The afterlife blew up Gensokyo

Over a period of seven or eight years, he traveled almost all over the country, exploring countless hidden places. When he turned the last page of the book in front of him, Hieda Rei felt an unparalleled peace in his heart.

She had imagined many scenarios in her mind when she finally finished the book, but she never expected that she would feel so peaceful when she finished it.

This is a history book she spent almost her entire life writing, but it is not her book, but the book of those powerful and wealthy people. She tried her best to restore all the history in the book, but things always went against her wishes.

She could not write down the true history, and even if she did write it down on paper, the nobles would always find various reasons to delete or add to it.

For example, she had completely found the deeds of the former saint Toyosatomiko and perfectly reproduced them on paper, but after they were recorded on paper, they were deleted and altered by the nobles with the absurd claim that those deeds did not exist.

All her hard work and long journey were for naught, yet it couldn't compare to a single, casual remark from those powerful nobles... Even if she revived that history, so what?

History is written by the victors.

After finally realizing this, Hieda Rei suddenly felt very tired.

The so-called essence of history is nothing more than a delicious dish made up of 45% truth, 45% lies, and 10% absurdity—a dish that looks appetizing on the outside but is actually poison in the inside.

Perhaps because they don't understand the essence of dreams, lonely people wandering the world always chase after those beautiful but false shadows, always explore those mysterious but fragile truths. Reality is cruel, and those dreams around them eventually become eternal.

The wanderer saw that shadow in her dream and chased after it with great joy. Wandering means being cut off from everything in the past except memories. Now she has no one to rely on, and even though she knows she is in a dream, she does not want to wake up.

The world she awoke from was still so gloomy that she couldn't muster any energy, but that shadow in her dream was enveloped in the same beautiful light as it had been back then.

Hieda Rei closed the book in front of her and rubbed her eyes.

The weather is getting colder, and the leaves outside are turning yellow.

For some reason, she suddenly recalled a scene from a long time ago, in the autumn, when she sat under the eaves in the sunlight, talking about history with a lazy figure lying on the floor, about to take a nap.

At that time, everything was peaceful and natural, and all places seemed extremely ordinary. I didn't think about anything and didn't realize what kind of time it was.

Perhaps because they are unaware of dreams, wanderers chase after illusions.

She presented the Emperor with the Kojiki, which had been revised and abridged by others once again, silently accepting the honors and praise bestowed upon her, and dragged her weary body back to her residence.

So many years of hard work and toil have severely damaged her health. In addition, due to her congenital physical defects, she can already sense that her time is coming to an end.

She was not afraid of death; in fact, she even looked forward to it.

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

What is death?

The cessation of breathing and the stopping of the heartbeat constitute death in its broadest definition. But true death... is when everyone forgets it.

Shortly after the completion of the Kojiki, on a quiet afternoon, Hieda no Rei lay alone on a bamboo couch and passed away peacefully, thus ending her short life.

The feeling of her soul leaving her body was quite wonderful, as if she had shed a heavy skin, and her whole body felt lighter. All the physical pain that had been bothering her disappeared without a trace.

Immediately afterwards, a sudden realization and a mysterious guidance emerged in her soul... it was the path to the underworld for the dead.

(So ​​he didn't come after all...)

Just as a sense of disappointment crossed Hieda Rei's mind, a slightly teasing voice rang out behind her.

“I have come in response to your call. I ask you, are you my Mast?”

"!!!"

A fleeting moment of joy passed through her heart, and Hieda Rei turned her head with great delight. Not far behind her, the black-haired man's appearance was exactly the same as before, without any change whatsoever.

With a soft laugh, Shi Bai stepped forward.

"As agreed, I've come to pick you up."

Generally speaking, he doesn't make promises lightly, but once he does, he will do it no matter what.

He had always kept his promise to Hieda Rei in mind, so even though he was currently very busy, he still put everything down and rushed over.

"Let me state upfront that I have already resigned from Heca's position, so I don't know if I can actually accomplish what you're asking for. Ultimately, whether you can persuade them depends on you."

There lies a place of death, the path for the soul to return.

On the way to report to the Hall of Right and Wrong with Hieda Ari, Shi Bai gave her some instructions with some concern.

"However, Heka is quite easy to talk to, and she hates trouble. You can use that as a starting point to persuade her."

"I understand... thank you."

Looking at the vast expanse of vibrant spider lilies that she had just passed by, Hieda Rei nodded gently.

"It's just a small matter... By the way, what's the name of the book you're planning to write?"

"I haven't thought of a name yet, how about you help me come up with one?"

Hieda Arie turned to look at the other person and smiled.

"Although this attempt is a bit far-fetched, I believe I will succeed eventually."

"In that case, let's call it 'The Origin of Gensokyo'!!"

The person answered quite decisively.

"You couldn't do this anywhere else. After all, you can't record the affairs of yokai as a human without the help of others. So if you want to write a book, you're destined to go far away from people and to places where yokai gather. You should have found that place by now, right?"

“That’s right, it’s the ‘borderland in the East, far from the human world’ where the Youkai Shrine of Meimu is located. That’s the most suitable place for me.”

Hieda Arie nodded slightly.

"Do you call that place Gensokyo?"

"I have a big big dream, all you one day, monster and human can you good de shen chun zai one qi de, this ie my big big dream!!"

Holding up a finger, Shi Bai launched into a long speech in front of Hieda Ari with a serious expression.

"Uh……"

Watching the other person's expression change from doubt to confusion, then to bewilderment, and finally to bewilderment, the person felt a great sense of accomplishment.

"That's in English. If translated into Chinese, it means that place is indeed Gensokyo."

With a wave of his hand, Shi Bai led Hieda Ari into the Hall of Right and Wrong. Under the eerie gazes of the Yama and Shinigami in the Hall of Right and Wrong, they went straight into the office of a certain Yama King.

It's been many years since I've been here, and it seems that nothing has changed. However, there are quite a few new faces here, probably the newly recruited Grim Reapers or something.

When Shiro led Hieda Arei into the largest office in the Hall of Right and Wrong, they happened to see Komachi standing with her head down in front of the desk being lectured by Shiki Eiki.

As he pushed open the door, the two people inside immediately turned their gazes toward him.

"........."

After a moment of silent silence, thinking about the possibility that he might also be dragged along by Shiki and given a lecture like Komachi, Shiro decisively chose to follow his heart and quickly turned back to the door, kindly closing it behind him.

"You two can continue your conversation. I have something to attend to, so I'll have to leave now. I'll come back when you're done!"

Hieda Ayane, locked inside the door: "???"

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

The underworld, which accommodates the spirits of the dead and arranges their reincarnation; hell, which punishes and disciplines those vengeful spirits and sinners; and the old hell, which is also the strictest prison for suppressing the most wicked vengeful spirits—these three together constitute the death aspect of this world.

The underworld has its own rules, and only the dead are allowed to enter. There are no such rules between Hell and the Old Hell. So, compared to the underworld, which is devoid of any living people and lifeless, Hell has become a frequent destination for the Grim Reapers after get off work.

After all, as a grim reaper belonging to the underworld, unless exceptional circumstances allow, he is also unable to go to the world of the living.

Those Grim Reapers who frequently travel between the Underworld and Hell, in addition to their regular duties, often also act as journalists. Among the dead who come to the Underworld every day to report, there are many news stories that can help pass the time.

This can be considered the earliest origin of news.

After much effort, Shi Bai finally found Heka in a mahjong parlor. Compared to her days as a notorious hustler in various mahjong parlors, Heka had improved considerably... because she now owned her own Mahjong Parlor.

With the power of a certain goddess of hell, the first deity of the underworld, this Mahjong Princess Mahjong Parlor can be said to have the strongest backing among all the mahjong parlors.

However, Heca herself insisted that she was just an ordinary proprietress who ran an ordinary mahjong parlor, and when he found her, she even yelled that he had mistaken her for someone else...

"You think you can hide and we won't be able to find you? It's no use."

With his arms crossed, the man wore a cold smile.

"Someone like you, no matter where you are, is like a firefly in the dark—so bright, so outstanding. Your melancholy eyes, your unconventional outfit, your miraculous card skills, and that Dry Martini—all of them have captivated me. But even though you are so outstanding, there are rules in every profession. Don't you have to pay me back the money you borrowed from me?!"

"...When did I lend you money?"

After freezing for almost two seconds, Heca finally gave a stiff reply.

"Oh? Really? Good thing I knew you'd try to renege on your debt, so I was prepared."

Shi Bai took out his enhanced +10086 brand phone with a cold smile, then opened the gallery, found the video section, and clicked to play it.

"I recorded the entire scene when you borrowed money from me on my phone. The evidence is irrefutable, and you can't deny it now..."

[Fairy! Give me back my grandpa!!!]

The voice coming from the phone ruthlessly interrupted him.

Shi Bai: "..."

So those guys did mess with my phone again, didn't they?

With a blank expression, Shi Bai exited the Calabash Brothers playback option. He first carefully found the scene he had secretly filmed when Heka borrowed money from him to avoid any further mistakes, and then held it up in front of Heka.

"It's only right to pay back debts. You've borrowed so much money from me and dragged it out for so long, it's time for you to pay it back."

"No money."

Rolling her eyes, the goddess, now revealing her true colors, leaned back lazily against the counter.

"I have no money, but you can take my life. You'd better do what you want."

"You own a mahjong parlor and you still say you have no money?!"

"A mahjong parlor is a mahjong parlor, and having money is having money; these two things are completely different!"

With her head held high and chest out, Heca appeared even more self-righteous.

"Besides, when you were the Grim Reaper, you often skipped work for so long without reason, and I haven't even asked you for the wages that were deducted from your pay yet!!"

"...So you're saying you're not planning to pay me back the money you borrowed?"

Shi Bai's lips twitched slightly.

"That's right (﹁"﹁), this is my territory. Even if I don't pay back the money, what can you do to me?"

"...If you don't want to pay me back, let's talk about other things."

After a moment of silent contemplation, Shi Bai turned his head away, utterly exhausted.

Although he already knew that the goddess in front of him, who was extremely averse to trouble, was incredibly useless, this was the first time he had ever seen someone so useless that she could even borrow money and not pay it back with such a self-righteous attitude...

"Also, play less mahjong in the future; this thing is very harmful."

"It's alright, I'm a goddess!!"

Heca raised his head with considerable pride.

"There's nothing more fun in the world than mahjong!!"

"........."

Shi Bai decided to develop the online game first.

P.S.: Ah, it's so late! My head hurts today!

Chapter 3: Heterochromatic-eyed lolis are my absolute favorite!

The underworld, hell.

"There's something wrong with the Meng Po soup!?"

After hearing his story, Heca exclaimed in astonishment.

Shi Bai: "..."

...He suddenly realized that choosing to come to the other party was a mistake.

"Oh, so should I get you a bowl of Meng Po soup to try?"

Shi Bai's face remained expressionless.

"Tch... Meng Po's soup, made from the water of the River of Oblivion, is useless to beings like us. However, it tastes quite good as a beverage. If you want, I can send you two bowls to try another day."

Heca pursed his lips and leaned back in his chair.

"Even if the human soul you mentioned is special, one exception is not a big deal when compared to the vast majority of people. You should understand that, right?"