The Great Hero's Fantasy Park Plan

“It’s not fair for one person to take on everything,” Suika Ibuki nodded thoughtfully, then spoke with a smile.

"I certainly won't hesitate to lend a hand if there's anything I need," Yang Xiying replied with a smile. "Anyway, let's eat first."

The banquet began, and everyone at the table chatted about recent events. Afterwards, they sought some entertainment and relaxation.

It's like playing a fast-paced dodgeball game with Fran. Both sides unleash barrages, and the one who knocks down the other wins—simple and straightforward.

I really should go and check on Master Huashan next...

Upon hearing Remilia mention the Immortal's Cave, Yang Xiying realized that it had been a while since she had seen Ibaraki Kasen.

I sparred with Mingluo this morning as a way of saying hello, and it would be nice to go see Ibaraki Kasen tonight.

After all, he had just finished a banquet with the girls and was not quite ready to meet with Yuuka Kazami. It would be good to greet an acquaintance first.

"Hua Shan isn't home."

However, just as Yang Xiying was preparing to ask Yakumo Yukari to send her to the Kasen Senfu—the Kasen Senfu is located on the Youkai Mountain in Gensokyo.

Even though the relationship between monsters and humans is not as irreconcilable as it used to be, that place is not a place that humans can enter at will.

Hua Shan had always lived in seclusion, so she hadn't informed the important figures of the Demon Mountain, which was why Yang Xiying couldn't go directly.

Unless he has the ability to suppress the monster forces of the Monster Mountain, but that would be about as difficult as going to fight Yuuka Kazami.

It wasn't suitable for the evening, so she had to ask Yakumo Yukari for help, but the other person said something that surprised Yang Xiying.

"But I haven't sensed Master Huashan in the Human Realm either?"

Yang Xiying couldn't help but speak up. He had asked Yakumo Yukari for help because he hadn't sensed Ibaraki Kasen's presence in the Human Village.

"Because Huashan has gone to the outside world, we will not see her for a long time."

Yukari Yakumo responded.

"She went to the outside world?" Hearing Yakumo Yukari say this, Yang Xiying suddenly realized something. "Did she go to find the severed arm?"

“…Oh? So Brother Yang really knows these things,” Yakumo Yukari’s lips curled up slightly when she heard Yang Xiying say that.

"Well, there's a passage in the documents I've read where Master Huashan goes out to look for his severed arm."

"Oh? Does the literature record why she went looking for that arm?"

At that moment, a new yet familiar voice rang out; it was Ibuki Suika, who materialized directly from thin air.

"Hey, I came to visit again because I wanted to play with Xiao Yang again, and then I heard some things that I was concerned about."

"Emmm," Yang Xiying had to organize her thoughts before speaking, seeing Ibuki Suika's sudden appearance.

"The reason why she wanted to find the arm goes back to her past. Ibaraki Kasen was once a wicked monster."

"But after its right arm was severed, it lost its evil aura, because the evil aura was sealed in that right arm."

"But the severed right arm did not disappear; it was merely sealed away, and it will eventually break the seal and wreak havoc on the world."

"—So Ibaraki Kasen wants to find that arm and seal it away again."

"Is that so?" Upon hearing Yang Xiying's words, Ibuki Suika nodded subconsciously, and Yakumo Yukari also spoke at this moment.

"Looking at your expression, Brother Yang, it seems you have something else to say?" She noticed the doubt on the other end of the line.

"Uh, I was just wondering if Master Huashan could seal that severed arm, since it's quite difficult."

In the original work, Kasen was not able to seal the severed arm on her own, so she still needed to rely on Reimu Hakurei, an expert in sealing.

"Perhaps Hua Shan has found a way to completely seal the severed arm. After all, she did this mainly because of you."

Yakumo Yukari spoke, which immediately made Yang Xiying show an incredulous expression. What do you mean by "because of me"?

"Because I've witnessed your talent and strength, Brother Yang. How could a mere Ghost Arm be more outrageous than yours?"

"Uh," Yang Xiying was speechless for a moment. So he had taken over Reimu Hakurei's role, right? This made him unable to help but speak.

"If that's the case, why didn't she explain it to me?" It seems that in the original story, she kept it from Reimu as well.

—In fact, telling Reimu might have resolved this matter more quickly.

"Emmmm, Xiao Yang, you know what kind of person Hua Shan was in the past, right?" Ibuki Suika asked after a moment of silence.

"—After all, you said she's a monster who does all sorts of evil."

“That’s true, but since I saw it in books and other documents, I only have reservations about it,” Yang Xiying responded calmly.

Although Ibaraki Kasen in the original work is a respectable and kind immortal who is inclined towards humanity, she also has an indelible dark history.

For Yang Xiying, this was also somewhat intolerable, after all, it involved murder, tens of thousands of people, and there was no guarantee that the people inside were innocent.

—And those she killed have been trapped in the deepest hell ever since.

After that, the Ibaraki Kasen characters he saw in various fan works were all rather despicable.

But in reality, he only met Ibaraki Kasen, who was somewhat clumsy, serious, and willing to take care of him, so he couldn't make a decisive judgment.

"Hey, really? Well, Yang, would you like to hear me talk about Huashan's past?" Ibuki Suika suddenly smiled.

"I'd like to hear more details," Yang Xiying nodded. The demons wouldn't lie, so perhaps she would hear a different version of Ibaraki Kasen than she remembered.

“…Let’s start from before she became a ghost,” Ibuki Suika said with a smile, which made Yang Xiying raise an eyebrow.

Before...becoming a ghost?

“That’s right, Kasen wasn’t a demon before, she was a human, and a human who was about to die,” Ibuki Suika said with a smile.

"Could she be an abandoned baby?" Yang Xiying couldn't help but ask at this moment, as this scenario seemed somewhat familiar.

"Ha, that's right, she was an abandoned baby, a baby abandoned by her parents, but she did have a mother who loved her."

Suika Ibuki smiled and spoke.

"After all, Huashan said that her parents said the mud balls she made were delicious, and it was later proven that she did not intentionally throw them away."

"—It's just that my mother will never come back."

"When Huashan was dying, I gave her two choices: one was to die as a kind person and end her life there."

"The second option was to wait for her mother, even if it meant becoming a villain like me. She chose the second option."

"She was healed after drinking the wine brewed with the Hundred Herbs Masu, a secret treasure of our Oni clan, but she also became one of my clansmen—an Oni."

"At this point, she also had the strength to go and find her mother, and as I just said, her mother never came back."

"She was killed, so the power she gained as a ghost at that time erupted uncontrollably, killing many people."

"Back then, as you know, the relationship between humans and monsters was not like it is now, in front of the uninformed masses."

"The feelings between the two were nothing but suspicion, fear, and hatred; they wished one of them would disappear."

"Therefore, Kasen has a grudge against humans, and in order to survive, she has no choice but to fight them to the death."

"In the process, he also became tainted by evil spirits, and in the end, his arm was severed by a powerful human, and he suffered extremely serious injuries."

"Fortunately, she survived, but she didn't resent the humans who beat her up like that. Instead, she began to reflect on her past and strive to become an immortal."

“…” Yang Xiying remained silent.

“No matter the reason, taking a life is a very heavy thing, especially for someone as sensitive as Kasen.”

Suika Ibuki continued speaking.

"She blamed herself for taking away a large number of lives, whether innocent or not, so becoming a celestial being who was inclined towards humans was also a way of atoning for her sins."

"—After seeing you, Xiao Yang, she also felt that it was time for her to atone for her sins."

"What does she want to do?" Yang Xiying couldn't help but ask, and Ibuki Suika replied directly, "Debts must be repaid, and murderers must pay with their lives."

She felt she had no right to live because she had taken someone else's life, so she hoped someone would end her life.

"After finding her own arm, because all her evil was concentrated in that arm, only by cutting off that thing could she atone for her sins."

"Therefore, she wants to find that arm, then merge with the severed arm to become a demon for humans to kill."

“And she thinks that only you, Brother Yang, can do that,” Yakumo Yukari chimed in at this moment.

"So the reason she doesn't tell you these things is quite obvious, because only in this way can you cut her down without hesitation."

Suika Ibuki added another sentence.

"After all, you said last time that you're not the kind of person who would dwell on the past, so you might have some hesitation in this regard."

"...But I know too much now, after all, you all told me that Huashan wants me to kill her."

Yang Xiying remained silent for a moment before speaking. Wouldn't this make him hesitate? After all, even this would have to consider Zi and Xigua's feelings.

"That's why we said it directly, because we didn't want you to kill her either," Suika Ibuki said matter-of-factly.

"I don't want my friend, with whom I've lived for so long, to die like this, but that's my personal opinion."

"After all, I can't guarantee whether I can save her from your hands, Xiao Yang," she said, then changed the subject.

Yang Xiying is someone who values ​​life very much, and he will never let anyone who does something to harm another person get away with it.

—Especially when it's brought up in the open.

"Moreover, by doing just what she says, you can gain a lot of reputation in Gensokyo, and you might even become a sage."

"..."

"...So, what will Brother Yang choose?" Yakumo Yukari looked calmly at Yang Xiying, waiting for his answer.

“There’s more than one way to become a sage,” Yang Xiying replied calmly, which brought knowing smiles to the faces of Ibuki Suika and Yakumo Yukari.

“Heh,” the person replied.

P.S.: This is a two-part work of 4,000 words. It borrows some elements from the setting of Cuihua Xiangxian and has been heavily modified. Please forgive me.

NO.179+180 Yuuka Kazami, the Grass Maker!

"Then we should discuss how to persuade Huashan."

Since Yang Xiying has agreed, a plan needs to be made, since Ibaraki Kasen has the idea of ​​becoming a stepping stone.

Simply offering advice won't suffice; it seems we need to take a long-term approach, so this matter can be put aside for now.

……

Gensokyo, sunflower field.

Heading in the opposite direction of the mountain into the depths of Gensokyo, you will reach a vast, dazzling yellow grassland.

That place is called the Sunflower Field, and the yellow area is a vast field of sunflowers. It is bowl-shaped, slightly tilted to the south, and is difficult to spot from a distance.

It's quite a distance from the human village, but its beauty is definitely worth seeing.

But hardly anyone visits this place, because the owner here is not an easy person to get along with, the Flower Tyrant, Kazami Yuuka.

On the surface, she is elegant and polite, but in reality, she is fierce and violent. Anyone who gets close to the flower field and picks flowers there will be attacked by her without mercy!

There was little room for resistance, because Kazami Yuuka was a true powerhouse of Gensokyo, so no one wanted to provoke her.

"Miss Kazami, I, Yang Xiying, have come here today to pay you a visit. Would you do me the honor of having the opportunity to meet and talk?"

But Yang Xiying still came here, and focused her voice into a line, transmitting it into the boundless sea of ​​flowers.

Shua——Hua——

As Yang Xiying's voice rang out, the sunflower field suddenly changed, as if the tall flowers and plants had come to life.

They moved to either side, thus creating a path, and at the end, a villa courtyard could be faintly seen.

Yang Xiying stepped onto the road and walked straight ahead. When she arrived at the courtyard gate, she found a beautiful woman with short green hair sitting in a chair, enjoying tea.

"If you do the math, it's only been a little over a month, yet the sound can travel from outside the flower field all the way here."

"You have indeed become much stronger."

She glanced at Yang Xiying, who had arrived at the courtyard gate, and slowly spoke, saying that he had arrived as promised.

"I'm just curious how much stronger they've become."

Yang Xiying's intuitive impression of herself is still that she is in the weak category, but this makes her have some expectations.

Since the other party no longer seemed tense and reserved, it appeared more like they were concealing their aura, something a strong person could do.

“If you fight me, Miss Kazami will naturally understand this,” Yang Xiying said with a slight smile.

"Ha, I hope that in such a short time you've gained more than just courage."