Tokyo: The Player Behind the Scenes

When Bi'an emerged from the Soul-Gathering Umbrella, it seemed she had eaten quite a bit inside, having already returned to the size of her original arm. Her eyes, however, seemed rather guilty.

It crept around him stealthily, as if trying to present a treasure.

"Hmm? There's such a thing? Take it out and let me see."

"Sigh~"

The little snake on the other side of the river pondered for a moment, then vomited out a red spider lily.

The flower slowly spun in mid-air, seemingly existing between illusion and reality, past and future, the netherworld and the human world, sharing the same attributes as the Serpent of the Other Shore, making them a perfect match.

Holding it in his hand, an ancient scene rushed towards him.

I know not where, I know not when, the sky is no longer visible, the earth is no longer like the earth. The world seems to be collapsing, the rivers are boiling and evaporating.

A frantic little snake was swimming upstream against the current of a river, while the spider lilies on both banks were withering away one by one.

Just as the little snake was in despair, the spider lilies on both sides suddenly grew, stuffed a seed into its mouth, and then threw it forcefully.

The scene ends here.

This is probably the origin of the name "the snake of the other shore".

Was the snake that was thrown out the great serpent from the other side, or its ancestor?

It's not certain yet.

However, it is certain that there is a relationship between the small snake on the other side, the large snake on the other side, and the vermilion skeleton.

Zhu Hai's ability to devour and manipulate spirits is very similar to that of the Other Shore Serpent.

Therefore, they were able to lord it over others in the escape cave and gradually develop.

However, compared to the purity of the little snake on the other side, it seems very mixed, more like a low-end, degraded version. I don't know what the cave master or the Onmyoji did to the snake egg, or what their purpose was.

Even when he cleaved it out of its original form, it no longer had the snake's body, but was left as a combination of a toad and a centipede.

A little spiritual power was infused into the spider lily, and the flower swayed, forming a perfect circle. Then, a scene appeared within the circle.

Chemical protective suits, cumbersome instruments, and glass enclosures.

This looks like a high-standard laboratory; the faces under those protective suits are mostly Western.

Interesting. It seems the US military found a fragment of this spider lily in Yamagata Prefecture.

"It moved?! The spider lily just moved!"

"Quick, write down the parameters from just now. What? You didn't release any energy? Then write down all the components from just now!"

Inside the laboratory, the researchers were filled with excitement because of an unnatural swaying of the spider lily.

They feel they may have stumbled upon some breakthrough, about to unveil the mysteries of the supernatural.

Of course, they soon discovered that the veil was made of titanium alloy.

Higashiyama Shin infused a little more spiritual energy, and the scene expanded slightly.

That's it? Is this the only function?

Higashiyama Shin felt that this thing must be more than just ordinary; shouldn't it come with an instruction manual? Or does it require further nurturing by the other shore snake?

If for now it can only serve as a mirror that allows you to see the US military laboratory, it doesn't seem to be of much use.

It would be better if it could be placed in their conference room as a potted plant.

After searching for more than ten minutes and confirming that he had not found any other functions, Dongshan Shen withdrew his spiritual power with a slight disappointment.

"Not bad, put it back and take good care of it."

Dongshan Shen offered a few perfunctory words of praise, and Bi'an happily spun around a few times before swallowing the Bi'an flower back into the Soul-Gathering Umbrella.

It probably just wanted to show that it hadn't eaten the snake bone and the spirit inside for nothing.

Then, let Higashiyama Shin continue to give it snake bones in the future.

However, the giant serpent's bones cannot be transformed into the kind of serpent bones that are given as rewards; he discovered this from Nobita's perspective during the battle.

It seems that only the tail section of the giant snake has a special effect.

The giant snake's tail has already been cut off by the Onmyoji.

Anyway, absorbing spirits can also help me grow, it's just a bit slow. Let's see if I can meet a descendant of an Onmyoji or receive some kind of reward in the future.

Outside the window, the sky was gradually brightening.

In the morning in Nagoya, the three of them had breakfast in the hotel lobby and then checked out.

"Ugh, I feel like throwing up whenever I smell eel now."

After eating eel for three days, Dongshan felt as if countless eels were swirling inside his stomach, ready to burst out of his throat at any moment.

"You have to deal with the consequences of your own actions."

Shinichi Higashiyama, holding a stack of freshly developed photos, sat on the sofa in the hotel lobby with Chiba and looked at them.

Higashiyama also joined in.

"Why am I not included? It's all Chiba-neechan."

"Don't open your mouth, isn't this the one that tastes like eel?" Shin Higashiyama flipped out a picture and pointed at it.

"Just the back of his head!"

Doesn't the back of your head belong to you?

Subdued by the tyranny of the two bastards, the younger brother only dared to mutter in a low voice. He finally found a complete photo of himself, taken at Legoland. The composition was perfunctory and ordinary, and compared to the two of them, which were in a diagonal line and a close-up to set off the background, he was not even in the same league.

You wouldn't guess from photos that Chiba is a cold, icy person.

Without Higashiyama Doku, the two of them looked through the photos one by one in silence. Chiba didn't offer any comments; he simply put them away quietly.

"Aren't you going to leave me a few?" Higashiyama Shin watched as she took the whole stack away.

“Okay.” Chiba thought for a moment and gave him three personal photos that Higashiyama Shin had taken of her.

Higashiyama Shin smiled and took the photo, glancing at it. One of the photos was taken under the Ferris wheel: "Speaking of which, I've been to the Toyota Ferris Wheel before."

Chiba's eyes flickered, and he seemed slightly uncomfortable.

"As luck would have it, there was a malfunction that day. My dad was pacing around anxiously downstairs, and the only people sitting with me were Du and a girl who didn't know why she was all alone."

"The Ferris wheel was hanging in mid-air, and they were both crying so hard, clinging to me tightly and sobbing so loudly that my eardrums almost burst."

Chiba slowly lowered her head, obscuring her expression: "Is that so?"

"I remember that after we got off, the other party's father took a picture of us, but unfortunately he didn't send it to us."

"Oh"

"Oh, right." Higashiyama Shin looked like he had just remembered something.

"It's almost time." Chiba looked up, glanced at his watch, and interrupted, "Let's go to the airport."

Higashiyama Shin stopped speaking, his gaze, which held a half-smile, swept over Chiba's flushed earlobes, and he nodded gently: "Alright, let's go home."

She chose to travel back by plane again, perhaps because Chiba wanted to overcome her fear.

"Chiba-neechan, I bought some tangerines, so you can relax by squeezing them later."

Higashiyama Doku overheard their conversation that day and was thinking of giving Chiba a surprise, but the more he looked at the other person, the more strange it seemed.

It was so cold at Nagoya Airport in early May.

"It seems like oranges can't be brought on the plane," Shin Higashiyama reminded him.

"No, I specifically checked the embargo list," Higashiyama said with certainty.

Alright, now your older brother can't save you, you brat.

However, Higashiyama Du quickly realized what was happening.

"T-maybe I remembered wrong. I'll take it to the people getting off the plane." After saying that, she hurriedly ran off to the exit to give the oranges.

The three of them returned safely to Tokyo and to their tower apartment.

"Aunt Otsuka, you've been discharged from the hospital!"

In the lobby on the first floor, Dongshan Du called out with some surprise.

Dongshan Du usually says he doesn't like this strange aunt, but he's not telling the truth.

"Yes, Higashiyama-chan, it's been a long time. And Higashiyama-kun, Chiba-san."

Otsuka greeted them with a smile, and a barely noticeable hearing aid was faintly visible beneath his drooping hair.

Hearing loss is often irreversible. Given the circumstances, she was the closest survivor, and she was very lucky to have suffered such an injury.

Many people who ran even further than her were more seriously injured.

"This is a souvenir, please accept it." Higashiyama Shin took out two small frog-shaped red bean paste buns.

Yes, this thing is quite popular locally.

"Thank you." Otsuka accepted the gift with a smile. Since being discharged from the hospital, she seemed more composed than before.

"Oh, I know this. It's perfect for my granddaughter. Thank you." Uncle Sakamoto (the apartment security captain) also smiled and accepted it.

"By the way, you guys need to be careful lately. If you encounter anything unusual, remember to stay away. It's strange that the Demon Mist has killed a lot of people these days. It's because the Demon Mist has been cracking down on the yakuza. The security in Tokyo is better than ever before. It's really ironic."

Uncle Sakamoto casually offered a couple of words of advice.

Higashiyama wanted to ask about the subway incident that day, but felt it would be impolite, so he suppressed his curiosity, said something else, and then followed Higashiyama Shin home.

"I'm back!"

"What do you want to eat tonight?"

"As long as it's not eel."

"Then let's have porridge."

"it is good."

It was only a little past noon, and there was still plenty of time. Shinichi Higashiyama went back to his room and had Ueda and Higan watch Tom and Jerry together, while he used notes and code words to record the information he had accumulated over the past few days.

I wonder when I'll be able to develop a photographic memory.

Although in reality, this ability wasn't particularly useful to him.

After dinner, Chiba invited him to play badminton again.

"Let's call it a night. I want to get some rest. Traveling feels more tiring than going to class," Higashiyama Shin refused.

Refreshing the game is even more important.

Chiba didn't seem too surprised, though a strange look flashed in his eyes.

Eight o'clock.

New games have been released.

A new image has been added; the game's name is...

The Demon Blade

Chapter 143: Naomasa Ii

There are many legends about cursed swords in Japan, including those that slay gods and demons and those that bring bad luck.

If we had to name the most famous one, it would be the Muramasa, a collective name for the swords forged by the Muramasa family. However, the story behind it is actually the most normal and closest to reality among all the legends.

It has a completely different style from other works that involve slaying ghosts and killing gods.

[New games updated monthly]

[The Demon Sword (Action, Adventure): From as far back as I can remember, my father forbade me to touch this sword, but now, it's all I have left.]

Difficulty: Moderate

[Additional number of supported players: 3]

[Points cap: 500]

Without being the first to try it out, Higashiyama Shinichi set up the rewards first.

The entry reward remains the familiar protective paper doll.