ground.

Okita Souji sat down on the futon.

While doing these things, she never looked back, as if as long as she did this, Heber would not leave.

Souji Okita didn't look at the Myōo statue, but picked up the bracelet.

She had never learned any scriptures, but the tiny sounds came out from her mouth.

"May the Buddha bless Miss Tamamo, and may everything go smoothly and safely."

......

Fushimi Inari Taisha Shrine in Kyoto.

Almost every city in the East has an Inari shrine dedicated to the Uga no Mikoto, Inari Daimyojin. Today, there are nearly 9,000 Inari shrines.

But when people talk about "Inari Taisha Shrine", they only mean the one in Kyoto.

Here, vermilion thousand-layer torii gates extend one after another from the front of the mountain gate, and huge stone foxes stand on both sides of the torii gates. Walking up the mountain along the imperial path, a strange red glow seeps through the gaps at the top of the torii gates.

In the distance are dense bamboo forests and faintly visible bluestone roads, among which ancient stone statues and buildings appear to have rough outlines. A strange ancient atmosphere lingers here.

There were electric lights at this time, but lanterns were still the main means of lighting. The sky was not yet completely bright, and the lanterns swayed and cast a soft glow.

When Li Xi came to her senses, she found that Ryunosuke, who had come out with her, had disappeared.

She felt a little strange: this was Inari Taisha Shrine, in other words, the "border" that existed under the name of Tamamonomae.

——Of course, the priests of Inari Taisha Shrine would not admit it, they call it "Inari Divine Domain".

As the only orthodox faith recognized in the East, Inari Taisha Shrine is conferred with titles every year.

Theoretically, Inari Society should give her a stronger feeling... just like in Mt. Otogi and the Yokai Forest.

But now Li Xi couldn't feel any touch.

No, it cannot be said that there is no strange feeling at all, but it is like there is a hazy barrier between us, we cannot see clearly, and we cannot touch it.

Just when Li Xi was feeling uneasy, a priestess hurried over from the end of the imperial road and waved to Li Xi.

"Please come with me."

Tanuki, already suspicious, quickly followed. She opened her mouth to ask, but the miko simply replied, "Someone will answer you when we get there."

The faster they walked, the more anxious and uneasy Li Xi became.

She realized that she was moving deeper into Inari Taisha Shrine. In theory, she had penetrated deep into the border and could reveal her original form at any time and anywhere.

But no matter how hard she tried secretly, she couldn't feel her "true self".

Finally, she arrived at her destination.

This is a flat area with several benches placed on it, from which you can see the rolling hills in the distance and part of Kyoto City.

A young girl in a white furisode kimono was sitting on a bench waiting for Tanuki's arrival.

There was still a hint of childishness on her face, and when she sat on the bench, even her clogs didn't touch the ground.

Image: "Lily of the Valley", Location: "Images/1740240440-100425178-113028756.jpg"

"Ah, it's Sister Yaoli." The girl jumped down, looking a little confused. "Huh, why don't I see any tail or ears..."

She spoke the second half of the sentence in a low voice, and Li Xi didn't hear what she said.

The shrine maiden who led the way bowed respectfully to the girl and said, "Sir, the person has been brought here."

"Sister Shiina, you don't have to call me Lord God." The little girl frowned.

"Etiquette cannot be abolished." Shiina Miko sighed, "Sir, I will withdraw first. If you need anything, I will come immediately."

"Okay. Goodbye, Shiina-nee."

This is a very polite little girl, and it seems that she has a high status in Inari Taisha Shrine, Tanuki thought.

"Hello, Sister Yaoli." The little girl bowed. "I am Suzuran, the deity of Inari Taisha Shrine. You can also just call me Lisa."

The chief priest refers to the clergyman in charge of sacrifices. At Inari Taisha Shrine, generally only the next generation of chief priests will serve in this position before taking over.

It can be said that the little girl in front of us is the future chief priest of Inari Taisha Shrine.

"My name is Tanuki."

Tanuki hesitated for a moment, then asked, "Ms. Suzuran, is this the 'border'? How do I get back to the Monster Forest?"

Inari Taisha Shrine is aware of the existence of border areas such as the Yokai Forest and Mount Oga.

Since Tamamonomae's "death", it has been these priests who have been holding the Eastern Purification Ceremony regularly to exorcise the stubborn influences that linger.